music criticism as dialogue

I thought I'd bring attention to this exchange here because I was shocked to receive a message on Facebook yesterday from a fellow research student at QUT (one whose opinion I value) stating that he thought the following blog entry was "lazy" (and presumably not worthy of further examination). The amount of time it took me to format the entry notwithstanding (folk using web 2.0 frequently underestimate the value of editors), I would like to know precisely why such a novel approach to music criticism - music criticism as dialogue: everyday conversation brought into focus via an electronic social network - merits such immediate dismissal.

At the least, I'd merit that my critic (and friend) has not thought through their reaction. Surely, dialogue is what every artist and critic seeks? One defines an artist or critic by their audience.

I was simply bringing attention to the fact there's more than one way to discuss the relative merits of a body of musical work. And that sometimes it's enough to chuck a few words into the air and see what transpires.

the art of PR and music bloggers

Thanks to Lauren Zoric for alerting me to this.

a critic is...

A Critic is a Man who Knows the Way but Cannot Drive the Car

those crazy Americans!

You gotta hand it to the (American) Federal Trade Commission for this latest brainwave. When I began reading the following entry, I had to make a quick double-check to make sure I hadn't stumbled across The Onion instead.

It's not often a Federal Trade Commission ruling upsets the musical blogosphere, but new FTC guidelines have left more than a few bloggers in a tizzy.

In an effort to make product information and online reviews more accurate, the FTC recently introduced its "Guides Concerning The Use Of Endorsements And Testimonials In Advertising." It requires, among other things, that bloggers disclose whether they received compensation in return for hyping products.

Continue reading here.

(Thank to Andrew McMillen for alerting me to this.)

the pinball effect

Reprinted from Wired March 2005, p 73:

Help! Free Music Has Taken Over My Hard Drive

[Music's] transaction cost can be as low as free ... so there's no inherent pressure to listen to it all. Repeat this a bunch of items and all of a sudden my hard drive is full of music that I've never heard, and the "digital photo effect" starts to kick in. So what do I do? I listen to the same old albums over and over, because I know I like them."

(Posted on www.rootburn.com, Rajat Paharia, former co-director of software experiences, IDEO)

Has this knock-on effect of music's accessibility on the Internet been acknowledged, or is everyone too cool to admit the same happens to them? It's what I call the "pinball effect", from when I used to drink and play pinball in American bars regularly.