Morning Music Notes – Digital Good, Physical Bad

It’s still technically the morning, but apologies for the delay – looking after someone who had ACL surgery is a touch time consuming.

Online Music Sales Up in 2011 (I Think PHM Said This Yesterday)

Good news, people who like shopping in their pajamas. Digital music sales are here to stay (assuming record companies like cash money). “Global online music revenues are expected to rise by about 7 percent this year to $6.3 billion as digital services such as Spotify and Apple Inc’s iTunes gain momentum, technology research firm Gartner said on Tuesday (via Yahoo).

“By 2015, Gartner forecasts online music spending will rise to $7.7 billion from $5.9 billion in 2010. In the same period, consumer spending on CDs and other physical music forms is seen falling to about $10 billion from $15 billion.”

“Many consumers took early advantage of the Internet to illegally share music through services like Napster, hurting music labels like Universal, Warner and EMI that still dominate the industry.

“But the convenience of legal purchasing from stores like iTunes is increasingly encouraging consumers to pay for music and the big labels are also raising more money from live music, sending many stars who had given up touring back on the road. In addition, a host of subscription services to streamed music like Spotify, Lastfm.com and Pandora are gaining popularity. These are often offered by third parties keen to exploit a new market, including Facebook and mobile operators.”

What is not noted is that piracy will continue to comprise 99% of the music downloads. Unless the death sentence is the punishment, at which point revenues will increase tenfold.

Adele Has Vocal Chord Surgery and Now Sounds Like Stephen Hawking

Adele, who has ruled the album charts since the dinosaurs roamed the planet, had surgery on her vocal chords in the US (via Guardian). Maybe now she’ll be able to sing in key! Adele had to cancel her tour after postponing several gigs, due to her ailing throat.

“The 23-year-old underwent “vocal cord microsurgery”, according to a statement from the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, USA. “Based on the advice of her doctor and voice therapist in the United Kingdom, Adele came to Boston to consult and undergo corrective voice surgery,” it said. She worked with Dr Steven Zeitels, head of the hospital’s Voice Center, who previously operated on Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler.

“Zeitels’s procedure uses specialised lasers, with Adele probably spending a couple of hours under anaesthetic. The surgery is designed to remove a benign polyp, preventing recurrent vocal cord bleeding. It comes less than a month after the singer called off her remaining 2011 appearances, and it’s hoped that the surgery will allow her to resume her busy concert schedule, including her first UK arena tour.”

What Zeitels doesn’t say is that the specialised lasers are actually sharks with laser beams attached to their foreheads, fulfilling several wish lists of Dr. Evil’s.

Andy Samberg, Like a Copycat?

Andy Samberg has enjoyed continued success through his video spoofs and comedic songs, through his Lonely Island outfit, and his regular gig on Saturday Night Live. He has made viral videos like you and I make pots of coffee – with great difficulty, I burned my bloody hand! ease. It turns out it might seem so easy because he is copying the work of others – or so the lawsuit claims (via The Hollywood Reporter).

“In a lawsuit filed in New York federal court on Thursday, Aleric Banks (aka “Rick tha Ruler”) and Monique Hines say they created the music that would form the basis of two skits on SNL, including “Shy Ronnie” and “Like A Boss.” The two plaintiffs are a St. Louis-based production team. According to an interview given to a local press outlet earlier this year, Banks and Hines had a mutual connection with Samberg and submitted some tracks as the comedian prepared to release his first album as a member of the band The Lonely Island.”

“Samberg’s band recorded the tracks, allegedly taking the plaintiffs’ copyrighted master recordings “verbatim,” and added lyrics. About a year later, after Lonely Island’s album came out, Samberg reprised a couple of the songs on SNL. On April 4, 2009, Samberg and actor Seth Rogen performed “Like A Boss.” On December 5, 2009, Samberg and Rihanna performed “Shy Ronnie,” a sketch about a bashful musician who has trouble speaking up when it’s his time to throw out a verse.”

“Initially, Banks and Hines were thrilled at the breakthrough, especially after “Shy Ronnie” was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics. Now, after failing to receive claimed credit and compensation, the two have filed a lawsuit saying that the music wasn’t really original.”

“The plaintiffs say that before the release of Samberg’s album and skits, a Universal Music Group subsidiary label sent them a “producer declaration” form. Banks filled it out by stating that as the writer and producer of “Like A Boss,” he was a 50 percent owner of the copyright. Banks says he got a response letter claiming that he had entered into an agreement with Lonely Island that only entitled him to a 25 percent copyright interest.”

Whatever happened to sharing, fellas?

The Vaccines’ New Video, Brought To You By Instagram

In the summertime, I drank WAY too much PHM told you that The Vaccines wanted you (specifically you) to submit pictures for use in their new music video. They ended up with 2433 photos submitted, plus plenty of website hits and media coverage (via Hypebot). Well, now the video is complete and you can see if you can spot yourself, or me, passed out under a tree. From the heat, not from too much booze…

The Vaccines – Wetsuit
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