Saturday, April 28, 2007

Hip Hop Literacy Project

Over the last several weeks, I've been volunteering at the Atwater Library for something called the Hip Hop Literacy Project. This involves teaching groups of 10-to-13 year-olds how to construct beats in Fruity Loops, write raps to put over the beats, and then - like magic! - how to put the two together.

It's been a really fun and at times hilarious experience. Some of the kids are really good at beat construction, others have really clever rhymes and surprisingly skilled deliveries, and a few have both - which is inspiring and intimidating to see in an eleven year-old kid. You're never too young to have Mad Skillz, apparently.

Anyway, this coming Tuesday (May 1st), these kids (and others) will be doing a project-end performance at the library. If you are around, I recommend coming out to see what the youth of today are capable of. The performance starts at 6pm sharp, and if the dress rehearsal I witnessed is any indication, it will totally slay.

Friday, April 20, 2007

The Graveyard & New Matrix Magazine Website

Matrix Magazine - Issue 76 is on newstands now, featuring a clean new design throughout, and carrying several pieces in memoriam of Rob Allen.

My column for this issue was written while riding subways and walking across snowy fields in the dead of Montreal's winter, listening to the iPod. I recommend that you pick up a newsstand copy of Matrix, of course, but if you visit Matrix's solid, newly designed website you can read my column, The Graveyard, there.

I'm working on the new column now, and it's 17 degrees and sunny.

Monday, April 16, 2007

The Sally Fields Are Often Confused With Sally Field

I do a solo musical performances under various names. My longest-running alter-ego is The Sally Fields, which was originally named as a mashup of The Salvation Army and Magnetic Fields - another one-man band (at least, it was when The Sally Fields started).

I consistently get emails and letters from fans of Sally Field, the actress best know for The Flying Nun, now starring in some TV hoo-haw. These emails arrive in the inbox, and always blow me away because of their sincerity.

I thought I'd include a few here, for people to check out. Take note that when people email me / Sally Field, they include their full names, email addresses, home addresses, phone numbers and in one case fax number. I have blanked all that stuff out, but I thought it was worth noting to show how open these people are (to a perfect stranger, and as it turns out, not even the one they thought):

From "Robyn":
Hey Sally,
I think you are the greatest female actor in the world. I’m 37 year old mum with 2 girls, I love you & I’m so glad to see you back on TV. Your kids are so gorgeous, you should be proud, you know I just wanted to tell you, I admire you so much that you a great person you are gorgeous BE PROUD YOU ARE ONE IN A MILLION. GO GIRL
LUV ROBYN AUSTRALIA


From "William":
You are amazingly inspirational for us all. You are a true treasure in the fortunes of time. With the world in all its broken dreams and drudgery you are a beacon to show it is still a beautiful world. If I ever make it in the entertainment industry it will be a pleasure to meet you someday. If not this is just a chance to say Thank-you. 555-555-5555 2911 Blank Blank Harbor Florida 55555

From "Bill":
Dear Sally, I am an old 85 year old fan and I have never tried to contact a movie star before, but I just wanted you to know that you are the best. You put your heart and soul into your part. My wife, Mary and me never go to movies many more, she is deaf, but if on TV, in CC, we watch it. Mary and I have been married for over 61 years and are still in love. Our love to you, Bill and Mary.

Far be it from me to make fun of the sincerity and candour in these notes. I just wanted to post them, to give a bit of an inside view of what goes on at Sally / Urban Camouflage HQ. Between receiving these notes, writing hit songs, earning millions as a journalist, and my work as a part-time Air Traffic Controller, things are very busy for me here.

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Exclaim Cup Round Up

Well, I'm back, beat up, and (of course) watching the NHL playoffs. Because this is a music blog, I'll resist writing a lot about the Exclaim Cup weekend and all the hockey that went on. I just thought I'd let you know I did a brief round up of the weekend on the Midnight Poutine blog, trying to show the Montreal connections.

On the musical side of things, I will probably never again be able to hear "Let Your Backbone Slide" without hearing it in bluegrass style. Thanks a LOT, Peterborough Pneumonia.

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Exclaim Cup Hockey Tournament Weekend

Heading down to Toronto this weekend for the 9th annual Exclaim Cup hockey tournament. This is the annual tourney for musicians and general arty-types. I am pleased to say that this will be my eighth year playing, and seventh year with the Humiliation. It has gone from a fun, overly sincere pond hockey festival (of four teams) to a 31-team mega-juggernaut(tm). But it is still a fun, competitive tournament and is always one of the highlights of my year.

I am under less pressure as I head out because the Humiliation won the coveted Dominion Cup last year, awarded to the team that "displays the most inspired artistic expression throughout the tournament". Usually around this time I'm learning how to play and sing 5 or 6 songs with switched up "comedic" lyrics. Fun, but stressful.

This year, all I have to worry about is judging other teams' performances via an ultra-secret scientific method the Humiliation is employing. It is not an exact science...it often mixes alcohol with some of the other chemicals in the lab, and research funding is generally distributed through bribes. But exact enough, I am sure.

By the way, I glaumed that image above from a schweeeeeet website that is worth checking out!

Go Humiliation Go.

Monday, April 02, 2007

The MegaNiche, The Long Tail and Some Delicious Pie

Over the last 12 hours or so I've stumbled across some very interesting articles and posts about how our shifting economies are influenced by technology. Well, technically, the economies are often shifting because of technology, but there are some interesting theories that have emerged because of all this, and for some reason, they've all come my way rather unexpectedly.

For my part, I think of record labels, and how the industry is largely being crushed due to peer-to-peer sharing, file leakage and general digital distribution. I worry about people I know who work for small labels, and bands that work their asses off to generate a fanbase; however, I also rail against copyright controls being suggested by the CRTC and other industry players that suggest keeping clocks permanently turned back, so the recording industry's outdated model can survive. While this is a huge Sarlaac pit that I am not willing to wade into, there are others (such as Michael Geist) who seem able to articulate a point and stick to it.

I am torn, of course. If consumers can get albums for free, they probably will. However, models like Chris Anderson's Long Tail theory (suggesting that smaller, niche products are more viable in today's marketplace than mainstream, shelf-reliant products), offers hope for independent labels and non-mainstream businesses. Perhaps for every 5 albums downloaded free, consumers would be inclined to buy 1 or 2 as well if they were more aware of their role in the long tail.

Also worth considering is the idea of the MegaNiche - essentially any niche, spread out over the internet-connected world - which suggests that having access to one-tenth of one percent of internet consumers still equates to a million consumers. It's an updated version of the old indie-rock concept of an audience in New York: it doesn't matter how weird or avant-garde your music is, New York is big enough that there's an audience for anything. The MegaNiche takes this idea globally, and coupled with tastemakers such as bloggers and critics, and taste-shapers such as Pandora.com, makes it possible for anyone, anywhere to fine-tune their consuming habits to the micro / individual level, and support an independent label or artist.

However, the question remains: will they?

I am not completely sure of the answer to this question - it is one I am still struggling with. However, I hope to speak to a few independent label heads in the coming weeks and get a sense of how they see the transformed economics that the internet has brought us. Is it a scourge to artists and their support system as the CRTC suggests, or is it a viable (albeit rapidly changing) marketplace that demands adaptation? I'll endeavor to find out what people have to say.

However, if you have thoughts, please leave a comment. Do you download stuff? Do you also buy stuff? Do you run / work for a label? What do you think the future holds for independent artists and their support network?