I’ve had my ear to the ground for this for a year now, when rumours of the product first started to surface. By all accounts the service has been ready to launch for quite some time and it has been reaching deals with the labels which has held back the announcement.

Here’s an overview of Music Beta from Google:

The service will be available to users by invitation only at first, and it may still be some time before it’s available in the UK.

It certainly looks good and given Apple’s failure to provide a cloud based Itunes service, I have a feeling this is not going to be another unsuccessful launch for google.

Good news for Android users, but the question remains: Will we ever see it on Apple devices?

I hope so.

Google announces ‘Music Beta’ cloud based service. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

Thing is… they are very little to do with music and more to do with popularity.

The awards are handed out to the most commercial artists. That wouldn’t be such a bad thing if sales numbers reflected musical talent.

While teenage girls and the lesser musically informed among us might be pleased that  Take That and Justin Bieber receive awards for “Best Group” and “Best International Breakthrough Act”, the rest of us have to wonder whether the musical champions of Afghanistan might be more suited to our tastes.

But we can sit and moan about the commercial nature of our music Industry, or we can do something to reward good music.

So I say, stuff the Brits, I’m giving out The Dave Prize.

I was gonna use one of my nice Belgian beers, but I thought the shinny chrome of a tin of T would be more appropriate (maybe I can get Tennent’s in as a paying sponsor next year).

As well as being a coveted musical accolade, The Dave Prize is also a refreshing beverage. Two things a Brit award will never be.

The criteria for selection is simple… I will pick the best musical artist or group of 2010, according to me. That’s it.

I will mull it over for the next few hours, but the votes have kinda been counted. I know what I like, so barring some unforeseen mind-control incident, there should be little controversy in the result.

Please let me know your suggested nominations… they might make it into the short-list.

Just don’t moan when your favourite doesn’t win the prize, it’s my award! You can always give out your own.

The nominations and winner will be announced in another post, so if you haven’t already, make sure you subscribe for updates.

The Dave Prize will be sent to the winner after the announcement…

Apologies for the lack of glamorous event – maybe next year. No red carpet though, just a few jars in the local boozer. Maybe get the land lady to announce the winner out of a fancy sealed envelope.

Stuff the Brits, I’m giving out my own Award. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

Not like Steve Jobs to Present a shit product.

Last week, during a presentation to the Media by CEO Steve Jobs, Apple unveiled Ping, the star feature of the latest version of their Music and Media Management Software, ITunes 10. I watched the presentation live and I have to admit to a bit of scepticism as I was watching, although I decided to reserve judgement until I had at least played about with it a bit over the weekend.

Having done so, my verdict is as overwhelming as to most the presentation was uncharacteristically underwhelming:

Ping is SHIT!

Let’s take a look at the seven reasons why, I think, Ping is so totally SHIT…

1. Ping does not take into account artists in your music collection before recommending artists to follow.

After downloading the new version of Itunes you can access your Ping profile by following the link under that of the Itunes Store, start adding personal details, and start following other users as well as artists.

But Ping does not look at what artists are in your music collection before making recommendations. Instead promoting the likes of Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift to everyone, regardless of music taste.

2. Ping recommendations don’t get any better even after you have started following your favourite artists.

This might be down to there still being a limited amount of bands with public profiles only a few days after the network’s launch, but come on Apple… Shakira? You already know that I am into Nine Inch Nails and Soundgarden…

3. You cannot connect to Facebook to find your friends there…

Now, to the fair to Apple, this was one of the features, which unfortunately got removed after a day due to Apple and Facebook failing to agree an arrangement to use the service. It’s not the first time Facebook has cut off an application from the Facebook Connect API. Sites with a lot of users do require a special agreement.

Had I been quicker in downloading Itunes10, I would have been able to connect to my Facebook Friends who are also on Ping, and might have felt slightly different about it.

Until Apple are able to get this back on, and that’s a big IF, I will not be moved from my stance that Ping is a load of crap.

4. There is also no other way of finding or inviting your friends in bulk.

Come on Apple… do you really expect me to type all of my friends email addresses, one by one, so that I can connect or invite them to join? Maybe in 1998, but with the portability API’s out there today, why should I?

Even if Facebook isn’t playing ball, you can still use OAuth to let me find my Twitter connections. Or at least let me import my email contacts!

5. You can’t send updates out to Facebook or Twitter.

You cannot call an application Social, if it is not going to allow it’s users to communicate with their friends where they happen to be, and for most people that will be not be in Ping, but in Facebook or Twitter.

It’s as simple concept, and the reason music applications like Spotify, which are truly Social, are so popular.

You are missing a big trick there Steve-O…

People aren’t about to ditch their online hang-outs to go chill at your shop. But let them bring their Facebook and Twitter conversations to it, and you might just bag a few new customers.

Spotify lets you find your friends on Facebook, share tracks and playlists and send updates out to Facebook and Twitter.

6. (This one has less to do with Ping itself, and more with Itunes) Still no Music Locker!

Late in 2009 Apple acquired Lala, an online music service with the technology to allow users to scan their music collections and access all those songs on Lala, from whatever web connected device they chose. Anywhere!

In May Apple closed down Lala, prompting speculation that they were about to add their technology to Itunes, and that Iphone and Ipod touch users would soon be able to access their music collections from the cloud…

Alas, we are still waiting for that.

It isn’t clear yet what Apple’s objective was in this acquisition. Were they genuinely interested in their technology, or were they just eliminating a potential competitor?

Either way, it looks like Apple is  siding with the major labels, who do not like the idea of users being able to access one copy of their content from multiple devices.

7. No Music Sharing.

Ok, I might be asking for a bit much. Sharing links to tunes is something that is possible on streaming services like Spotify, Last.fm and Grooveshark because there is a per play royalty involved. And the labels are still very weary of these, as there is only a fraction of the money in per play royalties as there is in CD and download sales.

But who is to say that there isn’t  a feasible business model for a controlled sharing of owned copies of songs? If you can share CD’s with your friends, then why the hell should you not be able to share a link to a tune, which your friend can listen to, say once or twice before access expires?

If I was an artist (or a label executive for that matter), I like to think that I would be quite happy if people were able to share my material freely. I might get a lot more fans, and ultimately paying customers, than I might otherwise.

Of course, for that to happen there would have to be a music locker on the cloud in place first… and for that to happen, Apple will likely require the approval of the major record labels.

So the question really is… Will the labels ever see this opportunity, or will they continue to protect their old publishing interests?

I suspect they won’t see sense any time soon.

So… Do you think Ping is shit?

7 Reasons why Apple’s Ping is totally SHIT. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

They may not understand the law too great either, as parodies of copyrighted material is allowed under copy-right laws.

(That was a bit of banter, Mr EMI lawyer, not meant to be taken literally. I just dislike corporate blood suckers. Other people are free to like corporate blood suckers if they like, I wont force my doctrine on them)

To be fair to them, they  know that Youtube have a policy of taking down all videos subject of a DMCA take-down while originators go through a mountain of bureaucracy to have them reinstated. Oh well. You can still see the video for ‘Newport State of Mind’, filmed by Welsh people and inspired by Alicia Keys and Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind”, elsewhere on the internet.

Newport State of Mind by Seventeen from AarOne Seven on Vimeo.

Spoof Newport State Of Mind removed from YouTube following EMI DMCA take-down. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

In 2007 ,following their release from EMI, Radiohead released their seventh studio album “In rainbows” as a download for “pay what you like”, before the CD went on sale in record shops. Now the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has issued Google with a take-down notice for blogger sites containing these digital files, as well as other albums.

While Radiohead may have stopped short of releasing the recording under a creative commons license for free, I think this poses an interesting question. Did Radiohead complain to RIIA prompting this take-down notice or  can RIIAhave stepped over their remit?

The reason I find this interesting is because it doesn’t seem like something Radiohead would complain about. Yes, the limited time offer of “pay what you like” for the download was still a commercial offering, but it gave big clues of whatRadiohead were already thinking then… that the future of music distribution would involve free, and free of restrictions content… and that a bands earning potential will come more in touring, which can only be helped by unrestricted access of their music for everyone.

Maybe I am wrong, and will issue updates on this post based on the band’s and the industry’s response. I would just love for RIIA to have gone ahead of themselves and end up getting their filthy fascist knuckles wrapped.

What do you think?

RIAA orders Google to take down sites sharing Radiohead album, but did Radiohead sanction this? is a post from: evenflowdave.com

If you are anything like me, you need some rebel music to inject some enthusiasm into your freedom-fighting days . Usually that means playing some rage against the machine or looking up some old ‘The Clash’ or ‘Sex Pistols’ anthems on spotify, but isn’t there any new stuff? Some new rebel juice just jumped into my sound-cloud drop box courtesy of The Class War Kids and Rebel Time Records.

Have a listen to one of their tracks ‘One last Struggle’.

TheClassWarKids-OneLastStruggle by rebel time records

This is all that I expect from anarchist punk-rock. Manic, bonkers, politically-charged energy (the likes of which I always expect from bands like green day but never quite feels enough).

This reminded me that I have been trying to put together a public Spotify Play-list of Rebel Anthems, which I will link to from here. I have a few on the list, but I need your help for the rest… Please leave your suggestions in the comments…

Oh, and what do you think about The Class War Kids?

One last Struggle for Rebel Music [The Class War Kids] is a post from: evenflowdave.com

Who doesn’t like a bit of classic American Rock?

I have to say, easy-listening rock is not really my thing, but I can see myself chilling to The Telephones with a beer this summer more than once.

The Telephones are a four man indie-rock band from New York. They started out with just Jesse Adelman (guitar + vocals) and Bradley Albert (keyboards), who in 2002 released their first EP entitled “Music for Babies”, following it up in 2005 with the full-length album “Fight Night at Rodeo Dodo” before Anton Kreisl (bass) and Mike Reed (drums) joined the band.

Their latest work, Volume 1 (EP), 2009, includes the tracks: ‘Libertine’, which is the EP’s leading track, and ‘Life is Great’. The Latter of which I just cannot stop listening to

Here they are…

“Life Is Great” -The Telephones Vol. 1 by Vintage Hustle Inc.

“Libertine” – The Telephones Vol. 1 by Vintage Hustle Inc.

Some of their tracks are a bit of a throwback to old American Rock, particularly “Libertine”, which has a very bluesy, almost southern-style sound.

That might not be absolutely every-one’s cup-of-tea, but what no one can deny is the quality of Jesse’s song writing and, for an unsigned band, the quality of the production of their tracks.

If that isn’t enough reason to look them out, take a look at one of their live performances, which are obviously very well practiced. A very accomplished live sound…

Definitely one of those bands that are worth going to see live. Even if easy-listening American Rock isn’t really your thing.

What do you think?

Rocking on the Telephone to NYC. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

How the mighty fall. MySpace was not so long ago the go to place for social networkers. But that was an age past in web trend years. Facebook, with it’s simple and unclutered design and intuitive features is now the place to be.

But MySpace was never really invented with Social Networking for the masses in mind, so should they be disappointed to have lost the Social Networking crown to Facebook?

Sometimes you have to remember where you came from and return to your roots. And for MySpace, that is Music.

Since their new CEO,  Owen Van Natta, took over last year, it has been clear that is exactly what MySpace are doing. Their new focus… to be the undisputed online platform for Entertainment.

They have definitely been making some very clever decisions, like bringing Gaming into the Mix and implementing Facebook Connect. The latter is further proof that they have given up on competing with Facebook in the personal profile space and instead opted to focus on music, films and gaming and leverage Facebook traffic to bring consumers into MySpace.

But they are missing a massive trick….

What is the single best feature on display in a MySpace page? The thing that we all go straight for when we click through to a bands profile… The Music Player.

That MySpace Music Player is to music, what the Youtube Player is to video. With one massive difference. You can take the Youtube Player with you into Blogs, Websites, Facebook, MySpace… everywhere, but the MySpace Music Player is not embeddable!

MySpace, are you mad?

I’ve been getting asked to write quite a few band reviews recently, and the place I generally go to to get a feel for their music is MySpace. Yet when it comes to giving my readers a sample within the post, it is services like Sound Cloud that provide me  with the ability to embed tracks onto my page.

Why would you not want to make your best feature available outside of your site, MySpace? Don’t you want traffic from blogs?

The best thing about MySpace, which doesn’t exist. is a post from: evenflowdave.com

I think just about everyone accepts that, with virtually unlimited supply, there was never going to be as much money in it. That is, not enough for Rock Stars to live the “Rock Star” lifestyle that so many dream about.

But could it be enough for those who have genuine passion for music to make a living from it?

This info-graphic by the guys at informationisbeautiful.net is quite interesting, but while it shows how difficult it is for bands to make money online (from the perspective of a traditional business model), it does not represent the opportunities and hopes of the many artists who, in my opinion, will make a living from music online.

The graphic represents how much artists are making from soft sales compared to physical media

This is the image that the big record labels and traditional media corporation are trying to sell to the content creators and consumers, through initiatives like their campaign to have the Digital Economy Act (#DEACT) passed through parliament.

But it is not as simple as this. The business model that the big record labels had always operated under is one where there was very little competition, replication could only be done by professionals (without losing too much sound quality) and that because of that they could make massive amounts of money from the few artists they decided to back.

Fast-forward to 2010 and competition is (or should be) endless, as bands can very easily record decent material from their bedrooms. Replication is quality-perfect and songs and playlists can be shared with all your friends through social media – in seconds.

So what the old-guard are trying to do is say: ‘Hold-on, technology and innovation are not good for our business, therefore development and the openness of the web must be reigned back’.

But shouldn’t the message be that the music industry, as we know it, is dead, and we need to invent a new music industry… one that is aided and not hindered by technology and the spitit of a free and open web?

Can music artists make a living from online downloads and streaming royalties? #DEACT is a post from: evenflowdave.com

When I think about Greek Gods, I imagine them observing their meager human followers from fluffy white clouds, throwing down the occasional thunder storm..

Handling angelic rebellions and wars…

Throwing wild parties and orgies…

All to a soundtrack of Psychedelic Rock!

That’s the way I would have done it if I was Zeus

‘Sleepin Pillow’ are a Greek alternative Rock band whose atmospheric sound would fit the part.  And I am sure that Apollo, the God of Music, would approve.

They are certainly worth a listen, especially if you like instrumental music.

Their songs do include English lyrics – softly sung by Nomik in a Greek accent – but these  merely add another kaleidoscopic layer to the sound. Think Tool meets Enigma.

The band has been quite successful in Greece, where their album “Apples on an Orange Tree” (Published by Shift Records) was included in the Top Five Greek Albums release in 2008, while the video for ‘Amplifier in my heart’ received significant airtime in local tv stations.

And their live shows sound pretty special…

“Supported by a light show and visual projection crew, Sleepin Pillow’s live performance is a unique experience as the 6 members appear on stage under a disguise that gives a flavour of drama to each concert.”

I would certainly go to see them if they came to the UK. I have asked their PR company to let me know of any planned shows in the UK or elsewhere in Europe and will update this post with their response.

In the meantime you can listen to some of their tracks here…

10 – Sleepin Pillow – Masterpiece by Sleepin Pillow

04 – Sleepin Pillow – An Idiot’s Point Of View by Sleepin Pillow

02 – Sleepin Pillow – Silicone by Sleepin Pillow

What do you think? Will you be adding a bit of Greek Goth to your parties?

Greek Gods of Psychedelic Rock – Sleepin Pillow (band). is a post from: evenflowdave.com