8Sided Blog

the scene celebrates itself

Spotify’s Auto-Play Means Less Royalty For Songwriters

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An astute observation by Billboard:

Although songwriters, publishers, or everyday people may not be aware, Spotify — like YouTube — has now moved to a model that auto-plays songs after a user listens to one they selected. […]

On the plus side, what this does is keep listeners engaged on the site, which is a benefit that Spotify likes. And it has the potential to turn listeners on to more music, a benefit that all rights owners, publishers, songwriters, labels and artists should like. And it steers payments to artists and songwriters whose songs weren’t chosen to be played.

But it represents a downside in per-stream payments for songwriters and artists, too. Since the payout pool is divided by streams, the more streams that occur in a month, the further the per-stream payout decreases. In addition to songs that users choose to play, their devices will automatically play other songs after they hear the song they wanted. Who knows how many additional plays accrue due to automation — but it’s safe to say those plays are further diluting the per-stream payout for artists and songwriters whose songs the consumer chooses to play.

I also believe Spotify’s auto-played songs fall under ‘non-interactive streaming’ (AKA ‘internet radio’). This means that mechanical royalty does not apply. So this auto-play feature may partly serve to lessen a user’s amount of ‘interactive’ streams, allowing the platform the decrease its overall royalty pay-out.

Please correct me if I’m wrong. But if I’m right, and you’re a Spotify user, maybe think about turning off the auto-play mechanism in the app’s settings.

🔗→ The CRB Rate Trial Explained: How Publishers, Digital Services Weighed In At The Time

Bound for SXSW

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I’m heading off to SXSW tomorrow for a few days of meet-ups and hellos and hobnobbing. It’s been about a decade since I attended the Austin-based conference, and, in the past, I was there as a performer. So this will be my first time at SXSW solely for business. I expect that change of dynamic, as well as the exponential growth of the conference over that past decade, to give me multiple moments of overwhelm. I can deal.

One place where you can find me is Friday (March 15) at Shangri-La around 3:30 in the afternoon. Super cool 8D Industries flagship band Monta At Odds will be playing the MidCoast Takeover showcase at that time. You shouldn’t miss them as they rarely (if ever) play outside of Kansas City. And I’ll be there so be sure to say ‘howdy.’

If you can’t make Shangri-La on Friday but might like to meet up in Austin then feel free to shoot me an email and let’s see what happens.

I will try to report in from SXSW but I’m not making any promises! At the very least, expect a recap upon my return.

Spotify is “Effectively Suing Songwriters”

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Music Business Worldwide:

Yesterday (March 7), it emerged that four major owners of digital music services – Spotify, Amazon, Google and Pandora – had lodged legal appeals against the US Copyright Royalty Board’s recent decision to raise streaming royalties for songwriters (and music publishers) by 44%. That royalty rise, which previously looked locked in, is now in serious jeopardy.

Apple Music, in contrast, has accepted the new rates, and declined to challenge what’s viewed as an important pay hike for songwriters.

Remember when Kendrick Lamar and (reportedly) other artists threatened to pull music from Spotify over the arbitrary ‘hate conduct’ ban policy? Spotify quickly backtracked. This might be another opportunity for artists to show Spotify and the streaming industry who really needs who more.

And, as with privacy, Apple continues to brand themselves as the company that does the right thing. I’ll contain my cynicism (which I have for any corporate organization) and say ‘good on them.’

🔗→ Wait… Spotify is ‘suing songwriters’? What the heck is going on?

Notice How TV Music Is Getting a Lot Cooler?

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In a recent piece, Noisey explores the rise of independent artists working on scores for television programs, such as Julia Holter‘s work on the UK Channel 4 show Pure. Music supervisor Jen Moss explains how the scoring landscape is now a bit more adventurous:

“Things like cable channels and streaming platforms are allowing for slightly more leftfield storytelling and non-traditional narratives and voices,” she explains. “The creatives behind them want to to extend that experimentation into the music as well. So what we’re getting now is a move away from all the orchestral traditional scores you used to tend to get, into soundscapes that are as artful and unique as the visuals they’re accompanying.”

I imagine another factor is that so much content is created now, with even more on the way as new streaming networks from the likes of Disney and Apple appear on the horizon. With all these shows, studios are going to unexpected (and lower budgeted) places to fill composer shoes.

But the odd tone of the article stood out to me:

The trend of indie artists scoring films is finally trickling down to TV. But while on the surface it might appear like a winning arrangement for both artists, TV creators and small screen bingers alike, underneath it reveals a darker truth about how indie musicians are increasingly being forced to diversify in a time of crushingly low streaming platform royalties railroading acts into exhausting cycles of touring.

Weird. Even before streaming, indie musicians would jump at the chance to score for TV. And I don’t think I’ve ever discussed goals with a songwriter or producer without ‘scoring a film or TV show’ coming up. Yes, diversification is essential for musicians in 2019 and non-stop touring sucks. But artists given opportunities to work on television is often considered a golden opportunity, despite streaming’s impact.

🔗→ TV’s ‘Golden Age’ Has an Extra Meaning for Indie Musicians

You Don’t Have To Read ‘Atrocity Exhibition’ To Name Your Song

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Previously I mentioned that Brian Eno and David Byrne named their seminal album My Life in the Bush of Ghosts without reading the book of the same title. The latest issue of Philip Christman’s The Tourist newsletter talks about other song titles taken from unread books:

Joy Division recorded the song “Atrocity Exhibition,” which in mood and feel is a pretty exact match to the almost unendurably grim J.G. Ballard novella of the same name. JD and Ballard are often mentioned together, as having a similar sensibility. But Ian Curtis wrote the song without having yet read the book–all he needed was the title. It’s as though he knew the book without knowing it. The inspiration for Kate Bush’s “Wuthering Heights” was her catching the last few minutes of a 1967 TV adaptation of the novel as a child; though she did eventually get around to reading the book, you get the sense that her doing so was almost an afterthought. The song is about those last couple minutes, that demanding ghost at the window, as seen by a nine-year-old musical genius. {…}

{A way to think about it} is that our half-formed conceptions and the things that inspire them are both actualities–the song Ian Curtis started hearing in his head when he learned that there existed a novel called The Atrocity Exhibition and the actual novel, The Atrocity Exhibition, are both real things, and they need to be kept in some sort of ecological balance in order for both to fully exist. The song isn’t ready to confront the novel until it’s had some time to grow.

I remember, in my teenage punk band, naming songs after artsy books and movies I hadn’t read or watched. My motivation was to appear smarter and more rounded than I was but, I assume, it’s the same end result as Christman notes above. ‘Art’ is shaped by the ghosts and impressions of its inspirations, despite whether those inspirations are fully ingested or understood.

🔗→ The Tourist–Volume 65

SoundCloud’s Distribution: Not Taking a Cut?

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Kori Hale in Forbes:

SoundCloud’s new Premiere distribution channel should streamline the money artists receive from various platforms, and help monetize their music through a revenue sharing program. By Investing in tools artists need, CultureBanx reported they can offer more value and potentially become a more profitable company, instead of trying to directly compete with Apple Music and Spotify.{…}

SoundCloud won’t take a cut of the payouts artist receive from the other music streaming services. The new distribution tool will be available to eligible SoundCloud Pro $6/month and SoundCloud Pro Unlimited $12/month subscribers.

As MusicAlly reported, SoundCloud’s distribution engine is powered by FUGA. I can’t imagine FUGA isn’t taking a cut, so my guess is that SoundCloud won’t take anything off the net received from FUGA. If SoundCloud is selling this as if artists will get the full distributor percentage from Spotify and Apple Music it’s disingenuous. Does anyone know the deal?

🔗→ SoundCloud’s Urban Culture Streams Into Spotify & Apple Music

Spotify and the GIF as Album Cover

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via Hypebot:

Spotify is beta testing Canvas, a new feature which allows artists and labels to add a fullscreen, 3-8 second moving visual to tracks. It replaces cover art and will loop in the Now Playing view of the Spotify app.

Remember when a few ambitious bands released LPs with trippy 3D covers, and you had to wear special glasses to appreciate the artwork? This is kind of like that but also nothing like that at all.

This GIF linked in the article shows the feature in action. Though that example is a bit underwhelming, it does give an opening taste of how streaming platforms will utilize visuals. The forever morphing album cover isn’t far off.

Some people aren’t having it. Via Lifehacker:

I think Canvas is a neat idea—it’s essentially an album art GIF—but I tend to listen to Spotify rather than watch it, so the idea of an endlessly looping video seems like a silly waste of data. Spotify says Canvas is “optimized to use very little data and battery,” so I don’t want to overemphasize the impact of turning it off, but it’s still something you should consider if you don’t want the annoyance.

🔗→ With Spotify Canvas, Artists Add Moving Visuals To Tracks
🔗→ How to Get Rid of Spotify’s Looping ‘Canvas’ Videos

An Interview with 5 Magazine

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Some self-referential housekeeping: the wonderful and kind 5 Magazine just published an interview with yours truly where I dive deep into all things Eighth Dimension and 8D Industries. I also talk a bit about my personal philosophy of running a label and releasing music. I’m super happy with how this conversation came out — it’s an accurate picture of who I’ve been, what the hell I’m doing, and where my head’s going. This section of the interview is a perfect summary of my outlook:

The main constraints that you should be worried about are the ones you impose on yourself. Fixations on social media numbers, coverage in the hippest blogs, and getting that A-list DJ to play your record are distractions that hold you back, especially when you’re just starting.

As music artists (or creative artists in general) we have to understand the long game. And we have to be into it, and I mean really into it, otherwise the long game becomes unbearable. Once you understand the long game you’re playing, and the patience required, and accept the freedom that now exists to do whatever you like creatively, the pressure’s off, and the fun begins.

🔗→ (Re)Introducing… 8D Industries

P.S. More housekeeping: I’m claiming this blog on Bloglovin and I’m required to put this code somewhere on the site → Follow my blog with Bloglovin … and, yes, please follow this blog if you’re on Bloglovin.

The Global Reach of Afrobeats

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Here’s a fascinating documentary video from Quartz about the Nigerian phenomenon of afrobeats and how it’s influencing musical trends worldwide:

Musical movements start in a city or territory (hip hop = The Bronx, grunge = Seattle, techno = Detroit/Chicago, etc), encouraged by a scene that is mutually supportive and feeding off itself. Afrobeats is interesting as its spread is energized by a Nigerian diaspora — ex-pats enthusiastically supporting the scene from other countries. As you see in the video, the most influential afrobeats radio show is based in London, after all — not Nigeria.

Musical movements now are subtle, flavoring existing styles rather than replacing them. This won’t satisfy those hoping for the sudden arrival of a radical new genre, but it is evidence of music trends shifting in a constant, globalized state of flux.

🔗→ Quartz Obsession: Afrobeats

Merzbow Inspires Podcast Reflections

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The Wire:

A new underground music podcast has set itself a mighty challenge: to listen to and discuss one-by-one the albums of Japanese noise godfather Merzbow. Each episode of Merzcast sees Greh Holger of Chondritic Sound and another musician or noise fan sit down together to absorb a particular album by Masami Akita and reflect on it afterwards. […]

The podcast episodes are lengthy and detailed, with the contributors breaking down the album track by track, dropping thoughts on equipment, effects, track titles and more. Pictures posted online show sheets of paper with notes on each track written during the listening sessions …

I love the idea of this podcast. Merzbow is a tough swallow for most and it might be a challenge to keep the podcast fresh over hundreds of brutal noise releases. I’ll check out at least a couple of episodes and am curious how it’ll shake out.

I’m intrigued by the idea of a podcast diving into a singular sonic oeuvre. I’m sure something like this has been done before but I think there are unexplored ways to combine the album-listening experience with the podcast format. Of course, there are music clearance issues to consider. But the podcast doesn’t have to actually contain the music. How about a podcast host telling the listener when to start an album at home, and then the discussion is edited to coincide with songs as they play in real time?

🔗→ New podcast Merzcast sets out to listen to the discography of Merzbow