Guesswork

A couple of articles about music downloading caught my eye last week. The first was the news that the Songwriters Association of Canada wants somebody - the government, I guess - to tack an additional five bucks a month onto our Internet fees to help pay songwriters and artists for illegally downloaded music. I can […]

A cranky blogger at the Guardian has labelled Bob Dylan ” the biggest sellout the world has ever seen” for his recent shilling of the Cadillac Escalade. The ads feature Bob driving through the desert while mumbling an awkward pitch for the eco-disaster that is the Escalade (14 mpg city!) and his own satellite […]

From Asia, where it’s impossible to tell whether they take their Christianity very seriously or are mocking it all to hell, comes the Cross MP3 player. Manufactured by Chinavasion, this gadget is perfect for rocking out while you’re waiting to be Raptured.
The Cross comes in 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB sizes and […]

In a three-way battle royal of limelight hogs, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals are begging Britney Spears to hand her dogs over to her ex, bestubbled opportunist Kevin Federline.
Now I’m a dog lover myself (although a little peevish this morning because Rupert crapped on the carpet for no good […]

Is it just me or is that new iPod commercial with Paul McCartney a little scary?
What with the sixties burial suit, aging face, shuffling gait, and hunched over stance, he really reminds me of a reanimated corpse from the first Night of the Living Dead movie.
The funeral hootenany dance tune and psychedelic animation just […]

Rapper/pornographer/entrepreneur Snoop Dogg has been barred from visting Australia by authorities who cited “character” as the reason. While the rapper recently received 5 years probation in the US after pleading no contest to drug and gun charges, officials said that only visitors who’ve actually served time are normally welcome in this former […]

Tourism officials in England’s Lake District looking to attract a younger, hipper audience to Romantic poetry have produced a rap video using the words of William Wordsworth’s 200 year old poem “Daffodils”.
Wordsworth, were he alive today, probably wouldn’t be into hip-hop because he was something of a social conservative, and also because […]

Apple today reported the sale of their 100 millionth iPod, which, while not putting them in McDonald’s hamburger territory, is still pretty impressive for a device that’s only been around for 5 1/2 years.
In that time, they’ve been able to conquer 75% or more of the digital music marketplace in the face of competition […]

Most people manage to go their entire lives without ever having to repudiate a story like this.

Variety reports that Fox, not satisfied with a schedule disrupting 7 minute add-on to last nights show, will expand the American Idol weekly results show from half an hour to an hour. I wonder if that’s really a good idea.
Sure, it’s still getting bang up ratings, but they don’t want to get […]

Renaissance man Kevin Federline, who’s already tried his hand at everything from being Britney’s backup dancer to being Britney’s ex-husband, has found new worlds to conquer. The bestubbled alimoniast has launched Search With Kevin, a branded search engine powered by Yahoo, hubris, and K-Fed’s dubious celebrity.
The idea, like most ideas, was not conceived […]

From MTV news, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne have announced that this years’ Ozzfest will be free to fans, implying that corporate sponsorship will have to be more ubiquitous than ever to keep the tour buses gassed up and the Jagermeister flowing.
I’m not going to complain about the commercialization of rock and roll again. […]

In response to reports that mumbling music legend Bob Dylan wanted to appear on American Idol, professional mean guy Simon Cowell has said that Dylan ‘bores (him) to tears’, and that he’d rather listen to Kelly Clarkson. Cowell also said that his favorite movie is “Stop or My Mom Will Shoot” and that Steve […]

Everyone knows by now that Steve Jobs rolled out the long awaited Apple iPhone at CES yesterday, and after watching his intro I have to say it really is pretty damn cool. Simple but brilliant scrolling, all the menus touch driven, video in widescreen, phone features that make it easier to use than […]

Ok, I have to admit I came late to this particular party, but I thought it was still interesting enough to throw my two cents in. For those even further behind the curve than me, the above video features Ethan Chandler , a manager at Bank of America in New York, at some kind of […]

The times they are a’changin’, and as a result you won’t be uploading the Bob Dylan classic to your MySpace page anytime soon. A Reuters report says that social networking site MySpace has licensed a new tool to allow them to prevent users from posting unauthorized copyrighted music on the site. The technology, […]

Apple may be about to debase the pristine simplicity of the iPod. Based on a patent filed with the US Patent Office earlier this year, it looks as though an “iPhone” mobile phone handset will be launched in the near future. According to Dow Jones Newswires, a patent for a “multi-functional handheld device” […]

Just kidding. But you may get to spend Hallowe’en hanging with Britney Spears and hubby Kevin Federline at KFed’s CD release party, and who knows what could happen after a few cocktails. According to MSNBC columnist Jeannette Walls, Britney is sponsoring a contest to see which fan can help sell the most […]

Hilly Kristal , owner of legendary New York music venue CBGB & OMFUG, announced today that the club would definitely be closing at the end of October. This doesn’t have much to do with media, but it made me a little nostalgic for the hour I spent there one Sunday afternoon back in 1988 […]

I saw a photo the other day of US President George W Bush posed with the 10 American Idol finalists from the most recent season. George is wearing his usual amiable ape expression, and the Idols seem almost overcome with fresh faced Up With People glee (except for winner Taylor Hicks, who looks […]