We were hoping today’s post would be a tribute to England’s great triumph over Germany. We were prepared to scour YouTube for the best (or worst) English football chants we could find, like the controversial crowd favorites “Ten German Bombers” and “Two World Wars, One World Cup”. But not even a stadium full of rousing anti-Deutschland chants could save England during the match this past weekend.

Instead of dwelling on the past or arguing over missed goals, today’s post is dedicated to our German friends. It’s an inspiring story about a German pop song, a parody football song, and a few lucky university students who landed a record deal.

It all started back in May, when 19-year-old singer Lena Meyer-Landrut won the Eurovision Song Contest for Germany. With over 18 million YouTube hits, her song “Satellite” has become an über-hit:

Not long after the Lena phenomenon, some clever university students wrote new lyrics to the song in honor of the German football team, and recorded “Schland o Schland”:

Their music video went viral and was hastily removed by EMI, the rights holders of the original song. But it wasn’t long before Lena’s label, Universal Music, saw the potential for this song and struck a deal with this new “band”, Uwu Lena (after the German football star Uwu Seeler and Lena).

“Schland o Schland” has become a fresh new football anthem, but will the band’s fame last beyond 15 minutes? They’re probably just hoping Germany stays in this World Cup as long as possible…

Charlie McCarron
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Special thanks to Spiegel Online for their coverage of this story.

A slightly different look at the value of sonic branding…I recently applied for tickets to see Aerosmith at O2 this summer. The face price was quoted at £140 and the lead singer Steve Tyler is not even in the line up! This whole business of the price of tickets seems to be following me around. My manicurist(!) a big gig fan challenged me the other day with ‘You are in the Music Business, why do we have to pay so much to see the bands nowadays?’ From my perspective that is an easy one to answer – if we are not paying anything or anywhere near enough for downloads (and please don’t get me started on THAT whole debate), then the bands have to make money somewhere for their art and the easiest place is live performance and merchandising.

So this morning whilst reading the paper and eating my breakfast, I was more than interested to spot the headline “Pink Floyd in Victory to stop EMI selling singles”. It would seem that PF have successfully won the argument that when they originally made their albums, they had a contract with EMI that specified which tracks could be released as singles.

‘The dispute centred on a line in the contract stating, “There are no rights to sell any or all of the records as single records, other than with [Pink Floyd’s] permission”. EMI claimed that this applied only to physical copies of songs, but the band argued successfully that it also applied to songs sold online. The judge said the purpose of a clause in the contract was to “preserve the artistic integrity of the albums”‘.
The Times 12^th March 2010

For what it’s worth, I have to say that I am fully in agreement with PF. The original albums were developed and released as a whole, with an idea being developed through out the 10-12 tracks that enabled fans to get an insight into where they were thinking, feeling or going as a band at the time of the release. Any singles would have been on the basis of the band having artistic control over what they wanted us to know about them or what they wanted to emotionally underline. Arbitrarily breaking an album is almost like taking a book of photographs, tearing out the pages and selling them separately, or editing an hour-long documentary and giving us 3 min sound bites. Yes, they make sense and can exist on their own, but they do not tell the whole story.

Pink Floyd are one of the superstar bands that have survived the test of time – a brand in their own right. They have sold more than 200 million albums during their career and have been one of the EMI’s most lucrative acts. How many other superstar artists from the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties will now be thinking the same thing: ‘Did I approve single tracks to be sold as single downloads?’ As I write this, I think I can hear the rustle of old contracts being hauled from storage and the sound of lawyers rubbing their hands. I actually have some sympathy for the record companies – we need to remember that they haven’t always been the bad guys and did a great job developing artists when we were all buying music. But it would seem they are now paying dearly for their short sightedness when Steve Jobs offered them ridiculously low royalty rates on each download as a way to take on piracy. At that moment in time they were holding all the cards i.e. all the content for a delivery platform that would have been obsolete before it began, no matter how beautiful the design. The repercussions of that decision are just beginning to reveal their hand. And as someone who avoids litigation at all costs, I have to say that I wish them luck. It’s about time someone stepped up to the plate and said NO, that’s enough.

Ruth Simmons, CEO
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Everyone in the recording business felt it coming – the growing stampede of internet-savvy listeners who got a taste of free music and never went back. While many cynics see this as a harbinger of doom for the music industry, optimists like Terry McBride see this transformation in listener behaviour as an opportunity to rethink the system. McBride believes the focus needs to shift away from monetizing music files, because he predicts our desire to “own” music will fade away in the next few years.

“The iPod is over,” says McBride, referring to the hassle of downloading and organizing music files. If his predictions are correct, on-demand streaming programs like Spotify and Last.fm will inevitably change our cultural instinct to collect CDs, download mp3s, or otherwise “own” a music library. Instead, we will have instant access to any piece of music ever recorded (just check out the YouTube-based Muziic.com if you don’t agree). Who wouldn’t want infinitely free music?

There still may be a part of us that isn’t convinced. Why should I replace my personal, meaningful album collection with a vast, impersonal database of songs somewhere up in the clouds? This question is one at the heart of the new music revolution, and it’s precisely the point McBride is getting at. According to McBride, it’s no longer content that matters, but the music’s context. The new industry leaders will be those who create the most emotionally engaging system for listening to and discovering music.

Back in 2002, Wired’s co-founder Kevin Kelly wrote an insightful article on the digital music revolution:

“Copies are so ubiquitous, so cheap (free, in fact) that the only things truly valuable are those which cannot be copied. What kinds of things can’t be copied? Well, for instance: trust, immediacy, personalization.”

In other words, we don’t need a gigantic database of music files, we need a friend who finds us awesome music we will like. When the music is free and infinitely reproducible, real-life human recommendations become the precious commodity. Talent scouts will be leaders in this new music industry – heartening news for the music supervisors, reviewers, DJs, and mixtape junkies of the world.

Charlie McCarron, Sound Consultant
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You know how it is on Sunday morning. Sitting back, tea in hand, lazily leafing through the papers – not really reading, just vaguely capturing the headlines. But this week, one particular story in The Sunday Times caught my eye. Beware, iPod zombie cyclists are on the rise the headline warned, followed by the image of a cyclist wearing some serious headphones but no helmet. Now that’s a worrying thought.

Here’s another worrying thought. According to my children, I have a tendency to move very rapidly from one apparently disconnected idea to another before settling on one, final thought – a trait they affectionately describe as my ‘ipod shuffle mode’. So is this the first sign of my mature years creeping up on me? I don’t think so. And I’m beginning to sense that I’m not alone.

Our 30-second attention spans appear to have evolved into something of a modern-day survival function – affecting the way we read, watch, shop and buy. We live in an age where information is more accessible than ever before, but the very amount of data we encounter makes it all less meaningful. It has also impacted hugely on the way we consume music.

In the 1960s we would invest hours in discovering the meaning behind certain music – listening to albums over and over, learning every lyric, knowing every chord. We wanted to understand every element of a song and resonate wholly with the artist. But today, we leave ourselves with little time to really digest what we are hearing and within seconds are hankering to move on to the next offering.

So before my concentration quota for the day runs out let me put this out there. Is the 30-seconds we spend on listening to a track on iTunes before flicking to the next the equivalent of a watching a TV commercial? Are we choosing music based on as little information as that, and with as much distraction surrounding it?

Answers in 30-second sound bites please…

Ruth Simmons, CEO
soundlounge

The soundlounge jukebox is our outlet for sharing the cream of the music industry with all. Updated every few weeks, it offers a chance for people who don’t have much time to sample good quality music, whether new releases or hidden gems from the archives. We receive music from all the majors, indies, publishers and sometimes the artists themselves and will bring to your desk (and attention) some of the most interesting and diverse music out there.

Visit the soundlounge jukebox to hear the following tracks.

Love You Better – The Maccabees
After breaking onto the scene in 2004 with a song about a swimming pool, the Maccabees seem to have grown up. Their first album had a innocent charm in its angular songs and with the help of Orlando Weeks’ distinctive vocals they carved themselves a place in a scene full of bands trying to be the Libertines. Their second album sees the arrival of Markus Dravs, producer of such acts as Coldplay and the Arcade Fire and it’s his work with the latter that really comes through here. There’s a lot more to come from this lot so stay tuned.

Zero – Malcolm Middleton
Malcolm Middleton has been releasing music since 1995. Originally he was one half of folk rock outfit Arab Strap but since 2006, after six studio albums, he embarked on a solo career that’s has seen him release five albums. His most recent offering, from which this track is taken, sadly may be his last. He has stated that while he will continue with a career in music he may start to write for other people or simply change his name. For what it’s worth, I’d like him to carry on with his solo career so if you’re reading Malcolm, don’t stop making your musics.

Psychic City – YACHT
Jona Bechtolt formed YACHT in 2003 after leaving another Portland band, The Blow. Until 2008, YACHT was a solo act but for his most recent album, ‘See Mystery Lights’, he as teamed up with Claire L. Evans who contributes vocals to many of the new songs. The introduction of Claire seems to have allowed YACHT to evolve into a band with more pop sensibilities than before although the odd production quirks that give Bechtolt’s music so much character remain. It’s a weird one but well worth checking out.

Loading – Knuckles
This one’s a bit of fun. Taken from the ‘Loading EP’, Parisian electro producer Knuckles has turned out a real crowd pleaser. It’s a floor filler that almost guarantees to get the crowd jumping, something that the enigmatic DJ/Producer/remixer, Fake Blood has cottoned onto. He plays it live regularly and also included it in his Radio 1 essential mix. Something for the weekend. Enjoy.

Growls Garden – Clark
Another recent Warp release, the new album from Clark sees him raise the bar for anyone else in his sphere. On previous albums like Boy Riddle and Clarence Park he experimented with abstract tones and textures and occasionally dropped in some of the hard tech that he’s known for now. His previous album, Turning Dragons, saw him go straight down the hard tech route, which belied his true talent. Here however he combines his original experimentation with some bone shattering beats and bass lines. Not for the faint hearted.

Lovers’ Carvings – Bibio
Recommended to Warp records by the now legendary Boards Of Canada this album is Bibio’s first release on the illustrious label. The recommendation seemed like an obvious one as his sound has always been close to the Scottish songsmiths’ but this album has seen him move away from this somewhat. He draws upon a huge variety of styles creating an endlessly eclectic mix of tracks that could sound like a compilation if it wasn’t for the lingering influence of the Boards Of Canada. One of the most interesting albums of the year so far.

Listen to these tracks on the soundlounge jukebox.

Sam Nicholson, Creative Assistant
soundlounge

The soundlounge jukebox is our outlet for sharing the cream of the music industry with all. Updated every few weeks, it offers a chance for people who don’t have much time to sample good quality music, whether new releases or hidden gems from the archives. We receive music from all the majors, indies, publishers and sometimes the artists themselves and will bring to your desk (and attention) some of the most interesting and diverse music out there.

Visit the soundlounge jukebox to hear the following tracks.

Anyone For Tennis – Cream
Not one of Cream’s strongest moments but a tennis track nevertheless. Seemingly random lyrics which frankly have absolutely nothing to do with tennis are interspersed with the repeated phrase, ‘anyone for tennis, wouldn’t that be nice’. It would appear that the even the band weren’t too impressed with the song as demonstrated by their general demeanour in this clip, of course it may just have be the croaky introduction, have a look.

Bjorn Borg – The German Art Students
Testament to the enduring appeal of this Swedish master of tennis and his ‘sweat filled headband’ is this track by The German Art Students. Described by the members as a powerpop / punk rock band from Madison Wisconsin, they have been together in various formats since 1998. Very few tennis players have ever inspired a song but Bjorn Borg was not just a tennis player. His universal appeal went far beyond his mercurial tennis skills as his ‘hair flowing in the wind’ and ‘screaming teenage girls’ no doubt had an impact on his popularity. The fact that this song has been written so long after his retirement suggests that Bjorn Borg could enjoy many a revival as a retro icon.

Saga Africa (ambience secousse) – Yannick Noah
The Frenchman was one of the final conquerors of the masterful Borg and had a relatively successful career himself, winning the French Open in 1983. In 1991 he not only captained the French Davis cup team to victory against the US but also found time to release an album, Black Or What, from which this track is taken. Upon defeating the heavily favoured US team he coaxed the whole stadium into an impromptu rendition of his hit, fantastic promotion you may think, until you see the moment for yourself.

White Tennis Sneakers – Jan & Dean
Jan & Dean were not doubles partners, nor were they tennis players at all, at any level. They were in fact a musical duo of the surf rock persuasion, formed in high school after a football practice. It was at this time that Jan began playing with the kind of vocal arrangements that the Beach Boys rode to fame, five years before the great Brian Wilson began to with whom he went on to work with professionally.

Tennis Shoes – Doctor Dunbar’s Medicine Band
Hailing from Sweden, the home of that man Bjorn Borg, Doctor Dunbar’s Medicine Band are an Indie rock/pop band who have achieved limited success to date. Judging by the chorus of voices in the refrain it would appear that it is the entire band who love their tennis shoes. Whether they harbour any ambition to emulate the achievements of their countryman in the tennis sphere is unclear. For the time being they seem content with their musical endeavours.

Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
One of the great pop songs of all time about one of the great tennis players of all time. Billie Jean King had almost unrivalled success in the women’s game, winning 12 majors in a career that spanned over 15 years. This success is somewhat eclipsed, admittedly in an incomparable fashion, by the career of this song’s performer who managed 13 number ones during a solo career that spans from 1971 to the present day. Beat that.

Listen to these tracks on the soundlounge jukebox.

Sam Nicholson, Creative Assistant
soundlounge

The soundlounge jukebox is our outlet for sharing the cream of the music industry with all. Updated every few weeks, it offers a chance for people who don’t have much time to sample good quality music, whether new releases or hidden gems from the archives. We receive music from all the majors, indies, publishers and sometimes the artists themselves and will bring to your desk (and attention) some of the most interesting and diverse music out there.

Visit the soundlounge jukebox to hear the following tracks.

Seven – Fever Ray
The debut solo album from Fever Ray, an alias of Karin Dreijer Andersson of the Swedish electronic duo The Knife, along with her brother Olof Dreijer. Anderson revealed to one journalist that Fever Ray has its roots in sleep deprivation. That makes sense when you hear the album, which strips away the dance beats that grounded The Knife’s ‘Silent Shout’ album, leaving behind ominous clouds of electronics and a penchant for synthetically manipulating her vocals. This is an astonishingly stark and brooding record, built on the barest of electronic bones and brought to life through Andersson’s almost primal vocals. It’s not exactly plain sailing, and what may be bewitchingly hypnotic to some will sound a tad repetitive to others.

French Navy – Camera Obscura
Hailing from Glasgow, Camera Obscura formed in 1996 but it was five years before they released their first album, Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi in 2001. Since then they have released three further albums, the most recently being this year’s My Maudlin Career. They have always fought inevitable comparisons to other Glaswegian indie outfits such as Belle And Sebastian claiming they do not want to be part of a scene. Certainly their Phil Spector, wall of sound-esque production style sets them apart from most bands around at them moment. The playful strings and reverb heavy vocals hark back to a golden age of pop, long may it continue.

Speed – Quad Throw Salchow
I won’t even try to understand the name of this band, but ‘Speed’ is an album that oozes post-punk from every orifice. Reduced, electronic, mechanical, full of reverb, and with dark and venomous vocals courtesy of artist/producer O de Lanzac. The album builds layer upon repetitive layer to create a sense of disturbance and movement not unlike a cross-fertilization between Joy Division and The Fall’s early work. De Lanzac’s vocals burst over the mechanical backing like a raspy Patty Smith drugged and singing gibberish in the bath, which completely contrasts the mechanical beats. Both dark, diabolical and delerious at the same time.

It’s Only Been A Week – Skint & Demoralised
A duo consisting of Matt Abbott, an open-mic poet from Wakefield, and the mysterious Mini Dog, a so-far-anonymous Sheffield producer and musician. They ‘met’ on the internet after Dog (or should that be Mini?) came across Abbott while searching for a vocalist to put words to his music. It’s a match made in musical heaven: the duo’s debut album, Love And Other Catastrophes, is a fantastic slab of northern-soul-meets-indie-street poetry. They recorded it in New York with the great Dap-Kings. The Dap-Kings are most known in the UK for their work on Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black album and Mark Ronson’s Version. There’s not a bad track on this album and it was difficult choosing one for you listening pleasure – enjoy.

Kelly – Van She
I know you’ve probably had enough of 80’s influenced synth pop by now but this is a cracking track from Australian band Van She. They met at a rock band audition calling for musicians with influences including Sepultra, Entombed, Black Skull and Phil Collins. Ironically they were originally billed as the next fresh thing despite their reliance on 80’s influences, since then though their sound has become more textured and this is a great catchy tune for the summer.

Liar Lion – Wild Birds & Peacedrums
Wildbirds & Peacedrums are a contemporary experimental two-piece hailing from Sweden and consisting of husband and wife duo, singer Mariam Wallentin and drummer Andreas Werliin. Their instruments consist of her powerful vocals and his unorthodox percussion/drumming, resulting in a powerful, innovative sound. The resulting effect sits somewhere between folk, blues and jazz and their sound ranges from a gentle warble a tribal chant. This track goes some way to illustrate how they have evolved from their first album, which was relatively basic and stripped back. Here they incorporate more percussive elements and even a few electronic textures creating what feels like a much more complete sound.

Listen to these tracks on the soundlounge jukebox.

Enjoy! – Brian & Sam
soundlounge

In September 1998, two young students from Stanford University registered a small, private company in a friend’s garage in California aimed at giving web users across the globe a more informed and wide-ranging choice when it came to searching the internet. Google fast became the perfect platform for businesses, organisations and individuals from all backgrounds and industries to promote, display and advertise their services. The search engine, with its simple interface and user-friendly design gave people, whether technically savvy or not, access to the world wide web – a place that for the last decade had been mainly the preserve of the geeks and hackers. The now multi-billion dollar brand began life giving a voice to the ‘everyman’, encouraging linking and communication, and helping to expose a fat cat culture now so heartily disliked. Read more…

The soundlounge jukebox is our outlet for sharing the cream of the music industry with all. Updated every few weeks, it offers a chance for people who don’t have much time to sample good quality music, whether new releases or hidden gems from the archives. We receive music from all the majors, indies, publishers and sometimes the artists themselves and will bring to your desk (and attention) some of the most interesting and diverse music out there.

Visit the soundlounge jukebox to hear the following tracks.

Blood Bank – Bon Iver
Justin Vernon’s first album since the breakup of his previous band, DeYarmond Edison, managed to reflect the chill that he doubtlessly experienced during the three months of isolation he spent in his father’s cabin, in the woods north of Wisconsin, recuperating from illness while maintaining a certain warmth in it’s heartfelt lyrics. His most recent release, the EP Blood Bank, continues this trend with four more beautifully crafted tracks. The title track offers another touchingly genuine yarn and the rest of the EP is definitely deserving of your time.

Warm Hands In Cold Fog – The Flashbulb
Benn Jordan, a.k.a. The Flashbulb, is surely one of the best producers of the last ten years but has missed out on the recognition that similar artists, such as Squarepusher, have received. As well as producing some fascinating albums, combining genres as diverse as electronica, IDM, breakcore, acid, ambient and classical, he freelances as a television and film composer and when he’s not getting lost in electrical storms over the English Channel he’s active as a jazz guitarist and drummer in his hometown of Chicago, talented chap. This track, taken from the masterful Soundtrack To A Vacant Life, is one of his more downbeat moments but his back catalogue is eclectic, extensive and well worth exploring.

My Girls – Animal Collective
For a long time The Animal Collective have been on the edge of popular indie culture, forever roaming free from convention. For the last almost decade they’ve experimented with effects, samples, field recordings and any other texture, appropriate or wildly inappropriate, quietly honing their sound. Their latest release, Merriweather Post Pavilion, sees them polish their sound to its most accessible. The Beach Boys comparisons can no longer be denied and its possible that preposterously wonderful sounding tracks like this will see them reach a wider audience. Watch their space.

Jump In (For Gilkey Elementary School) – High Places
The Animal Collective’s influence is beginning to permeate through the experimental reaches of contemporary music and the High Places are one group who have taken that sound and made it their own. Their music seems to breathe in the same way as the AC’s, tribal beats interchange with spacy samples but it has a much more lo-fi feel to it and Mary Pearson’s vocals add a lightness of touch throughout both their albums. This track is taken from their first EP, High Places: 03/07 – 09/07.

Sleepyhead – Passion Pit
Sun soaked, synth ridden, 80s influenced pop is enjoying a time skirting the limelight at the moment with bands like M83 and Empire Of The Sun making somewhat of a name for themselves. Passion Pit are the latest band to drop in their two pennies worth with the release of an EP, Chunk Of Change. Originally the EP was recorded as a gift for vocalist, Michael Angelakos’ then girlfriend. It’s popularity quickly grew throughout the couple’s college and beyond. A full-length studio album, Manners is on the way for a spring release.

My Baby Must Be A Magician – The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes formed in 1960 and became Motown’s first successful female group. They achieved nineteen top 40 R&B singles and one massive number one with Please Mr. Postman. The precedent they set influenced later Motown girl groups such as Martha and the Vandellas and The Supremes. Ultimately the group suffered as a result of the rise of The Supremes and the label’s decision to put most of their energy into promoting Diana Ross and Mary Wilson’s group. History will always show that it was The Marvelettes that gave Motown their first number one.

Listen to these tracks on the soundlounge jukebox.

Sam Nicholson, Creative Assistant
soundlounge

Music production is evolving. Upcoming artists are turning from record companies to the Internet for financial support from investors. But what does this mean for music licensing and music copyright? soundlounge explores the changing world of making music.

It’s a lifestyle that millions aspire to. Private jets, five-star hotels, adoring fans and a top music production team. But it seems that for an increasing number of upcoming artists the reality of forging a career in the industry is far from the glamorous existence of times past. Like many other sectors, the music production industry is being forced to adapt to a changing economic and social climate. Gone are the days when a talent for singing or instrumental skills was enough to get a band noticed let alone to the top. Now artists are increasingly adopting a head for business and taking an entrepreneurial attitude towards their profession. Read more…