compilation of previously released b-sides and rarities for digital and 2xLP. Gotta catch em all.

A band that I listened to feverishly in college called Aireline recently popped up on streaming services; slowly releasing one song a day from the album of that era. It got me thinking about the members of that band and I stumbled upon this interview with then-guitarist Chris McMurtry. He says his work history of working for Apple, founding a classical music distributor, developing some AI for rights management and then joining Exactuals to help leverage that AI to pay rights holders. This article is from 2019, so he may be on to something entirely different by now!

Regardless, It's a very pleasant and insightful interview; well worth a read for anyone that's even tangentially orbiting around music and tech.

Thanks to Twitter, I see a of mentions about web3 and the Blockchain and how the future is very bright for creators! To be honest, most of what I've read is very idealized and lacks anything remotely practical in terms of how creators are going to control their income. It's early days I suppose but it mostly feels like smoke and mirrors at this point.

The counterpoint to that is something like Sound.XYZ, a combination community and blockchain / NFT space. They are offering an honest practical example of how a musician could engage with an audience using NFTs - through song premieres and listening parties. They even gameify it a little bit and add a "Golden Egg" at a given timestamp of a song that would upgrade your purchase and give you some bonus artwork.

The writeup for the whole thing speaks primarily to the creators and how they can benefit from the product, not so much why a fan would want to spend their money in the ecosystem (beyond the potential bonus art and standard NFT investment).

I can't say that I'm anymore convinced about web3 and blockchain or where folks predict things are going but I've been internally complaining about a lack of practical examples, so seeing an actual practical example felt worth pointing out.

I will never tire of looking at these magnificent beasts

the kind of hacking you like to see

In celebration of 10 years as a band and approximately 1 year since their last release, Tower Defense released their video for "In the City," the titular track off that aforementioned album. It's definitely an enjoyable track and the video hits that sweet spot of ridiculously absurd without being stupid. If you've ever seen this Ghostbusters 2 Bobby Brown music video, you might notice some vague similarities. Like I said, it's absurd.

There are some billboards inserted throughout the video that the band had asked me to put together. Once I finally got my act together and started on them, it was quite fun to put together. Here's a handful of them.

Surprisingly fantastic answers

Chris Crofton is a stand-up comedian, satirist and occasional Twitch streamer. He's also a writer that has had a regular column with The Nashville Scene called The Advice King. The conceit is exactly what you'd expect - someone writes in with a question and Crofton tackles the answer; often in an absurdist manner, sometimes in a completely off-topic manner but always with an entertaining spin. This recent reply on streaming services or Republican vaccinations are a fun place to start.

Those replies have been turned into a proper book called The Advice King Anthology, set for release in April of next year via Vanderbilt University Press. It's available for pre-order now.

If you're not one for reading, I suggest you watch the highly produced YouTube versions of some of his replies; always a hoot.

I’ve seen many made up instruments but this is truly spellbinding.

Blest

silly but new anything from Jason Lytle is always nice

new video from a new EP. Love it when MAVS does something quite a bit different and this is quite a bit different.

The A24 Podcast; intrigued

Cantankerous but with those optimistic glimpses

a lengthy argument around Superhero Movies Are Not Modern Westerns. It's a topic I can't say I feel the least bit passionately about but I do love an intensely informed screed.

There's a record store in East Nashville called The Groove. It resides inside of a house, converted to have racks and racks of new and used vinyl, an area for cassettes, an area for art zines, 7"'s, Record Store Day releases and all sorts of fun ephemera. You, hopefully, have something similar in your town.

Unfortunately for The Groove, they find themselves in a position that is becoming all too common for Nashville businesses; the owners of their building are looking to sell the property. Nashville real estate is steep these days and the location of the shop is in a prime location. The Groove has been given first rights refusal to buy the property but that means they're going to have to raise a lot of funds.

They've started a GoFundMe campaign and they're working to put together benefit shows and other ways of raising money. It is a steep hill to climb but I'm hopeful that with enough awareness, they can get there.

This intro video between the married owners; Jesse Cartwright and Michael Combs breaks down a little bit of their history with the shop and the challenges they face. It's a nice way to get to know them but doesn't really tell the whole story (what YouTube video could?). They are an important piece of the Nashville music landscape and losing them would be a damn shame.

If you have the means, please consider donating to their campaign and hopefully together we can help save a worthwhile record store.

In preparation for his forthcoming album Golden Hour, I asked Uncle Skeleton to put together a playlist of influences and inspiration for the album. I've seen loads of other artists do this and have even enjoyed previous offerings from other yk Records bands that did (if you haven't heard the Tower Defense playlist, queue that up too). The resulting playlist, Skelly's Golden Tunes is a pretty wild ride, in the best way. He includes tracks from a pleasantly wide spectrum of artists. I can't recall the last time I've seen Stevie Wonder and Microstoria on the same playlist.

We've got the playlist on Spotify and YouTube Music. Enjoy at your leisure.

“Once Twice Melody is the 8th studio album by Beach House. It is a double album, featuring 18 songs presented in 4 chapters.” Chapter 1 out now

Oddly fascinating read for an old timer like me. I distinctly remember RIP graphics on BBS forums as an alternative to ANSI. Fun stuff if you’re an old timer.

First off, go do yourself a favor and follow @dailyfieldwork over on Instagram. Writer Sarah Carter documents a good deal of The South through a variety of adventures. I've lived here most of my life and rarely encounter the gems she runs across. It's great.

Out of that feed has sprung a few zines compiling thematic images of her photography. There's TRUCKS, which I think is pretty self-explanatory. The second is, This Present Darkness: Daylight Saving for Those Feeling Lost; which contains - I assume - writings and photos of all sorts. I honestly don't know but I have enjoyed the Instagram offerings so much, I can't even fathom it not being great.

It's been a long time since I bought a zine but I just ordered both and can't wait to receive them.