Bit of an update
Nothing too specific in this post. Just wanted to update a couple of previous posts.
Firstly, there’s the matter of the Akai MINIAK post where I went off on one about individuals spreading mis-information on the interwebs about things like the MINIAK, when they clearly lacked a) actual knowledge and use of the product and b) were clearly pumped up full of their own self importance.
Yesterday, my attention was drawn to the weekly podcast coming out of SonicState.com. In Show 124, Nick Batt and Dave Spiers made mention of the MINIAK and the ensuing commentary and referenced my article. To hear Dave Spiers, the man behind many great musical projects (KeyFax, Twiddly Bits, GForce Software) of which I have long ben a fan and admirer of, not only mention this blog, but appear to enjoy the content, was a real buzz. Here’s the clip:
So that was really cool. I’ll be joining in this weeks podcast via the chat room this afternoon at 4pm. Visit SonicState for more details.
I also recently passed my opinion on Prince and his new triple CD release, LotusFlow3r. I questioned the lack of official CD release outside of the US and the rather expensive alternative of signing up for his new website.
As I mentioned, many people were upset at this, and the fact that many online retailers here in the UK (HMV, Play, Amazon) seemed to be offering the album for price in the region of £30, when US customers can buy it exclusively from Target stores for $11.98.
Well, I noticed today that HMV have this little message on the LotusFlow3r page:
Prince
Do Not Stock: Legal Ban: Lotusflow3r (Lotusflower /Lotus Flower): 3cd£29.99free uk delivery
list price £42.99 – Your saving £13.00Availability: sorry this title is deleted
UNAVAILABLE
Legal ban? Uh oh. Looks like Prince has got his pack of lawyers busy again. Strange though as HMV Oxford St., London has plenty on it’s shelves at £29.99…
I’m guessing they’re imports, but am curious to know more on the “legal ban”. And, more to the point, for those of us too financially strapped to spend $77 on membership to his site, are we likely to see LotusFlow3r, on sale in a retail outlet here in the UK (and the rest of the world for that matter) for a price similar to that being charged in the US?
That’s all for now!
Oh, and next Saturday, 25th April, marks the 4th anniversary of the launch of the Failed Muso blog. Any suggestions on how I can (modestly) celebrate?
Prince: LotusFlow3r – Bloomin’ brilliant idea?
I don’t think there’s a single musical artist that commands such respect, such criticism, such hatred, such love, such worship and such controversy as Prince. It’s not as simple as loving or hating him. It’s not black or white (or purple), it’s not one or the other and it’s not yes or no. Every segment of the spectrum of appreciation has someone sitting in it when it comes to him. There is no doubt the guy is a musical genius, whether you like or loathe him. His talent is undeniable, even if he doesn’t get your butt shaking. His ability to stir up debate is almost unequalled, especially in the musical arena. There is no doubt that there is no finer live musical performer than he. No, not even Michael Jackson comes close. MJ churns out the same old shit, and his upcoming copycat routine of Prince’s famous “21 Nights” is merely a pathetic attempt to a) avoid complete and total financial ruin and b) to try to get one up on someone who is far more valid than he will ever be. But the Michael Jackson debate is for another day.
I am a MASSIVE Prince fan. I’m not even going to try and convince you otherwise. I have pretty much everything he has ever released, and much more besides. I have seen him many times live, even had the privilege of seeing him soundcheck and even being within inches of him and exchanging pleasantries. I’m not obsessive, but I admire no-one more in music than he. But fuck me, the guy can test my affections!!
We all know the stories of his acrimonious split with Warners; the SLAVE “act”, the changing of his name to an unpronounceable graphic, the cobbled together albums created merely to fulfil his contract and the weird interviews he used to give. I can handle that kind of eccentricity, especially when he continues to produce incredible bodies of work. Once out of his contract, he proceeded to become an Internet pioneer, founding revolutionary websites and formulating new ways to market and promote his work. From the ashes of one website, he created the NPG Music Club. The NPGMC was inspired. The fan (or “fam” as Prince likes to call them) pays an annual subscription, and in return, gets exclusive access to Prince’s material. All the new music was downloadable at no extra cost, video material was watchable and downloadable, members got pre-sale concert tickets and exclusive seating, plus entry to soundchecks. The whole thing was brilliant. And it worked. Prince made more money bypassing the established processes and the fans got the material they wanted as soon as Prince wanted them to have it.
And then, suddenly, without warning, NPGMC vanished. A simple explanation was given that Prince was moving to the next phase and NPGMC would be replaced. It was, eventually. 3121.com was far from the all encompassing site that NPGMC was. It was merely a “news” site. An occasional track was featured, but not much else.
And then, almost as suddenly as NPGMC vanished, so did 3121. Similar reasons were offered, especially as it’s disappearance happened after his record breaking 21 night stint at London’s O2 Arena. It was stated that Prince was off to concentrate on Bible reading and doing the work of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Fair dues, but leaving nothing for his fans to congregate around.
Then we had the whole YouTube affair, where Prince instructed his lawyers to demand removal of any video on YouTube (and many other places) that featured even the merest hint of a Prince song, even if it was inadvertently playing on a radio in the background. This generated a level of resentment in the online world, normally reserved for kiddy fiddlers and mass murderers. He even set his legal attack dogs on long established independent fan sites, thus upsetting and alienating a massive segment of his fanbase.
And then, at the back end of 2008, he emerged, talking about new work, new projects and even, for a brief moment creating a new site with teasers, only for that to do the now customary vanishing act within days. Then last week, there was the full on launch of the new Prince online presence, lotusflow3r.com. This new venture seems to echo, very strongly, the NPGMC model. A $77 joining fee, getting you exclusive content and ticket pre-sales, plus the new Prince release, LotusFlow3r (a 3CD set) in download form before anyone else. This time, however, the physical CD release is not being put out via an established distributor. Oh no, forget that. Prince has done a deal himself with U.S. retail giant, Target, who have exclusive rights to sell the 3CD pack for $11.98 (which is a bargain in any one’s books!). So, die hard fans can join the club and get extra goodies and everyone else can pop into their local Target and grab a fantastic CD for an excellent price. Target get major footfall increase, Prince reaps the rewards and the fans are happy.
Or so you’d think. Oh no, MANY fans are far from happy.
Take us, the UK & European fans. Or even the Antipodean fans. Or those in Asia or Africa, or South America. Do we get an exclusive distributor? Oh no. All we get is places like HMV, Amazon and Play.com sporadically advertising pre-orders of the album for anything up to £42.99! Remember, the U.S. version retails at $11.98. I know we’re in a recession, but that’s some fucking mark up, right there!
And so the Internet boards are full of angry non U.S. fans stating that they’re going to just download the set from a P2P site and fuck Prince.
To be fair, Prince can’t control greedy retailers, but it certainly looks like Prince (and/or his business advisers) failed to understand the global nature of the demand and put in proper distribution channels outside of the U.S. Prince always seems to piss someone off. The Americans got cheesed off when he decided to do 21 Nights here in London. The Europeans got pissed off when he decided to do the Musicology tour in the U.S. alone.
Prince is lacking something. Something he had plenty of in the past.
The guidance of experienced marketeers. The kind of thing he had when he was at Warners. Don’t get me wrong. I think Prince had quite a few valid points when he spat his Warners dummy out. But being an Internet pioneer and cutting edge brand is not an easy thing to handle, especially when your skills lie in the music making. I mean, who thought, given that we are facing a global financial crisis, and that the very nature of music retail is shifting daily, that charging a large sum of money to join a website simply to get your hands on music you can buy from a supermarket for 6 times less was a good idea? The new website doesn’t even have a small area for non paid up members, so even if you’re just getting into Prince, you can’t get access to official news and updates from the man himself. Not unless you fork out $77 (£54 at current exchange rates).
I admire Prince. I admire his balls to go it alone and blaze a trail. I think the guy is a musical genius, an incredible and immutable force, a kind, warm generous and funny man. But he is pissing more and more people off. Prince probably never needs to sell another record again. So why make it so difficult for people to really appreciate his talent? He’s a control freak, which can be a good thing, but in this case leaves him exposed and ridiculed.
Suffice to say, I will be acquiring the new CD. I will be joining the new site and I will be singing the guy’s praises for many years to come. My actions will neither encourage or discourage Prince’s business decisions in the future. He will do whatever the hell he likes, because he is in that wonderfully unique position of being able to.
Being a Brit, I can fully understand eccentricity. In fact, I positively warm to it and encourage it. But there’s a fine line between being eccentric and being a twat.
Prince is on that line and he’s got a bit of a wobble going on.
Prince – The Earth Tour – 21 Nights In London
Ok, it’s 1PM Saturday morning. I got in at about 04:15 this morning from the Prince gig. I really don’t know what to say. It was awesome. Great venue, great seats, great show, great aftershow !
So, we set off at about 3PM Friday from my partners mums house in Surrey. We had intended to jump on a train and tube it to the Arena, but decided that the cost and timings would be extremely prohibitive, so decided to drive to the event and park. Maybe less eco friendly, but oh so much more convenient and cheaper. The journey across London in Friday rush hour was a joy (not) and we arrived at the O2 at 5:15 ! 40 miles in over 2 hours !! Anyway, there was loads of room at the car park (no surprise at £20 a spot !) I’ve never been to the O2 (Millennium Dome) before and I was mightily impressed by the structure.
I’ve seen some awesome buildings in my time (the Colosseum, Sears Tower, the VAB at Kennedy) and this is pretty cool by comparison. It really is a vast space. Many people slated it as Tony Blair’s biggest failure, but now, in the hands of the new owners, it has been transformed into a massive entertainment complex that combines an outdoor feel in an indoor setting. Loads of stuff surrounds the main arena (pubs, clubs, restaurants, exhibitions, indoor beaches, kids areas, cinema multiplex) and you could easily spend a whole day there.
So, once in, and past the obilgatory security, we decided to explore. You do need a bit of cash to do it properly, but we managed on our tight budget ;o)
Anyway, 6PM came and the Arena doors opened and we formed an orderly queue. Not sure whether it was the Arena or the clientele, but I’ve never seen such a well ordered and polite audience waiting to pass through ticket gates. There were numerous signs and checks for cameras, with one little “Hitler” of a security guard parading up and down, literally threatening visitors if they dared bring in anything resembling a camera and warning that pass outs weren’t allowed.
Once at the gate (with 2 more copies of the “Planet Earth” CD in hand), we proceeded up to the 1st level and availed ourselves of the toilet facilities and then waited for the main Arena doors to open. The Arena is an impressive space. The stage was 
shaped and in the round and looked the business. Our seats were pretty perfect. Sat about 10 rows up from the floor level, we were just above stage height and facing centre stage front (at the point of the . Close enough to see well, not too close that we were craning our necks like the poor saps on the floor and not struggling to see a 5ft nothing superstar from the balcony !
After what seemed like a long wait, Mya took the stage with her band and rattled off half a dozen numbers. Not being a massive fan of current R&B, I was suitably impressed by her performance, but not so impressed about her contant plugging of her new album.
Once she had gone, the stage was reset and the excitement grew rapidly. As has already been publicised, the show starts with the video created for the US Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame induction, where many musical luminaries salute Prince and his uncomprable talents. Then the metallic words “Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you, I only want to have some fun” boom forth and the unmistakable rhythmic intro to 1999 kicks in and we’re off !
The hits come thick and fast, performed with immaculate precision and verve. He has you eating out of his hand by bar 4 of 1999 and you stay there all night. He breaks into Musicology and then invites audience members up on stage to dance. The band then changes to “Play That Funky Music” and Prince invites one of the girls to sing. Off she goes and does an admirable job, only to discover that it is actress Julia Stiles !
Off he goes to change his clothes whilst the band play “Satisfied” and he returns in new garb and in a sexy mood. More hits and then a keyboard is dropped in stage left (couldn’t make out what it was though). From this he did some solo piano numbers and then started triggering sampled loops from more hits, teasing the crowd. I’ve always wanted to see Prince do “She Is Always In My Hair” Live (I have seen it on DVD from the Rave Un2 The Year 2000 gig), so when he triggered the loop on the keyboard, I knew I wouldn’t see it this time 
(
Great showmanship followed, baiting the crowd and then delivering some of the best guitar work you are ever likely to see, then off to an earth trembling roar. The crowd then just kept going, only relenting when he came back for an encore, kicking off with Let’s Go Crazy.
After a few more classics, he was off and there was no repeat of his impromptu 2nd encore of a week or so ago.
So, off to the club for the Aftershow. As previously blogged by Looneytunes, the queue was mahooooosive !!! But I’d paid £50 for these tickets and wasn’t going to miss it for the world. Soon after the doors opened at 11:30, the queue started to raidly move and by midnight, we were inside. The club is small, but has a great stage. No seats though, unless you’re upstairs in the VIP balcony. No-one knew if he was going to show, but the crowd grew and went wild when the NPG came on stage, cracking off some jazz funk numbers. The musical skills of this band are just astounding. I was blown away by drummer CC Dunham. As Prince said, “Not bad for a girl !” This woman is a drumming goddess. Quite unbelievable. But then Prince always uses fine drummers. Sheila E, Kirk Johnson, John Blackwell and the awesome Michael Bland.
Lots of numbers rolled out, including Amy Winehouse’s “Love Is A Losing Game” and they finished up with an ass whupping version of Gnarls Berkely’s “Crazy”. Sadly, Prince didn’t show ( I could’ve sworn I heard his voice in the backstage warm up, but there was no sign. Shame, but I don’t feel at all cheated.
An awesome night and I could go on about the characters we saw there and the sound quality (not as bad as some have mentioned) but I’ll save that for another post after I’ve caught up on my sleep.
Poll Result
Well, the votes are in and here are the results…
Is Prince….
A Musical Genius ? 59% (13 votes)
A Fruit Loop ? 13% (3 votes)
A Fish ? 4% (1 vote)
Really Worth A Poll ? 22% (5 votes)
Thanks for your input )
My Birthday Treat – A Prince Aftershow !!
Well, if you’re gonna do it, you may as well do it properly !
I’ve just booked my tickets for the aftershow in August. Main concert at the O2 arena kicks off at 19:30, aftershow in IndigO2 kicks off at 23:30 ! These things usually go on till the early hours so at least 6 hours in the presence of greatness is almost guaranteed.
Prince’s aftershows are the stuff of legends. This is where he normally lets his hair down and plays stuff that the REAL fans will dig. He can get all jazzy/funky and whatever else floats his boat and he’s usually a lot more relaxed and playful )
That day is just going to be amazing !
Prince – Planet Earth
What a way to start a Sunday !
Talk a lovely walk through my village with my two kids, visit my local village shop, pick up a copy of the paper, which comes with the latest Prince album, free of charge !!!
And, of course, it’s yet another work of genius !
So, how did this occur ? Well, when Prince announced his string of gigs in London at the O2 Arena, he also said that all ticket holders would receive a copy of his new album, Planet Earth. Nothing new here as he had already done this with Musicology in the States a few years ago. So, this was a welcome bonus for those of us lucky enough to get tickets. £31.21 for the tix and a free album. Can’t be bad !
Well, a few weeks later, The Mail On Sunday announced it was to give away the Planet Earth album free with it’s 15th July edition ! Not a sampler, not a teaser, but the full album !! Unprecedented and it got many people worked up into a tizz !
The Music retail industry were up in arms, saying that it was a slap in the face to all the retailers who had supported Prince throughout his career. Would these be the same retailers who couldn’t be bothered to stock his last few albums (Rainbow Children, N.E.W.S., One Nite Alone, Musicology, 3121) unless on import, meaning UK fans had to fork out almost twice the price.
Yup, it was the same ones. Hypocrites.
Let’s face it, retailers like Virgin or HMV have hardly supported Prince since he stuck two fingers up to the music industry back in the late 90′s. He was no longer a huge commercial artist and they could make more money from conning pre-pubescent teenage girls with 50 teen boy bands a week. I’ve been buying my Prince material direct from his website for years now, ensuring the money goes direct to the artist and not to line some fat c*nts pocket who has no vested interest in the music, artist or fan. Funnily enough though, HMV have today decided to sell the Mail On Sunday for today only, just to make sure they don’t miss out on a slice of his action !
The deal that was done with the Mail On Sunday ensured Prince earned more than if he sold his CD through the retailers anyway. All the businessmen who claim that it will drive yet another nail in the coffin of the music retail industry are plain wrong. Firstly, any artist that bypasses the established music industry is guaranteed to make more money because there is no middle man to pay. They can design their own artwork, retain complete artistic control and plough their earnings back into making more music. They can charge less for the product too, and still earn more than if they were in a restrictive deal with a label. The suits will have you believe that music is going to hell in a handcart, but in reality, they’re just scared that they will no longer be able to make money from somebody elses talent.
Secondly, music buying has been going the way of the digital download for a number of years now, and it’s almost at the point where it’s the dominant delivery method. So, all the retailers and suppliers are having to change their business and deal with a reduced market share. The big behemoth companies are moving the slowest and are simply trying to stave off their imminent demise. It’s survival of the fittest, and these fat cats are far from fit.
So, Prince has yet again pioneered a new avenue of distribution. He was a web pioneer, distributing his material in new and exciting ways years before anyone else. Now he has seen another method and shaken up the world. Let’s face it, he doesn’t need the money. He was the biggest grossing live show in the States for 2004/5 and continues to be the musical giant and genius he always was, but now he does it all on his own, releasing his music when he wants, to who he wants, in any way he wants. Who can deny this mans right to do that ??
So, go out and buy a Mail On Sunday (I know, it’s a middle class right wing piece of junk normally, but I’m sure you can make paper fire bricks or line your litter trays with it !) and get yourself this brilliant piece of musical work.
Enjoy )
EDIT: Well, having listened to the album a few times now, this is instantly as accessible as 3121 & Musicology were. The title track isn’t quite Gold or Purple Rain, but a decent lighter waving anthem to which I’m looking forward to hearing live. Guitar is a great romp. Mr Goodnight is playful like Strollin’ from Diamonds & Pearls and the rest of the album is diverse yet typically Prince. As a fan, I’d have bought this without question, but there are almost 3 million people who got it free yesterday and I think it’s safe to assume that most will be enjoyed ;o)
EDIT #2: Lots of positive press and links plus more debate in the comments section of this post. Feel free to add your thoughts )
The best news in 5 years (Musically, that is !)
5 years after his last visit to London at the Hammersmith Apollo in October 2002 (And what a great gig that was), Prince returns to London to perform 21 nights in August. Tickets go on sale this Friday priced at £31.21 (neat, huh !)
These will be his only European gigs this year and he will be playing at the vast O2 Arena (formerly the Millenium Dome) and also doing some smaller events too. The O2 Arena gigs will be in the round and there is already talk of Amy Winehouse supporting/performing with him )
For more info, visit Prince’s website at http://www.3121.com
UPDATE: I have my tickets for August 17th ;o) I’m hoping that I’ll get to see him again and it just so happens that I’m working in London all of August ! ;o)
