Music

For quite some time now I’ve been a subscriber to eMusic, a digital music site that offers DRM-free MP3 tracks by artists on independent (non-major) labels. (At one point I cancelled my subscription because I wasn’t finding that much to download, but I re-joined after a few months and have been with the service ever since.) eMusic also has a quite active set of message boards, and from time to time I’ve posted on various topics, most notably my thoughts on eMusic’s business model and prospects vis-a-vis the digital music industry in general. ...

On my old web site (in the pre-blog days) I had a page with brief reviews of various books and music. Now that my blog is up and (sort of) working I’ve decided to revive that practice. For my first entry I’ve chosen Petra Haden Sings: The Who Sell Out. I found out about this album from a story in the Washington Post, and was intrigued enough to check it out. As it happens I’d never bought or heard the original version of The Who Sell Out, so except for “I Can See for Miles and Miles” I was hearing every song for the first time. And there are some excellent songs on the album, of which my favorite at the moment is “I Can’t Reach You.” ...