Rocky Horror 25 Jun 2013 | 06:00 pm

Last Wednesday I heard Richard O’Brien recalling the origins of The Rocky Horror Show on the BBC World Service programme Witness. In 1973, in his spare time, O’Brien wrote a fun musical of the kind he...

Ralph Murphy at Music Matters 2013 20 Jun 2013 | 11:27 pm

There is much to like and dislike about this video (38 minutes) but either way it’s well worth the time. Even if you don’t write for the charts, he knows what he’s talking about.

Music discovery 1 Jun 2013 | 09:56 pm

Kyle Bylin (sidewinder.fm) recently raised the question of music discovery again on Hypebot. I agree with his summary and a lot of the subsequent comments, and for me they all boil down to the fact th...

Dave Grohl’s SXSW keynote 1 Apr 2013 | 11:49 pm

About 50 minutes and well worth the time.

BBC Introducing Masterclass 23 Mar 2013 | 11:44 pm

BBC Introducing Musicians’ Masterclass was held in London, Salford, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast on 21st March. Take a look at the sessions here. Maida Vale Live performance from Wretch and Devlin - h...

Two themes and a reprise, part 2 10 Mar 2013 | 05:48 pm

Here’s a short coda. I wrote previously about independent labels as a growing source of successful new music and the Majors as a declining developer of in-house talent, possibly leading to a stronger ...

Two themes and a reprise 10 Mar 2013 | 12:09 am

Is this were the Major labels need to go next? I’m going talk about two long term record industry trends and how they might be heading back to where it all started. It isn’t about the Internet, althou...

About Amanda Palmer’s TED 7 Mar 2013 | 04:22 am

I liked the video a lot but I’ve been rather perplexed by some of the follow-up commentary. For sure, learning to ask may be important in some situations but it’s not a new religion. You remember when...

Amanda Palmer’s TED 2 Mar 2013 | 09:26 pm

BBC Introducing Masterclass survey 22 Feb 2013 | 07:26 pm

BBC Introducing will hold Musicians’ Masterclass in London, Salford, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast on 21st March. As part of the preparation they are conducting a survey to feed in your opinions and ex...