page 5
BY RACHEL BRODY ketable and sought-after gjjjn&n-., ‘
staff writer albums for fans.
As technology has developed, it has For more studio-oriented
dictated what the music industry is capa- artists the focus has been less
ble of. on sound and more on look. Jpr .; Is jf/fr
Vinyl gave way to tape, which gave way to Packaging for CDs has taken on Jr
compact discs and then mini ones. anew life, including more than just "
But in the age of iPods and downloading, a pullout of the lyrics. For example, tijghJm- , j
what does the album, both physically and Beck’s latest albums have been any- . -J3 M
conceptually, mean? thing but the standard disc-and-cover-
The album as an evolving form is noth- artformat. . £y
ing new. In 1967 The Beatles released Sgt. The album Guero was leaked as an
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and for- unfinished mix in 2004, then released in
ever changed the idea of what album 2005 with additional tracks.
could be. able in a CD/DVD version with bonus
Sgt. Pepper's considered to be the tracks and interactive video aft. Beck also
first concept album, where the songs bleed released Guerolito, a companion piece % ■ ft 1 ''v
into one another under the banner of Sgt. with remixes by artists such as Diplo and V '' ' ''r*
Pepper’s Band. Henceforth, the album no Adrock. \ Wop| * f ... fm ~"x.
longer would be just a collection of songs. His latest album, The Information, is tL I,
The music now had the power to be greater equipped with stickers and ablank cover so * I l Jp
than the sum of its parts. fans can create their own, original album J. | *7 | I ■ •>. \
Rock operas emerged, which are defined art. There are also plans to release a video yS^
by a theme or plot and overlapping songs version that will be available through M f I
established by The Beatles. You Tube. But can Beck’s inventive m I I ,< f \
In 1969 The Who’s Tommy, a rock opera approach increase sales and reinstate ¥ \ I / A.
about a deaf, dumb and blind pinball wiz- an interest in albums themselves? f if
ard, granted the band international recog- Maria Albani, co-manager of Jr Jt .f *• /
nition and made it to Broadway in 1993 as Schoolkids Records, isn’t con- jg B f® ‘ m ■ ’ '' N, ’ v
a musical. vinced. \ ft I t l
Pink Floyd’s rock opera 77ie Wall, “Honestly, I haven’t heard .- 4 " 1 jjft;-\ j/f'-'■■■■’•% \ I | ’ j J j
released in 1979. tells the tale of a rocker any feedback from cus- ✓ Jg%fr \ I / ..
named Pink. The record added anew tomers about Beck’s \ I f
dimension to the changing album format new album," Albani £ \l l
when it was made into a film in 1982. said. Vf ? Y w : £ C 7
But technological advances have influ- “I’ve been telling . i m / /
enced music and how it is experienced. customers what the m / f
A music fanatic in the’6os would put a stickers are for. They think ' \ K / /
vinyl LP on the turntable and experience the album just comes with ■ \ §1 J /
the diversity within the music as well as the Beck stickers and don’t know jk m £ /
interconnectivity between the tracks. they are for designing the cover.” /
Listeners today can hit shuffle on their Schoolkids Records carries albums
iTunes and hear “When I’m Sixty-Four” that include Dual Disc technology, exclu- ft Jr
sandwiched between “Thriller” and “Baby sive artwork, never-before-seen photos and X / >
Got Back.” other features the listener will not get from B M W
Since 2000 CD sales have continued to simply downloading. ft m JW
fall while downloading of entire albums or “If you are a hard-core fan and you have ft / J
individual tracks continues to rise. to have everything, I think the bonus mate- ft j
Bands are forced to focus on marketing rial is appealing,” Albani said. J
innovations more than music, in an attempt Durham-based Merge Records runs Bp ■— 11
to increase album sales. many promotions for CDs with benefits for jft ’ 7 *
For some live recordings have worked those who buy the album. For example, they M J S
to combat the bootleg market and illegal might offer bonus discs to the first 100 buy- MS j
downloading. ers or to those who preorder albums.
Dave Matthews Band fought the boot- But the company has not done any re- j/r
leg industry in the late ’9os, shutting down releases with bonus material, regional press /
stores and labels that sold unauthorized representative Christina Rentz said. 1
recordings of the band’s shows. In 1997 The rereleasing of albums, Rentz said, Jf
DMB released Live at Red Rocks 8.15.95. is unfair to fans who purchased the music . : f
The band’s reputation for onstage musical J
improvisation makes live recordings mar- SEE RECORD, PAGE 6 ./
____ . . ,
diveblog I dailytarheel.com
NICKEL CREEK Go to the Dive blog for
an interview with ex-frontman Chris Thile
THE BLACK KEYS A CD review to pre
view the blues-rock band's show
PRETTY PICTURES Check out photos
to go along with print concert reviews
diversions
| mm |
www.dailytarhe6l.com
concerts
DEAD PREZ AND MORE
Reviews of shows by
me chris, Colossus, Physics
of Meaning, Dead Prez
andTheTyde.
PAGE 8
music
MIXTAPE MASTERPIECE
A release from Durham-based
rapper and UNC-alum Kaze
shows promise for rhythms
and rhymes to come.
PAGE 9
•Uet
Witt.
movies
ROYAL PERFORMANCES
"The Queen" brings
award-ready acting, plus a
look at public vs. private
perceptions of Di's death.
PAGE 7
thursday, november 9,2006
Q&A
ROBOT INTELLIGENTSIA
Diversions interviews local
nerd-pop group Eyes to
Space the band plays
Monday at Wetlands.
PAGE 7