I’ve written before that New Music Strategies is one of my favorite sites for music business insight and discussion. Andrew Dubber is one of the few people who in my opinion “gets it.” Well, he got it all right…from his web host. New Music Strategies is down and out, in a big (and possibly legally questionable) way. Here’s his tale. If anyone has any advice, legal or otherwise for him, he’s asking for assistance. http://newmusicmanagement.com/2008/06/19/the-hijacking-of-new-music-strategies/

In my surfing of this great Interweb, I found myself a blog of steampunk projects—including this “steampunk-ified” Mac Mini:

You can find the entire Victorian Era Mac depicted here.

While I do enjoy the “victorian chic” I’m not all that into the steampunk scene, but I thought that the level of workmanship, detail, and love that went into this project really moved me. Great job!

In a previous entry, I posted about the Nine Inch Nails album, The Slip, freely downloadable from NIN.com. If you don’t have the album, it’s a really excellent one. However, while I’ve enjoyed the album, I have wished for a physical product—artwork, something that won’t get accidentally deleted when my cat walks across the keyboard, etc.

In fact, The Slip is heading to retail. We in the US will get a 6-fold digipak with a 24-page booklet and bonus DVD. There is also a vinyl release. It’s a limited edition in the US, Canada, and Japan; the rest of the world gets non-limited editions. Check NIN.com for all the details.

In Trent Reznor’s tradition of looking out for his fans, even as the album goes to retail, it will remain a free download indefinitely. Best of all worlds.

Thanks NIN, and have a great tour! BTW, if you guys are reading, do you think you could play a smaller, non-stadium show around LA sometime?

I generally keep up with the bands that I like, but this one seemed to happen under the radar. Maybe it’s because they’re currently on tour. Maybe it’s because they don’t have a PR team now that they’re no longer on Geffen Records.

One of my favorite bands is She Wants Revenge. Last month, they released a four-song iTunes only EP called “Save Your Soul.” It’s in “iTunes+” format, meaning that it’s higher quality and not copy protected, so you can listen to it on all of your devices without worrying about authorizations, etc.

Anyway, it’s quite good. More Depeche Mode than Joy Division, more Killing Joke than Prince, but it’s four very listenable songs, if you like that sort of gloomy, danceable post-punk pop. Very tasty! And for $3.96, throw them a bone—it’s good stuff!

Bo Diddley is dead at 79. :(