This is a fast review. I had been using MediaFire for awhile now and for one or two files they seemed fine. Well this past week I've been trying to back them up on a home drive and .... 1st it was useless without paying the $9 PRO fee. Nothing would complete. Then with the PRO account, almost 1/3 have a problem or were impossible to download. I'm going to have to contact them about getting a physical cd for those files.
I still had some files at Rapidshare (also a paid account) and what a dream come true! All files were there, safe, not corrupted and speeds are so much FASTER. Say what you will about Rapidshare but their service is dependable, reliable and fast.
I really regret changing to MediaFire. I've lost some obscure vinyl and VHS rips that I doubt I'll ever find again. These weren't published links so there was no reason for them missing. Aggravating and a waste of time.
Between life happening, pathetic internet service, and complicated by many file host's (now called "cyberlockers" I guess) committing suicide, I've decided to take a break. Most of my files were on Rapidshare or Mediafire so I was lucky (grab them quick).
I still have stuff to share and I really hate seeing good music disappear into obscurity. So I may be back or I may join another blog. I'm undecided at this time.
However, in my absence, remember that apathy is the real enemy.
For an example, set aside Dotcom's colorful, checkered past for a moment. Taking MegaUpload down, using overly broad, trumped up statements and SWAT teams was over the top. Another side is that Dotcom had been replaced as CEO at Mega ("the conspiracy") with a business model that intended to compete with major labels for distribution. MegaUpload had sued UMG for their illegal takedown requests which featured UMG's "A" list in promos. That was as good as any reason to declare war and get the DOJ involved.
Let's not forget that Hollywood publicly admitted to bribery when some politician's didn't stay "bought"... The educated public is the worst foe that Washington DC insiders have nightmares about. So keep it up. Talk to family, neighbors, co-workers about censorship.
These trade agreements happen all the time behind closed doors, just like ACTA did, then laws are made to keep those same agreements. Now there's TPP (Wikipedia has good write-ups). The wicked never rest.
I have no doubt that boycotting enriches your cultural life but it doesn't do much when "lower sales are due to pirates" or the "customer is always wrong". The public may have moved on decades ago yet it's not fair to assume 'pirates' will always figure a way out. There's been many excellent blogs taken down that haven't been replaced, (Chocoreve, Chris Goes Rock are just two), and taking with them were massive archives of hard to find, rare or out of print music. I don't want to know about VPN, proxies, FTP's ....
The lesson prohibition should have taught us was that it's just not possible to make average things that average people do, illegal. Only now it's the whole world. How'd that 30 year "drug war" work out?
Copyrights are not about the money. They are about control over everything you see, watch, take, buy or eat. The great firewall of China was built due to "piracy".
I really wish that last statement was a joke.
Two questions; How can illegal "cyberlockers" make so much money doing what Hollywood says it can't? It wasn't illegal filesharing that brought the global economy to it's knees - so why did wall street get bonuses and MegaUpload gets jail?
“Imagine 450 million Megakey installations by 2015 with over 5 billion ad impressions per day. That pays for a lot of content,”
During the course of our discussion with Kim we also discovered an interesting feature that has been built into Megakey. Once installed the whole range of Mega sites can be accessed without the need to use the Internet’s DNS system, meaning that should SOPA kick in and the US government seizes Mega’s domains, users can still access the site."
Support your local Occupy. If you can't participate, then donate.
I'll get back to posting music soon - I promise. Meanwhile, check out this great site Indie Rock Playlist for new music downloads of unsigned bands. Enjoy!
UPDATE: Vote taken in Senate, and the net remains open (for now) (from Public Knowledge)
I posted this issue because the wording was very confusing. This stuff doesn't make good headlines and if it had, it probably would have been the result of a misleading press release. Yet this is the type of thing that affects us daily. Most of the communication and media moguls would prefer to have public policy decisions, like this, removed from debate and determined as regulations like a trade policy.
"In 1776 we separated our government from England. In 2012 we will separate government from the corporations."-- Occupy Wall Street
Most people are aware that Occupy Wall Street does not consist of "dirty hippies", bums or anything else that media moguls would like to believe. And unlike the Tea Party protests, there are no coporate sponsers, political party funding, and they really are the "99%".
The Daily Kos has a map and list of 200 U.S. events planned for October 15th. This guy explains why it's important to show support ...
Leave it to Uncle Bonsai to put out an album that's syrupy sweet and creepy. Just as cute as the cover implies, then notice the vulture next to the smoke from the chimney forming a skull, the grave, the fish spilling out of a bowl .. everything is not what it appears at first. Great dark humor.
Uncle Bonsai: The Grim Parade (2011)
01 The Grim Parade
02 The Fish Is In The Freezer
03 Loving Tommy
04 Theme Song (Live)
05 Anne (Live)
06 I Would Come Back (Live)
07 The Baby's Head (Live)
08 Precious Mime (Live).
09 Skin Deep (Live)
10 The Devil You Know
11 Half Of The People
12 Where is My Puppy (Doug_s Resurrection Part One)
13 Heaven on Earth (Doug's Resurrection Part Two)
But Jobs was more than just Apple; he was a college drop-out, studied Buddism and caligraphy and was fired from his own company. Jobs quoted Picasso's famous line, "good artist's copy, great artist's steal" and did what music labels wouldn't - a store with digital downlods. ITunes first used soft DRM that anyone could get rid of by re-ripping them, which lasted for a few years. In 2007, he finally convinced labels to allow their music to be downloaded without any DRM. He proved passion could be successful.
Jobs focused on the user's experience. However that came with the price of Apple tightly integrating their hardware with software. But you know what? I'd rather own a 10 year old Mac and stay dumb than deal with the conflicting, fractured world offered by MS, Android, Google, Blackberry and others. The Mac OS sells for less than $29 (not really even that), plus it doesn't need constant upgrades or hunts for additional software.
His goal was to make things that were a joy to use. He believed culture was important and that good design was more than how it looked. He will be missed. I hope Apple can continue his legacy, such as staying away from the business world (lawsuits).
Money as Debt II covers the current economic situation. This is why the U.S. government can't "balance it's checkbook" - not as long as private banks control the money supply and act as one. This is why tax cuts won't work. This is why cutting social programs such as Medicare won't help, but will probably make it worse. Need more? It would have cost $10 trillion to buy out every person's principle on their home mortgage - and a GAO reports $16 trillion were given to banks.
01 Season Of The Witch / Karen Elson
02 Me And The Devil / Gil Scott-Heron
03 Te Ni Nee Ni Nu / Slim Harpo
04 She's Not There / Neko Case
05 Hitting The Ground / PJ Harvey
06 Spellbound / Siouxsie
07 9 Crimes / Darmen Rice
08 Cold Grey Light Of Dawn / Nick Lowe
09 Hell's Bells / Cary Ann Hearst
10 Gonna Be A Darkness / Jakob Dylan
11 What You Do To Me / Blakroc
12 Paradise Circus / Massive Attack
13 And When I Die / The Heavy
14 Bad Things / Jace Everett
01 Howlin' For My Baby / M. Ward
02 Evil (Is Going On) / Jace Everett
03 Bad Blood / Beck
04 How To Become Clairvoyant / Robbie Robertson
05 Shake And Fingerpop / Jr. Walker
06 Frenzy / Screamin' Jay Hawkins
07 Kiss Like Your Kiss / Lucinda Williams
08 Gasoline And Matches / Buddie & Julie Miller
09 You Did / Chuck Prophet
10 You're Gonna Miss Me / 13th Floor Elevators
11 Fresh Blood / Eels
12 Forgotten People / Thievery Corporation
13 New World In My View / King Britt
14 Beyond Here Lies Nothin' / Bob Dylan
01 Bad Things / Jace Everett
02 Bleed 2 Feed / CC Adcock
03 Lake Charles / Lucinda Williams
04 Give It Up / Lee Dorsey
05 Swampblood / Legendary Shackers
06 Play With Fire / Cobra Verde
07 Just Like Heaven / Watson Twins
08 Christine's Tune / Flying Burrito Brothers
09 Two / Ryan Adams
10 Strange Love / Slim Harpo
11 From A Whisper To A Scream / Allen Toussaint
12 I Don't Wanna Know/ Dr. John
13 The Golden State / John Doe
14 Bones / Little Big Town
I think this short video is one of the most frightening I have ever seen, yet one of the most important to understand. Why isn't more about economics taught in schools?
The movie, "Son of Dracula" was a product of Ringo Starr's imagination, starring himself and Harry Nilsson - who also wrote the soundtrack. The movie had a short run in 1974 and was shelved. That was probably a good decision although I found several sites with the movie. I don't think the soundtrack made it to cd - so I consider this a rarity (thanks to the original uploader).
This is campy, goofy and fun, plus it's Harry Nilsson. Enjoy!
01 Is It He Who Will Be King
02 Daybreak
03 At My Front Door
04 Count Down Meets Merlin And Amber
05 The Moonbeam Song
06 Perhaps This Is All A Dream
07 Remember Christmas
08 Intro - Without You
09 The Count's Vulnerability
10 Down
11 Frankenstein, Merlin & The Operation
12 Jump Into The Fire
13 The Abdication of Count Down
14 The End (Moonbeam)
Simple. Sign up and download free music featuring artist's such as Neko Case, Tom Waits, Wilco, Jolie Holland, Man Man and others. Nice deal and a good cause.
This blog is my little corner of the web. My intention is to explore creative, obscure, overlooked, or out-of-print non-mainstream music. Let me know what you think, have anything to add, or run into any problems with the links, Enjoy!
