Is Indie Rock Taking Over?

Well, maybe it's not taking over yet, but it is certainly gaining a foothold. A perusal of this week's Billboard Charts will tell you, for instance, that Arcade Fire's "Neon Bible," number one on the Independent Album chart, is number 18 on the Top 200 Album chart, and number 3 on the Top Digital Album chart. There are a few others as well. There is also quite a stir among the experts, who all see the signs and predict that it will continue to grow (see this article by Steven Van Zandt, for instance.)

Does this mean that people are beginning to pay for music that is more "artistic" and less commercially accessible? Eschewing "hooks" for musical integrity? Looks like it to me. Maybe you don't have to be "hungry" to create art after all. What do you think?

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R.I.P. Captain America

An American comic book institution is gone:

CNN.com: Shocking Event for Captain America

(Warning: Spoiler)

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Another interesting indie business model

Amie Street, an online music store that started up last summer, has developed an innovative business model. All music is offered as DRM-free mp3's. The songs are available for free at first, then as more users download them, the price begins to increase, until it reaches the maximum of $.98 per song. Of course, what this means is that more popular songs will be more expensive. The store takes 30%, giving 70% to the artist or label.

Nettwerk Music Group just signed a deal with the service, so there are some major players involved. The new Barenaked Ladies album was just released there yesterday, so the site is starting to get some press as well.

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