well friends, we’ve made it back from the frozen north, and the buds are on the trees here at home. here comes spring!
the podcast of me talking about songs on kildeer is up now on the ape site, head over here to listen. and also in apely news, kildeer and the whole ape catalogue will be released in the USA on april 7th. this is exciting, as i haven’t had a release in the states since the last millenium.
and here is one of the three remaining songs from silver. this is a silly version of instructions, tailor made for the vancouver folk music festival. i’ve noticed a steady trend towards ridiculousness as i get older. and speaking of which, i have to run to rehearsal now, to put on my polar bear head and sings songs about the winter olympics.
Veda, this version of “Instructions” is just awesome! Fantastic!
Thanks for sharing!
I am addicted!
And the podcast over at the Ape house is also fantastic! Cheers from an other addict…
i’ve been waiting for instructions…to be taken back to when i’d get out of bed on sunday and my roommate would have your cd going…and I’d sit on the couch…or floor..dreaming off into the light filtering in the stained glass…the shadow of another eras luxury…and instructions would come on…not don’t want to come off like an uptight traditionalist, but that didn’t hit the spot for me. would you post the more uptight version please?
hey, no problems with being uptight. being a severely controlling woman has got me where i am today. which leads me to your posting request….my semi-written rule is that i don’t post things that are available for sale. i mean, i am trying to make a living over here after all. but i’m open to discussion. it’s so interesting, the new ways that music is flying around the world. can anyone give me a good argument for posting songs that are on the records?
Veda, I think that is the only resonable rule. You can´t give away your work. I always prefer to buy records instead of download them. But sometimes downloading can be a good way to discover new acts or for deciding to buy a certain record or not.
I just heard that Tower Records is closing down. When even a big chain like that suffers so badly from illegal downloading is it quite obvious that something is very wrong.
Yes, it is good with The Internet and it have opened up totally new ways for artists to find a new audience. And vice versa.
But if it leads to that record companys will not afford to release albums – then we all lose in the end.
Irrationally, I do both. I’m fortunate enough to have been able to buy Silver, but have also religiously downloaded each track, for no good reason other than the fact that I COULD.
It’s a bit like when Toy Story was on the BBC the other day and we all watched it as a family even though the DVD was less than a foot (30cm / the teeniest fraction of a light year) from the telly.
And I’m glad that I do these things:
Our 9-year old daughter Ellie first heard The Fits singing Ireland’s tragically underrated Eurovision entry “My Lovely lovely lovely horse” through the file downloaded through this blog (again, the CD is in the cupboard) and put it on her MP3 player along with the theme from “Champion the Wonder Horse”. She now knows every single word and sings along with gusto.
In her bestest Canadian accent.
You can feel very happy aboat that.
I think that the game of keep-away if a futile one, I mean if Microsoft and Adobe cant keep people from downloading their stuff no one can. In stead of keeping your music for selling only, I think that you should post some cd-release songs for download, I think you would increase fan base. I mean I dont know anyone who buys an album before downloading most of it. It’s easier and you can find out if you really want the full cd before commiting. Its like a test drive, only better because often bands that are only ‘ok’ to begin with become addictive upon repeated hearings.
thats my two cents
hmmm in that case don’t post it…I somehow got confused and thought this alblum was no longer for sale for some reason.
but on the whole record industry in distress topic, I mainly wanted it as a kind of souviner of a time and place in my life, and to introduce other people to…I would not introduce others to the posted song.
What I like about you is that you are not the big record industry. So I might consider buying records from you. But reality is I don’t particulary like owning records. I have bought maybe just 1 in years, from a local independant artist and mainly for the purposes of practicing my french. However, I don’t particularly download much music either.
Part of my reasoning is the record industry has crippled music. As in the willingness for ordinary people to participate in their own musical experiences. People are self-concious and lazy about their own music, and the record industry fosters that. Pressing the play button on a well crafted cd lacks a certain something the participating in live music provides…even if it is just clapping rhythmically along to someone else.
I had some notion of this a number of years ago and in frustration saught out other musical experiences. It was difficult, i bounced off a lot of repression, lack of confidence, and rigidity. I did however find a great amount of luck, perseverance and kindred spirits…and experiences that makes listening to cds taste like eating styrofoam….or only watching porn and never having an orgasim(I don’t consider music less sacred than sex). Though I do have the sense I am considered bizarre in the eyes of most cd buyers.
I am slowly more hopefull about what the internet is doing about getting people to creat their own content as of late.
But that doesnt resolve your need to make a living now does it?
well some people do seem to make money on the internet without having a product to sell(but by ads). But maybe you find those methods less desirable…or are they harder for someone out of the mainstream?
When it comes right down to it I do hope our standard impersonal methods of listening to music get eroded. I have actuall bought one of your cd’s, and i have downloaded some stuff from this web site, but i dont really listen to it a whole lot. I want something less passive….and feel like i have to make up for the over passivity of the world.
well, one of my big hopes for the new age of digital files is that people will come to appreciate live shows again. something immediate and real and personal. something broad and uncontainable. we’ll see what happens.
and as for my plans for files on site, i think i’ll just keep doing what i’m doing and post as i feel like it. because of course i’ve posted stuff that is on the records. all the songs on the music player are on the records. we also have plans over here to have each album page include music files and lyrics and other detritus. just haven’t gotten around to it yet. i’ll just keep ambling along, and i’m glad that you all are ambling along with me.