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"[A}s angry as some of the hip-hop people get, their music always has hips. Punk's got no hips: it's very Northern European." -- Bono |
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"[A}s angry as some of the hip-hop people get, their music always has hips. Punk's got no hips: it's very Northern European." -- Bono |
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Column: off the record..., vol. 10-392
@U2,
January 10, 2010
I have been hearing all week things like "The future of 3D is now" and "This is the year of 3D" thanks to the surge of 3D technology being rolled out in Las Vegas at the International Consumer Electronics Show. Later this year, ESPN will be creating a channel dedicated to broadcasting 3D sporting events, like the World Cup. However, here's the catch: You will need a 3D-ready television in order to view it. Oh, and don't forget, you’ll still need the special glasses too. While I'd like to think that U23D will be released to DVD sooner rather than later, I still believe that the technology is way too expensive to upgrade from my current 1080p television. We finally upgraded the rest of our a/v closet over Christmas with the latest reasonably priced high-tech gizmos, and my husband assures me that until we finish paying that off, there is no hope for us to upgrade to 3D anytime soon. That's the one thing about technology: As soon as you think you've got the latest and greatest, it's outdated and you're kicking yourself for buying it in the first place.
Speaking about technology, Smart Money listed the top 10 things consumers should not buy in 2010. Among them were CDs and DVDs. Their reasoning was because DVDs can be rented more cheaply through services like Netflix and cable on-demand services, and CDs just "aren't coming back" with more and more record stores closing. It would appear that The Edge is well aware of the demise of the CD. He told Hot Press, "There aren't going to be any record labels in a few years if things carry on the way they are, because CDs -- that industry is pretty much all over," he says. "And because there's no replacement right now that" viable, it just means no one's going to invest in music, which just means no one is going to get tour support, record deals, publishing deals, all the rest, which is how every band since The Beatles have managed to get going initially. That feels like that this sort of parasitical medium will basically kill the host, which would not be good." Knowing that The Edge has his finger on the pulse of the technology community, I feel that he is certainly on target with his remarks. It was about a decade ago when he commented about a new and upcoming service called "on demand" and how the Internet is changing things. Instead of pointing fingers and complaining about ISPs, I would hope that The Edge and Bono would be using their networking connections (pun intended) to become agents of positive change to help solve this issue. These two men are officially on record about this topic, and I am now looking to them to come up with a creative solution. It's more complicated than just ISPs. A few years ago, it was the illegal downloader who was creating all the problems -- but that put a face to it, and in most cases it was the face of an 11-year-old. Bullying by the RIAA gave the process a black eye. By going after ISPs, it's the corporation that’s the problem, making the RIAA be more David instead of Goliath. Let’s face it, the recording industry was tardy to the party of consumer electronics and how consumers wanted their music delivered. The recording industry also has been a little late in realizing that consumers would like something called quality. I know I'm not buying as much music now as before, but that's because there isn't as much out there that I'd deem as "good." That's a far greater problem, and that’s one that this industry brought upon itself when it chose to not invest in their signed artists. Don't blame the consumer for the short-sightedness of your business plan. This is why the independent label route is making a strong resurgence, and why I believe there will need to be a revolution in this industry. Now that Bono and The Edge have jumped into this publicly, let's see what creative outcomes can result.
I didn't realize that my life had an official soundtrack.
U2 recently was listed as one of the "Top 10 worst autograph signers” by Canadian Web site HoundsTV. Their assessment on U2 was, "Also former 'BEST' signers that have slowly moved over to the dark side as each new tour brings the group to Canada. The tour years of 2001 and 2005 when Bono and Edge would stand outside their hotel for an hour greeting fans and signing autographs appears to be over. During their week in Toronto for the most recent tour saw the band staying at a private residence. Bono and Edge were routinely seen all over town -- Bono signing very little. Edge nothing. Since Larry Mullen Jr. and Adam Clayton were practically ghosts and rarely seen, and refused autograph requests when they did appear -- the consensus is that U2 have become BAD about signing autographs during their stop in Canada this year." I can understand why the band has been cautious about the amount of autographs they offer. Within minutes of the U2 by U2 book signing in New York City a few years ago, some of the books were already up on eBay. The band, being clever fellows, started to sign things like "beautiful eBay" and "$" in some books of people they suspected weren't really U2 fans. This tour in particular was horrible for fans and autographs because the band was doing runners. They would arrive at the stadium just in time for a soundcheck, and leave immediately after their performance. Very rarely were they staying within driving range of the stadium. This made meet-and-greets very difficult, and the ones that did happen were in locations where there weren't many fans waiting. Many of the new stadiums have increased security by the backstage entry areas, making it next to impossible for fans to congregate. For what it's worth, I don't see this changing for the next leg of the tour.
And finally…I wish someone would do a "literal" video for the American football version of "Stuck in a Moment." Until then, there's this one of the Beatles' "Penny Lane." Have a great week! ©@U2/Lawrence, 2010
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