Why No One Answers Their Phone Anymore

iPhone

Alexis C. Madrigal, writing at The Atlantic:

When you called someone, if the person was there, they would pick up, they would say hello. If someone called you, if you were there, you would pick up, you would say hello. That was just how phones worked. The expectation of pickup was what made phones a synchronous medium.

I attach no special value to it. There’s no need to return to the pure state of 1980s telephonic culture. It’s just something that happened, like lichen growing on rocks in the tundra, or bacteria breaking down a fallen peach. Life did its thing, on and in the inanimate substrate. But I want to dwell on the existence of this cultural layer, because it is disappearing.

No one picks up the phone anymore.

The Death of the Compilation CD: How the Industry Has Changed Since 1996

Records

I’m sure all of us can remember where we were when we either purchased, or were given from a friend, one of the annual Warped Tour compilation soundtracks. It signified the beginning of the Summer concert season, and another year to look forward to the annual Warped Tour. Now that the Warped Tour is on its last legs, with its final installment coming this Summer, one has to wonder about what will happen to the compilation CD that we have been expecting ever year since 1996.

The history of the compilation CD is a complicated one, much like the changing music industry over the past three decades. During the CD “boom” of the 90’s, it seemed like a ton of music buyers were looking for inexpensive ways to find out about new bands, or to sample tracks from their favorite artists’ upcoming album. The compilation CD was a great way to not only save money by not investing fully in a ton of individual albums, but also to discover artists that you may not have ever considered checking out otherwise.

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Recording Academy Chief Neil Portnow to Step Down Next Year

Grammys

Billboard:

The decision comes at a time when the Academy has been facing increasing public pressure and backlash amid a number of scandals, many of them self-inflicted. Portnow himself has been at the center of several of them, beginning the night of Jan. 28, 2018, when he said in an interview following the 60th Grammy Awards in New York City that women needed to “step up” if they wanted to be better-represented in the music industry.

NOFX Release Statement After Being Giant Assholes

NOFX

At the Punk Rock Bowling and Music Festival, NOFX’s guitarist Eric Melvin joked (and I use that term very loosely here) that “I guess you only get shot in Vegas if you’re in a country band” and Fat Mike replied with “At least they were country fans and not punk rock fans.” So, yeah, fuck that. The band has posted a statement apologizing, the festival has condemned the remarks, and Stone Brewing Company have revoked their beer sponsorship with the band.

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