Nick Heer on Apple Music and Last.fm

Nick Heer nails what I’ve been thinking for a while about what Apple Music should learn from Last.fm:

So: Last.fm. There are a few things I like about it. First, it seems to take into account my entire listening history, though it does give greater weight to recency and frequency. Second, it shows me why it is recommending a particular artist or album. Something as simple as that helps me contextualize a recommendation. Third, its suggestions are a blend of artists I am familiar with in passing and those that I have never heard of.

Most importantly, it feels free of artificial limitations. Apple Music only shows a maximum of eight similar artists on my iPhone, but there are pages of recommendations on Last.fm. Echo and the Bunnymen has twenty-five pages with ten artists each. I can go back and see my entire listening history since I started my account there. Why can I only see the last forty things I listened to on Apple Music?

There are so many things Apple could learn from Last.fm’s recommendation approach, and I wish it would. Right now, its approach is somewhere between inconsequential and unhelpful. It does not have to be this way, and it should not be this way.

Maybe part of my appreciation comes from my nostalgia for the mid-2000s internet era. They are memories of shiny, colourful logos, wet floors everywhere, and new social networks for every conceivable interest. These websites encouraged centralization and many were ultimately destructive to privacy, but there were also gems like Last.fm. It was built around a simple premise: track your music listening history for better recommendations.

Sorry for quoting so generously, but this really gets to the heart of one of the reasons I dove back into Last.fm with such vigor last year. Being able to see what I’ve been listening to, get the stats behind it, visualize that data, and get recommendations based on my entire streaming history is a cherry on top of it helping me with my weekly newsletter. There’s a whole lot I think Apple Music should be doing to make their service better.

‘Nevermind’ Baby Lawsuit Dismissed

The Nevermind baby lawsuit has been dismissed.

Elden’s team had until 30 December to respond to Nirvana’s motion to dismiss, but missed the deadline.

As a result, Judge Fernando M Olguin dismissed the case “with leave to amend” – meaning his team have until 13 January to refile the case with appropriate changes.

Chorus.fm’s Top 30 Albums of 2021

Best of 2021

We find ourselves once again at the end of a year. And once again it was a year that found us, as a society, facing new challenges in a world reshaped by a pandemic. As we close the door on 2021, I wanted to take a quick moment to thank everyone who read this website this year. We all went through this together, and I’m as appreciative as ever for having an outlet to write about things I’m passionate about and share with likeminded readers.

Ok, pleasantries dispensed … let’s rank things.

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Brian Fallon Delays US Tour

Brian Fallon

Brian Fallon has announced he’s cancelled the first two weeks of his upcoming tour.

Out of an abundance of caution I’ve decided that I’m going to cancel the first two weeks of my US tour. It will now begin on January 25th in Chicago at Park West. My hope is that by delaying the start of the tour cases will come down, especially in the Northeast. They may not, but this is a decision I feel puts me, my audience, and the touring party in the best place possible for the tour to actually happen.

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David Bowie’s Catalog Acquired by Warner Chappell Music

David Bowie

Jem Aswad, writing for Variety:

After months of negotiations, David Bowie’s estate has sold the singer’s formidable publishing catalog to Warner Chappell Music for a price upwards of $250 million, sources confirm to Variety. The catalog spans six decades and includes such songs as “Heroes,” “Changes,” “Space Oddity,” “Fame,” “Let’s Dance,” “Rebel Rebel,” “Golden Years,” “Ziggy Stardust,” “All the Young Dudes,” his 1981 collaboration with Queen “Under Pressure” and hundreds more.

The agreement comprises songs from the 26 David Bowie studio albums released during his lifetime, as well as the posthumous studio album release, “Toy,” which comes out on Friday. It also includes the two studio albums from Tin Machine, along with tracks released as singles from soundtracks and other projects.

Happy New Year

I wanted to take a minute to wish everyone a safe New Year’s Eve tonight. I hope everyone has a fun evening. If you’d like to join the community as the clock strikes twelve, our forums are the place to be.

Thank you to everyone that visited this website over the past year. Our official best of lists will be coming out early next week.