Cortese's Corner - The Off-Topic Chat Thread

I promise to tell you at the appropriate time! You'll (purposefully) not find anything online about her yet anyhow.

Yeah Laura Marling is great....but.....well this is very different. She's kinda known in our circle as Adele's Evil Sister, which is sort of true. Vocally she's up there with Adele (never over sings and a more aggressive voice) but daaaaaaaark (in a good way) and a young'un like Lorde.

 

I'm excited. I'm not a Lorde fan (though I've not heard anything other than Royals so feel free to disregard that opinion) so I hope your girl is better! Also I hope she isn't in her mid-teens with an adult boyfriend.

Ha I like that. She certainly is daaaaaaaaark - her newest album is the only thing I've listened to in weeks. I like that though - Adele's evil, skinny, pretty, posh sister. 'ampshire girl originally, even more reason to like her.

 

Oh no no! I meant my girl is Adele's Evil Sister! Ha ha, if you think dear Laura is daaaaark.....umm.....this one is going to give you nightmares!

And don't worry re older boyfriend, she's a lesbian.

 

Oh right, even better then! (Sorry, it's late and it's been a very long day, I'm tired). Dark is good, it's why I prefer Laura's newest album to her first couple of adorably inoffensive new-folkish stuff. I'm genuinely excited for your girl.

And let me rephrase - I hope she isn't in her mid-teens with an adult girlfriend.

 

In fairness I've not heard Laura's new one. I quite liked Alas...and lyrically she's fab, but as you say it was all a bit folky, to the extent that Marcus Mumford was on Alas. I think my girl would skin Marcus and wear his pelt as a hat before working with him

 

Ack, Marcus Mumford, I think the main reason he was on the album is because he was giving it to her at the time. She's matured a fair bit musically since then, most of the people I knew who loved her in her Alas days (typical Mumford fans) have gone off her as a result. I don't care, she could spend an hour farting into a mic and I'd buy it (am I what's wrong with music? I'm probably what's wrong with music). I like how excited you are for your girl though - clearly enjoy your job, lucky man.

 

What company do you work with Laces(or can't you say?) My cousin works for BMG records and is basically PR for new acts (mostly Indie)

 

Hmm....lucky in that context. Interesting discussion that. Took me a long time to get to the place where I do a job I love. A discussion for another day as my bed is beckoning.

G'night (and no, you're not what's wrong with musuc at all. For a start you said "buy" which the majority don't seem to do these days!)

 

Well I can say, but I rather like the anonimity at the moment! Means I can be rude about people freely

BMG are a good label - a lot of time for Ben Bodie - really good A&R man and a gent.

 

I stopped not buying music a while back. I stopped listening to new music as much in general and realised that the guilt of getting music I loved for free wasn't worth it so just bought up my favourite albums. Still mean to try Spotify, apparently that's good.

 

Same I went through the whole why pay phase as well. But now I actually want to support the people that make music I like.

 

Spotify is quite good indeed. For me, it is to discover new music, It is to discover those old albums that I used to pass over in the record shop while flipping to get a Led Zep, Moody Blues, Simple Minds, XTC, or any other album I wanted. Because there was Nick Drake, Traffic, Neil Young solo albums, etc... The lists of music from people I passed over, back in the old days of my record buying youth, are enormous. This is new music to me. That makes it new music. Then there is the entirely new music as well. The debut Temperence Movement album for really great R&B, for example. This isn't music by numbers. It is really great rhythm and blues.

There is a spin-off Spotify that I'm thinking of trying [can't remember the name] and it plays only music that has been available within Spotify, but never selected. They are possibly the ultimate in album filler tracks. Filler tracks can be Stairway To Heaven.

 

Seconding getting Spotify. Well worth paying the 5 quid a month to get rid of adverts too

 

If only Spotify was as caring toward the artists

 

Oh yeah, that's a reason not to get it I suppose. Might get it just for finding new music and then buy the album when I've found something I really like.

 

Yes indeed, they get a miniscule amount from it. However, you could say that it promotes their music too. There will always be people that could not afford the music that is played by artists, and there are those who will shell out for everything. Spotify manages to both promote and sell records and keep the people who can't afford anything [until they save up] in an appreciation of good music.

 

Luge doubles are about to start in Sochi, which has just reminded me that today is the 4th anniversary of the death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili in a training run at the Vancouver Games, aged just 21. Even today, his accident still looks sickening...

 

I like Spotify, especially now that they remove the five-play-limit of songs. Most of the songs I've listen to on Spotify, I've ended up buying eventually anyway, but it's good for discovering new music or 'previewing' an album of an artist you like to decide whether to buy the entire album or just a couple of the songs from it. I did that with My Head is An Animal by Of Monsters and Men (fantastic album btw, buy it!), having listened to the entire album several times, then buying it.

 

Yeah I remember that, it was a shocker, particularly the way they described how he was nervous about the run etc.

On a positive note I am enjoying this one. Great to see some camera drones on the downhill events too.

 

Agreed, if it's used for that purpose it can be a good promotional device, but it's another factor that's changing the model of how music is consumed and paid for (hence why concert tickets have rocketed - you can't make back the money, let alone profit from record sales now). The reality is that a lot of the time it's used as an alternative to purchasing something, which is a shame as much as anything because the music quality you'll get from streaming on Spotify is far poorer than if you bought the album physically.

I used to love the feeling of anticipation that came with an artist's new release - that first time you unwrapped the record and sat down and listened. That's kind of all gone now sadly.

Different times.......