frontline: the way the music died

What I watched last night.

Most of what was covered in the show I pretty much already knew. Thanks to the record companies treating music like a corporate asset and not art, the stuff coming out now isn't that great. Sales are also down because people are downloading music. It was still fascinating to see, because they compared two new artists: Sarah Hudson (cousin of Kate) and the group Velvet Revolver (including two ex-G&R members + Scott Weiland of STP). Both have new releases coming out this month. Velvet Revolver, which is pretty much a sure hit by company standards, is indeed doing well. Sarah Hudson, however, is not getting played anywhere yet. And listening to the song the company picked for her single, I can understand why not. It's pretty much a lame song, titled "Girl on the verge", with a chorus that states, "I'm a girl on the verge / of a nervous breakdown". I mean, ugh. The sad thing is that the other bits of songs I heard from her album sounded very decent, and pretty original. She is a singer/songwriter, but the single they chose just doesn't work for her.

You can go to the above link to view the show and also see interviews with artists, music journalists, and company execs.