Earbender

Swag I Have Known #3

John — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 11:41:27 +0000

KIFM promo radio

While promo people give a lot of stuff out, we don’t often get items back from our business to business partners – the relationships are way too unequal for that. But occasionally, in a few instances, I have picked up t shirts, mousepads, antenna bobbles or other items meant for entities other [...]

The Union of Elton John and Leon Russell Goes Public 10/19

John — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 11:16:42 +0000

Elton John and Leon Russell

The Union is the new album by Elton John and Leon Russell, a collaboration inspired during a conversation Elton had with Elvis Costello on the tv program Spectacle where he detailed the profound influence the Oklahoman had on his music in the early 70s. Today, the pair are also announcing [...]

Fistful of Mercy’s Debut Video

John — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 10:20:39 +0000

What more do you need to launch a band these days than a fresh video? It pays to have a name too, and in this case Fistful of Mercy is rolling with three. Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison have teamed to make at least one song so far (also titled “Fistful of Mercy.” Maybe [...]

Shaking off the Cobwebs

John — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:41:39 +0000

After an entire month of slacking on the site, I have returned. It got a little busy. Then it got ridiculously hot and humid, and here we are at the end of August. There is a lot to report on. I have video from a few shows to upload, and a long list of topics [...]

Advice from God (aka Umpire Doug Harvey)

John — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:44:22 +0000

Doug Harvey in action

Umpire Doug Harvey was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday, after a long career making calls of ball or strike, out or safe and whether to keep playing in rain (maybe even darkness). His speech showed the minimal and firm style of communication that enabled him to only eject [...]

RIAA Takes on Porn Industry

John — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 12:04:51 +0000

The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) recently filed suit with several porn companies in order to stop the unauthorized use of music in their videos and sites. As much porn as I have seen, I can’t remember any that had a known song in it (I have some known musician friends who have made music [...]

Google Images Gets a New Look As Competition Builds

John — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:20:40 +0000

Google's logo echoes Manhattan Records' Mondrian-inspired label

Google is becoming an ever-present part of my use of technology, for both fun and business. I use such services as Gmail, Documents, Maps, Calendar, Voice, Images, Scholar (and maybe a few others) in increasing amounts.

As competition increases between Google, Apple, Bing, Facebook, Flickr and Twitter and other major [...]

Swag I Have Known #2

John — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 10:28:15 +0000

(Courtesy of MySpace Music/Lisette Rioux Paulson)

One of the main reasons I am so enthusiastic about the convergence of entertainment and technology is the swag. Items like the iPhone case above are indicative of a lot of money being thrown around in hope of awareness, branding and other indirect effects. How many hits to [...]

Earbender Digital Music News

John — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 10:58:32 +0000

Roger Dean's Earbender logo resurfaces!

Earbender.com started as a way to promote my promotion business more effectively online. I also found myself spending more time keeping up with technology as it changes the music business (distribution, consumer electronics innovations, mobile, advertising/branding).

Subsequently, the site and my social media profiles have enabled me to [...]

Give Me One Reason by Lee Ritenour featuring Joe Bonamassa

John — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:50:43 +0000

Lee puts it back together by the end of the cd!

Has anybody heard 6 String Theory, the new Lee Ritenour album (at right)? One of my colleagues on the project, Dave Einstein of the Concord Music Group, is utterly convinced that the track here, “Give Me One Reason,” featuring Joe Bonamassa, is an outright smash, [...]