LUCIDMEDIA

It struck me the similarities between trying to define what's an overlooked film and what could be considered the new music. This is the trouble when you're working to build a website that says, among other things, that it covers the new music. So what is the new music? Is it new bands releasing their first album? Is it an established band releasing a new disc? Is it a well known band making a comeback after a lengthy hiatus? Or is it something specific; like a new sound or a new genre?

Chances are that it's all those things, and more. It's like the old ABC sales pitch, "If you haven't seen it, it's new to you." Well, if you haven't heard a given band, genre or piece of music, then it's new to you. But to cover that which is the new music does not exclude familiar faces like Amy Sky, or even Paul Anka, for example. Considering that Lucid Forge is maintained by and written for young adults between 18 and 30 years old, the "new" in new music can even mean a new way of looking at and thinking about that music. After all, no two music reviewers are alike.

Of course, all this is part of the general upheaval that's currently taking place in the music industry. I was thinking the other day about how different Lucid Forge would be if it were started in 1986 instead of 2006. First, and obviously, Lucid Forge wouldn't be on the Internet, because in 1986 the Internet was a collection of university and military computer networks.

But aside from our petty infrastructure needs, the music industry itself was very different. The major record companies ruled over a feudal domain made up of big acts who sold big numbers, trends were easier to define and capitalize on, and artists NEEDED record companies because studio time, recording technology and distribution were expensive. The three ways through which music was distributed: records, tapes and the new fangled compact disc.

Take a look at that paragraph again and make a mental note of all the things in it that are still a factor in music today. All the major record companies have been squeezed down into four labels; bands that used to sell tens of millions only need to sell one million to maintain their star status and thanks to personal computer technology, producing your own album need only cost a few hundred dollars. Records have since become a specialty request for a select few, tapes are all but gone and the sales of CD's are increasingly being outpaced by downloading and iTunes.

The result is that the garage band down the road has the potentiality to reach as many people through their self-produced demo disc and their website that the Rolling Stones do after a massive publicity push for their new album.The result is more choices, more voices and more music. Our job will be to direct you towards some of the best, and lead you away the others who aren't so good.

Less and less what's defined as new music is being taken out of the hands of middle managers at the major labels and put into the hands of the consumers. Genres are disappearing, or else becoming more and more difficult to define. And Lucid Forge will be here in the months and years to come to be part of the discussion and to promote the new music.