I've written about this subject before, the fact that in Germany the major labels and the royalty collections agency GEMA have made the online experience here frustrating by blocking content unless they get licensing fees for it.  And most often the fees they expect are so high that no one is willing to pay them.  I don't know how many times I've been reading a blog that refers to a new song or video only to click on it and be greeted by the annoying message: "We're sorry but this video is not available in your territory" or something to that effect.

Well, it seems that some clever programmers over at Nerd Industries have taken it upon themselves to even the score.  They have developed a bit of code that can be added to a website's source code which will block anyone trying to access from IP addresses at the major labels and GEMA.  A very novel idea and the only reason I won't actually use it here is because I'm too lazy to install the source code and I really don't think anyone from these instituions is interested in what is going on here at 5th Estate Music anyway.

But maybe I'll get around to it if I have a bit of spare time in the future...

Wow!  It's already mid-February and I'm just getting around to the first post for 2011.  How time flies.  Been pretty busy in the studio and office, working on new music and trying to promote the "old" which is really kind of new, i.e. The Chameleon E.P.  I have to admit that this kind of thing sometimes feels like a thankless task but at least there has been some podplay and a feature in a very local music e-zine.  I've been trying to figure out why more doors aren't opening and realizing that I've been knocking on the wrong ones, thinking like I did five or six years ago, not really giving myself enough credit.  I think it's time to move on to a new neighbourhood so to speak, start the process over on a new level and figure out where the right doors are.  Not an easy thing to do but obviously what has to be done.

And a lot of this process has had me re-evaluating the role of "social networks" in getting the music heard.  Most music industry "gurus" believe they play a pivotal role and I admit that they are helpful on some level.  But with the "new" Myspace becoming a total mess with a crappy interface transplated from the iMeen acquisition and the most annoying pop-up ads I've ever experienced are people really logging in anymore?  I dread it every time I do it now and have seriously considered stopping altogether.  It does feel like a bit of a ghost town there now and really seems to be just a bunch of bands and musicians trying to sell their music to each other.  And where have all the rest of them gone?  Over to Facebook if they weren't already there which is not a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned.  My first experience with Facebook was a few years ago when I wanted to make a page for Fine Print Pariah and I couldn't believe the complications I went through to get that done.  And there was no support either so after sending a couple of emails to try to figure out what I was doing wrong and not hearing anything back I just left things as they were and forgot about it.  About a year and a half ago when everybody was going absolutely nuts about FB I figured I better get things set up properly and I did, somehow.  But I still find the interface bland, boring and not very well organized.  I've also had problems with sending emails through FB and the more I learn about how the site operates the more I dislike it.  But the problem is that EVERYBODY is there!  I only have a personal page there because I had to have one to set up the pages for 5th Estate Music et al. but I probably wouldn't have bothered otherwise.  I just don't get it.  If I want to interact with people I prefer to do it face to face or to send a private email with a special pic or whatever.  But all this posting on "The Wall" for all to see and comment on just feels too unnatural to me.  Maybe I've just reached my limitations concerning how involved I want to be in Web 2.0 or 3.0 or whatever the hell it is now.

Ok, I've gone a bit off topic now but I just had to get that off my chest.  The important thing is that there is more new music on the way so stay tuned and stay real.

Another year has come and gone, a great time to take a look back and take stock of what has been achieved and make plans for improvement in the new year.  In general it was a very productive year here, in some cases despite setbacks and problems.  But things were taken in a couple of new directions and all indications seem to be that this was the right move.  Here's a quick recap of what happened:

- Paul E. Phonics was introduced and a series of demos were put online.  Feedback was pretty good so everything seemed to be right on track.  Work began on a debut E.P.
- As more time and attention was given to Paul E. Phonics the amount of time and energy left for Fine Print Pariah diminished and it was clear that a choice would soon have to be made.
- By early May the debut E.P. from Paul E. Phonics looked like it was ready to go and the release date of June 1, 2010 was set.  This was obviously a premature decision and a few setbacks in the final stages of production forced the re-sheduling of the release to June 15, 2010.
- The Shock & Awe E.P. was released and shortly after 5th Estate Music was profiled on a major German music blog, Schallgrenzen.de
- An important goal was to have some sort of release show and arrangements were made with a local record store to do this in mid-June.  This date had to be re-scheduled at the last minute due to a conflict with the store owner's schedule.
- The show was re-scheduled for mid-July but was cancelled yet again at the last minute due to the owner of the store taking ill.
- The release show was re-scheduled again and finally took place on Sept. 4 but was only a minimal success considering that the release was long past, the promotional effect of the Schallgrenzen review had long worn off and people were basically tired of going out after a very long World Cup.  At least that was my take on it.  But it was a lot of fun and the performance was good even if I do say so myself.
- Work continued on a follow up E.P. with the goal of getting it out before the end of the year.
- In October it was obvious that Fine Print Pariah didn't really fit into the grand scheme anymore and the decision was made to put the project on "permanent hiatus".
- In November a project I had in mind for a long time finally was made real and "Union Of Resonance" was launched.  Four installments were completed with many more to come in 2011.
- Also in November I was contacted by Lee Crisman of Pluto Radio and asked to do some hosting.  I figured this would be a one time only thing but it has worked into a regular gig with more to come in 2011.
- And finally, although it went right down to the wire (and to be honest, there were many times when I thought it wouldn't happen) the second E.P. "The Chameleon" was released on Dec. 16.

So as you can see, it has been quite an eventful year here.  I'm definitely looking forward to the holidays for a bit of r & r and a chance to get organized before the start of what should prove to be an even more eventful year for 5th Estate Music.  Expect more music from Paul E. Phonics, more random creativity on Union Of Resonance and, if everything works out, a brand new project!

Happy Holidays and all the best in 2011!