As Mux Mool explains, kids (aka consumers) don’t want to buy CDs – they just want to get music and get it onto their iPods so they can enjoy it. Cut to the chase and give them what they want. Embrace digital (and having an effective digital strategy).

As artists, you really need to stop thinking about “releasing your next CD” and start approaching things as though digital format (ie: mp3, lossless, etc) is truly the only thing most people care about today. Start thinking about 1) your next digital format release, and 2) other creative compliments to the digital format release that may be interesting, compelling, and an added value to your fans.

In my humble opinion, CDs are a dead medium/format. While they are not truly dead yet in real terms (my friend Lee Cohen just reminded me how CD sales still outweigh digital sales in most markets on planet Earth), the trends are overwhelming and powerful, and in short time, say a year or so, digital will quickly overtake CDs in gross sales in the United States (probably your target market, right?). In fact, many researchers predict that digital sales will beat physical sales worldwide by 2016, if not sooner.

The Bottom line: stop thinking in terms of CDs. Get out in front of the trends and think about digital format and creative merchandising strategies you can develop to compliment and add value to your digital music.

…Thanks to Dave Allen for sharing this at Pampelmoose.

A stunning animated video for “The Rake’s Song” by The Decemberists, The Rake’s Song video was made by Saint Martins College Of Art students. It was created and directed in Moscow by Alex Dashino and Varvara Volodina. Alex and Varvara are second year students studying Moving Image at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London.

The Decemberists – “The Rake’s Song”

Team Marmoset: Joe Solis

How are these guys tied to the Northwest you may wonder… you know cuz we try and profile what’s going on here in the NW. Let’s play the 7 degrees of  Kevin Bacon game to find out. The Walkmen’s US label happens to be Gigantic Records who just released one of own local favorites, The Builders and the Butchers new album Salvation is a Deep Dark Well. Okay, so there’s only two degrees to the Northwest but for fellow Portlanders, you know there really is only two degrees of separation in P-town anyways.

Is it me, or does this feel a little like Watership Down?

On The Water from Nir Ben Jacob on Vimeo.

Joe Solis | Team Marmoset

I was already impressed back in 2007 when I first encountered the dynamic duo of Beth Tacular and Phil Moore. The band was simple: two people and only a guitar, an accordion and some auxiliary percussions to fill-in some spaces….a sound which they refer to as as “Nu-Folk.” They brought a raw, yet soothing sound that was hard to not instantly fall in love with.  Truth be told, I loved it then and I still love it now.

I’ve never forgotten about this band and I still have their first album in heavy rotation in my iPod  Therefore, Bowerbirds are our featured Live Performance of the Week, live from the 2009 Pitchfork Music Festival, performing a song titled, “Northern Light.”

As we like to say here at Pet Marmoset, if you like what you hear, please go and support the artist by buying their album or catch a show and show them some love. To see if they’ll be hitting your town soon, you can check out their show listing here!

Joe Solis | Team Marmoset

Mint Chicks – Hot on Your Heels from Mint Chicks on Vimeo.

Team Marmoset had a chance to catch these guys a couple of months ago at Backspace and they are definitely worth checking out.

Upcoming Dates:

Friday, August 28th @ The Doug Fir (Portland, OR)

Saturday, September 12th @ The Ike Box (Salem, OR)

Friday, September 18th @ The Doug Fir (Portland,OR)

Joe Solis| Team Marmoset

Blitzen Trapper has released a song off their upcoming EP Black River Killer due out August 25th on Sub Pop. The track “Silver Moon” is a mellow, laid-back affair and sounds very much in the vein of Tom Petty’s Wildflowers-era (read: awesome!).

02 Silver Moon

The Dimes appear on Penny Jam at St. Cupcake!

The Dimes recently appeared on the Portland-based weekly video podcast site Penny Jam. The performance at Portland’s delicious St. Cupcake showcases the four-piece decked out in 1776 revolutionary garb a la Paul Revere & The Raiders and performing the sweet-folk diddy “ Abigail, Don’t be Long” off their upcoming LP The King Can Drink the Harbor Dry due later this fall. One question: Didn’t the English wear the red coats?

Urban Weeds – Portland

On a non-music note, there is a new, über-hip Portland-based blog called Urban Weeds. The site mimics the super popular, fashion blog The Satorialist but specifically singles out fashion-savvy Portlanders who are found out and around the city. The blog visually documents one aspect of the vibrant, creativity that characterizes Portland. With so many cool bands and artists, it is easy to forget that despite being hidden with the Willamette Valley, Portlanders are rather fashion-forward as well! Check Urban Weeds out HERE.

Interview with Modou Dieng

PDX Pipeline recently published a great interview with Modou Dieng of Worksound Studios. The interview explores Dieng experience as an international artist from Africa, how he ended up in Portland and his vision for Worksound– one of the most exciting, multi-media art spaces in the Northwest. Check it out here.

photograph by Christine Taylor

Saxon Baird | Team Marmoset

Here’s the video:

Joe Solis | Team Marmoset

Filmed in the Columbia Gorge on location in White Salmon, WA,  this forest rich town with a population of a little more than 2000 people provides the perfect back drop for this narrative song, creating the ultimate accompaniment, and making this our Video of the Week:

Shout out to our girl, Miss Rose. One of Portland’s most talented peeps, no doubt.

Joe Solis | Team Marmoset

The Decemberists will be playing at McMenamin’s Edgefield in Troutdale this Saturday 7/18 (SOLD OUT) and on Sunday 7/19 (tickets still available). Supporting artists include Andrew Bird and Blind Pilot. Not bad, huh?  Team Marmoset will be there – in full effect. We’ll save you a corner of one of our blankets if you want to come too.

Via @colinmeloy on Twitter: “…Do come.”

Posted by Jacob Magers | Team Marmoset

VIDEO: Blitzen Trapper – Black River Killer

Also, as Scott points out over at Truckerspeed.com, the makers of this new Blitzen Trapper video used real sets and actors, camera cranes, underwater freaking greenscreen – all kinds of crazy stuff. They really went nuts on this thing. According to the story from Spinner where Scott first found this video, there were at least 120 people involved in the making. Wow. Here’s a little mini-documentary about the making of it:

VIDEO: The Making of Blitzen Trapper’s Black River Killer Video

And if for some reason, you still haven’t picked up a copy of Furr, go get it. Duh.