I Like This: Einar Flaa Academy

Something nice out of Oslo that will be released as part of the seconed Einar Flaa Academy album on the 18th.

EDM vs. Country: Which is More Popular Among Young Adults?

You'd think that anyone under 25 would be more into the EDM scene than country.  And you'd be wrong--at least if you're talking about the US market.

An NPD Group study says that while the critics and bloggers like to write about the exploits of Deadmau5 and his peeps, country is far, far more popular with young adults 18-25.  Look at this chart.

Once again, this proves that while there are millions of fans into the kind of music you like, there are millions more who aren't.

(Via Hypebot)

Apple Bags Its First Auto Infotainment Customer: Ferrari

Eddie Cue, Apple's SVP in charge of Internet Software and Services, has been on the Ferrari board of directors since last year, so it's not surprising that a little Apple has turned up in one of the company's models.

New editions of the FF shooting brake (which, let's face it, is just a fancy name for "insanely powerful station wagon"), will now incorporate a couple of iPad minis for rear seat passengers.  The infotainment system itself is "seamlessly integrated wtih Apple technologies, thanks to direct access to the infotainment system via SIRI voice commands."

How much longer before we see Apple/Siri integration in cars that mere mortals can afford?

(Via MacRumours)

Weird: Why Is Concert Attendance Down?

With all the apps and services out there, it's never been easier to keep track of which artists are coming to town.  So why is concert attendance down?  Digital Music News has this chart:

I have some thoughts:

1.  The rough state of the world economy.  Things are ugly in the US and Europe.  People just don't have the disposable income.

2.  The price of concert tickets is too high.  And let's not even start on the subject of service charges.

3.  People are pissed that they can't get good seats to the shows they want thanks to scalpers, resellers and bots, so they've given up.

4.  Artists below the superstar level are banding together for joint tours and festivals to save money. The ability to see lots of bands at the same time means you don't have to go see each of them separately.

5. There's a shift in demographics as Generation Y grows up and gets on with the business of life.

Can you think of any other reasons why fewer people are going to gigs these days?

Google Moves a Step Closer Towards the Music Streaming Business

Given all the millions of Androids phones out there, it's only natural that Google would look for ways to push content to them, thereby reaping more data about users which can be used to refine Internet searches even more.

The company signed a deal with Warner Music Group this week, which puts Google a bit closing to launching a streaming music service sometime later this year to compete with Radio, Spotify, Muve, Pandora and all the rest of them.  And it's a huge shot at Apple and iTunes.

Google's big ace is that they own YouTube, which is already the most-used service in the known universe when it comes to searching for and consuming music.  

There's still a lot of negotiating to be done--Sony, Universal and about a billion indie labels--but I'm sure they'll get it done.  Once that happens, watch for streaming to blow up with consumers in a major, major way.

(Via CNET and TechRadar)