Cool trailer for this upcoming documentary about Bobby Bare, Jr. If you're not familiar with Bobby, this looks like a hell of a nice place to start. Don't Follow Me (I'm Lost) A Film About Bobby Bare, Jr.

From RollingStone.com:

For anyone that's interested, this Paul Westerberg single is now available for sale again. It can be ordered through Amoeba Records.

Mike at the Mic – R.E.M.’s Mike Mills to Play Vinyl All Afternoon on dave fm This Thursday FLASH-BACK/FAST-FORWARD: R.E.M., Austin, & Me by Peter Blackstock (from Blurt)

Here's the link. KEXP is but one of many, many examples of how music is very far from "dead".

I found Escape Artist at a place called Roots Records in Chapel Hill back in the late 90s. Still need to transfer it to iTunes and/or invest in a turntable. Oh, and let this thread stand as a testament to the fact that music is not "dead".

I love me some Garland Jeffreys. Watched Bruce's keynote address last night, very moving stuff.

Steve Forbert's best known for this song (as well as being another in a very long line of "New Dylan's") but he still releases excellent new albums to this day.

Music is "dead" my ass... The Gourds @ SXSW "Do 4 U > Seven Chinese Brothers (R.E.M.) > Up on the Sun (Meat Puppets) > Do 4 U"

Putting the whole "music is dead" discussion aside, here's an inspiring clip about one person's passion for vinyl. WARNING includes Led Zeppelin II and Kiss Rock n' Roll Over content.

I don't think the "masses don't care" I believe it's because it's more difficult to reach the masses these days. Still, reaching the masses doesn't matter to me. Does your favorite band have to reach Beatle-mania or Nirvana type status to justify their greatness to you?

In addition to Bruce Springsteen's keynote address; other notable news includes the dB's reunion shows, the screening of the Big Star documentary Nothing Can Hurt Me: The Big Star Story (which was followed by a performance of Big Star's Third/Sister Lovers album by an all star cast) and Alejandro Escovedo's annual shindig at the Continental Club which serves as the unofficial closing of SXSW every year in Austin. If anyone has any other highlights they from this year's SXSW they would like to share please feel free to post them here. Alejandro Escovedo SXSW: Annual Concert Attracts Members of R.E.M. + More (from Spinner) From left to right: Mike Mills, Alejandro Escovedo, DeWitt Burton and Peter Buck (Photo by Chloe Johnson)

Like I've said, I know of others like myself who can't possibly afford to buy every new album that comes out by the artists they like. The same thing goes for attending live concerts. Times are different, you're not going to have some big time star as we've had in the past because of how splintered the formats have become. You also have conglomerates such as Clear Channel and Live Nation that aren't interested in originality, they're interested in making money so they're going to play what sells. There's also the case of the record labels where there's no such thing as artist development anymore. If a new artist doesn't have a hit straight out of the gate the label is going to drop them like a hot potato. In an environment such as this there is no room for growth. That's where the internet and other media outlets come in that give the consumer the ability to seek out music on their own and for free at that, especially with services such as Spotify. That is the wave of the future so if people are turning to more traditional media outlets such as commercial radio to discover new music, no wonder they're disappointed. As for myself, I take tips from friends about new music. That's something I've always done except now I have the internet at my disposal to find more people that are into the artists and genres of music that I'm into so that increases my chances of discovering new music. I also happen to live in an area (the Triangle region of NC) where lots of artists pass through on tours. In addition to that, Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill is brimming with music of a variety of genres. I moved to this region of North Carolina specifically for that reason, to be in the hotbed of the local music scene. We have lots of venues here that are extremely supportive of local music as well as touring acts. There's also no shortage of radio stations such as WXDU (Duke), WKNC (NC State), WXYC (UNC) and WUNC that support local music. Thing is, with the internet, others also have access to these radio stations as well as tons of others. It just depends on how much a person is really interested in seeking out new music. If they are expecting the next big band that's going to trip their trigger to be heard on the local Clear Channel controlled radio station in their neighborhood, the likelihood of that happening is slim to none. They are going to have to make an actual effort to scan the dial via the internet or through services such as Spotify or through the many, many options available to anyone that has iTunes to find music they may like. Another radio station I really enjoy listening to is KEXP out of Seattle. They play new music, old music and feature block programming where they turn the spotlight on specific genres and subgenres such as punk, reggae, blues, alt.country, folk, bluegrass, etc. Speaking just for myself, I don't care if some artist I like isn't headlining huge stadium tours or doesn't have a number one hit. Sure, I wish them all the success in the world and sincerely hope it comes their way. That is why I do my best to spread the word about artists I like whether it be here, in person or via social media. That is the key in 2012, at least from my perspective. It all comes down to making a grassroots effort to spread the word about artists that you like but they're not going to be handed to you all neatly gift wrapped and ready for consumption. If you truly love music and want to discover that next new artist that you're wild and crazy about you're going to have to take it upon yourself to find them. I'm perfectly ok with that. Apparently some people aren't or they want some carbon copy of an artist like Led Zeppelin (or whoever their favorite band is) who is well within their comfort zone. I am not that person. I long for that next new album that I just can't get enough of so I actively seek out music that interests me via any source I can find whether it be print, the web, local radio, internet radio or going to see some band (local or otherwise) I've never heard of. The days of an artist gaining worldwide exposure due to radio airplay are long over with. As I've mentioned, there's lots of options for discovering new music out there. I don't need to have my tastes in music justified by my favorite new artist selling out large arena tours all over the world or by them being plastered on the cover of all the major music magazines or by hearing them every five minutes on the radio. These are very different times where the possibility of something like that happening just isn't very likely. The rare exception is a band like Alabama Shakes who just so happened to slip through the cracks. They may not be to everyone's taste on this board but apparently quite a few people like them or else they wouldn't be enjoying the amount of success that's presently coming their way. I'm very glad to see it but they are the exception rather than the rule in this day and age.

It's not been mentioned in this particular thread but I'm sure it's been posted on the board several times at this point. Here it is again:

No wonder. With very few exceptions most radio stations are carbon copies of each other these days because they're all owned by corporate conglomerates which leave little to no room for anything original. On top of that, most labels used to have A & R departments which allowed for artist development. Unfortunately that way of thinking has also fallen to the wayside over the years. Some of my favorite current artists are Sharon Van Etten, Mount Moriah, Megafaun, The Love Language and Nada Surf. I would also suggest checking out Dan Baird and Homemade Sin. You may or may not remember Dan from his band the Georgia Satellites. He's currently touring with an all star band that includes guitarist Warren Hodges (Jason and the Scorchers) and bassist Keith Christopher (Shaver, Kenny Wayne Sheppard). You might also want to check the Current music recommendations thread in the Other Bands/Music forum for suggestions. Those bands sold well even before the internet so I'm not sure how much sales of their records have to do with the current state of things. As for "classic albums", it's kind of hard to determine what's going to be "classic" until an album has been out for a number of years. It's not something that can be determined immediately upon an album's release. There has always been sales of singles whether it was a 45, a cassingle or a CD but these days downloads (of the legal variety) of single songs are largely what drive the market. That doesn't mean good (or even great) albums aren't being made.

Neil Young And Crazy Horse to Release New Album Americana on June 5th (from Rolling Stone)

Thanks again. I would have loved to have been at SXSW this year for lots of reasons but a couple would have been to see the dB's and the Big Star Third/Sister Lovers concerts. A few more would have been to see Tommy Stinson as well as Alejandro Escovedo's annual blowout at the Continental Club (which took place last night). On the Woody Guthrie tip, he would have been 100 this year so it's very fitting that Bruce tipped his hat to him. In celebration of what would have been Woody's 100th birthday there's a couple of very significant being released this year; New Multitudes (which is already out) as well as the Mermaid Avenue box set (which comes out on Record Store Day, 4.21.12.). I've never been much of a Bruce fan but it doesn't mean I don't have a lot of respect for the guy. I really enjoyed his speech when he inducted U2 into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame and from what I understand, his keynote address at SXSW was apparently right up there with it. As I type, my Facebook feed is full of lots of praise for Springsteen who is playing in Greensboro tonight.

I'm curious as to what it is that you've heard. If it's what is being offered by the majority of mainstream outlets then I think that is somewhat understandable but if you're not making any effort to dig any deeper than that, therein lies the problem.

Thanks for that (especially in light of this discussion), I haven't had time to watch it yet but for those that are interested in doing so, you can watch Springsteen's keynote address from SXSW here.

There's as many good artists now as there has been in the past, maybe even more but times have changed. In so doing, the means by which those artists reached popularity has changed too. Personally, I feel it has been for the better. In the past, I was unable to count the number of times artists who I've read about that have been taken for a ride by their record company or booking agent. These days it appears musicians are much more knowledgable about those sorts of things and are wrestling control away from the labels and corporate behemoths such as Clear Channel and Live Nation. I'm all for it. It's funny, on this board there has always been a contingent of people that are constantly complaining about how there's no good music today and how they wish they were born in another time but on other boards I encounter people (like myself) who find it next to impossible to keep up with all of the music they would like to hear. While it may not be true of everyone that posts here, it's been my experience that a lot of members long for a past they weren't a part of (because they were either too young or weren't born yet) and it's been romanticized beyond belief. Believe it or not, there was also shitty music back in the 60s and 70s (I should know, I lived through it). Lots of people here seem to want some sort of recreation of Led Zeppelin or an artist that sounds very similar to them (or some other band from the 60s or 70s). I've got some news for you, it isn't going to happen. Same as there's never going to be another Beatles or Dylan. If people would free their minds of these self imposed constraints they might just find that there's plenty of good music happening out there these days. It's everywhere you turn whether it be YouTube or internet radio stations but it's not going to be handed to you on a silver platter. You have to seek it out. Unfortunately people don't seem to want to be arsed to seek out music on their own. In my case, it's something I enjoy doing as I'm always looking for that next discovery, an album I can listen to over and over again and not get tired of it. Apparently I'm in the minority, especially on this board but believe me, there's tons of others out there like myself who don't seem to have a problem seeking out new music they enjoy.

50 Years Ago Today: Bob Dylan Released His Debut Album (From Rolling Stone)