Chris Kimber

Albums of the Year, 2011

2011-12-29T11:27:00.008Z

Another year, another Best Of list. A year in which music really did become like
water from a tap, thanks to Spotify in particular. A year in which the value of
having trusted sources to help steer you through those millions of tracks became
even more critical, whether that be a radio DJ (still the most common source of
music discovery) or through friends, or through other music brands, the most
future thinking of which hooked up with Spotify to create editorial voices in
that database, via apps. Still, enough blah, here’s the ten albums I loved most in 2011.

Listen to the playlist on Spotify

Bombay Bicycle Club – A Different Kind of Fix
Their second wonderful acoustic album “Flaws” is still one of my favourites, but
this new one was most definitely not in the same vein: it had a more electronic
pop feel, and contains what is probably my #2 track of the year, “Shuffle”.

Bright Eyes – The People’s Key
This one’s a grower. If you give it the time it will get under your skin with melodies that are irresistible. Conor Oberst delivers a long, strong set of less acoustic sounding tracks than previously, including the wonderful “One For You, One For Me”

Bon Iver – Bon Iver
Ok, so I admit to having been fairly obsessed with Bon Iver since his first beautiful and sad recorded-in-the-wild album “For Emma, Forever Ago”. This proper album #2, after much listening, doesn’t disappoint.

King Creosote and Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine
Beautiful, wistful, sad songs, matching KC’s Scottish lilt with Hopkins' subtle electronica, including my #1 track of the year, “Bubble”. Quiet and beautiful.

The Antlers – Burst Apart
US indie band who finally broke through to near the mainstream with this their 4th album.Some may think it's a little, well, soft, but I love the melodies.

Feist - Metals
Canadian Leslie Feist's 4th album, and really the first time I'd paid much attention to her. Contains my #3 track of the year "The Bad in Each Other" which has a chorus to die for.

Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow
Her 10th album, and probably the most uncommercial. Full of jazz influences with lots of piano, and generally downbeat, there are only 7 songs stretched out over 65 minutes. It's quirky (shagging a snowman anyone?) and bizare (Stephen Fry reciting 50 words for snow), but it's also gorgeous and enthralling.

Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Second album from the Seattle beardies. Could they live up to their first much loved album? Would it be a tired sounding re-run? There was no need to worry, as they managed to move on easily, still sounding definitely like the Fleet Foxes, but bringing in new sounds alongside uplifting melodies.

Matthew Halsall - On The Go
At the risk of ripping off the Mercury's format of one jazz album, this is my favourite new jazz album of last year. He's a brilliant young trumpeter and composer, and this album is simply a great listen.

Bjork - Biophilia
7th proper studio album by everyone's favourite Icelandic singer. As usual, it's eclectic, innovative, difficult and stunning.

Listen to the playlist on Spotify

Albums of the year, 2010

Albums of the year, 2009

Albums of the year, 2008

Now Playing: July 2011

2011-07-10T16:12:00.000+01:00

Mainly this month I've been listening to...

It's a very very US focus right now, with a definite nod to great songs. I've been looking forward to the Bon Iver album since the stunning For Emma, Forever Ago was released a couple of years back. It doesn't disappoint, and will undoubtedly make many album-of-the-year lists.. King Creosote & Jon Hopkins collaboration can only be described as beautiful. Thanks to All Songs Considered for introducing it to me. I missed The Antlers when there was some online buzz around their last album Hospice, but this new one is gorgeous and will get them many new fans.

I was nervous about whether Fleet Foxes would disappoint with their second album. The first record was such a stand out album, I wondered if they'd ever be able to do anything as good again. I needn't have worried, the second release is every bit as good, and moves the sound on to new areas. Nothing on The Low Anthem's third release has the impact of To Ohio/Charlie Darwin from their first, and has a church-like feel to it, probably due to it being recorded in an old pasta sauce factory, but it's still very good.

The Tallest Man On Earth, aside from the rather bizarre name, is a must. A young Swedish singer songwriter who plays a mean acoustic guitar and sounds like early Bob Dylan (better, in fact). On paper it doesn't sound too good. In truth it's stunning. Check this backstage recording from Later with Jools.

Lastly, I'm still learning to love the latest Sufjan Stevens album. Yes I know, it came out ages ago. But it's a long, complicated and not an easy record to get into. I think I've tipped over from not really getting it to really really liking it. Better late than never.

Bon Iver - "Bon Iver"

King Creosote and Jon Hopkins - "Diamond Mine"

The Antlers - "Burst Apart"

Fleet Foxes - "Helplessness Blues"

The Low Anthem - "Smart Flesh"

The Tallest Man On Earth - "The Wild Hunt"

Sufjan Stevens - "The Age of Adz"

Next!

2011-07-09T16:41:00.003+01:00

Photo of BBC Broadcast Centre: Graham Tait

So I didn't plan it like this. Three months ago I was set to leave both Audio & Music interactive and as a result, the BBC. I felt the need to move on from that role for several reasons which I won't detail here, and at that stage it felt like leaving the BBC would be the best option. But then I wasn't aware then of the massive opportunity that was just round the corner. The chance to lead the evolution of one of the BBC's ten digital products, and to immerse myself fully in the bit of my old role that I felt most passionate about (discovering and making great audience facing sites/services/products), was one I couldn't ignore.

So after a lengthy recruitment process I'm very happy to say that my new role is as Executive Product Manager for Radio and Music, in BBC Future Media, Programmes On Demand, or FM POD for short. Bit of a mouthful I know. I'm joining an existing team with many very talented people and an inspiring leadership team already working on the new product, but after just one week I'm quietly confident that I'm going to really enjoy this next phase.

BBC Broadcast Centre photo: R/DV/RS

I could be accused of post-rationalisation here, but in many ways I feel that I've been a product manager for ages in the sense that I have spent the last ten years creating products for national radio stations and the BBC's music output, but we didn't have that job title back then. Now that it's a recognized and highly valued role within Future Media and right across the industry it feels that I'm now in the right place.

Thoughts on Lovefilm

2011-06-13T14:43:00.003+01:00

I'm a fan of Lovefilm. I've been a subscriber for many years (since 2004) and have persuaded quite a few friends to sign up after hearing me extol the virtues of the service. I am what you might call a Lovefilm advocate, someone who likes the service so much that I want others to try it too. But it seems to me that Lovefilm is missing a trick or two, so here's some thoughts on what it could do better, for me.

Firstly, Lovefilm knows me and my family's viewing habits and predilections intimately. It knows every film we have ever rented (approaching 500 now), every film we have rated, every film we want to watch in the future. It basically knows more about our views on films than we do ourselves. Why then, when I visit Lovefilm.com, does it constantly suggest a whole bunch of films that it knows I have no interest in whatsoever? Why does it recommend films on it's homepage that I have in fact already watched? Why does it still offer me games when we have never rented a game?

Basically Lovefilm needs to get its recommendation engine tuned up, so that it offers me truly personal recommendations based on the information it already has about me. I want recommendations from people I know and especially people I trust to have good judgement on films, be that a professional film critic or a friend. Lovefilm should be a totally personal service, helping me filter the huge number of films available to watch, old and new, and quickly get me to what I'll most likely want to watch. I really shouldn't have to scroll through a long list of new releases every few weeks to find something I want to add to my wish list.

Secondly, online streaming. Clearly, the future for home consumption of films is less about DVDs through the post and more about streaming to a connected device, whether that is a big screen (TV) or a smaller one (smartphone, tablet), but right now that feels like an after-thought for Lovefilm. The catalogue available to stream feels pretty thin (about 6000 items), and the whole emphasis of the site is still aimed at DVD rental. Now, I'm sure the usage figures mean that physical product still has to remain the top priority to keep the majority of users happy, but they need to start making the online viewing offer more attractive. For example, right now they don't offer an online-only package; the cheapest unlimited online viewing package comes in at a hefty £10 per month and includes a DVD allowance. Shouldn't they be offering a low-cost online viewing package to tempt me to move from DVD to online viewing? Of course, I'm not going to do that until the catalogue is deep enough, but the right subscription will still be needed.

Thirdly, mobile. OK, I'm sure the good folks at Lovefilm are working on this, but shouldn't I get a great experience on my smartphone as well as via snail mail DVDs? The iPhone app lets me manage my account, to add or remove films from my wish list and see new releases. But I can't watch anything on it, and if you browse to Lovefilm.com you get the desktop site which is unusable. Really unusable. Why no mobile browser site? I'd be quite happy to watch some content, particularly TV episodes as opposed to full length films, on a smartphone or tablet.

Lastly, Lovefilm social. Yes there are Facebook pages and Twitter accounts and YouTube channels, but none of it is personal to me. If I want to engage with a service like Lovefilm in my social spaces, it really has to be personalised to me, not promo or marketing material pumped into my streams. I'd be happy to be alerted to content that Lovefilm knows I'll be interested in, but that means applying that personalised recommendation engine to social updates.

As I said at the start, I'm a Lovefilm fan. But if Blinkbox or Netflix (if they launch in the UK) offer me a better, more personalised service, I'll transfer my allegiances. Which would be a pity.

Leaving BBC Audio & Music Interactive

2011-06-06T12:29:00.008+01:00

After quite a few years in the interactive wing of BBC Audio & Music, creating and maintaining digital products and services for the BBC's national radio stations and music output, I'm moving on. It's been a truly exciting, and sometimes frustrating journey, with the department growing from a tiny handful of people in '99 to over a hundred people (technical and editorial combined) at it's peak.

There have been many highlights for me, but here are just a few. In the early days it was working with Hugh Garry and Helen Pendlebury at Radio 1, making it up as we went along but seeing the huge potential of combining linear media with the web; covering big events such as Glastonbury and Big Weekend (or One Big Sunday as it was then), and introducing live streaming and incoming SMS to network radio.

In the middle period my main memories are of developing the idea for the original BBC Radio Player (offering on-demand and live radio) then actually making it happen with Dan Taylor 6 years before iPlayer; working with Simon Nelson, Simon Hopkins, Dan Hill, Gill Weekes and Ayesha Mohideen during an incredibly intense period of development of BBC online; launching 5 new digital radio stations across DAB, web and DTV; being exposed to the innovative thinking of Tom Coates, Matt Webb and Paul Hammond; appointing Dan Heaf then seeing him do great things at Radio 1, and helping Justin Spooner do creative work at Radio 3.

In more recent years it was working with Matthew Shorter and Tom Scott on the strategy and plan for digital music at the BBC, then seeing further big chunks of that delivered with Andy Puleston, Matt Coulson and Ant Smith; making the BBC's podcast service happen with Sarah Prag, building the music events strategy and delivering it with Andrew Barron and later Tim Clarke; working with Ben Chapman, Chris Johnson, Huey and Sam Bailey to grow the Radio 1 site to be the most popular radio site in the UK and probably anywhere; learning about the mobile opportunity with James Simcock, getting Now Playing @6music commissioned, and lastly working with John Moran and Peter Bradbury to get the rights to allow us to do much of the above.

This is just a snapshot, it's not meant to be comprehensive. It is, of course, all about the people you work with, and I've been lucky enough to work with some amazing talent and made some great friends. If I could change one thing, it would be to have argued even more strongly for audience needs over organisational priorities. Not always easy to do in a large fairly political organisation, especially one which has such a long history of traditional linear media brands.

For now though, it's time to move on to work in a different environment. More on that soon(*).

* i.e. when I know!

Now Playing @6Music

2011-05-16T22:35:00.003+01:00

I co-commissioned a new interactive radio programme in early 2011 which launched on-air in April. This article explaining my thinking was written for BBC in-house paper "Ariel", May 2011.
------------------

The question behind Now Playing @6Music is simple: how do we take advantage of the changes in technology and audience behaviour over the past few years and incorporate them into music radio? On the one hand, this is what our radio networks have been doing, to an extent, for many years via the phone, fax, SMS, email and now the web. On the other hand, I saw a gap whereby there wasn’t a music programme that was built on those massive changes from the ground up. Many other shows have integrated some elements, but where was the show which was entirely based on audience contribution using new digital music services, social networks and connected devices?

My vision for the programme was to put digital interactivity at the core, rather than as an add-on. In practical terms I refined this to mean that every piece of music and every recommendation would come from the audience in one way or another. The thinking is that music fans love to recommend and share their favourite music, and that many of those would be happy to do so with a trusted presenter (such as Tom Robinson) and radio station. In other words, taking what we used to call the “listeners” and putting them in the driving seat.

I’ve been asked how this differs to a standard request show. The idea is not about listeners sending in a request in real time, it’s about reflecting the online buzz about music, and gathering recommendations, comments and suggestions over the entire week, on a number of different platforms and services, and letting users discuss these with each other. From that discussion the programme emerges. So, whilst the programme’s producer (Rowan Collinson from indie Somethin’Else) may initially suggest a topic, we are happy to change it if the audience is moving in a different direction. And the tracks in the playlist come entirely from those users, in real time on Friday evening, or anytime over the past week. Less pushing our choices out, more pulling the audience’s in.

Paul Rodgers at BBC Radio 6 Music was keen on the idea, and with his help the new programme launched in April. One month in and we have some pretty clear strands running through the weekly two hour show. Firstly, the backbone is a themed playlist which people can add to via Spotify, Facebook, Twitter, email, SMS and the really very good programme blog. Secondly we reach out to music bloggers, big and small, and invite them to talk about what is rocking their musical boat this week. Thirdly, we dip into the Twitter stream to see – in real time – what tracks people are loving at that moment (using the nowplaying #tag), pull one out, re-tweet it and play the track. Lastly, we offer a digital digest of the week’s online buzz from the programme blog - what music fans are talking about and sharing online.

User feedback so far has been positive, but this is not a quick hit. It’s about iterating the programme format to focus more on what is working with music fans and listeners, and working out how we can reflect the online buzz about music in even better ways.

You can listen to the latest programme on the 6Music site.

Capital FM vs BBC Radio 1

2011-01-27T23:05:00.006Z

NB these are my personal views and nothing to do with my employer

Ok, so excuse the title of this post. Couldn't resist.

Some thoughts on the new Capital FM, which is of course touted as a national competitor to BBC Radio 1.

I've been listening to Capital a fair amount since it went national at the start of January. The main thing to say is that it's incredibly different to Radio 1. So different that I'm not sure you can really compare, although you can certainly contrast. They are both music radio stations, but that's about it. They are so far apart in terms of content I'm struggling to see them as competitors.

For a start, Capital has an incredibly consistent sound, much more consistent than Radio 1. By that I mean that whenever you flick through the radio dial and get to Capital, you can tell it's Capital within about 3 seconds. Partly it's the high compression level being used, but mainly because the musical range is extremely narrow, which means it has very consistent mood and tonal quality. Radio 1 is not frightened of mixing up genres and styles, which means you're much more likely to hear a song you don't know or like, whereas if you like the type of music Capital plays, it's pretty unlikely you'll hear a song you don't like. Then again, you're much more likely to discover a new song or artist you like on Radio 1 than Capital.

Compare My Radio confirms what my listening suggested, that Capital is playing a small number of tracks on very high rotation levels. It's most-played song as I write this - "Cooler Than Me" by Mike Posner - has been played 156 times in the last 30 days, which is well over twice the number of plays the top song on Radio 1 has received ("Me and You" by Nero). Compare My Radio also shows that Capital has only played 195 unique songs, compared to Radio 1's 1,195.

I'm yet to hear a song being played live on Capital, compared to the large number of songs either recorded live or actually being played live on Radio 1, and not just in the evening. Of course, not everyone likes hearing live music on the radio, especially if it doesn't sound like the recorded version or the artist is unknown.

The other main difference I've noticed is the lack of speech content on Capital. Apart from the speech in the adverts, there's very little DJ talk, and what there is tends to be bland, upbeat but simple links between songs. Flick across to Radio 1 however, and you're very likely to hear either DJ's with "big" personalities (eg Moyles, Mills, Lowe, Grimshaw etc), being funny or interviewing artists, news bulletins, reviews or discussion. Try it for yourself now - switch over to Capital and see how often you hear speech, then do the same for Radio 1.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact for many people this is a good thing. Capital is a very consistent service where you know what you're going to get, and get it you will whenever you tune in. My daughter (10) loves the kind of commercial urban music that Capital focusses on (Rihanna, Cee Lo Green, Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Usher, Tinie Tempah etc), and now she's discovered the station insists on having it on. In fact, it's the first time she's ever really shown much interest in radio. So Capital has turned her on to radio. She loves the fact that whenever she turns it on, she's almost guaranteed to know the song being played, and it's very likely to be something she likes. Radio 1 is too eclectic for her, and she doesn't want to listen to DJ's talking or interviewing bands she hasn't heard of.

So, Capital and Radio 1, two music radio stations that are so far apart that I find it hard to think of them as competitors. Are there really many people who would admit to loving both stations, or are they in fact targeting such different demographics and tastes that they don't compete, they actually complement each other?

The other interesting thought is this: if Radio 1 were to heavily target a much younger audience, as some in the industry would like, would it in fact be forced to sound much more like Capital?

Albums of the Year, 2010

2010-12-23T16:55:00.007Z

It's that time of year when I feel compelled to add to the mass of end-of-year lists that you can't help bumping into. I'll keep it brief then, and only list ten. These are the albums that I got most from in 2010. Not the "best" as that makes it sound like my best has to be your best, and of course it doesn't. They're my favourites, the ones I'm likely to return to during 2011 and beyond, but I'd be keen to hear if you think I missed something truly great. There's a Spotify playlist containing one track from most (not all) of the albums.

(Links are to BBC artist pages and Metacritic album review pages)

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
To anyone who says that albums are dead and now it's all about single tracks, this is the best response. A sprawling, 16 track affair which took multiple listens to start to make sense. Strange the way that AF songs have a habit of sounding, well, disappointing, until something clicks and they become your favourite songs ever. I wasn't sure how they'd come back after Neon Bible, but they did, with something even stronger. I can honestly say I think I'm in love with this record.

Midlake - The Courage of Others
Strange, this one seems to have missed out on many end of year lists. I think I can see why: it's dark, serious and retro-sounding. To be honest it doesn't really fit into 2010 in any obvious way. But those songs! Beautiful melodies, and incomprehensible lyrics. It's an album for cold winter nights.

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
Another long 16 track sprawling album (is this a theme to my musical proclivities?) which took quite a while to really appreciate. Ambitious and eclectic, Damon delivered another masterpiece, mixing styles and guest vocalists, but always keeping great tunes at the heart of it. This is one of those albums that I can play where the children don't complain.

Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record
I have to be honest, until this album came out I didn't know much about BSS. But if there was one album I listened to most this year it would probably be this. It didn't get rave reviews, but I don't know why. There isn't a mediocre song on the record, it's all good. Most under-rated band of the year for me.

Laura Veirs - July Flame

US singer songwriter's 7th album. I missed the first six, but when Guy Garvey played a track from July Flame I knew this was something special. She really does have a great voice, and these songs are in the main outstanding. Perhaps a little long, but lovely nonetheless. And named after a variety of peach, which has to be good.

The National - High Violet
I was already a big fan of The National, but this is my No.1 album by the Ohio art-rockers. The combination of baritone vocals and tuneful guitar does it for me, but the songs really hold their own on High Violet.

Jonsi - Go
Sigur Ros make the most beautiful and atmospheric music you could imagine, so it's not a surprise that their lead singer - Jonsi - made a superb solo album. It contains what is probably my favourite track of the year - Go Do - a truly mesmerising mix of sounds with vocal melodies that seem to come from outer-space.

Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz
I'm still getting to know this album in truth, but it's clear to me that it'll be one of the records released this year that I'm still listening to in say 5 years time. Quite a break from his first two much loved "states of America" albums, it's complex, broad and not an easy first listen. But worth it.

Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can
How can someone this young (still only 20) write such mature songs? Not as "poppy" or obvious as her first stunning album, but after many listens it comes to life - there are some beautiful sad songs here.

Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
Flying Lotus, AKA Steven Ellison, released a hugely ambitious mash up of musical styles in 2010. A distant relative of John and Alice Coltrane, the jazz influences are there, but so are many other genres. The most future looking album of 2010 for me.

If I'd allowed myself more than ten albums I'd have no doubt mentioned Bombay Bicycle Club, The Tallest Man On Earth and Beach House, but I haven't so I won't.

Lists for 2009 and 2008.

BBC Music Showcase

2010-12-03T00:21:00.009Z

This has been a big week at work, at BBC Audio & Music interactive, where we released to live our first version of the BBC music showcase. I have to say I'm very proud to have been involved in this project for some time, and extremely pleased that it is finally out in the wild. It's been quite a journey, politically, technically and strategically.

Some background. The idea of a pan-BBC aggregation of music content is not a new one. In fact, the roots of this thinking go back the best part of ten years - I remember talking about the concept with Simon Nelson, Simon Hopkins and Dan Hill amongst others back in the early days of the journey to take the BBC's radio and music content online. The idea has developed loads since then, but the influence of Simon Hopkins and later Matthew Shorter and Tom Scott can't be underestimated.

So what is it and why is it important? What we've released so far, which is just the start, is an aggregation of all BBC music content that is not full length programmes. Our radio station sites and iPlayer cover that angle fairly well, but what we haven't cracked until now is getting those nuggets of great content out of their full length programme home to expose them in new ways. That content could be a live music session, or an artist interview, or a single artist feature, a DJ mix or a live concert. The BBC creates this kind of content in droves, but it's almost impossible to find what you are really interested in unless you know exactly what was broadcast and at what time. Now we can pull all those special moments out of their original context and offer them via genre, via a curated collection, via artist search, via most popular, latest in, and about to expire. In other words, these unique pieces of content are now accessible, findable and aggregatable.

That's just the start. The next stage is a development of the idea of curated collections mentioned above: we want to tap into the world class talent that the BBC employs to generate human powered recommendations, then use a service like Echonest to deliver onward journeys through music both on and off bbc.co.uk. This is where the BBC has a fairly unique place to play in the increasingly busy music discovery space.

This is good news for traditional radio, because at last we are doing something which takes the fantastic content that is generated every single day via linear broadcasts, and offering it in an appropriate manner for the medium. This is truly a mash up of traditional broadcast media with digital media. I believe that it's projects like this that will help traditional media brands move successfully into the fully digital world.

Huge props must go to the technical and editorial teams who conceived and delivered it, especially Matt Coulson, Andy Puleston, Ant Smith, Nick Humphreys, Sacha Sedriks, Richard Berry, Andrew Hilton, Chris Lowis, Nigel Smith, Pete Marsh and Yasser Rashid.

Have a play with the Music Showcase and let me know what you think. Remember it's still in Alpha mode so expect to see lots of small updates over the coming weeks and months.

See more blog posts on this:
Andy Puleston
Matt Coulson

A note to eMusic

2010-11-30T23:48:00.003Z

Ok eMusic, I've been with you for over 3 years now, and I feel our relationship is beginning to lose some of the specialness that I've enjoyed so far. I fell for you because I liked your attitude, I liked what you recommended to me, and I certainly discovered lots of great new music by sampling it before downloading from you. You put musical choices in front of me that I simply wasn't getting from elsewhere in such a concentrated fashion. I admit, I felt a bit special because I was part of the eMusic club. You made me feel, well, just that bit more in the know about upcoming musical genius. Of course you never pretended to be comprehensive, you weren't competing with iTunes or Napster or Spotify, but that didn't matter to me because of what you did offer. And I admit, call me old fashioned, but I like the fact that I get downloads to keep from you, not just streams.

But recently I've been having my doubts again. Why? Well, principally because I'm finding it increasingly difficult to find enough new music each month that I really want to download and keep. I understand that up to now you haven't had music from the major labels, but I'm finding now that many of the artists on small indie labels are not available either. I frequently hear something cool on the radio, check the tracklist for artist and label details, then come to eMusic to explore more. That worked for me many times, but recently I've not found what I'm looking for. The recent loss of 3 more big indies - Merge, Domino and Beggars group - really hasn't helped either.

Now you've changed the proposition too, in that instead of eMusic credits each track now has a monetary value. I'm fine with that, especially as I get as many tracks as I did before at your expense. But the promise seems to be that I'm soon going to be offered a much wider range of music, with majors such as Universal and Sony signing up. Well here's the deal: I'm not seeing this coming through, and my patience is wearing just a little thin now. And if you're offering this in the States but not here in the UK, well I might just get cross.

So, I'm giving you a couple, maybe three, more months to prove yourself. That means a much more comprehensive offer from more labels. If it doesn't happen, I'm afraid to say I'm off. Yes, I'll walk away and start again somewhere else. So, please, sort it out, and quickly. Because in truth I'm really quite fond of you and I'd rather not go through a break up right now.

Listen again, and again

2010-09-15T23:35:00.001+01:00

This is not a radically new thought, but it's one that really struck home whilst on holiday this summer, with no net access. It's about how unlimited music availability might have an unusual downside.

Given that we can access pretty much any music we want, free, immediately, the temptation is to keep trying new music rather than revisiting something we've already heard before. Ten years ago, before Spotify and iPods etc, there was less possibility to keep moving on which means you were more likely to find an album or artist you found interesting, then keep listening to it. Going way back, say 20 years, I would always listen to any new CD I bought at least 5 or 6 times in full within a couple of weeks of purchase.

Think about it... when was the last time you listened to a new album in full 5 or 6 times within two weeks of it's release?

So, back to my holiday. I filled my iPod with all the latest albums I'd downloaded, then being away from home and the normal broadband connection, found myself coming back time and time again to three of them. Worth saying that on first listen I hadn't been particuarly keen on any of them. They were too dense to enjoy initially. They sounded samey. I didn't hear the melodies or understand the lyrics. Normally, that might be as far as I'd get, because I'd move on to something else new. This time I didn't, I stuck with them, and I was reminded of how great it is to really fall in love with an album after repeated listens.

My conclusion? Instant access to a massive library of music is truly great, but it might be changing the way we listen - from deep to broad. And that isn't necessarily a good thing for music that requires more than a cursory listen.

Oh, the albums? Nothing exotic or particularly difficult. But all really brilliant:

Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record
The National - High Violet
Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

Naturally, I recommend them all.

About this blog

2010-07-24T12:08:00.001+01:00

So it's about time I started using my other blog - LondonN16 - to blog about local issues in Stoke Newington. Which means from now on all posts about radio, music and things digital will be on this blog. It goes without saying that these are my own personal views, and nothing to do with my employer, the BBC. That's not to say the subjects of posts won't be based sometimes on things I'm doing at work, like this or this or this, but this isn't the place for official comms on BBC related issues. Obviously.

iPlayer v3 radio console

2010-05-26T23:14:00.000+01:00

So after a fairly long wait, iPlayer v3 beta is now public. There's been lots written on it, but mainly from a TV point of view, so here's a brief run down of what's new for radio fans who use the iPlayer console to listen live or on-demand.

Firstly, the pop-out console is a new size and shape. It now most resembles a smartphone... which is clearly not a coincidence!

The main new features are:

1. Favourites: ability to add programme brands as "favourites", which then are available under the Favourites tab. It'll remember them with a cookie, but if you register and log in you it'll work across different machines. This is a major step forward and will make using the console a whole lot better for regular users who know what they like.

2. Recommend: ability to recommend programmes, and for those recommendations to be seen by your friends on Facebook and Twitter, if you've linked your accounts, and in the main iPlayer site. Great if you like telling your friends what you like listening to. Don't we all?

3. Station presets. You can now edit which radio stations you want under the Stations tab, including adding local stations. A pretty basic but essential addition.

The other really significant change is that there are no longer full "item" or "episode" pages for each radio programme in the iPlayer site. From now on, to get more programme information, there's one definitive place to go to get it - the radio station site, which should have all the basic programme information and any other rich content produced. This means there is no longer duplication between iPlayer and station site, which is a good thing for users (less confusion about where to go) and for SEO (no more splitting incoming links).

The other features are based in the main iPlayer site, so I won't go into detail about those, but read what Anthony Rose has to say for more.

Overall, this represents a fairly big move forward for BBC radio in iPlayer, mainly because the previous console was feature-lite, to say the least. There are lots more exciting develpments coming later this year with the next major iteration of the console, known as "Radioplayer". I'll blog about that nearer the time.

Check the beta iPlayer here

Music listening, April 2010

2010-05-26T22:41:00.000+01:00

2010 is turning out to be a good musical year already, in my book. Still can't get the Laura Veirs "July Flame" album out of my head - this will be one of the albums of the year for sure. Jonsi - Sigur Ros frontman - makes what sounds like, well, a Sigur Ros album, which is not to be sniffed at. Laura Marling comes back with her second album. We loved her first one to bits - really - and whilst the second is taking longer to really get under my skin it's getting there. She's still only 20, which when you listen to the album is slightly scary.

New for me in April were the very acoustic Belgian band Isbells, and I came late to two bands that have been around for a while: The Decemberists (lots of folk think their "Hazards of Love" album was one of the best of 2009) and Danish band Efterklang, whose name had always put me off before.

From the US came Beach House with their album "Teen Dream", and Local Natives' "Gorilla Manor". Both excellent.

Tracklist:

1. Go Do - Jonsi
2. Norway - Beach House
3. As long as it takes - Isbells
4. Goodbye England - Laura Marling
5. Wide Eyes - Local Natives
6. The Hazards of Love - The Decemberists
7. Alike - Efterklang
8. Where are you driving? - Laura Veirs

Is Steve Lamacq the UK Bob Boilen?

2010-05-16T09:27:00.000+01:00

Been thinking about why we don't have an equivalent to National Public Radio's wonderful "All Songs Considered", which is a weekly radio programme, podcast and blog that has been made for NPR since 2000. The show aims to introduce the listener to new music from a wide variety of genres that is generally not heard on other radio stations. It works for me principally because of its presenter, Bob Boilen, who manages to be informative, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and opinionated all at the same time - quite a feat. It's a very personal listen, which plays to radio's strength.

Now of course we have plenty of radio shows in the UK aimed at playing new music, such as Zane Lowe, Huw Stephens, John Kennedy (XFM) and many others (please suggest your recommendation below). But somehow they are not the same as All Songs Considered: perhaps because they focus mainly on up and coming artists who you pretty much won't have heard of, but also because of their pace. What I like about All Songs is the relaxed tone which means that rather than simply fitting in as many songs as possible, Bob Boilen gives time to give some context, some history, some musical comparisons and some opinion beyond "this is great". So, rather than a playlist of songs you haven't heard, it becomes a journey you are willing to go on because you value what is being said. I often find myself listening to music I wouldn't normally give ear-time to simply because of Bob's introduction.

Then last night it occurred to me - maybe we do have an equivalent: Steve Lamacq's Radio 2 show, not his 6Music daily outing, is perhaps the nearest we come to All Songs Considered. It's recently moved from late Wednesday night to late Saturday night (clearly aimed at the on-demand listener!). Lamacq sounds relaxed and happy, he takes the time to introduce new music with context, and doesn't only play brand new bands but also introduces you to music from established but generally under the radar artists who are probably never going to be top ten. Sure, it's not cutting edge like Huw or Zane can be, but it's a good listen, and at just one hour in total, is an easily digestible slice of on-demand audio.

Now if only we could make that available in full as a podcast...

If I've missed other programmes which could be described as the UK's All Songs Considered, let me know here.

What I'll miss if BBC 6 Music disappears

2010-03-20T10:53:00.000Z

NB these are my own personal views, nothing to do with my employer.

I'm not going to go through the arguments for keeping BBC 6 Music, they have been covered in much detail in many other places, and it probably wouldn't be a good career move to do so here... But I have been thinking about content, and specifically what I'll most miss if 6Music were to disappear completely. My start point is that I see 6Music as an alternative to what's currently of offer - BBC or commercial - so it follows that the programmes that hit home most for me are those that are in very short supply elsewhere.

Firstly, Lauren Laverne. I was one of probably many people who tried to get Lauren onto 6Music for many years through conversations with senior people at the BBC, so was overjoyed when she arrived in late 2009. It's not easy to create a five-day-a-week 3-hours-a-day radio show which still manages to sound genuinely passionate about the music at every turn, and balances the needs of a mid-morning slot with the audience demand for something that doesn't sound too mainstream. But somehow Lauren's show does it. There aren't many daytime shows - in my view - which are of a quality that justify listening to on-demand, but this show is so full of great features, interviews, sessions and Lauren herself that it does. Now that the programme often has chapter points in, you can quickly get to the bits you're most interested in which makes it a whole lot more web-appropriate.

Secondly, Gideon Coe. Gideon has been on 6Music since the start back in 2002. His late night mon-thurs show is terrific. I've often said that Gideon is one of the UK's most skilled interactive presenters; not in a in-your-face "text now" manner, but in a subtle, genuine ability to use audience contributions intelligently. His message board topic - on which he regularly posts - is still one of the best we have. His approach to engaging with the audience is so natural to him that he doesn't need to make a big song and dance about it, which means the show is more two-way than just about any other. But you wouldn't know if you tuned in for 10 minutes - it's too subtle for that. The only downside, imho, is the extended live concert section which is too long for me and should be broken up.

Talking about 6Music programmes you cannot of course not mention Adam and Joe. Saturday morning is a great slot because you have a large potential audience who are not as rushed and busy as they are during the week, but at the same time many stations put on high profile shows at this time so the competition is fierce. But the sheer originality, humour and distinctiveness of Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish, combined with a very personal approach to introducing new and interesting music, means that the show cut through the Saturday morning competition and became the stations' most popular slot.

Then there are a bunch of more specialist weekly shows that, combined, sum up the distinctiveness of 6Music for me. Guy Garvey's Sunday night show is required listening. More thoughts on Guy Garvey here. Craig Charles' Saturday evening Funk and Soul show is one of those perfectly scheduled shows that plays a mix of music that could only be curated on 6Music. Stuart Maconie's Sunday afternoon Freak Zone is perhaps the stations most musically unique offering, and truly alternative to any offered on BBC or commercial radio. It is, perhaps, almost the definition of public service popular music broadcasting. Often a challenging listen, sometimes willfully unusual, but you'll always learn something about a range of music commercial radio wouldn't even recognise as music. The same could probably be said of Jarvis Cocker's new Sunday afternoon show, which is shaping up to be another 6Music hit.

Lastly, my favourite part of Steve Lamacq's weekday show, Roundtable. Being old enough to fondly remember the original Roundtable on Radio 1, this is pure joy.

Those are the programmes that I'll miss most if 6Music ceases to exist in 2012.

What did I miss?

Music listening, Feb 2010

2010-02-13T14:00:00.000Z

Some excellent new music around right now, from Midlake's deep and wonderful second album to Laura Veirs lovely "July Flame" to young trumpet player Matthew Halsall's first full length album. I saw Matthew Halsall play live at the Vortex in Dalston and it was the most fun I've had at a jazz gig for ages, whilst Midlake at Wilton's Music Hall was truly memorable in the most unusual venue I can remember.

Tracklist:

Midlake - "Acts of Man"
Laura Veirs - "July Flame"
Vampire Weekend - "Cousins"
The Unthanks - "Here's the tender coming"
Volcano Choir - "Island,IS"
The Dry Spells - "Too Soon For Flowers"
Laura Gibson - "Spirited"
Fever Ray - "When I Grow Up"
Matthew Halsall - "Colour Yes"

Enjoy.

Podcast listening - January 2010

2010-01-23T11:13:00.000Z

Podcasts were so over-hyped by the media industry 3 or 4 years ago that it seems to me a perfect example of the old cliche: their importance was over emphasized in the short term, but under emphasized in the long term.

Nowadays some people in the industry seemed to have moved on and forgotten all about podcasts - they didn't kill radio/we can't make money from them so we can ignore them. This seems a mistake to me. Think of podcasts as portable, on demand, personalised audio (or radio), and they seem less like a mid-noughties fad and more like the future of personal media consumption. Don't tell the conference organisers though, or we'll end up with more sessions on how podcasting is the death knell of radio. Which it isn't, because live radio has a long life left in it. The biggest problem remaining is that many people still don't know what a podcast is or why they'd want one, which is a challenge we're tackling head on at the BBC this year.

More to the point, it's time for the annual podcast clear out: I've looked at what I'm subscribed to but in reality don't get round to listening to. Like most people I know who listen to podcasts, the temptation is always to subscribe to more, which means it's inevitable that you end up with a whole bunch which never get heard.

Having just been through this process, this is what I'm left with: some new, some old, all good.

Media Talk from the Guardian. Entertaining, informative and infuriating in equal measure, it's a must listen.

All Songs Considered from NPR. This is my favourite music related podcast. NPR presenter Bob Boilen offers his personal take on the most interesting new music of the week. His thoughtful, paced, intelligent presenting style makes this a laid back listen. The context he gives to the tracks he's chosen makes you listen to the music even if you don't initially like the sound of it. He's become one of my most trusted music guides. Really worth listening to his round up of 2009 with his producer and fellow NPR music folk.

Radio Talk from the Radio Academy. Trevor Dann turns out to be really quite a good host of this weekly half hour radio industry show. Trevor has - in my view - been heavily influenced stylistically by some excellent NPR presenters, which is a good thing. If you work in radio, this is a must.

The Word podcast, from The Word magazine. Most weeks, this is pure joy. Frankly, it shouldn't be, given that it's two or three middle aged men sat round an office who all like the sound of their own voice just a little too much, talking loosely about music matters. But it is. David Hepworth, Mark Ellen, Andrew Harrison and Fraser Lewry, with occasional guests such as Danny Baker or Steve Lamacq, have somehow conjured podcast magic. Addictive.

Car Talk from NPR. Two American brothers - Tom and Ray or Click and Clack - take phone calls from listeners about cars and car related issues. Not, I agree, on the face of it, a rivetting listen. But it is. I reckon this gives more of an insight into American life than any amount of US TV imports. Really quite addictive even if you have no interest in cars, which is quite a feat.

Tech Weekly from the Guardian. The audio counterpart to the paper's extensive technology journalism. It's not particularly professional sounding, mainly because the contributors - Charles Arthur, Bobbie Johnson and Jack Schofield and presenter Aleks Krotoski - have good tech knowledge but lack radio presenting skills. But still worth paying attention to.

Zane Lowe's Hottest Records. A music recommendations mini-podcast. Only about 6 minutes long, this weekly edit from his Radio 1 show is perfect for catching up with Zane's take on music. Yes it only has 30" music clips in, but it really doesn't matter in this context.

6 Music daily music news from BBC 6 Music. I like this principally because it's short - usually under 5 minutes - so fits in with those annoying times on public transport when you don't have time to listen to something longer. Also, it doesn't follow the standard press release driven music news agenda.

Simon Mayo and Mark Kermode from BBC Five Live. Now extended to two podcasts per week, due to the schedule change which means they have a weekly two hour show which soley focusses on film matters. Part two is what i listen to as it includes the film reviews; part one tends to be interviews which are more hit and miss for me. Simon and Mark's friendship spills out making this one of the warmest and wittiest pod listens.

Notable mention should also go to Adam & Joe, Desert Island Discs, Jazz Library, On The Media, Stephen Fry, Bending Corners, and The Bitterest Pill.

As you can see, I haven't made a distinction between podcasts that originate from broadcast radio and those created just for online.

Any recommendations for things I should be listening to?

Albums of 2009

2009-12-24T21:24:00.000Z

So it's that time of year, when you look back over the music you discovered over the past 12 months, and try to figure out what has meant the most. Not that these are necessarily the best albums of 2009 - I'm not really sure what that means - but they are the one's I felt most attached to, listened to most, would most recommend. So, in no particular order, here goes:

Grizzly Bear - "Veckatamist"
Not easy listening at all, but really worth the effort.

Noah and the Whale - "The first days of Spring"
A remarkable second album, excellent lyrics, beautiful songs. Listen in one go for maximum impact

Animal Collective - "Merriweather Post Pavilion"
Everyone's favourite American undergound act. Innovative, tuneful, lovely.

Portico Quartet - "Isla"
My favourite jazz album of 09: very distinctive sound, great tunes

Great Lake Swimmers - "Lost Channels"
Something melancholic about Canadian folk rockers GLS; I like it alot

Temper Trap - "Conditions"
The backlash has already started, but I love the songs and that voice

The XX - "XX"
Reminds me of much, but sounds new and different at the same time

The Mummers - "Tale to Tell"
I found their performance on Later with Jools mesmerising. Bjork-ish vocals with a more English feel

Woods - "Songs of Shame"
More American folky ramblings which I seem drawn to these days

Woodpigeon - "Treasury Library Canada"
The second Canadian group in my list. But don't let that put you off, it's great

The Low Anthem - "Oh My God, Charlie Darwin"
In truth I'm not mad on all of this album, but the good tracks are superb and make up for the rockier/less convincing others

Jack Penate - "Everything is New"
Who would have thought that JP would make a critically acclaimed second album loved by the charts and Zane Lowe? My favourite pop album of 09.

Jimi Tenor and Tony Allen - "Inspiration Information 4"
Jazz + African funk = excellent album

Laura Gibson - "Beasts of Seasons"
Portland singer songwriter. Haunting, sad, lovely songs

Bon Iver - "Blood Bank"
Not really an album but an EP, but for someone still reeling from the wonderful "For Emma, Forever ago" album of 2008 this was enough to prove that Justin Vernon has more than one record in him. Thank goodness.

So there it is. There's loads more but you have to stop somewhere. I heartily recommend all of the above 15 albums to you.

In praise of... Guy Garvey

2009-12-05T11:11:00.000Z

Elbow lead singer Guy Garvey only has one radio show. It's just 2 hours per week, on BBC 6Music. But it's an important show, in that it points to a possible future direction for digital music radio stations to make them stand out in a world of ubiquitous online music.

The question is this: as broadband becomes the norm, and services such as Spotify give you free access to a huge virtual library, what is the point of a digital music radio station? By this, I mean, how can a digital music radio station stand out from the other services on offer, either as a radio station or as a digital music service?

Doing what existing radio stations do is surely not the answer, simply because they are already doing it, and there's frankly lots of them doing it. And the audience are really quite happy with their existing radio listening choices. Doing what Spotify does is not only impossible for a radio station, but again is not distinctive because Spotify (etc) already does it very well thank you.

So where does that leave new digital music stations?

One answer is in becoming a trusted guide offering curated recommendations, which is something that Spotify isn't that great at, despite various playlist sites which allow you to create a spotify playlist. Which brings me back to Guy Garvey. His show is a "must listen" for me, because I've come to trust that there's a high chance he will introduce me to an artist (new or old) or track or album that I really want to investigate. I value that highly.

This is what I would call "high value" content, combining carefully chosen music, interesting and informative bits between the music, some humour, and audience involvement in parts of the show (e.g."Song for Guy"). Importantly, there's really nothing in the two hours that places it in any particular day or time, meaning there's no jarring time checks or news summaries when you listen on-demand. This stands out enough for me to make the effort to spend time with it.

The ultimate irony of all this is that although I often listen to his show on-demand, it's actually a genius piece of old-school scheduling - late Sunday evening - which really works as a broadcast. A perfect end to the weekend. Or whenever you choose to listen.

August 09 mix

2009-08-13T22:09:00.000+01:00

Here's what I've been listening to in the last few weeks. Grizzy Bear, Temper Trap, The Low Anthem, The Invisible, Bowerbirds, Jack Penate, and of course the obligatory Microdisney. Somehow it's always Microdisney time round my house.

In praise of... Nick Grimshaw

2009-07-24T19:59:00.000+01:00

I have to admit to being a little sad when i heard that Colin Murray was leaving Radio 1: his brand of humour and eclectic music taste on his late late evening weekday show worked for me. But now we have Nick Grimshaw (Grimmers) in his place it makes me realise just how old the previous show had become. Nick not only sounds young (well, he is), only occasionally sounding like he's trying too hard, but the music sounds younger too. I'm particularly enjoying his countdown of "1000 albums you should hear" feature, varied as it is. He was good on Switch, but this new show is beginning to sound confident and fun.

It's a good move for Radio 1, who constantly need to do more to attract a younger audience to radio. Nick Grimshaw can only help bring in that sub-24 audience that we need to learn to love radio. Radio 1 now sounds like its target audience between 10pm and midnight, which is a good thing.

May 09 mix

2009-05-20T21:27:00.000+01:00

Latest selection of my home listening. Just re-discovering one of my favourite bands from when i was a student in the 80's: Microdisney. Cathal Coughlan and Sean O'Hagan making glorious bitter-sweet pop. Also featuring new discoveries Woods, Grizzly Bear, Sigur Ros and Leisure Society. Enjoy.

April 09 mix

2009-04-18T20:06:00.000+01:00

Here's a taster mix of what i'm listening to at the moment. Mainly accoustic stuff. Particularly keen on the Great Lake Swimmers, The Mummers and Bon Iver. Must mean i'm getting old.

On a lighter note, I'm impressed with new mix site 8Tracks. Not 100% sure of legality, but I think they've actually sorted licences.

Twitter + radio = good interaction

2009-03-14T13:14:00.000Z

Just a quick thought about how Twitter is having a positive impact on radio. One of our big aims is to help make radio more interactive, and to get programmes to engage in a dialogue with their audiences, and to reflect that interaction in the broadcast. Radio, after all, is an incredibly personal medium, and should be as much about the audience as the presenter.

We've had phone-ins for decades, we've had incoming faxes and letters, for 15 years or so we've had emails, and for 10 years we've had text messages (I introduced incoming SMS to Radio 1 in '98). We've also played - not particularly successfully imho - with message boards and live chat rooms. None of this is wrong or bad, but it seems to me that micro-blogging services - and let's be honest I really mean Twitter - has had a bigger impact with some shows in terms of engaging with audiences than all the rest put together.

Why? Because at it's heart, Twitter is a two-way medium, tweets and replies, which means that a presenter/DJ who sends out a tweet will nearly always get replies which are relevant and useful. And because Twitter is a personal service - you choose who you follow, and tweets are by their very nature personal ("what are you doing/thinking?") - it gives the illusion that you are receiving something more personal to you than, say, a live broadcast. And in fact you are, so it's not really an illusion.

So, when Annie Mac, Mistajam or Hugh Stevens or Chris Moyles sends out a tweet, it's likely to be something more personal than something they'd be likely to say on their radio programme. And when people reply, it's usually with a comment which is directly relevant, which means there's a higher chance of that feedback becoming part of the broadcast. Virtuous circle complete.

There's loads of radio presenters already using Twitter, and it's growing all the time. Some are starting to play with how they can use it - for example BBC 6Music's Jon Holmes is experimenting with offering "simulcast bonus song nonsense" if you follow a particular hashtag during his show. More here.

Steve Bowbrick and Jem Stone are also trying out a new form of social listening via Twitter at Good Radio Club. Having listened and watched and tweeted to a Radio4 progamme this week, I can confirm it makes the listening experience much deeper, more intense, and frankly more fun. Seeing what others are thinking about the radio programme that you are listening to enhances the experience considerably.

For a list of most radio folk on Twitter, see James Cridland's list.

Finding music on bbc.co.uk

2009-02-07T17:32:00.000Z

Thinking about our music offering on bbc.co.uk, and changes which are coming soon, here's a list of ways in which we could be helping people find music, or music content, on bbc.co.uk. Some of these are possible now, most are not. If we can offer these as automated feeds, we really will be maximising routes to content. Which means, of course, that more people will consume more content, and bbc.co.uk will have improved it's utility considerably.

Tracklistings. All music shows have, or will have, lists of music played on the programme. These will soon become clickable, taking you to the relevant artist page

Now playing. What music is the BBC playing right now? An aggregation of all our music stations live output.

Recently played. We should be listing all artists that have been played recently across BBC radio. We need to define what "recently" means, and in the future get all our stations having live music information. This is not currently the case. By network, and across all networks.

Most searched for artists. Which artists are people searching for on bbc.co.uk?

Breaking artists. Which artists played recently on BBC radio are brand new, i.e. haven't been played before on the BBC?

Most recommended. Which artists are being most heavily recommended by BBC talent?

Most recent BBC session. Which artists have recently performed live exclusively for the BBC?

Most recent BBC interview. Which artists have recently been interviewed on BBC radio or TV?

Most recent BBC documentary. Which artists have recently featured in a BBC documentary?

Artists quoted in SMS sent to the BBC. Which artists have featured most in text messages sent in to the BBC?

Artists being discussed on bbc.co.uk. Which artists are being discussed, commented on, rated, or added to personal profiles?

Artist A-Z. Complete list of all artists played on BBC radio over a certain time period

Charts. e.g. Top 40 singles and albums, music genre charts

News. Artists mentioned in recent news stories published on bbc.co.uk, and elsewhere

I'll be adding more to this list over the coming days/weeks, so feel free to add other possibilities.

New BBC Radio homepage

2008-12-13T11:55:00.000Z

This week we launched a brand new homepage for BBC Radio on the web. Apart from looking pretty good in the new wide template, and giving quick access to the full radio offer - national, nations, local and world service - the main reason to celebrate is that it manages to expose so much more of our content than the previous version, and almost totally in an automated feed-driven manner.

The top half of the page is driven by data feeds from /programmes, which provides "now on air" information including a short description of the current and upcoming programme (more here). We also allow users to access lists of programmes by music genre, speech genre, or alphabetically, all via /programmes. Then we have some space for some editorially chosen links to key programmes or events.

Lower down we've pulled together feeds of latest published podcasts from across our national radio networks, then most recent blog posts, and lastly a marketing driven "recommended" iPlayer feed pulled in from the main iplayer site.

None of this is rocket science or particularly innovative, but it's a nice development which is updated 24x7 by existing data feeds. Thanks to DUK for design work, and a great team including Sarah Dain, Richard Moreland and Paul Duncan for getting it live so quickly.

Any comments or thoughts on it appreciated.

TV of 2008

2008-12-06T17:48:00.000Z

Lots of good things this year. Here's what mostly got me setting the PVR:

1. Entourage
Probably the funniest US import on TV, with proper characters, proper stories and proper laughs. Ari Gold is a genius invention.

2. Mad Men
Excellent period ('60's) drama with nice dark elements. Try and keep up with their drinking!

3. Little Dorrit
The BBC doing what the BBC does well.

4. Spooks
The most recent 7th series has been a real step up. They pack a huge amount into 60 minutes. Characters you love get killed. Inconceivable that this kind of drama would have been made 10 years ago. Topical, tense and of course completely unrealistic.

5. Heroes
Can anyone actually follow the story lines in series 3? Still good, but needs to be a little more, err, understandable.

6. Later with Jools
Let's not forget that 2008 saw the new live 30 minute format. It works a treat and leaves you wanting more, which is not always true of the full 60 minute version.

7. Never Mind The Buzzcocks
OMG. The funniest thing on TV made in the UK. Simon Amstell, I salute you: you have given me more TV laughs in 08 than anything else.

What have I missed?

Datz music lounge - another music subscription service that's not good enough

2008-11-22T16:48:00.000Z

I had fairly high hopes when I first heard about Datz: long term subscription service for as much digital music as you want. Pay £100 for a year of unlimted downloading of music not only from indie labels but the majors too. That's actually less than I currently pay for my eMusic subscription which offers no major label music, so I was gearing up for a change.

But hang on. Now the details are emerging and things are not looking so good. Principally, it's the usual problem in this space, which is that not all the majors are on-board. EMI and Warners, plus some major indies, but nothing from Sony and most importantly, Universal. Which, given Universal's dominance in the market, means Datz is not nearly as attractive an offer as it might have been. To commit to upfront spend of £100 I'm guessing most people - certainly me - would have to be pretty sure that they were going to get good value from it. But with only 2 majors the offer is going to inevitably by patchy. I won't even mention the fact that you can't download an album in one go but have to find all the tracks and download them separately, as I can only assume this is a technical issue which will be ironed out. If it isn't, someone should be shot.

All this got me thinking what my ideal music subscription would be, and how much I'd be happy to pay for it. Yes, I know, paying for music might make me seem odd and frankly old-fashioned in these days of bit torrent and limewire, but as I've said before, I'm happy to pay for music because I value it so highly. Am I getting enjoyment out of the new TV on the Radio album? Yes. Am I therefore happy to pay for it? Yes. Simple as that really.

So, what would work for me?

Firstly, and I may be unusual here, but I'm up for a regular subscription. It's a bit like paying your household bills by direct debit - it's just easier and is less hassle, and cheaper. I also know how much I'm going to spend, which helps budget planning.

Secondly, music is music and at the end of the day I don't care what label it comes from - the biggest major or the smallest indie or in fact unsigned. So, don't confuse me with only offering me music from some labels but not others. This is the equivalent of exposing the inner disagreements of an industry to the public - unneccesary and undesirable.

Thirdly, give me good recommendations. Learn from what I've downloaded, and listened to. Don't try to offer me the latest from Rhianna or Leonna Lewis (as Napster does) as that will just piss me off.

How much would I be willing to pay for this? Well I'd certainly stump up what Datz are asking for - £100 pa - and in fact I'd probably be happy to pay more if I could get all of the above. £20 per month is about the maximum I'd be happy with now, which is £240 pa. That seems high, so let's agree on a round £200 pa.

So why don't all the major labels get together, and offer their own subscription service which delivers a great service for people willing to pay? There's nothing out there doing this, so I'm confident they'd be on to a winner. It wouldn't even need to be unlimited, as long as the cost per track was reasonable - which means less than the 79p iTunes charges.

Here's a thought: why don't the majors buy out eMusic and make it their own? They could be up and running in a few months using existing serving and billing infrastructure.

Albums of 2008

2008-11-16T10:32:00.000Z

Here's my draft list of top albums of the year. It may well change, especially as there are still some big releases not out yet. What have I missed?

In no particular order:

Sigur Ros - "Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust"
Uplifting, beautiful, incomprehensible

Laura Marling - "Alas I cannot swim"
All the family love it

TV on the Radio - "Dear Science"
Strange mix of styles, but it works

Fleet Foxes - "Fleet Foxes"
Where did this music come from?

Robert Forster - "The Evangelist"
Because I love the Go-Betweens

Hercules and Love Affair - "Hercules and Love Affair"
Bizarre but addictive

Ambulance - "Accident and Insurgency"
Nice... really

MGMT - "Oracular Spectacular"
Old + new = fun

Updated 22/11:

Bon Iver - "For Emma, Forever Ago"
Sublime melodies, pure accoustic sound

Any recommendations or things that I should have included?

My listening can be tracked on Last.fm here

Artist pages and radio

2008-10-18T18:12:00.000+01:00

N.B. these are my own views, not the views of the BBC.

Soon - early in 2009 - we will be fully launching into beta our new artist pages on bbc.co.uk, as blogged about by Matthew Shorter and Tom Scott. In a nutshell, these pages will be the BBC's definitive or canonical page about that artist, with a permanent url, which will aggregate all the BBC has to offer about that artist. They will also pull in various 3rd party feeds of data, which is useful, but the key thing is that they point towards all relevant BBC content. So, like Oasis? There's one page which you will be able to trust to point you to all current Oasis content on bbc.co.uk. Liking Oasis, btw, is a mistake, but I'll leave that for now.

We've been busy sorting both technical and what could be called, err, non-technical issues out (data accuracy, work flow, compliance), with an aim of a launch likely to be February 09. This is a really exciting development for me, as it'll be the first really big step towards our aim of linking up programmes and music in a positive way.

So, what are the benefits of this?

Let's think of some scenarios to see how our new artist pages will help people, and the BBC.

1. People. Many people search on artist names. Artist names are some of the most searched for terms - that's not opinion, that's fact. Currently, you would be very unlikely to end up on bbc.co.uk despite the fact that there may well be exclusive high quality content waiting for you there. This is down to the unique way in which the BBC has so far run it's website - suffice to say it's not exactly optimised for search and aggregation. With new artist pages hoovering up google juice in clever ways, we aim for our results to dramatically improve. Which means the person searching on an artist may well end up on bbc.co.uk, and from that landing page may well end up on radio station site where they can watch, listen, read etc. The key thing here is that this will attract people who may not have any relationship with our brands or talent, or be a user of bbc.co.uk. In BBC terms... extending reach. Nice.

2. BBC radio reaches many millions of people every week. Quite a few of these people are interested in what music is played. Some of them are interested enough to go online to find out more. Luckily we offer lists of the music we play for nearly all of our "specialist" shows (often these are evening or night time shows which don't play the most well known music, such as Gilles Peterson) and some of our more mainstream shows. Currently, these tracklists are useful to an extent, in that they will tell you what music we played, but after that it's pretty much a dead end. People don't like dead ends. I don't like dead ends. I want to be offered the chance to go further if I want. I want good links. Which is after all what the internet is all about . Our work will allow these radio tracklists to become lists of links through to the relevant artist page (track pages will follow at a later date). So if you want to find out more about the artist that you heard about on the radio - and many do - then you can simply click through to find out what else the BBC can offer you, and at the same time get some very useful basic info such as a biog (from wikipedia) and a discography (from musicbrainz). How useful I hear you say! Exactly, I would reply. Oh, and there will be tracklists for all shows, not just some of them.

And because we know how important brands are, we are making sure that the relevant BBC brands are given full credit for both playing that artist, and for creating great content about them. So it's a win-win situation - audience get a great service which means they are more likely to come back often and recommend the site to their friends, and the BBC benefits by being seen as a good source of music information and content. And the brands benefit because the content is all fully branded and credit given.

3. Programmes. Artist pages will also really benefits programmes. By linking our programmes with music, this is just as much about programme discovery as it is about music discovery. People will start by wanting to find out more about the music they have heard, which they will be able to, and because we'll be reflecting our programmes love of certain artists, we can point people to relevant programmes they may never have heard before. For example, I start by wanting to find out about a band called MGMT. I end up on our MGMT artist page and find out that Steve Lamacq has a show on 6Music which happens to play quite a lot of MGMT, so I end up clicking through to listen to his latest show on-demand. Nice.

4. Artists. Lastly, it seems fairly obvious that it's not just audiences and potential audiences and the BBC who will benefit from this. The artists themselves who have frequently put alot of time and effort into appearing on our programmes will benefit because their fans, and new potential fans, will be able to discover their contributions on the BBC, whether that's a live session or an interview. And because we have a remit to link outside the BBC as much as we can, we will include a link to the artists official site and other good sites about that artist. Which means we will naturally send traffic to official artist sites, where people will have different opportunities to engage and perhaps even purchase music, tickets or other merchandise.

So, artists pages on bbc.co.uk, a good thing for all.

Recent podcast listening

2008-10-14T21:16:00.000+01:00

For no real reason other than list-making, here's a list of my most listened to podcasts in recent weeks:

Kermode and Mayo Film reviews - Five Live
Media Talk - Guardian
Word podcast - Word magazine
Adam and Joe - BBC 6 Music
The Bitterest Pill - Dan Klass
NPR Technology - NPR
Zane Lowe's Hottest Records - BBC Radio 1
Tech Weekly - Guardian
Radio 1 Mini Mix - BBC Radio 1
On The Media - NPR
New Music Rising - XFM

I'm also liking the The Media Show podcast (Radio 4) with Steve Hewlitt, but it's too early to really say as it's only just launched, but it makes for quite a good 30 mins listen so far. Interesting comparison with the Guardian's Media Talk (also often featuring Mr Hewlitt) - one very prepared, researched, with lots of "experts", the other 3 journalists chatting and generally being less than objective.

The Word podcast is an interesting one - terrible sound quality, no structure, no planning, just 3 middle aged blokes (sorry Matt) sat around in their office having a chat. It sounds like you are eavesdropping on them talking in the pub or round a dinner table, which I guess is the beauty of it. Once you get over the poor sound quality you ignore it and get lost in anacdotes from Mark Ellen, David Hepworth or the excellent Andrew Harrison.

I've been trying to work out if there's any unifying feature or consistency about these podcasts, something that might point to what makes a "good" podcast, and I've found two consistent things: none of them are particularly time sensitive - they all have a shelf life of about a week if not more, and none are longer than about 45 minutes. Some are broadcast radio programmes, some have never been near a transmitter. Some are high quality professional recordings, others recorded in a garage. So my only conclusion is that these are all pieces of audio that I value highly enough to download, synch with my iPod, and most of all, spend time listening to them. The important word in that last sentance was "I": this is a very personal form of media, listened to almost always on my headphones. In this case, it really is all about content that works for me.

I'm sure I'm missing lots of fantastic podcasts... so suggest some new ones.

Scheduled podcast listening?

2008-09-20T18:14:00.000+01:00

Now this is strange. Podcasts are meant to free us from linear broadcast schedules, and from broadcast-receiving devices such as, err, radios. You can listen to podcasts anywhere you want, at whatever time you want. Total freedom from the old broadcast schedule world. Fantastic.

So, why am I finding that I have, without thinking about it, created my own listening schedule almost (but not quite) as rigid as a broadcast schedule like this. For example, I nearly always listen to the wonderful Mayo & Kermode film podcast from Five Live whilst lying in bed on a Saturday morning, about 8.30am. I've been listening to this podcast since the very first edition several years ago now, and I reckon 90% of my listening has been at the same day/time. Likewise, I pretty much always listen to The Guardian's Media Talk podcast on a Monday morning.

Clearly, it's not rocket science to work out why: it's just a habit I've got into in the same way that I always wake up to Radio 4's Today programme. Freed from any place or time constraints, I still choose to effectively listen at a scheduled time. OK, it's a scheduled time of my own making, but it's still a scheduled time.

Not sure if this has any significance at all, or if it's just me that does this, but it's fairly amusing when you think of it.

The Verve at Maida Vale

2008-08-07T00:08:00.000+01:00

Last night I was lucky enough to get on the guest list for a live radio session by The Verve at the BBC's famous Maida Vale studios in London. It was the latest in a series of sets by important artists who get to perform a 45 minute set live on BBC Radio 1, often on Zane Lowe's show. We were filming it and taking photos, which you can see here. With only about 20 people allowed in to stand on the mezzanine above the performance space, it was a real privilege to witness the band at such close range. My camera phone photos are here.

There's something incredibly powerful about The Verve, and from the first song you could tell they weren't messing about - this was a full on performance not a half-hearted studio session. I have to admit to one of those BBC moments, where I felt genuinely proud to work for an organisation that can pull in bands like The Verve into a studio to play live on the radio.

Because it was invite only - mainly friends, family and record label people - its not like a normal gig. You bump into the band afterwards on the way out with their family or talking to mates. Well, most of the band. Richard Ashcroft didn't hang around afterwards. In fact, he didn't hand around at all, putting his jacket on and walking puroposefully out of the studio the second he had finished his vocals on the last song, whilst the rest of the band played on. Bizarre. There was certainly a lack of eye contact between Richard and most of the band, and the rumours were flying about how they don't talk to each other. How can a band who don't talk to each other write such good material? Maybe that's what gives them the creative spark. Or maybe they just need some money. Who knows. All I do know is that it was an amazing session, and if the new album "Forth" is as good then it could be a decent follow-up to what many including me think was one of the albums of the mid-90's, Urban Hymnes.

And yes, they played Bitter Sweet Symphony. Stunning.

More on The Verve

eMusic vs Napster

2008-08-04T21:16:00.000+01:00

Call me old fashioned, but I still believe in paying for music. Partly because I feel that if someone makes great music then they deserve to get paid, and partly because (and I know this is going to sound strange) I value it more if I've paid for it. I also figure that if I pay for it, I'll get a good service which you won't necessarily get from places where its free.

So for most of this year I've been subscribed to both eMusic and Napster. I wanted to do a proper comparison to see which service i valued the most. eMusic costs £11 p/month for 30 permanent MP3 downloads (existing users get a better deal), Napster costs £10 p/month for unlimited streams and DRM tethered downloads. So for eMusic, that works out at 37 pence per track.

So there's a fairly big difference in the offer, with Napster having just about every major artist and release, and eMusic having no major label artists but lots of artists from small independent labels.

Why then, have I just cancelled my Napster subscription but not eMusic? Here's why:

Obviously, I can't take my Napster tracks with me as I use an iPod which doesn't support Napster's DRM
Some people record their Napster tracks using software like Tunebite or Replay Music, but frankly life's too short to sit correcting the metadata and making sure tracks are split correctly
The Napster application stinks. Or rather, it's slow, very slow, and temperamental which means that quite often albums I've downloaded simply won't play when I want them to
It recommends me horrible music that I've never downloaded or listened to. In other words, it hasn't learnt what I like and dislike
There's no sign of any other users on the site: it's a lonely and isolated place to be
It's a bit like going into a bright soul-less record store run by people who don't actually like music

On the other hand, I'm still liking eMusic. Why?

It's web based, not desktop based
No speed problems
I can transfer the music to my iPod or wherever I want
I get to keep the music forever, even if I leave eMusic
Once i've downloaded music, I can download it again at no cost. So if I want a copy on my work PC as well as my home PC, no problem. Or if I buy a new computer I can re-download everything I've already downloaded, for free
Good quality audio - 192kbps VBR
There are lots of ways of discovering new music that I haven't heard of: straight forward Amazon style recommendations based on what I've downloaded, artist based recommendations, user ratings, most popular lists, and best of all other eMusic users recommendations/lists, and musical neighbours.
It offers me a personalized experience - it's learning from what I listen to
Recent improvements now offer better integration with the web with relevant content from YouTube and Wikipedia etc
It seems to be run by people who actually love music
It feels a reasonably sociable place - you feel the presence of other music fans out there using the service, and that feels good. Every album and artist forms part of someone else's favourites list, and has an eMusic review and user reviews, and is connected to user playlists

So there you have it. eMusic 1, Napster 0.

The main point here, I suppose, is that I'm willing to pay a monthly subscription for music. If eMusic could just get the majors on board I'm pretty sure alot of other people would be too. Going to be very interesting to see what BSkyB do with Universal

Here are some recommendations from me that I've got from eMusic:

The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
Elbow - Cast of Thousands
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Little Dragon - Little Dragon
Midlake - The Trials Of Van Occupanther
Portico Quartet - Knee-Deep in the North Sea
Robert Forster - The Evangelist
Bjork - Volta
Killer Shrimp - Sincerely Whatever

iPlayer 2.0 - what it means for listeners and producers

2008-07-06T22:19:00.000+01:00

So here's a quick summary of what iPlayer 2.0 means for listeners:

TV and Radio together: choose a tv show if you want video instead of audio only
more ways into our programmes - via /iplayer, and for exampole /radio2
better sound quality (128k)
full FF an RW navigation within a programme (no more "skip 15 mins")
smaller, simpler pop-up console makes it easier to use
play in page, or in a pop-out console
navigation in the page, not in the pop-up console
UK users have no need for a separate audio download (Real)
recommendations based on the programmes you like
"resume" functionality means you can pick where you left off
iPlayer remembers the last 10 programmes you've listened to
search by radio station, genre, schedule or "most popular"
extra written programme information on the play out page exposes programme content
attractive promotion area for all of Radio, and individual radio stations
social bookmarking
a more visual offer: nice big image for every programme
Guidance and PIN protection (coming soon...)

And what it means for producers of radio programmes:

need to write better, more detailed programme specific descriptions
need to provide a good quality image per programme
we need a new solution for "off schedule" content
"programme within a programme" issues
Guidance flag
Revocation

iPlayer 2.0 live at last

2008-07-06T13:46:00.000+01:00

Well it's Sunday morning and i'm listening to last week's Gilles Peterson show from BBC Radio 1 via the newly released BBC iPlayer 2.0, which slunk out of formal beta on Friday afternoon (4th July). Yes, Friday afternoon. Great time to launch a big new project huh? We'll be integrating the new iPlayer pop-out console into our BBC radio and music sites this coming week - keep an eye out from Monday on 1Xtra and 6Music to start with.

Anyway, from what i can see it seems to be working pretty well. The audio quality is frankly a huge improvement over the old BBC Radio Player Real streams which were 44kbps. 128kbps flash streams sound, well, proper. On my home set up using Logitech Z4 speakers it sounds as good as listening to anything thru' iTunes.

Love the fact that it remembers what i've listened to and lets me resume where i left off - it's going to be one of those features which comes in really handy.

There's still lots to do with some programme images not looking right, with programme titles not working in this environment and not being prominent enough, with poor quality programmes descriptions, with some programmes turning up in the wrong genres and therefore being recommended ("More Like This") inappropriately, with some on-demand shows still playing in Real not Flash, and the whole thing sometimes defaults to the Text Only version for some reason. But hey, it's a new product and it's a step change in the BBC's online offer.

The really interesting thing for me is how many people are now going to discover radio programmes despite coming to iPlayer to watch a TV programme? If we get this right, we could see a nice increase in the number of people listening to on-demand radio via internet. And it'll expose lots of programmes which are not on in mainstream listening hours, which, imho, are some of the best programmes the BBC produces. There'll be traffic the other way too - from existing users of the Radio Player who discover online TV via the new "tv and radio together" interface.

Back to Gilles, then maybe some Deviation from 1Xtra, then Jazz on 3. Oh yes.