Canadian Blast

Published Feb 21, 2011

Did you know that Canada supplies around 2.5 percent of all the music consumed every day worldwide? It's a Canadian fact! Okay, it doesn't s...

Mastering Importance

Published Feb 20, 2011

I have lots of friends that swear the importance of ponying up the big cash to get their studio or home recordings professionally mastered....

Can underage performers play in bars in Canada?

Published Feb 15, 2011

Hi Allison, My 16-year-old hotshot guitarist son wants to start playing in bars, either in open jam sessions or with his band. Do we have t...

Ask Allison

Published Jan 24, 2011

Is it true that in order to apply for a P2 visa to play in the U.S., you have to be a member of the CFM [the Canadian Federation of Musician...

POST NO BILLS! (ESPECIALLY COPYRIGHT ONES)

Published Jan 24, 2011

Bill C-32, the latest attempt to update Canada's creaky old Copyright Act, is currently under review by the Legislative Committee, having un...

Slow Music Now!

Published Nov 29, 2010

As a music-obsessed foodie, I note some interesting parallels between North American food production and the music industry. Both really too...

EVICT YOUR INNER BONEHEAD

Published Oct 25, 2010

Bill Baker and his colleagues at Mint Records were in the midst of a tense meeting with an artist they were letting go from the label when i...

The Price is Right-ish

Published Sep 26, 2010

Casting around for a convenient opening metaphor, I got it into my noggin to find out the price of tea in China. Turns out it's not so easy...

Follow The Money: Federal and Provincial Funding

Published Aug 21, 2010

Compared to the great lumbering Horton that is the American music business, we might as well be Whos up here. With one-tenth the population...

Music Summer School All Your Videos Are Belong To Us

Published Jul 25, 2010

I officially declare the camera phone a scourge. At every show, there's a forest of video-enabled dorks up front, not watching nor listening...

Music Summer School Proposed New Copyright Bill C-32

Published Jun 27, 2010

No doubt Canada's Copyright Act desperately needs updating. The last amendments were written eons before digital technology busted open the...

Summer Music School Timing is Everything

Published May 23, 2010

The secret to a kick-ass live set is having the whole band start and stop at the same time, so it shouldn't be a surprise that timing in oth...

MEASURES AND SCALES The metrics of the music business

Published Apr 23, 2010

Success is a matter of perspective. Some rock star wannabes wouldn't consider themselves successful until they'd become gazillion-sellers wi...

Vanessa Thomas SVP, Sales, Nielsen Music, North America

Published Apr 23, 2010

Vanessa Thomas has worked in the music industry for 20 years, including time with Premiere radio networks in LA as VP of Marketing and five...

Geoff Trio President: Code One Entertainment, Miranda, New South Wales

Published Mar 29, 2010

Geoff Trio is a venue owner and promoter who has worked with many Canadian artists including Jill Barber, Hawksley Workman and Joel Plaskett...

G'day Australia!

Published Mar 26, 2010

As a working Canadian band, comes a time when you just can't face another midnight haul through the frozen wasteland of Northern Ontario. Ye...

Matthew Lamarche Tour Manager

Published Feb 20, 2010

Matt Lamarche is a sound mixer and tour manager who works with artists like David Usher, Amanda Marshall and the Tragically Hip. He's curren...

Herding Cats The Art of Tour Management

Published Feb 20, 2010

Tour management is about organizing chaos. Keeping people, gear, vehicles and finances on track is a major challenge. Good tour managers are...

Back In Black The Rebirth of Vinyl

Published Jan 23, 2010

The early 1980s were an amazing time for music lovers. Underground genres like metal, punk, synth pop, reggae and hip-hop were burbling up i...

David Read Vinyl Record Guru

Published Jan 23, 2010

Based on Vancouver Island, Vinyl Record Guru is the brainchild of music industry veteran David Read. With over 25 years in the music busines...