The Best New Music Blogs
Bloggers get tired or bored or busy or run out of things to say or just vanish – it’s the nature of the game. Luckily there are plenty more being started. All these made their first post sometime this year.
The Tofu Hut: more than just another MP3 blog, Tofu Hut is absolutely stuffed full of links and research findings, just like – gasp – blogs used to be. Friendly and enthusiastic (and yes you get MP3s too).
Gel In They etc etc.: stream-of-type hip-hop chat from Plum Drank, Mia Trill and the mysterious Old Stuffz.
Bang And Burn: sexily-designed MP3 and pop blog – sharp, loving commentaries.
Scissorkick: MP3s (undie hip-hop) and video clips and again a nice design.
Digital Music Weblog – links, facts, commentary on the digital music explosion: very informative.
There are lots of others but these stand out. My quick and incomplete ‘state of the weblog nation’ view suggests that Fluxblog is the current Preferred Model – the one newcomers want to emulate, much like Blissblog was 18 months or so ago. I think It’s a good model – emphasis on content, friendly, encourages comments, inquisitive. Fans like me of the long analytical ‘event post’ won’t find much to chew on in the newer blogs, though. The ‘music press in exile’ aspect of blogging is perhaps being superseded by a version of the music blog that makes more use of multimedia and interactivity rather than basing itself on rosy memories or fictions of pop writing. (Of course it’s not a binary – one of the things that makes (made?) Woebot so good is its combination of generous multimedia and good writing.)
If that’s so (big if!) I’ll miss it – the usual suspects had a great year or so, and they’re near the top of my read-list. But I’m excited about the newer trend, which seems to exploit the Internet’s potential so well (how ’98 of me!)