In article after article, the only bands mentioned in the new indie rock sales paradigm -- give away free MP3s, tour like crazy, pray people notice you -- were Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and The Arctic Monkeys. In a recent article, Chicago Sun-Times music writer Jim DeRogatis adds new XL signing Tapes 'N Tapes to that very brief list of free music successes.

"Like the New York-based art-rockers (Clap Your Hands), Tapes 'N Tapes built a sizable and growing national audience seemingly overnight, based largely on the power of distributing its music for free on the Internet."

DeRogatis mentions but undervalues the importance of Pitchfork in this story. Is there an indie rock breakthrough in the last year or two that did not have Pitchfork's seal of approval? (Maybe not so much the Arctic Monkeys, but they carried their buzz with them from the U.K.) And though giving away music for free gets the ball rolling, old fashioned touring is still the crucial element to such bands. Still, this band is at play in the world of Internet-savvy fans, and they basically expect to find new music in MP3 format at the band's site or on MP3 blogs. Audio streams don't cut it.

Posted by Glenn at 11:34 AM | Link | | Digital Music