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I had a charter family membership Seattle's Experience Music Project or EMP, which opened in 2000. But after a couple years, I gave it up. The exhibits didn't change enough to warrant a lot of repeat visits, our periodic out-of-town guests had all been at least once, and the promise of early alerts about live shows at the museum never seemed to come through. (The one show I really wanted to see, the Television reunion in 2001, was sold out before I was ever informed about it.)

Seattle's Experience Music Project

(Credit: Cacophony, Wikimedia Commons)

With a teenaged niece in town and my daughter just getting old enough to enjoy the museum experience, we decided to rejoin yesterday. After facing a few years of low attendance, the museum has made a lot of positive changes, like lowering prices for memberships and daily passes and offering free admission on one evening per month.

As part of this revamp, they killed MEG. Also known as the Museum Experience Guide, MEG was a portable device about the size of a portable CD player with a laser scanner, headphones, and an LCD screen. Visitors would point the scanner at a point on the wall and hear information about the exhibit and maybe some relevant music--for example, famous guitarists like Vernon Reid shredding one of the museum's rare guitars. Nobody loved MEG: they were awkward to carry and hard to figure out, and I always ended up putting mine down ... Read more

An intriguing flip-flop happens in the Seattle bard's latest. If his previous material was whisper-close yet emotionally distant, his newest is rugged and available. From its aching alt-country melodies to its American-summer lyrics, "Caught in the Trees" can recall Jeff Tweedy.

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I had the opportunity to see Wynton Marsalis perform with the 15-piece Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra last night in Seattle, and it was an absolutely stellar performance, with great song selection (Marsalis's own "The Holy Ghost" was a standout) and some of the most incredible technical playing I've ever heard--they did Duke Ellington's "Braggin' in Brass," which contains a trombone part in which each player plays a note or two in sequence, together creating this fast complicated line. (Listen here--that part starts around the -2:06 mark.) I've heard from some jazz fans that Wynton's a little too stiff or formal for their tastes, but that wasn't my experience at all--he even walked back on stage for an impromptu second encore vamp with only the piano, bass, and drums backing him up.

I would have been happy to buy a recording of last night's performance by Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (shown here).

(Credit: Wynton Marsalis Web site)

Jazz performances lend themselves to live recordings--setlists change nightly (Marsalis announces his setlist from the stage as the show goes on) and improvisation is the rule rather than a rarity. I would have been happy to buy a recording of this show or last month's Return to Forever performance. But so far, I don't see jazz musicians embracing the practice of recording their shows and selling them--something that's become pretty common with jam bands like ... Read more

They were a childlike, bass-obsessed duo called L'Trimm and were responsible for the kitchy Miami bass track still loved today, called "Bass That Goes Boom"--a tribute to subwoofers. If you're thinking, "Girls after my own heart!" then you're in for a treat, because the defunct duo is at least slightly reborn in rapper Lady Tigra coming back on the scene. Her new track with MC Lyte--"Stole My Radio"--is a chilly smooth comeback track, while "Bass On Thee Bottom" will no doubt be bangin' in clubland and backyard barbecues this summer.

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(Credit: Newlaunches)

Iriver has thrown its latest digital music player into the deep end, quite literally, and ensured that it floats.

The Speedo Aquabeat is a waterproof player that can hit depths of up to 3 meters and, if detached from the user, is easy to retrieve thanks to its floatable and lightweight 35-gram design. Naturally, this comes bundled with a pair of waterproof earphones that we reckon can do double duty as plugs to seal out water too.

Other than these pool-friendly features, the Speedo Aquabeat--an accessory made specifically for the swimwear brand--offers pretty basic MP3 features: fixed 1GB storage, USB charging, Playlist Editing Software, and a built-in battery capable of 9 hours' playback, according to Newlaunches. There's no LCD screen. But if it still floats your boat, you can get it in lime, black, or pink for $145 from online stores in selected markets.

(Source: Crave Asia)

The Rapture's mix of relentless rhythms, jagged guitars, and pitched vocals gets twisted smartly in W.A.S. works. Instead of the DFA's true house beats, we get drums that are just wilder and more bloodthirsty than rock--an apt way to consider the whole mad science of the thing.

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Consider yourself warned: The following post is not for the squeamish. It's time to clean the wax out of your earbuds. Yes, it's gross, but if you have the style of earbud that gets inserted into the ear canal, it must be done. Otherwise, wax can build up on the outer speaker and affect sound quality, and it may actually seep in and damage the inner workings of the earpieces. It's also not a bad idea to disinfect the sleeves from time to time. Find out how to do both below. Also this week: Your iPod isn't just for your commute, travels, living room, and bedroom anymore...it's also for your bathroom. Check out some cheap solutions for listening to your MP3 player while you shower.

Yep, it's gross alright, but it has to be done.

(Credit: Staples)

Q: You mentioned on the MP3 Insider podcast about cleaning the in-ear headphones, but you forgot to talk about how to clean them if yours do not have a tool. Please help us out buy explaining how to get the dirt out without ruining the headphones. Also, please discuss how to disinfect then to kill or get rid of germs that could get into them. I know that with everyday use you can get germs, but also lots of people use them when they are sick and many more things may leak out of the ear into the headphones when one is sick, so we ... Read more

Dave1 and P. Thugg, aka Chromeo, just got fancier with Fancy Footwork: Deluxe Edition (2xCD). The first disc features Fancy Footwork original recordings made up of semi-ironic '80s, electro-funk silliness and five bonafide music videos while the second disc includes exclusive remixes from the likes of MSTRKRFT, Playgroup, and DFA--guaranteeing you slick moves for that next dance-off.

Chromeo is gearing up for a West Coast tour. If you haven't seen these two kids, I highly recommend you do!

• 7/26/08 SEATTLE, WA Capitol Hill Block Party
• 7/27/08 PORTLAND, OR Berbati's Pan
• 7/29/08 SAN FRANCISCO, CA The Filmore
• 7/30/08 LOS ANGELES, CA Henry Fonda
• 7/31/08 SAN DIEGO, CA House Of Blues
• 8/3/08 CHICAGO, IL Lollapalooza Festival
• 8/9/08 JERSEY CITY, NJ All Points West Festival
• 8/10/08 BALTIMORE, MD Virgin Mobile Festival

(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)

It's some kind of weird contradiction, but for some reason I really loved Tower Records. I say that because I have a long standing thing about indie record shops, and I never bought much at Virgin or HMV, but when Tower opened its two Manhattan stores I became an even bigger vinyl junkie. I lived just a few blocks away from the uptown one and would spend many nights there just looking at music and talking with music buyers. The social scene was part of the trip.

Tower's two gigantic shops were initially filled with groovy records, and later in the 1980s the CDs started to eat away, aisle by aisle, at the vinyl paradises. It must have taken three or four years before CDs occupied most of the bins. Granted, vinyl's decline was mostly market driven, but remember CDs typically sold for double the price of LPs, so Tower, like most stores figured that even if the vinyl title was still available they'd rather you bought the CD. If the LP wasn't there you'd have to pony up the extra dough for the CD. During that time I'd get my vinyl from indie shops.

One rainy spring day walking through Central Park I was listening to a classical radio station when they played Aaron Copland's "Concerto for Clarinet, Strings, Harp and Piano." It so perfectly framed the misty day and green grass I had to buy the music. I exited Central Park, walked a few blocks over to Broadway and bought the CD. That was twenty years ago and I still have the CD to trigger those memories.

(Credit: Apple)

Good news, celebrity charity aficionados: Project Red is going to be providing some music for that Bono-approved iPod Nano of yours.

The high-profile nonprofit, which donates a chunk of profits to combat AIDS in Africa, will be launching a subscription music service this fall.

The as-yet-unnamed service will launch in September, according to The New York Times, and cost $5 per month.

It's structured like a newsletter: each week, members will get an e-mail with two MP3s--one an exclusive song from a well-known act and the other from an emerging artist--as well as a "Crackerjack surprise" (say, a video) and an update on how Project Red's charity money is being put to use. The songs are DRM-free, so you won't have to own a "Red" iPod in order to listen to them. The store itself is powered by PassAlong Networks, which creates music retail stores for clients and has several contracts with record labels in place.

Half the proceeds will go to Africa, and the other half to the artists and record labels involved. Project Red has had roots in the music industry from the start; U2 frontman Bono is a co-founder of the initiative.

It's tough to gauge the success of such a project. It's being spearheaded by Red's president of content, Don MacKinnon, who previously handled music distribution at Starbucks--another program that focused on blending a selection of well-known music with emerging artists. The ubiquitous coffee chain's in-store music ... Read more