ReadWriteWeb has news about Weird Al’s new music release plan, which entails:

releasing songs on iTunes right after he finishes them, bypassing the standard album model for a faster and more flexible approach.

I only mention it because I’ve been waiting for this moment for probably close to 10 years. Ever since Ben said it would happen.

And thus, the death knell sounds for The Album as we know it. Sure, it’s not going to go away any time soon because the major lables will probably take another 10-20 years to realize that most artists are better off selling singles as they produce them. I realize this may be hard for some artists who are used to going on tour and then holing up to write and record a whole album, but it’s a concept that’s been around for a long time, albeit in a slightly different form known as the EP. The Smashing Pumpkins released their American Gothic EP exclusively as a download on iTunes and then followed it up with a CD vesrion that is only available in the US as an Import. (Yes, I know there are probably many other more recent and pertinent examples, but that’s the one I picked, because the Smashing Pumpkins were one of the first bands to release a full album [two in fact] on the internet for free, and they deserve a lot more credit for that than I feel they received)

Anyway, the point is: I am excited to see that the Single is one step closer to replacing the Album.

I’ve gotten a couple of these now… first was this generic, obviously spam one:

Dear Professional:

I would like to tell you about BlueChipExpert.com. It is a worldwide job site for high-end professionals and consultants, such as yourself. The basic idea is that networking can do a better job than traditional
job search methods if the right platform and financial incentives are in place. With Blue Chip Expert, you can opportunistically get exposure to quality jobs, help a friend find a good position, help a hiring manager
find a great candidate, and earn referral fees in the process for your favorite Non-Profit or yourself.

Then I got this one from a fellow blogger, and it makes more sense now (see the emphasis I’ve added.

I just joined Blue Chip Expert and wanted to invite you to join as well.

Blue Chip Expert is an invitation-only career site focused on professionals with excellent qualifications. It’s confidential, completely free to join and use, and only takes a few minutes to join.

Also, every time a person you invite is hired you earn a referral fee which you can either keep or direct to your favorite non-profit. Referral fees can really add up as they are paid on three levels of referral for ten years.

Now, I’m not about to join something so obviously spammy, but it might be worth looking into if you’re trying to find a job. It just seems like a shady way to get people to sign up for your service. I much prefer the LinkedIn approach where you network with people you actually know (even though you could just import everyone from your address book if you wanted), and you can see recommendations from real people for other real people.