Back to . . . Open-Reel?!

You say you've (re)discovered vinyl? Fuhgeddaboudit! The LP simply isn't old-fangled enough. To really go reelin' in the years, it seems, you must go all the way back to open-reel tape!

The Tape Project, a label for reissuing recordings on reel-to-reel, has apparently been around for much of 2007, but I only just discovered it now — via, ironically enough, surroundablog.com.

The label's "two requirements: (1) that the master exist on analog, and (2) that the music be great."

All I can think of saying right now is to paraphrase Monty Python for what must be the Tape Project motto: We are the geeks who say, "Niche!"

But I realize that there are many geeks — er, dedicated sound enthusiasts — out there in S&V Land (hey, Stereo Review used to review open-reel tapes!), so by all means, check out the fascinating site at tapeproject.com. —Ken Richardson

First Look: Amazon Kindle

I've always been intrigued by the electronic book, but none of the models that has hit the market to date--from Sony, RCA and others--has jazzed me enough to want to invest in the medium. After all, I like books. I like to store them on a shelf like trophies when I'm done reading the ones I hold dear. I give the others away.

Still, I'm a techie and it's hard not be taken by the idea of a lightweight electronic reader that stores hundreds of books. If nothing else, it makes the carry-on baggage a lot lighter. Storing multiple volumes, though, hasn't been enough of a lure to make me want to stock up on e-books. I want more from electronic books than just storage. I want them to make use of digital technology in a way that paper books can't. That includes better prices and cool features, but it also has to be intuitive enough that I don't have to read a book to learn how to use an e-book.

What Means Innovation?

Each year at the Consumer Electronics Show, the Consumer Electronics Association highlights top new products in select categories and honors them with Innovations awards. The tech press got a peak at winners last week at a pre-CES event in New York. Just how innovative are they? Here's what we think.

The Kensington LiquidFM Deluxe for iPod ($99)

Award: Audio Accessory

Rationale:  The Quick Seek feature finds the clearest station in seconds, and ClearFM technology provides superior sound.

Truly Innovative? What we really want is a product that automatically finds the clearest frequency and keeps it clear all the way up I-95, but getting RDS artist and track info on the head unit display is a nice touch.

Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin ($599)

Award: Audio Components

Rationale: The Zeppelin is a one-piece amplified speaker system and docking station that transforms an iPod into a capable yet highly compact stereo music system.

Truly Innovative? Everybody and his brother is coming out with a music system for the iPod, but you gotta believe that B&W does it better than most. At more than 2 feet wide, though, it overwhelms the little iPod. If only the wingspan were narrower….

Update Update: Radiohead

Monday, Monday / Entrust that date: Comes word this morning (at 6:03 a.m., to be exact) that the regular CD of Radiohead's In Rainbows will now be released on January 2, 2008. (See my post immediately below.) The parent label is indeed the ATO Records Group — founded by (talk about strange bedfellows) Dave Matthews — but the specific imprint will be (wait for it . . .) TBD Records. Ha! What a bunch of comedians those Radiohead guys are! —Ken Richardson

Wait a second — update Update UPDATE: As of 1:04 p.m., the release date is now January 1. That's right: a day when most stores are closed. This is literally getting wackier by the minute . . .

Weekend Update: Fagen, Gilmour, Zep, Radiohead

Can't find some prominent music releases on MVI, Blu-ray, HD DVD, and CD that we previewed recently? The dates, they keep a-changin':

Floyd, U2, Radiohead in surround. NOT!

It's getting tougher and tougher these days to cheerlead the cause of music in surround sound. No, we at S&V aren't giving up. But, coming so soon after hearing that we're getting the best of Led Zeppelin on stereo CD (again) as opposed to any of the studio albums in 5.1, we can only give a huge sigh at some recent announcements from titans of three different music generations.

West Side Story: 1 Hand 1 Heart 50 Years

Yes, a belated "Happy Birthday!" to the landmark musical by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim. At this very moment, I happen to be sitting directly across the street from the Winter Garden Theatre, where West Side Story opened on September 26, 1957. (Another famous Winter Garden tenant: Cats. Current tenant: Mamma Mia!) Matter of fact, whereas the S&V offices are at 1633 Broadway, the theater is at 1634.

Despite that, I haven't gotten around to recognizing this Golden Anniversary until now. But gee, Officer Krupke: Better late than never! And to help celebrate, I offer this roundup, including a new recording, fresh reissues, and other currently available titles.

Your MP3 Player Is Ringing...

You've gotta give it to Samsung. After all, anyone trying to come out with an iPod killer has a steep slope ahead. Samsung has officially launched the P2, a sleek, flash-based media player that delivers music, movies and pictures. The Nano-like P2 is slightly thicker than its Apple counterpart but comes with a roomy 3-inch touchscreen. The Samsung twists? Bluetooth connectivity and EmoTure, an input system that uses taps and finger swipes to control the device.

The Bluetooth 2.0-enabled player works with wireless headphones (sign me up for a pair so I don't get all tangled up at the gym) and a tiny wireless speaker system. If you've got a cell phone with Bluetooth, you can answer the phone using either the headphones or the speaker system. You hear the caller via the headphones or the speakers and speak back via microphones built into both devices. The feature will be available in December as part of a firmware upgrade that also includes AAC decoding and file transfer between Bluetooth devices.

Soul Full of Heart

Where does the time go? It has already been 3 years since Heart's last studio album, the fine Jupiters Darling. Fans waiting for the next one can tide themselves over with several projects, both band and solo.

First, there's the just-released Dreamboat Annie Live, which is exactly what the title says. Similar to Eagle Vision's TV-on-DVD series of "Classic Albums," Shout! Factory has launched a DVD (and CD) series of "Legendary Albums Live," from shows first aired on DIRECTV. But whereas the Eagle Vision DVDs examine the original studio recordings, the Shout! Factory idea is to focus on a contemporary concert of an entire album, track by track, in the original running order.