Herzbot: A prototype music recommender

Herzbot is a music recommender application on Facebook. This is the prototype:

Find Herzbot on Facebook.

The prototype uses a combination of collaborative filtering and a novel way to model social context I thought up to make music recommendations to you.

How does it work?

Herzbot constructs a profile for you and other Herzbot users. These profiles are then compared to give you recommendations from similar profiles. This is how ordinary collaborative filtering recommendations work. Herzbot also asks you for a few elite friends, which is your social context. This makes Herzbot unique. Your profile is constructed as follows:

• You give Herzbot the name of one of your favourite artists and it gets a list of similar artists that you rate on a scale of 0 to 100%. Herzbot uses the Echo Nest API to get similar bands.


• Then, you pick your elite friends who you think have more influence on your music taste than your ordinary Facebook contacts. Herzbot then constructs a profile for you. This is the only information Herzbot uses (user names and your band preferences and ratings that you dictate). I'm not browsing your profiles or spying on you or spamming email addresses. I'm not Santa Clause, although I would like to know where all the bad girls live.


• Finally, when those friends also add the application, you get to see what they like and exactly how much. You also get recommendations straight from their listening profiles (that's the social context modelling part) or ordinary plain vanilla with a bit of flake recommendations (that's the collaborative filtering part, however your elite contacts still count a little bit more than ordinary Facebook users when it comes to making recommendations to you).

Can you listen to free music?

Yes! If you want to explore the recommended bands, you can find them on iLike with a link straight from Herzbot. iLike has quite an extensive database and you don't need to sign up to listen to streaming audio, which is why I chose iLike over Last.fm and the others where you need to join.

You can listen to your recommendations, listen to the top bands your friends like or listen to the entire profile of your elite friends. It is about exploring new music, after all.

Keep in touch

If you are on Facebook and you'd like to try it out, feel free to add it:

Add Herzbot, the socially conscious Facebook music recommender.

UPDATE: The questionnaire is now up and running. If you added Herzbot, please take the questionnaire (that's a survey for the Yanks):

The Herzbot Survey on Survey Monkey.

You are also welcome to join the developer's group and give me feedback:

Join the Herzbot developer's group.

If you add it, please check back daily over the course of the next two weeks. I will add a questionnaire, which I need to make my hairbrain scheme seem more plausible to academia. I would greatly appreciate your feedback! The other reason is that your recommendations will improve as your elite friends join and as more people join Herzbot.

Best Bands on Myspace

Why the Best Bands on Myspace?

Myspace has long lost its status as a safe haven for emo. Maybe hepatitis culled emo numbers a bit, but the Myspace target marget of late seems to be people in their late twenties who must like rap music, R & B and not so racy comedians. A lot.



The first thing you should do upon joining Myspace is to delete Tom Anderson as your friend. Who the fuck is that guy anyway? I don't want to be friends with someone who looks like he washed his mom's car with his shirt and then put it on as some kind of post modern fashion statement. He looks like he cut his own hair. With a lawn mower.

The second thing you should do on Myspace is to search for metal bands. The bands listed here are mostly unknown, unsigned and willing to give away free mp3s so you can form a good idea of their music. If you disagree with my opinion, I can't help that you have good taste, but feel free to rant about it in the comment section.

The third thing I did was look for busty porn stars and skanky hos, but you don't have to do that. Here are the best bands on Myspace in no particular alphabetical order:

Aesma Daeva

How they describe their sound
Aesma Daeva blends world instruments such as the bawu, a Chinese flute-like instrument, with a symphonic rock backdrop bringing a wealth of musical cultures together.

How I would describe them
I know what you are thinking: who needs another Nightwish? Only Aesma Daeva does not sound like Nightwish at all. They have more in common with Therion, if you kicked out the orchestra and had one decent looking singer with a more natural voice than Nightwish's Tarja. They sound more brooding, like gargoyles coming alive. Plus they gave me free shit for my birthday so I can't exclude them.

Stalk them

• The official Aesma Daeva website.


• Aesma Daeva on Myspace.

Architecture of Aggression

How they describe their sound
The wails from your local priest as his church is burning down around him. Also like your local priest being sodomized.

How I would describe them
I knew priests secretly liked that sort of thing. Copious amounts of tequila and buckets of blood. That's all I remember from last seeing them live.

Stalk them

• Architecture of Aggression on Myspace.

Bile of Man

How they describe their sound
Reapers Ripping Caverns Through Your Mind.

How I would describe them
Rapists Ripping Caverns Through Your Doberman.

Stalk them

• Bile of Man on Myspace.

Bukkake Birth

How they describe their sound
Shit. No, really. They say they sound like shit.

How I would describe them
I have no idea what they sound like but with a name like that, it can't be shit.

Stalk them

• Bukkake Birth on Myspace.

Heart of Cygnus

How they describe their sound
Heart of Cygnus. Not a very imaginative description.

How I would describe them
Their latest release, Over Mountain, Under Hill, showcases their sound which is based on bands who are mostly over the hill and under the mountain by now. That's a good thing.

Stalk them

• The official Heart of Cygnus website. A very fancy site.


• Heart of Cygnus on Myspace.

K.O.B.U.S

How they describe their sound
South African METAL is upon Thee!

How I would describe them
Lemmy from Motörhead on vocals, Mike Scaccia from Ministry on guitar, Johannes Kerkorrel writing lyrics.

Stalk them

• The K.O.B.U.S Myspace page.

Lesbian

How they describe their sound
Yep, the band's name is Lesbian. Why? Well, equally cool names like Black Sabbath, Venom and Pentagram were already taken. But also, the name Lesbian evokes pure, sexually charged freedom - and that's what rock music is all about.

How I would describe them
Freddy Kreuger teaching at a nursery school. This band is seriously impressive. They sound like Mastodon with less sludge and more intricate guitar. Let's put it this way: I am not a big Mastodon fan, but I can appreciate what they are trying to achieve. Lesbian sounds like they achieve what Mastodon is trying to achieve.

Stalk them

• Lesbian record company website.


• Lesbian in Myspace.

Mind Assault

How they describe their sound
Youtube, Jackson, Boss and Zildjian. Perhaps I am confused.

How I would describe them
A fairly interesting mix of genres that doesn't end up being gay the way Trivium does it. A potjiekos of modern metal, with a mix of Afrikaans songs too.

Stalk them

• Mind Assault on Myspace.

Neter

How they describe their sound
Atypical Spanish band.

How I would describe them
Initially, the band played a mixture of Swedish death metal and thrash. I really enjoyed that. Now, they are moving more towards an Opeth progressive rock vibe, which to my ears is less impressive although it is more technically demanding. Still a very accomplished band with an interesting sound.

Stalk them

• Neter on Myspace

Pegazus

How they describe their sound
Not many believed in what the boys were aiming for except themselves. Many critics would say "Classic metal was dead", and that playing traditional classic metal was a bad move and so out dated.

How I would describe them
Like a battle axe clefting a skull. If you like traditional metal, this is one seriously good band. I'm glad they found me on Myspace.

Stalk them

• Pegazus on Myspace.

Pica Fierce

How they describe their sound
Pica Fierce brings you back to the heydays of thrash-metal. Thrash-metal without compromising in its original form - fast, technically, brutal and with no respect for trends.

How I would describe them
Mind blowing. Unfortunately, they seem to have split up.

Stalk them

• The official Pica Fierce website.


• Pica Fierce on Myspace.

Sathern

How they describe their sound
Established in late 2006, Sathern finally took form after 3 years of relentless auditioning and various lineup changes that saw the band grow from a one-man project to a fully fledged band, incorporating the energy of fast drums, dual guitars and aggressive bass with the atmosphere of keyboards and a furious vocal attack.

How I would describe them
Imagine the bastard child of Dimmu Borgir and Children of Bodom having sex with your mom. And her liking it.

Stalk them

• Sathern on Myspace.

Xerath

How they describe their sound
Film score metal.

How I would describe them
A very accessible kind of Meshuggah, mixed with atmospheric keyboards. They seem to have impressed the whole world in a very short amount of time. Film score metal is a very accurate description.

Stalk them

• Xerath on Myspace.

You may also stalk me on myspace if you wish. That's as extroverted as I'm willing to get.

The Last.fm Straw

The Internet is a wonderful invention. Like the discovery of fire, the invention of the wheel, Gutenberg's printing press, fermentation, distillation, the Brazilian wax and XML, it revolutionised our lives. One of the reasons why the Internet has staying power is because everything you could possibly think of is available within a few clicks. Eel porn? Yip. Midgets mud wrestling? Probably. Rants against people who call midgets midgets instead of little people? Yes. Mothers Against Drunk Driving? Of course. Drunk Drivers Against Mad Mothers? Slayer be praised! Indeed. The Internet also has less educational side effects like Sparknotes and MIT's entire university course material. Free!

Why is this web of intrigue so damn intriguing? Everything is free! Until recently, you didn't have to sit through propaganda of adverts to see a streaming video on youtube. You certainly didn't have to worry about licensing rights to listen to a song on Last.fm. Now you do.

Last.fm Man Standing

Last.fm used to be a great site. From scrobblers to radio stations to plug-ins for virtually every music player available, sharing your passion for music has never been this convenient. They certainly had the slickest looking player available. Major labels picked up second rate half-baked punk bands who smell like teen spirit from Last.fm. These artists went on to sell millions of units of that stone age technology called compact disks. It seemed like a win-win all around. What went wrong?

The Last.fm Straw

Suddenly, you have to pay to listen to streaming audio. Now, this would not be such a big deal if Internet access outside of Germany, the UK and America were freely available. Only its not. In South Africa, we have the most expensive telecommunications in the world. Certainly, three odd Euros per month is not too much to pay to starving artists.

Only it's not going to starving artists. It's contributing towards Hannah Montana's training bra and Britney Spears's rehab. Not to mention the raise that some CEO who thinks that Josh Groban is the best thing since titty plugs will get for suing the dentures out of some old lady who doesn't even know what P2P is for downloading a rap artist she would kick in the balls if she even knew him or what he was saying about ladies like her in his nursery crimes.

The big 4 labels need to wake up and realise that you can't force your market to buy your product in a format in which you want to provide it. How would you feel if they stopped making coffee mugs with ears and you had to sip hot drinks out of a hot ceramic container without a handle? Simple. You'd stop buying those ceramic containers. How would you feel if the huffing and puffing badass lawyer of ceramic container companies came huffing and puffing down your neck, forcing you to drink hot drinks out of a ceramic container that you can't even hold in your hand? This is not free market capitalism. This is a cartel and it deserves to go bankrupt, just like that little syndicalist experiment called General Motors.

Yet there is more wrong with this than merely Mafia tactics. The big four can carry on syndicating to the likes of Last.fm and Myspace all they like, but they are missing the point. Like NIN, they should embrace this viral marketing medium - the kind of marketing that money can't buy - and cash in on it instead of trying to swim against the streaming. How do you do this?

Connect With Fans, Give Them a Reason to Buy

It's painfully simple. Connect with the fans and give them a reason to buy. Trent Reznor is rolling in the cash. It's not because of his fame - his status as a sex symbol has long since waned. It's because he connects with his fans and he gives them a reason to buy his music. He realises that music is a social phenomenon that is meant to be shared among all and sundry. You can't record the world's greatest album and keep it in a box. Led Zeppelin tried and tested this exact same model during their meteoric rise to fame. They never even released a single, they were loathed by critics and detested by radio, yet they are among the best selling artists of all time. Why? They connected with their fans in a big way and they gave them a reason to buy their records. Pearl Jam and Tool prove that you don't even have to be talented - just connect with your fans and be a little creative with your CD packaging, and it will sell - even if it leaks on P2P networks before being released.

Some Facts About Music

• Music makes a shitload of money. Artists don't. Music publishing - selling your tunes to movie soundtracks or adverts - this makes money. For your record company. Artists are lucky to get a percentage.


• Record companies will always be the bad guys.
  Nobody is going to buy an album merely because it has a SonyBMG logo on it. In fact, after their rootkit extortion fiasco, people will put it back and not buy it specifically because it has a SonyBMG logo on it. Record companies are obsolete, as artists no longer need to sell their souls for exposure. It takes a little bit of skill, it takes blood, sweat and tears, it takes a bit of getting the Internet sussed and you're the next big thing - whether the big 4 like it or not.


• You can't stop P2P downloading. It doesn't matter what you do, P2P is here to stay. Copyright is by its nature not applicable to CDs or DVDS, since these are not originals, but copies to begin with. Besides, studies have shown that those who use P2P do discover new music end up buying lots of music. Why would you want to cut off your nose to spite your face?


• Fans don't mind giving money to artists. Radiohead, NIN, you name it. Fans love their musical heroes, but they despise anything that stands between them and their heroes. Anything that could help you to connect with your musical heroes is good. This means P2P good. Anything that distances you from your musical heroes is bad. This means record company bad. This means P2P lawsuit bad. This means DRM bad.


• If it aint broke, don't fix it! Napster didn't need fixing. Last.fm didn't need fixing. CD dynamic range did not need fixing. CDs did not need fixing to piss off the record buying public who could no longer rip their music to their MP3 players thanks to DRM. Smart move, assholes.


• I want my MPfree! An album is by its nature a promotional item. Give it away with magazines, share it freely on P2P networks, allow fans to remix it, crap on it, play frisbee with it, snarf off it, whatever. The point of an album is to promote a band. Preferably a band with a badass live show that you can't replicate - no matter how high your resolution is or how many channels of stereo you want to add. If an 'artist' like Madonna or Britney can't keep a tune, then they should work on showing their tits or something, but they can't be expected to pay their rent with promotional items. They're entertainers, first and foremost. They have to entertain in the flesh and their albums are merely promotional items to promote their shows.

Between the low audio quality of CD to compensate for iPod listening, the lack of freely available good quality albums, the difficulties compared with the former convenient uses of existing infrastructure to share music and the dangerous, unconstitutional assaults that these clowns are conducting to try and force us to buy antique technology, there really is very little reason to still buy music. As a music passionate, I could endorse a live show and buying a t-shirt or even a CD directly from a band, but cut out the middle man whenever and however you can. Unless you really want to sit through more Pop Idols?

Spine chilling film scores: Music of Christopher Young

The other night, while watching Nightmare On Elm Street 2, I couldn't help but be enthralled by the brilliant score, which was done by Christopher Young. Unlike the film score Jerry Goldsmith did for The Omen, which sometimes becomes really mushy and over sentimental (although it is still good music, I don't think it always works in the film), the scores of Christopher Young tend to blend in with the background. This morning at 3, I watched Exorcism of Emily Rose and became paranoid. Certainly it is a scary movie but it's not all that creepy, and at some point I realised the reason why I am having a panic attack is the music! I checked the blurb of the DVD and much to my delight the score was also done by Christopher Young.

A drummer by trade, mister Young graduated from Massachusetts Hampshire College with a BA in music. After this he did a post-graduate at North Texas State University studying big band writing and classical composition. He noticed a record by the great Bernard Herrmann in a record bar one day, and purchased it. The master's horror themes (Vertigo, Psycho) he did for another master, Alfred Hitchcock, struck a chord with mister Young (no pun intended, har har) and it changed the course of his life. Young started doing film scores shortly after, achieving notable success first by scoring Clive Barker's imaginative Hellraiser.

To illustrate his versatility, one can listen to the sado-masochistic violins building tension in the horror scores like Exorcism of Emily Rose and contrast it with DJ Paul Oakenfold collaborations on Swordfish. Due to his jazz/big band background, mister Young also has a fondness for what he calls the "great American song". Young even incorporated Celtic elements in the score for Shipping News. These abilities to blend in and be versatile contribute to his success as a film score composer.

Unfortunately, Christopher Young has not received a Grammy nor an Oscar for his brilliant abilities. This is not to say he is not recognised as a great film score writer. It probably alludes to the fact that genre entertainment - particularly horror - is often looked down upon as nothing but genre entertainment. Often box office sales reflect the public appreciation for these films, but the Oscar powers that be would rather have girl-next-door faces on their stage. Mister Young has thankfully been nominated for a Golden Globe. I hope he wins an Oscar soon - he certainly deserves it!

References
The official web site of Christopher Young
Wikipedia page on Christopher Young