Every month I ask someone, whether it is an artist, someone who works in the music industry or just a music lover, to answer the same questions. This week: Marco Kalnenek
Marco, 42 is from Heerlen, Netherlands. He is the owner of WM Digital Services which supplies various services to musicians and record labels. He coaches young bands, distributes music to the most important online music stores and organizes events where young artists can showcase their talents. He likes to listen to anything from rock to jazz to world music to weird unclassifiable stuff.
What album are you playing a lot at the moment and why?
My fave album of the moment – and probably of 2011 – is “Lulu” by Loud Reed & Metallica. A lot has been said about this controversial collaboration already, but I think it’s a great, intense work. Certainly the best album Lou Reed has made in ages. Give it a chance, it’s not as bad as some critics want you to believe.
What has been your favorite concert experience?
Seeing my hero Frank Zappa live in concert in Rotterdam in 1988 (his last ever concert in the Netherlands) was an unforgettable experience. Zappa toured with the largest band in his career and played a very long, very great show. Too bad it was the one and only chance I got to see him live.
If you would be able to see anyone (death or alive) in a concert, who would that be?
I have never seen Prince in concert, which is weird if you consider how much I love his music. So, Prince would be one contender, along with Sun Ra, the legendary big band leader, who died in 1993.
What is your view on illegal downloading of music?
In the Netherlands downloading music is still legal (uploading is not). Apart from that I think the “old” music industry – the traditional record labels – have waited way too long to come up with alternative ways to distribute music. It’s obvious that consumers want to download and share music online these days, but the industry has only in recent years started to make serious efforts to answer these demands. We’ll see more services like Spotify in the not too distant future and those will make the discussion about “illegal” downloading a lot less relevant.
Which artist would you recommend to the readers of this blog?
There are so many brilliant artists out there that anyone should hear. Frank Zappa is my number one of course, but nobody should be without records by Captain Beefheart, Can, Van Dyke Parks, Sun Ra, Syd Barrett…. Oh, the list goes on and on!
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It is difficult to get knowledgeable men and women with this subject, but the truth is could be seen as do you know what you are referring to! Thanks