ERIN EDGEMON, Business Editor
Posted: Sunday, August 31, 2008 8:31 am

A research-based Web site that lets fans discover new music and gives artists feedback is set to launch in September.

Murfreesboro resident Bill Alhauser and other partners developed new technology — an influence-based collaborative filter — that allows the site to make an unlimited amount of song recommendations to users across musical genres.

A limited version of Songness is now available at www.songness.com.

“We sat down with some professors at MTSU in statistical areas and came up with a new way to recommend things to music fans that personalized but represents all of the songs in the database,” Alhauser said.

More and more independent artists have the ability to post their music and reach audiences on the Internet, he said, but some are having trouble attracting prospective fans to their MySpace page or other Web site.

“Artists share a greater need for exposure and attention than ever,” Alhauser said.

Songness gives independent artists a greater chance of getting their music heard, he said. The site also tells artists who their audience is, how their songs are rated and helps them recruit new fans.

“Us being able to tell you something about your audience will be a major service,” he said.

Artists receive 80 percent of the revenues from songs they sell on Songness.

Music labels are already interested in posting music from their new artists to the Web site, Alhauser said.

Music producer and musician John Salaway said Songness seems like a “good idea and cool service for new artists.

“It’s good for artists to get real, non-biased feedback on their music,” the Murfreesboro resident said. “If the site does what it says, and it’s free then artists shouldn’t have anything to lose as long as it is user friendly and easy to work with.”

Musician Ryan Mullenix agreed that Songness sounds like a “cool idea.”

“The one problem that I see with sites like this is that it is user driven,” he said, “all reviews are submitted by Web site visitors and you have to log in as a listener to do so.”

Mullenix said the Web site should offer an extra incentive to listeners to keep them coming back since most of the songs on the site are likely already available for free on the bands’ MySpace pages.

On the other hand, Songness helps music fans find songs they like by predicting how they will rate every song in the Web site’s database. The site compares individuals to groups that influence their music choices.

Songness will never run out of recommendations for users because it is constantly updating and learning from feedback, Alhauser said.

Every time users log into Songness they receive new song recommendations in the genres they have preselected. Users can then sort their selections by genre, demographics and geography. They can pick their songs by popularity, artist or by time frame.

Fans can listen to the music, organize the music to meet their needs, recommend music to others and rate music in exchange for free downloads.

Songs can be downloaded up to five times before purchase.

Erin Edgemon can be reached at 869-0812 and at eedgemon@murfreesboropost.com.

On the Web:
www.songness.com