"The Band Of Indie Artists" CD is, of course, now available. While it stands as a fine sampler of our work, we'd still like to encourage folks to check out individual offerings from the bands represented by the BIA. We're hoping that release of the CD to the proper avenues, will at least offer alternatives to the mainstream listening public, at the level of press and radio, however this is not meant to undermine the fine accomplishments of each and every member, many of whom have CD's of their own completed, and ready to order online. During times like this, when the commercial mainstream releases hold no surprises, and many of those hoping to make it in "The Industry" become increasingly spiteful, egomaniacal, and petty, we think we've managed, collectively, to keep our heads. And we believe it comes through in our art. Spring is a time for new life to begin, and we're hoping that the BIA can be instrumental in helping to give something fresh and original to the public, at a time when most of what's out there already, is sounding pretty tired and old, and ready for retirement.

The owners of Morpheus, one of the most popular P2P networks on the web, have reportedly struck a deal with the RIAA, to provide the RIAA with their codes for the Morpheus software, in an effort to prevent legal action against them. This is the same software, essentially, used by KaZaA and Grokster, who ARE being sued. Morpheus has changed their tune, as far as how their service works now... but KaZaA hasn't. KaZaA, however, has been purchased by a semi-invisible Australian corporation: Sharman Networks. Users of any of these services, would be well-advised to do their own research into what this could mean, and exercise caution. Search the net, for more info.

VALKYRIS. The music of VALKYRIS is born in the spirit and much like classical tone poems conjures up mental images and touches the soul with an eclectic blend of folk, new age and jazz. VALKYRIS actually got it's start during the Folk boom of the 1960's and band members are classically trained with a very strong musical background. Over time VALKYRIS'S musical style has matured and morphed into it's current form. In addition to the keyboards, guitar, mandolin, violin, trumpet, trombone, flute, and recorder are also part of the VALKYRIS repertoire. Band Members: Diana Askew - Keyboards,violin,trumpet,trombone,flute,recorder. Diana has been playing music since her 5th birthday. Like all youngsters, she was forced into the ever present piano lessons and discovered she had a natural musical ability. She later went on to obtain a degree in music from the State University of New York. From 1963 - 1972, Diana toured the coffee house circuit playing guitar and singing. She later became one of the founding members of a small group who said of themselves as being on the "cutting edge" of the folk genre. Since then, Diana's interests have turned to New Age and the digital medium. She is a multi-instrumentalist and plays all the instruments heard in her recordings.

Omegamusic started the Ring of Internet Music Artists; also known as RIMA. It's a web ring, where you can explore personal homepages built by artists, either by starting at the central hub, or by jumping from site to site. Not all artists "live" at the MP3 sites; many of us use core websites as a homebase. This provides more of an insight into who we are, why we do what we do, and allows the additional advantage of supplying useful links to websurfers! There's a world of creativity to explore on the net, and a lot of us are offering guides, to the best we've found... provided it's independent, of course!