Chris Gonda - Pure Grain Audio
1. What is your name/publication/title?
Chris Gonda / PureGrainAudio.com / Editor/CEO/Founder
2. When did you start up? What was your intent in starting a webzine?
PureGrain started way back in March of 2005. It begun with just two people with the desire to write about and share their opinions on the rock and metal music they love(d)!
3. In the time you've been publishing, what do you feel has been the biggest change in the music scene/industry? How has this impacted your reporting of it? The largest change is an obvious one - digital music. While it was already around and being made increasingly popular/available by peer to peer programs like Napster, Kazaa, etc. this in and of itself has single handily change label business models, how bands write, record and release content and even given rise to a whole new burgeoning industry surrounding digital music in and of itself (digital labels, digital album sites, steaming sites, streaming apps, etc.)
4. Do you think the decline in sales of print-based music magazines is partly due to the rise of webzines? Do you think webzines themselves are now dropping off in favour of something newer?
I would agree that the decline in print sales can for sure be partly contributed to the rise in webzines. But there are also other factors... take Smartphones and Tablets for example. 2 of the largest growing industries in the world, both of which allow for people to better and faster consume personally curated content right at their fingertips, any time, anywhere.
5. In terms of your readers, do they show any preference for any specific types of content? Do they favour multimedia features (mp3s, podcasts, videos, etc) or more traditional content types?
While we love to write and push for top quality written content, we cannot deny the fact that our Audio and Video sections are the most popular. As such we strive to fuse content types and for example, with an interview, include not only the written transcript, but also videos, an audio portion (if available) and images. That said, MP3s, music & lyric videos, video interviews and to some extent, podcasts are all the top faves!
6. How have online commenting systems developed since you've been publishing? Have you taken any steps to “manage” the community of fans posting on your site?
Wow, these have changed in leaps and bounds. While some CMS (content management systems) like Textpattern or Word press have their own native systems, it is FAR more effective to integrate a 3rd party platform like Facebook or Disqus. The built-in extensive social features in and of themselves make it worthwhile!
7. What do you think the future is for web publishing? Do you have any plans to cater for users on different platforms (mobile devices, social networks, apps like Spotify)? Would you ever consider experimenting with print?
No, I don't think we'd ever consider experimenting with print. While super cool and offering a somewhat "retro" feel (scary to say), print is not as viable of a business. What we are doing and will continue to do is offer our content across as many mobile/digital platforms as possible.
8. Anything you’d like to add?
The world is evolving at an increasingly rapid rate and both technology and content consumption are no exceptions. Now more than ever, adaption, experimentation and a general awareness of new technologies, user trends and more are truly key to any site's future successes.
