Mitxoda Weekly #38: The Future Sounds Emotional

This week, we orbit strange new worlds and familiar feelings.

On one side: Terra Incognita, a guitarless voyage from The Sanctity Of Crows, who dared to drop their strings and chart an electronic exoplanet, rave storms, electronic tides, and prog cliffs included.

On the other: Gregory Kodric, the Kiwi dreamweaver who took a pandemic pause and turned it into melodies, heartbreaks, and 80s gold, with a little ice cream on the side.

And closing our SABOTAGE series: the fan club gets an upgrade. Web3 is reshaping how artists and listeners connect, through ownership, tokens, and shared success.

So buckle in. It's an edition for explorers, believers, and anyone still humming a hook from the past.

Au menu, this week:

• Long Play with Gregory Kodric: Pop Hooks, Phoenix …

  • From ABBA to Lockdown to Now

• SABOTAGE — Part 6 of 6: Web3 & Fan-Club 2.0

  • Quick Indie News

  • Nadine's Indie Treasures: Frank Mehl

Terra Incognita, Let The Unknown Come

Greg’s journey began with a dose of pure pop. “The first two albums my parents bought me were Abba’s Arrival and the Grease soundtrack” he tells us, and that spark never faded. Growing up in the 80s, he gravitated toward UK alt-pop: Depeche Mode, The Smiths, OMD, Erasure. “It was taboo in Australia’s rock and metal scene back then” he recalls. “But those bands made some of the best pop songs ever.”

He played in bands after high school, took a long break… and then COVID hit. Suddenly, the silence broke. “I found myself with lots of time… and here I am now in my 50s continuing the journey.” And what a journey it is.

The Sound of Greg Kodric: Pop With Shadows

Greg’s songs are often built on standard pop structure, verse, chorus, bridge, end, but the emotions sneak up on you. “Most of it is melodic pop where I try to come up with sweet melodies and catchy hooks” he says. “But I can also go dark and hard sometimes depending on how I’m feeling. I like the contrast”

His lyrical inspiration? “Relationships and breakups. They’re the easiest words to make rhyme!” he laughs. But there’s deeper matter too. “My darker stuff comes from personal struggles. I use music as an outlet”.

And no, he doesn’t start with cultural or conceptual frameworks. Just chords. Just hooks. Just the feeling that something needs to be sung. “Not being a great musician and not having a lot of gear to work with, I find it all hard work to be honest. But that moment you get a good tune in your head… that’s gold.”

And the best surprise of all? “Someone is listening to my stuff in Mexico? Get the hell out of here. I can’t believe it”.

Latest Release: Over You Now

Greg’s latest track, Over You Now, takes us back to a pop staple: the breakup song. But there’s a twist, this one’s about being stuck in love limbo. That place where you're still checking the phone. Still holding on. Still not ready to say goodbye.

With vocals by Argentine artist Flxrence and mixing by Swiss wizard Linkii, the track blends Greg’s melodic heart with international flair. “It’s a classic break up song” he explains. “But at what point do you say: I’m over you now?”

👉 Listen to Over You Now

Influences, Dreams, and Open Doors

Greg’s musical influences are crystal clear: 80s British pop, electronic textures, and the belief that a great hook is universal. New Order, Depeche Mode, Erasure, these are the artists who shaped his ears and set his sights.

Right now, he’s sitting on “10 excellent songs at the boarding gate,” waiting for the right takeoff partners. “If anyone out there likes melodic pop and wants to join forces and help me with mixing/production, please let me know.”

(You heard the man.)

Ice Cream. Clubs. Phoenixes.

Asked what he wants people to feel when hearing his music, Greg doesn’t hesitate: “Dance. Sing along. Just feel and enjoy the groove” This is pop as it should be, accessible, honest, and born from real life, not algorithms.

If his music were a dish? “Ice cream on a sunny day” he grins. Sweet, universal, comfort with a kick.

And if a mythical creature discovered his album? “The Phoenix listens to Sideways and wants to stay immortal, just to live in anticipation of my next release”

(I’ll gladly be one of Greg’s Phoenixes, thanks.)

Resonate's "stream-to-own" model is a pioneering approach that transforms passive listening into an ownership experience. In this system, listeners make incremental payments for the first nine plays of a track. After these initial plays, the listener effectively owns the track and can stream it indefinitely without further charges. This model not only provides a new way for fans to engage with music but also ensures that artists receive fair compensation more aligned with the value of their work. By integrating elements of both streaming and purchasing, Resonate creates a sustainable revenue stream that benefits artists directly, moving away from the fractional pennies per stream offered by traditional platforms.

Audius, another significant player in this space, utilizes blockchain technology to empower artists and fans alike. In February 2025, Audius executed a notable "Artist Appreciation Airdrop," distributing 2 million AUDIO tokens to 1,174 artists. This initiative included high-profile artists such as Skrillex, deadmau5, Disclosure, and Zedd, underscoring the platform's commitment to rewarding creators. The AUDIO token, trading at approximately $0.067 USD, translates to a substantial collective value, providing artists with tangible financial rewards and a stake in the platform's ecosystem. Audius's model emphasizes decentralization, allowing artists to maintain greater control over their music and monetization strategies, thereby fostering a more direct and transparent relationship with their fan base.

Sona introduces an innovative "digital twin" concept, further pushing the boundaries of fan engagement and revenue sharing. On Sona's platform, fans can purchase exclusive ownership of digital twins for specific songs. This ownership entitles them to 70% of the streaming rewards generated by the track, while the artist retains the remaining 30%. This model incentivizes fans to actively promote the music they own, turning them into stakeholders rather than passive listeners. Sona operates without traditional advertisements or subscription fees, instead generating revenue through marketplace transactions and a modest 7% fee on streaming rewards. This approach not only creates a new revenue stream for artists but also cultivates a community of financially motivated fans who are invested in the success of the music.

These platforms collectively represent a significant shift towards diversified and more equitable revenue models in the music industry. By leveraging Web3 technologies, they address longstanding issues in traditional streaming economics, such as low payouts and lack of direct artist-fan engagement. Resonate, Audius, and Sona each offer distinct yet complementary solutions that emphasize ownership, direct compensation, and community involvement. As these platforms continue to evolve, they hold the potential to redefine the music industry, making it more sustainable and rewarding for artists while offering fans unprecedented ways to connect with and support their favorite music. This new era of Web3 and Fan-Club 2.0 is not just about listening to music; it's about being an integral part of its journey and success.

Indie Survival Kit 2025

• Audit stats weekly (Chartmetric or free alt).

• Keep a duplicate “radio edit” via a second distro.

• Collect emails at shows; spam filters are kinder than algorithms.

• Join a coalition, data plus noise moves policy.

• Diversify income: 1 marketplace, 1 patron hub, 1 wild experiment.

Michael Botte joked, “We just can’t have anything nice anymore.” Maybe we can, if we share the rulebook, watch each other’s backs, and keep singing after the bots go to sleep. The algorithm won’t save indie music, but community just might.

Series complete, but the conversation continues in the comments. Got a survival hack? Tell me more. The next Mitxoda Weekly will be back to regular programming… unless the playlists strike again.

Quick Indie News

Historical Fact: The Stones Paint the Charts Black

On 11 June 1966, The Rolling Stones proved their boundary-pushing swagger when the brooding single “Paint It Black” vaulted to No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Driven by Brian Jones’s hypnotic sitar riff, one of the first times the Indian instrument topped Western pop charts, the track blended Eastern timbres with gritty blues-rock to capture a restless 1960s zeitgeist.

Its dark lyricism and propulsive groove re-energized rock radio, dethroned sunshine pop at the summit, and signaled that mainstream audiences were ready for edgier, more adventurous sounds. Nearly six decades on, “Paint It Black” still colors film soundtracks, sports arenas, and streaming playlists It became a timeless anthem.

Nadine's Indie Treasures: Frank Mehl

Selected with precision by Nadine de Macedo

Frank and Nadine met on SoundCloud some years ago, and his music stuck in her head because it's keeping a cinematic vibe no matter if he's doing soundtrack, ambient, world music or trance. As his repertoire is huge, Nadine decided to pick three very different random songs to introduce his artistry.

Continue the discussion with Nadine here!

💬 Introducing Nadine’s Indie Treasures a new chapter where Nadine de Macedo handpicks and spotlights exceptional artists. Subscribe to her Bandcamp to support her work, enjoy exclusive singles, and be part of her evolving story!