Apple is positioned to put PayPal in the ground

I stumbled upon this great WIRED article that points out something we should have realized long ago: Apple has all of our credit card information.

Through the release of their recent earnings call and the slew of data that came with, it was suddenly apparent that there are 800 million Apple IDs for iTunes purchases, and most of those have credit card info to go with. That's 800 million users who may, very soon, radically change the way they pay for things.

Apple is in a very unique position. Over the course of a decade, they have inadvertently created a huge market for a valuable digital service. That position is unique for two reasons: first, the number, and second, the trusted Apple brand.

Wireless payment methods already exist, but even established services like PayPal don't have the kinds of numbers that iTunes commands. WIRED writer Marcus Wohlsen reveals that existing services and other eCommerce sites - PayPal, Google Wallet, Amazon.com, Bitcoin - don't have even half of Apple's 800 million users. This means that, were Apple to offer a secure wireless payment service using Apple ID confirmation online and quick fingerprint scan authorization on the iPhone, they would already have a huge audience for that service. No customer acquisition required - just a brief stint of user education to encourage people to start implementing their new Apple iPay (I just came up with that name, but it's pretty good).

Apple's second strength is the fact that, well, that it is Apple. One of Apple's strengths is product and service integration. Their cloud service functions seamlessly across its varied products. The existing Apple ID set-up and iTunes purchase methods are intuitive and functional. If Apple were to implement a large-scale wireless transfer service using those same devices and the Apple IDs that users have already grown accustomed to, we can expect the same flawless cross-platform functionality.

It would be a natural step on the path towards the digitization of currency. Outside of the states, mobile and digital payments are the norm. Instead of using an Apple ID, in Europe, near-field communication is the norm - simply swipe your smartphone over a sensor at the register and your credit card information is gobbled up. In Africa, where carrying cold, hard cash can be a dangerous practice, SMS transfers are the preferred method of payment. In the same way that you might text CROSS to 55555 to donate to the Red Cross, cell phone users can text to their creditors mobile banking number to pay their bills or to purchase a product.

Whether for security's sake or efficiency's, mobile credit is the way of the future. Americans have just proven to be slow adopters. Perhaps they just need the right shepherd to show them the way. And Apple has got a mighty large flock.

"Cheap Sunglasses" by RAC feat. Matthew Koma

I once had a pair of RayBan sunglasses. They were an awesome graduation gift from my dad: gunmetal aviators, fit perfectly to my face, with just enough tint. They were tucked away in my backpack when it was stolen a couple years ago. Damn, I miss those glasses. As a poor replacement, I bought a collection of cheap sunglasses from an online retailer called RedStar, and they are really cheap. Nothing like the RayBans I once had. Because of this somewhat traumatizing experience, I find myself strangely drawn to this week's free single.

André Allen Anjos has now taken over the RAC project.

RAC stands for the Remix Artist Collective, and was originally exactly what that implies: a group of artists who developed remixes of any song they saw fit, ranging from indie obscurity to pop songs by Lady Gaga and the like. Over the course of about five years, they produced more than 150 remixes (all of which are available on SoundCloud). All that remains of the original collective is André Allen Anjos, the group's founder, who has now taken over the RAC name. As he writes on his website, "RAC used to stand for Remix Artist Collective. That name doesn't make much sense anymore. Who cares?"

Anjos carries on, and has just released Strangers, a full album of original songs in collaboration with other artists that RAC worked with in the past: Tokyo Police Club, Katie Herzig, Tegan and Sara and Matthew Koma, who sings this week's free single. The result of this blessed union is a tight electronic pop song that commits to an elaborate lyrical metaphor. My favorite.

"I'm Only Joking" by KONGOS

Contrary to the title of this song, I seriously like iTunes' efforts this week. Not one, nor two, but three free singles available for download before tomorrow. Now, they're not all winners - I think I can rule out Latin heavy rock as a genre of interest - but each of this week's songs has something that makes it valuable.

iTunes is pushing out these Latin free singles, and the exposure to music that isn't in English is really cool. Thanks to De La Tierra, I'm listening to Latin rock for the first time (I don't like it, but hey, nothing ventured). Simone Felice's "Running Through My Head" is a heartfelt song that takes the latter half of a cheesy pick-up line and turns it into the lyrical basis for a beautiful chorus. The featured free single, "I'm Only Joking", is essentially an introduction to a whole new kind of rock n' roll. When you consider that the genre has been around for six decades, it's quite the accomplishment.

The band to achieve this feat is KONGOS, a group of four very talented brothers. They're the sons of one-hit wonder, John Kongos, best known for "He's Gonna Step On You Again" which reached the Top 10 in 1971. If you compare these two singles, you can hear where KONGOS gets their musical influence from.

Their music is strange for us as Americans to listen to. It sounds vaguely like Southern rock with the use of accordions and occasional fiddles, but that isn't the right label. The grim chords, reverberating vocals and distorted guitar sound like grunge music, but they're not really comparable to groups like Nirvana. If you listen to the other tracks on their album, Lunatic, you'll hear reggae, you'll hear trance rock, you'll hear alternative vibes that allude to The Killers or CAKE. All of this is to say that KONGOS barely fits within the burgeoning "alternative rock" genre, especially because of their distinctly African tribal influence.

Yep, you read that right. The brothers of KONGOS, and their father, are from Johannesburg, South Africa, and it really influences their music. One reviewer called it "rock-tribal", especially applicable to this week's single. But enough talking about the music - let's listen to it.

"Lift Your Spirit" by Aloe Blacc

Another week, another free single, another bout of mixed feelings and mild disappointment. This week's single was written by rising pop artist Egberts Nathaniel Dawkins III. Sorry, you probably know him better by his stage name, Aloe Blacc. If that doesn't ring any bells, then you probably recognize the voice of that guy that sang (and wrote) that Aviicii song.

Egbert... excuse me, Aloe Blacc has been creating music since 1995, and apparently wallowed in relative obscurity for 18 years before being instrumental in a pop hit that reached #1 in 102 different countries. Talk about perseverance. He has worked in a slew of different genres including soul, R&B, jazz, hip-hop and funk, before reaching mainstream propriety and achieving pop music status.

This week's free single is the title track for his latest album, Lift Your Spirit, Blacc's third solo album. Having listened to samples from each of his three albums I can say that Lift Your Spirit is definitely a change of artistic direction for him. And I think that, regrettably, this is his best-received album yet.

"Believer" by American Authors

This week we have another band from the east coast delivering our free music. You may recognize American Authors from their recent radio hit, "Best Day of My Life", which rose to platinum status after being featured in a handful of commercials and a summer movie trailer. That single was integrated into their first full album, Oh, What a Life, released this March.

Unlike some of the indie trash we've been listening to, the American Authors have a solid pedigree. Its members - Zac Barnett (lead vocals), James Adam Shelley (guitar, banjo), Dave Rublin (bass) and Matt Sanchez (drums) - met while studying at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. They graduated in 2006 and went on to form a band called The Blue Pages. In 2012, the band moved to Brooklyn and reinvented itself into the group we know today, American Authors.

Their alternative rock sound is peppered with full-bodied choruses, Shelley's folksy banjo accents, and background vocal work that is infectiously easy to sing along to and provides beautiful harmonies. This first album is convincingly energetic and passionate thanks to Barnett's vocals. Either there's something in the water at Berlee, or they really are teaching them something. Our free single, "Believer", is the first track on the album, so without any further ado, we'll dive into it.

"Nothing But Trouble" by Phantogram

I tell you what, it has been a hot minute (read: a long time) since I last posted, and it's a real shame that I return to the blogging scene to review this song. We're basically two months into 2014 and iTunes has yet to really impress me. I could crack a joke about the free singles being nothing but trouble, but that would just be too easy, wouldn't it?

Before I rip into this song, a bit about the artists responsible. Phantogram is a two person outfit from New York state. Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter have been working together since 2007 and produced their first full album in 2009. The release of this single, "Nothing But Trouble", heralds their second album, Voices, released last week. They've toured with some pretty prestigious names in indie pop: Metric, Minus The Bear, Ra Ra Riot, and The Glitch Mob to name a few.

I don't care to flatter them with any further description, so we'll dive right into the song.

"Cool Kids" by Echosmith

This week's free single, "Cool Kids", is about as uncool as the kids from your high school. I am becoming seriously jaded toward iTunes' selection of indie-pop these days. Often they find real diamonds in the rough to promote as free singles. The work of Echosmith is not amongst them.

Echosmith is a four person sibling act - three brothers and their vocalist sister put together a little family band out in LA. They are a very, very young group. The eldest brother, Jamie, is just 20 years old, while the youngest brother, Graham, is still 14. The third brother, Noah, and their sister, Sydney, are 17 and 16, respectively. 

That means all but one member is still in high school, and it shows in their music. They have just released their first album, Talking Dreams, and it sounds, appropriately, like a high schooler's attempt to produce alternative pop music.