Cash Savage & the Last Drinks.
Interesting times we live in, to paraphrase that apocryphal Chinese curse. Here are 10 things, for example, musicians and their fans never said five years ago:
''I've got it on my Spotify playlist.''
''I have a gig to catch at Flagstaff Station.''
Archie Roach.
''I'm playing a pop-up.''
''We sing mostly in language.''
''I met the Glastonbury guy at the Hi-Fi.''
AWME director Simon Raynor.
''Vinyl is so trending right now.''
''I Unliked it when it went viral.''
''User generated algorithm.''
''Touring New Zealand? Cool!''
''MMWAWMEFTM.''
OK, that last one fails to roll off the tongue as it might. But the other nine will be quite within the parameters of Melbourne Music Week, the Australasian Worldwide Music Expo and Face the Music, three programs of cutting-edge music and ideas that intertwine from November 14 to 24.
For 11 days, Melbourne will revel in its standing as one of the world's most fertile live music centres by hosting gigs in bars and cafes and carparks and underground train platforms, while hundreds of industry players fly in to schmooze and strategise about everything from writing songs to social media brand-building to playing Bonnaroo.
With about 150 public performances in 70 venues and 70 more workshops and panel discussions canvassing the latest ideas in a fast-changing landscape, it's like the accelerating tornado of music evolution is about to make landfall somewhere just left of the Arts Centre spire.
Scary? Yes and no.
''A big part of what's going on in music is people saying 'This is terrible, artists need to be paid; artists need to be supported,''' says Paris Martine, the program co-ordinator for the annual Face the Music conference (November 15-16).
Her solution is to put it all on the table and see if it holds. The hugely popular free music streaming service Spotify, for instance, has won few fans among musicians harbouring quaint yearnings for royalty cheques.
Taken as a whole, it's evidence that the business of music is not evolving so much as accumulating and aggregating diverse technologies, diverse approaches and, as illustrated by the Australasian Worldwide Music Expo (November 14-17), diverse cultures.
Archie Roach is among those sharing his unique story ''in conversation'' for AWME, which shares Face the Music's broad motive to educate and empower artists via discussions ranging from ''The art of producing'' and ''APRA 101'' to ''The music of modern Aboriginality'' and ''Touring New Zealand'' - which is so trending right now.
A culturally rich concert program includes the multi-lingual indigenous sextet the Barefoot Divas, the Melbourne Ska Orchestra, New Zealand's Hollie Smith and Scotland's Manran: all bait for a huge influx of international agency and festival bookers.
Director Simon Raynor says AWME is ''very different to the other events, in that we're primarily showcasing performing artists to buyers. We're an export trade event aimed at lifting the profile of Australasian roots music artists and marketing those acts to the world.''
And to the backyard. All gigs are open to the public as well as the high-fliers from Glastonbury, the Montreal Jazz Fest, the Calgary and Winnipeg Folk Festivals and others who have, in previous years, signed up Melbourne Bollywood act the Bombay Royale, Deep Street Soul, Jordie Lane, Saskwatch and many more.
The pace of global shrinkage in the past six years has surprised him, Raynor says. ''We didn't think it would grow as quickly and have the interest that it has, from the international delegates in particular. Glastonbury and some of the other international festivals have not had this connection with Australia before and we've had great outcomes for artists in Europe and North America.''
The eyes and ears of the world are a handy bonus to the modestly named Melbourne Music Week (November 15-24), actually 10 days comprising 230 artists in 60 venues, pre-existing and otherwise, sprawling through the CBD.
The hub this year is The Residence in Birrarung Marr, a pop-up dome bursting with digital arts and live music, free by day and programmed by a different producer each night, opening with Kiwi rock legends the Bats and peaking with the self-explanatory DJ experience Awesome Tapes from Africa.
With Adalita and Steve Kilbey discussing their favourite films at ACMI, DJs commandeering trams, free dance classes tripping up Coates Lane and Campbell Arcade and German electronic artist Panther du Prince clanging the Federation Bells across the Yarra, music will practically be seeping up through the bluestone.
''That's exactly what we're trying to portray here: the whole city is becoming a stage,'' says Councillor Rohan Leppert, a musician and composer who holds the City of Melbourne's arts and culture chair.
''A lot of these are council venues and other public spaces but the important thing is this is an opportunity for all of Melbourne's live music venues to step up and do more than they normally would. Providing these venues with brand new audiences is something that has benefits all year round, not just this week."
Though audiences and monetary growth have been ''exponential and brilliant'' over the past two years, Councillor Leppert plays down the suggestion that MMW is ultimately aiming for an international profile to rival Austin's music industry mecca, SXSW, in the US.
''I think it is important there's a whole lot of complementary work going on,'' he says. ''It's a fantastic opportunity to attract even more interstate and international attention on this week.''
Any chance of putting all three heads together for a more pronounceable acronym next year, then?
''Probably not,'' he says.
For more information, go to thatsmelbourne.com.au/whatson/music/mmw/mmw2013; awme.com.au/awme-2013-music-program, and facethemusic.org.au/
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