For me, the emergence of Starbucks' record label, Hear Music, was disappointing. It's not like the coffee megachain is any more corporate than most major companies, but the conflation of lattes and rock music just seemed so deeply not right. So the revelation that Starbucks is shutting down its in-house label might just be the best news I've heard all week (well, after the All Tomorrow's Parties announcement. I got my tickets, which were so expensive that the purchase was immediately followed by a confirmation call from Visa, how about you?).

The label has recently released albums by Baby Boomer favorites like Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, and Carly Simon. But was it John Mellencamp (the poor man's Springsteen) or the sweet, precious singer/songwriter Sia who ultimately sank them?

Here's how Variety tells it: "Starbucks referred to the moves as a restructuring of its entertainment business to focus on digital strategy and core content with music and books. Starbucks will look for ways to increase wi-fi related offerings and other in-store technology."

Oh, that's right, I remember. The sky is falling on the world of physical releases, and the internet, once again, is the future. Fair enough, I guess. I'm still going to blame it on Mellencamp.

I just wonder whether all of Starbucks' soul-searching is going to result in any more improvements. Like, maybe their coffee could start tasting like coffee, instead of coffee's burn remains?