AOL: Round and round goes the downward spiral

It's taken them a while, but AOL have broken off from sitting with their heads in their hands sobbing gently to launch a UK version of Spinner. I don't know if they didn't realise they could just do one version as it's on the internet, but it's done now.

Spinner.com launched in 2007 with one simple idea - that it was all about the music. Since then, it's become one of the most popular music sites in the US, and has launched international editions in Spain, Poland and Canada. Now it's the UK's turn.

I'm not quite sure why Poland got their site before the UK did. Oddly, spinnermusic.pl takes you back to the front of Spinner US, and you have to go to pl.spinner.com in order to get the Polish content. Which is splashing Michael Jackson and a lot of metal right now.

UK Editor Stephen Dowling's introduction is a little toe-curling in places - "hey, my crazy tastes must put a strain on my iTunes Genius function". But it seems heartfelt, and - hey - it's all about the music:

Spinner.com launched in 2007 with one simple idea - that it was all about the music.

Or, as the press release puts it:

“The vision for Spinner UK is to create a destination for passionate music fans beyond the Top 40, with a global pool of bloggers contributing music news across the world.”

The front page on launch day has items about Slipknot, Michael Jackson, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Snoop Dogg and Green Day. So not very far beyond the top 40, then.