Wednesday, March 26, 2008

a theory

speaking of music and the industry that it is these days i have a theory since a couple of huge bands that are big here in the states and those big acts who are big in Europe/down under/japan and are either from there (since people there buy their music more than those of the states, i could be wrong it's just a guess) that the album format will soon be gone. i fear it because 1. i get bored of 1 or 2 songs quickly just about as fast as I'm tired of listening to radio these days. although i embrace(and the industry could and should probably) because if singles return to be the IT thing like it was in the 40's and 50's(i hope the timeline is right) then 1. radio should/could be relevant in music and how it's promoted and 2. could be a way to cut down on digital downloads for all new music in the coming months/years. at the same time if the single format makes a comeback it could start a comeback with CD sales as well as digital sales along with vinyl sales(yes vinyl, familiar with it? the things dj's use on turntables) since both dig./vinyl sales have been on the rise in the latest sales figures(since vinyl has better sound quality than any other format)


the other format as used by Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails could work for acts who have massive fans, it would probably not work for a 3rd of music acts(especially in rock music) to go in this format since downloading is still the thing to do since there hasn't been a clear cut way to curb down the downloading trend(the R.I.A.A as good as it's intentions are, is not helping the music industry because by suing people vast amounts of money that they don't have to buy music. with the number of lawsuits popping up here and there throughout the country, it's just making people angry so they download instead of buying music). oh yea how the fuck is ripping a CD that you bought onto your computer fucking illegal?


record labels somehow have to stay on top of this somehow to still be relevant and mean something or else bands or artists will form a independent label make a deal with a distributor or just make it with their own bare hands(since now in this day and age everything is publicly available to make Cd's, merch in the comfort of your own home or local warehouse).


i guess the reason I'm talking and sorta rambling here is because i would hate to see the end/death of the CD. the CD still sounds better than a digital song and is certainly not compressed(in case you didn't know) it's also a impersonal item that you can hold on to since you can't really do that with a invisible song that is on a hard drive inside the mp3 paper. I've never seen a mp3 made out of paper with linear notes, have you? there are still consumers who love to buy their Cd's(i know i do, i spend just about 80 bucks or more every time i go to amoeba!!) people(because your parents know vinyl sounds better) but kids/teenagers who are savvy enough to hear the difference(since many people are tone deaf) in the quality of: What's being given via Internet vs. What you put in a disc player vs. What you put on a turntable via 12" inch or 7" inch, are realizing the difference between the three formats.

as i recently learned(since I'm not the only one) but Vinyl is making a comeback(which I'm glad, welcome back Vinyl) and although CD sales seem to be falling down by 15% as each year passes, they're still being bought!
but now it comes to pricing(which take it or leave it that's a confusing process of it's own and i won't get into that cause it's long) the labels make there price and if it sells enough not only them but the whole office and the band(and maybe a baby artist just signed on the label) sees money from that cause they got take care of themselves too(since it's a business).
it also comes down to the music being available but since big retailers started playing the "lets sell music since we can't fill up our store with anything else" game, the local mom and pop shops are dying left and right and your actual record stores are slowly but surely closing their doors(how i fucking miss Tower Records soooo bad!).


i fear for music in this aspect because i love it so much and since the economy and the US dollar ain't exactly doing so well at the moment(hopefully it doesn't get worse) it could possibly hurt the listener in the long term or short term( in a way i don't see the listener losing just the people who have jobs at big record labels{possibly small too} but i/the public won't know until it happens) it's a exciting but scary time business wise the more and more i look at the numbers and here artists point of views on the subject, it really makes me think twice about it if i were to ever have the opportunity to have it as a career.

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