Many blog posts ago I cited and expounded upon Thom Yorke’s thoughts about the current and possible future state of the recording industry. I was reminded of that post earlier today when I saw that Arcade Fire’s highly anticipated album The Suburbs – an album that the BBC said betters Radiohead’s OK Computer – had leaked on to the Interwebs, eleven days before its official release. It’s no coincidence the leak coincides with the exact day publications and “official” music blogs got their advance copies, which leads me to my point: If record labels, be them indie or corporate, wish to curtail illegal downloading they should begin by terminating the tradition of giving publications and “respectable” blogs promotional copies of releases. (Further protection can be made by releasing new albums digitally one week or more before its physical release; this would counter leaks from the labels’ printing plants, which usually occur 5-7 days before the official date and are the most common source of leakage.) This is an obvious point, of course, but I don’t support it with obvious logic. The clear logic says that early leaks will likely cease if all copies of all albums, the digital and promotional versions, are released simultaneously. My point, however, is the tradition of generating buzz through rock-critic accolades isn’t just moot in the Internet age, it’s offensive. It implies that only specific outlets can be trusted with informing the public about upcoming titles.
Newspapers and traditional media outlets are dying because the Web is filled with millions of John Q. Citizens who are there, literally in the midst of breaking news. They have phones equipped with cameras and wireless access to the Internet; within minutes, raw pictures and succinct descriptions emerge from those moments. Blogs report and the media verify… sometimes. (As the recent Shirley Sherrod story proves, traditional media sometime fail to do this.) Regardless of the presence of traditional media, the news will find the people. This same logic applies to music: if it’s worthy, it’ll find ears. Many labels operate on the notion that the mediators of information, i.e. publications, respected blogs, must be part of the distribution equation. Why must we, the consumers, be spoon fed the latest reviews when the music is just a click away? I firmly believe that it’s this egotistical sentiment that drives and even encourages some to illegally download music. Again, if the music is good, it will reach the listeners. Music fans are constantly connected to the Web. We read: blogs, text messages, Facebook updates, Twitter. All these streams of information pour into our brains – unmediated. Much of what we encounter on the Web, for better or worse, is unfiltered. Never mind music fans, consumers in general have unprecedented power. Before we purchase that 32” HDTV, several sites give us detailed information, including reviews from real consumers. We, the consumers, now more than any other point in the history of consumerism, have access to incalculable knowledge, which is priceless power. We have harnessed this force through the vast networks that comprise the Internet. No longer do the borders of geography restrict our ability to connect and communicate. President Barack Obama’s campaign was successful largely because it tapped into those connections, those vast networks. The rise of the Tea Party and the recent massive gathering in Toronto of G20 protesters are further examples, however disparate, of the Internet’s potential to gather people and access power.
I believe record labels can survive in this new era, but for them to do so, they must accept that many revenue streams have permanently dried. For the indie labels, adaptation has been a way of life, and it’s much easier to conform to changing markets when your product is quality bands and the balance sheet is small. For the larger labels though, the story is different and the losses are greater. Regardless of strategy, the Internet has forever altered the music business, and I’m amazed by the number of industry people who remain willfully ignorant about the Internet and its implications. Practically every label has embraced iTunes, but this isn’t the case for the smaller, more indie-oriented eMusic. Every label should actively seek to make its music available on every mp3 site. Apparently some music business people don’t realize that music is an innate expression of the human condition, and it doesn’t need a business model to be produced. It’s simple: evolve or die.
In the end, many businesses remain amazingly ignorant about the Internet’s impact on, well, nearly everything. It seems as though some record labels are going to ride their camels until they die; sustenance is the status quo, apparently. For musicians, however, the floodgates are wide open. Sites like Bandcamp.com are built for the DIY artist. (The Holy Grail of indie music, Pitchfork.com, recently launched AlteredZones.com, which further legitimizes the whole DIY music scene [oxymoronic, I know].)
History may look back at this period of the Web as something of a Wild West, in which anarchy breaks some and reinforces others, only to give way to crude, loosely formed power structures. Whatever the case, John Q. Citizen has more power now than any other point in his lifetime. Are the mediators of information still needed? Or can Mr. Citizen utilize the knowledge bank and discern the good from the bad?
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immediately transform into an anxiety-ridden heap of flesh and nerves when I consider the next phase of my life. To say I have zero confidence in my abilities to succeed within the nursing program and the profession would be a glaring understatement. Never mind the physical act of achievement, I'm unable to conjure a mental image of me success stability (together). I simply don't see it and cannot comprehend it.
