For years now, I've been hearing about how the internet is finally going to kill major record labels. Articles like this one are all over the internet if you care to look, presenting apparently damning reports on the future of the likes of EMI and Universal.
They lead us to believe the death of the majors will somehow pave the way for a new golden era of music, a world where the indie labels will take over the charts, quality music will rein supreme, and talentless pap like Justin Bieber will no longer exist.
A nice idea, except of course it hasn't happened.
Why? Well, partly because you're all still buying records from them (you probably think you aren't, but start reading the linear notes of records you buy a bit more carefully and you'll probably be surprised). The main reason though, is that they still play a vital part in the industry.
For artists releasing records today, there's three options.
The first is to be resolutely DIY, and release everything yourself. It's a path that has been heralded across the internet as the future of music. Not only can you keep complete artistic control, with a few clicks you can now promote your band on social networking websites, get your music on to iTunes, and connect with promoters and book yourself a tour. That all sounds good of course, but the real elephant in the room is money. Unless they have the thousands of pounds required to pay for a good PR campaign and advertising, almost all bands taking this route can look forward to years of shifting less than 100 copies of their slaved-over releases (breaking even if they're lucky), playing empty gigs around the country (breaking even if they're lucky), and ultimately having to keep their office jobs so they can afford to eat. I wish bands doing the DIY thing the best of luck, God knows they're going to need it.
Another option is to sign to an indie label. To most bands, being on an indie label is an accolade that has for a long time held some romanticism about it. The chance for relative success without the need to sell your soul to the devil seems like the golden ticket for any musician with an ounce of integrity.
The problem is, the whole point of indie labels is that they are run by music enthusiasts, who somehow can understand you and help you better than those industry fat cats your hear about. Now ask yourself this; would you want the business side of your band looked after by a) a couple of ageing hippies who spend most of their money on a vast collection of vinyl, or b) a business man with access to lots of capital, music lawyers, and a roster of well considered financial successes?
That might seem an unfair question, but lets consider some examples. Take Factory Records. They released the likes of Joy Division, New Order and Happy Mondays, and to this day they are idolised and generally accepted as one of the greatest indie labels of all time (if not the greatest). I suspect though, that the bands that they signed weren't quite so keen on them. Before they went bankrupt in 1992, the label constantly screwed them at every turn, at their height spending hundreds of thousands of New Order's 'Blue Monday' royalties on buying the Hacienda club. Add to this first hand reports I've heard from former staff of some the most respected indie labels, claiming to have seen some very strange things happening with money, and suddenly the golden ticket doesn't look quite so shiny after all.
So enter then, the major label. Sure, you're no less likely to get screwed out of your hard earned royalties, but at least now you have a real promotional powerhouse behind you. Most major label bands these days hire A&R staff who really know their music and don't (as you'd be led to believe) want to completely change the way you sound or the way you look (unless you have a major image problem, in which case what's the problem anyway?). This is still the only route that will see your mug regularly plastered across your favourite music magazines, and probably the only way you'll be packing out venues night after night. Sure, you might get dropped after one album and have to go back to the wonderful world of DIY. But equally, you might make a fortune and have a long prosperous career. Whatever happens, I certainly don't see why its a worse way to do things than any other.
I'll admit, every band wants different things, and ultimately they have to find the deal that's best for them. However, lets drop this childish notion that major labels are the route of all evil and their demise would have a positive affect on the industry. It wouldn't. Keep buying music you like, buy it from whoever you like and share it with people you like. That's the music industry my parents enjoyed, I enjoyed, and people will enjoy for years to come.
And if you're still hellbent on destroying the majors, why not start in your own home? Grab a hammer and start smashing your copies of Ziggy Stardust, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band, Pet Sounds, Dark Side Of The Moon and OK Computer. See if that makes you feel any better.
No comments:
Post a Comment