Is the Death of The Traditional Record Biz All Good?

Yeah, I think Radiohead would definitely be much, much better if only they had some label dudes steering them towards a more "pop" sound.

I think the days of the blockbuster standard canon album are over and nobody listens to the radio anymore so the main ways songs are getting promoted to hit status is by being used in fucking television ads and I think that's all kind of depressing but what are you going to do?

Thats true El Tomboto...a "hit" doesn't mean the same thing it used to and affects far less people.

Oh shit, why did I response to a PEW thread?

PEW?

haha "2 out of 5 Clive Davises"

Clive Davis should be fucking grilled on a spit, btw

that would imply he was being grilled in order to be eaten. are you ready to follow through?

looks a little fatty

hmm. people always say this sort of thing about the fiery furnaces, but i can never bring myself to agree despite the numerous things about their albums that irritate me. they clearly have a very complete aesthetic and artistic concept, if one containing long spoken character digressions and numerous chirping sounds, and i think an attempt to remove them from certain unfavorable aspects of their sound would likely have more impact on the elements of their sound/songwriting which i do really love. and of course, subjectivity is not to be discounted: is 'egyptian grammar' really the best song on their new record? really?

Yeah, I think Radiohead would definitely be much, much better if only they had some label dudes steering them towards a more "pop" sound.
this, however....

i guess to be more on point with the topic of the thread, classic rock is terrible and if that cohesive, canonical, homogenized sound is the result of suits meddling with people who at one time had actual artistic potential, then i'm glad it (presumably) doesn't work that way any more

cohesive, canonical, homogenized

1/3 ain't bad I guess

In the future, all music will be mastered on lyrebirds. Personal lyrebirds which have been taught the latest hits will eclipse all digital ringtone mobile formats.

Part of the problem is that the traditional record biz has been doing less and less of what it used to do best for years now.

But I will defend certain elements of it, at least in theory (and with reservations). I think many artists can benefit from a really good producer. Sometimes it's just too much to ask that the same person who writes really good songs and sings really well and performs great also know exactly how they should be recorded and to know how to communicate that to an engineer while also trying to muster up the energy and focus to do good takes. There are people who can pull this off, but I think it's too much to ask that everyone does. I also just think the right extra, outside set of trained ears can be a lifesaver.

As for advances, I think I argued this on another thread, but there's something to be said for releasing an artist from the feeling of "Oh my god, we can only afford three days of studio time - we have to get all these songs done - no time for another take." Good records still get made that way, but a lot of good records wouldn't have gotten made if all records had to be made that way.

That said, a bad producer can also ruin a potentially good album, and too much of an advance can just produce a bloated, overwrought result.

1/3 ain't bad I guess
heh don't nitpick my adjectives i don't know as many as u :(

Personal lyrebirds which have been taught the latest hits will eclipse all digital ringtone mobile formats.

Part of the problem is that the traditional record biz has been doing less and less of what it used to do best for years now.

It's been nearly 25 years since they regularly let an artist take 2 or 3 albums to develop (Springsteen) or even consider that a strange band might have mainstream appeal (Talking Heads). There's exceptions, but they prove the rule. Early in rock, it was the indies out to make a quick buck (Leonard Chess, King) and they'd stumble into something amazing. Now it's reversed. I really can't imagine a major making a record like Ys. in the last 20 years. That took a lot trust in the artist AND money.

Yeah, which is why I think large indies are the best model. Once you get into mergers and stock offerings everything goes to shit.

and i think THIS is the best model:

http://www.msichicago.org/exhibit/great_train_story/imgs_home/blue_trestle2.jpg

sleepingbag .. I think those are fair points especially regarding subjectivity. How far can you bend (or smooth out) a band's aesthetic before it becomes a renunciation of what they originally sounded like? Is wishing them to sound diffrent a Sasha Frere-Jones-esque folly?

max -- isn't that the Neil Young model?

heh don't nitpick my adjectives i don't know as many as u :(

-- sleepingbag, Friday, 26 October 2007 03:31 (13 hours ago) Link

UH i thiiiink john isnt taking exception to your word choice, but more to classic rock is terrible. but maybe im projecting.

Yeah, I think Radiohead would definitely be much, much better if only they had some label dudes steering them towards a more "pop" sound.

-- jon /via/ chi 2.0, Thursday, October 25, 2007 9:42 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Link

not sure if this is sarcastic or not.

UH i thiiiink john isnt taking exception to your word choice, but more to classic rock is terrible. but maybe im projecting.

this is correct - the notion that classic rock (or any genre save very specific microgenres maybe) is "homogenous" or "cohesive" is a pretty easily dismissed notion. Do the Doobie Brothers sound like the Kinks? Do the Kinks sound like Foghat? etc

The traditional record biz wont simply die though...eventually some kind of best economic model for online music will work itself out, and then pressures to be commercial will firmly be back in place.

Commercial pressures have odd and unpredictable results though...I'm just listening to Mike Nesmith's 'Harmony Constant' which is one of his amazing songs, which I understand he quickly recorded for an album so as to fulfill a contractual obligation.

I'm one of those people who doesn't think Chelsea Girls would sound as good without the strings.