I haven't played in a band for over 10 years, but I still buy music (though not as much). I don't know how badly this affects indie bands, since I don't even understand how indie bands/acts sell music these days or how severely has the field changed. I remember how when the label my band was on would release a CD/7" they'd give their local 'indie' record shop maybe 5 or 10 and sell maybe all of them, maybe less, and this would be replicated in similar shops around the world, and we'd get a review here and there that would say how great the release was, but nobody would buy it anyway. Anyway thats all sorta discourse, though I imagine the Internet has changed things marginally
ANYWAY, I only discovered SoulSeek about 3 months ago, just after I finally got a portable Mp3 player 5 years after the fact, and I'm hooked. I understand it's to help promote 'unheard' or more succinctly the 'alternative', indie, or 'cool' hipster' stuff we all crave and define ourselves with etc..etc.It's helpong me listen to, or sample some INCREDIBLE music. On a positive I've found some terrifiec OUT OF PRINT or just RARE material eg: Sonny Sharrock/Pharoah Sanders live recordings, MBV bootlegs from their prime period, Eno/Harmonia combos, DOn Cheery's 'Brown Rice', Les Rallizes Denudes rarities, Sun Ra's 'Space Safari', rare Pink Fairies, amazing KDJ DJ sets with a bloke from the Last Poets! - I mean I've found some really transcendent, life-affirming -mega-rare-hipster stuff that good rock writer mythologise and it's a wonderful thing...That's good and well, but most of these acts, weren't or aren't living in 50 mansions like Elton John or make $1000000 per year off Royalties alone like Lou Reed or David Bowie..So I find that despite the fact I can 'hear' or even 'have' this ultra-rare stuff, it's not doing the artists any financial favour, but it is giving me the opportunity to HEAR their amazing rare works. Mind you, I still went out and bought Eno's remasters, or all the REAL KIDS albums, I mean I still prefer to have the albums with the artwork, liner notes, rather than just a tape recording. I'm not sure how kids who under under25 are with their music consumption, I mean do they still value having a 'physical' musical product anymore in today's Ipod age?
In some ways I liken SoulSeek to taping your favourite radio DJ's radio shows(or pirate shows), before the days of the Internet. I mean you might be able to buy a few of the records they played, but not their rare Can live tracks or whatever. In fact I clearly remember reading a Reynolds piece on the Shoegazers and a Brophy piece written about 6 years earlier on Krautrock bands like Neu, and being totally unable to purchase their records ANYWHERe, even record fairs! (I eventually got a tape recording on Neu75 from a plumber who was a record collector from the 70s!!!) I guess that alleviates the guilt somewhat relating to SoulSeek. I'm surprised no RICH/POWERFUL/INFLUENTIAL 'counter culture' musical identities haven't taken them to court, like say Michael Stipe or Thurston Moore or Henry Rollins or Liz Phair or Steve Malkamus or David Byrne... But I really don't understand how the music biz and delivery/sale of work has changed on the 'indie' or 'specialist' level from 1994 to say now to really make any comments on how inherently EVIl SOulSeek is compared to any other maccinations of the muzak biz circa 2005.
SO do you think SoulSeek is EVIL is it a tool in the 'conspirational' nature of new cutting edge music?
ANYWAY, I only discovered SoulSeek about 3 months ago, just after I finally got a portable Mp3 player 5 years after the fact, and I'm hooked. I understand it's to help promote 'unheard' or more succinctly the 'alternative', indie, or 'cool' hipster' stuff we all crave and define ourselves with etc..etc.It's helpong me listen to, or sample some INCREDIBLE music. On a positive I've found some terrifiec OUT OF PRINT or just RARE material eg: Sonny Sharrock/Pharoah Sanders live recordings, MBV bootlegs from their prime period, Eno/Harmonia combos, DOn Cheery's 'Brown Rice', Les Rallizes Denudes rarities, Sun Ra's 'Space Safari', rare Pink Fairies, amazing KDJ DJ sets with a bloke from the Last Poets! - I mean I've found some really transcendent, life-affirming -mega-rare-hipster stuff that good rock writer mythologise and it's a wonderful thing...That's good and well, but most of these acts, weren't or aren't living in 50 mansions like Elton John or make $1000000 per year off Royalties alone like Lou Reed or David Bowie..So I find that despite the fact I can 'hear' or even 'have' this ultra-rare stuff, it's not doing the artists any financial favour, but it is giving me the opportunity to HEAR their amazing rare works. Mind you, I still went out and bought Eno's remasters, or all the REAL KIDS albums, I mean I still prefer to have the albums with the artwork, liner notes, rather than just a tape recording. I'm not sure how kids who under under25 are with their music consumption, I mean do they still value having a 'physical' musical product anymore in today's Ipod age?
In some ways I liken SoulSeek to taping your favourite radio DJ's radio shows(or pirate shows), before the days of the Internet. I mean you might be able to buy a few of the records they played, but not their rare Can live tracks or whatever. In fact I clearly remember reading a Reynolds piece on the Shoegazers and a Brophy piece written about 6 years earlier on Krautrock bands like Neu, and being totally unable to purchase their records ANYWHERe, even record fairs! (I eventually got a tape recording on Neu75 from a plumber who was a record collector from the 70s!!!) I guess that alleviates the guilt somewhat relating to SoulSeek. I'm surprised no RICH/POWERFUL/INFLUENTIAL 'counter culture' musical identities haven't taken them to court, like say Michael Stipe or Thurston Moore or Henry Rollins or Liz Phair or Steve Malkamus or David Byrne... But I really don't understand how the music biz and delivery/sale of work has changed on the 'indie' or 'specialist' level from 1994 to say now to really make any comments on how inherently EVIl SOulSeek is compared to any other maccinations of the muzak biz circa 2005.
SO do you think SoulSeek is EVIL is it a tool in the 'conspirational' nature of new cutting edge music?