There have been numerous conversations going on now for a while now on music and how it it's business side are: changing,dying,being reborn or?? People like Lefsetz and Leonhard have made it the focus of there life. Lately I've been tracking and participating on this conversation here at this blog and on Twitter in virtual time shifted-time particularly with 3 people: Sasha Frere Jones, Dave Allen and Melvin Gibbs. Coincidentally they are all bass players. Can this be evidence of some subliminal desire of mine to forsake my guitar for the low end? Anyhow the fact they play bass is incidental. The fact they they are all musicians and passionate about music and have the intellect to analyze these matters and speak intelligently on them is of course the key .
Some back story: I met Melvin on Twitter via his conversation with Sasha on the whole "where is music in the digital age going and how the hell do we get paid?" meme. Melvin was responding to Sasha's analogy of music via the Internet has become as ubiquitous as dirt.
@noahharlan the metaphor is water, or as @sashaferejones would say, dirt. something that's everywhere that everybody uses
@DanWhitley I think the point is alot of people don't "invest" much in music at this point in history- either monetarily or otherwise
@Pampelmoose for alot of people -and businesses- music is just a "thing" on their hard drive. it has the emotional value of a potato chip
@bbluesman re: http://is.gd/lfJ6 music has to have some meaning beyond being a commodity. it's the "content" issue once again
The other day during my early morning exercise walk (sans IPod I should add) I was reflecting on this topic and some of these thoughts in particular. I have to agree with Melvin that music has become less special and therefore less significant in this Net culture we now live in. Music ruled the pop culture of my youth and record stores were like temples with magazines like Rolling Stone, Melody Maker and Downbeat being the prophets. Then if you wanted this music you'd need to physically go to the store, look for the album, probably engage in a conversation with the priests of cool-the snobby record store clerks, and finally after you plunked down your real dollars you had a 12' squared record in possibly a gate fold jacket with it's cool graphics and all the trivia about the band or artist you could possibly hope for on it's liner notes and maybe even dust jacket. Now when people want music they simply click, click, click at the computer and the dirty deed is all done in seconds of time. Yet another variation of Erica Jong's legendary zipless f**k, all in it's mp3 glory.
Another related problem in this equation is that the production of music used to involve the record company arranging valuable studio time with the band, engineer(s), producer,etc. for a recording that was often dragged out over time if the band were stars had a big entourage and endless supply of drugs... In any case people recognized that much work went into producing the music on that physical archive-the LP. Therefore the perceived value was much higher. If the music was great and the album sold well that perceived value of course were proportionally greater still.
How about now? So much of the music is recorded, produced, marketed, sampled and purchased at the computer via the Net amidst Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, IM, Youtube, USTream and all the other always on new media pipe distractions,blessings and curses. Can you see how much shorter the cost to realization trail got in this process? I remember I started losing interests in CD artwork when I started loading 10 CD's in my car system and leaving them in rotation for several weeks ata time. I couldn't very well scan the booklets while I was driving. My point is that once we could take our music with us, the dynamic started changing. The Net made that whole process even quicker and more seamless. So how can you have some deep personal experience with an mp3 file? It's a song or music but also just an audio file, a codec.
I remember my experiences in Second Life-the virtual world which has a thriving live music community there. I was involved as a promoter and podcaster featuring SL musicians. The problem and frustration many performing musicians had there was that they were doing well if they made $20 an hour for performing. The flip side was that many listeners who did in fact like the musicians and were doing their best to support them also knew that many of these people were performing in their underwear in the comfort and convenience of home. Whether they were really wearing underwear or any article of clothing is superfluous-the key point is it was perceived that way. It was perceived as too easy, hence limited value of the art performed and experienced.
So in summary, it is extremely interesting where this is all going particularly in light of the economic implosion we're all living through now. Dave Allen commented a while back that the music business is doing great but the CD business is awful.
Here are some samples of the music of Dave and Melvin
{ 20 comments }
Interesting and some valid observations/conversations.
“Whether they were really wearing underwear or any article of clothing is superfluous-the key point is it was perceived that way. It was perceived as too easy, hence limited value of the art performed and experienced.”
No, YOU perceived it that way;-) And then you left;-))
Your opinion on this is no less valid than Morris Vig's opposing one here:
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2009/02/weekend-open-f... (not to beat my own drum, but thanks Mr V)
Despite the drama's inherent in the “SL Music Scene” there are quite a number of us who just keep playing and connecting with true fans one by one, as Lefstez would say – whether by twitter, sl, vw's, facebook or whatever.
The Record Industry is Dead, Long Live the Music Industry…more on this to come;-)
Hi Paul,Blues in Briefsman? Komuso in Boxer Blues? Good comment and great
that you're carrying on and connecting. Those are 2 of the key points aside
from the biz aspect of the conversation. Why did you learn to play and what
motivates you to keep on playing if not the joy of music and the
connectivity element.
oh…and here's another viewpoint from the SL gigs I did with Moshang:
“he finds the time to come in-world and, together with MoShang Zhao, put on the chillest events I'd never imagined possible.”
http://npirl.blogspot.com/2008/01/synaesthasia-...
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2008/02/bettinas-choi-...
The “problem” with many musicians in SL with regards to the business side (ie: money and “fame” as the primary motivations for playing music) can be pretty much summed up by JJ's article here: http://www.sparklefox.com/advice-music-1.html
I quote:
“The sad truth is most musicians today won't work that hard. They erroneously believe that the public should accept whatever they do and make little effort to win over audiences. And the major labels are only interested in a quick buck, they won't develop an artist. Why are the sounds of yesterday dominating today? Because the current state of the music industry is a sad reflection of America's general decline, our culture of instant gratification- corporate greed on one hand and the childish notion that success should be automatic on the other. Nobody wants to work hard to earn something of lasting value.”
sl is rl is sl etc etc
Anyone who aspires to rise above competency in ANY field and aspire to high level performance has to be motivated beyond the mere extrinsic motivation of finance. This not to say that finance is not important and is obviously a key business metric (among others) for the successful indie musician – real or virtual. Some people in SL make the amounts you say, some less, some more, some charge ridiculous sums to play in what is a developing economy, others are free. Don't assume anything without knowledge would be my advice;-)
re: motivation
There are many books that cover this area (and no, Malcom Gladwell did not invent with the 10000 theory of field mastery, he lifted it from many years of research in the studies of performance analysis and psych – will someone please tell Lefstez this!)
Enhancing Trader Performance: Proven Strategies From the Cutting Edge of Trading Psychology. is an excellent book relevant to anyone who wishes to know more about the process of developing mastery and motivation in any field. It's focused on trading but he draws on many fields to illustrate.
http://www.amazon.com/Enhancing-Trader-Performa...
Back in my dim dark past I was once a world champion skydiver, competing in three world championships for Australia, and from personal experience in that field know a little about the topic;-)
Cool,umm can I have my blog back now?
re: The biz aspect I'm writing a white paper atm on exactly this topic.
As I finished the above post I literally just got this in my inbox, so hot off the http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/ it's not even archived on his site yet.
What can I say but…he gets it;-))
“We've got a clean slate. Don't try to reach everybody, because everybody isn't interested. Don't care if the A&R man doesn't hear a single, just worry if you've got an audience that wants to hear your music. Don't focus on your SoundScan number, but your bottom line. How many t-shirts did you sell. How many deluxe packages. You've got to get people into the gig so you can sell them other shit. It's no different from a supermarket putting cheap items by the cash register. That's where you are, that's where you check out!
So the deafening roar of complaints by the oldsters should be completely ignored. The glory days are never coming back, certainly not in the old way. The major labels are marginalizing themselves, by clinging to the model of distributing hit product, when hit product is almost an oxymoron. Unless you sell the ones and twos, unless you're in the marginal world, you're screwed. It's kind of like Google. Imagine if they only provided a few searchable sites, and were looking for people to pay ten bucks for a direct hit. That's the model of the music business. Whereas Google serves everybody, exactly what they want, and makes its money on servicing a zillion niches. Everybody doesn't click on the same ad, you just click on what you want to.
Will someone roll up the acts to his and their advantage? That's Irving Azoff's play. That's what the merger is about. Is it the only way out? Of course not. But the alternative starts at the grass roots. With bands that generate followings. And finding a way to monetize those followings. Irving's a sexagenarian. The twentysomethings will inherit this business. But so many would rather work in Silicon Valley, the odds of success, the number of zeros on the paycheck, are so much higher…
I don't want you to believe in your record. I want other people to. And they come to music not by being hyped, not by being marketed to, but by word of mouth. It's a whole new paradigm. Radio broadcasting is a dying medium, just like network TV. Oh, there's still a business there, but it's not the future.
The handwriting is on the wall. Don't be dazzled by what's on TMZ, most of those people don't make any money. Don't look for an advance. Just look to make music so good that when someone hears it, they need to tell others about it.
How many people are going to tell their friends about Prince's new album? None. No one has hipped me to a new Prince track in fifteen years. The release of his album is a dead end. He's abused our trust. When you e-mail me an unsolicited track you abuse my trust. When you add me to your mailing list without asking first, you abuse my trust. When you focus on marketing as opposed to music, you've got your head up your ass.”
no;-))
Hahaha!
I like your new photo style btw. What you using?
A combination of PS filters including LUCIS Arts and NIK-thx.
Interesting and some valid observations/conversations.
“Whether they were really wearing underwear or any article of clothing is superfluous-the key point is it was perceived that way. It was perceived as too easy, hence limited value of the art performed and experienced.”
No, YOU perceived it that way;-) And then you left;-))
Your opinion on this is no less valid than Morris Vig's opposing one here:
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2009/02/weekend-open-f... (not to beat my own drum, but thanks Mr V)
Despite the drama's inherent in the “SL Music Scene” there are quite a number of us who just keep playing and connecting with true fans one by one, as Lefstez would say – whether by twitter, sl, vw's, facebook or whatever.
The Record Industry is Dead, Long Live the Music Industry…more on this to come;-)
Hi Paul,Blues in Briefsman? Komuso in Boxer Blues? Good comment and great
that you're carrying on and connecting. Those are 2 of the key points aside
from the biz aspect of the conversation. Why did you learn to play and what
motivates you to keep on playing if not the joy of music and the
connectivity element.
oh…and here's another viewpoint from the SL gigs I did with Moshang:
“he finds the time to come in-world and, together with MoShang Zhao, put on the chillest events I'd never imagined possible.”
http://npirl.blogspot.com/2008/01/synaesthasia-...
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2008/02/bettinas-choi-...
The “problem” with many musicians in SL with regards to the business side (ie: money and “fame” as the primary motivations for playing music) can be pretty much summed up by JJ's article here: http://www.sparklefox.com/advice-music-1.html
I quote:
“The sad truth is most musicians today won't work that hard. They erroneously believe that the public should accept whatever they do and make little effort to win over audiences. And the major labels are only interested in a quick buck, they won't develop an artist. Why are the sounds of yesterday dominating today? Because the current state of the music industry is a sad reflection of America's general decline, our culture of instant gratification- corporate greed on one hand and the childish notion that success should be automatic on the other. Nobody wants to work hard to earn something of lasting value.”
sl is rl is sl etc etc
Anyone who aspires to rise above competency in ANY field and aspire to high level performance has to be motivated beyond the mere extrinsic motivation of finance. This not to say that finance is not important and is obviously a key business metric (among others) for the successful indie musician – real or virtual. Some people in SL make the amounts you say, some less, some more, some charge ridiculous sums to play in what is a developing economy, others are free. Don't assume anything without knowledge would be my advice;-)
re: motivation
There are many books that cover this area (and no, Malcom Gladwell did not invent with the 10000 theory of field mastery, he lifted it from many years of research in the studies of performance analysis and psych – will someone please tell Lefstez this!)
Enhancing Trader Performance: Proven Strategies From the Cutting Edge of Trading Psychology. is an excellent book relevant to anyone who wishes to know more about the process of developing mastery and motivation in any field. It's focused on trading but he draws on many fields to illustrate.
http://www.amazon.com/Enhancing-Trader-Performa...
Back in my dim dark past I was once a world champion skydiver, competing in three world championships for Australia, and from personal experience in that field know a little about the topic;-)
Cool,umm can I have my blog back now?
re: The biz aspect I'm writing a white paper atm on exactly this topic.
As I finished the above post I literally just got this in my inbox, so hot off the http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/ it's not even archived on his site yet.
What can I say but…he gets it;-))
“We've got a clean slate. Don't try to reach everybody, because everybody isn't interested. Don't care if the A&R man doesn't hear a single, just worry if you've got an audience that wants to hear your music. Don't focus on your SoundScan number, but your bottom line. How many t-shirts did you sell. How many deluxe packages. You've got to get people into the gig so you can sell them other shit. It's no different from a supermarket putting cheap items by the cash register. That's where you are, that's where you check out!
So the deafening roar of complaints by the oldsters should be completely ignored. The glory days are never coming back, certainly not in the old way. The major labels are marginalizing themselves, by clinging to the model of distributing hit product, when hit product is almost an oxymoron. Unless you sell the ones and twos, unless you're in the marginal world, you're screwed. It's kind of like Google. Imagine if they only provided a few searchable sites, and were looking for people to pay ten bucks for a direct hit. That's the model of the music business. Whereas Google serves everybody, exactly what they want, and makes its money on servicing a zillion niches. Everybody doesn't click on the same ad, you just click on what you want to.
Will someone roll up the acts to his and their advantage? That's Irving Azoff's play. That's what the merger is about. Is it the only way out? Of course not. But the alternative starts at the grass roots. With bands that generate followings. And finding a way to monetize those followings. Irving's a sexagenarian. The twentysomethings will inherit this business. But so many would rather work in Silicon Valley, the odds of success, the number of zeros on the paycheck, are so much higher…
I don't want you to believe in your record. I want other people to. And they come to music not by being hyped, not by being marketed to, but by word of mouth. It's a whole new paradigm. Radio broadcasting is a dying medium, just like network TV. Oh, there's still a business there, but it's not the future.
The handwriting is on the wall. Don't be dazzled by what's on TMZ, most of those people don't make any money. Don't look for an advance. Just look to make music so good that when someone hears it, they need to tell others about it.
How many people are going to tell their friends about Prince's new album? None. No one has hipped me to a new Prince track in fifteen years. The release of his album is a dead end. He's abused our trust. When you e-mail me an unsolicited track you abuse my trust. When you add me to your mailing list without asking first, you abuse my trust. When you focus on marketing as opposed to music, you've got your head up your ass.”
no;-))
Hahaha!
I like your new photo style btw. What you using?
A combination of PS filters including LUCIS Arts and NIK-thx.