Ian MacKaye Is Pro-Downloading; What About You?

[Rohan Kohli]

If you're in a band, work at a label, or work in the industry, and would be interested in answering a few questions / sharing your opinions on downloading / music piracy, please send me an email at rohan.kohli@absolutepunk.net. Also, if you have any questions you think I should ask in my questionnaire, please let me know in the replies. Thanks!

[FeynmanWannabe]

I read the post, then looked at your audioscrobbler. I was amused. hehe

[Rohan Kohli]

I read the post, then looked at your audioscrobbler. I was amused. hehe

Yeah..I know...haha...

[tambo41187]

Jeff Tweedy of Wilco also supports it. He likened it to libraries i believe, i dont know where the article is though.

[Jentheoptimist]

If the cd's good, I'll buy it for the sound quality. If their is only one or two good songs I'll use iTunes. If that's not an option then I'm gonna dl it. It's not fair for a band to write two catchy songs and then pack that album with fillers and expect me to be happy to spend 12 bucks on it. It's really, rip off or be ripped off. That's just me.

[jfb392]

..supports it.

[minusthejosh]

If the cd's good, I'll buy it for the sound quality. If their is only one or two good songs I'll use iTunes. If that's not an option then I'm gonna dl it. It's not fair for a band to write two catchy songs and then pack that album with fillers and expect me to be happy to spend 12 bucks on it. It's really, rip off or be ripped off. That's just me.

sounds like yellowcard's new cd

[kirbs84]

I don't do it anymore , but I'm a supporter of it

[resUrectMe617]

in my business writing class tomorrow one of our topics will be this.. file sharing and things like myspace and how it helps a band or not, etc.

[TyroneShoolaces]

i pretty much download everything i listen to.
which is a VERY lot.
the only albums i buy are ones that i cant find to download (which is rare thanks to OiNK)
and i buy a select few by my favs (Thrice, Say Anything, Gatsby)

[Lachrymal]

How do bands think of Itunes selling songs for 99 cents?

I know alot of the labels are upset but how about the bands?

[Web250]

Ian MacKaye is the man.

That's why he's in my sig.

[The Coalition]

i love this idea, but rohan you probably already knew that. ;)

[tambo41187]

i pretty much download everything i listen to.
which is a VERY lot.
the only albums i buy are ones that i cant find to download (which is rare thanks to OiNK)
and i buy a select few by my favs (Thrice, Say Anything, Gatsby)
Congratulations you are screwing your favorite bands. Keep up the good work!

[TyroneShoolaces]

Congratulations you are screwing your favorite bands. Keep up the good work!
between the amount of money i make and the amount of music i listen to, there is no way that i could afford all these albums. i recommend tons of bands to tons of people and attend many concerts and buy merch from all my favorite bands. i'm sure most bands would appreciate me doing this, rather than not being a fan.

if i couldnt get the album for free, then i wouldnt get it at all. so how exactly am i screwing them? there is no lost revenue there at all.

[tambo41187]

between the amount of money i make and the amount of music i listen to, there is no way that i could afford all these albums. i recommend tons of bands to tons of people and attend many concerts and buy merch from all my favorite bands. i'm sure most bands would appreciate me doing this, rather than not being a fan.
Don't rationalize to me.

You said you download almost everything you buy, if you got the money to go to shows and buy merch then you got the dough to buy some albums every once in awhile.

[NElrod]

Don't rationalize to me.

You said you download almost everything you buy, if you got the money to go to shows and buy merch then you got the dough to buy some albums every once in awhile.

Not totally sure this is the purpose of the thread...

[TyroneShoolaces]

Don't rationalize to me.

You said you download almost everything you buy, if you got the money to go to shows and buy merch then you got the dough to buy some albums every once in awhile.

Like I said, i do buy a few every once in a while. If i spent my money on thier album, then I wouldnt have the money to go to thier show and buy merch. And most bands make more money from merch sales than album sales because record companies get a big cut of the sale of the albums.

I dont see what problem you have with this situation. I obviously still support the bands by spreading the word about them, attending shows, and buying merch. Because i'm not paying for thier album i'm screwing them? It's not like i'm physically stealing a compact disc from them with artwork and stuff. There is no monetary loss. Would you rather i buy thier album, and try to steal shirts from their merch table at shows? I don't have enough money for both, and i'm still supporting the band. They are still making a profit. I wouldnt actually buy the album in the first place, so there is no actual loss to the equation.

[you'renotyou]

well since this a piracy thread it seems as good a place to ask the question as any...


if someone were to get a copy of the leaked brand new demos...not that i have but....how do they find out the tracklisting?

[Rufio21]

Congratulations you are screwing your favorite bands. Keep up the good work!

buy shirts, they make a hell of a lot more money off merch than cd sales

[TyroneShoolaces]

well since this a piracy thread it seems as good a place to ask the question as any...


if someone were to get a copy of the leaked brand new demos...not that i have but....how do they find out the tracklisting?

lololol.
yea i dont think that they have any confirmed names as of yet.
from what i heard, these are the songs that didnt make the cut for the album.
not 100% sure on that though.

[resUrectMe617]

lololol.
yea i dont think that they have any confirmed names as of yet.
from what i heard, these are the songs that didnt make the cut for the album.
not 100% sure on that though.

my post has absolutely nothing to do with the "D" word... rather, the last time i talked to vin and jesse (that was back in like september/early october) they had 20+ songs done for the album. obviously a lot of songs won't make the album. i'd love a B-sides album sometime. oh well.

[njkid54]

Like I said, i do buy a few every once in a while. If i spent my money on thier album, then I wouldnt have the money to go to thier show and buy merch. And most bands make more money from merch sales than album sales because record companies get a big cut of the sale of the albums.

I dont see what problem you have with this situation. I obviously still support the bands by spreading the word about them, attending shows, and buying merch. Because i'm not paying for thier album i'm screwing them? It's not like i'm physically stealing a compact disc from them with artwork and stuff. There is no monetary loss. Would you rather i buy thier album, and try to steal shirts from their merch table at shows? I don't have enough money for both, and i'm still supporting the band. They are still making a profit. I wouldnt actually buy the album in the first place, so there is no actual loss to the equation.
you go to the shows and buy shirts and stuff thats great. but how could you say theres no monetary loss when downloading a song because you didn't get the actual cd? if a band is unsigned and recorded a cd and its leaked and you download it they are losing money. and yes labels take a cut but theres still money that goes to the band that they won't be getting because the cd wasn't purchased.

[tambo41187]

buy shirts, they make a hell of a lot more money off merch than cd sales
That may be true, but cd sales are important to labels which therefore make it important to bands.

You guys can spin it any way you want, downloading is simply bad for bands. Download all you want, buy what you like, delete what you dont like.

And enough with the buy merch argument, thats shit and you know it.

[dukeboy1986]

That may be true, but cd sales are important to labels which therefore make it important to bands.

You guys can spin it any way you want, downloading is simply bad for bands. Download all you want, buy what you like, delete what you dont like.

And enough with the buy merch argument, thats shit and you know it.

Where the crap did you get the Brand New tracks? You obviously had to download them from somewhere.

[Optimistic_KidA]

Like I said, i do buy a few every once in a while. If i spent my money on thier album, then I wouldnt have the money to go to thier show and buy merch. And most bands make more money from merch sales than album sales because record companies get a big cut of the sale of the albums.

I dont see what problem you have with this situation. I obviously still support the bands by spreading the word about them, attending shows, and buying merch. Because i'm not paying for thier album i'm screwing them? It's not like i'm physically stealing a compact disc from them with artwork and stuff. There is no monetary loss. Would you rather i buy thier album, and try to steal shirts from their merch table at shows? I don't have enough money for both, and i'm still supporting the band. They are still making a profit. I wouldnt actually buy the album in the first place, so there is no actual loss to the equation.

but.. do you attend shows and buy merch from every band you have in your library?

[aminorthreat55]

Ian MacKaye is the man.

That's why he's in my sig.
Yep. Along with Guy "Frankenstein" Picciotto.

[PlunketChris]

Like I said, i do buy a few every once in a while. If i spent my money on thier album, then I wouldnt have the money to go to thier show and buy merch. And most bands make more money from merch sales than album sales because record companies get a big cut of the sale of the albums.

I dont see what problem you have with this situation. I obviously still support the bands by spreading the word about them, attending shows, and buying merch. Because i'm not paying for thier album i'm screwing them? It's not like i'm physically stealing a compact disc from them with artwork and stuff. There is no monetary loss. Would you rather i buy thier album, and try to steal shirts from their merch table at shows? I don't have enough money for both, and i'm still supporting the band. They are still making a profit. I wouldnt actually buy the album in the first place, so there is no actual loss to the equation.

A.) The record industry is about numbers, selling albums. The more bands sell, the more money bands get to make their next album, the happier you'll be with the product. Record labels generally don't like to toss money out there that they don't believe they'll get back, budgets grow with a successful album or two to start with. If a band never recoupes expenses, they never get a bigger budget because they have no leverage.

B.) The more bands sell, the better chance you'll see your favorite bands succeed with larger labels, and more opportunities to come and tour to you. The tours that bands get are generally also based on sales in a certain area. Soundscan specifically maps what bands are selling by zipcodes, this generally helps determine who gets what region of a national tour, and/or who gets paid what on a package tour. Album sales, not merch sales.

C.) Shit, the more bands sell, the better chance you'll see your favorite bands EXIST a little bit longer. It seems every day bands are breaking up, not because they dont like playing music anymore, but because they can't progress forward due to monitary concerns.

D.) Yes, you're right, a band will make more on you buying a t-shirt than you buying a CD.. that night. You're right. But in the long run, buying their album will keep their career alive and progressing. Plus, many indie deals aren't anywhere near the same as the shitty major-label deals that some bands have, where they pretty much know they'll never see a dime. Lots of independant deals a band will only owe $4-$8 on a CD, which still gives them much more money than owing the label retail on it.

**I like the idea of downloading, but I generally only download singles, and purchase full albums that I want.**

[TyroneShoolaces]

you go to the shows and buy shirts and stuff thats great. but how could you say theres no monetary loss when downloading a song because you didn't get the actual cd? if a band is unsigned and recorded a cd and its leaked and you download it they are losing money. and yes labels take a cut but theres still money that goes to the band that they won't be getting because the cd wasn't purchased.

no, they are NOT losing money. let me take you through this step by step.

say there is this band that i heard of and they slightly interest me.
i have absolutely no intentions of actually purchasing the album,
but i download the album and give them a chance.
i enjoy the album and become a fan, so i see them when they come to my town and buy a shirt from them.
because i never had any intentions on buying the cd in the first place, then they have lost nothing.

so my options are
A) never downloading the album and thus never becoming a fan and never atteding thier shows and buying merch. Band Makes: $0

or

B) downloading the album, becoming a fan, seeing thier show, buying some merch, and telling a lot of people about them, who in turn buy thier album/go to shows/ buy merch/tell more people.
Band Makes: ~$20 plus whatever is made from the people whom i tell

[TyroneShoolaces]

but.. do you attend shows and buy merch from every band you have in your library?

only the bands that i like, obviously.
and the ones that i dont, then i'm glad i never bought the cd.
win, win situation.