gorch Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 So spoke US producer Greg Kurstin. Albums are out, streaming is in. That's what I read in an article today on German Spiegel.de. Album sales were down 20% in the UK last year.People are streaming personal playlists or even consume ready made lists like Songza creates them. Music is becoming background noise. Even Duran Duran sue the Duran Duran Fanclub.It's all Pop these days!Where's the return of the guitar rock band?Life's in a misery.
zorrow Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 The way music gets consumed is driving the way it's produced. In pop, the "album" packaging makes no sense anymore. However, the return of the vinyl means there's a niche for albums too, as well as the now widely common limited packages -which target true fans and collectors. I therefore think albums will survive and coexist with streaming and other distribution media. They will just get produced in limited quantities with premium packaging, just for the fewer people who really care about that. No worries then, as they're also thinking about consumers like us.
Never2Late Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 Hopefully, home digital production reaches a level where artists can cut-out the 'middle-men' and offer their product straight to consumers, keeping a larger percentage of the royalties of that transaction.Plenty of guitar-heavy music in the underground/punk/metal scenes, they're just not in the CHARTS now, so they're off your radar. Don't wait for the mass-media outlets to offer you the music, after they've vetted/packaged/marginalized/sanitized it, you'll need to go and find it yourself like it was done in the old days.
MCChris Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 Hopefully, home digital production reaches a level where artists can cut-out the 'middle-men' and offer their product straight to consumers, keeping a larger percentage of the royalties of that transaction.Plenty of guitar-heavy music in the underground/punk/metal scenes, they're just not in the CHARTS now, so they're off your radar. Don't wait for the mass-media outlets to offer you the music, after they've vetted/packaged/marginalized/sanitized it, you'll need to go and find it yourself like it was done in the old days.Exactly. Guitar rock is still out there, but I think the days of the guitar god and the guitar-based band flying around on a Zeppelin-esque jet could well be over.
burningyen Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 When you say "the old days," I assume you mean in the days before radio.
Boomerang~Junkie Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 I agree - some of it could only be considered background noise, but there is still some great new music and new groups out there.The market(s) evolution, on many fronts, will now be driven by technological advances. This new generation has some bright people who will still find ways to make money without some of the "old style" middle men (read record label moguls). They'll still exist but only as long as they continue to PROVE value to the process. If not, you'll be out.The landscape is changing faster than ever. If you intend to stay on top you'd better be smart and agile.
MCChris Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 I agree - some of it could only be considered background noise, but there is still some great new music and new groups out there.The market(s) evolution, on many fronts, will now be driven by technological advances. This new generation has some bright people who will still find ways to make money without some of the "old style" middle men (read record label moguls). They'll still exist but only as long as they continue to PROVE value to the process. If not, you'll be out.The landscape is changing faster than ever. If you intend to stay on top you'd better be smart and agile.Again, "on top" is a relative term. Take Rival Sons, for example. Several high-quality albums into their career--quality that in the past would have made them worldwide superstars--and on their last trip through the States, tix were $15-$20 to see them at small clubs. Which I thought was fantastic, as IMO that's the only way to see a show, especially by a band of their caliber. But they can't be raking in stacks of cash from their record sales and concert grosses to be able to afford private planes and big mansion houses. Talking to them after the Detroit show, they seemed perfectly content with their lot in life. As long as they can keep doing what they're doing, I don't care if they ever become cultural icons, and apparently, nor do they.
Studio Custom Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 It's funny how the complaint use to be about the greedy bastards at the record companies. How they refused to promote such and such band enough to your liking. Of course the balance sheet side always told us they need two superstars, like Madonna and Springsteen, several lower tiered still very profitable bands like Rush or Queensryche, a bunch of bands like Winger and Dokken to support the 70% of the acts that either broke even or they lost money on. If you had a million dollars to invest, would you put 70% of it into investments that might not pan out, to maybe hit a home run on the other 30%? Now those people are out of the picture and no longer the hindrance we use to assign to them, but we're STILL complaining. Now it's about iTunes and illegal downloads. Music has always been a technology based industry, and as such, it evolves far quicker than other business models. Is the MP3 the end, have we seen the last technological revolution? Maybe, but if not, the market will change again to accommodate whatever is to follow.The other issue is the lack of venues to go see live music. And the patrons, who do not support the places that remain. It seems people would rather be home listening to Kayne West downloads while sexting instead of going out and experiencing real human interactions.
Boomerang~Junkie Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 Great point of clarification - there has been that sort of tectonic shift in many business models and it continues to shift. Those terms and conditions will be relative until someone(s) breaks out into a new - truly dynamic - sustainable business model - whatever that may be.Great point.
LucSulla Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 90 percent lost money. 5 percent broke even. 5 percent made money.
Caddie Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 I was at the grocery store last week. I heard Hotel California while looking for reduced fat cream cheese. Once I got over by the TP the background music had moved on to Takin Care of Business.I may have to switch to Whole Foods.Cheers!caddie
gorch Posted July 25, 2014 Author Posted July 25, 2014 I'm glad I still discover new bands making hand made music though.
cynic Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 Guitar bands at an all time low? Dating back to when?There is plenty of great guitar music to listen to, does it really matter in the big picture if guitar goes away entirely? There was music before guitar, just as there will be in any post-guitar scenario.
BlueRedWhite Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 mmm..does this apply to Indie (Independent) music too??there is a whole other world over there
burningyen Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 does it really matter in the big picture if guitar goes away entirely? There was music before guitar, just as there will be in any post-guitar scenario.I agree with this, but it would be sad if music lost the human touch.
prototype-fan Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 I was at the grocery store last week. I heard Hotel California while looking for reduced fat cream cheese. Once I got over by the TP the background music had moved on to Takin Care of Business.I may have to switch to Whole Foods.Cheers!caddie Years ago, I was in a supermarket in Iowa City where they were playing a Muzak version of Beth by Kiss. It was hilariously syrupy.
mc2 Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 SONY and BMG need to buy up all the elevator companies and change the MUZAK elevator music to classic guitar rock to regainsome ground. At least they'd have a captive audience for a minute or two on each ride.But I've given up...the Anti-Christ is running things and all shit is breaking loose around the world.Heaven has harps and Hell has fiddles and bagpipes....so, looks like guitars left with Jimi and Stevie Ray and Randy.Everything is cyclical. guitars had a good 60 year run as top dog. The computer is now king. Mozart has become JayZ and Bessie Smith has become a Kardasian.
polara Posted July 25, 2014 Posted July 25, 2014 For most of history music was a tribal or family or very local thing for spiritual and communal sharing. It's also long been a form of storytelling, oral history, a way of keeping a culture vital. Folk music, field hollers, blues, reels and jigs, drum circles.No rock stars.Beethoven was a rock star but usually professional legit composers were dependent on wealthy sponsors and their music was for a rarified few.Recording technology allowed the rise of the music star, letting more people hear a Caruso, a Sinatra, an Elvis, a Hendrix, a Miley Cyrus than was possible when music was tribal, communal, of the heart for loved ones.Recording technology allowed the long-playing record. Before that it was songs, sheet music, singles, radio.I'm just saying that thinking a really weird period in history when guys with lots of hair made lots of money making recordings onto big vinyl discs is somehow the NORM is wrong. Might be personally important because the peak of your high school studliness coincided with LPs and rock stars, but music is dynamic is about the heart, the guts the balls. It'll live on as long as we still breathe.
Never2Late Posted July 26, 2014 Posted July 26, 2014 When you say "the old days," I assume you mean in the days before radio.Internet radio and Youtube are the new discovery mediums. There are even video/music channels on Roku and other streaming-to-TV applications. There is DIY software available to create your own TV channel, and if you can create a podcast or playlist, you can post your own content and format to your hearts' content. Embrace it - "radio reception" of these connections is NATIONAL, not regional, and is getting so mobile its ridiculous. Online content can now 'sync' to car and home entertainment systems, so as folks 'find' new stuff, they can easily share it with others. The only hurdle is getting 'recognition' for where you're hosting your content....
HSB0531 Posted July 26, 2014 Posted July 26, 2014 I was at the grocery store last week. I heard Hotel California while looking for reduced fat cream cheese. Once I got over by the TP the background music had moved on to Takin Care of Business.I may have to switch to Whole Foods.Cheers!caddie Years ago, I was in a supermarket in Iowa City where they were playing a Muzak version of Beth by Kiss. It was hilariously syrupy.I worked for the Director of Engineering at Muzak.Luckily not when he Was at Musak.I never understood why he was proud of Muzak.
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