I hesitated to even write in about this and I'm wondering now if perhaps I shouldn't have since I really don't want to make too big a deal out of it. Obviously we've all made cassettes for other people at one time or another. And we can each vouch for our own morals and the fact that we've bought a jillion CDs and are otherwise cool. And who knows, maybe for this music the point is moot anyway since I don't think the numbers are ever gonna be so high as to amount to a huge gain or loss for folks like us who are not in the pop field.
But on the other hand with these small independents the difference of 500 to 1000 copies bought has an impact. And I have no real way of knowing the net effect of digital trading of my music. But I do know that without my record company I'd be making a hell of a lot less music, live or otherwise. So you'll understand if I raise these questions.
I think -- and this is something I'm pretty sure about -- that the bulk of the audience for this music is real devotees who really want to own the whole package. Plus, again, Americans are lazy and materialistic. They prefer to buy things rather than to make things. Also, I've rarely ever had someone just burn me a CD of an available record. There's no fun in that for the guy doing the burning. he doesn't get to DO anything fun by means of presenting it. And fanatics really pride themselves on their compilation abilities. HIGH FIDELITY was accurate in that respect.
That's why I like the presentation of the CDs since it's an integrated package of music, all the elements holding each other together, not just a collection of tunes.
I agree as a guy who makes records. But as a guy who makes compilations (at least one of which lives in your crib, if I remember), I like putting together compilations that have MY concept of elements holding things together. It's one of the joys of being a music fanatic. How else could you find out that "One Great Day" goes so well between "Sir Duke" and the "Masque" mvt of bernstein's AGE OF ANXIETY?
Having the entire CD is a much better way to experience it and I think there's a much better chance that folks will like it if they hear the whole presentation. So I present as much info on the web site as I can to interest folks, and make it as easy as possible for them to buy a disc. It's not a ton of money comparative to other endeavors and if they don't like it they can give it to a friend.
If your record budget is fifty bucks every two weeks (which is a general figure for enough people I know), twenty bucks for something you've only heard/read ABOUT is a pretty big chunk. Also, returning something to Amazon or wherever is a huge hassle, and, when you get away from sizable cities, amazon is what many people know about in terms of getting the sort of non-pop product of which we're speaking.
Well, I'd like to think that for an investment of $10 to $20 someone could take a chance on my stuff and wind up digging it.
Ten to twenty bucks is a lot of money to put up on spec like that, tho. Although I'll vouch for the quality of your work.
Seems to me that it's never been easier to find and procure music. If anything it's harder to be heard over the din of the crowd. Maybe a little mystery is not such a bad thing. I recall John Zorn telling me that he sold more copies of any particular Tzadik release with no promotion whatsoever as compared to similar labels that did promotion with all the trimmings. So go figure...
There's too much music now to assume an informed consumer decision. The numbers of records... it's just too much to go near. "Zorn" has become a credible brand name, like "hardcore" or "no wave", so obviously stuff that comes out under his aegis gets to take a shortcut, because he's already established an audience.
Artists/listeners like you and me have less representation in the media than at any other time in the last thirty years
Actually I feel as if it's gotten much better in the last 30 years. There seem to be more magazines than ever, more independent labels than ever and now with the internet it's very easy for folks to pinpoint what they want and get it.
Well, there's more little ones and websites than previously. But for folks to pinpoint what they want, they have to know they want it. That there are more indie labels is often problematic. The days of OPTION and a treasured few others being one of the handful of places where you knew to look are long over. Now there are just too many little places and not enough (relatively) big ones to look into. And they're not as easy to stumble onto as it used to be. I remember buying a magazine with James Chance on the cover and stumbling onto an article about Don Cherry, leading me to my first Cherry purchase. With the net, you have to have a little more knowledge of what you're looking for.
I'm just concerned about the balance between what might be considered promotional and what might actually work against me.
For all practical purposes, that's the audience's decision. The grey area is there, but, if they love the music and want to bring people to it, you can't stop them, except by alienating them about how they go about it. I don't think anyone is really trying to distribute whole Ellery CDs for free. I think they're trying to get people to buy Ellery CDs of their own.
Yes but that doesn't mean that if enough people think it's OK to get my music for free as opposed to paying for it that I'm required to be happy about that. And that potential is there.
You've gotta trust the audience to be in your corner. When your sales are usually about 1000 records (as mine are), your interaction with the people who buy the records and see the shows is more telescoped than, say, what even someone like Josh redman deals with. So they're a little more sensitive, because they check out not only what you do on disc, but your professional big picture. The audience has enough discretion to find its way towards this music. They probably -- with the exception of that cretin who wanted you to sign his CDR -- have the discretion and good faith not to cost you sales. as ever -- sh