Capitalism destroys Music - Fuck it!

[Communist Chris]

I think that the music industry sucks.I mean the big corparate ones. I think that when you see a comercial promoting a band's CD and they say buy it original and don't burn the CD because your killing music I hate that man. Like if your killing music because you burn the fucking CDs. It is cheaper and your not killing it. No way I am buying a CD at 15 bucks fuck that! They just want your money! It is also cheaper to buy the blank CD and burn it at home. I think if they wanna make money they should sell them about 3 bucks like a blank CD costs. Give me your opinion.

[canikickit]

I think downloading music and burning CDs is morally wrong. But I do it, all the time. The majority of the money goes into the coffers of the record company, but they pay the artist with those coffers, so I don't think anyone can justify their burning of CDs or whatever as a victory against corperations (perehaps a victory, but there is collateral damage, and don't we dislike US foreign policy for the collateral damages incurred?).

I still buy a lot of CDs because I want to recognise the artists and the effort the labels put in. The majority of CDs I buy are from small dedicated labels (one small dedicated label in particular, actually).

There's nothing wrong with copying a couple of albums, but I would never stop buying albums altoghter.

[American Kid]

Everyone knows the corporations are killing rock and roll, Christopher.

The bands I listen to, they're on little indies. Fucking A. Cheesy as it sounds, I love the bands I listen to. I love the albums they put out. God bless them and their music.

http://www.deepelm.com

http://www.vagrant.com

http://www.anniversaryaccess.com


Long live rock and roll.
-AK

[Cobra]

Heres my opinion, I say fuck the record companys, we don't need them. That money you spend on CD's mostly goes to the record companys and not the band. Bands should sell there own CD's, though this is very difficult for them to do a lot of the time since they would have to compete with the mainstream bands. Mainstream bands get a lot of publicity, garage bands don't. Anyone who knows anything about music knows garage bands are a lot better than the mainstream bands. The money you spend to support the band should only go to the bands. The records should cost 10 US$ at most, and none of that money should go to the record companies.

And another thing, it's all driven by money. It is not driven by improving the art. I have stopped listening to all the new money driven crap and started listening to classical music. Bach and Bethovens music is a lot better than any of the crap that comes out now. All the new stuff might last a few years, but thats it. Because it sucks. The real music can last decades, even centuries.

But I know a solution to this problem:

Mass boycot the music industry. Instead of buying their CD's, download it off the internet. Lets put those fuckers out of Business!

[American Kid]

However much I agree with you, Cobra, until something drastic occurs in the industry, I still think it's a good idea to buy the records of bands you like. To support them.

For instance, one of my fav bands, The Anniversary, a link to's whom site I provided above^^^^^, I downloaded their entire new cd before it came out last January.

But when it finally DID come out, I bought it anyway. Why? To give the kids (that's what I love about them, they're "kids", my age; rock and roll) the numbers. I mean, they do get SOMETHING from the dollar you pay for the cd.

You probably agree with me in that I'm talking little, indie label bands, but anyway...........

Goin' to shows too is a great way to support bands. Let em know face to face you fuckin DIG em.

Interestingly though, I have a wierd scenario in my head. The new Red Hot Chili Peppers CD is amazing. I love it. But I didn't download it (I think it's rather difficult to do such........) and I don't think THEY need the support..........hmmm............but it's good music...........

fuck
no easy answers,
-AK

(Edited by American Kid at 12:14 am on Nov. 8, 2002)

[canikickit]

That money you spend on CD's mostly goes to the record companys and not the band

The record companies pay for the advertising, distribution, packaging, artwork, studio time (sometimes), producers, writers.......lots of fucking things.

I'm not saying they're heros of humanity, but they're not so bad. Also like I and AK said, you can still support the smaller labels. Mass boycott the large conglomerates, maybe, but not Rawkus and Blood and Fire (http://www.bloodandfire.co.uk), and whoever else.

[RGacky3]

inmy opinion one should not make music unless he has a passion for it, ad f he ha a passion for it he will make music no matter what.

LONG LIVE ENSTURZENDE NEUBAUBTEN AND SKINNY PUPPY

[RGacky3]

Quote: from Cobra on 12:05 am on Nov. 8, 2002
Heres my opinion, I say fuck the record companys, we don't need them. That money you spend on CD's mostly goes to the record companys and not the band. Bands should sell there own CD's, though this is very difficult for them to do a lot of the time since they would have to compete with the mainstream bands. Mainstream bands get a lot of publicity, garage bands don't. Anyone who knows anything about music knows garage bands are a lot better than the mainstream bands. The money you spend to support the band should only go to the bands. The records should cost 10 US$ at most, and none of that money should go to the record companies.



I am an Industial musician, it would be great to be able to do it all with out a record company, but realisticly yu need one, but I made sure my record company was not a big cappie label bent on making a lot of money, so I chose DTArecods :)

[Cobra]

I'm changing my last statement. It might be hard for bands to do everything, so I guess record companies are a necessary evil. The mass boycott should only only apply to the large companies.

Good luck with your band RGacky3. I listened to some of the songs on your site and they're really good. I love the Che samples in exploited, that song rules.

[kidicarus20]

copyrights should be illegal.

Interestly, a lot of punk bands don't copyright their music, like anti-flag, so it's perfectly legal to make as many copies as you want, yet they still make profits. Just like linux, it's not illegal to share or burn it, yet they can still make profits off of it.

[Tkinter1]

How does capitalism destroy music?

[Cobra]

"Noce Nada!" - Tkinter1

The music industry is controlled by huge corrupt companys who steal profits away from bands. They also rip of consumers by making them pay huge amounts of money for a CD, when the CD's cost them very little to produce. Also, they publicize mainstream bands so much, that garage bands have a hard time making a living. They publicized only a small portion of the bands that exist, so we have to listen to crap like Brittany Spears and The Backstreet boys.

The industry is driven by profits and not the art of music. They want to make to make a buck, and dont give a shit if the music lacks quality. People might go thru a "fad" and all buy a album one year, but wont give a shit about the Album several years later because the most the music isn't very good. Many mainstream bands end up being nothing more than one-hit wonders. This does nothing to further the art of music.

Lets go back a few hundred years. Back to a time when the music business was controlled by Aristocrats, oddly enough, this didn't have as harmful of an effect on music as capitalism does now. During this time, people worked there entire lives composing music, sometimes they worked so hard that they went blind. Even then they would continue to write music! They did not do this for money, but for the art. They would learn from the other great composers and try to build upon their music and improve upon it. Their music could stirred deepest inner emotions. These emotions are felt when J.S. Bach stiked minor chords on his organ.

Where is todays J.S. Bach? I'll tell you where. He is jammin' his guitar until his fingers bleed. He is composing the greatest fuckin' music ever made! ...only he is not in the mainstream. Hardly anyone knows of him. He lives in a van by a sewage filled river. Almost all of his money goes to his landlord to pay the rent. He can barely make enough money to avoid starving to death... while the Bachstreet Boys make millions! This is a great injustice! Large corparations don't give a shit about the music. They just want $. This is destroying the art.

Those are a few of the ways that capitalism destroys music. I'm sure there are a lot other ways that I did not mention.

[Goldfinger]

http://www.che-lives.com/cgi/community/upload/tafkap2.gif fights for artist rights. He points out how the record companies take the majority of the income themselves. Therefore, he has a music club where you get exclusive internet only songs, much cheaper than cds. www.npgmusicclub.com

(Edited by Apocalypse When at 4:28 pm on Nov. 8, 2002)

[Tkinter1]

Cobra,

I can agree with you that the prices of CD's are outrageous. But it can clearly be seen that people still obviously don't mind spending money on CD's. EVEN with the ability for people to get the music ILLEGALY online! But its not about the money anyway, its about making music that people all over the world can enjoy. Capitalism has not hindered that.

Where do you think the 'above ground' bands started? Did they magically appear, or did they work there way up from garage bands or rapping on the streets?

There are hundreds of PRIVATE OWNED(caugh caugh) labels that sign new bands and rappers every week. The artists work their way up. its not just given to them.

"The industry is driven by profits and not the art of music. They want to make to make a buck, and dont give a shit if the music lacks quality."

Thats not up to capitalism or the music industry, thats up to the artist. And whether the music lacks quality or not is YOUR opinion.

(Edited by Tkinter1 at 1:16 am on Nov. 9, 2002)


(Edited by Tkinter1 at 1:18 am on Nov. 9, 2002)

[Guardia Bolivariano]

The bastards that killed napster should burn in hell!!!!
But on a serious note capitalism doesn't kill music no,they kill musicians!!!

[Tkinter1]

capitalism doesn't kill musicians, musicians kill themselves.

[Stormin Norman]

It isn't the record companies that are destroying the quality of music. It is the number of unthinking herd members that are told to buy shit on a stick and do it. The same type of people who blindly buy into the mantra that communism is a noble precept and Marx's intentions were good. The masses of people who would no doubt buy into socialism if it were wrapped up in a shiny new package. Damn we have come full circle, right back to shit on a stick.

[canikickit]

The planet is a mess. The majority of people are idiots. The record company executives are members of the herd you mentioned, Norm.
Don't forget, the US media loves to package freedom also. US citizens, in general love to go on about their freedoms. Yes they are freer than a lot of countries. But they are not the freest nation on the planet.

[redstar2000]

As I understand it, out of every 9 cents spent on music in the U.S., the musician(s) get ONE penny.

As I further understand it, the trend in the modern mainstream music business is to "construct" a band, a sound, a group of personalities all guided by careful market research into "what the poor suckers will buy next".

Musicians who write and play, guided by only their musical sense, have a VERY hard time under capitalism...where there is only room for a few MONSTER CELEBRATIES. Many writers have the same complaint; for every Steven King or Danielle Steele or Anne Rice, there are THOUSANDS of equally good or better writers who simply can't gain a hearing...and can't make a living.

The artist's life will never be bliss...and they wouldn't like it all that much if it was. But if communism can provide a "level playing field" where everyone who wants it can get a fair hearing...that would be a real step in the right direction.