Pay-to-Play – Killing Music Faster Than Peer-to-Peer October 21, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentMass media would have you believe that peer-to-peer music-sharing is killing music. Napster (in it’s original form), eMule, Limewire – all are taking revenue from the artist, and limiting our choice in the long run. Bull. A practice that has existed for decades, is alive and well today, and is conducted by the record labels themselves, is killing music a lot faster than peer-to-peer ever will.
Pay-to-play is a phrase I hadn’t come across until a few months ago, and when discussing it with friends, I realised that not only was it a new concept to them, but they were genuinely shocked by the practice.
Did you ever wonder why so many hit songs sound the same? Why the latest Britney song sounds a lot like the new Christina one? Why the new 50 Cent song sounds like the old 50 Cent songs? Why Justin Timberlake seems to be releasing the same song again and again every few months?
Pay-to-play is the practice of a record company paying radio stations for the playing of specific songs. Disc jockeys were long ago removed from the decision-making process of the songs they can play – virtually all commercial radio airplay is now determined by program directors, constructing schedules of what and when to play. Often, not even the program directors have a say – further up the food chain, general managers, station owners or regional program directors make the calls.
And sitting in between the record companies & radio stations are independents, or indies – third party record promoters who “promote” songs to radio stations. Offering radio stations “promotion payments,” the independents get the songs that their clients, record companies, want on the playlists of radio stations. This is a legal form of “payola” – the illegal practice of payment or other inducement by record companies for the broadcast of recordings on music radio, in which the song is presented as being part of the normal day’s broadcast. Under US law, a radio station can play a specific song in exchange for money, but this must be disclosed on the air as being sponsored airtime, and that play of the song should not be counted as a “regular airplay.” So when is the last time your favourite radio station told you who paid for the song they just played? Let’s be honest – most disc jockeys want to maintain the illusion that they sift through stacks of records and pick out only the best ones for their listeners. Chances are, they don’t.
The indies go straight to the general managers or owners and make deals – typically guaranteeing a station in a medium-sized market approximately $75,000 to $100,000 annually in “promotional support” – the above-mentioned payment that makes the indie the first person its programmers will talk to about adding new singles. Once an indie has “claimed” a station, they let the record companies know that the indie will invoice them every time the station adds a song to its playlist. And the money involved is terrifying – in the United States, there are more than 10,000 commercial radio stations. Approximately 1,000 of the largest are the ones that create hits and sell records, due to their huge listenership. Each of those adds about three new songs to its playlist each week, and the indies get paid for every one: $1,000 on average for an “add” at a Top 40 or rock station, but as high as $6,000 or $8,000 in some circumstance.
Now, add in the fact that songs need to be hits very quickly in order to make a record companies investment back.If they’re not, it’s goodbye next single release, and more often that not, goodbye artist.The record company can’t afford to wait anymore for an artist to mature or develop. So the hits are produced in cookie-cutter fashion, and money is thrown to the indie to have it played on the radio stations, exposing the song to a wide audience, resulting in sales, which recoups the money the record company paid out in the first place.
The next time you wonder why all the songs sound the same, think about this. And the next time someone complains about peer-to-peer killing music, think about the fact that the above cycle guarantees that artists can only afford to think about producing a hit quickly, and so must concentrate on derivation of their peers & selves. How very, very sad.
Go search for and read the article “Pay for play”, by Eric Boehlert.
Brand Spanking New October 20, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentSo, finally, we’re back….
Apologies for the long (long) delay, but due to other commitments, I haven’t been able to put the time into the content as much as I’d like. However, time for things to change….
So, how many changes can you see? The domain name? Check. The website header image? Check. The “About” page with more detail on the site? Check. But there’s more underneath the surface….
I’ve separated out my personal blog from www.getyourmelancholyon.com , as I want to make a stab a running a proper MP3 & music blog – therefore, more MP3s, more music reviews, more music articles, and more efforts to get you, the audience involved.
So, let’s get started. It’s time to get your melancholy on.
Live Music @ Archive.org August 29, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentI now spend quite a bit of time working my way through Archive.org’s huge collection of live music. While quite a large amount of the music recorded is of questionable quality (poor sources, loud crowds), an ever-increasing amount is of better and better quality, and they’ve recently implemented a preview tool to listen to the music before downloading.
Worth a browse.
Extended Break… August 28, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentMy broadband has been out of action for some time now, so apologies for the lack of posting over the last 9 days. In addition, I’m afraid there’s going to be a large hiatus coming up – I’ll be away from the day after tomorrow for three weeks. However, on my return, expect more music than ever…
For now, I’ll post as much as I can today and tomorrow, and I’ll hope that you’ll be able to do without my witty & charming dialogue for a few weeks.
Because I know that’s why you’re all here. For me, my personality, wit, wisdom, and sage advice.
Not for the music at all.
Laptop? Check. Broadband? Check. Audience? Check. August 20, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentApologies for the intermittent posting over the the last couple of weeks. I’ve just recently overhauled my personal laptop so that I can use it (I’m afraid I’ve been a bit remiss with it over the last year or so, giving far too much attention to my other shiny work laptop, my MP3 players, my PSP, and other various pieces of technology). In addition, I’ve finally gotten broadband in my apartment, so I’ll now be making the effort to keep you all abreast of my musical journey…
For now, I’m really quite happy:
- Pages displayed : 571
- Unique visitors : 157
Over 150 people visiting my blog to date – when I overhauled this just a few short weeks ago, I prepared myself for the worst. I’m pleasantly surprised. However, what I would ask for is a lot more posts to let me know if you find the site interesting and useful. If I can get even one person out there buying an album of any one of the artists I enjoy, I’ll consider this blog a great success. Spread the word…
Social Networks “Lure Music Fans” August 5, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentA very interesting article on the BBC website….
Social networks are changing the way people consume music at a time when piracy is on the rise and the rate of growth of legal downloads has slowed. Those are the key findings of a new survey conducted by analyst firm Entertainment Media Research.
The survey found that some 53% of people actively surf social networking sites to find music. A further 30% said they went on to buy or download music that they had discovered on a social network site. On popular sites such as MySpace and Bebo, the numbers of people who use sites to find music rises to 75% and 72% respectively. Some 46% of those surveyed wished it was easier to purchase music they had discovered on social networking sites, for instance via a “buy now” button on the site.
John Enser, head of music at the law firm Olswang that co-authored the survey, believes social networking sites could represent a new platform for the music industry. “Surfing these sites and discovering music is widespread with the latest generation of consumers but the process of actually purchasing the music needs to be made easier,” he said.
The survey – which interviewed 1,700 music consumers aged 13-60 – found that music was increasingly key to social networkers. Some 39% have embedded music in their personal profiles. Seventy percent said they did this to show off their taste, with half saying it was a good way of reflecting their personality.
The survey found the number of people claiming that they illegally download music tracks has risen, from 36% in 2006 to 43% in 2007. At the same time, it found that the rate of growth of legal downloading was in decline. Following a dramatic 40% increase in the number of legal downloaders between 2005 and 2006, the survey identifies a much more modest 16% growth in the number of consumers happy to buy digital music over the same period in 2006 to 2007. In addition, 22% of legal downloaders admitted that they had not paid for a track in the last six months, while the same number said that they had only ever downloaded one legal track.
The survey identifies some reasons for this. Firstly, it found that those surveyed are less concerned that they will be prosecuted for illegally downloading music than last year. Falling CD prices have also played a part in eroding people’s perceptions that digital downloading was a cheaper way to purchase music.
Russell Hart, chief executive of Entertainment Media Research said the findings represented a new era of “democratisation” in the way consumers interacted with music and artists. “Social networks are fundamentally changing the way we discover, purchase and use music,” he said. “While there is no direct link between piracy and music on social networking sites, it is a new discovery platform and if it isn’t integrated with a purchase function, people will go elsewhere, including illegal downloads, to get the music they want.”
My comments: How very true. I’m finding myself more and more exposed to music – through social networking sites, through speciality sites such as LastFM, LivePlasma and Pandora, through friends at work who use the same platforms, or other platforms, to broaden their own tastes, and by proxy, mine. And the easier it is to purchase that music, the more I’ve found myself likely to buy it there and then. Broadband really has changed the face of music – more artists, more music, more access. I’ve also found myself getting music off my friends, and purchasing it if I like it – I believe that downloading music (legally or illegally) opens up choice, and allows artists to reach a wider audience than if it didn’t occur, if that audience are willing to purchase the music they like legally. Whether they do or not is the big question…
Best Gig Ever? August 1, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles, Songs , add a commentIn November 2002, Ryan Adams played two nights in the Olympia theatre in Dublin. Download night one here and night two here.
I was at the second night, and it now stands as the greatest gig I’ve ever been at. Ryan himself appeared on stage with a half-empty bottle of red wine, staring blearily around, as the crowd grewquiet. He stumbled over to a piano, sat down, and started to play. When he opened his mouth, the entire audience went deathly silent. It’s impossible to describe those first few seconds. Even now, almost 5 years later, the entire concert is etched in my memory. But those first few seconds….
He played Sweet L’il Gal, a song from 2001′s Gold. On CD, a nice song. But on November 28th 2002, a crowd of a couple of hundred people had the closest thing to a group epiphany I’ve seen. And for over two hours, through two encores, and eventually the venue security forced to turn on the lights and escort Ryan off the stage to make him stop singing, the crowd was taken from piano to guitar, and back again; some sparce backing vocals; several humorous (and rambling) anecdotes; and the most perfect representation of an artists work I’ve ever had the privelege to witness.
Listen to Sweetest Decline, his cover of Beth Ortons song, and one of my favourites, from the the first night….
“So, anyway, there I was, just sitting on your porch, drinking in your sweetest decline, your sweetest decline….
What’s the use in regrets? They’re just thing we haven’t done yet….What are regrets? They’re just lessons we haven’t learned yet….”
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Changing Tastes… July 28, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentYou may have noticed the majority of the posts at the start of this blog are from a couple of years ago. Why? I hear you ask. Well, I don’t. But you get the idea. I originally wrote the album and live music reviews here for an Irish website which I contributed to for a few months (unfortunately, time became an issue, and so I couldn’t help out any more). I created a blog soon after stopping contributing (yes, I know, how did I find the time to create the blog?)
Now, with the launch of my second (and hopefully more successful and longer-lasting) blog, reading over my old content, it strikes me how much my music tastes have changed. I’ll admit, hear and now, for a long time I was a music snob – I had a very limited range of tastes, and was unwilling to listen outside those. But over the last 12 months, I’ve found things have changed. Instrumental guitar music (Explosions in the Sky), Balkan gypsy music (Gogol Bordello), opera, and classical music have all found their way into my music collection, while some bands, very similar to those I already listen to, now frankly send me to sleep (and not in a good way…Spain, I’m looking in your direction…)
Of course, I’ll still always have a place in my heart (and collection) for GWG (guys with guitars – Michael Tolcher, John Mayer), singer-songwriters (Josh Rouse), depressing rock (Red House Painters, the National), indie pop-rock (Death Cab for Cutie), and emo (Something Corporate, Jimmy Eat World). But lately, I’ve found a lot of African vocal music appearing on my MP3 players…what about you?
Music Obsessive? Me? July 22, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentWhat is my obsession with music? I own over 1,000 albums, by about 700 artists. I gather music more quickly than I listen to it, and end up months later, finding albums I never knew I had. I find an album I really like, listen to it a couple of times, and soon it is lost into the pile, to be rediscovered months later. Or, conversely, I listen to the best albums in my collection too much, until I am sick of that album, for months and months to come. Why do I do this? When is enough enough? When will I stop collecting music? Never, I guess is the answer to that. I now have too many “favourite” artists to keep track of, and am pleasantly surprised when I wander into a music shop to find out one of my favourites has a new album out – on Saturday, it was the turn of The National, with their second full-length album Alligator (which, by the way, was my favourite album of 2005 to date…at least until I listened to it too much…)
I guess I am searching for the perfect song, and the perfect album. I’ve come close – Third Eye Blind’s eponymous debut album to me is as close to perfect as possible – a collection of songs, all very different, but all familiar as by T3B, and an album I can still listen to now, 7 years after buying it. The perfect song? Well, I’m still looking. I’m sure it’s a classic, somewhere out there – Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac. But the closest was Howie Day’s “Collide” (from “Stop All The World” (2003)) – at a time when I had met a special girl, I heard this song, and the lyrics so perfectly matched how I felt, that it struck a chord.But I feel the search will always continue – sure, there are my favourite songs (“Mr. Brightside”, “Hey Yeah”, “Dancing in the Dark”, “Born to Run”, “Directions”, “I Grieve”), and my favourite albums (Ryan Adams “Gold”, the Frames “Dance the Devil”, Goo Goo Dolls “Dizzy Up The Girl”, Jesse Malin “Fine Art of Self Destruction”, Tom McRae “Just Like Blood”, Bruce Springsteen “Ghost of Tom Joad”)…but the perfect one?
It’s out there somewhere…
Heartbreak = Hit? July 22, 2007
Posted by admin in : Articles , add a commentI was listening to Josh Rouses latest album "Nashville", thinking to myself that, while not as immediately accessible as 2003's "1972", thinking to myself that it was definitely a grower, when it occured to me – this album, dealing with Rouses' move away from the town he called home for 12 years, and where he made his greatest music, and the breakup of his marriage, has guaranteed this man SHOULD become one of the greatest singer-songwriters of the last decade. Another broken relationship makes another hit album.
Having recently come out of a relationship myself, I went searching through my collection for albums inspired by relationships gone wrong. Snow Patrol's "Final Straw", Ryan Adam's "Heartbreaker", Tom McRae's eponymous debut album…the list goes on. All albums that made the careers of the people that made the albums, and all a catharsis for the artist in question.
Now, if only I had some musical talent, production skills, and a singing voice…
