Buying music is something you do when you're a teenager and you have a large disposable income. I used to buy 2 - 3 albums a week (mainly from The Punker Bunker in Brighton). I've done my bit for the small underground record labels I care about, now i just stream music and the cd collection is mainly for decoration. I'm thankful I'm not a kid growing up with the lack of good music around nowadays, and grateful I'm not relying on the industry, like LTL.
That's a little blinkered, sweeping statement Clem. Some people may still want to spend disposable income on music; I have friends who still buy lots of music and they are my age - nothing wrong with that and you can't sweepingly say it is something kids do. There may be plenty of good music around, but it may be that you either don't like it or you haven't found it, or you may not even be looking. Just because you've done "your bit" does that mean it is ok not to buy music now? I have done quite a bit in terms of paying tax and national insurance ... done my bit; can I stop now? I am sure/hope you didn't mean your comments as bluntly as they came across.
Just to be clear, streaming I don't have a problem with people doing - it's crap for the artist and music in general, but it's legal and if that's how you want to consume your music, so be it. Piracy and this sense of entitlement that exists toward other people's work I have a major issue with. Saying that buying music is something only kids do is........weird!
Surely teenagers are the main market for albums? I still buy music, but a fraction of what I used to spend.
Not necessarily. I mean yes, of course it's still a massive market, but it's teenagers that are nicking music more than anyone else, so people are also concentrating more on music with a broader appeal. You're likely to get more money from the 20-40 group nowadays (hence the successes of people like Daft Punk etc).
What I mean is, in the nicest possible way, i don't care as much about new music. Most of the bands a like never made it big commercially anyway. I'm not saying there isn't something wrong with the industry that needs fixing in terms of music piracy, but its the flip side of the internet age. Its now much easier for bands to get exposure to the world, but its harder for them to sell records.
One of the word puzzles on today's Countdown has the letters: D R T E N C E I O. Can you guess what word both contestants said?
Yeah absolutely, though it's far less of a problem there. I'm lucky enough to know quite a lot of authors and they are concerned (David Nicholls actually has a piece in the Guardian today about how even browsing in book shops then buying a book on a kindle feels like a mild version of shoplifting!) but it's not yet a major, major issue (same as films/TV).
I reckon it must be Spoiler ERECTION if you can only use 8 letters! Edit: got it before Tom gave it away!
I've had to turn down work this weekend, and feel pretty **** about it. But, at the end of the day it was going to actually cost me more to get there and cover the game, than it would bring in. Just feeling a bit downbeat. Sigh... best get used to this I suppose!
Just a thought: unless it is hugely costly for you to do these opportunities, the "value" of doing them may be higher than the money earned or the cost incurred. See LTL's costs of ding an 85 quid gig in Bristol. The value and potential reward of doing it far outweighs the cost... just a bit of food for thought. Chin up, you seem to be making great progress so don't forget, progression isn't always a straight line graph and finishing 14th then 8th then 6th .... there may be a 10th thrown in there as part of the bigger picture.
Ha, absolutely! No, your first point is certainly right. I've lost money a fair few times doing work for the folks in question, but I've shut up and taken the hit to get my name out there and get more working opportunities. However, at current I can't afford to take that hit, what with going back to university this weekend also.
A gay guy just checked me out and asked me if I was gay. I replied nope and he laughed and went shame. What made it weird was he asked me when I was talking to customer and blanked her completely.
