Well well well, looks like the cat's out of the bag.
I can't believe there are people that are so naive to think that
bootlegs don't hurt commercial sales or that it's okay to bootleg
because then you rip off big labels. Or that it's all a big-label
conspiracy for that matter (don't watch so many X-Files Mr.
I-took-an-Economy-class-today-so-now-I-know-everything).
FACT: There are no big IDM labels. No, not Warp either, they're
less than peanuts compared to Sony or Time-Warner.
FACT: All labels that we consider to be big in the IDM market started
out *really* small and had to walk a thin line to get where they are.
In most cases, they still have to. If you don't believe me, ask a few
small and not-so-small labels. Go ahead.
FACT: Everything that goes for labels goes even stronger for artists.
How many artists still have a parttime or fulltime job next to their
music? Trust me, you *don't* want to know.
FACT: These artists and labels could not have gotten to where they
are now if their releases were bootlegged for personal (and a friend,
and a friend of a friend) use. They rely mostly on a loyal and
trustworthy fanbase.
That's the key issue in my never even remotely humble opinion:
RESPECT. It's been said before and I'll say it again: if you respect
an artist or label, buy the stuff, don't bootleg it. Otherwise you're
just shooting yourself in the foot, because in the end the label will
fold and the artist will get a day job, which would be a loss to all
IDMers. Or you can depend on other IDMers to do the supporting and
simply don't give a fuck.
Your choice.
Otto
PS Go cspot! I'm with you all the way!