IDM Mailing Archive

this ain't idm/313 specific, but it might be an interesting read in light of some of the recent threads. andrew :) Think harder. Keep in mind that you can be active or passive about your cassette, record, or compact disc purchases. There is more music being released now than ever before. If you’re serious about your music, you’re going to have to think harder about what you buy. Keep in mind the four levels of music releases: #1: no label—an artist puts material and sells it without a label involved; some of these artists may go on to create their own label #2: small independent label—usually run by an artist who releases his/her own material and may release material from others as time progresses; most of these companies survive from one release to another #3: large independent label—a label that has grown and has been able to broaden their roster, advertise, and gain a larger profile. Some large indies, however, are now operating more like majors. #4: major label—larger staff, advertising, and publicity budget; with recent mergers, a handful of major labels now control the majority of music we hear about. Only you can make the choice whether to support an indie or a major. Buy a turntable--it doesn’t have to be a Technics 1200-- you can get a good used model at a flea market/pawn shop just about anywhere. If you’re just buying CDs, there’s a lot of good music available only on vinyl that you’re missing out on. But, in the same regard, buy the records because you enjoy the music--don’t be sucked into the hopes of becoming a superstar DJ. Enjoy music for the sake of it; leave the ulterior motives behind. Be political about the music you buy; music is the only universal language and yet we take it for granted far too often when we bring out our wallets. Make your music purchases personal: don’t buy anything just because you’ve heard it’s good, read it’s good, or it’s been charted by a certain DJ or in a certain magazine. Support your local music store before the national chain; support your local music scene and put an end to the sad reality that most artists are never appreciated in their own area. Listen to everything before you buy it—any store worth supporting will let you listen to a release to help you make your decision. The next time you’re drawn to the top sellers wall, examine why you should even care about what’s selling. Does the fact that a release is selling well mean it deserves more attention? Is that release selling well because of a major advertising and promotional campaign or because it’s quality music? Radio: examine the radio you’re listening to. If it’s commercial radio, keep in mind the fact that music is played between the advertisements only because this is a requirement. More and more stations are being automated because it’s cheaper to have computers play the advertising and the music than it is to have humans do it. Is this what you want to support? Think of the repetition to which you’re being exposed on commercial radio. The playlist you hear is designed to appeal to the lowest common dominator: are you the lowest common denominator or is there more to you than being just another sheep in the fold? By making the choice to seek out alternatives, you are taking a stand against sameness. Music television functions the same way; you can’t deny it. Should the amount of money spent on a flashy video influence what ends up coming out of your home stereo speakers? Buy music as if you might be stranded on a desert island with it. There won’t be anyone there to show off that you’ve got the latest this, or the limited edition that, or what’s #1 according to your favorite magazine or DJ. You’ve got to work to shape your own music collection because there are too many people trying to shape it for you. Think harder.

andrew, first, nice commentary, although it's mostly common sense. :)

quoted 7 lines Buy a turntable--it doesn’t have to be a Technics 1200--

> Buy a turntable--it doesn’t have to be a Technics 1200-- > you can get a good used model at a flea market/pawn shop just about > anywhere. If you’re just buying CDs, there’s a lot of good music > available only on vinyl that you’re missing out on. But, in the same > regard, buy the records because you enjoy the music--don’t be sucked > into the hopes of becoming a superstar DJ. Enjoy music for the sake of > it; leave the ulterior motives behind.

this makes me wonder--i mean, i love vinyl & all, & i'm about to get my first turntable (not a technics!), but why in hell is there so much stuff released on vinyl as opposed to cd? is there some hidden rule about cds being unsuitable for electronic music? is pressing vinyl cheaper? (i heard it wasn't.)

quoted 3 lines Support your local music store before the national chain; support your

> Support your local music store before the national chain; support your > local music scene and put an end to the sad reality that most artists > are never appreciated in their own area. Listen to everything before

i was thinking about that lately. the scene in montréal is downright pathetic, but then again, the rare things that come out don't get any recognition from the local stores. i was in a store recently & 2 french girls (french as in from france, with the accent & all) asked the clerk for local stuff. i had already spotted 2-3 releases which i knew were local just from reading a few recent reviews, but the guy basically said that he didn't have anything local. moreover, record stores rarely buy anything local--they always do consignment. i understand the motive behind that, but the rule gets kind of tedious. how do you expect a record store to support (i.e. sell) something that they won't even take the time to listen to & then back with real money? someone on the list recently said that "in chicago every record store has thrill jockey stuff". i'd say that this is probably one of the things that makes the chicago music scene so strong; they are supported by record stores. then again, did the stores support those labels when they were small & thriving? i would suppose that they did--otherwise, how else could they have started? (maybe someone can hook me up with real info to back or attack this assertion.) my point is that much of the unknown stuff i buy, i discovered because of a knowledgeable record store clerk. so many of them, however, will look at you strange whenever you ask them a question: "how does this sound?" "who's that?" usually they barely know what it is. many seem to not read any news or reviews. the other problem with record stores is that once one of them has one rare/import release-of-the-moment, everybody else has to have it. i was all happy recently when i found the 0161 cd, then i found out that every other record store had gotten the same deal recently. i don't have anything against music being widely available, but it often seems to me like no store ever orders things that aren't in the "new releases" of the current catalogue. (then again, this is merely a personal point of view about a situation which happens in many, but thank god not all local record stores. it's also mostly about idm--i couldn't say if the other areas of electronic music are well-covered or not.) oh, & your point about large music chains is quite valid. even if you find good electronic music instore, don't expect anybody in there to know about it (unless one of the employees happens to be a technohead, but then again--"so how's this new autechre cd?" "waaaaaayyyyy fucked up dude....") this is because unlike independent record stores, employees cannot choose the music that they listen to instore, or borrow cds for home listening. thus, unless they _buy_ the releases, they're completely in the dark as to what exactly they're selling. this rant is probably quite redundant, but you guys get the drift so that's it for this message. :) -- david turgeon curator, http://www.notype.com web programmer, http://www.jumpmedia.com eerie@mnemonic.net - icq #2358960

On 19 Mar 99, david turgeon wrote re: Re: (idm) music commentary:

quoted 5 lines much of the unknown stuff i buy, i discovered because of a

> much of the unknown stuff i buy, i discovered because of a > knowledgeable record store clerk. so many of them, however, will > look at you strange whenever you ask them a question: "how does > this sound?" "who's that?" usually they barely know what it is. > many seem to not read any news or reviews.

This is completely true - due to store policy, they are generally forced to play Top 40-sellers in rotation and anything vaguely obscure doesn't get a look-in. Sometimes I walk in early in the morning when the store is still empty and there'll be something interesting coming over the PA, but generally speaking it's the soundtrack from the Titanic or some such dross. A lots of the music store staffers are students working part-time shifts, who - quite naturally - will have their own field of specialisation. Don't ask the dude in the Rage Against the Machine T-shirt where to find something ambient; likewise the guy with all the silver decorations hanging off his eyebrow probably will know the way to the techno section. The complaint I usually hear from the staff at shops is that there is just TOO MUCH music around to keep up with. The only way they can listen to new music is much like any other punter : by taking a stack of CD's over to the public listening posts when business is slow, although that's frowned upon by management - who, from what I glean, are more interested in making money rather than keeping true music lovers happy. These days spending money on CD's is an *investment* of major proportions - the cost of music here in South Africa is making this obsession a hard fix to feed. Many shops also have a no-returns policy, claiming that they do not sell second hand goods, and once a CD has left their shop, it is regarded as 'used' and thus cannot be exchanged. This leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, because skipping through tracks with a 10-min maximum listening time with wonky headphones, four other people jostling for space, a queue of others balefully staring at you wanting you to get out and some pumping crap bleeding in from over the speakers can NOT give you a true impression of whether you will or will not enjoy the full album once you get home. Oh thanks for making it this far - I feel better now! I *

On Sat, 20 Mar 1999, Irene McC wrote:

quoted 6 lines This is completely true - due to store policy, they are generally

> This is completely true - due to store policy, they are generally > forced to play Top 40-sellers in rotation and anything vaguely > obscure doesn't get a look-in. Sometimes I walk in early in the > morning when the store is still empty and there'll be something > interesting coming over the PA, but generally speaking it's the > soundtrack from the Titanic or some such dross.

While we're on the subject of music played on record store PA's... I had the immense pleasure of browsing through the used bins at the Princeton Record Exchange while someone at the cash register was 'beeping' along to Autechre's Tri Repeatae. Howie