I just like that the barrier for entry for those guys that Lt. Bob is talking about is lower.
Yeah, it's tough for them to be heard through the noise, but I'm glad their stuff can exist so easily. Maybe decades from now somebody will stumble across a Greggor the Terror youtube video (or something) and be inspired to start a sweet punk band. (Because, I'm sure the concept of "punk" will grow even MORE relevant in coming years! But I digress)
Allow me to throw out a few thoughts...
One common thread in many of the posts I read is: "I play the music I want to play, I don't care if nobody wants to hear it."
Guess what, Bucko...NOBODY DOES WANT TO HEAR IT!!!
And we wonder why everybody is spending time on Facebook et al instead of listening to music?
And isn't it wonderful how Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber and Kelly Clarkson are able to write all of their own songs, produce all of their own records, set up distribution to the retailers, arrange all of their marketing and publicity...all without the benefit of a record company! Oh wait, they do have record companies to do all of that!
BTW: I Googled "Justin Bieber" just to verify the spelling of his name. Do you know that dude has a net worth in excess of $100 million dollars. Sure, he made a lot of that from performances, but I'm reasonable sure a fair-sized chunk of that came from record sales, which means a pretty nice wad of cash going to record companies.
Now, the first week's unit sales of Bieber's latest album are more like a pre-90's first hour's sales, but people are buying music, but only music they like.
I posted this next bit on another thread, so let's make it this weekend's assignment, okay, kiddies? Make a list of your ten favorite bands. Then go to a mall and ask 100 people of all ages how many of those bands they've heard of.
At the end of 1964, do you think there was a single person in the US who hadn't at least heard of The Beatles?
Sure, the opportunites to make money from music are far more limited than they were in the past, but it still all comes down to the same old same old...Play music that people want to hear, and they will come to hear you play it, and they will want to buy your recordings.
It's just that simple...
Allow me to throw out a few thoughts...
One common thread in many of the posts I read is: "I play the music I want to play, I don't care if nobody wants to hear it."
Guess what, Bucko...NOBODY DOES WANT TO HEAR IT!!!
And we wonder why everybody is spending time on Facebook et al instead of listening to music?
And isn't it wonderful how Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber and Kelly Clarkson are able to write all of their own songs, produce all of their own records, set up distribution to the retailers, arrange all of their marketing and publicity...all without the benefit of a record company! Oh wait, they do have record companies to do all of that!
BTW: I Googled "Justin Bieber" just to verify the spelling of his name. Do you know that dude has a net worth in excess of $100 million dollars. Sure, he made a lot of that from performances, but I'm reasonable sure a fair-sized chunk of that came from record sales, which means a pretty nice wad of cash going to record companies.
Now, the first week's unit sales of Bieber's latest album are more like a pre-90's first hour's sales, but people are buying music, but only music they like.
I posted this next bit on another thread, so let's make it this weekend's assignment, okay, kiddies? Make a list of your ten favorite bands. Then go to a mall and ask 100 people of all ages how many of those bands they've heard of.
At the end of 1964, do you think there was a single person in the US who hadn't at least heard of The Beatles?
Sure, the opportunites to make money from music are far more limited than they were in the past, but it still all comes down to the same old same old...Play music that people want to hear, and they will come to hear you play it, and they will want to buy your recordings.
It's just that simple...
I predict Billions of friggin awful Youtube videos.
...but I don't know of too many younger musicians who started out shunning any thoughts of "making it"!
I know I sure did. I knew immediately that there was no chance for me.
OK...so now I know of....one.
It was a lonely time playing psychobilly punk in the late-80's/early 90's. We were like a drunken bad version of the Stray Cats on speed. People had no idea how to book us or what to do with us. It was apparent very early on that there was no chance of anything I like to do becoming "successful" by mainstream standards.
There were a good number of punk bands ahead you guys that started out probably with that same perspective...and then ended up pretty darn mainstream...wanted or not.
I'm not saying we all had realistic notions of making it when we were younger, I'm just saying that in our youth, most musicians do consider that they maybe have the stuff...that they had something offer...and that's what IMHO pushes a lot of young bands to go forward.
Sure, there are those "garage bands" that quickly realize they just-plain-suck...but that's a different thing.
I think most every musician had or has the "twinkle of stardom" in their eyes at some point...and it's most often in our youth. That's all I'm saying.
Sure...you can still find more serious success beyond your twenties, but the difficulty curve gets REAL steep, and so that's why the "twinkle of stardom" fades away quckly with growing age................
But with songs like "I'm a Corpse", "Fetus in a Frenzy" and "Party With a Space Turd" it was a virtual lock that there was no chance at success.
You should have moved to LA.....success would have been imminent!
I don't understand the idea that the higher costs of the past somehow filtered out the less talented or less deserving. It merely filtered out the less wealthy.