By musicians, for musicians...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Dondello
  • Start date Start date
Heylo

I think it would be good to remeber that one of the advantages of the web is the limitless linkability. Why try to duplicate what mp3.com, and alot of other sites are doing. I could see something really good if it complemented what was out there, rather than replicated it.
EG, someone at the hypothetical site could hit a link to my mp3.com site if they want to download tracks. What mp3.com doesn't provide would be something like high quality straemed soundbites like folks mentioned. But again, I'd see the music as just a way to help illustrate/identify the band/soloists page, like their photo, not as a source of their music, mp3.com can do that well enough.

And as for massive information, many people have homesites as well that could be linked to as well for more information.

Its seems you started this thread mentioning "community" and that still seems like a good concept, a site to provide artist with a community and communication, that's not a promo business. And there are sites doing this somewhat, though some of them are business organizations that charge for membership and try to market their members. Others are closer to simply hosting forums. Its still hard to find answers to questions alot of times.
This site seems really well done as just that, a community of home recording enthusiasts, from newbies to pros, sharing resources and information. Though I'd like to see the forums somehow coalated into something like a FAQ. Sort of like entries in an encyclopedia. Liek a standing set of questions/positions like examples of "what is the best systems, pros and cons, for pc-DAW", "what is the best low budget PA for small venues" . Sort of an informational database that people can keep contributing to, to keep updating "the answers" as new equipment comes up, or new developments, yet still having entries for the old used equipment that alot of us, beginners and longtimers alike, end up being able to afford!. Have resource lists with feed back from the community ( hmmm a ten star rating system for resources?), helping artists pool their experience to help each other. Like where to find cheap equipment, used or new, musical or electronics. like I need to find a source for a cheap laptop. And I can search through the web and ask my computer friends, but if anyone knows some great deal in some obscure source, let me know!

I belong to alot of organizations of different types and am a long time professional performer. I know what I am looking for and need, or what I'm having trouble finding on the net.

Mant sites are communities as well, so it would be good to have a site that is almost social as well as business orientsd, not doing business, but like some sites, talking business, and jsut talking about the artists life. There are things that artists are interested in, like where do you get good coffee outside the state fair in Palmer, Alaska. (I have the answer to that one, Vagabond Blues Cafe). Or is anyone in San Pedro, Belize right now and want to jam? Or know a cheap place to stay in Belize City or Chetumal? I could see a good website that just had people posting what amounts to journal entries as to what they are doing and where they are at, current concerns and projects, and leave it to other members to make suggestions, queries, or comments based on just that. Start fomenting collaborations and cooperative efforts, or just commisserating (why did I ever decide to sing the blues..?). Sort of like what I try to do on my BB page of my homesite. And frankly, if you are looking for promotional traffic, that's one thing you won't find is a central site where people can connect with the semi-personal lives of musicians, rather than the promo-presense.
Technically, the site would work better with a page of short synopsis that would be easy to scan, then link to the full story if something strikes your interest.

Though I wouldn't put down providing free websites for artists, mine is a major expense even at $15/month or something like that at pan.com. I'd still keep those sits seperate and linked, and extension rather than the center of the site.

well, that's my two bits, from an internet cafe in San Pedro, Belize...

Peace

Brian / Folksinger http://www.pan.com/folksinger http://www.mp3.com/folksinger
 
My opinion on the mp3 vs real audio debate is this.

I am not going to sit and stream/download/whatever an mp3 file of a band I have never heard. If a real audio file sounds good (as in talent wise, not sound quality), then I will search for the cd, mp3, record, etc. I think that most people on normal internet connections (which would be a 56k modem) will not spend the time downloading a 4 megabyte file. Thats just my two-cents.
 
that sounds like what i said....good thing he didnt make any piracy jokes.. :D

-eddie-

:D :D :D :D :D

[This message has been edited by Eddie N (edited 08-04-1999).]
 
This may be a bit off of the subject but theres not a single musician in the USA that hasn't pirated music in some form. Get off of Eddie's ass, what...do you own a record company? Consider the fact that the artist who writes, slaves over, and performs the music in question will get less than 25 cents for each album sold. Artists get their money from merchandise sales...corporations profit from record sales. Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys even encouraged the bootlegging of his albums. I say screw the record labels...pirate like a motherfucker. If the record labels had done us any favors there wouldn't even be a Home Recording.com.
Some of you will no doubt be pissed...please spare me the e-mail and go look through your old tape collection for "Pirated" music.
 
Well, some of us were teasing him lightly and perhaps some were getting on his case. But you have to admit, a good discussion -- as long as it doesn't degenerate into name-calling, which thankfully we've never seen here -- is interesting, if only for the variety of opinions.
 
Alrighty then Don. sounds like a good plan and Im certainly game. I got a few pieces of work however short that I would like to get some opinions on. Will there be a specific genre of music allowed or not allowed?
 
S8-N,

Pirating is SELLING copied music, not recording it for personal enjoyment. Do you think everyone does this? I have no love for companies who give artists a bad deal, but that's the world we live in. Unfortunately, trusting someone in a business deal will more likely than not get you screwed. Corporations are geared up for legal mumbo jumbo, artists usually are not, but taking away the little they DO get is not helping any musicians. Biafra probably got ripped off so bad contractually that he wanted to send a message to the company. This doesn't mean everyone gets a bad deal and wants to give away their hard work.

I have as much right to voice my opinions here as Eddie and you, and excuse me, but I haven't been getting on Eddie's ass, he said something that pissed me off and I reacted to it. That's all. How was I to know he must be joking to say a thing like that?

Or maybe you're joking too. Apparently, I'm to assume any irresponsible comments are jokes. Ha ha, that was a good one!

Dondello,

I apologize for making and perpetuating these off-topic comments. I've just started PC recording and don't have files yet, MP3 or RA, to put up anywhere. It sounds like a good idea to me. Dragon expressed an interest in listing such sites, so if you have the time and inclination to create a site, I say go for it and have fun with it. I'm sure a lot of musicians will appreciate having another place to get some exposure. From the opinions expressed here, it seems to be a good idea to have more than one format so people can download lower quality, smaller files to check out new music and be able to download higher quality versions for what they like, which I agree with.

[This message has been edited by Howlin (edited 08-09-1999).]
 
friends....

okok...its my fault...when i said convert mp3's to wavs and burn them onto a cd...i didnt mean to sell .. i meant for my own private use... so it was a bad choice of words on my part... piracy wasnt the correct term.... but now that i know the real meaning of it... i promise never to say the P word again ... :D ..

ps... this is a very good topic.. sn - 8 was right about record companys screwing you.. but... with home recording studio equipment and computer prices declining , and being able to create your own master cd's for duplication , being your own record company is certainly an option... if you have a strong local following , you can sell 20 times less and make and make twice as much if not more because of the wider profit margin .. but i bet most of you already knew that... and thats why your here... and the rest , well... you guys just like making music... :D

- eddie -
 
I have never personally had a recording contract so I don't know how much the record companies screw you. Obviously most of you have had contracts in the past that went painfully bad. I would hate to think of anyone posting mere opinons as absolute fact.
IMHO there's way too much JUNK on MP3.COM to make it worth anyone's while.
 
It's been pretty interesting reading the back and forth of this topic - may I introduce my 2 cents worth?

I'm probably as ignorant of the merits of RA or MP3 etc. as anyone - perhaps I'm more knowledgeable than the average consumer, but I think I'm probably like the average consumer in that I just want things to be convenient and work when I need them to.

Just because a format is better doesn't mean it's going to become the industry standard. We all use VHS tapes now, even tho we all knew that Sony Beta was a technically superior product, n'est ce pas?

How does that happen?

It's big business, folks!

Strategic alliances between retailers and manufacturers etc. Didn't Circuit City just cancel some major DVD type of project because the Movie Industry wouldn't help them out?

It's all about 'What's in it for us?' and the us is the company (or more specifically, their shareholders) so that the Executive VP of whatever can hold onto his $250,000 a year job. (... and yes, that's not at all an unusual salary at that level)

As for record companies, they are businesses. They don't care about you, or your art. They care about profit. How many units of this can we sell, and how much is it going to cost to sell that many.

(... and I'm not making a value judgement, here, guys. It's called capitalism, and it's our system.)

One example of how the naive can get whacked which happened to a friend of mine,

... or "by the way, which one is Pink?"

Record Company (A) signs young, talented songwriter/musicians/band to mega-deal. Let's call them Johnny and the Generics.

They then search the world (actually, the major markets) for anything similar that may be a threat to Johnny being unique for long enough to become a massive success.

They sign these secondary bands (let's call them The Patsies) to a 2 year deal - guaranteed two singles, two CDs, and two videos to support the singles. Recording time paid for in a major studio by (A) to be subtracted from the revenues from the sales of the Patsies aforementioned CDs etc.

On the last day of the 2 years, both CDs, both videos, both singles are released with no advertising, no radio play, no MTV/VH-1 or help of any kind. The Patsies sink without a trace, even tho it's very good stuff.

Meanwhile, Johnny has been on the cover of (insert name of every publication you can think of here) He has played on Letterman and Leno, and toured as the opening act for (insert name of mega-band here).

The Generics are getting tight, and the tunes they write are sounding good, especially since (A) drafted in the help of mega producer ... insert name here.

(A) is making gobs of money from sales of Johnny's records, t-shirts and lunch boxes, and uses the cost of recording the Patsies as a tax write-off to offset the revenues that Johnny is generating.


Once the Patsies realize what has happened, they are then reminded that they still haven't paid for the $200,000 of recording/video time they were 'given' by (A)
and it is suggested that they 'go away'

It's pretty sweet, isn't it?

The bottom line?

If you want to pursue a career in music, don't do it because you want to be rich and famous, do it because you absolutely love to play/sing/write.

... and if you're going to be involved in dealings with a record company, get a GREAT lawyer; you're gonna need one!

In spite of all this, my friend still loves to play guitar and write, and has recently started corresponding on various bulletin boards on the Net with others who have similar interests in music and home recording. :) :)

foo


[This message has been edited by foo (edited 08-07-1999).]

[This message has been edited by foo (edited 08-07-1999).]
 
friends....

very interesting story foo .. i wonder how many good bands are being wasted by major labels...

well..this string got me thinking... so i decided i was going to read up on it a lil bit and i stumbled across a somewhat interesting looking book... the title is " confessions of a record producer " by moses avalon ... the sub title reads " how to survive the scams and shams of the music business " ... i found it at www.musicbooksplus.com/books/hl633.htm ... but then i ran to barnes and noble and picked it up for $17.95 ... its a relatively short book , only 240 pages.. so its literary light work... i havent read it yet , but for anyone else that is interested ... check it out...

- eddie -
 
Wow, is this the longest thread in the history of Homerecording, or just the most meandering? Well, since this thread is more of a rope (heh) I'll just talk about something totally unrelated. My life has changed!! I don't know if we're all guitarists, but hey, most 4-track (or whatever) home recorders tend to be :) Either way, everyone knows what a plateau is... you hit this point where you don't really seem to be going anywhere with it, the skills stop increasing for a bit.. Well, I solved my first one by purchasing an electric, and since then I'd landed on a new plateau.. I've recorded lots of stuff; incredible rythm guitar (I must say :)), somewhat-above-mediocre soloing, studio trickery <g> ... more imagination than talent, really. I suppose everyone has their guitar hero... someone to steal licks off of, and eventually develop their own style.. It's one thing I never found. I'm an immense fan of the Beatles, and I could play all of George's stuff and all.. But it was almost like something was missing. I mean, they're the greatest band ever, and they were BASED on the guitar, but still.. And well.. I may be ruining my credibility on this board, and I may be soiling my previously mature-sounding posts, but I'm too revved-up to care. I haven't put my guitar down in about 200 hours (even fell asleep with my right hand still on the ol' rosewood) and my skills.. well I'm happy with the results so far :) I've found my God, and he goes by the name of Brian May. And now I formally apologize for this post :) I hope this doesn't start any arguments ... I have a talent for that I guess. :) By the way: RealAudio can be -great-, and MP3's just aren't it! Something else'll come along! Don't waste money on a Rio!!! :) .. hehe... chew on that for another 30 posts..
 
I think the timing of when more music consumers will have access to the bandwidth to really use .mp3 is the factor which will determine the success or failure of this format. On a cable modem, they stream like Real Audio. I've found so much great music in so short a time, my CD purchases have lately been limited to CDR blanks... :)
But on a 56K modem, I lose interest before the first file ever shows up. There's still some promise in the technology if .mp3 data CD players become available. But you're right if you mean, "that's a lot of ifs."
 
anyone heard of the pixies?

[This message has been edited by nero (edited 08-13-1999).]
 
Hey Dragon man...
Thanks for the link to the Albini rant...there should be a link to that piece at the main page between DIY and FAQ. It should be called:FUBAR.
Anyone here even heard of Big Black???
 
With all that said, I will forego my usual verbose response and plagerize from the shoe people:

JUST DO IT!

Cordially,
the guitar half of "RockNGunz"
 
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