As you're probably aware, the blogosphere and file-sharing sites are capable of providing you with nearly any musical recording digitally, for free. I was a little late to the party, but when I got there I was shocked at how true this really was. This infuriated me for some reason. It still does from time to time. And I know the ethics of the issue are a tired debate, so I'd like to leave that discussion alone and instead focus on this theory I have as to why I am still so infuriated by free music downloads:

ENVY.

I'm not necessarily an old grumpy curmudgeon who longs for simpler times, I certainly take advantage of all that is available these days. But to have grown up in the age of the blogosphere and to have the most obscure genres or OOP records at your fingertips within an instant via google or the hypemachine, or other blog search engines seems like cheating. When I was a teenager, I had to wait a torturous long bloc of years before I owned Jettison by Naked Raygun, because it was OOP. I remember seeing the LP on the wall at the record store for nearly $75. So when I finally had it, it was the only thing I listened to for months. It was a rite. It took years of penny-pinching to finish collecting the Jesus Lizard discography. You had to coordinate with your friends who bought what, in order to hear it all. These hurdles no longer exist. I mean, every Shellac and June of '44 LP is ready now, within minutes, if some kid wants it. There was a proper sequence and pace at which those records were to be experienced! Because it was a war, you earned your records. Think of all the terrible records you had to buy before you found a gem. At $5.50 an hour, that was blood money.

My question is this:

Didn't those hurdles sweeten the reward, and kids are losing out by getting it all at once? Or am I just bitter?

Your grandparents wouldn't have been able to enjoy Naked Raygun because it hadn't been invented yet. Even if it had been around it would have sounded all wrong on their phonograph and they would have hated it anyway.

Different times, different experiences, different emotional attachment developments.

But it never hurts to try to convey your particular type of musical appreciation to someone younger if they seem receptive and you can do it without losing patience with their particular attention span.

As the technology of recorded media evolves our way of interacting with it evolves as well. When my parents were first getting in to popular music in the late 50's and early 60's the primary means of disseminating recordings was 45 rpm singles. Sure LP records existed, but they were expensive, kids tended to listen to the latest stuff of 45's. Think about how this changes the experience of listening to music. You don't just put on an album or CD and listen to a whole side or a whole album. You choose which song you want to listen to, put it on, listen to the song, then choose the next. The technology made it impossible to passively just throw on an album and do something else while it played in the background. Listening to music was an activity which demanded your full attention.

you're just bitter.

even instant gratification is old news.

I don't think it's really at a point where kids are losing out, if anything, it's helped open the doors to music. When I first started getting into underground music, I'd spend an infinite amount of time at the closest record store to me, and I'd pester the owner into letting me here certain albums. He had a relaxed policy where if you asked kind enough, he'd let you listen to whatever used cd/lp you brought up to the counter. At least this way, with downloading, kids are able to do that in their own homes.

I'd download whatever, and if I really liked it, I'd go find it at the store to buy. I got into a lot of good music that way. I never really, and still don't, just download and never intend to buy. Files are files, but a recording is at least coupled with what the artist intended, and it'll hopefully last. Unfortunately, it's become harder here in the boonies, and throughout the country, shops closing, and there's no way in hell I'd wander to the mall for music.

At this point, labels, major and indie, have got to adjust to stay afloat. Indies adjusted a million times better, and gave better incentives to artists and listeners, lp's with cd's, free downloads, etc.

It disturbs me somewhat to hear artists I like degrading downloading, and saying it'll take money from their pockets. Downloading is just another avenue. Whatever money is potentially lost, is money they'd never have from a listener. Someone not willing to buy an lp/cd copy in the "download age" probably wouldn't buy it pre-download era. I'm like a lot of people, I download, and if I like it, I'll buy it.

Downloading, I think in the end, actually helps bands get a wider fanbase, and probably helps bands stick around longer than simply going through consumer channels.

I think we should all go away and read 'The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction' by Walter Benjamin, then yell at each other.

I know what you mean though. Filesharing has changed an insane amount in the past 8 years or so, anyway. I remember having dialup and waiting about an two hours just to get 'Good Morning, Captain' from Napster. Good times.

I guess what we're talking about is that mp3s, acquired with ease and no sacrifice, sort of take on a disposable nature. I mean, literally, you can dump an album in the recycling bin without a second thought.

But I'm sure there are hordes of young people who download music like crazy, and are just as passionate about it as kids in the 80s were about trading tapes. I think, if anything, the availability of this music generates an enormous enthusiasm.

I don't know.

houseboat wrote:But I'm sure there are hordes of young people who download music like crazy, and are just as passionate about it as kids in the 80s were about trading tapes. I think, if anything, the availability of this music generates an enormous enthusiasm.

I don't know.

I find this hard to believe. At the very least it took some time to make a mix tape. Now its all instantaneous. Seems to me that passion comes from time and energy invested in something. A virtual treasure is virtually worth having.

My friend likes to ski. She is very good at it but does not expect to one day be paid for doing so, irregardless of the fact that an absolute minority of people that ski have made a career from doing so. This is most likely because she considers it to be a hobby. In fact, this hobby costs her a good deal of money every year but she continues to do it anyhow. Never once have I heard her grumble about the fact that nobody has ever allowed her to pursue a career in skiing. Nor does she particularly care that people have in the past and continue to make a living from skiing. If I decided to put a video of her skiing on the internet, it would not in any way prevent her from skiing.

Something I've been thinking about a lot in the last year is that we are all pretty much complicit in the continuation of music as an industry. Not to suggest there is no noble way to profit from music but it's certainly a strange situation we find ourselves in. Most people will agree that music is a hobby and/or an art-form but it has been a business for as long as we can remember. With this in mind, lots of people feel disappointed that they never 'made it' in the music industry. Most of the bands I like seem to operate on a the tried and true labour of love philosophy.

Though I definitely understand why file sharing is seen as a bad thing, it doesn't particularly bother me.

As a current 20-year-old who grew up on the other side of the generation, I'll say that it's a damned double-edged sword. Yes, the internet has gotten me into a wide plethora of awesome bands (June of 44 being one, as is Polvo, Vitreous Humor, and I got into Fugazi when I was like 15). However, the other side is this- I've never seen any of those bands live. It doesn't stop me from having an emotional connection to those bands, but it probably doesn't mean as much compared to someone who had an active connection with that scene. Sure, if any of those bands start touring again nearby, I'll be the first one to jump on that shit, but it would still feel like I'm infringing on something that I wasn't originally a part of in the first place.

Often times, I get the feeling that I was born a decade too late. You feel envious that music is so readily available in 2008, I feel envious because you probably actually saw those bands on stage or knew someone your age who did.

tommydski wrote:My friend likes to ski. She is very good at it but does not expect to one day be paid for doing so, irregardless of the fact that an absolute minority of people that ski have made a career from doing so. This is most likely because she considers it to be a hobby. In fact, this hobby costs her a good deal of money every year but she continues to do it anyhow. Never once have I heard her grumble about the fact that nobody has ever allowed her to pursue a career in skiing. Nor does she particularly care that people have in the past and continue to make a living from skiing. If I decided to put a video of her skiing on the internet, it would not in any way prevent her from skiing.

Apples and oranges (UK: chalk and cheese).