DaveNet: Monoculture, an Artifact of the 20th Century? Pretty interesting stuff, and it got me really thinking about my relationship with the recording industry. Formerly loyal record/tape/CD buyers like me are getting fed up with the recording industry’s shenanigans, and looking for alternatives.
I’ve discovered a number of Celtic acts over the past year or so, though some of them are pretty well known within the genre. But one of the most enjoyable was a CD by an artist I found playing in a little Irish pub in Waikiki, of all places. He recorded it at a friend’s house, and burns copies to sell on his own computer. I made me very happy to give him $15 for the CD, knowing that he’d get to keep most of it.
The big question is this – how do you find the gems among garbage? I can’t spend and inordinate amount of time scouring the web and MP3.com for new acts. Dave says “Who would be the next Beatles, the band that everyone listened to? Maybe in the future there won’t be bands that everyone listens to.” Maybe he’s right, but as long as there is an incestuous relationship between labels and media conglomerates, they’ll do their damnest to give max exposure to their own artists.
