Music Industry Decline

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Some of my random thoughts;

I guess that there have always been manufactured boy bands. Isn't this what The Monkees were? There were certainly bands of attractive boys marketed to girls in my teenage years (Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet etc). There just seems to be far more of it now. There also seem to be fewer alternatives to it - or at least fewer alternatives that make a big impression.

In theory, the Internet sounds fantastic for popular music. I could sing a song now and upload it onto YouTube and have people listen to it (except for the fact that I have no musical ability whatsoever). Artists from years ago would have killed for that exposure. Further, as a consumer I can purchase only exactly the songs I want, not have to buy a album containing three hits and a load of filler. It doesn't seem to be producing great results though.

I wonder if the role of popular music has changed. When I was growing up the music listened to was really important. It helped define who you were. It influenced your politics. Nowadays it seems less important to young people. Do people buy new music the minute it gets released (as I waited outside the shop to buy The Queen Is Dead all those years ago)?

Is it less important now (genuine question - I'm about as out of touch as you can get)?

If it's less important to people's lives are they less passionate about it? Is music just trivial and about trivial things? Would it be possible for someone like a Bob Dylan or a David Bowie or even The Dead Kennedys to develop (let alone become a success) now?

I don't doubt that there is still good music being made now but is it great or really innovative? Certainly a lot of stuff I hear now sounds like rehashes of what has gone before (Savages sound an awful lot like Siouxsie and the Banshees to me...)

Or am I just old and my time for embracing new stuff has passed?

A small ISP might not even be able to afford the postage necessary to mail the checks to all the various royalty owners.

There's less money in music now than in the past (which is probably a good thing as most albums were overpriced) but there are just as many people listening to and making music if not more. Live music is doing better than ever and although new artists are doing more for themselves I think record companies are still relevant if only to pay for recording and promote acts (how else could a new artist get on the radio?). There has been a decline in sales but the sale of independent records and vinyl has gone up. I think in the future there will be better quality audio formats (something like Wav files) but physical formats like tape, CD or vinyl won't go away as they provide a connection between artists and fans that digital music doesn't. As for live music I could maybe see something like pay per view gigs you can watch live at home (or maybe this already happens). I think there will also be some sort of music reaction against itunes and mp3s similar to punk or something(which should be cool).

There will always be good music and bad music in whatever form. The difference is for us older folks we don't know about the new good music or don't understand it when we do hear it. As an older person the constant autotune in todays the top 40 gets tiring. But I still would take it over 1970s top 40' groups such as Barry Manilow, John Denver, The Carpenters, The Osmond's etc.

I quit caring about popular music years ago. I just listen to whatever I feel like, whether it's Depeche Mode or Metallica or some underground DJ or whatever.

It's high time the music industry and distribution changed! Do you realize that 4 companies control 90-95% of the acts, (popular, jazz, and classical) in the entire WORLD?

From largest to smallest:

Sony/BMG (which owns RCA, Columbia, Epic, and several other labels)
Vivendi Universal(Which owns Decca (British and American), MCA, Phillips, Polydor, ECM, Deutsche Grammophon, Mercury, and related labels)
Thorne EMI (Capitol, EMI, Angel)
WEA (Warner Brothers, Elektra/Asylum, Atlantic)

Further, while I seldom hear of it nowadays, you still have some problems with payola, or paying kickbacks to a radio DJ to plug a label's product.

In addition, most A&R (artist and repertoire) agents don't know talent even if it bit them in the arse. Those of us that are old enough to remember who Mitch Miller was (as in Sing Along with Mitch TV show from the 1960's), will know of a lot of the acts that he signed with Columbia Records when he was head of A&R for Columbia's pop music division: Chicago, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Johnny Cash, etc. It also helped that Mitch as a classically-trained musician (he was an oboist) and knew how to spot talent.

Could a Mitch Miller exist in today's environment? I don't know. I highly doubt it, as the Big 4 are only concerned about pushing product, regardless of whether the new acts actually have any talent. Some of the contracts the new acts sign with a label don't leave any room for development. If the act's first album doesn't hit triple platinum within 6 weeks, you may never hear of them again.

Yeah it is disgusting the way only a few companies own it all. It stifles variety and creativity. And produces blandness.

Everything you all have discussed is why I don't listen to FM or AM radio anymore.

There's so much great music out there. You just need to look in the right place for it. And over-the-air radio is not where you are likely to find it. I've discovered a lot of great music with various internet radio stations. Live365 has thousands of radio stations with every musical genre you can imagine. Since they are created by people like you and me, anyone can start a radio station there and share their music with everyone else.

Also, if you get music thru iTunes or Amazon, they can sometimes give you recommendations of other bands you might like based on what you have already bought. Youtube also has music, and there are some bands that promote their music by putting it on there. My Bloody Valentine posted their entire MBV album on YouTube.

Just my two cents' worth of advice.

Collage stations can be good though, the major labels don't care too much about short range training stations and the quirky kids running them haven't been domesticated or bought out by the majors yet.