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Shadow's starting the New Year off with a bang!
Posted Jan 4, 2010
WARNING: RAMBLING TIRADE FROM A 37-YEAR OLD TECHNOPHOBE BELOW
Well, here we are again, another year, another decade. Optimism about the future is tempered with a nagging sense that underlying factors causing most of the misery in the world still exist. Lucky, then, that Iגm a musician and not a politician.
Specifically, when it comes to the wallet, everyoneגs sufferingג¦of that there can be no doubt. And what of the financial prospects for musicians and recording artists in the years to come? Shaky, at best. Unless youגre one of the grotesque גIdolג-type pop disasters in the top 5, youגre looking at getting a day job or finding other sources of income. Conventional wisdom amongst my peers has been remarkably short-sided over the last decade: גYeah, CD sales are down, but all the money is in licensing.ג Not anymore. גYeah, licensing money is down, but the video game industry is killing it.ג Less so these days, according to recent data. גWell, the real money is in touring.ג Really? When was the last time you saw a גnew,ג post-record company artist headline a major music festival? At this rate, weגll be stuck with Coldplay for decades (no offense intended).
Time for a little straight talk, from one reasonably intelligent human being to YOU, the reasonably intelligent reader. As distasteful as it may sound, the fact is that so many of our heroes: Jimi Hendrix, John Coltrane, The Beatles, whoever you care to name; generated much of their best art in return for financial compensation. If you take away the compensation, guess whatג¦the art stops. For example, how many young rap artists are grinding away these days in New York, trying to get a deal? Not too many, certainly compared to the ג80s and ג90s. Thereגs no allure, no pot at the end of the rainbow. People have been asking for years now, גWhereגs the next Nas, the next Jay-Z?ג Be prepared to keep waitingג¦and for music, overall, to keep sucking. Why? Because only bottom-of-the-barrel, embarrassing pop tripe generates enough income to feed the machine. Anything unproven or risky? Nobodyגs going to bankroll that kind of גexperiment.ג
Let me be clear: I love music. I love the culture of music, making music, playing music, geeking out over music from the past and present. I love old record company stories, and the characters that inhabited it. In other words, I have learned to appreciate the merchants of commerce as well as the art. If you love movies or cars, chances are you can relate to what Iגm describing. What would Hollywood be without the larger-than-life, audacious personalities behind the scenes? What would cars be like if there had never been Detroit?
Gone are the recording studios (including the historically important Plant down the road from me in Sausalito), the record shops, and the music magazines. Replaced by the oh-so-cynical, oh-so-corrosive AM talk radio of the new millennium, the Internet. But Iגm not telling you anything you donגt already know. Chances are, you may have even been one of those majority who danced on the grave of the falling record companies, pointed to Radiohead giving their album away for free and said, גSee, look, if they can do it, why canגt everyone else?ג Slowly, I turnג¦
Every artist is entitled to their own price point, just as every consumer has a choice in what they purchase. Nobody puts a gun to someoneגs head and says, גHey, buy this Picasso for 20 million.ג Likewise, if $9.99 is too much to spend for one of my albums, so be it, your choice. But if youגre holding your breath, waiting for me to boost my cool-quotient by giving my music away for free, itגs not going to happen. The fact is that I feel my music has value. You may disagree, and thatגs fine. But I know how much energy I put into what I do, and how long it takes me to make something Iגm satisfied with. Giving that away just feels wrong to me. Itגs not about money per se; I can donate a large sum of money to charity and not think twice, but I wonגt give my art away. Iגd rather sell it to 100 people who value it as I do than give it away to 1000 who could care less. Thatגs MY choice.
I realize these are all unpopular subjects. Artists are never supposed to address their flock about such icky subjects as business and commerce. (By the way, and I hope it doesnגt sound disingenuous, but now would be a REALLY good time to express my undying THANKS for your support, which matters IMMENSELY in my ability to retain music as my primary endeavor. As a fan of others, I always used to wonder, גdoes this artist or group really care about whether I buy their stuff or not? Do they care that I go to their show?ג YES, WE CARE!!!!! Now, more than ever). Most think that I should stop whining, grow up and embrace the Internet, become more active, tweet more, hype more, give more stuff away, etc, etc. Honestly, Iגve triedג¦and will keep trying. But the bottom line is that not every paradigm or system is right for everyone. Weגve all been told for years that the Internet is our Savior; itגs cool, youthful, hip, the solution to every problem, and if you arenגt joining a new networking site on a weekly basis, youגre a social pariah. Sorryג¦I just donגt feel that way. Iגm old enough to know that when 99% of the population is marching lockstep in one direction, sometimes itגs wise to break rank and go the other way. Plus, I simply donגt like sitting in front of a computer screen all day.
Iגm not saying that I donגt use the Internet on a regular basis; I do. And obviously Iגm very proud of this site and its ability to support itself through the store. Honestly, I just think a large portion of the dialogue and content available online is an utter shit fest: a Pandoraגs box of violence, neurosis, bad impulses, and bad intentions. It has become the גSuper Horror Showג the Last Poets could never have dreamed of, like bad television on steroids and angel dust simultaneously. CL Smooth memorably called television גa schismג¦negative realism.ג And much like the TV of the ג60s and ג70s, you will NEVER hear or read anything negative about the Internet ON the Internet. Thereגs too much money to be made, by someone somewhere (and hey, why ruffle the feathers of the goose thatגs laying the golden egg, right?). 20 years from now, it will be interesting to see what hindsight reveals. I predict a flag on the time-line: when we moved closer to becoming a passionless, listless, hollowed-out society, one in which art and nature could no longer provide the psychological shock to the system required to endure another harrowing day of terror alerts and super-bugs. Music can only suggest sex and violenceג¦the Internet provides both, full frontal and full strength, 24/7. Maximum dose.
Whateverג¦what will be will be. As long as I breathe, Iגll make music, love music, support music. I used to get in fights at school to defend my right to listen to rap, and Iגll fight on against any institution or prevailing thinking that seeks to dictate to me how and when the music I make is to be disseminated. If thereגs 50 of you, or 100, or more out there willing to accept my right to choose, as I accept yours, then welcome aboardג¦you are my fan base. The rest of you that donגt, and want me to play someone elseגs gameג¦I wish you well. Letגs just leave the subject at that and call it what it is: a mutual misunderstanding.
Regardless, itגs going to be a hell of a year. I am working hard on new music, and hope to share some of it with you in the coming months (really!). Iגm fully aware that there are many former fans that insist my best work is behind me. Well, respectfully, I disagree. Itגs not easy walking the tightrope between artistic validity and financial solvency, but I stand behind all of the decisions I have made to date. What matters to me is that EVERYONE reading this knows that I take my career, my music, and my fans EXTREMELY SERIOUSLY. When I started in music 25 years ago, my mission was to provide an alternative, to expand the scope of choice available to music lovers like myself; and above all to demonstrate a willingness to go the extra mile and put the MAXIMUM EFFORT in EVERYTHING I DO, so that the bar continues to be raised, not lowered. Whether that manifests itself on stage, on record, or as a character in a video game, I honestly feel that I have given it my best, win or lose, and Iגm proud of that. I have to believe that your continued support is a vote of confidence, which I take great comfort in as I strive to create some of my best work to date.
I may not be the best looking dude out thereג¦I may not be the most linked-in, the most prolific, the most successfulג¦but Iגll be god-damned if Iגm not up there with the most passionate. If you agree with what Iגm saying, that so much music weגre fed is utter GARBAGE that insults the intelligence, then no matter where youגre atג¦the States, the UK, France, Japan, Canada, Australia, whereverג¦weגre ALL outsiders, and we owe it to each other to band together and fight for something better. Personally, Iגm loving the challenge, and when the time is right, I look forward to reconnecting with all of you.
Until thenג¦
DJ Shadow
