geiom wrote:I know this is a bit away from the topic but...what really is the problem with buying records ?
what has changed over the last few years ? are we really all living in shoe boxes now ? (that's one common excuse - not enough room)
no shoe box, but i do live in a city that currently has no record shop, and i have never been a fan of ordering vinyl online. impatient. me no likey waitey.
when we had a shop, i spent a crap ton on records. but then, i got paid better for DJing back then (because there was money in the scene then, unlike now), i had an ok job and also...that was my ONLY option if i wanted the music. things have changed in a big way on both those fronts.
geiom wrote:are we all beyond dirt poor ? (too expensive - excuse number 2)
no.
yes. i can only speak for myself (and perhaps just americans in general) when i say that the economy has tanked here, and the exchange rate between USD and GBP is horrid for anyone here who wants to order records (specifically ordering from the UK or even just buying imports).
plus, if you are in the midwest US, the "scene" (whatever that was) also tanked a few years ago, and no one has money to pay (or just is too cheap to pay) the DJs much at all anymore. it has become harder and harder to justify spending a week's pay on vinyl, when you can get even more music in the digital format (by the way, that means more in pocket money for the producers, and less overhead...i like knowing more of my money is getting to the artists).
geiom wrote:what has happened is that we now have a choice, which is super easy - you don't even have to leave the house, and its cheap (or even free)
and i think you just hit it on the head. before we didn't have a choice of formats, because it was vinyl or nothing. times have changed, technology has expanded, and ya can't stuff the genie back in the bottle, no matter how hard you try.
geiom wrote:in terms of straight cash, records are only a bit more expensive than they were years ago - but that's just inflation - i don't see anyone saying - "I only eat digital food now cause i can't afford to go to the shops..."
I always spent my last money on records even when i was dirt poor - i know loads of other people who have done the same.
see above for explanation of US economic situation.
i used to spend every penny on vinyl, and i was an irresponsible lout who didn't pay her other bills. i grew up and realized it wasn't getting me anywhere. plus consider too, that many longtime music heads have gotten older, have families, and just in general have more responsibility than they did when they were younger. if a mom or dad has to choose between records and feeding their kids...well, sorry...the decision should be obvious.
also, it got really expensive buying a record with only 2 tunes on it, maybe even only one i really wanted. i can get MORE music for less money, AND i can cut out the filler that i don't really want. if i decide, whoops i actually liked that tune, it won't be sold out (making me wait for a repress that may never happen). i can go back and get it. voila! more money in your pockets producer types!
here is something to think about, which i have posted before and will keep saying. i don't buy a TON of dubstep vinyl. if a track isn't coming out digitally, and i simply MUST have it, i will plonk down the extra to get the record. but most of the time i buy digital. when i play those tunes out, i make sure people who want to know what the tune is, get the name of it.
just last night someone (NOT a dj) at the club i was at heard the quarta 330 tune "sunset dub" and loved it. she isn't gonna buy vinyl, so i gave her all the info she needs to buy it off of beatport. she wrote it all down and i am sure she went home and potentially bought the tune. if a vinyl dj comes up asking the same question, i am gonna give them the song info, plus a few places where they can order the vinyl. we can argue about this all day long, but the fact is, whether you are using vinyl or digital formats, you are STILL promoting the music, which is the unspoken, underlying job of a DJ (hence why people send out promo dubs to other DJs). regardless of format, that gets done if the tunes get heard.
i fully support the vinyl side of tings, and i want to see it stick around and flourish. i have quite the collection myself from 13 years of vinyl addiction. i always encourage DJs (and fans) to buy the tunes, in whatever format works best for them. but i got a little more adventurous with my DJing methods, and decided to go digital in order to do the things i really want to do with the music. it's been fun, and i still order WAY too much music than i can actually afford.
plus keep in mind that many clubs now have both turntables AND CD decks available. i know MANY DJs who use mixed formats when they play; sometimes combining serato/final scratch and regular vinyl, sometimes vinyl and CDs, sometimes vinyl and ableton. just the other day i did an electro set using my classic electro on vinyl, as well as some newer tunes (classic electro re-releases and dubstep) that i had bought digitally and played on CD. the choices have expanded and i think it's only a good thing for the music market in general.
we can debate this all day long really, but it still isn't gonna change the fact that time advances, as does technology, and it's not gonna revert back to the past in order to satisfy the luddites.
we have more options than ever available to get great music into the hands of people who love it. and now we are not just relegating the music to a handful of DJs who play vinyl; the market expands to the fans, and now the DJs don't have a stranglehold on the music, which i personally think is an underlying part of the reason for all the whinging. but with more options comes more possibilities for the wonderful people MAKING the music to do more than just survive. and i am OK with that.
oh and p.s. i bought ramadanman's releases using the paypal method, and i thought it was a fantastic idea! his was a name i recognized, so i trusted that he wouldn't fuck anyone over (wouldn't do his rep any good if he did), he got the links to me fast, and even chucked in a VIP remix for folks who bought the second release. he mastered em with the big guys, the tunes sounded great, and i knew my money was going DIRECTLY to the artist. everybody wins!
