3 Things I Pondered Today
- How does the original masters of over 700 musicians burning in flame relate to the current state of the music industry?
- Why do you typically enjoy the openers at events more than the main acts?
- Why does it feel so good to dance?
Today I saw an article that has been floating around for the week about musicians filing a law suit against the record label for the damage done to their masters. Just about everybody famous or even indie famous that I care about is on the list. This is a big deal because it happened over 11 years ago and nobody has made a huge deal about it till recently.
I’m constantly telling people that the record labels and film industry are going to become obsolete. It’s more relevant than ever with the musicians fighting against the label. This is a huge deal. Musicians are standing up for themselves against the giant industry leaders and what that means for the little people is that they are becoming less relevant.
Eventually it will come to the point that the musicians will be direct to audience. The record label is simply an unnecessary middle ground in today’s world it might not be there yet but building your own brand will have a much huger impact than being a musician for a record label.
I sit and think a lot about how if each of these musicians had their own masters they would have been able to preserve their own music. What if instead of the big company that has all the music didn’t have anything. If there was a fire we’d only have lost a couple masters as compared to 700. In terms of servers it’s very often that major companies have back ups in different locations throughout the world. If one server goes out they have another at another location to be able to make sure that not everything goes down at once. Almost like the concept of don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Don’t put all your masters in the same darn place.
Speaking of record labels I have had a really bad habit of going to see musicians I love to listen to on my own and either leaving during the show or through the middle of it. I’m one of the weirdos that shows up before the main act and actually gives a flying hoot about what music is going on ahead of the show. This was super relevant for the last three shows I went to. Last night I went to see Sam Feldt and I got there a little after they opened the door and saw the opening act which was called Oats & Honey. I was blown away.
The entire time they mixed I was dancing. It felt so good and blissful. I do not drink or do drugs so for me to enjoy music to where I can feel the endorphins is very important to me. It does have that impact on me and their session for sure brought that energy and vibe. The ironic part of it was that the entire place was not as full as when the 2nd and main act went on.
I found out after a lot of internet digging that they were location to Austin and made up of several DJs under the presentation of House Work ATX. This made me super happy because now I can make sure I check out some of the other shows they end up doing. After their set another DJ came on who was overwhelming. He didn’t mix as good as these guys and the vibe of the crowd got dark quick. There was a lot more drug use around and people started to spill and drop stuff all over. At that point I said let’s go.
I felt I got my money’s worth by seeing the opening act. I guess it’s kind of a hipster thing to do to pay for a show because of a main act and not even stay for the act but I was super satisfied with the opening act to consider my funds well spent. I really wish they had a mixtape or something but they didn’t. Main thing they had was an Instagram which is good but I wish I could consume more.
The night was really good for what I stayed for. The music was nice and groovy. Hearing the music made me dance which is always good. It feels very good to dance. It’s nice to not car what is going on around you and enjoy the sounds surrounding you and move your body to the music. Last night made me happier than I have been in a long time. It also reminded me a lot of my college day and even days in Chicago when I’d see my favorite DJs mixing. It’s funny when music you never heard before brings you back to another time. It’s almost like I heard it before.