| Remember the dinosaurs? They grew so big and ruled without fear for so long that they were unable to adapt to the catastrophic change brought on by one small comet with planetary repercussions. Sound familiar? The music industry has cultivated its own slow demise in precisely the same regard. By this I mean the industry, not the many fine musicians trying to make art and a living (never an easy pursuit, although noble).
Sure I download music... and I am a musician. Here's the thing, though, I actually buy albums based on introductions to them via the Internet. The best CDs I acquired this year came from researching the bands first by sampling their wares. Does anyone really need the new – insert band name here – "deluxe version with previously unreleased dance mix tracks" of anything? What a cop-out! To rehash the same album you bought six or 16 years ago, thereby paying for some exec’s Beemer.
Without question, the industry needs to evolve – or perhaps it's the stores themselves. Look at Megatunes on 17th Avenue – I walk in and look at an album and their knowledgeable staff can immediately recommend five other CDs I would probably like... and be right. That is customer-service based music sales. Maybe it’s time the industry took a closer look at DIY and the little guys, instead of their stock profiles. Can anyone say Label-saurus?
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