Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says working musicians can no longer release music only “once every three to four years.” Spotify's stock value hit all-time highs of $50 billion this summer.

  On 8/6/2020 at 12:58 PM, dingformung said:

Yup, same in Germany. Many internet blackholes and generally slow internet (less developed in that regard that a lot of "third world" countries) and on top of that providers that offer unlimited LTE charge really high prices. In places like Denmark, Estonia or Finland you can get an LTE (mobile internet) flat rate for like 30 EUR a month, here it's often exclusive to business contractors and costs are ridiculous, something like 200 EUR a month. And if you stream a lot your data volume might get used up quickly if you don't have unlimited data. There are however contracts that offer unlimited LTE exclusively for certain apps such as YouTube and Spotify. Another way to monopolise these services.

Wow ... that’s f-in *medieval*

Is it true you also still use cash?

Peasants  ...

  On 8/6/2020 at 9:43 AM, dcom said:

We Need to Treat Artists as Workers, Not Decorations (William Deresiewicz, LitHub)

I'm not an artist and I'm really not trying to be a dick, but isn't the whole point of "working" for compensation creating something that others in the community need / want?  If any worker, even an artist, is creating something that people in general don't want or need in significant quantity, should they be compensated for it?

Of course this is beside the discussion of artists who make art that people want being ripped off by middle men who are distributing the art.

You could play live shows which is more fun than a thumbs up on on some website. You don't have to be a rock star o get your music out. Making money now you ironically have to play live even more. 

Im more sad about the lost art of music making. It's more than plugins and daws. Abbey road was full of scientists. Metallicas Black album was stitched together on tape. You think you can get drums to to sound like that in a computer? I haven't heard it. Even with technology progressing. Maybe someday it will get there. Who knows

  On 8/6/2020 at 8:25 PM, marf said:

You could play live shows which is more fun than a thumbs up on on some website. You don't have to be a rock star o get your music out. Making money now you ironically have to play live even more. 

Im more sad about the lost art of music making. It's more than plugins and daws. Abbey road was full of scientists. Metallicas Black album was stitched together on tape. You think you can get drums to to sound like that in a computer? I haven't heard it. Even with technology progressing. Maybe someday it will get there. Who knows

ugh. metallica. they spent 3 weeks setting up the drums and mic'ing them only to replace all the sounds w/samples on the album. Bob Rock was their crossover producer. don't get me started. 

there's still lot's of science happening and lot's of artful music makers in studios recording albums for lot's of different bands. subscribe to TapeOp. It's free and is full of these kinds of stories. 

metallica isn't known for their drum sounds.. see St. Anger snare sound for example. 

also, in nashville for along time .. the country pop stuff was all using the same samples for drums. producers traded dat tapes full of drum sounds. 

there's lot's of awful shitty music made in studios as well.. but lot's of amazing stuff that hopefully rises to the surface. as for recording it's alive and well. that hustle is real and people driven to do it find a way. studio spaces are still being built.. project studios and full on commercial recording facilities. a lot of closed over the years but thre's plenty of enthusiasm. budgets are different but music is still being made in studios for sure. 

  On 8/6/2020 at 9:08 PM, ignatius said:

metallica isn't known for their drum sounds.. see St. Anger snare sound for example. 

Early Metallica is! This is a drum production masterclass 

  On 8/6/2020 at 8:25 PM, marf said:

Metallicas Black album was stitched together on tape. You think you can get drums to to sound like that in a computer?

ban please

Oh boy, I brought up the sell out album. Ive read different on the Black album. But im not a Metallica expert. Ban me please this site is a bad habit. 

I sub to tape op. I sub to shitloads. Ampex mailing list has the real scientists. 

I hate that St. Anger snare. But I do love the black albums drums. Love the sound of the cybmals, especially.  It made that album the sell out album. It was a dance record. If it was an aka s900 Im getting one tomorrow

  On 8/6/2020 at 9:08 PM, ignatius said:

there's still lot's of science happening and lot's of artful music makers in studios recording albums for lot's of different bands. subscribe to TapeOp. It's free and is full of these kinds of stories.

just checked it out and found a good article relevant to this thread

https://tapeop.com/blog/2020/08/06/why-and-how-spotify-managed-get-such-low-royalty-r/

I know engineers have triggered samplers to beef up drums. The black album was heavily edited on reel to reel tape because lars is not a great drummer. The room is what you hear on those kicks snd cymbals. Bob Rock has pretty hair but he can do a good record

Steve Albini should record any drums being played at all times imo 

yea, he has a great live room sound too. Even though he "doesn't have a sound"

  On 8/6/2020 at 9:55 PM, markedone said:

just checked it out and found a good article relevant to this thread

https://tapeop.com/blog/2020/08/06/why-and-how-spotify-managed-get-such-low-royalty-r/

big oof!

  Quote

Let me paraphrase what Lindvall says: In exchange for access to the music catalogs the labels own, Spotify gave the labels Spotify stock. Said stock is sequestered into the labels financial structure in a way that gives artists no access to the proceeds of this deal. Labels then agree to the lowest royalty rate in history, leaving even the biggest artists to collect paltry sums while Spotify and the labels build stock equity on their (the artists') backs.

The solution is obvious and since I'm the expert here. Il just give you the answer. Cause Im a nice guy.

Laws have to be passed on a set rate for royalties on all media platforms to be paid out to the artists. Have it monitored by ascap and bmi. Youtube vloggers can play songs in the background. No demonetizing. Youtube pays the royalty to the artist. Just like radio. Both mediums have ads. All mediums have ads. Laws. Government has to get involved

  On 8/6/2020 at 10:12 PM, Candiru said:

Steve Albini should record any drums being played at all times imo 

lol. there's a lot of great recorind of drums in teh world. a lot also happens to tracksin the mix. Rollins Band "the End of Silence" is one of my fav mix/recordings because so fucking huge. Mixed by Andy Wallace who i got to briefly chat w/on the phone once to tell him how much i like the sound of that record. 

re: Bob Rock - he can do a good record but imo has terrible taste and is a cheesy fuck. even in the Some Kind of Monster doc when the band is jamming.. he's shooting down all the good sounding jams in favor of garbage. there's one particular bit where they band finds their groove and even James' crooning bullshit is sort of kept at bay and the lyrics don't sound fucking stupid and it's kind of epic and natural sounding for the band and of course he poopoo's that one real quick.. because he sucks. 

as for the "sell out album".. yeah.. i mean.. it's not super awful but it is a departure and is their step into the direction of cashing in .. i mena.. they paid some dues.. made some classic albums that are legendary in their genre.. so it's understandable they wanted to go over the edge and make a zillion dollars. they walked the line pretty well for a minute but imo and justice for all as some of their last good tunes.. everrything after that is bullshit. 

i saw them for the black album tour and it was hilarious oldschool type vibe of teasing the teenagers in the audience with beer. "James saying.. i'm just gonna have a sip of beer here.. sorry you kids can't have some.." etc etc.. really dumb shit.. then saying "well, this one is for all our NEW FANS..."   it was really hilariously cheesy and bad... altered consciousness helped manage the absurdity. 

but enough about metallica. they went to poop when Cliff got smooshed by that bus. sigh. it should've been lars!

  On 8/6/2020 at 10:12 PM, Candiru said:

Steve Albini should record any drums being played at all times imo 

This album really cemented that fact for me

Hot take that I actually believe:

Like everything else on our society art should be paid for as if it is the commodity that is.

If an artist is motivated enough to create something great to get their message/ideas/whatever out there they'll do it without the draw of money. And if it's great it's likely will get recognition and therefore income as a result anyway.

This also weeds out the people making mindless art that wastes peoples time and people that aim to soullessly hook people for no reason other than money.

  On 8/7/2020 at 8:37 AM, Squee said:

Expand  

What is this "fake music" mentioned under chad Spotify?

  On 8/7/2020 at 2:40 PM, vkxwz said:

What is this "fake music" mentioned under chad Spotify?

Hate your favorite band's latest song? On Spotify, it might be a fake. (Input Magazine)

Scammers Are Gaming Spotify by Faking Collaborations With Famous Artists (OneZero/Medium)

etc. 

Oh, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Spotify#2016–17:_"Fake_artists"_controversy .

  On 8/7/2020 at 2:53 PM, dcom said:

Hate your favorite band's latest song? On Spotify, it might be a fake. (Input Magazine)

Scammers Are Gaming Spotify by Faking Collaborations With Famous Artists (OneZero/Medium)

etc. 

Fascinating, I have friends who've had issues with their discography's being merged with another artist of the same name who got on Spotify first so I think this is just bad design rather than a conspiracy to take money from artists...

And it seems like Spotify has no real reason to do this? They don't make money per streams(ignoring ads but that's nothing compared to subscription revenue), they just pay artists per play, so why create fake music and then pay themselves nothing....

  On 8/7/2020 at 5:12 PM, vkxwz said:

Fascinating, I have friends who've had issues with their discography's being merged with another artist of the same name who got on Spotify first so I think this is just bad design rather than a conspiracy to take money from artists...

 

And it seems like Spotify has no real reason to do this? They don't make money per streams(ignoring ads but that's nothing compared to subscription revenue), they just pay artists per play, so why create fake music and then pay themselves nothing....

Expand  

It's not Spotifuck who has an interest in that, it's artists who want many plays that steal someone else's name I guess

  On 8/7/2020 at 2:36 PM, vkxwz said:

If an artist is motivated enough to create something great to get their message/ideas/whatever out there they'll do it without the draw of money

This is such an ignorant view. Everybody needs money to survive. And in genres like jazz being a musician might be a full-time job that requires many hours of training every day, not a hobby you do on the side while working 40 hours a week.

  On 8/7/2020 at 5:30 PM, dingformung said:

This is such an ignorant view. Everybody needs money to survive. And in genres like jazz being a musician might be a full-time job that requires many hours of training every day, not a hobby you do on the side while working 40 hours a week.

TBH it seems like jazz can only survive because it’s subsidized. The audience for it is stupidly small. It’s almost become a museum of sorts.

Classical music is subsidized, too, but at least there’s an audience for it. It’ll be interesting to see what will happen when that audience dies out, as it will soon with the average age of it being around 70. When my wife and I go to a classical concert we are the youngest people in the room by far.

(this is in Europe, maybe in the US it’s different).