Quote:
Originally posted by jon
So they do it at home by themselves and it sounds like another demo...and the process starts over again until they get signed eventually, and then the home tracks are simply remixed in the studio rather than re-recorded well first...because the band can't play the songs well enough and no one, including the band, wants to spend the time and money to do it.
This sound familiar to anyone else? |
YUP!
and being reasonably informed as to what's going on in the "majors" world right now, I think a lot of the problem is the current state of the labels. Sure there are very few good A&R people around anymore, but also some of these "good" A&R people (almost like mastering engineers) do not do what their gut tells them, but what their paycheck does. They are in a time that they can't afford to be fired, because they probably WONT be picked up within a week by the other labels. So everyone is scared to make a move for something different, yet they want to be the next hero. There are also VERY FEW development deals going on anymore within majors. So this doesn't stimulate "unique" and "timeless" records the same way some of the indie labels with horrible distribution and budgets do.
It just takes so much discipline, time, and money for a new artist to break through the cracks in a unique way and develop themselves, not being swayed in the process. They have to fund themselves and hold out for the right deal, coming to the table with their completely own sound, style and songs that the label can't argue with. And all this with enough of a "F*** you" attitude and enough "F*** you" money to hold out.
And even though recording is more accessible to many more acts now days, I don't think most of those acts understand what it really takes to make it, such as the discipline, practice, time, patience, energy and persistence. Too many people want to be rockstars and not enough people want to be artists/musicians.
I don't completely agree that the problem is people having too much time. I think the wrong people have too much time. I don't think most songs should be written and recorded in three hours. I think that should be a fluke, not a normality. However, IME, the more seasoned musicians, arrangers, songwriters, and engineers I'm around, get it the FIRST time or the 2nd. Not because there intentions are to get it done in 20 minutes, but because there intentions are to play what the song needs, and they do it and it happens naturally.
But I think music is coming around after the growing pains. I don't think the world is "buying" into all the gimmicks nearly as much.
I know most of you hate the "majors", but I think the people with the money (majors) still make the largest and fastest impacts on the industry and need to get some balls and restructure their departments and take calculated risks and not get involved in so many bidding wars or signing someone AFTER they are hot.
EMI has/is made some serious changes to get more creative people in the drivers seat. And there are other shake ups to possibly come. Apple might buy Universal, BMG might buy Warner-Chappell.
But you can't depend on labels to change this, I think things will fix themselves within a couple years, but it still won't happen overnight.