Lamb Of God’s Randy Blythe Speaks On Illegal Downloading And The State Of The Music Industry
Lamb Of God frontman Randy Blythe launched into some rather poignant and colorful rants/analogies regarding the state of the music industry via his Twitter today (September 19th.) You can find the main two pieces he wrote below.
After reading them you should head over to his Twitter to check out the ensuing aftermath. Many metal musicians have chimed in there, making for a lot of interesting commentary on the state of today’s music industry.
Yes, I realize I may be booshed again by Blythe for posting this, but I swear I am not trying to piss the guy off. Rather I’d merely like to shed some light on some of the more rather interesting things he has to say.
Speaking on the topic downloading music, he offered:
“While on the topic of down loading leaks, aside from the fact that it has killed record sales (well, that & music industry GREED), the FACT OF THE MATTER IS- leaked stuff off the Internet DOES NOT HAVE THE SOUND QUALITY OF A RECORD/CD. Musicians, engineers, producers, masterers-we all put in A LOT of time trying to get a record to sound AS KICK-ASS as possible.
Then it gets dumped on the Internet, leaked through a million different sites, some of which compromise the quality exponentially- a record gets FUCKED UP. I LOVE my iPod, but listening to a cd always seems to sound better to me. Why? Crappy bit rate encoding, ect. Call me a nerd, but I wanna hear what THE BAND wants me to hear.”
After receiving numerous replies regarding the above viewpoint, he further went to explain his viewpoint with the following:
“Jesus Christ. I tried to go into just the music QUALITY aspect of buying vs downloading & now it’s the whole ethics/financial aspect AGAIN. So, I didn’t want to do this, AGAIN, but I will. I’m sure what I’m about to post will PISS OFF a lot of people, BUT I DON’T FUCKING CARE. Y’all can get mad, call me a rock star, tell me I’m a greedy fuck, a sell out, a money grubbing child rapist who lives only to destroy music. You can EVEN call me Lars Ulrich. I think he’s kinda cute for a short, balding, Danish man. IT WON’T BOTHER ME. SO FIRE AWAY. I WILL LAUGH.
What I am about to say is the cold, naked, HARD TRUTH: illegally downloading music is STEALING. YES, I SAID IT. And AS SUCH, it is UNETHICAL. If it wasn’t STEALING, then it would just be called “down loading”, NOT “ILLEGALLY downloading”. WHY this is such a HARD CONCEPT to grasp? Let’s put it this way- I work for McDonalds. My job is to make burgers. McDonalds (a giant, evil corporation) has to pay for the labor (me) to assemble their product (burgers). I don’t sit around & make burgers all day for free. People LOVE burgers. Burgers SHOULD indeed be free!
BUT- it COSTS $ to make burgers. And the burgers WERE over priced for a long time- old Ronald had gotten greedy. He was RICH AS FUCK in fact. But despite the fact that Ron was rich from over priced burgers, me & the rest of the burger cooks (not to mention the janitor, the cashier, the manager, the delivery truck drivers, & whoever else) could STILL make a decent living IF WE WERE GOOD AT OUR JOBS working at McDonalds.
Then, one day, someone gets a key to the backdoor of McD’s & it goes STRAIGHT to the kitchen. He SNEAKS IN LIKE ALL GOOD THIEVES DO, and he starts eating all the burgers he wants, FOR FREE. Then he makes a key for his buddy, who makes one for his pal who makes one for his pal ect. Soon everybody has a key & it’s a fucking burger bonanza. The burgers WERE overpriced, right? And Ronald & A FEW of his cooks were just rich money grubbing assholes anyway, right? SO FUCK ‘EM! EAT AWAY! So that goes on a while then good old Ronald looks at his checkbook- WTF?!?!?
Suddenly things aren’t looking so peachy for Ronald. So he starts firing motherfuckers left & right, & a TON of McDonalds close down. BUT… PEOPLE STILL WANT BURGERS, right? Ronald starts trying all sortsa shit to keep McD’s open- marketing schemes, different wrappers for the burgers, burger TASTINGS- but NOTHING is working. WHY? LITERALLY MILLIONS of people have a key to McDonald’s & are GORGING THEMSELVES 4 FREE
Some of the cooks open their own burger joints because McDs is failing. They charge fair prices & do I ALL themselves. They fail too- WHY? FREE BURGERS STILL. Only a few pay for the burgers. Hell, a WHOLE GENERATION of burger eaters grow up NEVER HAVING BOUGHT A SINGLE BURGER.
Finally, the whole burger business is FUCKED UP. Me, I’m an older burger cook who manages save up some $ from the old days, & a lot of folks will still pay for me to whip up a burger for em. But the young guys who have dreams of being a successful burger cook? FORGET IT. ITS ALL BECAUSE the key that opens McD’s opens ALL burger joints. So all the Indy burger shops go down too- WHY? BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE WALKING OUT WITH FREE NOW. Burgers should be free, RIGHT? I WANT MY BURGER I WANT MY BURGER I WANT MY BURGER- FUCK Ronald & FUCK his cooks- I’m TAKING EM!
Eventually it all goes up in flames. Fuck it. I got my burger. I TOOK IT. And when I, as a burger cook complain about people KILLING THE BURGER BUSINESS by stealing from McDonalds? I’m called A GREEDY ASSHOLE. Burgers SHOULD be free. BUT THEY ARE NOT FREE TO MAKE. Neither is music. Like it or not, there IS NO MORAL GRAY AREA HERE. STOP STEALING.”
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COMMENTS
then leak the album in good quality yourself so people will hear it the way you want it
I think you’re a dumb and selfish amphibian. Though you cannot do much to those who steal pieces of people’s souls, I sure hope Anubis sentences them to an eternity of assrape by Toby Keith & Danny Glover in hell.
then he should leak the albums in good quality himself so people will hear it the way he wants it.
His analogy sucks. When you steal a burger, the place you stole it from no longer has a burger. No physical product is being removed from a store here.
Ha, very good point. No physical product is being taken.
People will buy the music of the bands they want to support. I love Mastodon for instance, i will buy the hunter, but i’ll also download it to hear it first. Most people will support their favorite bands. I’ve “illegally” downloaded plenty of music, but of bands i would never buy the CD to, just stuff i wanted to hear.
And you can find music to DL at 320kbs, which sounds great, so whats the big deal? Trent Reznor releases FLAC and all different qualities for free, like a non greedy artist. what does he say to that?
Reznor made a shit load of money back in the day when people wouldnt jack music. Dude is paid. He can afford to lay some of the new stuff out there
The bottom line is that albums will leak and people will download music. You can rage against that fact like this fellow is doing, or you can be smart and change your business model to accommodate it. No matter how much you yell and scream, people aren’t going to change their behavior… it’s the people yelling that need to change. That requires some creativity, but it’s necessary.
Nowadays, stuff gets leaked in FLAC (or other lossless formats), so I don’t get the whole point behind Blythe’s “leaked music sucks in quality”. If you look for it, you’ll find it (isn’t that the beauty of internet anyways?). Oh, and I think he’s missing an important point, one based in the principle behind the mp3: if they like what they hear (ie. the music itself, not the production quality, or the playback quality, or whatever – “I like this melody/groove/whatever”), chances are, they’ll get the CD, or at least, look for a better quality version. And if they get 128k mp3s and think it’s OK (which, sadly, is the case too often), I doubt they’ll go for a CD anyway in the first place, since they won’t appreciate the benefit of the extra cost.
So when someone gets their ID stolen and people buy a load of crap with their credit card numbers, thats not stealing either? I mean, credit isnt a physical product, but it leaves people in shambles. You can justify it any way you want but stealing is stealing fuck face.
I never said that it wasn’t stealing – all I said is that his analogy doesn’t actually make sense since he isn’t using an equivalent situation. Had he used your example, his argument would have worked much better. Also, I should hope that music isn’t quite as fucked up and harmful as the meat industry.
then again, that analogy still doesn’t work. The credit card is more similar to the burgers – like the burgers, the money disappears. Piracy is a unique situation, and no analogy will truly capture it without oversimplification. Then again, when you’re a very opinionated guy who yells incoherently for a living then acts self-righteous about it, you’re probably not worried about oversimplifying things.
No, this example still doesn’t work, because the victim is still in fact losing those funds. If someone who under no circumstances whatsoever had any intentions of buying music downloads it, then absolutely nothing is lost on the supplier’s side of things. That’s the main difference between traditional stealing and electronic piracy. However, this is pretty much never the case, which is why it’s still wrong (illegal downloading).
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to justify illegal downloading. But if those that are being hurt from it want to make a case for it, then they need to start using logical examples, as opposed to ones full of holes which they try and hammer home with nullified emphases like use of caps, “period,” “fact,” etc.
The root of the problem isn’t that people are downloading music for free; that in and of itself has no negative repercussions. The problem is that people are no longer buying music because they have the option to download it for free. E.g. I still download music illegally, but that’s only because I’m too lazy to rip the CDs that I do in fact still buy myself.
So has anyone tweeted back to him the proper abbreviation of et cetera yet? ‘Cause that’s really starting to annoy me, given how often he seems to use it.
That’s all I kept thinking as well!
I can understand artists being hacked-off about the present situation but until someone, or something, changes music distribution there is no solution. One instance is jam-bands getting more mileage from their material by recording their live shows, burning and selling them right after the show at the merchandise table, or putting it on their website as a purchase download.
i think his message is encripted with an additional hidden message cuz now im hungry and i want to listen to an actual lamb of god cd not any of the stuff i have on my ipod, nah im just playin i do enjoy a cd more than a download but i could give a rats ass what anyone elses opinions are on the subject famous or not.
however all lamb of god’s badass-ness aside what he needs to do is use the grammy they won for sacrament as a tampon and quit his bitching
They lost to “Eyes of the Insane” by Slayer.
oh yah that’s right was it “redneck” that won an award then?
well either way he needs to use slayer’s grammy as a tampon and i need to research factual information before spewing forth small cutting remarks which prove no actual effect.
If the music industry is soooo bad, then get a real fucking job! I worked at a bicycle shop full time for a while, and you know what? I didn’t make jack fucking shit. And the shop was suffering because lots of people are ordering stuff offline nearly cheaper that what our cost was. I feel like the same thing applies to the music industry. Yes it is technically illegal to pirate software/music, but that doesn’t change a goddamn thing (in this instance). ADAPT and make SACRIFICES if you just have to be a musician. Otherwise, go to college. This is America people.
Jesus, this guy needs to shut the fuck up already. Stop crying about people stealing your music, everyone does it, and that isn’t going to change.
I think the fact that people have to use analogies to convey the message that pirating music is wrong is ridiculous. Who cares if burgers are relative to music? The bottom line is, record sales have dropped and people in the industry are losing money and it is directly because of pirating. I’ve downloaded my share in the past and used every excuse to justify it. After doing a paper on the subject for a college class, I decided it was wrong. Previewing an album is no excuse, most every band streams the music for free. I’m not acting holier than thou, as I said, I’ve done my share. I just get tired of bands getting blasted for expecting to be paid for a service and downloaders acting like they’re not doing anything wrong. Should the industry adapt? Unfortunately, they have no choice.
I actually agree with alot of what he was saying. Though the analogy was bad. I see all sides of this debate actually. I never know what side to fall on. So hell. I just keep buying CDs. From the artist/band whenever I can.
And I will say if Randy fancys himself an audio nerd (like me) then I wait with bated breath for a LOG album that isn’t horribly brickwalled.
Personally I can see eye to eye with being too broke to buy albums, so you download (that was my late teens). Also, many bands only have a few good songs on their albums and thats not worth the price of admission is it? However, I view downloading as immature; adults grow cynical and end up liking roughly 5 bands, and ideally support the acts they like. Its a hodge podge answer to question that no one wants to ask. Support the bands you like, preview and discard the ones you dont. Or try this, cd trading sites, buy used, buy new and then sell the next day after you burn yourself a copy and recoup your money. There ARE strategies that make everyone happy!
Exactly. I’ve bought albums off Amazon for less than a dollar.
I just bought the whole boysetsfire discography used on Amazon for under 5 bucks. Lots of good deals on there.
Anyone ever wonder WHO actually leaks this? Audio Files don’t just jump from a Tascam on to a hard drive and fly right up to Demonoid or U torrent. So all this has an easy solution. Find out how somewhere between the studio, and release day your shit is getting uploaded and STOP it. Honestly, a studio is not open to the public so some jack-off can’t just walk in a say, “Oh look Lamb of God’s new album, hold on while I copy this and make a torrent”. How’s this for an analogy…
Don’t get mad when you walk in a find your baby dead on his bedroom floor because you didn’t put up the side of the crib. You spent all that time making that baby, and you were just about to release him to daycare, and he downloaded himself on the floor and died be cause you didn’t take simple precautions to MAKE SURE that this baby was safe and sound when everyone had their backs turned.
Sound good? Another thing I was thinking was, anyone remember when Roadrunner themselves leaked “Impossibility of Reason” but every 30 secs there was an audio mark that said some shit like, “Chimaira, Impossibility of reason, Roadrunner Records”. I downloaded it because I was amped about it. I got to hear the CD, I decided I had to buy it, that audiostamp made NO difference to me. I bought it because it was worth buying. Imagine if St. Anger had never been leaked. Do you have any Idea how pissed the world would have been? SO, In closing…. Audiostamp it, leak it yourself, if it’s worth getting, they will buy it because no one looks cool driving around with their friends jamming out to some shit getting interrupted every 30 secs by Ben Stein’s voice.
Even if they could prevent albums from being leaked all it would do would make people wait until the release date for someone to put it on the internet then. I do agree though that if you control how it is leaked you might be more successful than just complaining about it.
i love dead baby analogies
Once I heard a solidly recorded band over a serious system, I was a convert. Compressed music sounds like ass compared to CDs and CDs sound like ass compared to vinyl. Until bands start releasing ultra high-fidelity digital formats, vinyl is king and you can’t pirate that shit. Unfortunately fewer and fewer peeps even know the difference and shit quality is more and more accepted. Also, since less money is being made off record sales, less money is being spent on recording – and more and more records sound lacking. Again, I’m in the minority because I generally don’t hear anyone complaining about this. Shit, just about none of the bands on here even have the real acoustic drums on their albums and it sounds like a machine choking on a cock.
WOW good job randy u gave me more of an apprication for artists who do things on their own label or a small label and dont kneel down for the big corporate labels like what are they on epic? maybe if u guys could write some good damn music now a days people would start to buy your records but the last good thing u wrote was ashes of the wake, so shut the fuck up, stop writing on twitter and focus on making metal!
even if LOG made a good album you still wouldn’t go out and buy it. CHEAPSKATE!
i bought the new primus, going to buy the new mastodon, got tickets for their respective shows, and will get shirts at those shows. but yeah i am a cheapskate right on bud!
southpaw, could you please download Google chrome? It has a spell-checker.
sorry man half the time i comment i am half alseep and just waking up, and i honestly dont give a shit if i commit gramical hell on the prp, its a website filled by a bunch of dudes who cares? are u the kind of guy who gets pissed when your box wine is given to u in a plastic dixie cup?
seriously ocho, get the fuck off twitter and get in the goddamn playbook.
Live with it. I have no problem to decide if I want to buy a record or not based on a lousy sound production, it’s not that there’s such a difference in the end, the music is the same.
In the best case, someone will download the leak / unlicensed copy and then buy the real thing because he liked it, if not, it’s not worth the money to him or he just has other things to do with his money and wouldn’t have bought it in first place. at least you have raised some interest.
I some what agree with this guy, but when he is talking about how the sound comes out differently when listening to a CD or a download file, I DONT AGREE. It depends what kind of output you have. You can have headphones that make it sound like you were in the studio and you have speakers with surround sound. Yes i download and i do agree, some stuff that is put online has crappy quality but most people rip it of a CD and put it on these sites to have the quality that was originally made. I also buy CDs, does it make me a criminal to enjoy your fucking songs? I do love going out to get the physical copy and ripping of the plastic on the CDs but come on these artists should be happy everyone doesnt do it. CALL ME A THEIF go ahead but not everyone is going to like a full CD. Maybe someone just wants to listen to one song out of all 10 to 12 songs? I think its funny how mad he gets when people go and take songs off the internet. Why waste your time to post about it when people are going to do it no matter what? Go head put everyone on blast that we are giving our rightful opinion as humans but no matter what people are not going to stop from downloading period.
oh yeah and randy, fuck mcdonalds fuck ford fuck corporate america, i wish someone would loot the shit out of mcdonalds and close that fucking rats nest of a food vandaliser, that way more real burger joints can open up and i can chow on a real burger! And the people who work at that real burger joint can make better money because they wont be living off of min wage while RONALD makes billions!
Seems like 1/2 the problem he has with downloading music is that people won’t just admit to it being stealing. I too dislike the “it’s not stealing, it’s sharing” argument. I will totally admit that it is stealing but I’m not going to stop doing it. I have limited funds right now and stealing beer will get me arrested, downloading music will not.
I will say that I have spent money on bands whose music I stole (other CDs, concerts, merch) that I would not have if I had never heard them so it isn’t always a one way street. You’ll just never be able get the numbers on things like that. There are some bands CDs that I will always buy but most of the time I could care less about owning the physical media cause it’s going right on to my mp3 player anyways. If the price of digital downloads went down some (maybe to $5-7), I’d be more inclined to make an impulse buy but they seem to still think that an mp3 has almost, if not, the same value as a CD.
I completely agree that bands have a right to be compensated for their work but now we’re at the point where if I really don’t want to pay but still get the product, I can. It seems most bands/labels still think they can charge $13+ for a CD when I think the market has clearly shown that most consumers are unwilling to pay that. They either need to lower their prices or offer a better (bonus tracks, music videos, etc) product.
I agree with you 100% on the lack of admission. And as far as it NOT being stealing, I once read a kid online justify downloading like this: “paying for music, that’d be like paying for air!” I wish I could get that sentence explained to me…
all you people that ILLEGALLY Download music and feel no remorse will say ANYTHING to justify what you’re doing isn’t wrong. Go fuck yourselves!
You’re not really fucking the label over. You’re fucking over the band.
I don’t go around thinking that i’m entitled to everything free so I don’t ILLEGALLY Download music because I prefer to buy it.
I bet for all you freeloaders out there if you wanted to download music tickets for shows/concerts and music merchandise you would do it too. FUCKIN Freeloaders!
Maybe the record labels aren’t hit as hard as the bands but I like to think that Scarface-sized pile of cocaine on their desks gets just a little bit smaller every time someone illegally downloads an album.
Yeah it would be easier for me to sympathize if I could afford to drink as much and as often as any of the dudes in this band. Despite the fact that I download I still purchase the real deal when I can afford it, I understand its hard for some musicians to grasp but consider your demographic, chances are pretty good we’re not all rollin’ in money, not to mention like many musicians we fans also enjoy our alcohol/pot/pills/powders, we pay taxes etc. You can be as pissed as you want but I’ll continue to fill my ipod with music I enjoy while I’m waiting to purchase the real deal, wouldn’t be cheap having to buy over a thousand albums at a crack. And at least when I do buy em I get it new.
Another reason I have a hard time sympathizing is there are pleanty of albums I’ve purchased several times over due to my copy getting all f’d up(9times total for the black album). Love yer music Randy but yer beef should be aimed more at the record companies and less to the kids that couldn’t afford to buy your cd but discovered your ass through downloading.
BTW Randy I’ve illegally downloaded AND purchased ALL LOG albums so Fuck off and G’night.
The RECORD LABEL is fucking the band over. Tony VanVeen did a seminar in Chicago a few years back and made an interesting point. When I was in my late teens I dreamed of getting signed to a label, my band even made some connections. We came so close and then other bands starting saying it was bullshit, and work, and a nightmare. Years later Tony talked about how much a band makes. He said when a band achieves gold status sales(500,000 albums sold) they get $40,000. Simple math… 500,000 x $12 average unit cost = $6,000,000. And the band gets $40,000 of that?? So who got the $5,960,000? Before anyone gets technical and crazy here, We can breakdown production costs also. $20,000 average recording budget(unless you are Rap or Pop, then it only requires a computer with autotune installed). I’ll be very liberal with the next figure, since some artists are releasing some unique packaging now a days, $300,000 to create the (500,000)CD’s to be sold in stores. Labels don’t really need to pay that much to TV and radio anymore now that internet exists and bands can promote themselves all over myspace and youtube, but let’s pretend they don’t. $70,000 on ads and marketing/Distribution deals. Math away kids…. $5,570,000 is what I came up with, how ’bout you? You hardly scratched that 6 mill they started out with. And I know not everyone sells 500,000 albums. But think of all those little Biebers and other morons that sell more than that. This is why I am indie, and my songs are uploaded to the nets by ME. I live easy because labels don’t have me on a small allowance. All bands that are reading this, fuck labels do it yourself, total profit.
for musicians… I do not work for these guys, I am a client. Best thing I ever did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZaYn4QiNhQ
this would be a valid argument if the bands we listened to sold 500K albums on a regular basis.
Point is in the figures and how labels fuck bands. Your not required to sell that many albums to get fucked. Labels will fuck anyone at any sales level. Anyone watch Chimaira’s Dehumanizing Process DVD? Excellent example.
I can USE the shift KEY too when I WANT to talk LOUDER. Does anyone FIND this ANNOYING?
Emphasis on words, not LOUDER. Caps might mean screaming in Warcraft, but if you read articles in magazines, or a story, sometimes they use it make certain WORDS grab your attention. I’m glad to see it works.
This “tweet” is pretty funny, and spot on. I thought the analogy worked really well. That said, I get the feeling that Randy is a really grouchy guy.
On a semi related note, I just sold around 500 CDs to a local used music shop. I don’t really have room anymore, and I feel my life should be able to continue without Orgy or Alien Ant Farm.
That said, I’ve always wondered why musicians never bitch about used music stores, which does as much damage to the industry as pirating? Hell over half of the CDs I sold I had bought used.
Also, I think a problem that is as bad as downloading is Cd burning in general; having a friend say “Hey I thought you’d like this so I burned it for you. EVERYONE has done that at some point, something Randy never really touched on, probably because he’s done it every bit as much as the rest of us. This has been going on since the advent of home recording.
Well said.
life can continue with out orgy or alien ant farm? this i refuse to believe!
Who the fuck would care if people stole from McDonald’s? It has served over 99 BILLION people.
you missed the point entirely it seems.
no you just missed the awful joke
Like it or not, there IS NO MORAL GRAY AREA HERE. STOP STEALING.
No.
This guy doesn’t really know what he’s talking about, everything leaks on what.cd or waffles in Flac, sometimes trickles down to public domains like demonoid and KAT. Flac is just as good as Wav, uncompressed in it’s fantasticness, so the bitrate argument in 2011 is nil.
Only problem remains now is that 90% of everyone who downloads flac doesn’t have a high end speaker system capable of showing the difference between flac and mp3. No, Bose doesn’t count.
not everything leaks to what.cd there are still actual groups that leak to nobody its someone in the group that puts it on torrents.
and for LOG..put out a good album and i’d buy it..your last cd was horrible.
I find it funny that people can justify stealing as an okay thing to do just because they’re broke. People feel so entitled nowadays, like it’s their right. If you can’t afford it, too fucking bad. Do it the old school way. Save up and get it when you have the money.
I don’t feel entitled or like I have a right to the music, it’s just that I can get it with virtually no risk at all. If stealing a 55″ plasma TV was as easy and risk-free as stealing music off the internet is, I would have one in every room in my house. I’m not trying to justify it (cause I don’t really feel I have to) but just explaining why I do it. The reality is that if I can’t afford it, I can still have it, this isn’t back in the day and I am a huge fan of instant gratification.
Dude midnight you’re totally right, cuz the economy is awesome and buying records and merch is the only thing we blue collar types need to worry about spending our money on. But you’re right, while we’re at it lets not got into music at all cuz we can’t afford it, too fuckin bad. I got an idea, lets compare my annual income to sir Blythe’s annual income
I like Lamb of God, more so their older stuff like New American Gospel and As The Palaces Burn and I like Randy Blythe as well, but, dude, if you don’t want to start shit with a bunch of random assholes, then don’t post a public comment on some gay ass site like Twitter. Fuck Twitter, why are you even on it to begin with? You seem way too cool to be on such a douchy site. Just play music and do as you have done since you started. I know what you’re saying and agree with you but posting it in a rage where you know losers are going to hate on it is not going to change anything. I guess I can consider myself a loser since I am commenting on it too but just let it go and shut up because you are starting to sound like the fag from Disturbed. Personally, I think he is on a week-long drinking binge, which, I have gone through many times as well so my sympathy is with him. Let it go.
To comment more on the downloading music aspect instead of the random onslaught of Twitter comments from one dude in the past few days, it’s a two way street. Yeah, some artists aren’t making as much money as they would be if their albums were being bought instead of being downloaded. However, mainstream albums will always make money because the hits are constantly being spun on the radio and MTV. But, in the metal world, where you have to actually find the music, would their albums be bought in the first place if songs weren’t downloaded and being passed from person to person on Youtube, or whatever, in the first place? Metal is not well-known in the mainstream so how would it be found if it wasn’t for the internet? I know Metallica and Pantera were selling records in a time before internet but word of mouth seems to have disappeared in this generation. Maybe, it’s because of the internet. Wow, how ironic. I seem to have come full circle and I think that is the point. Now that the internet has arrived and is not going away anytime soon, there is nothing you or I can do about so just embrace it like a horny woman. You can fuck them as much as you want, but once in a while, you are going to have to take them out to dinner.
^^^ easily the best post on here… right on dude
I don’t download music cause I’m poor…although I’m not rich by any means…I download music to figure out new bands and old bands alike. I use my left over money for concerts. Cds/vinyl (hello 1990)/etc. just don’t do it for me. I can’t fumble with a cd while I’m driving to listen to 1 and only good song on that cd then switch it. And as someone else said the bitrate comment is used and null now. Regardless of FLAC/WAV/ISO files like it or not…people really don’t fucking care man! its music regardless if its in 320, 192, 128, 96 or FLAC like it or not its music and they will listen to it..there is still people who think .wma is the way to go. To each their own. Stop bitching and put out a cd that doesn’t suck and go tour
Most of the time, when a new album gets leaked, I download the album, listen to it a few times, and if I like it, buy it. If I don’t, I delete it. I do the same with games. Support what you like, because even though “Times are tough”, bands need our support (And money – let’s be honest). You don’t work for free, and neither do they. If they have no incentive, they stop touring, stop playing, and despite how popular they may be, they stop existing.
As far as “CD Quality”, is he aware that lossless digital audio exists? I’ve heard rips that sound better than a CD – holy shit, and they’re portable. When’s the last time you saw someone at the gym listening to their CD player?
Also, in reference to LOG, everything after “As The Palaces Burn” has been a complete failure. He did sell out, like so many other metal bands have. He won’t have to worry about me downloading this album, possibly liking what I hear, and then purchasing the album to support his band.
The moral gray area is: You wouldn’t buy a car before you knew what you were buying, unless you’re a fucking idiot. Sure, a CD is only 10-15$, but I’ve wasted so much money on CDs that have been complete trash (Case in point: Everything after As The Palaces Burn). I won’t repeat past mistakes and waste even more hard earned cash.
Oh no, don’t take away a million bucks from these multi-million dollar record labels, or the “rock stars” who are pimped off by them. Wowee, don’t prevent them from going on a nice cruise in the Bahama’s or snort cocaine off a groupies sopping wet vagina. Boo hoo! Don’t let the rumors be true. Whaaaaaah! What will they do without their precious coke because their lives are so miserable!?
If this was some spoiled asshole like Miley Cyrus or Kanye West that point would be vaild. Support the musicians you like. He don’t have that kinda money…don’t be a dick.
I’m not necessarily directing it at Randell. I’m directing it toward his whining. Athletes, actors, filmmakers, musicians, and so on make more money than police officers, laborers, fire fighters, tradesmen, and all other forms of what I call “Earth jobs”, because let’s face it…celebrities are not “from this Earth”. Just because Lamb of God is a metal band, doesn’t mean they aren’t sell outs. So no, maybe he doesn’t do coke, but I was speaking of the entire industry as a whole. Randy Blythe is doing just fine.
jesus christ, how old are you?, thats really an irrelevant and presumptuous statement. Way to give us a ‘jersey shore’ style 2 cents on this topic!
His analogy makes perfect sense and he’s not asking for anything extra or anything more than he is entitled to. Even though it’s too late and it unfortunately won’t change anything, it needed to be said. The fans who don’t buy the music are the greedy assholes.
This is where I disagree, I think bands/labels are asking for more than they are entitled to with their current pricing model. It was fine to sell a CD for $13 when downloading wasn’t popular or so incredibly easy. The reality now is that if I don’t feel like dropping $13 on a CD I can just steal it off the internet. I have seen no real effort from bands/labels to entice their customers into buying their music.
They are selling the same product for the same price, even though stealing it is unbelievably easy. His product doesn’t have the same value it did 15ish years ago yet the price is the same. Why does a digital download of a CD cost only $3 (usually) less than the physical copy? There are no manufacturing costs associated with it, the only cost is the hosting/bandwidth which I have to imagine is much cheaper than actually manufacturing a CD. Not to mention the cost of the physical media (CDs) has gone down, I can get a spindle of 50 or 100 CD-Rs for less than $20.
I have not seen the industry try to find any creative solutions to this problem that might alleviate some of the impact of illegal downloading, they refuse to adapt and are suffering the consequences of that. For me right & wrong don’t even come into it. Is it stealing? Of course, but the only thing I’ve seen the bands/labels do about it is complain that no one wants to help perpetuate their shitty business model now that there is an alternative.
They are gonna keep screaming robbery so when the day comes that they go after people for stealing their CD’s right off the internet, they can say we warned you. And then sue some kid for $2 million cuz he wanted to make a megamix on his mp3 player. And that my friends, is how the industry is adapting to this change. They don’t want you to buy albums, they want them stolen so they can sue you fuckin dead. 1 lawsuit = Platinum sales!!
Ahhh, the justifications for stealing music go on and on. Chris Rock’s simple logic works here – you’re SUPPOSED to buy the music of bands you like, you’re SUPPOSED to support them by rocking a show here and there, you’re SUPPOSED to buy some merch if you’re so obliged, and you’re SUPPOSED to support them by spreading the word if they truly kick an ass. *all said with that Chris Rock smile where his mouth is barely moving*
I will happily support bands I like (shows, t-shirts, buying their music online directly from them, amazon if they are not offering it directly).
But $20 a CD in the store? Fuck that. Greed is why the music industry tanked. $20 a CD is a fucking joke.
Can I just ask where it is you buy CDs that they are $20 apiece?
HMV
milwaukee wisconsin, 1994?
You leave Milwaukee out of this!
“Back in the day”, when I was a kid we used to borrow friends albums/cassettes/45′s and record them on blank cassettes. I wonder if any of these muscians who are complaining about the downloading made any cassettes when they were younger. Or even on cd in the early 90s. Its the same thing as downloading it. You are using someone elses album etc, and putting it onto a blank cassette/cd without buying it–same thing. I would venture to guess that almost everrrry one of them has done that. So then they should go to every one of those artists and say “hey heres my 12.99 for the album i put on cassette back in 1988″.
Ok I realize with the internet that its a much broader scope and much easier to do than what I used as an example. Of course I have downloaded cds but I’ve always paid for them. But i’ve also had friends give me some they downloaded because they thought id like it. I also much prefer to have the “actual” cd and not a copied one so 99% of the time I do go and buy it
Ive rambled on I realize, sorry, but I just hate hearing this crap over and over again. Like when Lars was bitching about napster. Hey Lars, did you have any albums you borrowed and put on a cassette for yourself–i bet ya did. Hell in the early 80s tape trading was almost the only way for some of the bands like Anthrax, Metallica, Slayer et al to get out there. The fanzines back then had a whole section for tape trading
Again I know the internet has made it much more readily available so to a point I can sympathize with these artists but you have to take the bad with the good, its a catch-22 situation. On the other hand, if not for downloading there are some artists out there , that while still struggling, may not have even been heard and that can lead to bigger things for them soooo there we have the good with bad analogy again.
Thanks for reading my doctrine here haha, didnt plan on going on the much about it, just tired of hearing about this once again and had to get that off my chest haha. So you can now go about your day!!!
I can dig it.
One thing Randy is ignoring here is the issue of exposure. Piracy is giving lots of bands exposure they would have never had. Lamb of God probably wouldn’t have gotten ANY attention without piracy – they OWE it to piracy that they’re where they are now. It’s the reason people know about them in the first place. Some struggling artists, such as Devin Townsend, acknowledge this and are ok with piracy. He accepts the state of the industry and understands that it’s a double edged sword. As for Randy Blythe, he’s an angry fool who likes to make a big issue out of everything and fails to acknowledge when something is benefitting him in addition to hurting him.
I’m sure it had nothing to do with word of mouth, excessive touring or those people actually being good musicians. Listen, people who buy the bands music, go to their shows, buy their merch and talk about the band contribute to a bands exposure way more than people who just download the music for free. Out of a million people who download a bands album for free, how many do you think actually go to see them live or actually contribute to a bands exposure? Not that many.
No shit, but of those people who went to see them live how many do you think downloaded the album for free first? Probably the vast majority. They owe the turnout to their live shows to touring. And you know what? Most modern word of mouth about music happens over the internet, and usually involved piracy. We’ll save whether Randy Blythe can actually be considered a musician for a different debate.
Sorry, meant to say they owe the turnout to their live shows largely to piracy.
Will agree with you about the Blythe/musician thing. Was just speaking in generalities. And of course word of mouth is mostly over the internet. It’s evolved from magazines and newspapers to that over the last 10 years. Word of mouth is communication. The medium just changes. However, I just don’t believe that someone who steals a bands music and tells their friends where to steal it as well is more beneficial than someone who buys the cd and tells their friends about it. And a band doesn’t owe their live show turnout to piracy, they earned it from making quality music and a quality live show.
I just don’t think that’s true at all. At least, personally, I always go and see a band because I liked their studio recordings, not because they have a reputation of having a killer live show. Some bands that sound great on record don’t have a great live show, but I’ve never, ever seen a band based on hearing that they had a great live show. And frankly, the music that sells the most copies generally isn’t quality. Quality music and a quality live show and good musicianship have almost nothing to do with it.
@frog i can honestly say i am not a huge fan of gwars recordings i mean they got some cool songs but would i miss a live show of theres? of course the fuck not killer live show! and there are other bands that i would go see if i heard they are cool live. besides going to a shitty music concert can beat sitting around jacking it to comments on the prp most of the time
I want a hamburger now. Anyone got any free ones they can send my way?
I didn’t want to comment on this subject because it is so touchy with absolutely everyone and illicits so many strong opinions from assholes that think they have a right to form one on the subject. But after reading some of the very poorly thought out and completely unfounded opinions on here, I just couldn’t resist.
I honestly find it very difficult to believe that there is even 1 person signed up for this forum that has not “illegally” downloaded anything in their lives. If you have commented on this thread and said that downloading music is stealing and you don’t do it, you’re a goddamn hypocrite because I can pretty much guarantee that everyone here has, at one time or another, downloaded something “illegally” or committed piracy in one form or another. And, yes, copying someone else’s tape onto a blank one, which members of the ’80′s and early ’90′s generation were wont to do, IS definitely a form of piracy. The only difference between any of us to discuss here is whether we did or did not feel bad about it.
Yes. In the dictionary definition sense of the word, this is “stealing”. Thank you to the many that have pointed that obviousness out. We are all so greatful for that knowledge that we previously did not possess. Now, I’m sure you probably have a busy day of being outside making sure people are aware of the fact that the sky is blue.
As much as I respect Mr. Blythe for his intelligence (as evidenced by his strong, meaningful lyrics and oftentimes outright verbosity…save for his string of variations on “fuck” within anything he says), I am at the opposite end of what he is arguing for. With that being said, however, I am not directly affected by piracy. He is. He is actually entitled to his opinion. His can be justified and his argument is valid and well-founded. Since I am not directly affected by piracy, I cannot, within good conscience, argue so strongly on this subject.
What I can say, however, is that I am a huge fan of music. For myself, and probably many of you here, to own all pieces of music that I desire would probably put me somewhere up in the billions if we are talking about cost. Additionally, my 1200 square foot suite would not allow adequate storage for such a massive collection. So, by following the argument of Mr. Blythe and some others on this thread, since I haven’t the money to purchase nor the storage space to store such a collection, I should not be entitled to have this music? Does this not defeat the whole purpose of creating music…aside from the greed aspect accumulated with the growth of capitalism?
In conclusion, I will continue to download albums that I deem not to have enough worth to me to be purchased. Crucify me if you will, o naysayers, but at least I am listening to your music at all. Mr. Blythe, your hissy fit was ineffective.
I don’t feel bad about stealing some music. I just uploaded all of my buddy’s Beatles discography. I’m not morally conflicted over whether Paul McCartney (or Michael Jackson’s estate?…) misses out on a bit of coin. Fuuuck that. As soon as I find a Rolling Stones discog, I’m ripping that shit too.
I did however, pay for my download of Doomriders, for example. I, personally, would feel wrong about ripping their music. I enjoyed it enough to buy it.
Someone earlier mentioned that it’s stealing, but it’s not the same as shoplifting a CD, because of the risk factor. I wouldn’t shoplift the Beatles discography, ‘cuz it’s big, heavy, and I wouldn’t want to get caught. But if it’s a matter of borrowing it and ripping it, meh.
semi-off topic: does is matter that in the internet age any asshole with an instrument, a computer and a decent connection online can make an album? Thank you justin bieber’s of the world. Because some musicians work hard to get a tiny iota of ‘fame’, while you spent an afternoon jacking off to high school musical and figured you would record yourself singing about how you love your “baby”. Didnt this type of phenomenon contribute to the decline of the music industry as well?
…not just the lack of artistic innovation (which I could go on about), but the computer in general has finally created a tipping point for what were once solid industries. Publications like magazines, newspapers and phone books no longer monopolize information so their old business model is out the window. Even the Post Office can’t support the system it created years ago. It may not be the crux of the issue but you’re right, there are alot of contributing factors to the record business collapse. While music piracy may be legally (or morally?) questionable, it is not the sole reason.
This guy fucking LOVES twitter. /M\
Dudes! Seriously he does have a good point, but straight up im a brokeass and need music for my sanity. So yes, im a dirty pirate who steals music. At least im listening to it and if its good enough ill tell my rich friends so they can fulfill the bands need to live as well and randy blythe can have a burger from time to time. And for the record, live music sounds better then cd/ipod/tape/vinyl any day. Ill sell my plasma to see a show if i have to damn it!!!
I’m going to get a Hamburger.
For me, using the Internet to get music has been a way for me to check out a band I don’t really know. If I like what I hear, I’ll likely buy the cd. He needs to accept that shits changed, and him whining won’t change fuck all. Get a real job if you really want to feel like your being ripped off, douchebag.
that has to be the most metal pic ive ever seen on this site
He’s from the Canadian tv show trailer park boys. Best show ever.
i think i have watched that once or 2x
hmmm just recently downloaded all the seasons. does Canadian piracy count? wook?
Are they still making new episodes for trailer park boys?
i remember my first pirated album. it was back in 1992. it was a cassette copy of TMNT II: Secret of the Ooze Soundtrack. i was 8 and my 15 year old neighbor made me a copy. didn’t seem weird then, but now looking back on it….
however i don’t recall Vanilla Ice crying about it.
I remember trying to make mix tapes on cassette and trying to squeeze one more song on only to have the side end! Shit pissed me off.
i remember you could hear the tape go from brown to clear. it was like the equivalent to the xbox red circle of death. you just died a little bit inside when it happened.
Man, I played the shit out of my mix tapes back in the day. I hooked up Much Music to our radio with a tape deck and made ‘em there.
When I hear certain songs end now, I always expect the next song on my old mix to start playing after. That shit’s burned into my psyche.
If bands gave a day of free downloading for their new stuff, despite the quality of what they put out; people will download it then rather than wait for the actual release. This we know. However bands such as Prince, Radiohead, NIN and a few others have made their music downloadable before actual sales and i’m sure that people still bought the cd. And to say that the analogy doesn’t make sense, you’re retarded. Fact of the matter is more than likely, most of you are stealing music and other shit from other people conscious free; competing with your friends to say you have more music than the other, knowing full well you’re picking up the new NEO track ft. Pitbull in between your BRAND NEW KORN AND SKRILLEX ALBUM. You’re all so silly with your hate for this guy. I don’t know any of you’s but i’d still laugh at your big dumb faces whilst i fart in your general directions.
was that a wes borland pun?
I have a very difficult time respecting, or even reading to entirety the opinion of someone that uses “you’s” and doesn’t recognize the difference between “conscious” and “conscience”…especially if said opinion is posted in response to arguments intended to stimulate somewhat intelligent conversations. Furthermore, judging by your icon and general lack of respect for proper use of the English language, I can only assume that your allowance fund for new albums is $0 and you probably have about 10 queued up for download as we speak.
I mean…that isn’t to say your opinion is worthless to everyone, it’s just worthless to me. Bravo on the proper use of “you’re” though.
This is an opinion from a guy who probably plays W.O.W., lives with his parents and when his internet gets shut off, tries to stuff a t.v. remote up his ass. You’re pathetic. And yes at 6am typing errors occur but you sir; have no excuse for stupid. Honestly the only stuff worth downloading is the live shows bands play. The English language died a long time ago, and Branch Davidian Style? Hahaha, you really are a dork! Let’s live on a ranch perform incest and await the military and local officials to have our world burnt to the ground. You should do that, save the world and quit breathing.
Since I can’t reply to your comment directly, I’ll just add it here, Dedson.
If you would have actually taken the 2 minutes it would have taken an average, semi-intelligent person to read through my previous post, you would realize that I actually live in a 1200 square foot apartment suite (3 floors ABOVE basement level). Furthermore, my parents live about 10 hours away, I have never once played WoW nor have very much time to watch TV (let alone try to stuff a remote up my ass…wtf?) and I make upwards of $75,000 per year.
Also, for the record, “Branch Davidian Style” is the title of a song from a band called “Acumen Nation” that just happened to be playing at the time I signed up for this forum.
Additionally, I’m not really sure how you’ve justified referring to me as “stupid”, but I’m sure the explanation is, no doubt, epic.
You really don’t know how to come at me, do you?
These arguments were meant to stimulate somewhat intelligent conversations? Then why was Blythe’s argument-starter posted in all caps with the grammar of a second grader?
We’re nerds. We are some of the few folks who buy physical albums.
I download a shit load, but I also own way more CDs and music shit than I should. It’s a double edged sword.
Already solved this dilemma for myself years ago.
I don’t buy major label music. I only buy indie label music, purchase directly from artists, or only buy used CDs.
Where can i get me one of them Mcdonalds door keys???? lol
after reading all the comments none of you people have made a valid point. Again you guys are stating whatever just so you don’t look like an Asshole and to make it look what you’re doing isn’t wrong.
I never claimed what I was doing wasn’t wrong or that I wasn’t an asshole, I just explained why I do it. I don’t agree with how much your product costs and I have an alternative method to get it that is illegal but essentially without risk. You don’t think the current business model of the music industry has anything to do with why so many people choose to just download the music instead of buying it? Everybody that illegally downloads music is at fault but the bands/labels are also at fault for not adapting and trying to find ways to persuade their fans to actually purchase the music.
FYI I’ve bought two of your albums and paid to see you live so I’m not a complete asshole thief, just mostly
how should they adapt then? a whole MP3 album can be worth 1 dollar and you still wouldn’t buy it. I like how you and everyone else on here who don’t make music for a living toss out “ideas” on how bands should market thier music and have no knowledge (especially you) of the business.
I’m all in favor of ISP’s snitching on everyone out who download music illegally. I did not feel bad about those people who got sued by the RIAA.
NOBODY in this entire thread has made a valid point? Maybe you have reading comprehension issues.
no you do frog face. obviously you stopped at the first sentence and didnt bother reading the second sentence after it. Retard!
…and factually I should inform those braggards that “have downloaded my share” of music to know that I have NOT downloaded my share. Not even close. No sir, I been sitting on my ass, watching you do all the work, laughing at you behind your back because I am getting by doing nothing at all. So go get your share and while your there, get mine too, will you? Why are you still here reading? Move it I said!
People will never stop downloading music, that’s just the way it is and the way it will be no matter what anyone may have to say about it. My opinion for getting consumers to purchase the physical product again would involve making the package contain something more, something extra that would warrant paying the 11+ dollar price tag on most records. Obviously just snazzy cover art and a lyric booklet are not convincing items to make someone choose the physical product over a free digital copy. It must contain something new that could not be replicated into a digital format that would sway the music listener to desire the product the band is selling. As to what that would be or how it would be implemented, who would decide? The record company? The artists themselves? Or a collective effort between all parties involved? Who knows at this point, but I believe there are obvious solutions to this that would make all sides happy if someone put forth the effort.
I’ll never understand why these labels and musicians can’t remodel their business in light of how people are choosing to get their products these days. DC Comics now release their comics in an online format on the same day as the physical copy. People said they were mad to do it, that they’re basically fucking themselves by giving it away for free…but you know what they’re also giving away with it? Advertising. At least 5 or 6 pages of a comic is advertising. Every time someone downloads a comic illegally/for free they’re still downloading the advertising because it’s part of the product. Now i’m not saying we should have jingles for McDonlads in between tracks on albums but there’s got to be a way forward where corporations pay the labels to insert advertising into the free copies of albums that are given away. IE You can’t open the zip file without sitting thru a 30 second commercial or giving over an email address to get spammed the fuck out of. Can you imagine how much money labels would make doing that? $Millions. They could give away ALL their albums online for free, earn a fuckload from advertising and STILL sell physical un-tainted-with-advertising Cd’s and Vinyl. But they still think they can thrust this moral argument on people and we’re gonna sit here saying “Poor old Lamb of God are losing so much money, what a fucking shame.” If you want to support a band, go to a show and buy a T Shirt. They get a shit load more money out of that than they do when you buy an album, which is probably something like $1. Yeah people will lose their jobs in record stores and at labels etc with this new business model coming in..but ya know what? People lost their jobs when the coal mining industry in England collapsed, and when the car business in Detroit moved somewhere else, and in a billion other places. Fuck, they’re closing down McDonalds here and there now as well. People lose jobs, industries change. It’s the way of things. People adapt and move on.
I’ve got a hardcore mentality anyway, I don’t believe music should be anybody’s full time job. It ends up making you careerists, and ultimately shit. I will continue to gleefully steal your music Randy Blythe…and then immediately delete it off my hard drive when I realise your new album is the same as the last one…rubbish.
I’m a downloader, but I support numerous bands live and through merchandise. If you want me to buy a CD (which I have no desire to own), bundle it with something else for a reasonable price ($20) – a t-shirt, DVD, etc. KSE’s As Daylight Dies SE came with a DVD and all of the members autographed the insert – hell yeah I’ll pay $20 for that. But $10-$15 for just a CD? No.
And that is exactly what i mean. There better be something sweet to persuade the listener to shell out that cash. Something that can’t be replicated digitally, and something to warrant that price tag. Most of us learned a long time ago that compact discs are incredibly inexpensive to manufacture, and how do you value various artists creations? Obviously it’s time for CD’s to go the way of the eight tracks and the cassettes and a new medium and/or method should be explored to deliver content with a new twist to reinvigorate the industry.
There was an interesting twist to the autograph sessions at this year’s Uproar Fest – in order to get the band’s autograph, you had to buy their CD (some of which were priced up to $18.) If I really like a band and want their autograph, I am more than happy to buy their wares if they will sign them – I think it’s more than fair. I bought a cool Alien Ant Farm shirt that is 3 sizes too small because I liked the design and they were there to sign it – it’s something I’ll obviously never wear, but it’s something I could hang if I ever get the motivation to buy cases/frames.
But on the flipside, what about those individuals that already purchased their CD? You make these people buy the album twice to get one signed? That sucks. Why not a shirt or hat or any number of merchandise items? This could have also been due to Best Buy being a sponsor – I’m guessing the signing promotions were done through them.
DEAR GOD….A WORLD FULL OF HAMBURGLERS….
WHY DID WE ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN?!?!?!
I’m all in favor of bands charging for autographs now. Like how athletes charge to get theirs. The only way they shouldnt charge if you present them a CD that you bought from their merch table or record store. not that you burned on a shitty CD-R.
if you want to take a picture with them. they should charge for that too.
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