That is so true. I've spent five + hours in Vinyl Edge, Sound Exchange or some other music store. When I go in I start with the compilations then A to Z looking at every single album. I don't just glance at them, I'll look the art work to see if maybe it was done by some one who did an album I already have. (I hate it when they put the bar code on the art work. ) I'll look at the song titles cause there maybe one about another band or song that I like. I look to see who produced it, who the band members are, what label it's on and if there is some sort of a thank you list I'll look at it. I have found one of favorite bands by doing all of that. I think I screamed when I found it. (Pinhead Gunpowder) I first noticed the artwork then I flipped it over and saw who the band members were. Every member was in another band that I liked, loved or just enjoyed.
Amen! I think a lot of artists are so worried about the success of their albums that perfectionism sets in. It's natural to want to make something different, to stand out from the crowd these days. This was the biggest reason that Slash and Duff left GNR. Axl wanted to make something profound and revolutionary, while Slash wanted to record AFD-style music. I'd have no problems with a GNR album that sounds AFDesque, however, Axl knew they'd fade away as music trends changed. The sad thing is they accomplished the latter, without any albums at all. I will shed a tear the day I have Chinese Democracy in my hands.
One key reason is because recording is a now much more drawn out process. The old albums basically consisted of everyone in the band going into the studio and playing together at the same time. Mistakes were forgiven if they were minor and the overall performance was good. Now, recording usually consists of pre-production (songs are informally recorded to analyze each part) and then recording each instrument separately (where no mistakes are tolerable)There was also much less post-production work. Hence, a single could be recorded in an afternoon and released within a week. An album could be done in a couple of days. Artists also tour more widely today. Tours often last 18 months. Thus, it's pretty much impossible to maintain the recording rate that existed in the 70s.
That actually started in the late 80's with hard rock bands. The whole cloning of bands was something that began because every label wanted their version of Bon Jovi or Motley Crue or whatever. You really heard it in the early 90's when one label had Pearl Jam, another had Stone Temple Pilots, another had SilverChair and on and on. It isn't that they sounded identical. It is just that they were SIMILAR. The industry just follwed suit with rap, which the music industry largely ignored as a viable moneymaking music form until about 1990. I'm going to have to disagree with you on that one. I think kids are as into music today as ever, just not all of them are into rock music. Hip Hop is really dominating the music business much of it is built for commercial appeal. The kinds that aren't are popular mostly in clubs with DJ's, a scene that continues to thrive even without airplay. In addition, in "our day," there was a huge difference in the distribution of music as a whole. We went to concerts for $15 that today would cost us $50 or $60. In 25 years, while inflation has increased probably 30 percent or so, we've seen a 200 to 300 percent rise in the cost of concert tickets. We've seen the cost of records double. As a result, kids have looked for alternate ways to get at the music. To take it a step further, in the early 80's, there were literally hundreds of independent radio stations and dozens of record labels. Today, Clear Channel owns 4 times as many stations as its nearest competitor and dominates the radio market. As one person on the Frontline story put it, that eliminates the chance that you might have some crazy program director in Philadelphia who just loves a band and gives them a shot because of it. In addition, there are 5 labels that control something like 90 percent of the distribution. To make matters worse, record stores are closing a record rates due to the dominance of the big retail chains like Target, Wal Mart and others. One of the record label guys in the story said that 3 chains represent 50 percent of their total sales for a year, yet a store like Wal Mart may only carry 750 different titles each year when there are 30,000 + releases. Those numbers add up to incredibly limited, narrowly-focused supply that costs way too much and forces kids to find alternate sources of both music and entertainment. subtomic got it partly right, but here is the whole story... In the 70's, bands made the vast majority of their money from touring and merchandising. Record sales accounted for a moderate amount of their income, but remember that back then selling 500,000 records was a BIG deal. Today, if you don't sell 3 million, you are toast. Back then, you sell 500K and you sell out 15,000-seat arenas. Sell 2 million today and you are lucky if you can sell out a 10,000-seat amphitheatre. So, bands would go into the studio, spend a couple weeks making a record and get right back on the road to survive. I remember reading that Leftoverature by Kansas, and extremely complex progressive album, was recorded, mixed and mastered in 8 days in between shows. EIGHT FREAKIN' DAYS!!! Now, it takes 8 days just to make sure you got the right caterer. Another aspect is that recording technology and production has completely changed. The demand to make better and better sounding records is pushing labels and artists to spend much, MUCH more time perfecting everything. It used to be that you left a mistake here or there. If the vocals were slightly out of pitch, big deal. If the drum throne squeaked at the end of a song, you let it go. Not today. Records are completely sanitized for our protection. Most importantly, labels can no longer afford to release a record a year from a big artist. As the RCA guy said in the story, they will spend $2 million in PROMOTION ALONE on the Velvet Revolver record this year. That doesn't count the probably $1 million they put into the record and probably another $2 million they sunk into the video. Many artists would prefer to make records every year because the pay is good and it helps keep them in front of fans, especially since tours are beginning to sag because of low turnout due to ticket pricing. Essentially, you are seeing a polar opposite to what we saw in the 70's. Fewer tour dates due to low turnout and high ticket prices. Bigger productions for records and longer production times plus fewer releases each year. It is all part of moving the music business away from art and compartmentalizing it into a neat, tidy business operation. That makes for good business, but, unfortunately, really bad art.
I just listened to 'Set Me Free' and I can't believe how much Weiland sounds like Rose when he goes into that lower register, a la "It's So Easy". Looks like Slash may really be doing fans of classic GnR a favor here. As for Chinese Democracy - that thing will never be released. I don't know for sure, but I imagine Appetite didn't take 10 years to make. After waiting this long, there's no way expectations will be met. What classic albums took this long to come out? Seems like they're usually a result of a creative burst; some spontaneity. Is Rose still trying to make people forget the nightmare that was 'Oh My God' on the End of Days soundtrack? I think he was hoping for a better reaction there. And what was with the antics on his last tour? I mean people are actually PAYING good money to see his solo GnR cover band, and he doesn't show up? WTF?
