Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Compact Disc ; Disc Compacted



I was faced with a slight moral dilemma the other night. I host a local music show at campus radio, and had local glam rock outfit Blanche Davidian in studio to talk about their upcoming release show amongst other things. Now as seems to be the trend, the band had their manager listening with a watchful ear and his fingers ready to text for suggestions. I'm all about that, the more promotion the better, but there was one point that puzzled me.

"Make sure not to say CD release show. It's an album release show."

Fair enough, I guess, but I guess it really is a sign of the times when CD becomes a faux pas. I know that he meant that "album" is more all encompassing, implying that it will also be available in other mediums such as iTunes, but I guess I just never thought about it. I suppose the greater majority doesn't need something tangible anymore, so does that make music no longer tangible either?

I've had to defend myself a lot these last few years as to why I work at a record label and how apparently no one there knows what they're doing, and that they're going about it the wrong way. I am guilty of the same thing and think about all those same things too. But imagine how often the record industry has had to change. The record companies are trying so hard to be a part of the next big thing that they step over something that can be really beneficial now. I think it goes with any industry that has changed so drastically in the last 3o years that they're not always going to get it. There are so many ways to consume music its insane yet so exciting. Imagine then being the guy who thought of iTunes? Or carrying music on your phone? There is so much opportunity to open our minds and see what's out there and we have to be okay with the fact that maybe it won't work or it won't last. Hopefully there will be something else to fill that space later.

But I'm still going to always call them CDs. It's like Kleenex.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I think the reason we decided to do that is because we are releasing a collection of music , not just a disk. But it comes with a price, since many people automatically assume vinyl when they hear album, and that warrants a hefty explanation. Which vinyl isn't out of the question. With all the trouble I had with Discmakers this time around, I am fantasizing over a re-pressing that will be in the "vinyl +mp3" format. I love CDs. They are still my primary buying choice personally with my eMusic subscription a close 2nd and I love trading CDs on LALA. But, admittedly my faith in the format gets tainted a little bit more as time goes on.

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