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Disparate Times 
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 12 2015
Location: Rust belt
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Points: 261
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 Topic: THE ART OF BUSINESS
Posted: November 20 2015 at 07:18 |
As a supporter of free market economy I have no problem with people doing what they think is necessary in order to make money. However I don't enjoy when bands blatantly attempt to go pop in order to achieve some level of success, or regain some level of past success. This happens all too often in the music industry there are so many examples I don't think that I even have to list one of them. The attempt at pop rock is just as hit or miss as the experimental approach that got the band where they were to begin with. One could make the argument for aspiring bands that the experimental approach is a much more lucrative one, due to the fact that one will stand out more for being different.
So this got me thinking about the mindset of musicians in general, when does the money start to play a role in the writing process of music? As a musician myself I would like to say the thought of writing music for money has never crossed my mind, but sadly I can't. I wonder if all aspiring musicians deep down feel this way about music. By no means do I write pop music, but the thought of making money from music is an entertaining one indeed. I'm guessing most if not all musicians have had a dream of being a successful musician to some extent, this doesn't mean that their music is flawed by this but I think it does have an impact. If an aspiring band decides to attempt something more experimental to hopefully be more recognizable it could be contributed to the fact that they would like to make money.
I guess what I am really contemplating is, when does the art become business? Or perhaps is there ever really art without the business?
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Songs are like tightly budgeted meals
Nobodies doing anything new or even real
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DDPascalDD
Forum Senior Member
Joined: August 06 2015
Location: The Netherlands
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Points: 856
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Posted: November 20 2015 at 08:19 |
I feel the same. I too write music and would (maybe even obviously) want to make money out of it, but though recognition, appreciation and popularity is reallly more important to me.
A thought I often have is that a lot of prog bands made pretty popular music in their top time (eg Pink Floyd was very popular with Dark Side and Wish (and still is) but was also very experimental and unique) and at the same time experimental indeed. Later on they WENT ON making popular music, they moved to a bit different style, yes but pop-music changed too, and they moved with it. Which also pretty much explains for example TER in a time where electronic is very popular, though you can still hear its "Floydish" things (It's What We Do). In addition, pop-music was more progressive/experimental in the 70's and then became more and more simple (to put it very bluntly).
I think only if we get a basis income people have the space to produce art without the business. And with "art without business" you mean making art without needing any reward and spreading it for free, or do I understand you wrongly? |
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altaeria
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 05 2004
Location: Philadelphia
Status: Offline
Points: 178
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Posted: November 20 2015 at 08:28 |
I think these situations happen when a label threatens to discard the artist unless label execs deem the artist's latest material potentially profitable.
So after an artist gets accustomed to professional production, financing, marketing, and distribution (and all the perks that come with those), they simply don't want to get dropped from their label... so they begin to pander.
Edited by altaeria - November 20 2015 at 08:29
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Smurph
Forum Senior Member
Joined: January 11 2012
Location: Columbus&NYC
Status: Offline
Points: 3167
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Posted: November 20 2015 at 08:46 |
 altaeria wrote:
I think these situations happen when a label threatens to discard the artist unless label execs deem the artist's latest material potentially profitable.
So after an artist gets accustomed to professional production, financing, marketing, and distribution (and all the perks that come with those), they simply don't want to get dropped from their label... so they begin to pander.
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I think it's no excuse. You could write 2 albums at the same time. One pandering and one with integrity. Then let the label finance your bs one and start a new "band" - finance the other yourself.
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Disparate Times
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 12 2015
Location: Rust belt
Status: Offline
Points: 261
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Posted: November 20 2015 at 08:57 |
DDPascalDD wrote:
with "art without business" you mean making art without needing any reward and spreading it for free, or do I understand you wrongly? |
Not necessarily spreading it for free but the idea of writing truly for yourself
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Songs are like tightly budgeted meals
Nobodies doing anything new or even real
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Icarium
Forum Senior Member
VIP Member
Joined: March 21 2008
Location: Tigerstaden
Status: Offline
Points: 34090
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Posted: November 20 2015 at 10:46 |
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good example of any time regarding prog and popularitet is Floyd, Radiohead, Tool and Mastodon, fins a c9mmen theme to why these different band med both musical progress, popularity in progress yet kept their creative credabillity
Edited by Icarium - November 20 2015 at 10:47
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JD
Forum Senior Member
Joined: February 07 2009
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 18446
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Posted: November 21 2015 at 13:12 |
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Art is ALWAYS about money, intended or not. Sooner or later someone is going to see an artists work and say "I wantz to getz me some of that" An offer is made, a transaction is completed and...BOOM...welcome to the machine!
I speak from first hand experience. I never created my art for "consumption" just because I needed to get it out. But someone offered and I accepted. It's actually kind of hard to think of anything that doesn't eventually cross the median into oncoming commerce.
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Thank you for supporting independently produced music
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npjnpj
Forum Senior Member
Joined: December 05 2007
Location: Germany
Status: Offline
Points: 2720
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Posted: November 22 2015 at 01:45 |
If you’re a creative musician,
you’ll want to be able to give up your day job to create and play your music
full-time. With very few exceptions, prog as a genre doesn’t allow you to do
this, so you’ll have to compromise and either go pop (at least to a certain
extent), or you’ll have to go on making music on the side as a hobby.
There are a number of
independents, but they are struggling most of the time.
The problem is that the
successful recording industry is only interested in making a profit; it’s
practically imbedded in the word ‘industry’. At the same time you can’t blame
the industry for this, that’s how the free market works.
Making pop is easy
and, and this is the main point: cheap. The necessary harmonies, structures, arrangements,
and themes are researched and practically automated. The audience has been
conditioned to buy the product (because that’s what it is) of the myriad Biebers
and Beyonces of this world. Not a single note that could upset the ear anywhere
to be found.
As long as a paying
mass audience isn’t trained or educated to appreciate musical structures outside ‘easy
listening’ conventions, prog artists that go professional will inevitably have
to drift towards the mainstream taste.
Only very few of them
will otherwise survive.
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THE ART OF BUSINESS
