Dumb-ass Recording-industry Meat-heads

January 15, 2004 6:09 AM

While CD sales in the UK continue their upward march (nearly 8% this year) and UK music retailers show healthy profits, the Record Companies are gearing up to sue their British customers (ala The RIAA). Not all record companies, however, are taking the big stick approach: - Warp Records - (home of Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada and Chris Morris) steps up to the plate with high-quality music downloads, unencumbered by DRM. Go figure.
posted by Blue Stone (10 comments total)

FYI, Warp's Bleep is discussed here.
posted by chill at 6:19 AM on January 15, 2004

Aww crap. (sob)
posted by Blue Stone at 6:39 AM on January 15, 2004

Don't worry, Blue Stone! We can still salvage this by using it to discuss my IDM fanboyism!
posted by Darke at 6:51 AM on January 15, 2004

"We are looking at opportunities to say where people are committing a criminal offence, we should be able to gather evidence about them."

Oh dear. I'd been hoping that the powers that be over here might be a little less foolish, reactionary and generally inept than their American counterparts, but apparently not. If every record company was more like Warp I'd be happy to pay. It's the first such service I've seen that actually shows some respect for its customers: how many of these mp3 download .coms use lame --aps, and more the point, tell you that they do? As a result of that, coupled with their enlightened attitude and the sheer quality of their catalogue, I suspect they'll be seeing rather a lot of my credit card in future.

The big record companies, for their part, are more than happy to flog tinny DRM-crippled WMA rips of Britney and Christina to 13-year olds. But they steadfastly refuse to cater for people who really love music, that is to say, their most lucrative and more importantly their most loyal market. Which is a dreadful pity. But then again, listening to nothing but Boards of Canada and Blue Jam for the rest of time isn't that unappealing a prospect when you think about it. And if the BPI don't like that, they can bleep right off.
posted by zygoticmynci at 7:17 AM on January 15, 2004

Along similar lines, I just realized one of my favorite bands is giving their old stuff away.
posted by subgenius at 7:59 AM on January 15, 2004

Don't worry, Blue Stone! We can still salvage this by using it to discuss my IDM fanboyism!

I *heart* Boards of Canada! You?
posted by jennyb at 9:03 AM on January 15, 2004

I TOTALLY heart BoC! Particularly after listening to all of Geogaddi while tripping my tits off on lovely (and completely legal) Mexican mushrooms, just the other weekend. Synaesthesiatastic!

I'd be happy to join in any IDM fanboy conversation, as long as you don't mind me banging on about how great Michael Mayer and Kompakt Records are. If Kompakt did what Warp are doing I'd probably expire through sheer bliss.
posted by rikabel at 9:48 AM on January 15, 2004

Somehow Warp managed to get penetration of (all things being relative) highly experimental music deep into US record stores. Infusion of edge keeping living people alive in smalltown USA who were otherwise were stuck with radio caca. Incredible enough considering that those stores generally stock nothing much beyond the ilk of K-Tel dance collections.

smooth operators. clandestine urgings. touches of madness. outside the sequenced grid, lightning. distant campfires blaze. bottle up and go. go go go

posted by Twang at 10:04 AM on January 15, 2004

Yay IDM! Yay BoC!

Wait, what were we talking about?
posted by Foosnark at 10:11 AM on January 15, 2004

Kompakt are great, like a more chilled Tresor.
posted by inpHilltr8r at 5:15 PM on January 15, 2004