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Live by technology, die by technology
Reading all of the current posts in the past couple of days has really got me thinking about the how the internet has affected the music industry. I think most of us would agree that the internet has made things very complex---in terms of access to information about musicians/bands and the music that they make. The fundamental ability of the web to be able to spread tons of music to tons of listeners is a good one (in my opinion).
However, there are drawbacks to speed and accessibility that we're just beginning to recognize and understand. I believe it has really jeopardized our ability to understand patience and that sometimes you cannot have it now. Imagine, just for a moment, if all-of-a-sudden the internet no longer existed. Would it diminish your ability to enjoy music and be excited about music that is still being created? I don't think that it would.
My point is that the speed at which we take in information/music doesn't necessarily improve our happiness or mindset once we've got a hold of it. Anybody can now have a voice online (take me, right now)---which can be a wonderful thing. But, anybody can now have a voice online...which can be...?...????...well, we're starting to see...
As technology continues to grow at astonishing rates, let's not forget that the very technology that we've grown dependent on also has the ability to cripple us (ultimately, by our own hands). The essence of music has not changed though---it is about the feeling you get when the sounds enter your ears and your mind. Why are any of us here on this website/message board? Because we love the MUSIC of Pearl Jam. Am I right? Here's to hoping that the music remains the focal point...
However, there are drawbacks to speed and accessibility that we're just beginning to recognize and understand. I believe it has really jeopardized our ability to understand patience and that sometimes you cannot have it now. Imagine, just for a moment, if all-of-a-sudden the internet no longer existed. Would it diminish your ability to enjoy music and be excited about music that is still being created? I don't think that it would.
My point is that the speed at which we take in information/music doesn't necessarily improve our happiness or mindset once we've got a hold of it. Anybody can now have a voice online (take me, right now)---which can be a wonderful thing. But, anybody can now have a voice online...which can be...?...????...well, we're starting to see...
As technology continues to grow at astonishing rates, let's not forget that the very technology that we've grown dependent on also has the ability to cripple us (ultimately, by our own hands). The essence of music has not changed though---it is about the feeling you get when the sounds enter your ears and your mind. Why are any of us here on this website/message board? Because we love the MUSIC of Pearl Jam. Am I right? Here's to hoping that the music remains the focal point...
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for the least they could possibly do
That being said... Society in general has become more fast paced due to on-demand qualities of the internet. It's very hard not to take this immediacy for granted and abuse the living shit out of it. Everything is getting faster... everything is getting smaller... more compact.... A prime example is the way we listen to music.... If we're talking cassette.... 8 tracks got smaller and we ended up with analog cassette tapes.... and then with discs.... Vinyl records got smaller (theoretically speaking) and we got a "compact" disc... However, now we're listening to files which are not tangible at all... we can't hold a file in our hands... in essence it's not there at all. People want instant gratification because it's innate... when we're babies we cry for food because it's ingrained in our brain to do that... the internet feeds into our inborn want for something NOW. It's only when we exercise a bit of patience that our immediate desires subside.
This Pearl Jam "Gimme" shirt (pictured below) is actually a great visual example of this... the baby birds waiting to be fed is outstandingly symbolic of how we are as fans... We want it (it being product) and we will cry until we get it... when they first released that birdy logo I think people thought it was because of the "tweets" we get every so often, but I think it can be also looked at as a visual representation to the demanding fans we can be at times.
Sorry if that was at all off topic.
The internet as introduced me to TONS of new music I otherwise would never have heard. There's a world out there I never knew existed!
You can't rely on radio anymore that regurgitates that same top 100 songs from every decade.
I can't imagine my music world right noqw without the internet. It would totally suck!
The internet is an awesome tool for letting the little guy get their music out! Otherwise everything would be shoved down our throats by what big corporations choose.
The argument isn't about discovery of new music through the internet.
And this "i want it now" ideology is being passed down to the younger generation. Patience does have its place. When I make bread, and its nice and hot from the oven, I really want to eat it right away- but its not good for you if you do. Waiting a bit and it will taste all the better.
That said, I think the internet is great for music.
Indeed...however, one can not simply ignore the presence of this modern age. Staying ahead of the curve...embracing it and learning to use it to your advantage would elevate many issues.
PBM
Wishlist Foundation: http://wishlistfoundation.org
one problem is: now that anything is available to anyone anywhere, there's little incentive to actually learn and retain anything.... why learn it when you can just look it up? it's kind of like what happened to doing long division when the pocket calculator became the norm.. poeple forgot how to do long division altogether...
it is amazing to think of a time when a live record that came out the same year it was performed and recorded was considered very recent... and now we have people posting on this very board wondering why they can't get the shows the day after they were performed, like the phish bootlegs....
I agree for sure, but everyone processes information differently. What you take away from googling something might be completely different from what I or another person takes away. Someone might google something and just forget it afterwards, another person might google something and keep learning new things about whatever they've looked up. It's a much more independent style of learning... but you also have to be careful of everything you read online because you might be getting misinformed.
oh, no doubt! the breadth of information is/was not the issue.... its the retention and dissemination that were the focus of the story.
One of the bad things I see is that someone with an opinion and half facts or truths will write a dissertation for all to read about the atrocities of something or another. But they only have part of the facts or the story. Blogging has destroyed journalistic integrity. The public is easily swayed into the mob mentality online and that is bad.
I think the 1st listen has been tainted by too much information and hearing low quality leaks of the new material. But for die hard fans like us it is so difficult to deprive ourselves from listening to those tracks the moment they are available. Especially when people start talking about it on message boards.
At the same time, technology has increased the anxiety leading up to a new album for me. I don't think I would be counting down the days to an album that is still four months away without the information that the internet constantly brings us. In the early 90's all we would have is a small paragraph in a music magazine saying that Pearl Jam were in the studio or maybe you would be lucky enough to catch a 30 second news update on MTV or your local radio station. Anything said about the band, no matter what form of entertainment medium (TV, radio, newspaper, magazine, blog, etc.) we now have instant access too.
I am off to see the Gaslight Anthem tomorrow night. I have never heard them on any radio or TV show over here, I read about them, listened to them online and liked what I heard. So technology in my opinion when it comes to music is absolutey vital.
Seen Pearl Jam 4 times in London, once in Manchester, as well as an Eddie show at Hammersmith.
And half the stuff you Google might be incorrect. There are no editors and fact-checkers on the Internet.
for the least they could possibly do
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”