The campaign vs the music

[goinghome]

Morrissey wrote:

"As we all now know, the world of music is purely market-driven – not even youth-driven anymore. Talent or merit or songs do not enter the equation for a split second; the campaign is the thing, the campaign is what is discussed amongst the public, the campaign is what impresses the press, and the songs are never a factor. The labels will only push the "artists" that they themselves have discovered, and have no interest in the self-made, blah, blah..."

Hureharehure posted about this issue on the main page:
"I'm so happy to see that various sites/papers/etc. that have covered Morrissey's statement (e.g., Pitchfork, the Guardian) have quoted the part about the music industry being purely market-driven. Because unfortunately no one else as prominent as Morrissey seems interested in talking about such things. Instead they seem to take it for granted that its an immutable characteristic of modern life. Not just with music, with books and films and everything else ... it wasn't really that long ago that "news" about the highest-grossing movies and how much was spent on advertising them was considered to be of interest only to people who worked in the industry. Now it's apparently supposed to be interesting to everyone, meant to make them feel like insiders I guess. Likewise with book deals. It's disgusting and I could complain about it for hours. I won't, though ..."

Is this really so bad? Surely the campaign is important? Or does it mean we're all forced to work backwards to find the goods, leading to a sense that life's just too short and so the gems are overlooked for whoever has most resources to push ANYTHING down our throats?

 

[Thrupenny Bits]

Morrissey isn't that prominent anymore. He himself said there is zero interest from record labels. Record labels are there to make money by giving people what they want. Seems not many people want Morrissey anymore. Which is hardly surprising given his age. He is where he belongs now - on the tour circuit playing to small theatres full of die-hard fans and people looking for a bit of nostalgia. Happens to the best of 'em.

 

[dailyalice]

I feel that market-driven is unfortunate. The reason being is that you have to consider who makes up the market, and the fact that when you average out the tastes of a diverse population you lose anything that might strongly appeal to a small subset. Consider Jesus - Christianity was completely ignored until the mega-company (HRE/Caesar) got a hold of it.

 

[mozsupportsrovers]

If Morrissey was "marketed" though in a way in which many others are then im sure his popularity would raise, but his respect would plumit serverly. For instance say a record company takes him on board and says to him, "right moz we will get your next song on all the radio stations in britain, you are going to appear on all the chat shows and your going to perform on x factor, and your going to be seen at all the awards cereomonies around" then his popularity would soar, as he's being "marketed" correctly in the eyes of the companies. But Moz has class and has respect for himself and his fans to say no to all this.

 

[SoVeryEntertainig]

If Morrissey was "marketed" though in a way in which many others are then im sure his popularity would raise, but his respect would plumit serverly. For instance say a record company takes him on board and says to him, "right moz we will get your next song on all the radio stations in britain, you are going to appear on all the chat shows and your going to perform on x factor, and your going to be seen at all the awards cereomonies around" then his popularity would soar, as he's being "marketed" correctly in the eyes of the companies. But Moz has class and has respect for himself and his fans to say no to all this.

Yes, added that - he has his lifting done, hair coloured, private trainer hired. He unveils his sexuality and has several photo shoots taken with his love. The love being.... say... Kylie... or... Elton's taken but - imagine all the publicity!!!


Thanks God he is a wise man. And I do hope wealthy enough to not to be tempted or forced to do something against it.

 

[Danny_]

I hope he always holds out against the campaign merchants.

When you see the lengths other older stars will got to to keep themselves in the public eye sometimes it seems like he's the only one left. And he never gets any credit for it.

 

[Silke]

What is "the Morrissey thing"?

 

[Raphael Lambach]

Morrissey isn't that prominent anymore. He himself said there is zero interest from record labels. Record labels are there to make money by giving people what they want. Seems not many people want Morrissey anymore. Which is hardly surprising given his age. He is where he belongs now - on the tour circuit playing to small theatres full of die-hard fans and people looking for a bit of nostalgia. Happens to the best of 'em.

Morrissey is still loved, but he doesn't had a good run anymore, you're right. But I guess it's impossible that people aren't interested about him anymore. If you see, he was in front page of many newspapers and he was the cover of many and important magazines - and of course, YoR was one of the best albums released this year.

 

[mcrickson]

What is "the Morrissey thing"?

A not-so new dance.

 

[jamescagney]

Morrissey isn't that prominent anymore. He himself said there is zero interest from record labels. Record labels are there to make money by giving people what they want. Seems not many people want Morrissey anymore. Which is hardly surprising given his age. He is where he belongs now - on the tour circuit playing to small theatres full of die-hard fans and people looking for a bit of nostalgia. Happens to the best of 'em.

He could be prominent (and should be). The labels aren't interested in him, not because he isn't a talent and a potential unit shifter, but because he isn't a 17 year old living on a smelly couch waiting to be shaped into the next Kelly Clarkson for the profit of lawyers. The record companies don't want to invest in Microsoft, they want to be in on the Initial Public Offering of YouTube.

As a result, he doesn't get played on radio and TV, so most people don't know he exists. People in general just buy whatever happens to get spoonfed to them on the radio. Personal consumer choice doesn't have a lot to do with it, really.

 

[jamescagney]

What is "the Morrissey thing"?

Are you looking for a picture?

Anyone here have a picture of "the Morrissey thing?" Silke wants to see it.

 

[CrystalGeezer]

I don't even know how to begin talking about this. Morrissey is right, his lament seems to be a frustration with the system, not so much that it's now a system that he doesn't get to participate in. He chooses not to participate in it, validate it.

Bleh, I'm not eloquent with these things at all but I'm relieved that Morrissey veers more toward the plight of music, not the plight of stardom.

 

[Troy]

Re: Marketing Morrissey . . .

Morrissey would have no issues with record label 'deal attraction' had he not given so little attention to professionalism and consistency throughout his career.

It cannot be comprehensible to cancel so many shows, those without explanation or apology - and expect a hoard of record label executives to be banging on your door.

They require a return for their investment - not for Morrissey to suddenly say he's 'not going to europe' because he suddenly doesn't want to go.

Who can run a business like that? Yes all arts are a business that supports the artist, even Titian was a successful businessman.

It's nothing to do with 'the campaign' but everything to do with . . . reliability and a professional attitude.

Would Morrissey employ/invest in himself and launch his own album? No, because it is . . . . expensive . . . .

Even if M were to tour the UK again, doubt I will attend (unless I know there is someone in the audience I wish to see, even then M may not turn up) - Not after the trash attitude of Morrissey's p/a - if he thinks such manners are acceptable then the above just proves my point.

Oh, and SEE would not refund my Liverpool ticket . . . what a complete joke, almost a complete series of 'Faulty Towers'.

Someone must be laughing somewhere . . .

 

[jamescagney]

Is this really so bad? Surely the campaign is important? Or does it mean we're all forced to work backwards to find the goods, leading to a sense that life's just too short and so the gems are overlooked for whoever has most resources to push ANYTHING down our throats?

Well, the thing is that "the (labels') campaign" is designed to maximize profit for the labels. As such, it is unfair to artists, in that it isn't based on talent. Talented artists get ignored, especially if they have any demands about how their record is recorded, released, packaged, priced, etc.

Young new artists don't fare much better. You may know that the label merely gives new artists a loan to record their record, which makes them indentured servants in debt and obligated to the studio from day 1. This isn't fair either.

And we the listeners suffer too. Radio is different nowadays. I've never been able to listen to it for more than a few minutes. Music lists for all radio stations are now picked by a single company with a computer. Human DJs and fans calling in requests have no power. Try having 1000 of your friends call a station to request Morrissey and see what happens. The music is picked for you. Plus as far as I know, payola, paying to get played, is still in effect. Drive across the country and it's the same everywhere, no pleasant surprises ever. It sucks. Thank goodness for my mp3 player or I'd never hear good music ever.

Consider the story of the LA band "Self," a.k.a. Matt Mahaffey. Mahaffey is very talented and has done many excellent records that no one has heard of and are in some cases out of print. He did a record of all toy instruments. He plays backup for Beck. I love his music and by all rights he should be rich and famous.

He also plays ball. He's made Dreamworks lots of money by producing records (Mandy Moore, etc.) and by doing all the music for the Shrek karaoke segments you see at the end of every Shrek movie. He had a record deal where he would do one label-controlled release if they would then let him do a second release his own way.

His last record was supposed to be a big breakout record. He was trying to make it "a love letter to KROQ." He let the labels have a LOT of input. They kept requesting revisions, like the keyboards were turned down to be inaudible and the guitars turned up. As a result of the record suits making musical demands, the record ended up not as good. (This is why Morrissey and Robert Smith demand total creative control, and as a result labels aren't in a hurry to sign them. Is this a good thing for us? I think no.)

But the worst is that Matt's record was never released. Dreamworks Records was sold to Universal (I think) who then shelved the master tapes forever. Matt can't even shop the record to other labels because Universal has put a huge price tag on the master tapes. The record was so close to be released, Matt had released a new free b-side on his web site each week for 16 weeks until the record was to come out. But it never came out.

Perhaps as a result of "the campaign," Matt has released three to five albums worth of free MP3 b-sides on his web site over the years. The free b-sides are often better than his label releases.


Back to Moz... I'm glad that Moz is talking about this, and that so far not many people have accused this of being "sellout" talk. "Selling out" is a bogus insult. I think a *lot* of artists are upset at how the corporate music machine works, and rightly so... they just don't have Morrissey's balls to talk about it. Artists earn their money from their art and they should be upset when non-creative suits keep them from achieving their livelihood and reaching fans.

 

[Kewpie]

Refund

Oh, and SEE would not refund my Liverpool ticket. What a complete joke, almost a complete series of 'Faulty Towers'.

Someone must be laughing somewhere.

How come SeeTickets would not refund your Liverpool ticket?

People got their money back.

I bought a ticket from a fellow user who was unable to go, kindly refunded me the next day.

Also my friend who bought it from an eBay seller got money back.

 

[Scarlet Ibis]

As a result of the record suits making musical demands, the record ended up not as good. (This is why Morrissey and Robert Smith demand total creative control, and as a result labels aren't in a hurry to sign them. Is this a good thing for us? I think no.)

Robert tried to play ball, but they screwed him over anyway. Repeatedly.

 

[jamescagney]

Re: Marketing Morrissey . . .

Morrissey would have no issues with record label 'deal attraction' had he not given so little attention to professionalism and consistency throughout his career.

It cannot be comprehensible to cancel so many shows, those without explanation or apology - and expect a hoard of record label executives to be banging on your door.

They require a return for their investment - not for Morrissey to suddenly say he's 'not going to europe' because he suddenly doesn't want to go.

Who can run a business like that? Yes all arts are a business that supports the artist, even Titian was a successful businessman.

It's nothing to do with 'the campaign' but everything to do with . . . reliability and a professional attitude.

Would Morrissey employ/invest in himself and launch his own album? No, because it is . . . . expensive . . . .

Canceling gigs has nothing to do with it. When Morrissey cancels a gig, he's the one who loses money, not the backers or the label. (And the label isn't the same as the tour backer.) Morrissey pays a penalty to reimburse potential losses. Morrissey cancels gigs because he's sick, I haven't seen any compelling evidence to the contrary. He has a documented history of illness. If anything, he tours pretty aggressively, too aggressively for his body to keep up.

I haven't heard the backers complain about not making enough off of Morrissey. The backers are FAR FAR FAR more negatively impacted by the labels not paying the radio stations to play his music. The labels and radio stations control one's exposure to potential fans.

Morrissey has his own label (Attack) and has used it to release his and his friends' records, as he and Visconti may very well have helped Doll and the Kicks and Kristeen Young release their own record. But a vanity label like Attack can't release a record by itself -- not because it's expensive, but because you need to be linked to a major label to get the record into record chains and onto the radio. Ask Kristeen Young and Doll and the Kicks. They release their own records quite inexpensively.

 

[Silke]

Are you looking for a picture?

Anyone here have a picture of "the Morrissey thing?" Silke wants to see it.

There is an obvious reason why the world looks so grim for you. And it has all to do with you and very little with the world.

And once again a point totally missed by a member of the great lovely family.

 

[jamescagney]

There is an obvious reason why the world looks so grim for you. And it has all to do with you and very little with the world.

And once again a point totally missed by a member of the great lovely family.

Aw, come on, I was just joking around. I thought it was funny! Not grim at all. And I don't see that what I said should have offended.

 

[Troy]

Kewpie - See tickets after more than a few hours on the 'phone stated they could not find my purchase listed 'on the system', from my card number and my ticket number - it was odd they had all my other ticket purchases there though.

I purchased the L'pool ticket when they were first released - 6 months before hand, I did search my emails but I actually do not have much time to search through 6 months worth of emails to find my ticket details. I still have my ticket and it was posted to me.

Just don't trust the vendor anymore.