One obvious response to the challenge the Internet is posing to traditional music industry revenue models is for artists to try to disintermediate the record labels whose comparative advantages in distribution and promotion are less relevant in the contemporary world. Brad Stone’s article on the phenomenon happens to mention one of my favorite bands, Metric:
Bands that have taken this approach say it can be arduous. In 2007, after releasing three records with independent labels, Metric, an alternative band from Toronto, finally got several offers from the big record companies. But the band declined to sign after concluding that the labels were asking for too many rights and not offering enough in return.
With help from a grant from the Canadian government, the band cut its own album in April, “Fantasies,” and started selling it directly to fans on services like iTunes, where it has scaled the popularity charts.
A good excuse to embed the “Sick Muse” video:
Here’s a whole bunch of stuff for sale on their website.
Previous in TP Yglesias
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