Loading ...Why Matador Sucks: A Brief Castigation Of The "Independent" Record Industry
By Evan ~ January 21st, 2008. Filed under: indie, rant.
It seems to me that an increasing number of music fans are willing to ignore the continued insults to our collective intelligence perpetrated by a number of supposedly “indie” record labels. Those of us who enjoy sharing music with our friends and small audiences (music bloggers, or general bloggers who enjoy hosting music — like myself) have had to deal with a growing number of complaints or threats from those responsible for releasing some of our favorite records. These same folks, who once took pride in the fact that they were operating far outside of the mainstream, and who openly spoke about the problems involved in running businesses inherently risky to their own financial stability, have now conspired to fatten their bankrolls at the expense of the very people who helped them achieve some level of success through years of dedication and support. Whereas once their philosophy was to supply music to underground enthusiasts at great personal cost, they have more recently done everything possible to destroy the tenets for which they once stood. The process of centralization and the creation of an “independent” lobby group to protect the rights of “indie” labels was just a starting point. The immoral, anti-consumer practices are going to continue, and hopefully more music fans will take notice and use their voices in an attempt to do something about it.
Now, the reason for this long-winded missive is because Matador Records has done away with their free MP3 page. The same label that is responsible for hiring Web Sheriff to threaten legal action against any blogger hosting MP3s recorded by Matador artists has now decided that they no longer want to provide free tracks for potential consumers because it has lead to bloggers linking to directly their server. Instead, they ask that fans please look for MP3s on individual artists pages rather than the label’s website.
Are those in charge of Matador really that concerned about their website’s bandwidth? Or have they become so greedy and power-hungry that they’ve taken away what used to be one of the most lenient digital music policies of any label just to sucker more money out of fans by forcing them to purchase tracks through online retailers? Whatever the reasoning, I’m calling bullshit on them. Not only that, I’ve gone ahead and added them to my running “blacklist”. And, as much as I’d like to hear the expanded re-issues of Mission of Burma’s Ace Of Hearts catalog, I’m not going to give Matador a single penny ever again. No more Mogwai shows. No more Dead Meadow shows. No more Malkmus shows. Let them recoup their money elsewhere.
