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| credit: wikipedia |
Steve Lukather spoke his mind about the state of the
recording industry 11 years ago. Music’s digital economy had fully taken root,
transitioned from physical mediums (CDs mostly) to shareable files and
streaming. Industry gatekeepers took full advantage. More for them, less for
you — the artist, I mean. We became awash in content. As well, consumer attitudes
shifted. After years of sharing and YouTube, we pretty much expect to summon
any song from anyone, at any time, at zero cost. Professional recording
incomes imploded and became loss leaders for lucrative tours and glacially
increasing stream incomes — the new economy. (I’m NOT going to say paradigm
because I loathe kitschy biz-speak!) Unfortunately, artists like Steve
Lukather and tons of other A-listers, former and remaining as previously exposéd
on this blog, are experiencing the absolute worst time in adjusting. I’d go
further and say a fair number haven’t adjusted at all, still clutching to the
idea that an excellent, expensive recording by the industry’s top professionals
should mean a decent financial return. Rock star millions for gold and platinum
sales …
Um, no.
This was one of Steve’s gripes within his epic rant so many years ago. His words have apparently undergone rebranding and are now recirculating on the social networks with this photo.
Lots of truth, no doubt, but how well do they hold up today? Sour grapes or truth bombs?
Maybe both.
He begins with derisions over the top streaming sites of
that era, Spotify and iTunes. At the time, streaming income thumbscrews were
exceptionally tight. Since 2012, more artists have spread themselves to more
lucrative monetization ala YouTube and others, where incomes are based on
traffic and ad sales, live event contributions (Super Chats), influencer links, licensing,
and other endorsement opportunities. The number of available monetized platforms are spreading too … Rumble, Twitter. This is in addition to Spotify and Apple.
“I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor. Rich was better, totally better.”
~ David Lee
Roth, Van Halen
Steve’s 35-year recording catalogue income pretty much dried
up in 2011. Dreadful travesty. He was not alone. If you weren’t a major touring
act, or merely a hired gun, odds are you weren’t making nearly the coin to
which you’d grown accustomed. Rock star millionaires became over-worked stiffs,
just like that.
Respectable streaming incomes are difficult to attain, to say the least. Only
the top-level artists generate enough clicks. Breakouts are rare, but not unheard
of, and the marketing behind that is another subject worthy of its own blog. Now
for some harsh truth …
“TOO many people can make records. Period.”
This was also an often-repeated gripe in the ‘60s. Anyone
with enough talent and cash could mosey up to a mic and let the cutting needle
drop. True, there weren’t many places to do this, and it wasn’t exactly cheap
either, but if you had the talent, generally, you could be on a recording. And
if you knew the right people, you could be on the radio. Again — gatekeepers.
Remember payola? Same story, different methods now. Leverage.
But let me get back to Steve’s assertion. Fantastic recording gear is everywhere now.
Relative pricing for astounding-level productions is peanuts. Everyone's got a
studio, or at least, the ability to record their own parts with a modest level
of competence. Don't know how? Watch YouTube! What very few of them possess is the knowledge to record at the
top professional level. Without sounding homogenized, I mean. Now, I realize that part’s become subjective these
days given popular consumer demands and futurecasting AI — new concerns entirely.
Steve’s on point here. Way too many people flooding the market.
Anyone can make a record. Not everyone can make a good record. Fewer still can
make an honestly unique recording. We’re awash with oversupply. Doesn’t matter
how good it is, chances are it will go unnoticed in the noise.
“Now it’s beats and how many Facebook hits or YouTube hits you get.”
Truer today than ever, except this next line …
“ALL which either make NO money or short-term dog-shit money with no real way
to account for it and truly suck for the most part. “
No longer true. Clicks can make one fabulously wealthy. Trending is king now — period.
Chances are though, it won’t be as a music artist unless you’ve got that aforementioned
marketing beast at your six … and the favor of the gatekeepers and copyright defenders, who will sap
your earnings in turn. Steve’s not wrong about that, either. There's a hefty price for the help. [Cue devil at the crossroads scene]
Don’t be naïve about the business side of music. How many times does
someone need to say “It’s a BUSINESS” before it sinks in?
“People want to be famous NOT good!
It is TOO easy to play 'pretend pop star’ now. With all the fakery and auto
tune-time correction -cut and paste etc.. fuck most young people don’t know how
to play a song from top to bottom in a studio in tune and in time and with
feeling??”
Might be a grand generalization on Steve’s part. I see tons of kids practicing
their asses off to be incredible on their instruments. It’s all over the net.
There are more fantastic players — at astounding technical levels — due to the notoriety
competition created by platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, etc. This was true
in 2011 too, so maybe sour grapes? Thing is, yeah
sure, some 5-year old kid can rip scales, or tap bass better than Victor
Wooten. Some 8 year old girl can play Tom Sawyer. We’re drowning in kid wonder
covers, to be honest. Suffice to add thousands of technical wizards at every
age. What hits have any of them written? Do they sound ORIGINAL?
Of course not, and there’s another dissertation-length rant waiting for ink …
not necessary, perhaps. We all know it.
I want to touch on the recording acumen though. Is it really
that important for one to be able to play a song in the recording studio from
beginning to end? (feeling aside)
With today’s technology, I’d say no. It’s inefficient. Sounds cold, I know. Most
artists don’t have the financial flexibility to take weeks or months for their
records. Sad, and this is likely the reason for creative absence. It’s
a Content-Now economy. Throw the dung on the wall, see what sticks. Repeat. That’s
how it is unless you do have the finances … and that usually means the
gatekeepers again. Your talent and your ideas equal dollar signs. At their risk,
so they call the shots. Business. <sigh>
“They make 'McRecords’ for people who don’t even really listen.”
Again, truth. Blame modern lo-fi
consumption (phones) and lo-fi streaming. Steve’s words are crystal to this
end. Yet I know a good many kids who appreciate the records from the golden
era – 60s through ‘90s. And vinyl’s making a notable comeback if you hadn’t
noticed. Of all people, Lars Ulrich and Metallica are major players now.
So maybe there’s a glimmer of hope. Records are selling, trending streams pay, good shows sell. Maybe we’ll experience a renaissance in originality as the competition heats up. Artwork is making a return (yay!). Maybe too, with all these incredible ubiquitous recording tools at our disposal, great music may make its return. Will no one sound alike? I think part of that ship has sailed. There are only 12 notes, so many guitar sounds, so many drum sounds, bass sounds, horns, strings, keyboards, exotic and traditional world instruments … words and phrases.
At some point we’ll have heard it all and done quite well in
immersive sonic luxury.
Then what?
