Cathedral said:
Well, those statistics confound me as well. Surely, there are a lot more albums being released yearly than 17,000, unless that statistic was not taking smaller labels and independent artists into account.
You admit the statistics are bullshit or at least skewed the data to validate their opinion and take the website seriously? Huh...
I didn't say that those statistics were bullshit. Looks like I made a type or something when I said 17k. It should have been 27k. I just said I wasn't so sure I could completely stand behind that particular part of the statistic. Just leave it.
But that ten percent sounds very plausible to me. It's evidence that these record company executives try way too hard to pander to the lowest common denominator with every single album they put out instead of trying to have a variety of music. And try even harder to profit off of them.
Cathedral said:
Music is an art, not a commodity. Once a music album is made, you can only expect, at most, for one copy to be sold to one person one time only.
Food is considered an art by many respected institutions. Just like there are schools for music, there are schools for the culinary
arts.
Okay, sure. But what about music as a commodity?
Cathedral said:
You can't just keep on churning it out and selling it unless you have new people buying your product. Even the artists who have effectively attained the "blank check" status, like the Beatles, AC/DC, etc., face this. As long as they get new customers, there's money to be made. As for food, it's a lot more sustainable if the food corporations do not get a lot of new customers, as long as they are still selling to a lot of people again and again. If a record company does not get any new customers for their existing records, it's time to do another one. Or it will go out of business.
Let's stay away from the food analogy since you must not know what analogy means. The record industry puts out products for their customers so that they can make a profit like any other industry. They follow the trends of the people, they do not create the trends. If you believe they do, please advise how they are manipulating people into anything. I'm asking for actual evidence, not your opinion please.
Of course I know that a business has to profit in order to survive. I understand that. This is about sheer greed, folks. These big record corps are trying to stay big and grow while stubbornly refusing to adapt in the proper way to the ever-changing world, especially with the rise of the Internet. Look up the RIAA and what they are trying to do (control distribution by hook and crook).
I've explained how the corporates' method of mass manipulation worked. Do I need to explain it to you again? They take something, manufacture it, and promote it like it's the "hottest new thing". People, by the masses, buy into it. Only those with as much influence and as money as the corporal elites of the world can be successful with this. But you can't do this with just anything, it's gotta appeal to the lowest common denominator, it's got to have that allure and charisma of a typical celebrity, it's got to have this and that (which is usually superficial bullshit). Even if the product is successful, it won't last long, as you can see with teeny-bop icons seeming to just "fade" away from one year to the other. When profits from the product start to significantly dwindle, it is dropped and replaced with a newer one. Since so many people just seem to be unable to see the difference... well, what can I say? Ignorance.
Cathedral said:
Yes, the corporations are trying to brainwash people, it's because they refuse to play fairly, they want more and more money. They do anything possible to quell even a hint of competition and dominate dominate dominate. This relies exclusively on the human traits of ignorance and the herd mentality, and by God, they are successful.
Honestly, I only place 75% of the blame on the corporates, the other 25% goes to the consumers who keep on consuming whatever the corporations whore out.
Totally false. You can't back that claim up with anything. Stop making blanket statements and provide some evidence. Your entire argument is invalid without it.
Ever heard of consumerism? No? Well, it's time to go to the University of Wikipedia to learn all about it, smart guy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerism
Oh, and I bet your response will be "Your argument is invalid when you cite the Wikipedia herp derp". I can see that coming a mile away.
Cathedral said:
What a load of horse manure. You linked to me a completely irrelevant study about pregnant women listening to classical music to see if it would make their unborn children any smarter and think that's a proper argument as to why the article I linked to was not insightful or logical. You have gone a long way to eliminating any notion of credibility of your argument with that one.
Your argument is that people are ignorant because of the music they listen to. I linked you a study that shows that scientists are trying to prove that music has a bearing on the intellectuality of a person as an
analogous example for what a real, informative website is. The only relevance to your website is that it had to do with music, sorry you missed it.
I'm not saying that people are ignorant BECAUSE of the music that they listen to. That is simply a fallacy. No, what I am saying is that people are ignorant because they refuse to look beyond mainstream media and takes everything they say as the truth and forms their opinions and tastes around it. They do not think for themselves and thinks that's all there is to this world. Well, that could go for almost everything.
That's ignorance, defined. And ignorance is man's worst enemy.
Cathedral said:
I'm beginning to think that the notion of "we're not being forced to listen to anything" is nothing but an overused cop-out. Of course we're not forced to listen to Lady Gaga or Justin Timberlake.
It's not a cop-out, it's a fact. If people didn't like the music, they wouldn't listen to it. It's clear and simple.
Not that clear and simple. Some people just don't know any better. I didn't when I listened to metalcore bands when I had an undying love for Black Sabbath and wanted to listen to bands like them. But I just didn't know. A lot of people listen to something, mostly because it's popular (or "cool"), which is probably the stupidest reason for liking something in the first place.
Cathedral said:
And let me get this clear: I do not expect everyone else to listen to metal, much less like it. I expected more diversity in musical tastes. That's all. But it's just not there. It's always the same Goddamned bands they listen to! Over and over again! Until more people embrace actual musical diversity, until more people realize that there's more to music than what the corporate fat cats are pushing, then society is in trouble. It's a sign of the times.
Who are you talking about? Are you just making up honeysuckle up as you go along? Have you taken any polls or have any evidence of anything you're saying? I personally know someone that likes Lady Gaga and death metal...do you have any real life reference, statistics, evidence, to your bullshit claim?
Of course I was. I thought I could just let my thoughts flow out my mind, but no. I don't need any polls or "evidence" to say that most people have similar music tastes. Just take a walk. Go into public. Switch on the FM/AM radio. Watch TV. fresia, the evidence is everywhere!
Oh, and about death metal, you could be saying that he likes Cannibal Corpse or even Slipknot (I know they're "knot" death metal, but some people do. Hell, some people might think that AC/DC is death metal. HAH!) for all I know.
I would have been more impressed if you said you knew someone who loved jazz or classical music.
Cathedral said:
Call me ignorant, as I have called you ignorant, but the difference is: I know something, and I don't like it.
You don't know anything. You continue to spout subjective opinion with no evidence or any logic behind it other than some black and mysterious website that you yourself said contains flawed information. When you do actually know something, please respond.
I don't know anything. Well, keep on stating the obvious. Maybe I'll forget the English language and how to eat soon. Maybe I'll start liking Lady Gaga's music and start thinking that Black Sabbath is boring. Maybe I'll start voting for our next USA president while watching reality TV shows. Hell, I might just start going out and talking with people and making friends and getting laid just like everyone else. When that happens, I will have achieved Ascension. I will finally see the great big SPAGHETTI MONSTER!!! And maybe I will finally understand why mainstream music is great and why anything that isn't popular sucks. Ha ha! :rolleyes2:
