Breezy and I got into a debate about Spotify in Idle Hands record shop in Bristol. Our arguments included that Spotify (at least if you have a subscription), is not a bad thing, because a) a little bit of money goes to the artist and b) you ARE more inclined to buy what you hear on Spotify, or tickets to related gigs. c) It’s a great way to share music in general and let’s face it, good music should be shared. I guess another part of it comes down to modern living and/or laziness. As an ex-pat in a tiny studio, my life is strewn between two countries with my CD and record collection currently living in a dusty loft in Norwood. Spotify and other such software provide convenience, free up living space and mean I don’t have to attempt to lug my records over on the Eurostar.
THEN I saw the above video of Theo Parrish at RBMA and I was moved. It made me think again. It made me feel lazy. It made me feel like I was betraying the vinyl dedicated producers and DJs that I love so very much. It made me feel like I was missing out on something and most of all, it made me feel like I should make the effort to sort my record player and records out. Who needs thousands and thousands of digital files which will probably one day get lost when you can have a few beautiful records which although fragile will last a very, very long time and sound waay more beautiful? That’s essentially what Mr Parrish demands in this talk. It reminded also of differences between analogue and digital photography. You just can’t beat the latter, you just can’t beat the real.
Anyway, that’s just one of the issues that comes up in this talk. There’s also sampling, the use of filters when DJing as a way of turning a record into a kind of orchestra and geography. Watch it, it’s seriously inspiring.
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