Welcome new poster
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I think part of the point is that the recording industry doesnāt just have to be about cranking out big stars like Spears, who are invested into so heavily that they are considered a market failure if they sell less than 1 million albums. That doesnāt need to be the criteria for success, nor should it be. There are other ways to make music and make a living as an artistā¦
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Here is what I wrote about this at the timeā¦ [edited to fix, as it was showing the whole article instead of a preview].
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I happen to think he is more talented, but Iāve seen him bring a full room to tears with a drum solo.
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i assume that was not a stream of consciousness post 
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I agree, heās fucking amazingā¦ Palmer might agree as well. I saw them on the last Dolls tour and I was duly impressed, as I ended up right in front of him for the show. Heās really under appreciated as a drummer.
Maybe underappreciated by the masses, but he is in the Violent Femmes now and Trent Reznor prefers him to a drum machine, so somebody noticed!!
Great piece btw.
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No, I did some research for it. I generally put stuff up on TOM that are tangentially related to my field of study. Clearly, discussions on the recording industry and changes within the industry are squarely within my field.
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heh, i was just making a silly little joke. good piece, and hits rather eloquently on thoughts i share. having been in what you describe as a āpureā genre (hard core classical and jazz programs) i share the experience you describe. that is also what made me drop out of those music programs 
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I hadnāt heard he was playing with the VF and Reznor. I know at some point the Dolls toured with him.
Also, the two of them have this really amazing rapport. Iāve seen her with the Dolls and on the Theater is evil tour, and its clear how comfortable they are together.
When I saw them, they did this at the end of the showā¦ amazing.
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No worries! I didnāt assume malicious intent.
My husband had the same experiences, in the classical world, which is part of why I wrote that part as I did.
Iām excited to see Amanda Palmer at my local book store. Sheāll be signing her book, i really hope i get a chance to have her sign her kickstarted album. I really love her music and her wonderful view on the world and people, looking forward to having the chance to tell her so in person.
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The older I get, the more sickened I become with the American Dream of getting rich from the efforts of other people.
Three cheers for Amanda Palmer!
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Theyāre amazing as the Dresden Dolls.
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couldnāt agree more.
love this!
the current system isnāt about incentivising or protecting artists, and hurts artists more then it helps them, rather it is about securing revenue streams for larger corporate entities and transferring the rights away from the artists for their own works to said corporations.
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Iām not sure you get the scale of AFPā¦ and I think you are misrepresenting it significantly as well.
Where is this multimilion dollar production you are talking about?
I notice from your other comments that you think most artists are lazy? Hmmm.
If a professional musician steps out on stage, you pay them. They arenāt doing it for fun,
What if theyā¦ are? Seems to me that they are (and a tshirt, and a meal, and some beers, and the experience)ā¦ I mean, itās not like she is scheduling string quartets and then stiffing them on the invoice. theyāre not taking these people out of town with them, just asking them to add, if they want to, to a spectacle. Again, voluntarily, for kicks. But why would a lazy artist willingly sign on to such a thing, anyhow?
And the same goes for my current professionā¦not going to cure your
depression simply because its āfunā. Obamacare says I get paid.
So, under what circumstances do you give free advice? How much were you paid to share the above? Or was it fun, and itās own reward? See what I did there?
[edited to add, a review of comments shows that you and I mix poorly, lets be civil and not namecall this time around?]
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Well, all I can tell you is that my friends seem to have a different attitude about it. Iām grateful to them for their willingness to share their talents; I wish I could pay them, but itās outside my financial means (especially if Iām going to try to pay them what they make onstage).
I give most of them free computers, and free technical advice, but Iād do that anyway, because theyāre my friends.
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Yes.
Being in or out of a union doesnāt, as you imply, define professional. Man, I have had this conversation soooo many times, and artists seem to have a hard time getting it.
If you have a job doing xyz, you are a professional xyz. It doesnāt denote good, successful, well paid, happy, in a union, etc. And if you also do xyz for fun, that doesnāt demote you to amateur. --edit-- and when it comes to largely unionized industries like the arts, the access that unions provides (like employment options, venues, etc.) are still not a necessary condition to be considered a professional in that field.
It sounds like you probably have a ton of awesome stories that I would sincerely like to hear. And I have a suspicion the only substantive disagreement we may have really just comes down to expectations of pay, so I hope you realize I am not attacking you or your experiences.
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BTW, regarding ānot joining jamsāāI completely get that on many levels. I program, I work on open source projects(which most are analagous to jams), but I work on 0.0001% of all the ones I could. However I can think of three projects that I did for free that probably made me worth 50% more to my day job. Sure didnāt know it at the time, but super happy I took those risks.
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