Crimson Velvet said:
It seems to me like you guys have been working together for quite a while, and all of you have made some sacrifices to be part of the "RC-Team", some more than others.
Oh yeah. I really need to explain this, just so everyone can put this into perspective:
So get this: before Erik redesigned the site, I would
manually format every writer's reviews/interviews before uploading to the site. Yes, that would equate to a few thousand hours for several hundred reviews. I'm not a web wizard, that's where Erik comes in.
This of course doesn't include the features! Yes, at this point, now you're talking about Haddsie sitting at her PC creating all the graphics for the backdrops and album covers, while again, I would format the reviews.
This is all on top of me writing
my own reviews and interviews.
Plus I handled the labels for a long while and sent out all the packs every 2 weeks. Markgugs used to do this, then he left after 6 months, so I took over until I handed this off to Josh a few months ago. But by that point, RC had become stagnant.
Plus, I have paid for the site entirely since day one -- yeah, we talked about sharing the costs, but I don't see why people who volunteer for the site should pay anything. Of course, Josh will have you believe that I refused other people to pay so I could keep control of the site. Just call me Mr Haliburton.
Note: Dark One, Chief B, Smothered Hope, Haddsie, Markgugs -- all were there from the beginning and personal friends of mine (I'm married to one of them. Guess who?
), and all are rolling at the idea that I am like some Saddam Hussein type dictator. General Zod and I go back since 2002. NAD came along later, and now we've actually met when he visited NYC, he is one of my coolest friends. Erik I've yet to meet but I know it's only a matter of time, but I already regard him as a friend. BWD was cool, but I guess he got burned out by it all and left quietly in the night.
Thus, that earlier quote that Josh posted where I said, "Yes, I am Saddam. Tomorrow I will gas Kurds and burn an oilfield" makes it all the more funny, especially that he took it literally. I mean, surely you guys all know me well enough...
.
The easy-going vibe on this forum is what I love the most about it, so I suppose it is for the best at the end of the day.
Yes, that's why now the dust has settled, you can see that this thread is totally unnecessary when 30 e-mails were exchanged in private. There is nothing here that hadn't already been discussed. Not sure how the thread in the GMD is working out...
Of course, Josh will come in and keep picking picking picking, but everyone will continue to ignore ignore ignore.
And, finally, without talking sides here, I do look forward to reading some reviews of the classics, although I certainly don't hope you guys will boycot promos completely.
Absolutely. We just hit that point where we realized we were spending way too much effort reviewing crap after crap after crap, completely disillusioned by the labels and which bands they were signing, so we all just stopped writing. That's pretty much it. So now we have to find a balance.
We're not like UM with a huge team of writers plugging away. I think sites like UM are necessary, someone somewhere on the web will have written a review for a crappy release. You'll find that RC will now just be a little more selective.
For your information, the topic that started (and ended) this debate was the thread "Upcoming Reviews - leaving beer coaster promos to aside". That subject, where I offered all the writers an option to write some classic reviews as a break from listening to dungpile promos started this entire shit storm. That's the sort of thing we've had to deal with, so no more of that.
If anyone has any further questions, I'll be happy to address.
