Who downloads/who does'nt

I tend to buy CDs these days, I used to torrent a lot when I was younger and a bit more casual with my music listening but I much prefer buying albums nowadays. Its just so much more fun listening to a sample from an album or even just reading a review and buying it on a whim. Also this way I find I really get into the albums I buy rather than having a load of mp3s and listening to some of them occasionally and then forgetting half of them exist. Flicking through a pile of physical albums and spying something I haven't heard in a while is great.

I sample stuff on youtube occasionally if I'm trying to decide about an album, but don't torrent at all any more unless its something super obscure or out of print. I'm not particularly moralistic about this, sure its nice to feel like I'm supporting artists/record labels, but mainly I just enjoy taking in music in the more 'traditional' way of buying a limited number of physical copies of albums. Plus having an album with a cover etc feels more like owning an actual work of art.
 
This goes for any genre of music. There is so much new crap out there to sift through before finding stuff that you really like. Even with a steady job and no debt it isn't practical for me to buy everything I come across. :kickass:
 
challenge_everything said:
I wonder if there are such strong views when it comes to downloading/pirating movies. Personally I feel no qualms in ripping off big movie studios. But in principle there should not be much difference to music.
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it is quite different, though, subjectively. I mean, you go to a movie, you pay, it sucks, you don't get your money back. you go to a movie, love it...you don't get to say 'I've bought a ticket to the movie, I want to watch it again, please let me back in the cinema again', whereas with music you could sample in the store before you buy, and if you think you like it enough to listen to it again a lot, you buy it.
And I don't know if anyone ever watches a movie download, then decides 'I now want to see it again on the big screen--I know how it ends and I'm now willing to spend money on it', whereas someone might say 'this band [I downloaded/I was given a CD of/whatever] is cool, I want to pay to see them in concert'. So it seems more conclusively ensuring you won't offer any money toward the creators of what you potentially liked, but if you're already jaded by shitty movies, misrepresented movies, or just the high prices of the cinema, and would be content to wait 'til it's on TV, then downloading doesn't seem to play much of a financial role. ...I just wonder, like others did about music ('surely you already know the band you're downloading, or why would you download?') how many people who bother to download movies were indeed fairly apathetic about movie-going and -renting in the first place.
 
Belligerent said:
me in a nutshell...
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either of you got any tips for us horders on how to part with crap you don't need which you just keep for the fuck of it cos you have so much damn space you don't even need to think about it?


I always figure if I did get charged with piracy (a new law has passed in NZ), would be quite happy to erase probably 80% of what has been sitting there unheard for god knows how many years (why should I get charged for shit that I've never heard or don't like? it's only there because it's convenient to just leave it there), and even delete 95% of everything if I have to -- albums of bands I like. it's that 5% of songs I like that I would be begrudging about--and that's the stuff I definitely should be getting on iTunes and paying for, really.
 
Seditious said:
or you'd complain that the e-payment website or the bank who convert the currency is receiving too high a payment for their services, and refuse to use it.
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I'm sure there's some way of doing this that can be just as illegal and unfair as pirate downloading, but actually helping the bands :)
 
I download everything and pay for it. I used to download music illegally until I started working at a book store. I wouldn't think of stealing a book by an author I really liked. I want to support the artist. Now, I do download free stuff given away from record company websites. I've discovered a lot of great music this way. But I completely support an artist's right to get paid for his/her efforts.

As far as buying CDs I'm sure it's more metal or trve to buy the hard copy and have all the artwork and lyrics and shit, but luckily I don't give a shit about being trve. I can always look up any artwork or lyrics online. And I enjoy having all my music on my phone so it's always available.

I might buy a CD at a show if I like the band enough, but I never play it in a CD player; I rip it right away to my computer and sync it to my phone.

The downloading age, I think, gives bands a chance to get out at least a single without having to sell an entire album. Think back to the time when everyone just played 45s. I don't think you can stop digital downloads from becoming the norm. No one releases music on wax cylinders anymore. Times change. I respect the nostalgia of owning CDs and even vinyl, but, for me, it's just easier to download. Costs less, too.
 
Moloc said:
I download everything and pay for it. I used to download music illegally until I started working at a book store. I wouldn't think of stealing a book by an author I really liked.
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how do you feel about downloading e-books or mp3s of works in the public domain?

if you download Tao te Ching, or Bach, would you call it stealing from the artist, or do you think it's fair that after such a long period of time it has become free?
 
I only ever purchase CD's, never mp3's of Amazin or Itunes. IMO CD's are heaps better than digital, legal or otherwise. However, I often download those free sampler albums or free EP's.

To be honest, there's almost enough free, legal stuff to never have to purchase an album. Like ever.
 
Individual songs are okay unless it's a concept album, and low tier doesn't always mean bad. You just have to sift through the meh to find the gems.
 
Seditious said:
how do you feel about downloading e-books or mp3s of works in the public domain?

if you download Tao te Ching, or Bach, would you call it stealing from the artist, or do you think it's fair that after such a long period of time it has become free?
Click to expand...

In the case of literature no, it wouldn't be stealing, same with public domain sheet music. In the case of classical music, or other genres where the composers had no copyright, someone recorded/performed, payed for, produced and distributed an album, regardless of whether the music is "free to the public".
 
What i do is i listen to music on last.fm then if i like the band i buy there cd either from fye at the mall or amazon. I dont like downloading to much because ive already had my computer get a virus and my whole harddrive got wiped.
 
I only download to see if an album is good(which is most of the time). If its ok then I just leave on my computer until I find it incredible cheap. You know the drill if its bad. If it is impossible to find and don't wan't to pay over 80 bucks for it I download. Other than that Cd's and Vinyls are the way to go

If its an album from I band that never failed and kept putting out solid albums I buy immediately or If it isn't available online legally(I do subscriptions)
 
I have a Zune pass. For $15 a month I have unlimited downloads, but their metal selection is somewhat limited. I usually buy cds at shows to support the bands and I prefer to buy cds used to save money. Out of curiosity, do you think that bands prefer I buy cds from them at their shows or from stores or online?
 
i see no problem with downloading. i am a music lover, and buying a shit ton of music is not always in my budget. i buy hard copies whenever i can, for both music and collection purposes, but i would not have/know nearly as much music as i do today without downloading.

say what you will about it, i don't feel as though its that big of a deal. theres nothing wrong with supporting artists, but i'm pretty sure they want you to hear their music as well.
 
I don't download illegally because I actually give a damn about the artists that I claim to love. In my opinion, if you spend your time talking about how great music is and what a great band so-and-so is, yet you can't pay $15 for an entire album when it comes out, you're a jackass. The only excuse to download music is if the album is absolutely unavailable and therefore there is no money/support to be made/had, and even then if the band says leave it alone then I say respect that.

As far as downloading legally from iTunes or whatever, I don't really have a problem with it, but the compressed files sound crappier than Cds so I rarely download an album that I've actually been looking forward to. I like to have a physically copy that I can hold that's high quality and usable in multiple places instead of the iTunes obsessively encrypted compressed crapola that won't even play anywhere else.
 
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