[ale] OT: music sites?

[Jim Philips]

On Tuesday 28 March 2006 08:46, Geoffrey wrote:
> James P. Kinney III wrote:
> > I'm certain the RIAA would NOT see it this way as they are actively
> > supporting the development of music media that self destructs after a
> > given number of playings and thus forcing you to buy another copy.
>
> Right, and you see their real colors there.  They don't want to preserve
> their rights, they just want to make more money off less product.
>
> That really doesn't bother me.  There's very little in the way of music
> that's coming out these days I would even consider to be called music. :)
>
> Of course, that's a lie, as I do want my daughter to have reasonable
> choices in music.  Still, even for her, there's very little out there
> that is worth purchasing.  

As a 53-year old music fan, I don't buy all of this "things ain't what they 
used to be" talk. If you shop around and check some of the more active music 
blogs on the Net, you can find lots of good music out there being made right 
here in the 21st century. What you won't find is a monolithic music culture 
like we used to have in the days when radio, television and a few big labels 
dictated the direction of pop music. And that's a wonderful thing. Groups 
that would only have had a fringe appeal in the old days can now sell a 
respectable number of albums (or downloads) because distribution is no longer 
expensive. As a result, there is a flowering of musical diversity like I have 
never seen before. I've been an avid music fan since I was about five and I 
think this is as good as it has ever been. And a lot of that good music can 
be downloaded for free. You just have to go a few steps outside the 
mainstream to start finding the good stuff.