An urgent plea to all metal fans

Prin luna iulie a.c. am primit un mail de la un prieten. In mail, o “scrisorica”; sau un apel, ca suna mai percutant. Am dat-o mai departe catre toti cei care-mi populeaza Address Book-ul. Si care sunt fani ai muzicii grele. Si bune, of course. Ca sa fie treaba buna, o afisez si pe blog. Nu s-o fac de ras, ca nu-i cazul. Mai vede lumea si poate se conformeaza… Ca, vorba veche, trebuie acordat respect tuturor celor care trudesc ca artisti.

Ca sa nu se ajunga in situatia din bancul cu muzicianul de jazz, batran si bolnav:

Doctorul: - Va dau veste proasta: mai aveti de trait o luna.

Jazz-istul: - Din ce?

An urgent plea to all metal fans

Greetings, metalheads and music fans in general. My name is Erin Fox and I am a heavy metal journalist. I’ve been a fan of heavy metal music since I first heard KISS when I was five years old. I remember my father taking me to the record store and buying the “Detroit Rock City” 45 RPM vinyl for me, which I subsequently took to my first grade music class and played, much to the dismay of my music teacher. The reason I’ve chosen to share this experience with you is because I care very deeply about music and because more and more artists are feeling the terrible burden caused by illegal downloading of records. One must simply look at the Billboard statistics in order to understand that across the board, individual record sales are in decline. What many fans fail to realize is the tremendous impact this activity has on the artists that make the music we all love so much. I urge you to take a moment of your time to read further and consider the negative implications of such actions.

In the ’70s and ’80s, tape trading was a routine thing. These types of reproductions did more to promote the records and let people know about bands than anything else. Tapes were often poor quality recordings with a short lifespan. You couldn’t see the cover artwork, read the lyrics or look at pictures of the groups. In short, most cassette recordings were low-grade, inferior representations of musical works that more than anything else, inspired fans to head to the record store and pick up a band’s new album. In short, tape trading helped bands because the activity was limited in scope and helped album sales a great deal. Emerging bands benefited the most from this promotion.

The Internet has changed all that.

Piracy on the Internet is rampant, especially due to the outdated thinking that allows records to be released in certain countries before others. This problem is something that record labels can and should do something about. How do labels expect their fans to resist downloading CDs illegally when they have been released in Europe three months to a year prior to their release in the US? While this sort of marketing offered fans in varying parts of the world the chance to hear the latest music from their favorite, homegrown artists first and allowed emerging acts to prove their worth on the road supporting new records on tour before heading to the US, it does nothing but damage to the careers of artists in the present day. Responsible labels need to cease this practice and one way you can support your favorite bands is by asking they do so immediately. Find the label’s website and send a general e-mail to the label’s representatives letting them know your thoughts on the matter. Tell them you support your favorite bands, large and small, by purchasing music and that you don’t wish to see the music distributed on the Internet before its release in the US. This is one very important thing you can do to help stop the spread of illegal downloading.

Secondly, and most importantly, just don’t do it. Take it even further. Don’t condone the activities of any of your friends, co-workers and family members who do. Any time you download an artist’s work, you’re taking food off of the plates of those artists, their label representatives, the radio station personnel, the record store owners and employees, the people who cover these artists in the media and everyone else that has invested time and energy to make the music happen. To put it bluntly, you’re stealing and that’s wrong.

Would you step into your favorite musician’s home and take food directly from his refrigerator? Of course you wouldn’t. But illegal downloading does exactly that, just in an indirect manner. It’s easy to do, it provides instant gratification and it gives you entertainment on demand with no cost to you. Please think about the cost to others. Please think about the bands that travel in vans around the country that perform every night and can’t afford to feed themselves because everyone has downloaded their albums. Please understand that in doing this, you harm more people than you can realize. Even large bands, with tremendous fanbases are affected. Major bands like Megadeth are selling a small fraction of the amount of records they should be selling. Large amounts of money must be invested in order to make an album from such a major act come to fruition. People often think that the stars they enjoy are rich beyond their wildest dreams, and in very few cases is this true. Everyone knows Megadeth has millions of fans, fantastic promotion and most of all, the awesome music that we all enjoy so very much. So why aren’t bands like these selling records in proportion to their audiences? Because vast numbers of people are stealing, that’s the plain and simple truth.

Sooner or later, we will all lose from these practices. Smaller bands must sell a certain amount of records to be worth investing in and when these bands don’t meet sales standards, they are dropped from their labels. These bands can no longer afford to pay to make quality records, to visit your town on tour, to buy professional equipment or enlist the services of those needed to bring their art to the masses. These are people who have invested their lives to entertain you and theirs sacrifices equal the highest cost that is paid in this entire scenario. How would it make you feel to invest years of time, to sacrifice relationships with friends and family, to believe in your work so much that you would do anything to make your dreams happen, only to have those dreams shattered by selfish individuals who think they are above paying for their entertainment? Never download illegally and refuse to support anyone who does.

Let’s take a moment and really think about the way we behave. Let’s consider the consequences of our actions and the harm done to others when downloading music without paying for it.

You say you love metal. So prove it. Show your support for the bands that work so hard to make great music and the labels that make it all happen by distributing this material to the public. So who am I to stand up on a soapbox and preach about illegal downloading? I am nothing more than one metal fan that truly cares about the success of artists and their careers. But if more fans like me would take a stand against this activity that affects thousands and thousands of musicians, the metal community would be exponentially better off as a result. Do your part and make your own stand for the sake of the artists who devote their time, energy, inspiration, creativity and in many cases, their lives to entertain us all. Thanks for listening.