The blogTO Muxtape

I don't like the 'By uploading a song you agree that you have permission to let Muxtape use it.'

That means unless it's your own song then you shouldn't have anything on there, right?

More ways indie artists get screwed - do any of them (or their labels) actually endorse this site? If you want a song by an artist buy it through their official website.

When has a mixtape ever screwed an artist?

On a related note, I've always seen streaming audio sites (iTunes radio, last.fm, cbc R3, iMeem, etc.) as excellent ways for small artists to get noticed. User-generated streaming audio like Muxtape.com, mixit.com, etc are just the latest evolution and extension of a changing digital format.

Answer me this, why would someone want to purchase any song from a band they like if they can go to a muxtape link, say, and record it on their PC for free?

Are people that install shady programs that are meant for stealing from sites that stream audio any better equipped by Muxtape than they are by bit torrent, limewire, etc? I'd argue no.

The digital thief will always exist, as will the dedicated local music supporter. Which category you fall into depends on you, not streaming platforms like Muxtape.

I'm sure Gary has something to say about "More ways indie artists get screwed" having just posted his own group's music on here for you to listen to.

@mdtoronto

40 years ago people would say: "Answer me this, why would someone want to purchase any song from a band they like if they can go to a radio, say, and record it on their stereo for free?"

same difference. it was flawed logic then. its flawed logic now. Even with the blog.to muxtape, ive discovered a couple new bands and online music streaming in general has become a gateway for various music spending.

I've seen Jerrold eat roasted kitty cat while Gary poured the bbq sauce on it for him. They're evil evil people, out to get the little guy, trust me on that.

That said, MD, people do not want to have to load a myspace page, muxtape page, whatever page everytime they want to hear a song or two. They'll put the time and effort into either buying it or stealing it proper to get it onto their iPod so they can hear whenever and however they want.

Are you Lars Fucking Ulrich or something? Paranoid that YOUR bands sales aren't skyrocketing and looking for a scapegoat? Maybe it's because your band just plain fucking SUCKS, and not due to Jerrold's muxtape.

Let's get some of the bands involved in this discussion. I'm keen to hear their take on muxtape.

If you could download the muxtapes, we might be on shakier ground but even then, if you really like what you're hearing you're gonna talk about it, buy the merchandise and go to shows.

Hello.
I am Gene Simmon's.
I would like to comment on this "Muxtape"
As a venture capitalist i would have to argue that this is a great way for people to become exposed to new music and then go out and by the CD.

Thanks

Gene.

Srsly?

Jerrold: shady? You can grab audio, streaming and otherwise, without resorting to anything shady. Regular audio recording software like Goldwave, and even audio players that incidentally have recording capabilities, like JetAudio, can listen to Windows' "wave" device and make a nice clean recording of whatever sounds the machine is currently playing.

Well, I'm not really a band, I'm just a guy starting off solo, so visit my myspace (yay, shameless self-promotion!)

But seriously, I think muxtape is actually a great way to promote indie music because it allows for people to browse around and maybe find something similar to something that they may like on someone else's playlist. For indie bands, I would say that any type of exposure is good, even if some guy/girl decides to record your stream with a program like Audacity/Goldwave/AudioHijack, etc. Most indie records, I believe (though I may be wrong), don't make a band much profit anyways. It's more important to get your music heard then worry about people stealing it because the more exposure you have, the more chance that people will come see you play, or buy merch, which is what I think most bands make their money on anyways. Just my two cents.

Japhet: most people can easily record anything that passes through their sound card. Gene: the real Gene would know that CDs are pretty much a thing of the past, thats why all the fuss really! Ry-Tron, too bad - so sad! If muxtape is a "mixtape" format why aren't individual tunes locked within the program, though I guess you'd actually have to listen to the whole song cycle - what a drag, eh? Will artists share revenue when Mux starts selling ads? ...details, messy details!

PSSST: I hear you can also photocopy a book too, and that libraries are just giving them out for free. they even have photocopiers IN the library to save you the hastle!

That library thing just blew my mind...but I digress. Speaking as a musician: it's about making fans - not money. If you get into show business to make money you either make bad art or you become an asshole. Fans will eventually equal money in some form (shows, merch, licensing, etc). But you can't think about money directly when you're deciding on how to get the word out. You just GET THE WORD OUT. And I wonder if Muxtape, Facebook, and Myspace will ever ask bands for a cut of the money they make via mail order/iTunes/eMusic/Amazon sales as a result of the exposure their free services get them, or the direct links the bands have on their pages to sell their music and merch? It's a mutually benefitial arrangement...for now.

just a fad, and a bad one at that.