[kj] Re: Hosannas promo RAR file needs password

[Darren A. Peace]

>What were the people thinking of when they uploaded it to SSK?
>Who ever uploaded it to file-sharing sites.................why did you do
it?

Well, as someone who did exactly that, I will respond. The mixes were leaked
early (I believe and hope them not to be final mixes), and although I won't
speculate as to the reasons for this, I will say that I don't feel that the
fact that I was able to download the tracks makes me in any way more
deserving of them than anyone else who wants to hear them. Out of interest,
I monitored pretty closely the downloads of tracks from my machine, and
didn't see anyone who I don't believe to be a member of this mailing list
accessing them. In fact, there was a specific request to make the tracks
available on SoulSeek on this list, as the eMule/Donkey/Kazaa network is too
slow for many people to be of any use. Anyway, the fact that the eMule
download archive of the album has a password that isn't immediately obvious
should reassure you, although I don't see a sensible reason for this. The
thought of people downloading the whole thing to find that their work isn't
over, though, makes me smile.

Anyone keen to hear rough mixes of several previous KJ albums can readily do
so with a minimum of effort (although I'd very much like to hear the longer
versions of the KJ 2003 tracks. Anyone?). Why should this one be any
different? I believe, based on my own experience, that hearing tracks that I
otherwise wouldn't have done has resulted in me making purchases that I
would have otherwise overlooked. The type of downloader who doesn't fuel the
music industry with purchases will not be a lost sale; it seems to me that
research has shown that downloading music files hasn't had the catastrophic
effect on the record industry that it has been moaning about for years, and
would cite those crappy Arctic Monkeys as a most recent rebuttal of this
concern. I have made purchases of recordings by Editors, Interpol, Rammstein
and several other bands after having downloaded tracks out of interest. I'm
sure I'm not alone in regarding the file sharing networks as a more
comprehensive adjunct to iTunes, in that I can listen to more than 30
seconds of my chosen track before deciding if I want the music permanently
in my tactile collection.

I'm not accusing the original poster of anything untoward, but I'm
increasingly irritated by the desire to keep music the domain of a secret
and exclusive club. The more people who hear the new Killing Joke album, the
more people might be swayed into attending gigs / buying the single / album,
and I believe that can only benefit the band, and ultimately us as
enthusiasts. I'll reiterate that anyone who downloads the album without
having any intention of buying it wouldn't have bought it in the first
place, and is therefore no revenue loss, despite what that be-shorted amoeba
Lars said. Once the album is released, it'll be on all the networks straight
away.

A result of record company paranoia about the issue has resulted in a range
of more attractive packages being made available to buy, with better
packaging, free DVDs and other incentives. Apart from the occasional
tendency to reissue an album after a few months with enormously enhanced
value (Bloc Party), necessitating a second purchase, this is surely not only
a good thing, but seems to invalidate the long-standing argument that record
companies are only just breaking even on record sales. If they can afford to
produce these deluxe packages for the same price as a single CD, we as
consumers are surely getting better value for money. And don't get me
started on the "value" of spending the same amount on a song as a ringtone
as on a CD single.

And my favourite track on the album (the best KJ have produced in several
years, in my view) is Judas Goat, by a considerable margin. Can't wait to
see it played live (and, incidentally, to hear the final mix on the retail
CD, and whatever limited edition permutations we are treated to).

Darren