The trouble with iTunes & music these days..

This article starts with a warning that I'm going to sound old & sentimental, but I also think this is constructive criticism.

I am a music lover, have been for as long as I've had ears! From my parents records of the Beatles, the Mamas & the Papas to The Muppet Show album, I grew up with music. As soon as I had my own pocket money, I was buying records of my own. I can't say the 10 year old me had particularly good taste, but there is sentimental value in those 7 inches. 20 or so years later, I have a fantastic music collection: some limited editions, box sets & exclusive promos of some of my favourite artists, along with far more CDs than a normal person should own. Thing is, I wouldn't change it for anything. I rarely buy digital tracks from iTunes, as it's less tangible than possessing a CD or record. This is where my gripes with iTunes begins.


I often see artists advertising "exclusive to iTunes" versions of their albums when they're released. Obviously, there's nothing wrong with that, but the sort of people that are completionists in terms of music like their exclusive box sets, limited edition packaging & "exclusive" content in physical form. Ok, those of a certain demographic do, but as record company budgets are tightened, fewer things are released in a physical format. This in turn somewhat makes music far more throwaway, and seen less of as a creative art form. As someone who still likes to buy music legally, I'm often penalised when 'special editions' of albums are released several months after the original that I've already bought. If I want this new material I can buy the album again when I already own most of it, or I can download the extra tracks individually, which generally costs around the price of buying the album again anyway!


My reason for writing this piece stems from an incident that occurred recently. I am a fan of Nerina Pallot. I pre-ordered her album, 'Year of the Wolf' in May last year from hmv.com, as they had a chance to win tickets to an exclusive gig she was doing the week before release in June. Play.com had signed albums to the first however many people pre-ordered the album, and iTunes had an exclusive 'deluxe' edition with extra tracks not available on the CD. I was lucky enough to win some tickets to her gig, and also got to see Bernard Butler perform with her on a few songs. I loved the album too, and felt I really got my money's worth buying that CD! Fast forward to January 2012 and Nerina announces on her Facebook & Twitter pages that a 'New Year of the Wolf' album with covers & BBC sessions will be available exclusively on iTunes in a few days. This gave me the impression that the '6 new tracks' were going to be an EP of some sort. Went onto iTunes the day the album was available and this album was yet another version of 'Year of the Wolf', but basically the original iTunes exclusive with another 6 tracks. As someone who bought the physical CD this meant there were 11 tracks I did not have. The album as a whole costs £11.99 on iTunes, it would cost me £10.89 to download the 11 tracks I don't have, which I won't do. As a true music fan I'd like a physical CD of some sort, 'exclusive to iTunes' doesn't hold much appeal to those of us who like mementos of our favourite artists' music.


I don't think I'm alone, judging by the complaints on Nerina's Facebook page. Of course as an artist it's not her fault, music is now an industry that makes so little profit from its products, no risks can be taken in manufacturing goods people don't buy. That's the beauty of the download - stock is in constant supply to whoever wants it. Thing is, although I put my music onto my iPod, I still like to buy CDs to add to my collection. I think something can be done however and this is my appeal to record labels.


When you have exclusive content for fans, communicate with them to offer pre-orders on physical products, with a deadline and limited run. You have your orders before manufacture so there is no risk involved with unwanted and pricey stock. Pledge Music sort of does this, though is mainly for artists without record deals. So it's buy before you try, but true music fans will pay for something they want. When we go to gigs we buy the tickets months in advance and not on the day, so why should it be different with music?


So, what's my point? In short, I'm not going to pay iTunes £11.99 for an album I can't hold in my hand when I already own half of the songs on it. More and more music fans are downloading illegally because of rip offs like this, even though they would often prefer to purchase the music legitimately. However, I would pay £11.99 for the same album on a CD in a limited run issued to fans only.


As long as this goes on, more people will download illegally and music becomes more and more devalued. 

Albums of 2011: Foo Fighters - 'Wasting Light'

Band that some people have tired of but I still love album of 2011

I love the Foos, I love all of their albums, but I think this is definitely their best since 2003's 'One by One'. I'm really not sure why they've fallen out of favour with some fans though that's beside the point anyway, as 'Wasting Light' is a fine rock album. From the opening of 'bridge burning' to the ending of 'walk', this album is just pure powerful guitar rock, but in a style only the Foos are capable of.

Along with Foster the People, this is one of my most listened to albums of 2011, and my favourite tracks keep changing. Initially it was 'These Days', which seemed to speak too me personally, but after many listens, 'Walk' and 'I should have known' are probably the stand outs for me. The thing with the Foos is that they are a bit Ronseal, and what's wrong with a band who always does what it says on the tin? There are no 'Everlong' type ballads on this album, so if you want some blasting tunes to rock out to, then you can never go wrong with the Foo Fighters. 'Wasting Light' is a prime example of a band who know what they do best, but also how to do it tongue in cheek without the quality of music taking a slide. I've been buying their music for almost 17 years, and I surely hope I will be for the next 17! Thanks guys!

Albums of 2011: Nerina Pallot - 'Year of the Wolf'

Artist who should be bigger than they are album of 2011: Nerina Pallot - 'Year of the Wolf'

Nerina Pallot is one of those artists you may have heard about, though may not be terribly familiar with. She's a very talented singer songwriter who's been around for over 10 years and 'Year of the Wolf' was her 4th album. Ok, I'm a fan anyway, but this is a great album in its own right. It should be too, considering the production credits came from one Mr. Bernard Butler.

I was lucky enough to see Nerina play live the week before the album came out, and certain tracks stood out immediately. 'Butterfly', 'I think' & 'Turn me on again' were and still are my favourites, along with the emotional 'History Boys' and 'This will be our Year'. Each song has its own story, some are more upbeat than others, but as a whole this album is fit for every mood.

Nerina is such a great musician too, as she either plays guitar or keyboard on this album. The Bernard Butler production gives the overall sound a modern, but old school feel and I can't think of another female singer songwriter who's made such a consistently good album in the last year or so that's been a little too under the radar for so long. As a fan I kind of like it that way. Other female singer songwriters whose stars have shone more brightly have fallen by the wayside while Nerina's still standing and producing great albums. Duffy has been and gone, and who's to say the over-hyped Lana Del Ray will have as long a career as Ms Pallot. I'm not that fussed about Lana, as Nerina has consistently and quietly been making good music for over 10 years, and no doubt she still will for a good time to come. 

Albums of 2011: Foster the People - 'Torches'

Favourite new band & debut album of the year: Foster the People - Torches

As soon as I heard 'Pumped up kicks', I knew immediately that I had to find out who this band was. Although the song got played a lot on radio I never tired of it. As someone who listens to radio for at least 10 hours a week, this doesn't happen often. 

When their album finally came out, it was early summer and their positivity & melodic tunes were more uplifting than anything I'd heard in a long time. My favourite tracks are always changing; 'Waste' was an instant iPod most played, but tracks like 'call it what you want', 'don't stop' & 'Helena beat' were soon climbing up the list as well.
 
I can't quite put into words how much I love this album, or how much I feel that it came along at a time where I needed to hear some good new music to help me along in life. If I had to define the sentiment of the album I'd just quote the chorus of 'Waste'. "And every day that you want to waste that you want to waste, you can." Every track on the album has its own personality and sentiment without being tired or lame in any way. I love it.