Digital Audio Insider -- the economics of music and other digital content

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Digital Audio Insider is David Harrell's blog about the economics of music and other digital content. I write from the perspective of a musican who has self-released four albums with the indie rock band the Layaways.

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June 20, 2007

Not So Keen on Andrew Keen
by David Harrell

I suppose it isn't fair to review a book that I haven't yet read. Still, I'm absolutely dumbfounded by the basic premise of Andrew Keen in his new book, The Cult of the Amateur, How Today's Internet is Killing Our Culture, at least as it relates to popular music.

In this short NPR interview, Keen professes to prefer the "wisdom of the professional" when it comes to his cultural content. When asked about popular music (around 3:10 in the interview), he supports his argument with the inane statement that the "the kind of musicians and indeed artists who are going to make on the Web are people who are skilled in sales and marketing. They're not necessarily the people who are most able."

Maybe so, but Keen seems to be missing something: That's the case for the ENTIRE music industry, not just online amateurs. Musical talent alone does not guarantee success and it never has -- at least not in popular music. Most successful pop musicians are talented, but they're not necessarily the most gifted ones within any given genre. Marketing muscle, fads, luck, and personal drive and perseverance all play a huge role. And the gatekeepers that Keen prefers to trust are -- as a group -- more concerned with increasing sales and market share, not bestowing the "best" music and artists on the public.

Besides, while Keen laments the "rise of the amateur" it's really "return of the amateur." That is, before the advent of recorded music and radio, if you wanted music in your house you pretty much had to play it yourself. Today, it's hard to get an audible version of "Happy Birthday" going at a party, as most people are reluctant to sing in public. So anything that encourages the average person to perform and/or write music is a positive development, in my opinion.

Granted, the big difference is that today's amateurs aren't confined to their own homes -- they're broadcasting themselves to the world via MySpace, YouTube, and other online platforms. And I'll concede that lowered barriers to entry have resulted in the existence of more godawful music than ever before. (The increasing problem of "too much music" is something I wrote about last year for Shake Your Fist.) But if that's the price we have to pay the increased quantities of good music -- from artists that you never could have discovered prior to the emergence of the Internet -- I think it's a good trade-off.

Lawrence Lessig basically rips Keen a new one in his blog post about the book, and concludes with a great 1906 quote from the composer John Phillip Sousa, who was quite prescient about the decline of amateur music making:

"...it will be simply a question of time when the amateur disappears entirely. The tide of amateurism cannot but recede, until there will be left only the mechanical device and the professional executant."

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THE LAYAWAYS

Out Now -- "Maybe Next Year" -- The New Holiday Album:

"This is a sweet treat, deliciously musical without being overbaked for mass media consumption." -- Hyperbolium

"Perfect listening to accompany whatever holiday preparations you may be making today." -- Bag of Songs

O Christmas Tree - free mp3 lyrics and song details
Away In A Manger - free mp3

Download from eMusic, iTunes, Amazon MP3, or Bandcamp. Listen to free streams at Last.fm.

"...about as melodic and hooky as indie pop can get." -- Absolute Powerpop

"Their laid-back, '60s era sounds are absolutely delightening." -- 3hive

"...melodic, garage-influenced shoegaze." -- RCRD LBL

Where The Conversation Ends - free mp3
January - free mp3
Keep It To Yourself - free mp3

Download from eMusic, iTunes, Amazon MP3, or CD Baby, stream it at Last.fm or Napster.

"The Layaways make fine indie pop. Hushed vocals interweave with understated buzzing guitars. The whole LP is a revelation from the start." -- Lost Music

"Catchy Guided by Voices-like rockers who lay it on sweetly and sincerely, just like Lionel Richie." -- WRUV Radio

Silence - free mp3 lyrics and song details
The Long Night - free mp3

Download from eMusic, Amazon MP3, or iTunes, stream it at Last.fm, Napster, or Rhapsody.

"These are songs that you want to take home with you, curl up with, hold them close -- and pray that they are still with you when you wake up." -- The Big Takeover

Let Me In - free mp3
Ocean Blue - free mp3

Download from eMusic, Amazon MP3, or iTunes, stream it at Last.fm, Napster, or Rhapsody.

More Layaways downloads:

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