Apostrophe S

Most people turned up the radio when that song about paranoia came out in the late 90s, but they probably couldn’t name the band. Or maybe they could, but they wouldn’t recognize any of their other songs if their life depended on it.

Truth be told, “Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone” was a little spot of genius. Each song crafted and created with one hand of the pulse of what should be cool. Sadly, the album came and went, and too few people remember it.

Harvey Danger had another record, too, called “King James Version,” which was also excellent, but sadly nowhere on the music scene radar.

Now, five years since that record, they’re back with a new one, called “Little by Little,” and they’ve offered it up as a free Bittorrent download (mp3 and ogg) and written a rather to-the-point explanation for the free release. I won’t copy the whole thing, but here’s a sample:

We realize that digital files are the primary means by which a huge segment of the population is exposed to new music; we also believe that plenty of music lovers in the world will buy a record once they’ve heard it – whether via radio or computer.

Now, I may buy the record, but if I do it will be because of the disc with bonus materials included in the physical package. If I were a rich man, sure, I’d buy every record that I wanted to listen to. But I’m not a rich man. The fact is I’m the Average Consumer. I buy plenty of CDs. I also pay for music at the iTunes Music Store on occasion. Quite often, I’ll rip a CD that a friend has purchased. And yes, I also download music from filesharing networks and using Bittorrent (both copyrighted material and noncopyrighted stuff like live shows), and I won’t be made to feel guilty about it. Because for me, music is culture before it is business. I wish I could pay for all the new records I get, but at the same time, I refuse to go without music based solely on financial reasons.

So I agree with Harvey Danger’s decision, and I hope I am able to purchase their record when it finally shows up in a record shop in my town. They seem to understand my demographic:

Whether or not people will buy something they can get for free is obviously a big question, and there are facts and figures to support both sides of the argument. We think it’s not only possible, but likely. The more fundamental challenge is ensuring people have access to your work to begin with. #

Amen.