I’m hoping to do more of these in the future; of course they’re all my own opinion and as always, if anyone doesn’t agree feel free to let it out!
For what I’m kinda treating as my first ‘real’ article on here I thought I’d cover something that has been on my mind for a good few months now, and is something that is at the forefront of music right now: supporting the bands and music.
Supporting bands is something that just doesn’t happen much now; back in the 80s and 90s bands had armies of followers, no matter the genre, now however this is something that’s only associated with pop groups where none of the members have even hit puberty yet.
Now I’m not saying to support a band you need to become a border-line stalker and get their faces tattooed on you or anything; no, to support a band is much easier and the rewards are given out to those that do support.
Below is a list of what I feel are three key ways to support bands, how to do them and the rewards.
BUY THE MUSIC!!
Simple but it’s something that’s honestly rarely done nowadays; mp3s are at the ready, 24/7 anyone can go onto Google, put in a song title and within 3 results get a free download of it. CD sales have declined so much in the last few years and they continue on going down because of this, and this obviously isn’t helping a band that’s just released their first CD and their future literal depends on their CD sales. Illegal downloading is killing music, simple as that. Every week I read about bands that I know calling it quits, though there are always many reasons you’ve got to believe that lack of sales always have something to do with it.
How do you combat this and give the bands what they deserve and give them money for the record they spent a year of their life crafting? Obviously, as archaic as it sounds buy the CD; there will never be anything quite like owning a physical copy of an album, never! If CDs aren’t your thing though you can obviously get the mp3s for roughly the same price (if not cheaper) from pretty much any store online now (iTunes, Amazon, Play, ect.).
But if you’re a real music freak and you like some style when owning the music, you can go for something that’s becoming very popular again; vinyl. Most albums these days are released on vinyl (at least the releases by bands big enough to merit it) and often they will include limited edition runs, which is where this all gets fun. I’m a fan of vinyl myself and have a good few in my collection, these are something else; whether it’s a picture disc, splattered combination of colours, block colours, marbled colours, clear, glittered, when it comes to vinyl the sky is literally the limit and makes having a physical copy just that little bit more special.
The great thing about these is that they aren’t even that expensive these days, with most ringing in at around the price of a double CD (14/15 in whatever currency), it’s not a bad price to own not only a physical copy of a record but an attractive copy. Most vinyl’s even come with the CD too now, or at least a download code to get the music digitally as well.
*example of a vinyl package; The Dillinger Escape Plan's latest release 'One Of Us Is The Killer'*
Wear Your Band
Yep, again sounds simple, but bands nowadays earn more from their merch sales that they do from physical CD sales.
This might not be up everyone’s alley, and not all bands offer up great quality merch, but there are bands that thrive off shirt sales and provide god quality service and a vast amount of choice in this department. Rock bands especially use this as an added source of revenue (we’ve all seen someone walking around wearing a Guns N’ Roses shirt right?) and offer a crazy selection and even use more than one provider, giving fans even more choice.
Downside to this is that some merch can be a little too much; say your into heavy metal, your most likely gonna have ram’s skulls and fire across yourself a lot, but then again if your into that then maybe that’s a good thing. I suppose what I’m saying is that some designs can be too in your face for, say formal get togethers haha.
But the point still stands, if you like a band, buy some merch and wear it proudly.
Go See Them Dammit!
Sure ticket prices have risen in the last number of years, and the economy this and that, buuuuut going to see a band in concert is a great way to support a band and keep them a-float. The reward of this is clear, you get to see a great show in person, and have a night you won’t soon forget!!
Another great thing about going to see the band live is that you can do all of the above at the same time; buying merch at a show is the absolute best way to support a band cause 100% of the money goes straight to the band/performer, same as CDs and when it comes to vinyl, it’s not too crazy for a band to have limited vinyl designs as tour only variants.
Plus, depending on the band (unless they’re big stars, you’ll know it anyway) it’s become very common in the last 2 years or so for them to stick around and speak to fans, sign stuff, chat, take pictures, all of that stuff. Obviously this is an experience that, if meeting a band that’s particularly special to you, can change lives and do so much for a person.
*me, Justin Sane (Anti-Flag) and my insanely purple nails; London this past July*
So yeah, partake in any of these, or hell go for all three, and you’ll be doing your part in supporting your band and keeping them going. In this age bands are dropping far too often, and too many of them are talented and haven’t even had their chance to show what they’re made of; support your favourite bands, don’t download illegally, buy the disc, buy a shirt, go see them live and have a good time. If you don’t, frankly you have no access to grind if your favourites do throw in the towel.
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