Here’s something of a “eff you” to consumers, according to Pitchfork Media.
The title track of the new Smashing Pumpkins CD is a Target exclusive bonus track. Not only that, but the band is releasing several different versions of the CD all with different “bonus” songs.
One for Target. One for Best Buy. One for iTunes, and one for the rest. Collect them all! Oh, wait. Don’t. You can skip the one for “the rest.” It has no bonus tracks. —MEGHANN MARCO
Smashing Pumpkins to Fans, Indie Stores: Fuck You [Pitchfork]
(Photo: Wikipedia)
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…or…if you really cared about having all the songs, wait until a day after the release (hell sometimes before) and find it on the internet in five seconds. smashing pumpkins has had 15 years to find a way to get their music to fans without raping them. hey, i know…a new movie release, but there are three different endings, and each one is sold in a different store…
Walk is completely ignorant of the music retail channel if he thinks the indie stores are an evil cabal hiking music prices, but thank GODS for the big box stores, fighting for music lovers’ rights. So completely off the mark it’s not worth geting into.
Which is fine. Free country.
But always cracks me up when the freeper types are so freaken proud to display their ignorance. Suppose that’s because it’s not like they can display their brilliance. Publicly or privately.
I know a little about the music distro game (having worked for a company in the industry before, let’s say it rhymes with mooniversal schmusic)…and the reason your Fartknocker CD costs $13.99 in Wal-Mart and $21.99 in IndieWorld is simple: IndieWorld would most likely order 20-50 CD’s of a major title and Wal-Mart PRE-PAYS for 50,000, at an obvious discount….then they dump them at $1 over cost to keep stock moving. IndieWorld needs to keep stock on the shelves for the “Music Fan” looking for back-stock, while Wal-Mart doesn’t give two shits and needs to make room on the sehlf for the new Hilary Duff in exactly 10 days time.
It’s just the bent nature of the story that I disagree with…
Smashing Pumpkins to Fans, Indie Stores: Fuck You
Why should this band support indie stores? Moreover, I don’t think it’s such an insult to said stores if there’s some bonus track available elsewhere, for a limited time… if the indie store is so hurt they sure don’t need to stock this cd. They don’t deserve a superior right to profit off of the Smashing Pumpkins.
@markedward: Good points. Pricing varies, and not every major retailer is getting bonus track cds.
@trai_dep: That’s NOT what I was saying. Way back when we had cd longboxes, Best Buy was an upstart and they were selling cds for $8.88; back then (pre-internet) there was a considerable value to the indie store with knowledgeable staff and all of the back catalog albums. Now there’s websites selling every album in print, stocking in warehouses, reaching more customers, moving cds at higher volume and pricing at levels similar to major retailers. And download svcs…
There sure are a lot of negative externalities to the box retail business, but not as long as we have music shopping/downloading online. Music doesn’t need independent brick-and-mortar stores anymore… it’s not the band’s fault.
steal it?