Is Reznor a digital-music visionary? Ask Lars Ulrich
Sure, rocker Trent Reznor's example has encouraged plenty of music acts to reject the label system and search for a new industry paradigm using the Web.
Lars Ulrich suggests that Metallica may want to dump its label, and he wants Trent Reznor's help to do it.
(Credit: The Los Angeles Times)But did anyone expect that among Reznor's disciples would be Lars Ulrich?
Ulrich, a member of the rock band Metallica and once one of the leading critics of peer-to-peer sites, said during an interview last week with The Los Angeles Times that Metallica no longer needs the backing of a big record company and suggested that the group may be ready to go independent.
"The primary--not the only, but the primary--function of a record label is to act as a bank," Ulrich told the Times. "When you're fortunate enough to be successful and so on, you don't need to rely on record companies as the banks...We're doing a bunch of shows with Trent this summer in Europe. I look forward to sitting down and talking to him about what's on his radar."
Because of Reznor and efforts by Radiohead, which also dropped its label and has since used the Internet to market itself directly to fans, Ulrich told the Times "there's nothing but possibilities."
What's the significance here? To many music fans Ulrich became the hated symbol of anti-innovation, anti-technology, and heavy-handed copyright owners when he was among those who tried to sue Napster--and indeed file sharing--out of existence.
Now, a decade later, even he wants to sit at the feet of Reznor.
Reznor, leader of the band Nine Inch Nails, has won accolades from digital-music fans for attempting to make music more affordable for the public while helping artists earn a living. He's done this by rejecting the major-label system and distributing music via the Web directly to the public.
Ulrich's nod to Reznor is, at the very least, an acknowledgment that digital distribution is here to stay and that the best way to survive as a music act is to understand it.
Greg Sandoval covers media and digital entertainment for CNET News. He is a former reporter for The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. E-mail Greg, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/sandoCNET. 
http://www.audioscribbler.co.uk/features/6149
As I understand it, written by the daughter of a digital media pioneer who built one of the first on-demand prototypes.
If they were able to download food, you'd want it free.
I am a fan of NIN too - Trent is from my home state and I saw him before there was a NIN.
If he hadn't had a record deal then, he wouldn't be a pimple on a baboon's butt now.
Technology developed before standards, to avoid abuse of the technology, were thought of.
So now all the geeks thinks that makes it right to get all things digital for free.
You must be Socialists. Please move to North Korea.
@oldguytoo Perhaps you should look at Trent's model before you make accusations that he advocates piracy. Indeed, you should consider that piracy isn't as black and white as you'd like to box it - legally and philosophically. If socialism means that music - which was always meant to be FOR the people - is more affordable then where do we all sign up? I'm not sure why you'd worship capitalism after the woes it has inflicted on the world, not to mention the current economic crisis that can be squarely blamed on capitalistic economic rationalism based banking techniques.
What you seem to dislike is people trying something new and innovative against the current model. You seem to believe any model other than the current greed based one is someone trying to 'not pay for it'. You seem to think that views other than your capitalist dogma are socialist. Well, I hate to point it out to you oldguytoo but that makes you a facist. And the closest government to that at the moment is communist China and, oh look, the US's 'you are either with us or against us' attitude. There is room for other views and other models. Yes, new artists need support and that is exactly what Trent and others are trying to provide.
For someone who would claim to be from the land of the free; you have a funny way of showing it.
Other, younger acts will still want the glamor of the labels and then eventually they'll learn the same lessons as other before them.
But once a 'non-label' system is established as a widespread entity, the vultures will be there to monopolize and start it all over again. An independant business always conglomerates.
Beer GOOD!
Example:
Suicide, I've already died
You're just the funeral I've been waiting for
Cyanide, living dead inside
Break this empty shell forevermore
Dear god, did they even try? That's the most retarded chorus I have ever heard. Write some songs worth listening to, then people might actually want to buy it... physical and digital. Metallica following in the footsteps of NIN, Radiohead and others just seems so ironic and hypocritical. They appear to be a bunch of has-been sellouts lost in the old game, trying to find a way to stay afloat in the new age. Go sell your teen angst some where else cause we ain't buying it here anymore. It's funny cause they got to be in their late 40's early 50's and still trying to produce angry metal to a bunch of teens.
My w**g is big, I beat my b**ch, let's buy some bling cuz I got rich.
And as for the lyrics thelemurking quoted, if you have ever known someone or been depressed or impacted by the horror that is suicide (and it is statistically likely) then you'd actually find those lyrics quote profound. You'd relate and think, you know, this person actually understands emptiness. Perhaps one must learn to be a little more empathetic before you bash poetry? It wasn't that long ago that people said similar things about WW [swoon] and Byron... how wrong they were.
I agree, hip hop lyrics are an abomination, but since this was about Lars and Metallica, hip hop is completely off subject. Personally, I think Metallica should have just quit after Master of Puppets because they moved into radio friendly suckville ever since.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-9965792-17.html?tag=mncol
Corporate chameleons.
I'm not laughing any more.
Despite my deep, dark hatred toward the band in general and Lars in particular, he does have a point. The term "Music Label" has become a curse to the general public. Trent has done wonders for digital distribution and artists' rights for their music, as well as produce some of my favorite music and video game soundtracks. Trent is truly a great musician and techno-pioneer. Out of all the artists in the world, Trent is the best choice for this particular job.
It's time for Metallica to retire and produce some greatest hits albums for digital distribution. Metallica has become culturally and musically irrelevant. Their ridiculously long, boring songs go well to compliment the hypocrisy and stupidity of every word that Lars speaks. How about you pay some of the money to the fans whose lives and families you destroyed with your lawsuits, Lars the Tool?
Trent has made his nestegg, he does what he does out of passion. If he was just starting out there's no way you could support yourself thru digital music and fan remixes.
Watching that video on MTV in the late '80s was riveting to a kid....
- by diffraction March 27, 2009 4:31 AM PDT
- This article just muddies the waters. There is a world of difference between supporting the "possibilities" of new media technologies and supporting illegal theft of intellectual property.
- Like this Reply to this comment
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(21 Comments)Ulrich's recent comments represent no contradiction of his stance against illegal downloading.