Gary Holt talking about the music industry.

Road Warrior Number of posts : 17069 Age : 48

EXODUS Guitarist Says Illegal Music Downloading Is Killing The Industry - Apr. 16, 2009

EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt is quick to acknowledge that the music industry is a changing place and the ground that the band is standing on these days is shaky, with the Internet's facilitation of illegal downloading sapping the album's potential for moneymaking. And while METALLICA takes much of the heat for its past anti-pirating actions, Holt says that downloading doesn't just hurt the big guys.

"It hurts everybody," he tells Vue Weekly. "Our bass player Jack has an analogy that I think hits it up perfect. If two or three out of every 10 cars built in Detroit were stolen there would be immediate action. But musicians, we're looked at as not needy, as pampered, spoiled brats, and so they allow it to happen. It's killing the industry. We depend entirely on merchandise and tour revenues. It's just changing the game and pretty soon there will be no record industry.

"And a lot of people think I just sound like another whiny band, but it's like, dude, I'm far from rich," he adds with a laugh. "Anybody who thinks I'm complaining about needing a tune-up for my Ferrari is entirely wrong. My van with 205,000 miles on it died right before this tour, so I don't even have a car."

But while there's a downside to the Internet, Holt also appreciates it for what it offers to the band's hardcore fans. When EXODUS first started out, the band recorded a three song-demo tape back in 1982 when METALLICA's Kirk Hammett was still with the group. While physical copies of that cassette have faded from sight, a little digging on the Internet still turns up download links to the songs, offering up an archive of the band's past. Holt's very much in favour of that aspect of today's technology.

"Stuff like that, that's cool," he tells Vue Weekly. "It's something we've never released; we have no intention of it. That's a whole different circumstance than people downloading your actual record. It's an old demo — it was always for free in the first place. We never sold it and if someone wants to listen to some ancient EXODUS, knock yourselves out.

"When it comes to live bootlegs or rarities and stuff like that I'm all for people going and doing all the trading that they want," he continues. "People ask me how I compare tape trading to downloading — some people have actually said, 'Oh, it's kind of the same thing, isn't it?' And I said, 'No, it's not.' A tape trader loved the band. He had to physically copy that tape. He had to go down to the post office, address it, send it to his pen-pal friend across the world at his own expense and time, so he put love and effort into that. Now you just click a mouse and, 'Ah, I don't like this album, I'll delete it.' Those guys were helping the band by spreading the word. Downloaders, they're just taking it."

The lost Ramone Number of posts : 6557 Age : 34

Holt's right.

Road Warrior Number of posts : 17069 Age : 48

I saw this at Blabbermouth in the responses to Gary Holt's post and even though it's crude it is funny and maybe true...

Quote :: LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL Metal gets more pathetic every day. Poor guys, I too lol at the idea that metal musicians are akin to the 'pampered brats' of MTV. You make more money sucking businessman rooster down Tokyo backalleys. Just ask Marty Friedman. Why the hell else would you quit Megadeth to work on the "superhappyjoytime fun hour with more guy Martysan fast too Malmsteen guy guitar!!!!!!!11111111"???

Ate his vegetables Number of posts : 4958 Age : 33

He says that they depend on merchandise and concerts and then that illegal downloading is killing the industry.

Just a little bit inconsistent, Gary.

Guest

Schbopo wrote:: He says that they depend on merchandise and concerts and then that illegal downloading is killing the industry.

Just a little bit inconsistent, Gary.

What he's trying to get at is because of illegal dowloading they're not making any money from their CDs...thus they have to depend on merchandise and ticket sales.

Road Warrior Number of posts : 17069 Age : 48

detuned wrote:

Schbopo wrote:: He says that they depend on merchandise and concerts and then that illegal downloading is killing the industry.

Just a little bit inconsistent, Gary.

What he's trying to get at is because of illegal dowloading they're not making any money from their CDs...thus they have to depend on merchandise and ticket sales.

Exactly

Heart of Metal Number of posts : 1773 Age : 36

detuned wrote:

Schbopo wrote:: He says that they depend on merchandise and concerts and then that illegal downloading is killing the industry.

Just a little bit inconsistent, Gary.

What he's trying to get at is because of illegal dowloading they're not making any money from their CDs...thus they have to depend on merchandise and ticket sales.

If they want people to buy their cd's they should do special packagings, like cd/dvd's, digipacks or extended booklets. Mp3 share can't compete with that.

Metal, Movies, Beer Number of posts : 37646 Age : 53

If they want people to buy their CDs they should get rid of the mongoloid they have on vocals now and bring back Zetro.

Just sayin'.

_________________
"I am reluctant to get too deep into politics, and I don’t expect politicians to get too deep into music."
- Paul Stanley

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Metal is Forever Number of posts : 5704 Age : 49

And write better songs while they're at it.

Metal, Movies, Beer Number of posts : 37646 Age : 53

Temple of Blood wrote:: And write better songs while they're at it.

...that too.

_________________
"I am reluctant to get too deep into politics, and I don’t expect politicians to get too deep into music."
- Paul Stanley

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Guest

Temple of Blood wrote:: And write better songs while they're at it.

They have always been inconsistent if you ask me. There isn't an album of theirs that doesn't have 3 or 4 boring songs.

Heart of Metal Number of posts : 1773 Age : 36

why is it that sousa is not on the band and in any other band?

Metal, Movies, Beer Number of posts : 37646 Age : 53

powermacho wrote:: why is it that sousa is not on the band and in any other band?

Because he's currently married with children and since Exodus ain't exactly packing the Enormo-Domes of the world, he would rather stay home and work a regular 9-to-5'er.

_________________
"I am reluctant to get too deep into politics, and I don’t expect politicians to get too deep into music."
- Paul Stanley

HEY KIDS! Check out my way-cool CD and movie reviews and other geeky nonsense on the HubPages Network: http://hubpages.com/@fatfreddyscat

Guest

Quote :: We depend entirely on merchandise and tour revenues.

And that's different from always how?

mini boss Number of posts : 21101 Age : 54

SpectreFate wrote:

Temple of Blood wrote:: And write better songs while they're at it.

They have always been inconsistent if you ask me. There isn't an album of theirs that doesn't have 3 or 4 boring songs.

100% agree

Stender wrote:: Holt's right.

I agree

The lost Ramone Number of posts : 6557 Age : 34

Fat Freddy wrote:: If they want people to buy their CDs they should get rid of the mongoloid they have on vocals now and bring back Zetro.

Just sayin'.

and if they really REALLY wanted people to buy their CDs they should get rid of the mongoloid they have on vocals now and bring back Baloff....somehow.

mini boss Number of posts : 21101 Age : 54

Exodus was an ok band and definitley an important band when it comes to being one of pioneers of thrash, but if downloading didnot exisit, Gary Holt and the rest of the Exodus members would still need a steady paying gig outside of music. They never ever even came close to having the type of commerical success that Megadeth, Slayer or even Testament or Overkill did.

Guest

Stender wrote:

Fat Freddy wrote:: If they want people to buy their CDs they should get rid of the mongoloid they have on vocals now and bring back Zetro.

Just sayin'.

and if they really REALLY wanted people to buy their CDs they should get rid of the mongoloid they have on vocals now and bring back Baloff....somehow.

Wouldn't they require the services of Herbert West for that?

Guest

If I may, what's "killing" the music industry is NOT simply downloading. Downloading is a result of something else (other than laziness/convenience). THIS, IMO, is what's killing the music industry:

- a gigantic overflow of copycat/soundalike bands based on one true, honest band. When the market is flooded, people can't buy everything. The money to flood the market had to come from somewhere (from the label, who got the money from their one or two HUGE bands to fund a few dozen more just like them) and when it's not made back because A - there's too much stuff and B - it all sounds the same, sales drop, bands get dropped, label execs get replaced and it all starts over again...and a TON of money was pissed away

- loads of record company money are poured into creating generic, copycat, "ringtone" music in lavish, ridiculously overpriced studios w/ ridiculously overpriced "producers" all for the sake of moving a few million CD's on the back of one song only to have those CD's end up in used bins and floorboards across the country

- Charging $15-$20 for a single CD that maybe cost $5 to make INCLUDING production/marketing costs, giving the artist $1 & the label keeping the rest to fund their own employees' ridiculously overpriced lifestyles

- TONS of money poured into smurf poo like Fergie, The Pu$$ycat Dolls and other disposable pop zombies to plaster their faces & asses all over the media in the hopes of tricking enough people into thinking it's cool enough to spend $20 on because they like the ringtone

These all sound like the same thing, and I guess they are, they're all differing degrees of mismanagement of funds by who? By the record labels, that's who. They WASTE so much money its unfathomable and then wonder why they're not getting it back.

In the 70s, there were nowhere NEAR as many musical acts in a singular style competing for everyone's attention. There was ONE Led Zeppelin, ONE U2, ONE Kiss, ONE Elton John, ONE Black Sabbath, etc. Now, how many "Nickelback's" are there? How many Britney/N'Sync clones had money flushed away on them? In the 70s, when 'Frampton Comes Alive' (for example) sold millions because of ONE song, the labels suddenly realized "Hey, we can exploit the hell out of ONE song, make a TON of money, then move on...we no longer have to spend years developing an artist...we can squeeze a hit out of them, make our money, wring them dry creatively and move on to the next".

If the music business was run in the 60s & 70s like it has been since the late 80s, there would never be a U2, or a Beatles, or a Led Zeppelin, or a Kiss...every one of those bands would have been dropped after 2 or 3 albums becase none of them caught on big until after that. These days it's "have a hit within 2 or 3 singles or you're done". The only way to try and get a hit that quick is seriously overexpose whomever they need the hit out of.

It's not just the majors. Look at Metal Blade or Century Media. How many bands do they have? Way too many. You have one, maybe two albums to make the label some money or they will not resign you. Metal Blade takes all the money Cannibal Corpse brings them and signs 27 other bands, all sounding the same, markets the hell out of them for 3 months, then you never hear from 24 of them again.

AND -

Ideally, I think an artist should be afforded the opportunity to make a living making music, if that's what they choose to pursue. But, not everyone can make a living as a carpenter or a plumber or an exterminator either if there's too much competition and not enough money. Nobody in their right mind will look in the phone book, see 10 different exterminator companies in their immediate area and say "I'm going to start an exterminator company" because they know there is a good chance that they will fail at it and waste a lot of money they will never get back in doing so.

It takes, IMO, an abnormally optomistic mindset to look at the internet, see the amount of labels & bands in the world and say to itslef "I'm going to start a band and make a living at it." God bless the dreamers, and anyone with a dream has every right to, and should, puruse it. But there has to be a sense of reality as well. There are 5,000 other bands playing the same style of music reaching for the same cup...some of you aren't going to even get close to it. And just because you may have made money at it at one time, doesn't earn you the right to continue to make money at it 20 years later. For every Metallica, there are thousands of Exodus' in the world.

"We have to depend entirely on shows and merch" - wahh. Be happy someone likes your band enough to buy a t-shirt or a concert ticket. You can't buy a car because you don't sell enough CD's? Get a job. You can still make music & have a job too. Being in a band doesn't earn someone the right to make a living at it any more than being a mechanic earns you the right. Why are people with master's degree's waiting tables? Because there aren't enough slots to be filled and not enough money to pay them all...the same reason there are guitarists working at Chik-Fil-A.

Am I ranting? I guess so...

Guest

There is no way I will ever read that entire post. However, I admire your moxy, Mr. Of Fire.

Guest

Excellent post Shawn.

Metal, Movies, Beer Number of posts : 37646 Age : 53

Feel better now Shawn? Laughing

Great post tho.

_________________
"I am reluctant to get too deep into politics, and I don’t expect politicians to get too deep into music."
- Paul Stanley

HEY KIDS! Check out my way-cool CD and movie reviews and other geeky nonsense on the HubPages Network: http://hubpages.com/@fatfreddyscat

Roo Jockey Number of posts : 4601 Age : 46

I agree with ya 100% Shawn! As the saying goes, not every kid is gonna grow up to be President.

_________________
You're cancer, you can't be the answer, you're killing me

Guest

I just get fed up with indie musicians jumping on the downloading bandwagon like it's the only thing keeping them from becoming "Elmer J Fudd, Millionaire".

Something else flooding the market and taking up/watsting money? Reunions...but that's a whole other thing.

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