“Buy-on-Release” Artists
Annnnnnnnnnnnnnd…. we’re back.
Before I abruptly walked off the set last week, reader Ken made a request: “I’d be interested to see your list of buy-on-release artists. I was just thinking yesterday how I may have finally reached the point where I am not constantly or primarily in search of new artists. I can probably satisfy myself mostly with back-filling my collection and keeping up with my ‘pantheon.’”
I believe this was prompted by my stating that I’d by anything that Brian Eno releases; indeed, I wandered into Rhino Records on Saturday, looking for (of all things) the soundtrack for West Side Story, and found that the new Eno had been released ahead of schedule. So I did buy it; look for a response in this space in the next week or so.
And why was I looking for West Side Story? More on that soon, I hope.
Now, as to Ken’s question: I fear my response is going to be a good bit less interesting than he had hoped—but here goes nothing. Presented here in “iTunes order”: sort of like alphabetical order, but different. Presented for the most part without comment.
Aimee Mann
Arcade Fire
Beastie Boys
Beck
Cat Power
The Dandy Warhols (though they’re hanging by a thread: the last couple have been pretty bad)
David Bowie (if, in fact, he ever makes another record….)
The Decemberists
Elvis Costello (indeed, just bought the new one, along with the Eno, on Saturday)
Girl Talk (OK, so he hasn’t done that much yet. Jury’s still out, though Feed the Animals is genius.)
Gorillaz (really, anything that Damon Albarn is in or on: Blur; The Good, the Bad, and the Queen)
Jay-Z
Lady Gaga (though not much of a track record yet!)
Laurie Anderson
Leonard Cohen
Morrissey
Muse
Neil Young (though this does entail buying an awful lot of shit)
Outkast (not betting on future releases, however)
PJ Harvey
Portishead
Prince
Radiohead
Ray LaMontagne
R.E.M.
Richard Thompson
The Shins
TV on the Radio (it’s not that I haven’t heard they broke up: it’s that I refuse to believe it)
U2
The White Stripes (and most of the Jack White side projects, though with increasing disinterest)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
I’m sure I’m forgetting lots of musicians who are important to me, and whose new work I do snap up. I’m that rare breed these days: a middle-aged guy (“middle” only if I live to be 100, I guess) who still buys a lot of music.
More interesting that the list, it seems to me, are the albums in one’s collection by artists who don’t make the list. I love the Flaming Lips, for instance, but use reviews and word of mouth to guide my buying: I certainly don’t buy everything.
I’m disturbed at the very low number of women artists that make my list, which harkens back to a conversational thread that pops up on fcrp from time to time. I’m surprised to see that, for all the rap that’s in my collection, Jay-Z and the Beastie Boys are the only acts that win all my love (with Outkast holding on by a thread).
And so on. Comments on the list, and the whole project of constructing such a list, would be eagerly welcomed. And don’t worry, I’m not sensitive: I know it’s a weird list and I won’t be hurt to hear how weird it is, or why it’s weird, from y’all.
Girl Talk’s coming out with a new album before the end of the year. Also, I think TVotR is just on hiatus, but in the meantime have you heard Dave Sitek’s new project, Maximum Balloon? It’s pretty good.
Thanks for the list, Kevin. It certainly is a diverse group of artists. I think the only definite overlap between your list and mine is Richard Thompson. A number of the others are on my “wait to hear what it’s like” list, however. The Decemberists would have been on my list until recently, but I don’t really like the prog-rock direction they’ve taken. Still, any band that can use the word “bombazine” in a song is OK by me.
To universal disinterest, here is my list:
The Bats (New Zealand jangle pop, for those who don’t know them)
The Bevis Frond (although it appears that Nick is on permanent hiatus)
The Clientele
Gillian Welch
Neko Case
Richard Thompson
Robyn Hitchcock
The Sadies (new entry)
XTC (doubt there’ll be more, however)
Yo La Tengo
Also, I’m in active backfill mode on a few more:
Clem Snide
The Mekons
NZ (Flying Nun) stuff (The Clean, Chris Knox, etc)
I’m terribly disappointed in the flawed diversity of your list.
Besides your acknowledged slight to the “fair sex,” the list is also exceedingly Anglo-Saxon and – I think – exclusively in English.
I’m starting to doubt your liberal/progressive, PC credentials . . .
Indeed. Guilty as charged.
Ooh – liberal guilt!
Your LQ (liberal quotient) just went up considerably.
Reparations are in order, though.
I think the next logical step from here is the “Buy And Release” list of what someone acquires and then actually gives away or deletes from their hard drive.
Free or pirated downloads don’t count.