Thought Sausage

Gene Simmons is without a doubt one of the most obnoxious individuals on the planet. His empire of Kiss-EVERYTHING and shitty reality TV is one of the bigger stains on rock 'n roll history. That said, every now and then the guy proves the behind his bullshit is a very intelligent perceptive individual. No more has that been evident than in what he said in Billboard this week regarding artists like Radiohead and Trent Reznor's attempt at a new business model. Basically its what I've been thinking but have been unable to coagulate it into a string of sentences:

But some artist like Radiohead and Trent Reznor are trying to find a new business model.
That doesn't count. You can't pick on one person as an exception. And that's not a business model that works. I open a store and say "Come on in and pay whatever you want." Are you on f*cking crack? Do you really believe that's a business model that works?

So what if music just becomes free and artists make their living off of touring and merchandise?
Well therein lies the most stupid mistake anybody can make. The most important part is the music. Without that, why would you care? Even the idea that you're considering giving the music away for free makes it easier to give it away for free. The only reason why gold is expensive is because we all agree that it is. There's no real use for it, except we all agree and abide by the idea that gold costs a certain amount per ounce. As soon as you give people the choice to deviate from it, you have chaos and anarchy. And that's what going on.

Exactly. At some point there needs to be a sustainable model. I think what Positron Records is doing is about as close to a work-able situation as possible, but if you're a new band good fucking luck. Point is...Radiohead's "business-model" only works because Radiohead spent 15 years cultivating a largish base of fans who would buy anything that band puts out.