Distorted Tapes: Downloads vs. Physical music.
I recently wrote an article about digital downloads (illegal downloads specifically) for a University project, and I asked Graham from Distorted Tapes to give me his opinion on digital downloads and the current revival of formats such as vinyl and cassette tapes.
Distorted Tapes is a small independent record label based in Telford, run by Graham Reynolds.
“I started Distorted Tapes a couple of years ago as a web-blog, with the main aim of documenting some of the shows I was going to in Birmingham, and it just kind of snowballed from there!”
“Initially my only hope was to compile these reviews and thoughts into some form of physical release such as a zine, but as time passed and I got to know some of the local bands better I started to consider actually setting up my own label. After all, how hard could it be?”
Graham’s first release came into fruition in March 2012, after floating an idea with Wolverhampton’s God Damn to press a run of their single as a 7" record.
“Knowing that all my favourite independent labels like Big Scary Monsters, Fierce Panda, Holy Roar, Tough Love etcetera had all started off working with a band they had 100% belief in, I knew that God Damn were the band for me.”
“Fully financed by myself, my parents thought I’d gone a bit nuts to put my trust in what they saw as my mates’ band"
"But when I got the boxes of records through from the pressing plant it was one of the proudest moments of my life, no joke. I’ve gone on to sell a good deal of the 250 copies I got pressed, although I am under no illusion that I will ever break even with the cost of production”
“At the end of the day, the record acted as a statement of intent and made a name for my bedroom project which is still growing.”
Since March, Graham has put out a further 6 releases and hosted a multitude of bands in venues across the West Midlands.
If you’re familiar with Distorted Tapes, you should be aware of their tagline ‘You can’t hug a download’.
“You can’t!” says Graham, “It [a digital file] exists as lots of little 1’s and 0’s on a hard-drive. A million files of music which are safe for as long as your computer survives. Where’s the engagement?”
“For me, putting a vinyl on is ritualistic - putting the needle to the groove, adjusting the stereo to best accommodate the record. I’m engaged. There is effort involved, and accordingly if you put effort into something you get more out of it.”
“I have a particular soft spot for 7” singles as there is something a little bit magic about these circular sheets of black plastic that can hold a perfect three and a half minute gem on.”
“Then there’s B-sides, one of my favourite things in the world. Sometimes they are crap, but sometimes the best song is the B-side.”
“In this world of iPods and digital downloads the B-Side runs the risk of becoming a relic. A single is merely a track off of the album which has a video. Gone are the racks of singles in Woolies, Virgin, HMV, where I spent a good deal of my teenage years hunting out new sounds and rare tracks.”
“Vinyl, even CD, is something real. I can hold it, I can read the liner notes, look at the artwork, and it’s something I can keep forever that will remind me of a particular point in my life.”
“Vinyl has undergone a bit of a renaissance, however I feel this will be more of a fad with a lot of people growing out of buying vinyl as they grow up. The costs charged for records at the moment make it very hard to be a sustainable habit for most teenagers or students, however there will be record collectors born out of the current trend that will continue to buy vinyl for years to come. As long as bands have fans, and there are collectors out there, labels and artists will continue to release on the vinyl format.”
“I doubt it will ever become as big as it was, and I’m also doubtful it will grow as popular as CD was in its heyday."
“Art is meant to be a physical and engaging act, digital music contradicts this and as a result becomes disposable”
“Pop hits now cater for the shuffle generation, song after song that disappears after a few weeks. A vinyl record is for life.”
