David Byrne recently penned a feature for Wired magazine that discusses a number
of recent changes the music industry is currently facing. In his article he
mentions that one of the reasons that record labels are currently struggling is
that “recording
costs have
declined to almost zero.” Apparently, Byrne’s claims have ruffled some
feathers
and, in his latest online journal entry, Byrne responds to a pair of
letters that point out several flaws in his argument. One of the
letters happened to come from Howard
Bilerman, who played in an early incarnation of Arcade Fire and is now an engineer/producer in
Montreal. Byrne
has been a longtime supporter of Arcade Fire and even jammed with the group at New York’s Irving Plaza
in 2005.
In a letter posted on Byrne’s blog, Bilerman says the
following:
“While it's true that the laptop recording setup made
self-produced recordings worlds easier than before, the simple truth is that
laptops alone don't make records. First
off, there is the peripheral equipment needed...microphones, stands, cables,
pre-amps, sound cards, headphones, speakers, hard-drives, instruments, etc. And
while the cost of the aforementioned has cascaded in the past decade, a
complete and flexible home studio setup still comes at a price. Then, of course, there is the issue of
know-how — recording skills and technique — two incredibly important factors in
making a decent sounding recording, and two things that don't come "with
the laptop". Lastly, there is mastering, currently hovering (at the low
end scale) at around $750-$1,000. Even
these moderate costs can make recording out of reach for many bands.”
The musical acquaintances are currently in the middle of a
back and forth on Byrne’s journal, where the former Talking Heads leader admits
that his claim was slightly exaggerated. Bilerman also brings in age as a factor Byrne
failed to mention in his argument. Their complete dialogue can be found here .
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