I’ve been using eMusic–a download subscription service–for over a year now. Each month, I’m allotted 30 downloads for $12. That’s a quarter a song, which is pretty much what I think MP3s are worth, so I’m happy with the arrangement. I’ve re-constructed the otherwise out-of-print and/or expensively imported Slowdive EP-collection-thing Blue Day, and I’ve collected some of the work of my favorite comedians. But mainly what I use eMusic for is to check out new music. At that price, it doesn’t hurt too much to discover that, for example, I’m just not a Jay Reatard person. Delete and roll on.
But… And this question will only be relatable to music nerds of a certain age, but: What about the ones I like? What about the ones I fall madly in love with? Any sane, modern American would say, “Umm, listen to it a lot?” But for someone who’s been conditioned to bond with albums via some physical form, it’s unsatisfying on some ghostly level to have these songs “just” in my iTunes library, “just” in MP3 format.
So, I’ve taken to burning CD-R’s of whatever I don’t dislike, so there’s some physical copy around. Why? In case I want to throw it into the kitchen CD player, or take it with me in the car. But lately I’ve been realizing how silly that is, since both of these players have iPod jacks. Indeed, the only stereo in my house that can’t handle an iPod is the big one in my office–and that can be remedied with a $15 iPod dock.
Not to mention the storage problem. Even in slimline cases, burning a CD or two a month above my regular, non-experimental purchases (like the Thermals’ latest) starts to expand rather robustly. I look at my shelves and think of what Amy’s done, what a lot of my friends have done–put their boxless discs in zippered binders, just in case, leaving the digital copy as the main library. Shelf space liberated.
I have no conclusion today. But I will say that those of us raised on CDs–we got the worst of both worlds. As a tactile experience, they pale in comparison to vinyl, hanging on a hinge and a flimsy booklet. But then from the perspective of convenience, the things aren’t small ENOUGH by today’s standards, having the gall to take up more than hard drive space. They might as well not exist, and every day that becomes more and more likely.
Meanwhile, I love the new Metric album so much that I want to have a “proper” copy of it. I could just burn it ($0.30), but the CD is also available for cheap on Amazon ($7.99), and I think I’ve seen it on vinyl at Reckless ($10 – $15). So how much do I love it? And is spending extra money for it a fulfillment of that love, or merely an expression of it? Is either possibility sad and/or unhealthy? At least economically? Is this a rich man’s dilemma or what?
Whether records or furniture or puppets, treasuring things is a joy, and one I’ll probably indulge for the rest of my life. But when I lean on that pleasure too much, when I fool myself into thinking it contains nutrients it simply doesn’t, that’s where the problems start.
p.s.
For further reading, Chris Day has an excellent blog about the collection-compulsion from a comic-book perspective. Also, as an introduction to his 2008 top tens, glenn mcdonald explores the CD format and how it relates to music vs. the music business, etc.
