The Digital Revolution was a great leap forward in technology, setting the stage for an overhaul in the way music is distributed in the modern day. It was a monumental levelling of the playing field that should have greatly stimulated the art and the industry, allowing independent artists and labels to distribute their music worldwide for virtually no cost.
But like all disruptive innovations it threatened the established industry, the ones that make their money by controlling the means of distribution, and so the establishment naturally fought back; the music industry threw all its weight behind streaming, a practice which benefits corporate giants over independent artists. Streaming cripples new music. You ever wonder where your Spotify subscription fee goes to, considering artists only get £0.002 per stream? It goes to the big 3 record labels (Sony, Warner, Universal) to pay for the privilege of having their back catalogues on the service. Spotify serves the big 3 at the expense of new and independent artists, because the big 3 don't care about new music, they have monumental back catalogues and they are happy to sit back and earn off those. Catalogue music has overtaken new music in the amount of money it makes, first overtaking it in 2016 and in 2026 outstripping it for 75% of the market share. So when they tell you streaming isn't harming the music industry, it's actually growing, just remember that growth is focused on old music not new, making more money for the establishment, not supporting new musicians and labels.
This general pattern is one which repeats throughout history, described as 'dialectical materialism', it is a constant battle whereby new technology undercuts the establishment which then uses its power to reign it in.
But while material progress will be repressed, it cannot be stopped.
Off with their Records advocates business models for the modern age, models that work for new artists and labels. We practice a limited streaming policy, catering specifically to that experience, while advocating the production of 'digibundles', musical works designed for download, taking advantage of everything digital distribution has to offer, including vastly expanded potential for supporting artwork and direct, low cost sales. That £12 a month Spotify subscription could be going straight to the artists that you listen to rather than to multi-billion-dollar corporations. I believe digibundles are the future, not only for the music industry but many other mediums including video, games and other hitherto-unformed artistic expressions.
The challenge we face today is a world where streaming has become the norm and downloading is not readily supported by the prevailing technology. This is because the big 3 are the ones who shape the prevailing technology. Just as Sony invented CD format, they have thrown all their weight behind streaming, forging deals with tech companies to put all their focus on this method of distribution, leaving downloads in the dust. This is fine for the big 3 because they no longer care about new music, they are happy resting on their laurels and milking their back catalogues. But make no mistake, streaming is ravaging our culture and downloads are the solution.
If you are a music listener, we recommend canceling Spotify for a month and spending that money on new music direct from Bandcamp or physical media, downloads from us or other sources. We also recommend using Tidal instead of Spotify. They pay more to artists and they don't fund war drones or let AI train and trade off its platform. You can also export your Spotify playlist to Tidal. And its cheaper, especially with a friends and family account. Tidal isn't the ultimate answer to the problem but it also decentralises Spotify, which is a very good start.
Off with their Records is not a standard record label; there are plenty of those around and I wouldn't waste my time doing anything somebody else is already doing. We intend only to exemplify and innovate the way an independent label could be run in the digital age..
Off with their Records is based in Norwich, UK, and was conceived in 2016 by Ryan Williamson. Our first digibundle was released on April 17, 2017.