Art as Commodity, etc. (Score 1)

I find the most humorous aspect of all of this to be Lars' comment that 'it's sad that our music is being traded as a commodity instead of the art that it is.'

On the surface, this seems to make sense. Yet in what avenue is Metallica's art being traded as a commodity? In record stores? On MTV? What does he think his music is to his label, to the radio stations that play it, to the entertainment market at large? A potential source of revenue.

And for what other reason are the powers that be going after Napster? Because they are afraid of a drain on revenue.

Artists who are interested in their art reaching the widest human audience should love Napster. Those who believe that art, once created, does not belong to its creator but to everyone, should love Napster.

I love Napster, but of course I still buy discs and will never stop. I want the source recording. I want the cover art and the CD booklet. But Napster has gotten me interested in artists I never would have listened to otherwise.

In short, real artists should be in favor of Napster, not against it.

d0lemite