Originally Posted by
GMan
Until relatively recently, the con in exploring, appreciating and buying music was the following:
1) record shop owners wouldn't always have the best music available, and would try and sell you what was left over - ie. sell you what hadn't been sold ( if you were speculatively buying new releases, eg vinyl 12")
2) when you visited a record store, eg in Soho London, the shop staff would put you under pressure to buy something, having got a dozen 12" off the wall for you to listen - but most releases might be shit
3) second hand record stores are often dimly lit, so you can't always tell if a record is worn (under a 100 watt bulb a near mint 12" may be only VG rated, and sound all crackly)
4) in second hand stores, maybe the best vinyl & cds never made it to the racks, but the shop owner or co-workers had it for themselves, so you never saw the full second hand stock available
5) HMV Oxford Circus London,& other music stores plus various music mags would give rave reviews to average records, hyping the releases
6) there is much media hype on bullshit music, you feel expected to conform to "good taste"
The end result of the above process was the long term permeation into society of shit music, leveraged by record labels, & record shops
We have never been in a better position to explore & buy good music online - without all the nonsense pressure to buy shit music in store - and all make up our own minds, in the long term, as to what is good music.
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