Rhythmism.com

YO!

Does anyone know what labels offer direct downloads of their releases, direct from their websites or from online vendors such as i-tunes? I'm trying to figure out how fast this is happening.

bedrock, fade, and twisted are three

check out this thread for more: http://www.rhythmism.com/forum/showt...referrerid=239

It's happening fast, btw. So fast that I may not need to do vinyl record shopping at all soon.

Warp Records launched a site recently called BLEEP that has their entire catalog available for download. They offer high-quality files and absolutely no digital rights management -- which is a good thing for consumers.

Check it out at http://www.warprecords.com/bleep/

Institution recordings is launching a site called edmdigital.com

www.institutionrecordings.com

It is this type of thinking that is destroying records stores

what if you can't shop at a record store? I live in Ithaca, and the closest shop is in Syracuse, and it sucks. And you know what, I'm going to be living in Nashville next, and the kind of music I'm looking for isn't available in those record shops.

So, should my DJing suffer because I can't find a record shop in the area, or should I make every effort to find my music in the best, most affordable way possible (while still supporting my favorite record labels, btw)? What would you do if you were in my boots, and how would you react to someone telling you you're destrying record stores simply because you don't shop for music the "normal" way?

(slightly edited - I was a little more pissed then I should've been)

a record store is such a terrible business to be in anyway, dunno how much longer real brick & mortar stores are really going to be around.

fuck record stores.

the only argument for their continued existence is emotion and nostalgia. in a world of the ipod, itunes and a slew of other options becoming available, in contrast they represent an old, inefficient business model and outdated technology. hell -- even record companies are finally getting the drift.

Very well said. Though I don't DJ, I do collect dance music and play it every chance I get. It has long been a bone of contention of mine that the music that I want and love is not available to me.

I don't need vinyl. I do want to support record labels and my producer friends and would/do GLADLY pay .99 per track to the labels that can get their act together online. When you actually do the math this isn't a whole lot different financially for a label than the current system of brick and mortar: A domestic record is $3 from the distributor - I don't know how much the label sees from that but I'm betting it's not more than $1 - $1.50. If I download 2 tracks: the mix and the dub - then a label is already seeing as much money from me as they're seeing from a distributor.

I also don't see why more labels aren't making their entire back catalog of tracks available for download. It's not always the new stuff that I'm looking for - I'm constantly looking to add to my collection of classics or older records that I discovered late.

I think it was John Acquivaca (however you spell it) who said:

By the time a record goes from a label to a store into a customer's hands, UPS made more money than the store and the label.

lmao -- very very sad, but true

try beatport.com

Cool, thanks very much everyone-for dropping this info, I guess the future is upon us.