Saturday, September 26, 2009

Rhino nearly extinct?


I've been reading Last Shop Standing, an insider's account of the demise of the independent record shop in the UK, but the news (thanks Lindsay Hutton) that Warner's legacy label Rhino Records in the US has laid off most of its staff is a low blow to the future of music.

Major labels have seen re-packaging, re-formatting and line extensions as the salvation of the traditional music retail model, essentially because it means me and you parting with our money several times over. It also lends itself to the new download channel because even baby boomers hankering for the past have computers.

Dunno where this is all going but it doesn't seem likely to be a nice place.

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