Band Claims File Sharers 'Are Going To Hell'

from the well,-that'll-sort-it-out-then dept

Apparently, when confronted with changing business models that make your old model less reliable, different people act in different ways. An anonymous reader points us to the news that the singer of the band Elbow, Guy Garvey, has decided to take a religious view on the matter and has declared that file sharers are going to hell. His view of the religion of music economics is apparently that it's okay to download if you're poor, but if you can afford to pay, it's a sin to download and share. He then goes on to thank his record label -- whom he refers to as his "paymaster" -- and suggest that the band is "lucky." While I'm sure luck plays a part in all of it, perhaps not damning people to hell for just listening to your music would be a good start.

He notes that the band has a dedicated bunch of fans, which is great, but shouldn't they be focusing on giving them real reasons to buy, rather than invoking threats of brimstone and hellfire to guilt people into buying? It really comes down to a simple equation. You can make people feel good about buying something, or you can focus on making them feel bad if they don't buy. I tend to think that, in this day and age, the former is much better than the latter. Why worry about those who are downloading, when you can focus on providing good value and a good experience for those who want to support you?

Filed Under: elbow, fans, file sharing, guy garvey