Upholder-Listeners

In praise of the music fans who go above and beyond

In the music world, there’s always so much new stuff coming out.

I’m not decrying this at all - there isn’t a new music arbiter who gets to decide how much can be released or who can release it - and thank goodness, for that would be awful.

However, despite there being no new music arbiter/overlord, I don’t remember being asked if we wanted to change the way we approach listening to music. Who was the arbiter there?

Of course, technological changes and the embedding of streaming music as a matter of course in our daily lives has created the conditions for so many more people to make and distribute new music. Fundamentally, I think this must be a good thing.

Music has traditionally been - and to some extent remains (sadly) - one of the worst for gatekeeping, so I think it is primarily a good thing this level of democratisation has enabled many more people than might previously have found possible to find an audience for their work.

Not least myself. I am under no illusions, despite all the inherently difficult and challenging aspects to the streaming debate, music such as mine would have been very difficult to [find a] place in front of the right people in a pre-streaming age.

Frustratingly, though, what I have grown to see as a negative development and one which is (even) harder now, is searching out new music.

In theory, one might expect this to be the exact opposite. Had there ever been some kind of MAKE MUSIC GREAT AGAIN campaign arguing in favour of streaming, it absolutely should have been a key argument that streaming would enable greater new music discoveries. Because it really should have.

In general, this is not really a digital vs physical issue. I mean, it could be, but as cool as they were/are, I wouldn’t want to be making music on a four-track these days, plus it’s no good saying ‘digital is all so baaaaad and horrible’ whilst we’re all reading this on our phones, whether on the Substack app or in our emails, having most probably connected online.

Sadly, though, despite their protestations to the contrary, streaming services and platforms who have adopted and propagated an algorithmic approach to how their customers’ music is served, have arguably made it harder for people to find new music.

The algorithmic approach is based around serving listeners up either the same thing or more of the same - the ‘you liked this so you might like this’ school of music discovery.

Or, to coin a phrase, the Amazonification™️ of music discovery.

And the reason?

Primarily, to keep us on the platform. Or, at least, to have something always ticking away in the background, garnering data, creating new musical imprints to serve up tomorrow and every other day into eternity (side note: will there be streaming in heaven, or is it vinyl all the way?)

We are no good to any platform (or company selling a product etc) when we are not on or using their app, website etc. It’s a little sinister when you think about it.

But, I guess we all agreed to it (or did we?)

They also do it to highlight the implied value for money of our subscription.

“Omg, guys, look: there’s all this music out there, and though you’ll never be able to get close to actually listening to it all, we have it all if you want to try”.

As a Subscriber-Listener, you have all the music, yet you didn’t buy a thing. You can just rent it. Like Blockbusters (remember them?)

The extreme contrast is with our dear friends, the Owner-Listeners - the ones who kept their vinyl collection from the good old days; the high-fidelity society’s thousand-strong CD collection; or even the tape collectors if you managed to preserve a way to play it.

(mini-disc superheros or FLACC-ers…please don’t @ me)

As an artist committed to releasing my music on vinyl and CD - despite the exorbitant and sometimes prohibitive costs, as a good proportion of my audience really want that - you would probably expect me to be a big fan of the Owner-Listeners…and you’d be right!

Big up the OL’s, big love.

(Genuinely, thank you for keeping it real ❤️)

But - as all good articles which come at things from a clearly defined perspective but make a token effort at seeing the other side of the argument must do - the deeply unsatisfactory answer probably lies somewhere within the central section of the Venn Diagram titled ‘Why The Music Industry Is So Bad’, namely:

It Is What It Is.

It’s not going to change any time soon, and probably never will. So the choice is: how can we still pursue music fandom in a way which is meaningful?

Vive la révolution and all that 👊🏻

I’d like to throw open the idea of an Upholder-Listener.

Whilst I’m very much a fan still myself, I acknowledge I will primarily come at this from the perspective of an artist. I think artists are often reluctant to truly share how we feel, for fear of not being believed or taken seriously.

The harsh reality of ‘it is what it is’ means so many artists just cannot make it work anymore to be able to pursue their artistic dreams and intentions without having at least one additional source of income.

I alone, am not able to solve the deeply embedded structural issues and rampant inequalities inherent in the music industry. Sadly.

But what I can share - and something I think is pretty important for artists to be more transparent about - are my experiences. I am routinely bowled over by the way in which some people (and many of you are right here, reading this now) show their support for me and what I’m doing.

Of course, this can and very often does involve a financial element, but fundamentally, it is so much deeper than that. It’s when doing music becomes and is a way of life.

The Upholder-Listener tends to be the kind of person who shares new music recommendations with other people, simply for the joy of it. Because that’s what this is. Music is something to enjoyed!

Another crucial aspect here is the ‘other people’ element.

Remember that feeling when you meet someone new, you get talking about music, and you find out they know some obscure album by one of your favourite bands?

Remember that gig you went to with someone special to you…the one you always say the same things about every time you get nostalgic and reminisce? The shared memory of a treasured experience.

Remember when you go to see a band on your own because you don’t know anyone who knows about them, but when you’re at the show you’re amongst people who know all the words to the songs, just like you do, and suddenly it feels ok?

Remember when we all listened to the radio and they played something and you had to listen out for the artist and track title at the end to make a note of it so you could find it at the record shop?

The streaming vs physical debate is often framed as being similar to renting vs home-owning. It’s not a perfect analogy in truth, but in theory, the Subscriber-Listeners pay a fee for access to all the music in the digital sphere where the actual product (bleurgh, I hate myself) is less tangible, whereas the Owner-Listeners make a point of buying the physical products and as a result, are perhaps able to have a slightly better understanding of what the product is.

But in truth, it is too easy to see the “product” (yep, still uncomfortable) as the thing which makes money. I know, I’m a terrible businessman…but I’m ok with that, because I never set out to be a businessman because I don’t fundamentally see the music and art I make purely as a product to sell. It’s deeper than that.

Whilst streaming is not and will likely never go away, the physical resurgence (particularly amongst younger generations) is encouraging, and in some ways, unsurprising. As humans, we will always want and seek out tangibility, for things which are tangible have so much more meaning than nebulousness, and I still hold fast to the belief that the quest for meaning is a fundamental human desire.

In this context, then, I want to pay tribute to and celebrate all of you who are Upholder-Listeners, because you are the ones who always consistently go beyond the boringly binary streaming vs physical story we hear again and again.

You are the people who go to gigs all the time.

You are the people who travel outside your town to go to gigs.

You are the people who don’t just consume social media, but actively share things by the artists you follow.

You are the people who enthusiastically tell other people about the music and artists you love.

You are the people who buy some merch not just for yourself but for other people who you know will like, enjoy and appreciate it.

You are the people who send artists messages and emails, often just to say hi or with a ‘keep going’ message.

I promise, you won’t always know how important those are.

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Being an Upholder-Listener goes beyond whether you listen on Spotify, Bandcamp or crackly vinyl. It is too easy to bash streaming and wilfully ignore an avalanche of context. Vinyl is pretty environmentally-unfriendly, but because it is having a revival, it doesn’t always get the same criticism.

It is fundamentally to do with what your intention is. The question is:

Why are you a music fan?

It’s a great question to think about.

Look up the definition of ‘uphold’ on dictionary.com. I think you’ll appreciate how I’m trying to frame this.

Thank you. To all of you who are these people, embodying the Upholder-Listener, keeping us all going, whether towards me or other artists…thank you. We are so grateful for you.

Because in some ways, this is all - in part - for you.

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