$19.99 for $30 credit per month and a $50 signing is tempting. Basically $80 free credit.
The problem I have with the $50 signing bonus is that it sure doesn't sound like any of that makes it to the artists or labels, which seems to be why labels keep disappearing. So, yeah, it seems like a great deal, but maybe they can make that great deal because they aren't paying anyone what they are owed.
I've been away for two weeks on holiday. On the flight home yesterday I was thinking whether or not eMusic would still be in business. Obviously they are - I hope it continues....
They must be Greg, they send me daily Facebook posts concerning the future, have asked if they have paid Orchard distribution and will be getting it back, no response at present
Before going away Joe Bonamma's label (J and R Adventures) was still there. He had a new CD released a few days back, so I went to download -but, of course, the label is now missing
That's a drag about J & R Adventures - I still got his next to last album there, but not the week it was released.
Anyhow you Game Of Thrones fans - did you know Ilan Payne, the mute executioner, had a band??? I went "I know this face". Haven't heard it yet. eMu still had some of his older stuff, at least they did yesterday - Wilko Johnson.
Are they trying to upset all us 'oldies' so that we leave with our current plans, to be replaced by lots of new 'young' members willing to invest lots into Blockchain?
Glad I already bought Blueprinting by Aizuri Quartet and Robbie Lee / Mary Halvorson's Seed Triangular. Tried William Brittelle's new one on New Amsterdam and got the Invalid error.
@Brighternow "^^ Me too, it seems that albums where the player doesn't work neither does the purchase function" - Do you mean playing samples? Everything I've tried, samples are playing this morning.
If I can, I may use up my remaining credits asap. Offering to put people on 90-day hold seems like a new and portentous development
I think this is just a continuation of their rendition of Sherman's March to the Sea, where nothing but scorched earth from their previous retail business will be left behind. They'll milk subscription revenue as long as it exists and continue to accept labels leaving for non-payment, but it sure feels like they have long since passed a point where they could ever reasonably expect to restore that part of their business, as the catalogue and subscriber losses are becoming too significant. If they had any intention of fixing it or reversing the trend, we'd have seen it by now. I doubt they'll ever come out and say "You're right, we're not going to fix any of this", because they want to milk whatever remaining subscriber revenue exists for as long as possible.
Don't know what the "blockchain era" will bring for them, but I think eMusic as we know it is very close to being gone for good. I used to always follow such "death spiral" predictions with "I hope I'm wrong", but such hope seems misplaced at this point.
I've got 11 credits left to spend, so I'll be trying to find an album with 11 tracks later. Then I will go on hold for 90 days. This time I really do think it will be the end of the relationship with eMusic. I've been on hold several times before, even left in January to come back six months later. It seems to me that Blockchain is like throwing a dice in an all or nothing game with the odds heavily stacked against you. A very sad end to a relationship that was so good for so many years, but now seems to have run its course.
Update - I'm on hold now until January. By then the future of eMusic ought to be sorted one way or another....
Thats where I was Greg six months ago, cannot see it changing now. Its a shame as it was good while it lasted, however things have moved on and still can get and listen to music from many other sources. Lables and musicians have learnt over the past for years that there are more ways to get their music out and if companies such as E music won't pay or can't pay, then there are many more companies out there that will. E Music lost sight off this therefore the market will move on without them
So Greg/Lowlife/Soulcoal/Doofy/Brighternow and everybody else, where do I go to next to get all those great 1960s and 1970s progressive rock albums that eMusic used to be so good at? P.S. Just seen Harry and Meghan rolling past in the No. 1 tram to South Melbourne Beach! Never say that exciting things don't happen downunder!
@peterfrederics I don't know how you feel about those little plastic discs but personally I think I'm going to have to go back to taking a chance on used or Other Seller CD's on Amazon - have gotten some good deals over the years especially on import box sets, and, fingers crossed, haven't been burnt.
Similarly, I've just ordered a CD on Ebay. Charity shops are a good source too. But I've always used those to supplement eMusic. What they do not provide is the range of, eg, jazz releases that I bought from eMusic. I will end up buying less using Bandcamp and Amazon, or just listen on Spotify.
@peterfrederics, I think for most ex-eMu subscribers the shift will be towards more streaming (Spotify, etc.) mixed with a smaller number of purchases from other indie sites, including Bandcamp. And, as others noted, certain more obscure titles may have to come from re-sale sites like eBay or Amazon Marketplace. You also might check 7Digital, as I believe eMusic uses that relationship as their "back end" link to all the various distributors. Not all 7Dig content is available on eMusic, but I think (?) all or much eMusic content is available on 7Digital (without the same level of discount, of course, but there still are often decent deals).
I also wonder if Bandcamp wouldn't be wise to reach out to a lot of these smaller labels fleeing eMusic to court them to their site, perhaps even encouraging more discounting. eMusic keeps claiming their woes are solely due to market trends, yet Bandcamp thrives targeting essentially the same audience.
Another source of music I sometimes use is NoiseTrade. On the whole there are samples of albums or complete albums from newish artists. Some good music there but you do need to be selective and do a bit of searching. All are available for free with a tip if you wish. I tend not to tip as I see it as a kind of advertising. In the past if I liked something I'd probably download from eMusic, rarely been an option recently!
My eMu subscription is prepaid through December. I will not be renewing. Plan to move that monthly outlay to Spotify (family plan), which my daughter has been clamoring for. Interesting to see her perspective on music vs. mine - she has been buying single tracks on iTunes, sometimes spending $20 at a time, which is a lot of money for a 12-year old. Then a month later, she's tired of those and wants to hear a bunch of new songs she's heard at school or seen on YouTube. She has CDs that we bought her over the years but never listens to them. Streaming makes sense for her.
I will continue to download from Bandcamp or other sites, but I'm going to try streaming more and buying less. I'm on a trial of Spotify premium right now and poked around last night looking for some obscure artists I didn't expect to find. For the most part, I was pleasantly surprised.
I was looking at the NoiseTrade site and on the home page I saw a listing for the "Rob Morrow Band." I chuckled at the thought that the only Rob Morrow I could think of was the guy from "Northern Exposure." It turned out that it was him(!) Not very interesting music for me, but, hey, it's his thing, I guess.
You know, for all that we used to complain about the responses from customer service reps back in the old days (say, when the turned the whole site dark gray), and the tendency to get boilerplate in CS emails, I think those folk back then (boilerplate and all) sounded way more like actual human beings than this new round of breathless PR gushing.
I do find it amusing that with all the excitement about tokens and whatnot, they haven't really been talking about music. It's all about the platform, and never mind the fact that labels have been leaving the platform in droves. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
I do find it amusing that with all the excitement about tokens and whatnot, they haven't really been talking about music.
Actually, their Twitter account has recently started giving music recommendations again. Probably mainly to point people to things that are actually available for download ...
The key question surely is will there be any return of labels soon after November 20th? There is no way I would even contemplate returning without that.
Interesting statistic from Bandcamp - Fans have spent $7.2 million in the last 30 days. I suspect that is a turnover that eMusic has probably never reached. If over a whole year at that rate, it would be more that $85 million
Comments
If I can, I may use up my remaining credits asap. Offering to put people on 90-day hold seems like a new and portentous development
Don't know what the "blockchain era" will bring for them, but I think eMusic as we know it is very close to being gone for good. I used to always follow such "death spiral" predictions with "I hope I'm wrong", but such hope seems misplaced at this point.
Update - I'm on hold now until January. By then the future of eMusic ought to be sorted one way or another....
Lables and musicians have learnt over the past for years that there are more ways to get their music out and if companies such as E music won't pay or can't pay, then there are many more companies out there that will.
E Music lost sight off this therefore the market will move on without them
P.S. Just seen Harry and Meghan rolling past in the No. 1 tram to South Melbourne Beach! Never say that exciting things don't happen downunder!
New Amsterdam
Cantaloupe
Innova (8 albums left)
New Focus
Dacapo
Tompkins Square
Minabel
Bridge Records
Mode Records
- And most likely many many more . . .
Some of them were victims of:
ETA: Kning Disk . . . 10 albums . . . all of them unavailable
I also wonder if Bandcamp wouldn't be wise to reach out to a lot of these smaller labels fleeing eMusic to court them to their site, perhaps even encouraging more discounting. eMusic keeps claiming their woes are solely due to market trends, yet Bandcamp thrives targeting essentially the same audience.
I will continue to download from Bandcamp or other sites, but I'm going to try streaming more and buying less. I'm on a trial of Spotify premium right now and poked around last night looking for some obscure artists I didn't expect to find. For the most part, I was pleasantly surprised.