Quote: Admiral BobMusically, I’ve always wanted to have my cake and eat it too.

I like being in bands. You bond in a way that people who don’t make music probably can’t understand. It is a form of brotherhood and sisterhood as strong as blood. When you hit the groove the right way, a kind of communication takes place that is on a higher level than words. It is a sort of sonic telepathy.

But bands are limiting in some ways too. They do what they do - a stax style R&B band just isn’t going to excel at Hip Hop or guitar rock.

Being at CCMixter is like being in a band that really is good at just about every genre it decides to dabble in. It is musically freeing in a way I just don’t have words for!

I too like being in bands, not only for the reasons you mention (all true) but the biggest reason is the feeling you get playing live together. Nothing like the feeling you get when everyone is “in the pocket”. :)

But it can also be a very limiting thing too, as AB mentions, when you’re stuck playing the same material (or type of material), either because that’s what the “band” wants to do, or that’s what buys you beer and gas.

I’ve embraced the idea that I can overcome the constraints (geographically and genre wise) of being in a band by being a band of 1 on ccmixter, and I don’t mean that selfishly. I mean I can decide my band anytime, with my mood at the moment, by selecting from the various source in the archive for my “band”.

they don’t argue, they don’t miss gigs and practices, and they come cheap, as in free. they are available whenever the mood strikes me, whenever I want to play.

do i miss the live aspect of the band? sure, but I don’t miss shlepping the gear in and out.

Quote: MC Jack in the Box

do i miss the live aspect of the band? sure, but I don’t miss shlepping the gear in and out.

shlepping gear is the worst part of playing live gigs!

ccMixter is the band now :)

I used to think shlepping gear was the worst part, as I had a Leslie cabinet to haul around.

But I think the very worst part is bar owners ripping you off and trying to change the deal on you, after the playing’s done. Telling the musicians’ union and other bands helped even the score, but not in an instant gratification kinda way. :(

Quote: MC Jack in the Box…I can decide my band anytime, with my mood at the moment, by selecting from the various source in the archive for my “band”.

they don’t argue, they don’t miss gigs and practices, and they come cheap, as in free. they are available whenever the mood strikes me, whenever I want to play.
And it’s a seemingly endless pool of talent. I’ve done a mix a week for the past year and a half and still find it easy to be inspired by the many and diverse uploads offered up for non-regulated fun and artistic expression.

Quote: rocavacoAbout a year ago I discovered ccMixter and - big bang - a whole new universe of creative possibilities opened up for me.

Same story for me, I’ve discovered a complete new creative universe in me

Never say never.
Having a Singapore sling at Raffles is one of my life goals.

Looking forward to that day :)

A very wise, sober and relevant posting, I think.
I’m an optimist.
I believe ccm has a bright future and that there are ways to defeat the challenges ahead.

dear niels,

thanks for noticing the parts of the glass that are full, as well as those that are empty. the champagne in our glass is so tasty, for me, it overshadows any lack. :)

as we’ve previously discussed, the CC organization had been looking to spinoff ccMixter for a couple of years, because they didn’t feel they could give it the support it truly needed (musically, financially and otherwise). i truly believe ATM has supported ccMixter, much more than the CC would have been able, in the past year (and I believe they would agree). ccM’s uploads and traffic remain healthy and strong. the projects over the past year have had some of the highest participation seen here at ccM.

our community is the lifeblood of ccM, and that value is immeasurable.

the cold reality is both the CC, ccM, nonprofits, start-ups, and mature businesses are facing fund-raising challenges in this economic recession. however, ATM has made adjustments necessary to make certain the operation of ccM is top priority. ccM’s operation, in its current form, is not in jeopardy.

that being said, i know we all have many ideas we’d love to explore and implement as we build our future. please keep in mind - ads on ccM are not an option. charging artists is not an option. charging vistors/listeners that visit ccMixter.org is not an option. ATM made these commitments to both the CC and ccM, and we stand by them, despite pressure to find ways around these restrictions.

what would each of you like to see in the next year at ccM? and if your vision requires significant infrastructure and/or financial outlay and investment, how would you propose to fund that (must comply with our commitments)?

personally, i believe ccM is an example of a ‘ gift ecomony’ (made popular by Burning Man), wherein focus is on what is given, not what is received. i believe we are on the cutting edge of this trend, and as paper currency continues to devalue, we’ll see even more value given to places like ccMixter.

what is our future? we decide, and build it, together.

i look forward to everyone’s thoughts.

From the hosting perspective, I’d like to point out that the first thing we did upon taking over operations of ccMixter was to move the site to a significantly more powerful server with increased storage capacity on a faster connection.

oh, and that enabled us to offer larger file size uploads (from 10MB to 50MB) and encouraged flac, thereby higher quality uploads :)

just wanted to pop by to ask whether perhaps your perspective is skewed a little by trees vs. forest.

iow before ATM took over a year ago the actual back-room activity behind ccM was not much different than making sausage. after ATM took over you, personally, got a closer look at the back-room and discovered that lo and behold, it looks like they are making sausage.

So….

Quote: reality has unfolded a bit differently than anticipated a year ago.

I honestly have no idea what “reality” you’re talking about here. The brilliance of the 6th Anniversary Cool Music show makes my case better than anything else but let me just say: ATM promised not to change the experience of being part of the ccM community and (with much greater personal sacrifice than I ever put into it) they have kept their word 100%. In and of itself it may seem weird to praise someone for simply doing what they said they would, but compared to the rest of the world of websites and online businesses this is a somewhat remarkable achievement and proves their dedication to everything ccM.

If no one else is going to say it then allow me: THANK YOU Emily, Jason, Alex and all the non-visible people of ATM for the last year of keeping your promise and keeping the ccM flame burning so brightly.

Peace,
VS