While taste is largely subjective, if your favorite Foo Fighters album is not either Foo Fighters, The Colour and the Shape or There is Nothing Left to Lose, then you are just objectively wrong.
Hey so im getting rid of whatever records i can since i moved and havent been able to find a job yet.
Heres the link to the ebay auctions i currently have going: http://www.ebay.com/sch/blklabelkills/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=
and heres my tradelist: https://deadformat.net/tradelist/jaredringrose
my tradelist isnt completely up to date, but most of it should still be there, so just ask about whatever youre interested in and i will let you know if i still have it!
I'd like to preface this post by saying that this isn't a rant. Just my thoughts on this release over the past couple of days. I know a few members take the time to read my winded posts, so this is for them.
I really see both sides of the coin on this thing, which is why I've kept quiet and opt to not argue with anyone about their stance. From a production standpoint, the $40 price tag is complete bullshit. I guess I should reserve that comment for when I have this press in my own hands, but there's been zero indication that this thing will be loaded with enough features and quality material to be worth $40 MSRP. And of course, I am inclined to agree with everyone who's insisting that the people who buy into this $40-LP nonsense are a huge part of the problem.
But the gentleman who said that this is the cheapest you'll find a [colored] copy of the repress was probably right. I can't see the aftermarket being generous on this thing. Hopefully Amazon copies will be priced a bit cheaper. But you don't even have to look further than the last Coheed repress (SSTB) to see that these probably won't go for cheap. I think that when the initial wave of flip-attempts saturate eBay, someone somewhere will probably be able to win an auction for a bit less than $40, and potentially save a few bucks. But other than that? - $40 for a mint, sealed copy is probably going to be the cheapest we'll see. SSTB was selling for nearly double its MSRP just a month after it sold out. Can't imagine IKSOSE:3 will be any different.
When I saw this repress price-tag, I initially cringed. Then laughed. Then felt a little sad. I went through the motions because as much as my conscience was telling me that $40 + shipping for a double LP is unnecessary, there's the fact that this thing has been OOP and lusted after for years. I've been talking myself out of splurging on OG auctions since 2009, and I have to constantly remind myself that this is what I was waiting for. What a lot of people were waiting for. This all comes full circle to the "Derp, but it's better than eBay" mentality that I so often ridicule on the boards. But in the case of this release, that's the ugly truth. It's either $40 now, or $80 - $200 later. Who knows; maybe more? Regardless of your stance on the pricing, that feels like a cold hard fact to me. I guess I could be proven wrong and another label could repress this down the road for a fraction of the price... but what's the probability of that? Really?
The folks who are saying "vote with your dollar" – I really admire the principle behind the idea, but in a situation where quantities are limited - like with the "direct to fan" variant - that accomplishes nothing. If we got the entire Coheed fanbase on the same page, and we all boycotted the repress until the price was lowered... hell, they'd probably make a movie out of that. But this went up less than two days ago, and they're down to 200 units or so? The demand is just too great. Anyone who's "sticking it to the man" by not buying is merely freeing up another slot for someone else to hop on board. These will all sell. Whether or not you're one more to the tally, the band will have no problem fulfilling 100% of their sale plan off of this repress. If they did an unlimited press and $40 was the price, then choosing not to buy would have a bit more of an impact, I think. Not much at all, yet still something. But at this point - for this release in particular - choosing to save your $40 and "move on" only frees up a part of your vinyl conscience... which may allow you to sleep just a bit easier at night. From a financial / tangible / market standpoint, it unfortunately accomplishes nothing. At least as far as those grey copies are concerned.
"But it's $40 and it supports the band. I'd spend $80 on an [obscure object somehow related to Claudio]." – Yeah, that's cool, but what happens when every band adopts that mentality? When every band realizes that they have a loyal fanbase who wants a specific album, and are willing to pay double or triple the average cost if it's through a platform where the band sees the majority of the sale? Don't get me wrong; I'll gladly pay an extra $5 for an album if it means ordering directly from the band or their label. I do that all the time. But you've got to draw a line. At what point does "supporting the band" turn into being gouged? An extra $10? $20? $30? People ridicule Kickstarters where the standard vinyl option is priced at $40 or $50 – is this really much different? And please, don't snap back with "But vinyl isn't cheap. Don't like it? Don't buy it. Go listen to the MP3s you've had for years." That argument is horse shit. Most of us are stoked on this release because we enjoy the album, and we all enjoy vinyl. (And as icing on the cake, isn't this thing remastered? I'm sure those polished tracks will make a CD appearance down the road, but that's still all the more reason to hop on this thing.) And I'm sure that the vast majority of those very same people only have a finite amount of money. If you're like me, $40 can get you 2 or 3 new releases that you're excited to own. Vinyl has never been about buying $40 MSRP albums, stateside. So, no; I refuse to accept that as "the new rules" for the vinyl game, or a market that's officially shifted. It is merely a band charging as much money as they know they can get away with. Call it economics 101: supply and demand. Or call it a greed. But that's a whole different tree that I won't be barking up in this post.
Anyways. I wrote a lot. Thanks to anyone who read it all. To reiterate, I'm not trying to attack either side or beat a dead horse. I think that "$40? lol get fucked" and "This sucks, but it beats $200 on eBay. Bought" are both very appropriate reactions. I'd love to grab a tour press and take a piece of the show home with me, but if the band has the balls to ask $50 or more for a copy, I'm going to pass. (And subsequently lose a lot of respect for them.) That 180 gram black will sound just as good at a fraction of the cost. Maybe even better.
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