Give More! Get More!
In case you haven't heard Insound loves albums. We believe in albums. But, for years now, we've been hearing that the album is overvalued. That people don't want to pay fifteen bucks for twelve songs. And for years, people explained their free album downloads by saying that "artists don't get paid much (anything?) for their record sales anyway, so why support the record companies." Or something like that...
And for years, every time we heard those arguments, we wanted to puke.
An album? Not worth $15? Is Slanted & Enchanted not worth $15 to you? Is Spiderland or In The Aeroplane Over The Sea or Funeral not worth $15 to you? Bands not getting getting any money for album sales? Really? How about you ask your average indie band, many of whom do 50/50 deals with their labels, how much their album royalties mean to them.
Frankly, we at Insound are sick of this argument. But instead of being crotchety record clerks, we have decided to do something about it. We are pleased to introduce our new digital sales project that we call: "Give More. Get More." The idea here is simple. We are putting our money where our mouth is (and hope you'll do the same) in an effort to remind everyone why albums do matter to us as fans and to bands for their development and prosperity. We're literally changing the way we think about buying an album - what you give and what you get.
Give More: Show Support
The "Give More" part of our new digital sales project is called "Show Support." It's really simple. Every time you buy an MP3 album from Insound (not EPs or singles), Insound will donate $.25 of our take to a touring band. We choose 6 lucky bands that we like, but you get to select the actual artist to earmark your quarter to. Furthermore, should you wish to "tip" additional funds to these great artists, you can add your own tip during checkout. 100% of these funds will go to the band you choose. If you do not choose a specific band, we will distribute the funds equally to all of the bands. We will add new bands 2-4 times each year. All funds are to be used by bands to support the next national tour. In short, their tours will be made possible by you – Insound customers!
Currently, the awesome bands that will benefit from our donations are:
The Big SleepPlease note: You do not have to buy an album by one of the Show Support bands above to donate money. The $.25 per MP3 album and your tips will be donated whether you buy their albums or you buy an album by any other artist. Additionally, tips will only be earmarked to one of the 6 bands above. For example, if you buy a Pinback MP3, that does not mean that Pinback will get an extra $.25 from that order. Their label and distributor will receive the same amount they always do, but another lucky Show Support band will get some extra help. Any questions email us: CassieHelp@insound.com.
Get More: Insound Mixtape
Is there anything we like more than discovering new music? Given that our "free MP3" page is the second most popular page on Insound.com, the answer seems clear to us. For sure, Insound is obsessed with the process of music discovery. We love helping music fans learn about, listen to and (hopefully) buy something new. Starting now, we will make that process much easier. With every single digital album order (again, not EPs or singles...sorry), we will offer our customers a free monthly sampler of 10-15 tracks, hand-selected by us as a free MP3 download at checkout. In essence, you get two albums' worth of music for the price of one, when you buy an MP3 album from Insound. We will create a new mixtape each month so you can discover the newest and the bestest all over again. We just ask that you cross your heart and promise that, when you discover something you like, you come back and buy the album. (this promise is not technically enforceable)
Please Note: These special projects only apply to MP3 album orders at Insound.com. They don't apply to CDs, LPs, posters, t-shirts, etc. Maybe one day they will, but for now it's just our way of reminding people what Insound's core values are and what role record buying plays in the development of indie bands.
Why Are We Doing This?
Where do we begin? Ummm...to save the album, to give back to bands, to give more to you, to help inspire music discovery, to change perceptions, to change the business model, to make a difference, to show we can.