DAVE PETERS OF THROWDOWN SOUNDS OFF ABOUT ILLEGAL DOWNLOADING

We usually try and stay away from reposting the email rants of industry guru Bob Lefsetz, but this one struck a chord (no pun intended), and besides, it was actually a response to a Lefsetz post, not a rant from the man himself. This one was from Throwdown frontman Dave Peters — a man whose presence we’re quickly learning strengthens the intelligence of the metal gene pool as a whole — and was reposted by Lefsetz in his newsletter:

Bob,

I play in a metal band. We have sold around 200k records across 3 releases. We’re not ‘huge’ by any stretch but do alright and live off (and ON subsequently) the road. Fans and friends ask me all the time how I feel about “stealing music.” I just told someone yesterday “I have a hard time seeing it as stealing…when I don’t see any money from cd sales to begin with. What are they actually TAKING from me?”

If you want to squeeze an opinion on theft out of me, ask me about the dude that grabbed our tshirt off the table tonight in Detroit or better yet.. ask me about record contracts.

I encourage our fans to acquire our album however they please. The philosophy I’ve adopted is that if you’re supporting disc sales, you’re keeping the old model around longer…the one that forces dudes like me to tour 9 mos/year if they want to make ends meet with a career in music. If you wanna really support a band, “steal” their album….help bury the label….and buy a tshirt when you show up at their show and sing every word.

Dave Peters

Throwdown

And there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth.

-VN