TSSF Statement

‎"To all who have downloaded our new record, sorry the quality blows, someone blew it. Thank you for listening, but we have the real mix available. Download it, buy it, steal it, etc., please find a way to get the high quality version and listen to the record the way it was intended to be heard. Album is out 3/26, we are selling vinyl on tour now!" -TSSF

Good approach to take

Very mature reaction to the leak. I'll be buying this high quality version though.

Yeah, a ripped stream is not the way to listen to music.

Are we all getting older? Has Spotify and Rdio changed expectations for music? Knowing that I’ll have access to an album without having to download/un-rar/think about ratios/worry about piracy/worry about not supporting the artist/worry about quality … and it’ll just show up in my collection on release date? Yeah, it’s changed it all for me.

I'd imagine it would be difficult to not say: "Fuck you, people who leaked this and fuck you to every single one of you who told your friends about the leak."

These guys worked really hard on this record. I'm always a fuckin' bummed every time a record leaks & it starts to circulate. I bet it's a whole lot more disappointing for these guys.

If nothing else, TSSF and their label have done a whole lot of marketing and publicity work to generate hype for the release. All that work (and money for a band who probably has a hard time surviving on their meager earnings) on the most important thing they've done and the thing on which they've hung the hope of continuing their dreams. All of it for, at most, very little to nothing.

Buzzkill.

Originally Posted by Jason Tate

Yeah, a ripped stream is not the way to listen to music.

Are we all getting older? Has Spotify and Rdio changed expectations for music? Knowing that I’ll have access to an album without having to download/un-rar/think about ratios/worry about piracy/worry about not supporting the artist/worry about quality … and it’ll just show up in my collection on release date? Yeah, it’s changed it all for me.

I'm not convinced that sentiment is shared by many.

In fact, a number of my twitter friends downloaded the leaked TSSF record. They - musicians, fans of music, and/or casual listeners - didn't give a shit about the quality and listened the shit out of it. Will they purchase it when it's "released?" Maybe a couple. It seems like a low quality stream is fine for some.

I guess I'm always hoping for the best for bands, though. I choose to give my recordings away for free. I have a day job that pays me. I can't devote the time and resources to touring even if a large enough group of people liked my music enough to purchase it and see my ugly face yelling those songs at them. I play shows and make music because it's what I love to do and what I'm good at. Luckily, I'm good enough at it so I can use those same skills to make some money in an industry much less volatile than "music."

I wonder what the source of this leak was. Was it the webstream the label runs or just a CD that got out in the wild.

I'm proud to say I pre-ordered the album. It's definitely worth it.

I pre-ordered this the first day it went up but I won't lie I downloaded the leak as well. Leaks suck for bands of course but even if this album didn't leak there would still be kids ripping the CD or the iTunes copy and putting it on a peer to peer site the day it was released anyway. Leaks obviously hurt first week sales numbers, but I'd be interested in seeing some numbers on how much leaking affects overall sales.

Originally Posted by holdyourbreathx

I pre-ordered this the first day it went up but I won't lie I downloaded the leak as well. Leaks suck for bands of course but even if this album didn't leak there would still be kids ripping the CD or the iTunes copy and putting it on a peer to peer site the day it was released anyway. Leaks obviously hurt first week sales numbers, but I'd be interested in seeing some numbers on how much leaking affects overall sales.

Leaks hurt smaller bands like TSSF, obviously. Doesn't have an impact on bigger acts like Lil Wayne or Beyonce.

if the high quality version was released right now I'd buy it in a second

good reaction.. can't wait for my LP to come in the mail.

Originally Posted by Jason Tate

Yeah, a ripped stream is not the way to listen to music.

Are we all getting older? Has Spotify and Rdio changed expectations for music? Knowing that I’ll have access to an album without having to download/un-rar/think about ratios/worry about piracy/worry about not supporting the artist/worry about quality … and it’ll just show up in my collection on release date? Yeah, it’s changed it all for me.

Personally, I don't have the most acute hearing so there is little difference between a low quality and a high quality recording. If I buy a record rather than stream it on spotify its because I want to support a band not because I want a higher quality

I want to get the vinyl with the alternative cover so badly