A Major Hang-Up

I think I might be a big fat hypocrite. You see, late in my vacation last month, as I was browsing the CD racks to my heart's content, I realized that I have the nasty little habit of flipping the case around and looking at its back side ... specifically, I zero in on the copyright information. And it occurred to me what happens when I do that. For all the ranting I do about my distaste for the major record labels, I found out that I'm actually more likely to buy a CD if it's manufactured, marketed, or distributed by one of them ... and I'm more likely to put it back on the rack if it's from an independent label.

Why do I do that? What difference does it make? I've asked myself and am still not sure of the answer. It can't be the quality of the physical product -- a CD is a CD is a CD. (Indeed, the one time I can remember having a problem with a CD being unreadable by my player, it was actually a major-label release ... the unfortunate victim of an isolated manufacturing defect.) And it's not any worries over the audio -- the resulting product's sound quality is determined through the studio and its engineers and producers, long before it ever reaches the manufacturing phase.

So why am I the dreaded creature I swore I'd never be: a label whore? Part of it is my ever-present fear (for lack of a better word) of accidentally purchasing Christian music that's cleverly disguised as secular (not that there's anything wrong with people who like it); major labels usually keep their rosters as praise-free as possible and leave the religious stuff to the independent companies. But I imagine the other big reason would be familiarity. Who doesn't find a bit of comfort in the trusty old labels like Warner Bros., Columbia, Capitol, Arista, RCA, MCA, Mercury, Polydor, Motown, Island, etc.? When you recognize that logo nestled in the corner of the back cover or on the end of the spine, you (or at least I) get that warm twinge of a "This must be good, 'cause these guys have been around forever and know what they're doing" kind of feeling.

It sounds silly, I know. And yes, I've found several great albums on independent labels, be they newly discovered artists or old favorites who have (wisely) broken free of the majors and gone out on their own. But hey, what can I say? Maybe I am, to an extent, a label whore (but only in terms of CDs ... you won't see me buying that ridiculously overpriced junk that A&F, Tommy Hilfiger, Hollister and Aeropostale peddle in the malls). Isn't admitting your weakness the first step...?