There is a scene in the Alan J. Pakula film "All The President's Men," where Woodward and Bernstein are discussing the current state of affairs with Ben Bradlee and a few of the higher-ups at the Washington Post. Woodward says, and I'm paraphrasing, "It's not just that no one is talking, it's the way they're not talking."
I've been thinking about that line for almost two weeks now, and I'll tell you why.
Things have been unusually quiet here. But it's not just here. Social media interaction is off as well. And don't get me started on business. Record sales have been down for months, but I have literally sold three records in the last ten days. That's not "slow." That's panic.
Looking at my blog stats, my readership/post views have dropped 75%. On social media, a post would normally get 40-50 friends engaging in some way, but in the last two weeks, maybe 5-10 friends would acknowledge the content. And even in a frightening economy, there are always two or three vinyl junkies looking to drop a few bucks on a new record. They need to.
The common denominator here is obviously me. Maybe Burning Wood has gone stale. Maybe my Instagram posts are dullsville. And maybe the bubble has burst regarding vinyl. But I don't truly believe that it is all on me.
There is something else going on and I need to figure it out.
Is it a universal malaise? That would make sense considering what is going on in the world around us. But I've always felt like Burning Wood was a respite. I know I cover all the bases. It's not all Rundgren and reggae. Last week alone I had written about free jazz, glam, a major vault release from a major artist, and posted a few mixes for your downloading needs.
Five comments on Miles Kane. Five comments on Neal Francis. Eight on the Squeeze mix. Five on Miles Davis. Even "Electric Nebraska" failed to fire people up the way a Bruce post once did. Even some of the comments seem to have a "who cares" quality to them.
The show must go on and it will. But it's not much fun playing to an empty house. Or making $22 a week.
If it is indeed a universal malaise, that is understandable. I'd like to be part of the distraction. But if y'all sick of my content, maybe it is time to either retire, or just write about Rundgren and reggae everyday. At least I'll be amused.
What say you?
22 comments:
I'm not sick of your content. I'm also bracing for another disappointing day-after-Election-Day while the country continues to go down the toilet. But I need something I can rely on, which is why I post to my blog twice a week. Hang in there. (My grandmother used to say hanging in was better than hanging on. And while she'd never use the words, she'd probably agree that it's better to be pissed off than to be pissed on.)
I think there's some larger cultural context we're all tip-toeing around. Speaking strictly personally, I gotta say I can't recall ever being as anxiety-ridden about the future of the country and the world as I am now, and I suspect I'm not alone.
read you nearly daily. sorry for not engaging. i do enjoy your blog and quite a few others. i have a routine of burning through 10 or 12 blogs every morning and only occasionally respond. i'll try to be a better friend. as to your record sales, maybe the shitty trump economy is making folks reluctant to part with their dough. records ain't cheap.
I think we’re all waiting for that Todd reggae album. I’ve also noticed a reduction in caring everywhere. Burning Wood is one of the few sites I check on anymore. Most times I don’t feel clever enough to add to discussion. But I read everything.
It's the state of the nation and our fears about where we're heading. I've been sleeping a lot to avoid being awake and hearing the news.
Captain Al
Continue to read and enjoy every day. I didn't comment on Springsteen because I didn't see the need to be negative. I think lots of people wish we still lived in America. It may well be putting a damper on everything.
Quilty as charged, I read your blog a lot but do not often respond, despite knowing how important replying is. The feeling that visitors share your passion and appreciate your posts! Please keep up the good work.
Read daily, value immensely & enjoy greatly. Like a lot of folx, I suspect, mine is a combo personal stuff (mostly health but also writing and moving) the exhaustion of trying to figure out how to resist the evil afoot and fighting it and changing it. But as others have said and no doubt will, this place and a few others I try to haunt each day are a respite and I am deeply grateful. And speaking of things Todd, I'm still looking for some purported live version of him & LX doing "Slut." If you ever run across it...
"it's better to be pissed off than to be pissed on."
Huzzah!
"I think lots of people wish we still lived in America."
Huzzah!
Sorry to hear about your dwindling record sales, mine it seems have been picking up. OK so I think I know what to do about the apathy concerning the blog. What we need here is some controversy, maybe not politics maybe something music related. Try this for your next header. "TAYLOR SWIFT IS BIGGER THAN JESUS" I know, I know it's been used before but with the attetion span of the people today no one's gonna know it's been used before.
Along with the mentality of the American populace you should be able to make at least a mention on Fox News. Hey, no need to thank me just trying to help out a brother.
Malaise, for sure. I'm still stopping by every day, but it just seems like there's a dark cloud over everything. I've feared a right-wing takeover for some time, but I didn't think that, when it came, it would be stupid, petty, and childish. It's harder, these days, to enjoy the things one normally enjoys, but perhaps doing so is part of fighting back. Or so I'm telling myself.
I'm on team malaise, with a touch of "oh, shit, it could be worse". That said, you're a bit of a (somewhat moody...::) antedote.
"you're a bit of a (somewhat moody...::) antedote."
Well, there's nothing worse than indifference.
I look in once a week but that's only because I've rationed my online viewing. Everytime I log in there's one more frightening story after another and it depresses me to see where we are heading and how we got here.
Burning Wood is a fine site and I've been informed on many musical choices I might not have otherwise. Long may you run.
I enjoy most of what music you have written about here. Today, you have offered up your frustration with hardly anyone commenting and the lack of purchasing used albums. My point of view of this is that none of this has to do with politics. It’s not Trump’s fault or any politician or party causing any of it. When politics is thrown into the discussion, it’s no longer about the music.
Rest assured that there are people that simply keep their mouths or fingers shut down in order to not get into a fray, thus ruining their musical experience here. As to the sales of records being way down, I sit here and look at my collection of albums stored on my shelves and realize that they are no different than the many personal photo albums that are also stacked on my shelves. Nobody touches them or even looks at them but we keep them. The albums are memories of the soundtrack of our lives, each step of the way, the same with photos. It would be hard to sell personal memories. I would not want to part with any of it nor would I want to add to it. I will be 70 next month and things are much different now and I just want to enjoy the music and learn some of the gory details of such. In my early years I was working at a record store and I rummaged through a stack of promo albums and came across The Kick Inside by Kate Bush and I put it the turntable and played it for anyone in the store to hear. I was told by my boss that the album sucked and nobody will like it and I should put something else on. I liked the album and said that I thought Kate Bush was a gem. History shows that I was correct. At that time, I didn’t think my boss’s failure to sell the Kate Bush album was because of his politics nor did I think that Kate Bush went along with my own political leanings. My point is this, the times have changed. How many Kate Bush records have you sold lately? I bet there was interest once her music was on Stranger Things.
i don't know nothing about the net and i check the records you have for sale at least once a week, but just want to say that's the keeper of the Shoes album.
Sal, we all need to figure it out. I believe that the lawlessness that is going on has a cumulative effect on everyone. The general malaise is contagious and now grabbing more and more thinking people. We can't believe what is happening, yet we are not surprised by any of it any more.
I had always had music playing in my house - all waking hours and now I find myself not caring about listening. I go outside to do anything I can think of, just to take my mind off of the insanity that is happening.
Your blog is a daily read for me, but I also find myself spending less time online, just to avoid seeing anything about Preznit Befuddlepants.
I want a leader to emerge, but do not see anyone on the horizon.
A few things have struck me lately:
Arguing with idiots is like playing chess with a pigeon. no matter how good you are, they’ll just knock over the pieces, shit on the board, and strut around like they won.
AND:
There are two political parties in this country - the stupid party and the evil party.
"I no longer listen to what people say, I just watch what they do. Behavior never lies." - Winston Churchill
Hang in Sal, we will get through this together.
I appreciate your time, but I disagree with much of what you are saying. Actually, you sound a bit out of touch on a number of issues, including not recognizing that politics, Trump or otherwise, has everything to do with people's lives, and also that, Kate Bush continues to be a consistent seller in the vinyl world.
My issues with slow business are recent, say, the start of Trump's second term. The record biz has always run in cycles, it just seems to be in a spiral since January. So are many other businesses. People are struggling, some who have never struggled before. But, as Jobe mentioned, his business picked up, so maybe mine will too. Plus, this isn't about "used albums." It's a viable business with old and new product, LPs and singles, memorabilia, etc.
While you sit and not touch or look at your records, there are plenty of people who'd love the inventory either to listen to or to sell. I don't know how I'd get through a day without spinning a few records.
Finally, I can point you to a number of well-read music blogs who get a lot more political than I do. My occasional frustrated rant is hardly unwarranted. Take a look around! There is plenty of music on these pages, far more than most blogs, and the music certainly outweighs the politics by a very large margin. If I can't bitch once in a while without readers getting their panties twisted, or dropping off the feed, then maybe it's better off those readers do stay away.
Burning Wood is an amazing community and most participants have names, whether they agree with me or not. I made an obvervation about the state of affairs. That's all.
If I had a blog—which I don't because I don't have the time or the smarts to write one nearly as good as BW—I think I'd be happier with half a dozen thoughtful responses than a hundred "likes."
I read this blog every day. I just rarely comment on anything online. Don't mistake avid but shy readership for disinterest, ever, from anyone. If you didn't mention the commenting it would never occur to me for me to do so. This might even be the only blog I've ever commented on, period. Keep up the great work, PLEASE!
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