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Before the Music Dies is an extraordinary documentary and cautionary overview about the state of the music business in America. Written by Andrew Shapter and Joel Rasmussen (and directed by Shapter), each of whom lost loved ones who happened to be musicians,
Before the Music Dies is a journey through a vital music scene in the U.S.-artistically speaking-that is no longer nurtured and supported commercially. Shapter and Rasmussen take a chapter-like approach to demonstrating how every phase of getting music from artists to consumers is under the control of conglomerates and bottom-line analysts primarily concerned with keeping investors happy. Thus, we see musicians with enormous potential eschewed by the handful of major record labels that are still around. Meanwhile-as Eric Clapton, interviewed for the film, puts it-entire teams of makeover people and technicians exist to turn tone-deaf but attractive women into pop stars. Also highlighted is the record industry's love-hate relationship with file-sharing and downloadable music stored on sundry listening devices, which threatens control over commercially-packaged content as well as the enormous profits reaped from highly-priced CDs. Several case studies-especially the story of singer-songwriter-bluesman Doyle Bramhall II and how he survived ill treatment by a major only to find success on the same independent label as Dave Matthews-is fascinating. Interviewees include Branford Marsalis, Bonnie Raitt, Matthews, Elvis Costello, and Erykah Badu.
--Tom Keogh
Video Description
The Future of American Music Hangs In the Balance
Never have so few companies controlled so much of the music played on the radio and for sale at retail stores. At the same time, there are more bands and more ways to discover their music than ever. Music seems to have split in two - the homogenous corporate product that is spoonfed to consumers and the diverse independent music that finds devoted fans online and at clubs across the country.
BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES tells the story of American music at this precarious moment. Filmmaker Andrew Shapter traveled the country, hoping to understand why mainstream music seems so packaged and repetitive, and whether corporations really had the power to silence musical innovation. The answers he found on this journey-ultimately, the promise that the future holds-are what makes BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES both riveting and exhilarating.
At the heart of BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES are interviews with musicians, industry insiders, music critics, and fans that reveal how music has reached this moment of truth. Featured performances from a truly diverse group of artists, ranging from The Dave Matthews Band and Erykah Badu to Seattle street performers and Mississippi gospel singers show us that great music is always out there... as long as you know where to look. BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES will renew your passion for great music, and inspire you to play an active part in its future.
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