Review of Before the Music Dies (2006) by Brandon T — 15 Aug 2010
"The 20,000,000 people that buy a Britney Spears record aren't music fans, they're pop culture fans. So if your vision is more about reaching to people that really respond to music, thats a completely different business than the major [record labels] are in now.".
This documentary is a compelling look at the music industry from voices ranging from famous songwriters (Erykah Baduh, Dave Matthews) to unknown artists and all the way down to music fans. The directors did a good job organizing the interviews with interesting looks at what makes a pop star today. They took a model and had her sing extremely off-pitch then showed us how a studio engineer takes that unlistenable voice track and turns it into something that you could hear on the radio.
To some extent the film felt a little bit dated. It only came out a few years ago, so some of the complaints about how music is distributed is already out of date, but the general ideas are still the same.
My biggest complaint with the documentary, however, is that it falls into the trap that many music docs do. There is an overwhelming cry of "why isn't it like it used to be." Everyone pines for the days of Dylan and Wonder, and they let their voices be heard. We've all heard it before...
Overall, if you are a fan of music, you'll enjoy this documentary. Its really well-made.
I think my favorite point that was made was that Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder would not make it today. Why? They're blind. The music industry would feel uncomfortable pushing a blind artist.
This review of Before the Music Dies (2006) was written by Brandon T on 15 Aug 2010.
Before the Music Dies has generally received very positive reviews.
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