Sinister: re: box set

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>From: andrew dean <koogydelbbog at xxx.com>

>box set of the first 3 eps? i don't see the point.
>there's only a very small corner of the market that'll
>be even vaguely interested.


It doesn't seem B&S are overly concerned with large corners of any market,
judging by the way they have handled themselves so far.  That doesn't mean
something isn't worth doing.  The number of people who bother to mail in to
them to order buttons, t-shirts, or posters is a small group I would
imagine, but they choose to make those items because they want to, not for
you to see or not see some point in it.


>
>someone said the box set will make things easier for
>people to discover belle and sebastian. doesn't make
>sense. nobody's going to splash out nearly 30 bucks on
>a box set by someone they haven't heard before,
>they'll buy one of the eps, risking maybe $10 and go
>from there. if they like it they'll continue with the
>others, if they don't then at least they haven't spent
>much.

In the US, at least, there are tens of thousands of people who have bought
the albums through Matador's distribution.  The EPs were previously only
avalable as imports, which meant that few stores carried them and when they
did they were $10 to $12 each.  Rather than spending $30 to $36 for them
seperately at one of the few stores in the states to carry them all (Aarons
and Rhino in LA, Other Music and Kim's in NYC, and a store or two in each
college town or big city) you will be able to buy all three for under $20,
with a slip case with new artwork.

I don't imagine they are expecting to sell them to people who haven't heard
the band before, but there are tons of people in the US who have and adore
TBWTAS, IYAFS, and Tigermilk who haven't had access to the EP's yet and
might buy them in that under $20 format.


>
>anybody who has even one of the old eps isn't going to
>bother with the box set cos of the duplication
>involved. this is the reason i never bothered with the
>galaxie 500 box set or the this mortal coil one even
>though they both contained new material - 30 quid for
>3 cds that i already had plus one that i didn't. makes
>no sense. (and if they do include new material on the
>cds just to force people to buy the box set then they
>are evil)
>


To avoid the risk of die hard fans buying the set at $20 just for the new
cover slip, the band and labels are selling that cover slip seperate at a
negligable cost.  I don't know of any other band or label that has had the
foresight to be this considerate at avoiding taking advantage of completists
and devoted fans. 

>if they insist on selling all the eps in one go then
>put them all on one disk - uses a lot less in the way
>of resources and is just more convenient for
>everybody. put the new artwork on the front of this
>compilation rather than waste more resources on a box
>to go around them all.
>

There are obvious aesthetic and conceptual reasons for preserving them as
seperate EP's.  They were recorded, conceived of, and released at different
times at different sessions as records with a beginning, middle, and end and
artwork specific to them.  How would you sequence them?  In chronological
order?  I can't imagine a more awkward segue than going from "Century of
Elvis" to "Century of Fakers".

As far as jamming them all together somehow using less resources and being
"convenient", there are obvious reasons to keep them as seperate entities,
as they were released.  You could have shoved them onto the end of the
Tigermilk CD, but it would have ruined the flow of that album and each of
the EPS.  


>and selling the box (slipcase, whatever) on it's own?
>why? maybe i should buy one just to make sure that
>they'll no longer fit on the shelf next to all the
>others.

So that fans who want the cover for whatever reason don't have to waste
money and resources on duplicate copies of the music, just as you were
whining about a few lines above.


>i think it's safe to say that we'd all rather have
>something new instead. what is it, a year now?

Sure, and when it is ready I imagine the band will release something.  In
the meantime why not make the great songs and sleeves of the EP's available
to those who haven't been exposed to them or chose not to buy them at high
prices in the past?  My favorite release by them has always been the
"3.6.9..." EP, and the idea of tens of thousands of people who couldn't
easily hear it before now having better access to it without it being
crammed in the middle of some awkward compilation that seemed to start and
stop three times in one listen is great.

>
>can't find the eps in LA? my girlfriend did easily
>enough. try aron's. it's in the yellow pages. they'll
>order any that they don't have in stock.

>andrew dean (koogydelbbog at yahoo.com)

Aarons and Rhino in LA carry the Ep's, yes.  You can also get them any day
in the Lower East Side of Manhattan.  The remaining thousands of square
miles of the US are a lot trickier.  Having Matador distribute them, as well
as having them come out as a new release with reviews, articles, and
displays will bring them to a lot of fans in the States who haven't been
exposed to them yet.

If you can't understand it, simply don't buy it.  You missed out on some
great music on that Galaxie 500 box set as well, but so it goes....


                    Regards,
                        Lance Bangs
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