DIY Ethos

As in Do It Yourself. The record industry, as I have noted, is going through an epochal change. In fact, one might argue that it is on the verge of extinction. What will replace it is far from certain. But if you surf the zeitgeist, you can see a few clues emerging. One is the do-it-yourself recording, which is then posted on myspace and promoted vigorously through friends lists and so forth, culminating in live shows at rented halls from which buzz builds.

One of the best recent examples of said phenomenon is the Brooklyn indie rockers, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Their 2005 self-titled debut album began on a myspace posting, was eventually given a great review by Pitchfork (my favorite music blog) and flogged out of the back of their tour van. They eventually sold 500,000 copies, an enormous number even for established artists on big labels.

Check out one of their hits, "By the Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth:"