I downloaded the leaked version a few days ago, after buying a copy of the album. I just needed to hear it right away… no patience. But anyway. I have to say that so far I’m quite dissapointed. Shpongle has been one of my favorite bands for years and I even flew from NJ to London last year for the Halloween show. My dedication is strong. But like i was saying…. this album doesn’t feel the same. Some of the songs are spectacular and the album as a whole has its up’s, but it just doesn’t have the feel and emotion that previous albums have. It doesn’t make me want to dance my ass off or electrify my mind the way the others have. That’s just my opinion though. *sigh*

Ross, after a year of listening to Shpongle, there’s one thing I understood.

You have to get used to every new album, to every new track. Every album is different, yet the same, but new styles, influences, rhythms and sounds. That’s what I love about Shpongle, they make really fun music, I never get sick of it.

I downloaded the leaked version too, couldn’t wait until my CD arrives. So I am getting used to every new track, and soon I will love and enjoy them all as it should be. I already love most of the tracks. But it’s a matter of patience, and listening to them over and over again.

Well, that’s what I think.. it always happens to me.

I preordered the CD as well but I could not wait, I had to hear it.

After listening to it a gazillion times it seems over the past few days it is easily without any hesitation my favorite Shpongle album. Yes it’s different but that’s what I expected. Every one of Shpongle’s albums is different and that’s what I love.

A few of the songs I had already become comfortable with because Simon has played them at the DJ sets the past few years and I witnessed a few new songs at Ozora this year.

Great stuff Twisted, keep up the good work.

digitalex it is not about making profits it is about breaking even at least so they can continue to put out cd albums. I for one don’t want to have digital downloaded albums from twisted, ultimae or whoever I buy my music from.

Of course if wasn’t for pirated music I wouldn’t have heard alot of the music I’ve heard and yes I’ve gone on to buy it because of it. I’m more gutted that it has come out 2 weeks b4 the release. I know someone said that this is standard but it still sucks and I just had to get it out

I’m all for downloading low-quality music and then buying the album if you like it.

Before the world of internet, we were all condemned to the radio. Same songs, same artists all day long, all year long. Almost all easy-listening, boring, standard stuff… When I was in elementary school ten years ago, people would occasionaly talk about music and ask about what I liked. I never knew what to respond, because I didn’t really like anything (well ok when I was 6 years old I was really into this nineties euro-house )

And nowadays it’s so bad that when I hear a pop song ONCE it can already annoy the crap out of me (well not literally of course) during the end of that very same first listen, because it’s so repetitive, shallow and uninspired but it gets stuck in your head anyway. Torture!!!(now I must say it’s mostly pop, R&B, modern hiphop and rapmusic that I don’t like. I can listen to some ‘indie-rock’.)

Then I discovered trance because it was gaining popularity in the end of the nineties. It was some sort of cross-over period for me, in hindsight. I bought trance mix albums and enjoyed some tracks on them a lot, whereas others were quite boring…

And if it weren’t for the internet, I would either have given up on music entirely OR I would have been brainwashed and buying crap-trance mix albums (which seem to be getter worse and worse as time progresses) or pop-albums. But luckily, around eight years ago, my brother accidentaly downloaded some Infected Mushroom tracks.. I think it was eh, some stuff off the Classical Mushroom album and some compilation tracks. THAT SAVED MY LIFE!

Now, eight years later, I have 100gigs of psytrance/goatrance/psychill/etc on my harddisk and I own around 40 albums which I deemed worth my money. I would never have bought these albums, never have heard from Twisted, Ultimae, etc, never have gone to see IM, Psysex, Astrix, Xerox&Illumination; and some others live.. If it weren’t for digital downloads

I would like to introduce you to the concept of ‘the long tail’. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Tail
It applies a Pareto distribution to the buying and selling of products, and I think it makes a lot of sense.. Also for music! So basically, 80% of the revenues in music go to the 20% that is most popular (pop-hiphop,R&B, etc). And the other 20% gets distributed in the ‘long tail’(the 80%). IMO, digital downloads are a great way to do something about this Pareto distribution in music! Without digital downloads, the long tail would get relatively longer and longer and smaller and smaller… Because the ‘head’ eats everything! With digital downloads, the long tail gets a hell of a lot more exposure, leading to more album sales (in my case and in the case of many others) and more revenues from live shows cause you have way more fans!

And I absolutely can’t stand artists like Lily Allen who complain that digital downloads ruin the music. ANY artist in the ‘head’ has NO reason to complain, they make shitloads of money anyway. And as I said, the long tail benefits from mre exposure, fans, live-show revenues…

So when you are a record label like Twisted and you want to form an opinion on digital downloads… You have to ask yourself the question: “Is the sum of all these fans, who download our music digitally (and for free) and occasionaly buy an album or merchandise which they really like and who might visit our live-show, worth more than the (much smaller) sum of fans who has no choice but to buy our album after they miraculously heard from us?” I don’t know the answer, but I tend to say it’s “yes”. I think most of you will agree with me.

Anyhow, I must say that I also don’t like leaks before the album has really come out… It’s just kind of lame..

*sigh*
We go through the exact same discussion every time twisted produces something.
I’m having deja vu from when Skylon was released…

ps: 300 posts! Yay!

Sorry man, I didn’t realize that, I’m still a bit new to this forum. Makes sense though…
I just wanted to add my 2 cents. And I made it a bit personal, so I could not haven written the exact same thing as someone else
And actually I should go studying but this is just study avoiding behaviour….

So some fucker has released the album on the internet already…. thanks a lot, whoever it was… Maybe twisted will still recoup, maybe not… all i know is that we are teetering on bankruptcy, and are seeking deals elsewhere…. the 12 loyal fans on this forum are not enough to sustain a record label…. How much do you think Twisted has in the bank account? Have a guess? More than $10,000 ? More than $20,000 ?  Well it is actually less than $1,000….. Raj and i haven’t even been paid our advance for this album…. All the artists on twisted are seeking deals with other labels now… We can’t pay a label manager, and we can’t pay the artists…. always putting our hope in ‘just ONE more release’.... “We’ll be ok if the DVD sells”....“Surely the Shpongle CD will sell, right?”

digitalex - 19 October 2009 02:34 AM

Twisted should take a cue from Ott. From his website, ottsonic.com:

If you have downloaded any of my music from filesharing networks, or made copies from friends, and feel you would like to donate something directly to me, you can do so by clicking the “Donate” button below.

There is no minimum or maximum amount so feel free to send me what you think my work deserves.

Thanks digital alex, but Twisted DO offer a way to donate… and you know what? you’ll even get a CD sent thu the post, with artwork by storm thorgerson, and text that we spent time writing, and generally pouring our heart and souls into….!!!

XaNe - 18 October 2009 08:25 PM

I’m disappointed, digital distortion. The loudness war is in our Shpongle tracks. :’(

This to me is very disappointing.

But i still have some hope for the final CD release.
I am hoping that this album has no digital distortion.

You should be ashamed of yourself! You haven’t even got the CD, and you are complaining about some computer readout from something you downloaded??? Until you have listened to the CD that we made, and used your ears…. then tell me you think that Kevin Metcalfe, our mastering engineer, who has over 30 years of experience (http://www.soundmasters.co.uk/ClientPage.htm) is a numpty, and has done a bad job…. go on, i dare you!

And to everyone else, please don’t bother reviewing tracks that you have downloaded… it’s not fair… we all know the huge disparity in quality between stuff that gets posted on the net….

This sucks, for Twisted, for myself and Raj who have spent 3 years working on the album….

Just as i started looking around and posting on this forum again, i remembered why i shouldn’t bother….

I’m outta here… Soon to be followed by Younger Brother and probably Twisted…

Enjoy.

Nobody has the extra cash to buy all the music they wish to listen to. If anything, filesharing is the biggest advertising asset an artist has. Through sites like last.fm one can find artists to download, then find favorites, which boils down to money eventually getting spent on merchandise/shows/albums.

As far as Shpongle? I think I’ll be able to wait on this one.. Just one of those albums you can’t go without owning a hard copy of. :D

Hallucinogen - 19 October 2009 11:25 AM

So some fucker has released the album on the internet already…. thanks a lot, whoever it was… Maybe twisted will still recoup, maybe not… all i know is that we are teetering on bankruptcy, and are seeking deals elsewhere…. the 12 loyal fans on this forum are not enough to sustain a record label…. How much do you think Twisted has in the bank account? Have a guess? More than $10,000 ? More than $20,000 ?  Well it is actually less than $1,000….. Raj and i haven’t even been paid our advance for this album…. All the artists on twisted are seeking deals with other labels now… We can’t pay a label manager, and we can’t pay the artists…. always putting our hope in ‘just ONE more release’.... “We’ll be ok if the DVD sells”....“Surely the Shpongle CD will sell, right?”

digitalex - 19 October 2009 02:34 AM

Twisted should take a cue from Ott. From his website, ottsonic.com:

If you have downloaded any of my music from filesharing networks, or made copies from friends, and feel you would like to donate something directly to me, you can do so by clicking the “Donate” button below.

There is no minimum or maximum amount so feel free to send me what you think my work deserves.

Thanks digital alex, but Twisted DO offer a way to donate… and you know what? you’ll even get a CD sent thu the post, with artwork by storm thorgerson, and text that we spent time writing, and generally pouring our heart and souls into….!!!

XaNe - 18 October 2009 08:25 PM

I’m disappointed, digital distortion. The loudness war is in our Shpongle tracks. :’(

This to me is very disappointing.

But i still have some hope for the final CD release.
I am hoping that this album has no digital distortion.

You should be ashamed of yourself! You haven’t even got the CD, and you are complaining about some computer readout from something you downloaded??? Until you have listened to the CD that we made, and used your ears…. then tell me you think that Kevin Metcalfe, our mastering engineer, who has over 30 years of experience (http://www.soundmasters.co.uk/ClientPage.htm) is a numpty, and has done a bad job…. go on, i dare you!

And to everyone else, please don’t bother reviewing tracks that you have downloaded… it’s not fair… we all know the huge disparity in quality between stuff that gets posted on the net….

This sucks, for Twisted, for myself and Raj who have spent 3 years working on the album….

Just as i started looking around and posting on this forum again, i remembered why i shouldn’t bother….

I’m outta here… Soon to be followed by Younger Brother and probably Twisted…

Enjoy.

Well I’m totally gutted for you Simon and of course Raj..it’s a great shame that people download then have the nerve to critise sound quality.  Anyone Twisted fan who follows the releases will know that the sound quality and mastering is second to none. I myself have invested in high end hi fi and don’t entertain download and mp3 shite.

I don’t blame you for not coming on here with some of the winging that goes on and yes I think the cd will sell and of course the DVD.  It’s a shame there are not tighter controls in pressing plants or where ever it goes to before release?

My mate got the download over the weekend and I will wait as normal to buy the cd and DVD on the night.  The regulars know the passion and time that goes into each of the albums and it would be a great loss to see the demise of the Twisted label - I’m not sure how to donate, could a link be put on the home page?

Totally looking forward to both nights as I have a ticket for both..peace

Its not fair what happened :((. The Twisted guys have been working so much for us fans, for everyone, all the time. They make such wonderful music nobody else can. And this shit happens all the time :(. They don’t deserve this.
I’m sure the true fans will stand by them, and keep Twisted live forever. Because Twisted is not just a record label, they are a magic to this world. And magic should live until the world stand still.
This is our world, everyone. Its a mean one.

But there is a world that deserves to be everlasting. Its called Shpongleland. So lets keep it alive!

Ross Feinstein - 19 October 2009 06:28 AM

I downloaded the leaked version a few days ago, after buying a copy of the album. I just needed to hear it right away… no patience. But anyway. I have to say that so far I’m quite dissapointed. Shpongle has been one of my favorite bands for years and I even flew from NJ to London last year for the Halloween show. My dedication is strong. But like i was saying…. this album doesn’t feel the same. Some of the songs are spectacular and the album as a whole has its up’s, but it just doesn’t have the feel and emotion that previous albums have. It doesn’t make me want to dance my ass off or electrify my mind the way the others have. That’s just my opinion though. *sigh*

I don’t know what you have downloaded…. so i can’t comment….. but i will anyway!!!
I think this is the best album i have done… it takes a while to sink in (i only started to actually appreciate it 2 days ago…. and i’m sure i’ve heard it several hundred more times than you).... That’s just my opinion though. *sigh*

Si, It’s a great shame that music gets leaked and people listen to poor MP3 ripped versions, it’s heart-breaking for the musicians like yourself. I have only listened to the samples on the homepage, and I only needed those samples to realize I must pick up the CD at the show - as well as the DVD. Shpongle has so many loyal fans I’m certain sales will do well and the show will go down a storm!!

One positive thing about this thread… I’m loving the length of the tracks! (if that info is correct..)

Kodara - 19 October 2009 09:13 AM

I’m all for downloading low-quality music and then buying the album if you like it.

So when you are a record label like Twisted and you want to form an opinion on digital downloads… You have to ask yourself the question: “Is the sum of all these fans, who download our music digitally (and for free) and occasionaly buy an album or merchandise which they really like and who might visit our live-show, worth more than the (much smaller) sum of fans who has no choice but to buy our album after they miraculously heard from us?” I don’t know the answer, but I tend to say it’s “yes”. I think most of you will agree with me.

Anyhow, I must say that I also don’t like leaks before the album has really come out… It’s just kind of lame..

It’s all very well to speculate, but i can tell you as a fact, we made more money before file sharing… we could survive… now not so…. and i think you will find it the same all over the music business… the argument that “file sharing is promotion” is probably valid…. in fact, i agree…in a way it serves a similar purpose to radio…. but the argument that “file sharing is promotion and therefore you will sell more CDs” is clearly absolute bollocks, otherwise the music industry would be booming right now!
And why you draw our attention to ‘the long tail’ curve mystifies me:  sure amazon can make a lot of money by selling huge quantities from a vast catalogue…. that would work for twisted too, if we had signed 18 million artists….and each CD sold a few dozen copies… unfortunately we have only 3 or 4 artists right now, so the ‘long tail’ is irrelevant to us, clearly… we might have contributed 30 bucks or so to Amazon’s $207 MILLION profit (figures posted for 2008)....
Also i’m sorry that “And if it weren’t for the internet, I would have given up on music entirely”....  for me, the internet makes me want to give up music   But i guess i’m from a different generation…. I started making some of the trance that probably fills your 100Gigs hard drive before i’d even heard of the internet… and i didn’t need the internet to find a deep love of music… the rush of buying a new vinyl, of collecting every release/picture disc by my favourite artists…. discovering new music i liked, all underground, no radio-plugged mix CDs or whatever… ALL without the internet!
I agree that it is lame when an album is leaked before release… it’s kind of like opening a christmas present too early or something… we think it has come from a press person we sent the album to review… i wish he/she could have spent the time they took to upload the album writing a review instead, and earning their dirty journo paycheck, rather than stealing ours…
Anyway i’m off to use the internet for what it’s best for…... where are those tissues?

Cloudwalker - 19 October 2009 09:32 AM

ps: 300 posts! Yay!

Congrats, cw! may all your posts continue to be as wise as the ones i have read

I’ve gone from ‘newbie’ to Jr.member! WooHoo!