Record Labels: What's Your Take?

Quick question, what is your general opinion regarding record labels? Do you think they are pure evil, necessary/unnecesary? Maybe you see the majors differently than indies. Do artists need labels? If an artist does sign on to a label, is it then fair game for the label to help shape the album creatively or should they be completely hands off? Is the label always obligated to release an album an artist creates, even if they think it is inappropriate for their market (which could mean a lot of different things, not just profanity)? Please explain how & why you support any particular opinion.

I'm sure many of you are aware of the "Derek Webb Controversy" for lack of a better term. In my opinion the most astounding thing about the whole issue is the all the internet (twitter, etc...) chatter about it. The abundance of broad assumptions on the part of fans and other commenters on the basis of a very limited amount of legit info (basically two very cryptic e-mails and some twitter posts) has been the most shocking to me. How about you?

Anyway, I'm just curious about your take on this issue and the idea of record labels in general. Feel free to post comments on this page or @dtmmedia on Twitter.

no other folowers...

I added a widget to my blog today that allows people to follow it. I'm currently the only one listed... should I feel sad about this?

a little bit of overkill...

Yesterday when the UPS guy delivered a fairly large box to my door I wondered which of the new toys I recently ordered on Amazon it could be, a box of this size might just contain all of them! Nope, inside this 12"x12"x6" box, was a single transformer that measures 4"x.5". It's madness I tell you!

No Greater Sacrifice

Today I witnessed one of the most heartbreaking scenes I have seen in a long time. I watched as a young soldier, one of four on our flight today, said goodbye to his family as he boarded the plane. The whole scene caught me very off-guard, I was just doing my usual thing at the airport, headed for my gate, but as I arrived I caught a glimpse of this young man's face as I scanned the area for a place to sit. At first I just looked away, I did not want to watch, but yet I kept looking back. The sheer agony on his face, the way he held his wife and looked at his two sons (I'm guessing they were around two and four) was almost more than I could take just watching. As they called for the final groups to board, I saw him draw them close for one final embrace and as he held the younger son in his left arm, he wrapped his right arm around his wife and the older one hugged his leg. Her face exhibited a somber strength, no doubt the strength she will need until he returns and his face showed sheer agony, pure and simple. I don't know that I'll ever understand the emotions I was witnessing (I pray I never do), but my appreciation for our soldiers and their families changed today.

PS - During the short trip the flight crew acknowledged the presence of the soldiers and told us that they are all headed to Iraq. I pray God keeps them safe and they can return soon.

Back In the Swing of Things

Hey everybody, 

It's been a little while since I've posted, the holidays tend to really through me out of all my usual routines and it sometimes takes a while to get back to normal. Anyway, I'm glad to be back and I'm really excited about all the awesome things this year will hold. I think that with out a doubt, 2009 will be a year that I will look back on as a defining time in my life and in the lives of those around me. Lot's of big things happening, so I'm just getting ready to hold on for the ride.

Obviously, the main big huge thing is that I will be getting married this summer on June, 20! How freaking cool is that? Our engagement sometimes feels like it's going to last forever but it's really been moving along alright, today the widget on my homepage tells me we have 174 days left. We've enjoyed being engaged so far, but I'm really hoping these next few months move quickly!

There are some other cool things going on this year too. Sometime during 2009 (dates are still somewhat flexible) our church (Rolling Hills Community Church) will be moving into our first building. This will be a great new development for our church and will open up a lot of new doors for our ministry. I love our church the way it is now, but not having a facility really does put a lot of limitations on us and this will help to address a lot of those issues.

A big development in our country was the inauguration of our new president, Barack Obama, last week. It was a great time for our country and the world to see how a free country can operate. There are not many other countries in the world where the people can both choose their leader and install that leader peacefully. Admittedly I did not vote for him and I still have many concerns regarding his administration, but for right now, I can do nothing but wish him the best, vigorously support him when he is right, and oppose him when he is wrong. I do believe that his heart is in the right place and that he wants the best for our country, although we may sometimes disagree on what the "best thing" is or how to achieve it.

So all around this year will be a major time of "change" (man, I'm sick of hearing that, lol). I'm sure there will be both good and bad, but with God's help I hope the good will outweigh the bad and we'll all look back on 2009 with fond memories.