Kristin Hersh's CASH Music Website
Ex-Throwing Muses Singer Joins Free Online Music Distribution Trend
Radiohead may have grabbed the headlines by allowing fans to download their latest album for free, but they're not the first artists to try and subvert the music industry in this way.
Like fellow digital music pioneer Jane Siberry, singer and ex-Throwing Muses front woman Kristin Hersh began exploring the concept of giving away her music as early as 2005. In December of that year an EP by her band 50 Foot Wave was made available to download free of charge, with fans given the option to donate to a 'virtual tip jar'.
Now she's developed the idea further with her new project CASH Music. Standing for 'Coalition of Artists and Stakeholders', it aims to create a viable business model by bringing artists and their fans together.
The project has been developed in conjunction with former L7 member Donita Sparks and the plan is to create a community of like-minded musicians. Along with Sparks, indie band Xiu Xiu have also signed up and there is the promise of more artists to come.
In her blog Hersh writes: "The name indicates just what we're hoping to build here - a coalition through which we blur the line that's traditionally stood between creators of content and the consumers of that content."
Fans Pay What They Want
This means, ultimately, cutting out the middleman - uploading new tracks directly onto the CASH website, with a new song appearing each month, and letting fans pay what they want for them. Fans can also sign up for various subscriptions, where, for a set amount every three months, they will be sent an exclusive package containing live CDs and prints.
As well as the songs, there are a variety of other incentives to get people involved. Xiu Xiu’s personalized haikus come free of charge, while, at the other end of the financial scale, for $5000 you can be named as Executive Producer on Kristin Hersh’s next album.
But unlike Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' download CASH isn't a one-off experiment. The focus is less on finding out just how much (or little) people are prepared to pay for the music and more on creating long-term relationships, not only between Hersh and her fans but also with other musicians.
CASH also stands out through the level of audience involvement it promotes. “CASH is a platform for engagement”, Hersh says. “A way for audiences and creators to exchange creative perspectives and ideas.”
Read/Write Philosophy
In the spirit of Web 2.0, CASH adopts a "Read/Write" philosophy, inviting users to download pro-tools stems for each track and create their own remixes, and also to create artwork inspired by the music. A fan remix of Donita Sparks' track ‘Fly Feather Fly’ will even be chosen as the B-side to her next single.
Having been in the music business for over 20 years Kristin Hersh has a devoted fan base but can’t rely on the hype that surrounds the ‘next big thing’ which usually buoys new artists. CASH allows Hersh to reach out to her core fanbase, away from the distractions and restrictions of the corporate music industry, and to create a little bit of her own hype to draw new people in.
Clearly, rejecting the record company altogether won’t be the right decision for all musicians, but for those artists no longer at the top of the fickle music industry’s ‘to promote’ list, Kristin Hersh may just have launched a mini revolution.
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