Merchandising

While browsing Discogs the other day, I noticed that close to half of the best-selling CDs and vinyl were variants of the new Taylor Swift album. Perhaps this is unfair, but I think of Taylor Swift more as a pure cash generator than an artist. Spencer Kornhaber writes for The Atlantic about Swift's The Life Of A Showgirl that "listening invites far too many thoughts about commerce winning over art."

The amount of merchandising and pure sales gimmicks that go into any Taylor Swift release would make even an unashamed carnival barker like Gene Simmons of Kiss fame blush. Kornhaber goes on to write about the commercial push behind The Life Of A Showgirl and its associated artifacts.

Showgirl turns an album release into something closer to the McDonald’s Monopoly contest, encouraging repeat purchases. The album exists in more than 30 “variants” so far: different combinations of listening formats, album art, merch, and bonus music. At Target—only at Target—you can buy The Life of a Showgirl: The Crowd Is Your King Edition (Summertime Spritz Pink Shimmer Vinyl), for $34.99. Online, you can order the So Glamorous Cabaret Edition CD featuring a show tunes-y take on the song “Elizabeth Taylor.” Different versions have different hand-signed photos; one edition comes with a cardigan; another has voice notes and a cover that tints the turquoise bathwater of the regular album image into a brownish orange.

As Kornhaber points out, variants aren’t new. When they were unusual, though, the collectibility factor was much higher. With increasing frequency, they now feel like just another way to milk the cow. At the extreme end of the spectrum of album release strategy, this is a crass way to part the most ardent fans of their money.

I once read speculation that if Bono of U2 had not gone into music, he would have become a CEO. It’s not difficult to imagine. The aforementioned Gene Simmons is cut from a similar mold. Swift is another one whose business acumen, branding genius and tireless self-promotion suggest an alternate career as a corporate tycoon.

Maybe Swift’s massive cultural saturation makes her an easy target, but there are plenty of indie musicians making some of the same plays. Former Matador Records stoner rock band Dead Meadow has 7 different versions of their recent record Voyager To Voyager available via Italian label Heavy Psych Sounds. The resurgence of vinyl was supposed to be about turning the focus back to focused appreciation of the weight of the music with something physical and tangible to represent it. To my mind, at least in some cases, it’s starting to seem like something more predatory. While I understand the need for (especially indie) artists to get creative about how to monetize their output, this has all the makings of a bubble ready to pop.