i've purchased three cds in the last 2 years. 2 at shows. 1 because the musician was poor. i could have gotten all three of those CDs for free. i still don't know why i need to buy actual CDs when i only use an MP3 player.

I'm old fashioned. I pay for all my music. Mostly from iTunes, but a friend has convinced me to try Amazon mp3's.

I definitely added to those totals this year.

I only buy CD's if I'm at a show (knowing that the band gets the greatest percentage) or if I can't find it on iTunes.

I feel as though CD's as a format are useless to me because of digital music, but I buy LP's regularly because mp3's are pretty "inaccurate" and if I really love an album I would like to listen to it in high fidelity/vinyl.

being the caveman that i am, i still shop at record stores.

i used to dig in the crates for years and now i just steal it all. if i like the band and want to support them, ill go to shows and buy a shirt.

I pay for music quite regularly, though the great majority of it is in digital form from either Emusic or Amazon MP3. The only physical CD I bought this year was from a band's MySpace page, and I bought it only because there was no digital option.

The music I don't pay for is downloads of old hardcore bands whose 7-inches and 12-inches I bought 10 years ago and later stumbled across in digitized form on mp3 blogs.

I don't really get why you would download from iTunes when it costs about as much as a CD. I don't think the convenience makes up for the lack of a physical product. That said, I steal mp3s and buy vinyl, preferably at shows.

i dont believe in buying music anymore unless it's directly from a band at their show

listening to recorded music is to live music as watching porno videos is to real sex.

I bought more new CDs in 2008 than in 07. Quite a few used and promo copies as well. Grabbing tracks free from wherever is like researching what albums to get. Buying a single is rarely a compelling notion to me, though I will buy those digitally. I've never purchased an mp3 album.
I like having 'the thing' of the disc, and being subjected to whole albums instead of just the random tracks.

Though limited to electronic stuff, Beatport is a great mp3 store. Very easy to browse through samples, and they offer lossless files as well. Furthermore, they sell music that is otherwise only available on vinyl.

do you think there is any connection between the drop in cd sales and the complete implosion of the economy? probably not. probably just those damn teenagers and their damn internet. damn series of tubes.

I download or stream albums for free and if I like the album enough, I buy the physical release. I'm really good at being supportive and truthful to that statement, so it doesn't bother me that I take this route. The way I see it is you should be able to try before you buy, rather than waste $10 on a download or physical release that ends up covering dust on your rack. I prefer CDs since I already have a ton of them and don't feel like investing in another format (vinyl) just because its what others are doing. I can just rip my CDs to my iPod anyway. Above all, I find that I can buy a CD for less than an iTunes or Amazon download these days. If the album is older, I usually can snag a used copy off for $3.

record stores are better than the internet.

The CD is now a useless medium

But the fact is Vinyl is the archival medium for music (it always has been and always will be)

The sound quality is pristine and they are harder to damage than CDs (you scratch a CD and the entire disc can be compromised with a vinyl record only one side at the most

CDs on resale are worthless

The only flaw is the ability to get it onto an mp3 player, but that is quickly dismissed with the concept of including a download link to mp3s of the album with your purchase.

You should not be scared or stubborn about this.
And certainly not have a naive cynical high school view that you shouldn't do something just because others are - i don't even know what that means, act your age not your show size.

The reason more people are buying vinyl is because it is the intelligent thing to do as a music fan. Not some trying to be with it fad.

your mom is a useless medium.

i still buy CDs regularly, and occasionally, vinyl (obsessive that i am, if i buy vinyl, i'll buy the physical CD as well). new york is a good place to still have that record store experience, other music and sound fix, being two really good ones. (i don't go to kim's because the staff is rude and unresponsive). the virgin megastore is still a good place to check out what all the regular folks are listening to these days.

between CDs and vinyl, the CD is my preferred format just because it's a task to maintain a record player and to get it set up right for an optimal listening experience.

i'm not a fan of downloading commercially-available music, because i'm still enamored with having a physical product on hand as part of the listening experience. you can fancy up music from a computer all you want but it's still stale like a youtube clip. you get the gist but do you actually enjoy it on a sensual level?

i also don't have a real ipod (just a ipod shuffle, the stick one) and could never commit to having the entirety of my music experience and history contained in a pocket-sized format.

i get sad when i walk into an electronic retailer and see nothing but ipod doc stations in the consumer stereo section. the CD racks are being replaced with video games and low-end cell phones, and what is left of the "stereo" are no better than alarm clocks.

happy new year, y'all.

I have a couple hundred CDs, though, and I'd hate to switch mediums amidst all that. I don't think vinyl is a fad but what I'm saying is that I don't think I should change formats based on sales trends. On top of that, I can't imagine where I would keep a bunch of records in the same quantity of CDs I own in my apartment. I don't want to re-buy all my music all over again either. What I like about CDs is that they transfer/archive easily, are small, cheaper, never have scratched one, easier to change tracks, volume, etc. with the click of a remote... It just works for me.

if the price of new cd's dropped to $5-$7. we would all flood to our local record stores.

Think Indie Digital is coming this year. CD quality downloads that share profits with indie retail.

I download or stream albums for free and if I like the album enough, I buy the physical release.

where's that cd store in the photo?

everytime i don't have a computer at home
...

How often do I pay for music? 99% of the time (which is at least twice a week and I will never buy MP3s) but I guess I am old school and MP3s didn't exists when I started getting into music.

I do most of my personal listening when i'm driving around my town on back roads smoking a joint or lighting up after my work day of public accounting commences.

I download many torrents and if I like what I hear I'll stop by my local record store and give them business or buy the album used on amazon.

I am 23 years old with a great thirst for music. I would imagine like many of you I am nostalgic for the roots of what we listen to now a days. I don't blame young people for downloading at their whim becuase who can expect them to dish out the enormous sum it would take to propely educate one's self on the musically diverse universe. ya dig?

yo, 23 year old @ 4:57,

before your generation, we figured out how to educate and to navigate through the diverse music universe by--yes, it's shocking--paying for it.

yes, there was a world before digital/compressed music and we grew to love music by both buying our own stuff and by trading and sharing mixtapes with our friends.

it takes a lifetime to actually attain something like taste and experience. it's not something that you can gain by a click of the mouse.

the problem with your method of acquiring music is that you put yourself at the center of the equation: your whims and conveniences above all other considerations.

no excuses, dude. (and no doping and driving, please.)

"where's that cd store in the photo?"

Australia

yeah I hear where your coming from 11:14.

I find music online... and download it... Like WFMU's Beware of the Blog.... and often this stuff is out of print and totally obscure… and in turn, this is what my ITunes consists of. As for purchasing music I buy Vinyl first and cds second. The mps versions included with some vinyl these days is the way to go. It gives you the portability and the vinyl (which will last and last as well as give your ears and eyes the most pleasure), as well as an object --not to be materialistic-- but this is a major difference between MP3's and records and also gets to the heart of the difference between an analog world and a digital one: aura, discovery... I found many of the best records I own by looking over a record and taking a chance because it had presence.

I only ever buy albums at shows

Listening to an up and coming band's music and spreading it around is the best thing you can do for the band. Help them get a bit of a following going on :D

And that picture is from a record store in Auckland, New Zealand called Real Groovy Records. It recently went into receivership and briefly closed down, but it's back up now

Weird that there's a picture of it here, just googled record store or something?

Almost always pay if required (there are so many free & legal downloads these days, you could likely do just fine keeping your money). I pay more from the ethical side, and because I can usually afford it.

I can't believe people listen to music only on mp3 players or with computer speakers. Sad.

I like the approach of the "try before you buy" kids. From now on, I'm only going to pay for a meal at a restaurant if I like it. I'll sneak into movies and concerts and pay on the way out if it was good. I'll only pay my doctors if they like what they tell me, and only pay for the clothes I steal that I still like a week later... that would be fair too, right?