ellis@flairvax.UUCP (Michael Ellis) (07/15/83)
You're sure giving the 12" 45 a bad rap! Sure, they were born of an
ignoble birth ("disco singles for DJ's"). In this sleazy environment, or
it's successor - wavopop (e.g. Depeche Mode) - they most certainly ARE
ripoffs - but were talking about $$$ music here.
I've seen plenty of music in this format by respectable artists (like
Crass) with maybe 30 minutes of music for 5 bucks. That's a fair price
when you figure a normal 33 has 40 minutes at $8.
Some of the more oddball musicians do strange things with this format,
like making one side 33 and the other side 45, or not telling you so you
have to figure out for yourself what, if any, speed was intended.
Another valid reason for this format is that the artist may have more
to say than 3 minutes per side, but not enough for 20 minutes per side.
Think of all the albums crammed full of drivel simply to fill out the rest
of a 33.
-michael