Mann in the Middle

She's not with stupid anymore: Aimee Mann has taken an independent's route to recording and distributing her material.

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Due to illness, Aimee Mann has canceled the Acoustic Vaudeville show at the Gothic Theatre.

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What's more, Mann notes, in the unlikely event that music sharing elevates to the point that the royalty system is overhauled, the end user will be the real loser. The only recording acts left, she says, will be the kind she has worked to set herself apart from. "Think about the kind of music you're going to get if the only people who are producing music are willing to do it for free," she asks. "You're going to get people who will do anything just to get attention. And people who think that giving it away is merely one step toward getting a major-label deal. And major labels will take advantage of that, and they'll be the only ones left, because they're the only ones big enough to fight these kinds of things or overcome them by sheer volume."

That's a nightmarish picture, all right, as disturbing as the dreck the big boys keep putting out. And while it's doubtful such a dilemma might become reality, it's at least cause for concern. "I'll still write music and I'll play it for myself," she says, "but I can't afford to do it for free; you have to dedicate your life to making music. And I don't know what else I can do; it's not like I have my real-estate license or something. But believe me, I'll come up with something."