This is one for all the label owners who post on this site.

All these vinyl/MP3 debates recently really have led us no-where. And I think this is because none of these formats are 100% keeping the dance/electronic scene in business.

So here's my thoughts, based upon something I was reading today. The club scene is just a healthy as it always was, people are just as enthusiastic about music as they always were. CDJ's are now replacing decks as centre spot in the clubs. DJ's are gradually swapping over. It really is inevitable. Vinyl is making no money, but neither are Mp3's. Yet DJ's are burning off their collections onto CD, burning from mp3 to CD. Record labels are now promo'ing off CD. So what's the common factor here? That's right - the CD.

So tell me why us, as record labels are not making CD's? Why can we not change? There's obviously a demand, and like I say, nothing has drastically changed in the club scene. The market is there, the CD's arent. Well the answer to this is easy. Record shops don't buy them in because a) labels don't make them b) they'd have to have shelves put in and CD listening posts (cost) c) The very name 'Record shop' means it's a record shop and this means more reluctance to change d) 6,000 other reasons.

OK, so tell me this. If there was a way where you could send your finished wav to a shop, a one stop shop for techno music, THEY press it up, THEY sell it and you get a split of the profit, would you do it? Of course you would. You're going to bypass the distribution companies and begin on the path to keeping a physical product but changing with the times. Now I believe the demand is there. So I'm going to put my money where my mouth is here. We have a site of 7000 members. Why the hell don't all the labels on here sell CD's on the site. Oh that's right - there is no shop on here. WRONG.

The new site is done. All I have to do is add the new Blackout Audio logo to the top. It's a full-on Portal and there's a shop in there too. BINGO.

You send me the wavs and the artwork, I sell them on the site, We work out a deal. The more labels I can get interested in this, the cheaper the pressing will be. If we can turn this new shop on the new site into a one stop shop for techno music on CD and it is known as such, I really think we can turn this whole problem around for alot of labels out there.

I don't know many other techno sites with this many members and a shop attached. It seems the perfect solution. If the record shops and distributors wont change, we have to.

Let me know your thoughts on this here, and PM me if you're seriously interested. I will look into costings as soon as I know there's enough labels that want to do this. Let's keep it to established labels for now or ones that have got at least 5 releases under their belts, then we can expand and take this perhaps to the stage where we're at last giving the up/coming talent a way to start a label. Look, let's give it a shot, even if we all only try it with one release at first and a run of let's say 100 each.

I'm also interested in hearing from any member in the UK that would want to get involved in the shop side of this ie processing the orders, sending out etc. You'd obviously get paid for it too and you never know how this all may end up :) If we all club together, I know we can make a difference here.

Let me know. :)