Justin Vernon of Bon Iver disappointed in Apple, digital music

Bon Iver first became famous by decamping to the woods and making an album of pristine, heartrending acoustic folk. So it’s perhaps not totally surprising that Justin Vernon, who created the project, might have some misgivings about the direction Apple has taken in its approach to digital music in recent years.

In a series of tweets, Vernon offered up a genuine lament for Apple Music and the current streaming economy. But as befits a frequent Kanye West collaborator and Grammy winner, it’s not for the obvious or expected reasons.

“Don’t need to read this. its true,” he wrote, over a picture of Apple’s CEO Tim Cook announcing its new Apple Music platform. “The company that made me believe in companies, and not joking: PEOPLE is no more.”

But as he went on, it became clear that Vernon was actually a deep and committed Apple fan who has felt increasingly let down by the company’s music products.

And when a music platform bums you out — the one thing, above all else, that the evangelists of digital streaming claim to be able to do right — the music actually suffers for it, both for fan and artist alike. Vernon sent out a link to this FACT Magazine article outlining how Apple Music might be a raw deal for indie labels, then discussed how Apple products had lately been turning him off of music.

“[B]een thinking this for a while. ironically i think its iTunes why I’ve listened to less music / 2yrs. bad syncing/platform,” he added. “but seriously, i hope HATE isn’t the message. Just literally wish that the humans who had the power, USED it to literally make things better.”

“iDVD 2, iTunes 3, iMovie 2.1 i remember the computer teaching ME how to use it, by having such amazing design.

Vernon also said he was an avid Spotify user, but to no one’s surprise, analog still wins in the end for him. “I’ve been loving spotify, for the record. have to import gems I’ve had on mp3 for years… and i think cd’s +lp’s and tapes are still better.”

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