As the bassist for the band and the owner of the band's record label, Syd Butler is doubly vested in the upcoming Les Savy Fav album, Root to Ruin, so when the album leaked last week, he was proactive about controlling the damage. His initial approach was almost quaint: through his Twitter account, he @-replied users spreading the album and politely requested they take down their links to the record. It was a noble effort that yielded some successes, though unsurprisingly it wasn't enough to stem the leak.
The band's subsequent efforts haven't been as cordial.
Last week the band launched a website for people who illegally downloaded the new album to donate to the band, though the sardonic message on the top of the page suggests the site was created as much for the band to fume as it was to offset their loses. "OK, so you got our leaked record," the band vents. "At least now you know how awesome it is. We're sure you really are desperate for a way to pay us for the thing." The site also offers special "leaked edition" cover art for Root to Ruin.
More contentiously, the band also set up a Twitter account called u_took_my_music that shames suspected pirates. "I'm the account of the ghost of Les Savy Fav's new record Root for Ruin," reads the account's bio. "I follow you when you take me without paying."
That last endeavor turned out to be more McCarthyistic than the band intended, as the account followed a number of innocent fans who had merely tweeted about the leak without actually hosting it. It turns out people don't like to be falsely accused of stealing.
"Thanks for assuming that I'd downloaded the leaked album," one offended fan responded. "I didn't. Now I don't even want to buy it anymore."
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Another paying fan was even more curt, linking the band to his colorful receipt for the album.
Les Savy Fav's fumbled anti-piracy crusade illustrates the conundrum that a lot of musicians face: Leaks can cut severely into their bottom line, but there's no easy way to fight them without looking like the bad guy.
Update: Les Savy Fav's Tim Harrington suggests (via Twitter) that I've missed the humor in their efforts.
