Bandcamp Friday!

Hey everyone,

This article is both a heads up about Bandcamp Friday, which will be taking place this coming Friday (December 5^th 2025) and a little explainer as to why (I think) it’s so important for us to be financially supporting smaller independent artists.

Bandcamp Friday is where musical artists that have their work posted on the Bandcamp platform receive 100% of the revenue (minus processing frees), so Bandcamp are waiving their share. This became a thing during the pandemic as a measure to help artists that had lost income due to cancelled tours/gigs/sessions etc. and has continued ever since. As such, it is a perfect time for you to make purchases from your favourite artists and have them receive more money (continue reading to see what I’ve got in my own basket for this Friday!) which in turn will not only help them with their day-to-day expenses but also…to create more great art.

Why are events like this important? Initiatives like Bandcamp Friday, that put money in the pockets of artists and creators rather than in the pockets of entities such as Spotify are what is going to enable smaller creators to continue to do what they do. A lot of the interesting things that are going on within the arts are now happening away from the mainstream and the most effective way to help the artists in this category is to buy their music, get their merch and buy their gig tickets. In other words, make that meaningful financial contribution to what they are doing artistically. As Steve Lawson pointed out in a post he shared on his IG story recently, buying $50 worth of music/merch will make no difference whatsoever to the major labels but it will make a very significant contribution to the independent artist’s costs for the next week/month. The cost of living is not getting any cheaper, touring is not getting any easier and you should never underestimate just how much difference you can make to an artist’s life with your purchases!

The rise of AI generated music only increases the importance of us actually investing in real music. While one hopes that the industry won’t descend into a black pit of AI generated mediocrity (I have my doubts…), one of the most immediate and impactful ways for us to combat that is to invest in the real musicians, the ones that are putting in the hours, the ones that are invested in their craft, the ones that are making great art and presenting it to us out there, on stage in the real world.

The times where ‘Like, Comment, Subscribe’ would get people traction and make a difference feel like they are very much over. So…If we want great art, if we want something other than an endless algorithmic cycle of AI slop, if we want the great musicians out there to continue to do what they are doing…it’s time for us, the fans, to front up and to contribute.

Soapbox over, here’s what’s currently in my basket for Bandcamp Friday!!

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Simple. Vol.1 (Jonathan Maron/Kenny Allen)

Jonathan Maron is playing bass. Enough said…no really, Jonathan is one of my favourite players and an absolute gem of a human being to boot. For those of you that haven’t checked him out I absolutely recommend you do so, he will be included in an upcoming series of player profiles I’m working on! This is the first release from his new collaboration with singer/songwriter Kenny Allen and I’m looking forward to more music from them!!

Live From The Couch (Bjorn Meyer)

Bjorn is one of my chief current influences, specifically when it comes to unaccompanied solo bass (a concept for which I’m really trying to nail down for myself at present). His sound, vocabulary and ability to tell stories with the instrument is just amazing.

Neither You Nor I (Garden Of Silence)

As with Jonathan, anything that Bjorn is playing on I’m going to want to check out. I was aware of this project but hadn’t realised that it had come to fruition. This record has its origins in the artistic vision of the late harpist and composer Asita Hamidi, whose vision Bjorn has continued and brought to life as artistic director with an extraordinary nine piece ensemble…Rather than try and attach a genre/description to this, I would urge you to go and discover it for yourself.

Ego (David Maxim Micic)

The cool thing about Bandcamp is that you can make lots of amazing discoveries there without having a bullshit algorithm pushing stuff at you. This is a very recent one that I found via Plini whose music (for those that don’t know me well) I absolutely adore. Through looking at related/comparable artists I found some names that were brand new to me, including David’s and I proceeded down the rabbit hole! Completely different style of player to Plini but no less interesting with some wonderful soundscape design! If you’re into the world of modern progressive music I very much recommend this release!

Flirting With Disaster (Pezhed)

I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with Erica several times (including the record Watch This Space). Not only that she was one of the very first people to support me with getting BassWithBen off the ground and it’s long past time I reciprocated. Her compositional output it absolutely mind bending, and this record in particular has been a recent standout for me! She is also one of those rare people that can be a genuine one-man-band and has the audacity to sound exactly like herself in doing so ;)

That’s everything for now, though I’m sure something else may ‘accidentally’ end up in the basket before Friday ;)

Remember folks. Support independent artists. Support those whose work you love and admire. It matters.