In January, the massive EMI Group announced that they would merge Capitol and Virgin Records. Anyone with half a brain knows what comes next.

This “restructuring” came with a pink slip for a number of bands, namely Kevin Devine, The Redwalls, and the Shout Out Louds. EMI Group CEO Eric Nicoli sited a need to improve digital capability.

Kevin Devine, an alt-country singer-songwriter featured on Austin City Limits, was one of the first artists to respond to the news. “I hold no ill will and harbor no grudge against Capitol Records; I’m thankful I had the opportunity to make a record I love with a producer I’ve long respected and admired in studios I’d read about but never expected to track in.”

Where is the Rockstar Rage? Where you rush the fat-cats with a Molotov Cocktail, screaming “sellout!” for every victim of “Behind-The-Music”-esque label shellacking?

“I’ve sold 3,000 records in 4 months with nothing at all in terms of a proper ‘label push.’ I’ve gotten to tour consistently since June 2006. The press has been kind, college radio has been kind, promoters have been kind, and the amazing and dedicated fans I’m lucky to have pre-date my flirting with the bright lights anyway. And I know they’ll be around.”

Hmm, interesting. In an era of MySpace, blogging and mp3 sharing, have record labels become obsolete? Listen for yourself to Kevin’s last album with Capitol where, critics noted, he began to pull away from the more commercially viable label trends (big hooks, heavy production) in favor of brutally honest lyrics and minimalist alt-country acoustic arrangements.

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