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Welcome to the Machine (just a rant)


A friend of mine recently posted on social media about the perceived evils of musicians/bands/etc. using "generative AI" to create their "art / fliers/ visual promo material". He attempted to make the point that folks should be "hiring and supporting friends of theirs who provide that service".

Let me be clear: I get his point.

But (and there's almost always another POV)...

This isn't the first time I've heard this complaint. A friend - who happens to be the proprietor of a small venue - made the same complaint last year. We had a good conversation about the subject of AI. He admitted at the time that he uses it - but for different things. I've noticed that in the time since the conversation, he and his venue often feature 'art' generated by AI.

My friend's recent post added the complaints about data centers and humans losing their jobs.

Welcome to capitalism. Like it or not, it's what our country bases itself on. (quick note: lifetime lefty here) 

In this instance, AI is a tool. That's it. I often use for short story illustrations on my blog. (I've yet to hear a complaint) I know a lot of artists. Hell, I grew up in the art world, thanks to mum being an artist.

I've discussed turning some of my stories into graphic novels. Artists either ask for a ridiculous sum and months and months of wait time, or they just say they can't do it. I've even suggested a 50/50 split. But no, they just want to be paid to draw with no deadline. 

I'll add that in the nearly 50 years that I've been in the music business, I've hired an artist or photographer maybe a half dozen times. Even in those instances, a number of times there was bartering involved. Quid pro quo. Most times, I made the posters, fliers, etc. Still do. I often shoot my own videos too. (and I'm sure it shows)

When I was gigging locally 3-5 times per week, it eventually became unfeasible to continue creating posters. My work-around? I made an all-purpose poster. I started doing this when I was still in The Rowdy Bovines. We had a great photo (I paid the photographer $25 + beer) that was shot in the bathroom at Thirsty's in Oakland. We had a hand-drawn logo that we'd been using on posters/flyers, so I did a cut/paste job, added it to the photo, added a white space at the bottom for show details and BAM! Problem sorted. The biggest problem then was printing. People were forever stealing the posters! Not long after, a few other bands started to do the same thing. 

I still have a soft spot for the old ransom letter-style punk rock posters/flyers. Lord knows how many I've made. I had stacks upon stacks of old magazines that I'd raid for lettering. 

I guess the more idealistic folks would give me grief for not hiring someone to hand-letter them.

Kinko's was the go-to 'tool' of that time.

There's another reality that my friend didn't bother to address: cost.

A good artist is going to charge probably more than the artist is going to earn. At that point, it makes zero sense to spend the money. Often when a band plays somewhere, it's a door deal. The band gets a percentage of what comes in. The soundman usually gets a cut (usually around $100, give or take - depending on the venue and its size). The doorman gets a cut. Hell, sometimes the venue dips its mitts in too. This leave slightly more than squat for the band/musician/artist. Paying an artist $50-500 for artwork when you MIGHT earn $20 is just bad business. 

Sure, by all means - make the promo material yourself. It's more cost-effective. But (and there it is again) - the target audience will formulate its opinion, in part, from this visual representation. Some folks won't care - but some will. 

My friend pointed out that the AI art often looks bad. In general, he's not wrong. But that isn't AI's fault. That's user error. Lack of skill perhaps. AI doesn't instinctively know what you want. It can make guesses based on user data, but that's it. AI doesn't have eyes. It can give you its numeric concept of what you ask for. That's it. If you want detail, you have to provide it. 

Back to data centers. At this point in time, they're over-sized energy hogs. No doubt there. They tend to have dubious effects on land and communities. If you don't want one near you, fight it. Get your friends and neighbors in on the fight. Data centers are, in essence, capitalist power grabs, in multiple forms. They want control and they want as many government handouts as possible. They also don't care what happens to the land or communities, no matter what line of bovine manure they try to spread.

Is AI coming for your job? It depends on what you do. AI can't fix your plumbing. It can't wire your house. It can't physically build anything. Tradies are safe. If you're an Uber or Lyft driver - your time is limited. But was that ever going to be a long-term career? AI is likely to replace more white collar jobs than anything else. Bankers, accountants, marketing...those will be taken over by the digital daddios. 

The bigger problems lie in the government's insistence on using it. The DOD uses it. Sure, trust a computer to strategize military operations. I don't see that going well. While AI could be useful in drafting legislation, it would depend on the programming biases of the AI being used. Trust me, AI can have inherent biases. It's these larger issues that my friend (and everyone else) should be concerned with.

AI is already being used in the arts. Our creativity isn't currently necessary. Want to write a song? There's an app for that. Want to create a fictional singer or musician or band? There's an app for that. Chances are you're already listening to it. Spotify is rife with it.

If you don't want to use AI, here's what you'll need to do. No more internet. No more streaming services. No more Spotify. No more cell phone. You'll need to revert to a 100% analog life. Probably not the worst thing. Go back to vinyl records, CDs, cassettes, and AM radio. Watch your movies on VHS or DVDs. I don't even know if purely terrestrial television still exists. I don't really care either. I can't think of anything I'd watch on it. 

But where will you get your news and daily rage? You could try finding a print magazine or newspaper. Best of luck with that.

Is AI generated promotional artwork a big problem? If you're complaining about it online, guess what: You're already part of the problem. We all are. 

AI is a tool. It's modern technology (for most). I've been around it for over 50 years. I haven't seen it destroy much...yet. But don't worry, your elected officials are making coin off of it. They'll find a way to make it sound like a good idea. It's not like they're doing anything else. Did you really think they're smart enough to come up with those quotable sound bytes on their own?  

To quote Pink Floyd, "Welcome to the Machine".







copyright notice © 2026 Michael C. Metzger

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