COURTESY BANDCAMP
Bandcamp, the music site that plays home to an improbably eclectic variety of musical acts and sells their wares in ways that take equitability as a worthwhile goal, is donating its portion of all music sales today—February 3—to the American Civil Liberties Union in an effort to combat the Middle Eastern travel and immigration ban implemented by President Donald Trump. A notice on the site called the policy “an unequivocal moral wrong, a cynical attempt to sow division among the American people, and [an act] in direct opposition to the principles of a country where the tenet of religious freedom is written directly into the Constitution.” The missive continued: “This is not who we are, and it is not what we believe in. We at Bandcamp oppose the ban wholeheartedly, and extend our support to those whose lives have been upended.”
Wiling away many hours in Bandcamp’s hidden byways and forking paths is easy for those with the inclination. For those short on time, consider “11.9.16” by the mysterious, ethereal modular-synthesizer whiz Eleh, who composed the transporting piece the day after the election as “a means of finding temporary solace from social and political turmoil.” Also, for further aural travels along similarly otherworldly lines, a trove of “Steamroom” recordings by the great Jim O’Rourke.
Many more abound. Some artists and labels have vowed to do the same with their proceeds throughout the day, in solidarity. Regardless, Bandcamp itself has committed, so every purchase stands to support a cause worth considering.