Alex Roth Music

Today, a new platform called Subvert launches publicly. Uniquely, Subvert is structured as a co-operative of over 20,000 members: artists, labels, supporters, and workers. In other words: a marketplace for music collectively owned by the people who use it, rather than by a corporation or investors.

I’ve been involved since the very early stages of its development. I joined very early on (proud member #118) because, having gotten to know its founder Austin Robey through an online residency with Metalabel and subsequently met up with him in NYC in 2023, I really believe in the vision behind it: essentially a collectively owned version of Bandcamp.

I've been using Bandcamp as both a supporter and an artist since its early days, and I continue to upload my music there. But given what’s happened with the platform over the past few years—sold first to Epic Games and then again to Songtradr—I think a lot of us have been asking what a more sustainable and artist-centred alternative could look like. Subvert is IMO the closest anyone has come to answering that question.

Unlike Bandcamp, Subvert takes 0% of payments to artists. Instead, when you purchase music on the platform, you'll see an option to contribute an additional amount to help keep Subvert community-owned.

To celebrate Subvert's launch, I’ve uploaded my new release (Dis)possessed there as well. It’s slightly cheaper than on Bandcamp, with an additional discount for Subvert members. Check it out here:

(Dis)possessed by Alex Roth - Subvert "There’s a real beauty here... a moving experience." - Dominic Valvona, Monolith Cocktail This music was created for a sound installation commissioned by Warsaw's POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews as part of a 2024 exhibition celebrating its 10th anniversary. The installation was subseque...

"There’s a real beauty here... a moving experience."

Many thanks to Dominic Valvona for this attentive and detailed review of (Dis)possessed for Monolith Cocktail 🙏

Link below.