A Point of Saturation?

Just ten years ago the Varese Club and FSM were pretty much all you had for limited editions on regular basis.

Each months now we seem to get more and more. I recently mused to a friend on IM that we were reaching a point of saturation with this. And indeed a couple months later three more labels popped up offering limited editions.


Now I think there is way too much, in fact just this passed week I mused to myself that there are so many limited editions -- some leaked months in advance (like the November 4CD set of score from "The X-Files") and then each one having a potential to release something you always wanted -- that I find I personally can no longer find my way into buying regular non limited score CD releases; I imagine other people are in the same boat -- even those who make way, way more than I do.


Here's the yearly line up:


FilmScoreMonthly:
Used to be monthly with two CDs, now they pop up spurattically.


Varese Sarabande CD Club:
Three times a year, with each batch containing three to five CDs.


Prometheus Records:
Oh, say about twice a year, with no set amount of CDs per.

Percepto Records:
Once a year, with typically a 50% chance of being something big (last time was the msot requested "Day of hte Dolphin").


Buysoundtrax Records:
When they aren't in denile about their lousey costumer service and having Mark Banning playing make up in FSM threads, they crank out about three to four CDs a year.


Movie Score Media:
I guess about four CD releases a year (not counting download-only ones).


Kritzerland:
Still fresh on the scene, it looks like we can expect about four to maybe six a year. And Kudos on their new NON flash site.


Varese Sarabande:
Yup, again -- they started another new limited edition CD thing. The news section of their site says "sporadic series", but their first batch contained two CDs (each limited to 1,000 copies), so I would assume maybe four a year.


Perseverance Records:
Their releases are sporadic as well, but they got so much in the pipeline (like Newman's "The Runestone") it makes you wonder if at points in the future they might dump batches on us when we least expect it. Right now its safe to say they crank out about two to three a year.


Intrada Records:
Aside from knocking releases out of the park on a regular basis, they also knock new limited editions out on a regular basis, with two to three a month!


One of those new ones: Howling' Wolf Records:
http://www.howlinwolfrecords.com/index_main.htm



There are so many. These were the only ones that I could come up with off the top of my head.