The Deal...Record Deal that is... and the Advance

The post i did "Stuff White People Like"has a fantastic article written by Steve Albini.There was a link in the post to the article.I am doing this blog on the article he wrote in hopes it opens a few indies eyes up to the real world.Reading the article has really stuck in my head although i knew in advance what the deal is.And the numerical breakdown of what the musician ends up with in the end is,well......not good,to say the least!
...Steve's words...Whenever I talk to a band who are about to sign with a major label, I always end up thinking of them in a particular context. I imagine a trench, about four feet wide and five feet deep, maybe sixty yards long, filled with runny, decaying shit. I imagine these people, some of them good friends, some of them barely acquaintances, at one end of this trench. I also imagine a faceless industry lackey at the other end holding a fountain pen and a contract waiting to be signed. Nobody can see what's printed on the contract. It's too far away, and besides, the shit stench is making everybody's eyes water. The lackey shouts to everybody that the first one to swim the trench gets to sign the contract. Everybody dives in the trench and they struggle furiously to get to the other end. Two people arrive simultaneously and begin wrestling furiously, clawing each other and dunking each other under the shit. Eventually, one of them capitulates, and there's only one contestant left. He reaches for the pen, but the Lackey says "Actually, I think you need a little more development. Swim again, please. Backstroke". And he does of course......now read on and check the musicians pay out...in the end of all others "profits"...
....http://www.negativland.com/albini.html
....and The Recording Contracts Contents...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recording_contract
....good example from Courtney Love...http://archive.salon.com/tech/feature/2000/06/14/love/print.html