So....how about that U.B.? He's in the news again. I didn't see the video, which Behringer took down after their subscribers complained on social media. I don't really need to, though, as I've seen where this was headed for a long time. Everything about Uli's constant need for control and reassurance screams that there are significant issues fueling these questionable tactics.
Is this finally the alarm bell people need to realize that supporting Music Tribe is a no-win position?
I'm not a SJW, but I can't say that this doesn't bear some resemblance to the vile anti-Semitic cartoons of the early 20th century. At the very least, it's a cringe-worthy attempt at revenge.
This is not how music companies should be managed. ---Which is a part of why I loathe Music Tribe. They have all this money, and yet instead of pushing innovation/community/culture, they're pushing pettiness by publicly airing their founder's undeniable insecurities.
For those who need a refresher, Peter Kirn collaborated on the Meeblip synth and he founded the CDM blog, which routinely covers synth releases. Since Behringer is constantly teasing reworked designs of pre-existing synths, you can imagine Kirn has covered Behringer several times in recent years.
--I've gone back and read through Kirn's coverage of Behringer releases and it echoes a lot of the concerns I've shared over the past few years. At no point, though, did I feel like he was flirting with going over the line.
https://cdm.link/tag/behringer/
And there’s another question for all of us – musicians and makers alike. Is the 1970s or even 1980s sound of the synthesizer where we want the road to end? Or what should a 2020 synthesizer even sound like?
Ask yourself: if you were a company employee, would you prefer a raise, or would you prefer your CEO to spend thousands of dollars on company resources to trademark someone else's name, just to antagonize and berate them? --Talk about unselfishly having your priorities in order, Uli.
KIRNflakes? That is some Don Jr. level humor.
If you're curious how the music press is viewing this latest event, here you go:
https://www.synthanatomy.com/2020/03/be ... e-cdm.html
https://www.gearnews.com/behringer-intr ... bed-synth/
https://www.magneticmag.com/2020/03/beh ... ic-tropes/
https://www.musictech.net/news/is-this- ... criticism/
https://www.musictech.net/news/behringe ... ic-outcry/
"There is not one magazine, forum or thread where we don't get criticized or even attacked," the statement reads. "We understand that not everyone likes us or me and that's perfectly fine.
This is such horse shit. This is the same nonsense DJT says about the media and his crowd sizes. ---There is constant paranoia and deliberate falsehoods over and over again. There are several gear channels and outlets that never criticize Behringer. I would say SonicState and mutliple gear channels have been overwhelmingly positive and have repeatedly shied away from ever touching on Music Tribe's shady practices (the lawsuits, the trademark trolling, etc.).
https://www.musicradar.com/news/uli-beh ... rs-head-on
The stakes aren't as high when it comes to gear news vs global affairs, but it's alarming to see a large multi-national corporation trying to normalize predatory and sinister behavior. By trademarking Kirn's name and publicly encouraging their customers to mock him, they're intentionally making it harder for the guy to earn a living. When they're not suing competitors for message board opinions, they're trying to push people out of the industry through orchestrated cyberbullying.
At no point have I seen anything from U.B. that resembles a sense of humor. Why? Probably because that would require Uli being able to relate to other people. I was disgusted by their fake Minimoog, but this shit ramps it up even further for me. None of this is normal. It's not normal for a company with significant spending power to obsess over journalists and small companies. Behringer is continuously working toward establishing a monopoly that chokes out other voices from the industry.
I think it would be more of a pity thing and less of an anger thing. Pitiful head explosions maybe 
