David Peters, frontman of hardcore/metal act Throwdown recently sent a letter to industry watcher/guru Bob Lefsetz about the impact of downloading. Lefsetz, a former industry executive and frequent commentator has advocating massive overhauls to the way music is sold and artists are compensated. Peters explained his feelings on downloading:

We have sold around 200k records across 3 releases. We're not 'huge' by any stretch but do alright and live off (and ON subsequently) the road. Fans and friends ask me all the time how I feel about "stealing music." I just told someone yesterday "I have a hard time seeing it as stealing…when I don't see any money from cd sales to begin with. What are they actually TAKING from me?"

If you want to squeeze an opinion on theft out of me, ask me about the dude that grabbed our tshirt off the table tonight in Detroit or better yet.. ask me about record contracts.

I encourage our fans to acquire our album however they please. The philosophy I've adopted is that if you're supporting disc sales, you're keeping the old model around longer…the one that forces dudes like me to tour 9 mos/year if they want to make ends meet with a career in music. If you wanna really support a band, "steal" their album….help bury the label….and buy a tshirt when you show up at their show and sing every word.

Throwdown celebrated their 10th anniversary this year, some of those early members went on to form Eighteen Visions and Bleeding Through.