It’s a frightening world for musicians these days. The music business is a huge monster, and for new artists, it is simply overwhelming. There are so many artists now available that it seems impossible that anyone could have a new and unique voice. Just take a look at MySpace, one of the easiest places to discover new acts.

There are approximately 366,408 MySpace music pages, each with a different artist. Even if you were to halve that number to eliminate dead pages and duplicates, it’d still be astronomical. I am an intense music lover, and I only have about 500 different artists on my iTunes.

The one thing that allows for this gross online oversaturation is mediocrity. There is absolutely no way that the majority of new artists can have success. The bands, singer-songwriters and DJs who make memorable music with a slick presentation are too often buried beneath a suffocating heap of subpar acts. For every innovator, there is a baker’s dozen of cheap copycats. For those who truly have a great story to tell and a creative way to tell it, the work is harder than it has ever been.

You get the feeling that there’s been a loss of sincerity in music, or perhaps that nobody knows what “quality” is anymore. I don’t think this is entirely the case. Tremendous artists still break into the limelight and make a living doing what they love. And with the relatively recent advent of cheap online distribution, many independent artists can make this living without having to suckle at the teat of a big hairy record label.

We are music fans here in Seattle; the live music scene here is thriving, stations like KEXP 90.3 FM keep a solid and growing listener base, and independent record stores like Easy Street have stayed in business despite the shift toward online sales.

But it’s incumbent upon music fans to be discerning listeners. The exponentially expanding throngs of MySpace goers with guitars and recording equipment only exist because someone encouraged them to broadcast their music to an unbelieving world. Friends of musicians need to be more critical. For example: “Hey, man … I’d hear your lyrics better if you stopped screaming them all.” Of course, encouragement helped great artists get started as well, so be mindful to give credit when it’s due.

I am a singer-songwriter myself, so this whole situation is of particular interest to me. I am one of the great cloud of 366,408 MySpace witnesses as well. But there are a couple of standards I’ve resolved to meet if I’m to really try for success with my music. I haven’t really put any of my songs up yet because they’re not ready. The crappy garage-style recording of many bands and singer-songwriters on MySpace makes the whole product look bad, even if the songs are well written. I promised myself I wouldn’t get too hasty and put the rest of my songs up until they are complete, unique-sounding and effectively produced. I am in a “holding pattern” of sorts.

But for artists who really care about their own music, why would you put up a lame song that is poorly recorded? You’re telling everyone that your music isn’t really that important to you. It’s not to say that you need to have perfection; sometimes music is more special because of its detectable flaws. But don’t assume that just because you’re sincere about something that it’s fit for a wide audience.

Listening to alternative radio is a great way to expand your musical horizons for listeners, and it’s a good way to see what’s viable if you’re an emerging artist. KEXP plays an awesome mix of new talent, local bands and national independent acts. It acts as a sort of quality filter, so even though the talent may not be gold and platinum all the time, it’s better than trolling the miry seas of MySpace for boring bards and trifling troubadours.

And although music critics can sometimes be more grating and mind-numbing than the artists they review, it’s a good idea to pick up an occasional Rolling Stone or Spin just to see what’s out there and why it may be good. Seattle Sound is an awesome new local magazine that covers both our area and what’s going on nationally. Relevant Magazine is a pretty good place for honest opinions on music with an admittedly specific worldview. As far as Web sites go, try PureVolume.com instead of Myspace. They usually have more quality acts, although at first glance they all look like girl-jean-wearing-emo-crooners.

So look for me someday. I’ll have the starry eyes, shiny guitar,and gorgeous MySpace profile, and I promise not to disappoint. Musical artists have legitimate roles in our society: to wake the imagination, perhaps move them toward certain philosophies, and at the very least entertain them. The more honestly musicians approach both their own art and the expansion of it, the better the whole canon of 21st century music will be. It’ll just need candid and discerning listeners, so do your job wisely and seek out quality.

[Reach columnist Jackson Rohrbaugh at opinion@thedaily.washington.edu.]