McDonalds Filet O Fish Commercial: Song & Lyrics

April 6, 2009 in TV by Mike

The new McDonalds Filet O Fish Commercial may be one of the most impressive lyrical and musical creations of the year.  The filet o fish song itself is genuis…possibly worthy of an eventual ”filet o fish ringtone”.

If you haven’t experienced the musical myth, the lyrical legend that is the filet of fish commercial, then you need to check this immediately:

McDonalds Filet o Fish Commercial:

For those of you who want to sing along, but can’t understand the talking-wall-fish, here are the lyrics:

McDonalds Filet of Fish Commercial Lyrics:

Give me back that filet o fish
Give me that fish
Give me back that filet o fish
Give me that fish

What if it were you
Hanging up on this wall?
If it were you in that sandwich
You wouldn’t be laughing at all!

Songwriters take note — it’s a new age of commercial jingles, it is.

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Even a Fool Deserves a Day in the Sun

April 1, 2009 in Miscellaneous by Mike

Cadie - April Fool's Day - GoogleOnly a few minutes from midnight, and only a few more opportunities to psych out the nearest ‘fool’ with a prank. Search Engine Watch had a nice wrap-up of some of the more valiant April Fool’s Day efforts by Google, Live, Cafe Press, and others. Where does one apply for the job of “April Fool’s Day” content editor?

Anyone who can comment with a link to a web-based April Fool’s Day joke by 12:00 PM tomorrow, EST, that’s NOT listed in the post above, gets a free MP3 of my latest song, “20/20 Foresight.”  (Not a joke.)

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The Ultimate Funky YouTube Loop Mashup Music Video

March 23, 2009 in Music Videos by Mike

This guy, Kutiman, took loop groove creation to the next level by mashing up a bunch of YouTube clips together.  Funky, funky, funky.  It’s kind of like…consumer generated media-generated media.

I wonder where this all falls with regards to licensing, content ownership, clearance, permission…oh, never mind.  Awesome stuff. (via Mashable)

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Hey Amazon, CreateSpace is Broken

March 11, 2009 in Music Industry, Music Promotion by Mike

I was checking out some of the great comments from folks at Nimbit (Kevin Ebaugh), ReverbNation (Jed Carlson), CD Baby (Tony van veen), and TuneCore (Peter Wells)  in the post 7 Ways to Sell Your Music on iTunes, and happened to notice this Google ad on the page for Amazon’s music service, CreateSpace:

createspace banner ad“

How nice, a relevant ad regarding digital distribution for indie artists,” I thought.  I clicked to learn more (and not just to earn the $0.05 or so I’d get from the click), and arrived at CreateSpace’s landing page:

createspace landing page

The link titled “Learn more about the selling music as mp3 downloads”, while grammatically incorrect, sounded interesting, so I clicked:

createspace broken page

Wa-wa-wa-waaaaa….  The page was not available, and I, a potential customer (or interested blogger?), left disappointed.  (Ok, so CreateSpace isn’t broken, exactly, but its landing page is.)

Moral: Check your links before spending money on a Google AdWords campaign.

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7 Ways to Sell Your Music on iTunes

March 9, 2009 in Do-It-Yourself, Indie Music Marketing, iTunes by Mike

Any musician seriously considering digital distribution is thinking about getting their music on iTunes.

iTunes controls between 60-80% of digital music sales, depending on who you ask.  Fortunately, the once impossible task is now possible through several services catering to bands and songwriters.  However, the different pricing models make the decision less than obvious.

With my own first EP release approaching (at a crawl), I scouted out the various options currently available, and am posting them here for your convenience.  Check ‘em out, see what you think.  (If I’m missing an option/service, let me know.)

Before Uploading Your Music to iTunes

Just a couple things to think about:

  1. Have your Music Mastered. Mastering is the process of optimizing the dynamics, EQ, and volume of a recording.  Whether you do it yourself, or have it done professionally, it’s the last tweak step to make sure your stuff is as close to commercial standards as possible.
  2. Obtain a UPC Code. To sell your music, you will need a UPC code assigned to your release.  All of the services listed below can do this for you if you haven’t already; some charge a fee, some don’t.  (I include that info below.)  You will also need an ISRC, but that’s even easier — all the services below will create one for you for free.
  3. Choose a pricing model. Different combinations of setup fees, flat fees, and commission fees are offered.  If your music is less widely recognized, a commission fee structure may make more sense; if you expect to sell a lot, a flat fee structure with 0% commission may make more sense for you.
  4. Choose a service that meets your needs. Some of the services below may offer other tools and perks you’re looking for.  For the sake of convenience, pick a service that gives you the most for your money.

7 Music Services That Can Get Your Music on iTunes

Here are 7 music services, in alphabetical order (lest you think I have a favorite), that offer bands a way to get their music on iTunes.  The pricing models and packages are all different, as are the variety of core and ancillary services that each company offers.  In this post, I am only comparing pricing options; you’ll want to do deeper research on your own (and I may write a follow-up post with a deeper dive). Hopefully, this list will help you make your decision.


CD Baby and iTunes

CD Baby

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution Included:


Musicadium and iTunes

Musicadium

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution Included:


Nimbit and iTunes

Nimbit

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution:


ReverbNation and iTunes

ReverbNation

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution:


SongCast and iTunes

Songcast

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution Included:


Tunecore and iTunes

TuneCore

Pricing:

UPC & ISRC Codes:

Digital Distribution:


the orchard itunes

The Orchard

Pricing information not included on website.  Service geared towards labels, and not DIY musicians/bands.  I’d stick with one of the services above, unless you’re a label-ite.

Other Ways to Distribute Music Digitally?

This post focused on iTunes distribution and pricing only. There’s also the matter of other retailers, merchandise, selling music from your own site, etc. What music service(s) or widget(s) do you use to distribute your music digitally? What do you think is important in a digital music distribution service?

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Emusic is Giving Away Free Music…Every Day

March 1, 2009 in New Music by Mike

eMusic’s benevolence is limited to one free Mp3 a day, but I suppose that’s better than zilch. I may very well plug their “Free Daily Download Widget” into GarageSpin’s sidebar, as long as it doesn’t mess with the site’s template too much. Here’s what it looks like:

If one mp3 a day isn’t enough for you, try 25 free mp3 downloads…which is what you get if you sign up for an eMusic Free Trial.  (You can actually sign up, download 25 tracks, ‘n’ ditch…which they’re probably not too fond of, but the model must work for them as they’ve been offering the free trial for several years, now.)

Also worth mentioning is their launch of an eMusic Facebook App, which subscribers can use to show off their music stuff for the FB world to see.

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Best Subprime Mortgage Crisis Cartoon Ever

February 25, 2009 in Miscellaneous by Mike

While browsing the interwebs, I happened upon a cartoon that successfully explained the sub-prime motrgage crisis to me, a subprime crisis dummy.  If you’ve ever wondered what terms like “sub-prime mortgage”, “collateralized debt obligation”, “frozen credit market”, or “credit default swap” meant, and enjoy anime, this masterpiece may be for you.  (Barrack Obama’s credit crisis explanation would have seriously benefited from such a vid…)



Btw, the video above is only Part I (7 min); if you want to see the rest, Part II (4 min) can be found here.

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How to Get Your Band or Music on Faceoook

February 22, 2009 in Indie Music Marketing, MySpace, Widgets by Mike

I just created a Facebook Page for GarageSpin. If you’re on Facebook, let’s connect.

What is a “Facebook Page”?  (i.e. not a “Facebook Profile”)

Most folks know how to use Facebook to create a regular, personal profile page. But not everyone knows about “Facebook Pages“, and if you’re a musician, band, or artist, you should. Facebook Pages were created by Facebook to enable bands, artists, businesses, politicians, whatever, to create pages for themselves within the social network that are separate from personal profile pages.

Why Should I Create a Facebook Page?

Well, it’s super easy, so why not? But more importantly, Facebook usage is skyrocketing, and it’s become one of the most popular social platforms for sharing stuff (links, photos, music, quotes, news, and random nonsense.) Rather than my writing a “Facebook for Dummies” post, you should try it yourself if you haven’t already. Check out these traffic trends (Facebook is blue, MySpace is red):

facebook vs myspace traffic

It’s clear that Facebook is currently crushing the once almighty MySpace, and isn’t close to stopping. As a musician or artist promoting music or art, you need to get plugged in. The Band Page can be used to communicate to fans, manage gig schedules, store video and event info, and other stuff. You can see an example of one by checking out my GarageSpin page.

How Do I Create a Band Facebook Page?

Create a Faceboook PageIt takes 2 minutes:

  1. Use your Facebook login to access your account (or create a new one).
  2. Then go to the Create New Facebook Page.
  3. Select the 3rd radio button titled “Artist, Band, or Public Figure”.
  4. Then select “Band” or “Musician” (or whatever applies) in the dropdown box.
  5. Click on “Create Page”.
  6. Your Facebook Page now exists. Now pimp it out with stuff. (Note: When you upload your music, you will need to upload a driver’s license or passport photo to verify your ID.)

Facebook Applications: How to Add Music to Facebook

So, maybe you’re not in a band, and you just want to add your favorite music to Facebook. There are some alternative, and pretty cool facebook applications built to let you add music to your personal profile. Facebook apps have been created by a bunch of third party websites. Two great facebook apps are the iLike app and Last.FM app. Be sure to check them out. You’ll need to create an account with any site whose Facebook application or music widget you decide to use.

If you’re in a band, and you want to add your band’s music to your personal profile page, you can do a couple things. Once you create a band Facebook Page, you can add it to your regular Facebook profile’s “Favorites” section. You can also use one of several band Facebook applications, such as the ReverbNation App. iLike’s and Last.Fm’s facebook widgets would also work. Which one you decide to use is your call.

Customize Facebook Profile

Facebook isn’t MySpace; it doesn’t allow much in the way of free facebook layouts, facebook hacks, or the other garbage that plagues MySpace. If you want to play with your band Facebook profile, customise it with the many Facebook applications that exist. There are some ugly apps out there, though, so be careful what you test or activate.

Be Searchable

A quick word about Facebook search optimization. If you have an odd band name or last name, be sure to somehow, somewhere, include multiple versions or spellings of your band’s name so your fans can find it. For example, if your band was named “Facebook” (though I’m not sure why’s you’d do that to yourself), you might want to include variations such as faceboook, facebok, faceboo, facbook, acebook, etc in a little “keyword” section somewhere within your profile.

Unblock With Facebook Proxies

Another quick word, this time for those of you who can’t use Facebook because it’s blocked at school or at work — use one of many Facebook proxies to unblock Facebook. A proxy is usually able to grant you access to your account indirectly, bypassing your school’s or company’s filtering systems.

Go Forth and Conquer

Okay, I rambled waaaay more than I intended to about the ‘Book. Take 2 minutes to create your own page, or add new music to your personal profile. Then, connect with me so we both have more friends and feel more popular.

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Microsoft Songsmith: An Evil App Used for Good

February 4, 2009 in Audio Recording Software, Music Videos by Mike

microsoft-songsmithYou may have heard of Microsoft Songsmith, a software that generates musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. (Imagine an 80’s Casio keyboard following your lead with one of its demo sample music styles, like Bosso Nova or Swing or something.)  The results are generally chillingly painful.  (Is that harsh? Here’s the demo…you decide.)

However, brave soul Johannes Kreidler overcame the inherent evil of the app by composing the cultural masterpiece, The Billion Dollar Song, which quite literally follows stock chart implosions and such with graceful, even upbeat, melodies.  This is a must-watch:

So, perhaps we need not fear Songsmith.  You can get a free Songsmith download here, and create your own computer generated masterpiece.  We’re one step closer to 1984’s prediction…

(Via Hypebot)

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Pics from the Weekend: Rapple and Crappie Derby

February 2, 2009 in Uncategorized by Mike

I am easily amused by things I see while on long trips…I suppose it’s out of the need to find joy in micro-moments when you’re waiting for time to pass, as the snowy landscape before you replaces the one in your rear view mirror.

Amusing microscene #1:  Rapple Gumballs

Hermaphroditic apple-raspberry creatures busting rhymes — you can’t beat that concept.  I also think “Rapple” is an incredibly awesome band name, and far, FAR better than “GarageSpin.”  I’m unsure what fruit the green dude is supposed to be…  (Found on a 25 cent gumball machine at a rest stop on Route 87.)

rapple bubble gum

Amusing microscene #2: Crappie Derby

I normally avoid any event, location, product, or service that is in any way described as being “crappie”.  Yet this one requires a $2.00 registration fee.  More amusing is the fact that the poster brags about “toilet facilities on ice.”  Not for me, thanks.  (Seen in Whitney Point, NY.)

Crappie Derby

Good times, good times.

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