Launched a “Random Band Resources” Page
I’m launching a much-delayed “Random Band Resources” page containing important links to cool things for bands and fans alike.
It is NOT an all-encompassing index of every music resource a musician or fan needs to know about. It’s simply a list I’ll add to whenever I feel like it. Hopefully someone somewhere will find some use out of it. Or even better, add to it by dropping me a line.
Some history. A long, long time ago, I started a “Band Resources” page. We’re talking years ago. Much like my music projects, I never published it, because it was incomplete, unfinished, unrefined, and not “ready”. And of course, that’s silly, because what project or content ever really is? The audience for any content is dynamic, ever-changing, ever-adapting, ever-morphing. So, I finally just decided to publish what I had today, as incomplete as it may be.
Here’s to hoping you enjoy some random resources for music peeps. Drop me a line if you think of something that should be added.
Comments (10) »
Paying for Music Placement with Tadcast
Hurah! The Payola playingfield has been leveled a smidgeon more.
Joining the ranks of Jango, Last.fm, and Songza, Tadcast launched a brilliant twist by enabling musicians to pay for placement in video by paying on an per listen or per click (if someone clicks on your band link after seeing a video) basis.
Their video does a decent job of explaining how it works, so I’ll just paste the ol’ ditty here:
How Tadcast Helps Musicians! from Tadcast on Vimeo.
If you give this a try, please share your experiences! I may myself, as I get closer to completing an album…
Comments (2) »
Guest Post: CD Sales – How to Network Your Way to Success
Today’s post was randomly written by Larry Mitchell (though I doubt he’s the actual offer) of Mixonic, a CD duplication service based in San Francisco. It was sent to me out of the blue by some made-up Public Relations rep named Katie. Normally, I ignore such requests, but the article was decent enough, so I’m “allowing” it, with some grammar corrections (at least 20 commas added, for example) and my own cynical comments added for your and my enjoyment :). (Some companies pay for something like this…I guess my being a musician makes me a sucker for non-paying gigs…)
Without further ado — take it away, Larry!
A completed music CD is something to be proud of. Go ahead and shout about it. [Mike: Woohoo! Oh wait...I haven't finished my CD yet. Shoot.] No one but you knows the work that went into its making, and no one but you can work to assure its success in the music marketplace. One of the ways to market and sell your CD is through Social Networking. Many people use social networks such as Myspace, Facebook, or Twitter to keep in touch with their friends, but these meeting places are excellent tools for sales as well.
The key to success with marketing your CDs on Social Networks is to avoid overkill. [Mike: I'm not sure that's the "KEY" to success, but it's certainly a potential downfall.] You never want to flood your friends with your sales pitches. You have to be discreet, innovative, even funny at times, to get their interest and make your pitch as a part of the normal course of who you are; a musician with a CD for sale. [Mike: That's all we are...CD salesmen? Ouch. Someone shoot me, please.]
Read the rest of this entry »
Comment (1) »
Josh Ritter’s “Making a Life in Music” – Good Stuff
My friend Jay just introduced me to Josh Ritter’s blog, Book of Jubilations. In it, Josh just started a multi-post series he calls Making a Life in Music. Every musician and band should at least read the first post, which looks at the reasons WHY we create music. It’s deep (don’t read if you have a headache) and beautifully written; I’ll likely return for future re-reads. Latter posts are more practical, but equally well-written — you can see the common DNA shared by his writing style and song lyrics.
I feel a little more like an artist again, having read his work. And that says a lot, when so much of my life takes place in a maze of squarish cubicles. :)
Comments (4) »
Song Project Time & Calling Myself Out
For the first time in a very looong time, I have the house to myself. Though I love and miss my family, I’d be lying if I were to say I’m not a little excited by the prospect of free time. Here’s to getting a solid song draft finished this weekend.
In fact, I’m calling myself out. I WILL have a song draft finished this weekend. Ya hear that, blogosphere?? The song, no matter WHAT state it’s in, no matter how much it makes my ears bleed from the pain, WILL be posted no later than Sunday at (arbitrarily) 5:00 PM EST for you to enjoy or destroy.
There. Just writing that feels good. Pressure-driven deadlines do wonders for me… Wish me luck.
Comments (2) »
WordPress Upgrade + 1and1 Hosting = Pain
WARNING: Boring post alert. Please ignore.
I finally upgraded from WordPress 2.7 to 3.01 (thanks, Jesse!), and my site stopped working. Fortunately, the solution was pretty simple, and best explained over at Berkhamsted, which I found through a simple Google search. And that’s great, because I was seriously considering moving my web hosting from 1and1 to HostGator, DreamHost, BlueHost, or something similar.
1and1. is dirt cheap. Domains are $10, and that includes private domain registration. The same package will usually cost between $15 and $25 at other hosting companies. However, others seem to be much better at hosting WordPress-powered sites. For now, anyway, I’ll be sticking to the Walmart of webhosting.
I am very, very relieved. Now back to music stuff…
Comments (2) »
Nimbit’s Instant Band Site WordPress Plugin
Well, any band that still doesn’t have a website shouldn’t have too much more of an excuse to delay. Nimbit (which apparently stands for “New Ideas for Music Business and Internet Technology”…phew, quite a mouthful) just created a FREE WordPress plugin called Instant Band Site that offers pretty much all of the most important functionality a band might need. A few of the features include:
- Storefront for downloads and merchandise
- Photo album page
- Email list sign-up functionality
- Music player
- A bunch of other pages, plugins, widgets ‘n’ goodies…
Some of the drag-n-drop content modules don’t look as aesthetic as the could be. If you use too many in the sidebar, for example, it gets packed with quite a lot of text (which is even apparent in the “Developer’s Walkthrough” video). But otherwise, the key content pages/modules are solid. The Storefront Page looks especially good, and I’m actually considering using it for GarageSpin at a later date, when I have more finished music available.
Bands still need to 1) have a webhost (which costs something), and 2) install WordPress (which is free). “Pro” (non-free) versions of the plugin do even more. Definitely worth considering if you’re amping up your site to sell directly to fans, especially if you’re looking to spend more time on music, and less on blog-tweaking. Kudos to Nimbit for a solid offering.
You can check out more info on the free plugin here: Nimbit’s Instant Band Site plugin.
Comment »
Lovin’ Shuffler.fm
I’m loving Shuffler.fm.
If you haven’t tried it, try it…it’s pretty cool. The site lets you choose a music genre, then teleports you from music blog to music blog, playing songs within that genre, and acting as a pretty cool music discovery engine. But at the same time, it’s also benefiting new bands, as well as the music blogs themselves, by giving page view exposure to new potential fans. Awesome stuff, and a bit addicting…
Comment (1) »
