50K MUSIC: You’ve released your fan funded album “The Odd One Out” in June last year. What happened since then?
John: Since the release of The Odd One Out I’ve been very busy promoting the record. I’ve been travelling all across my own country (the Netherlands) but I’ve also visited other countries during a small Europe tour last October. Germany, Spain and England. I’ve done some awesome performances and managed in february to succeed my second Sellaband project for the recording of an EP.

50K MUSIC: Meanwhile you’ve started your third project on SellaBand – the Documentary Project. Please tell us something about it.
John: The upcoming half year a lot of exciting things are about to happen. I’m going to record the EP for which I gathered fundings with my second SAB project, I got a few great performances with my string quartet and I’m going to tour the USA! With the recording of the documentary I want to show what it’s like to be an independent artist. An artist who does everything by himself without the help of managers, booking agencies and record labels. I want to give an insight in what you’ll have to do to stay in the attention and to do everything by yourself.

50K MUSIC: Once you will have raised the 5,000 €, what will you use the budget for ?
John: The 5,000 € will mainly be used for camera equipment, editing costs and duplication costs of the documentary.

50K MUSIC: How can we support you raising your budget?
John: By spreading the word and investing of course This documentary can be interesting for everyone: artists, music fans and entrepeneurs. I think everybody can learn something from my way of handeling things. Whether it’s my business point of view or just the way I look towards live and it’s opportunities. Besides that it’s going to be an amazing journey which is (I think) worth to film and watch.

50K MUSIC: You have announced the release of your upcoming EP for June/July 2011 (your second SellaBand project). Please update us on that.
John: I had recorded the EP, but decided to throw everything away and start over again. It simply was not good enough. The songs did not have the “WOW” factor I want them to have. So I decided to write some more, re-arrange the songs and start all over with the recording. So for now the release of the EP is planned for February 2012.

50K MUSIC: What are your plans for promoting the EP once it’s released?
John: The same as I did with my other recordings. We will be releasing a new single and promote that one on the radio, perform as much as possible and spread the word!

50K MUSIC: Do we have the chance to see you on stages in Europe this summer?
John: This summer I won’t be performing that much. We only play at “Geuzenpop Festival” on the 6th of August in Enschede. We had a very busy year, and with the upcoming plans I decided to take it easy for a couple of months. In september everything will be starting off again with the string quartet performances, and in October I’ll be heading for the USA.

50K MUSIC: What further plans do you have for the next few months?
John: Record a new record, perform and tour the USA. Oh and record a documentary if there will be enough fundings

50K MUSIC: And last: One thing you want your fans and believers to know.
John: I’m so grateful for all the opportunities I get with all these fundings. The documentary is my way of showing you how your money is spent. So if you’d want to know what happens to an independent artist after having them funded: invest in my new project!

John C Fraser’s Documentary Project on SellaBand

Amycanbe - Photo by Bea de Giacomo

I’ve never thought MTV or VIVA could perceive excellent music even if they had it right under their nose. But hey, I’m surprised, Amycanbe is played on both channels with their video “Everywhere”

Congrats to this great success and hopefully it will also help them with their project on SellaBand.

Amycanbe are also featured in a book called “Blue Mountain” by Bea de Giacomo

Photo by Bea de Giacomo

Catself is busy working on her album. I talked to her last week to hear how album production is progressing. She tells us who will work with her on the album, about her support of Talentcast team and her further plans …

50K MUSIC: You have reached your target on SellaBand in February this year. Can you please tell us something about what happened since then?
Catself: Aaah… This is difficult to tell because quite a lot has happened. Lately, every day has been bringing something new, new facts and new ideas.

The first month after reaching my target, I concentrated on my shows in Helsinki. I had a number of them in the spring, and I wanted to play at least one very new song at each of them, so I practiced a lot. But all the time I was thinking about the album – both the songs and the practical things. I wanted to make the right decisions because I knew every decision I made would affect my album, and if I made a mistake, there would be no way to fix it.

I wanted to record my latest songs after the shows but I got very sick because of Finnish street dust (from the studded winter tyres that people drive on for half a year in Finland although the soft ones are better!). I had problems breathing, speaking, and recording was impossible. But I could plan and think. So, I thought a lot about the songs, and I still do, but the biggest thing was choosing the right people to work with. Last year I thought I would record in Morocco but I realised it would take too long. I didn’t want to risk a big delay. So I had to make other plans. Deciding who to talk to was a challenge. You know, I have always made music in a particular way – I have sometimes played live with different people but when I composed and recorded, I was always by myself, doing what I wanted in my own way and not talking to anyone. I wanted to find people who I could work with in a comfortable atmosphere and I wanted it to be an interesting project for them too, and I wanted them to enjoy it. I guess it might sound naïve and unprofessional to some people but for me it was very important. When I record my music alone, it is an adventure, discovery. I knew this couldn’t be missing from my project because it would then all go wrong. And apart from all these things, I had to think of the practical things too. I didn’t want to only work with people long distance, and sending files to each other, I actually wanted to be able to work together in the same room.

So… after a lot of thinking, but also some subconscious thought brewing, I thought I would talk to…

50K MUSIC: … don’t keep us in suspense …
Catself: …ah, but it’s so hard because I haven’t told almost anybody yet! OK. There is a band that I really like, a band that has existed for over 20 years, and, accidentally, they happen to be from the city where I grew up. Once I was listening to their CD and I realised that the combination of their sound and my music could create something very special. Once this thought came to me, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of that before. Everything suddenly clicked. I had to escape from Finland (from the dust) for some time anyway, so I travelled to Lublin, Poland and met the band: Saint Nicholas Orchestra.

Saint Nicholas Orchestra is a busy band – they are the best known folk band in Poland and tour a lot, in Poland and abroad. I was happy when they said they would think about it, and when they said that the most important thing was if it would be musically interesting for them, I had a good feeling about this. Last week they visited Helsinki because they had been invited to play a few shows here – one of them at a well-known Midsummer Bonfires event in Helsinki. In between the shows, they had a few days off so we had our first rehearsals. We even managed to arrange an extra show in Espoo, at Otaniemi Chapel, and we already played a couple of my songs together.

And it went great! It sounded exactly as I had imagined we would. At the end of that week, the band decided they were in. They will record part of the album with me – I don’t want to tell yet on how many songs – but quite many.

50K MUSIC: And who else will be involved into the album production?
Catself: Orchestra recommended a person they had worked with before, and I had already known his name because he had worked on some of their albums, and I had looked him up on the album sleeves because I was impressed with the sound. I don’t want to tell the name yet (sorry, secrets again!) – but I will soon. I will now tell you that he has worked on some beautiful albums, known also outside Poland.

50K MUSIC: You started another project on SellaBand only a few days after you had reached the target of the first one – The Catself Promotion Project. Please tell us what the 20,000 € will be used for.
Catself: If I manage to raise the full sum of 20 000 €, it will be used mainly for touring and some small part of it for other promotion. But touring mainly, especially now that I cooperate with Orkiestra. I would love to play some shows with them after the album’s release, and of course touring with a band costs much more than just by myself. So, I hope I will manage to raise the 20,000. If not, I will lower the target in time before the deadline (I do hope it will reach the SellaBand minimum) but I hope there is a chance for me to raise the whole sum, especially that I offer a completely new album in the incentives – downloads and physical copies… and my red guitar… I have some nice and carefully thought-out incentives and no matter how much I manage to raise, the believers will get them.

I want to advertise the Promotion Project more, and better, but I haven’t been able to do it more intensively so far with all the album-related work. Also, it will sound silly, but it would have been awkward to push it when so many artists on the site are still on their way to their first target with the deadlines getting closer. Of course I guess people don’t think in this way that “if that artist was not fundraising, I would buy parts in another one”, at least I don’t, but I both didn’t feel comfortable about it and felt it would be seen as wrong and greedy if it looked as if I was trying to immediately try to draw attention to myself, and still before my album was even made. So, I have been shy advertising it, but I think it is wrong and a bit stupid, because if I have a project open, I should be fair to myself and advertise it. I will need some funds for promotion immediately after the album is released, so I have to stop being shy. So: please have a look at my Promotion Project! I do have nice incentives! Let me know what you think about them. And yes, that second album is really already written, and I even have plans for the cover and the title!

50K MUSIC: How about your work with the TalentCast team. Do still have time to support them?
Catself: Luckily TalentCast is going on a two-month summer break after next Saturday, otherwise it would be quite difficult. It does take rather a lot of work, especially for Johan, but I also spend some hours every week looking for info on artists so that the newest and most interesting news is included in the programme, or writing texts about the winner of the Song of the Week – two each week, one for TalentCast and one for SellaBand News. They are not copied from somewhere, they are all new original promo texts, and it takes some effort to write it twice each week about the same artist so that it is more or less interesting. Especially when the same artist or band wins a few times and I have to tell the same story in a different way again and again!

50K MUSIC: Do you have plans for gigging this summer … any festivals?
Catself: I was invited to a nice big festival but the sponsor was late with booking the tickets and backed out, which unfortunately messed up my summer plans and not only mine. These things happen. I was also invited to play in Italy in the summer but I couldn’t afford to fly with the instruments, and by car it would have been just as expensive – I wouldn’t like to sleep in the car while travelling by myself. Before I always did everything to get to the gigs, and I think it was the first time I had to say no, but I hope there will be another time. I had plans for more gigs in the Netherlands this summer but then things started speeding up and now I have to mainly concentrate on my album. So I will use almost all the summer for working on the album – there can never be too much time for it. But I do have one gig booked in the Netherlands: on Sunday August 14th in Hoogeveen, at Moonlightstudio! And who knows, maybe something will still come up close to that date.

50K MUSIC: At last: one thing you want your fans and believers to know.
Catself: Once again, I want to take the opportunity to thank all my Believers because without you, all this would not be happening. So – THANK YOU! I am working on my album full time, as well as I can and as wisely as I can. It is the biggest project in my life so far. I hope it will all go well and that you will like it.

And to all my other Fans – thank you for enjoying my music! And please follow me on my sites so that you know when my album is out! And in the meantime, there will be other things: updates, some live videos, a few shows. And don’t be shy to send me a message if you feel like it. It is really nice to hear from you. Meow!

—————

Follow Catself album updates on SellaBand
Help Catself promote her album
Join Catself on Facebook!
Catself website – welcome to say hi in the Guestbook!

50K MUSIC: Who are you, where do you come from, …? Please tell us something about Phil Lomac.
Phil: Musician Songwriter, currently in Chicago, grew up in Germany, starting playing music there, was there when the Berlin Wall opened up, stood on top of it, very inspirational since have been in many bands and played all over from the Hard Rock Cafes to the Chicken Wire clubs in South Georgia. You can get a little more info and hear music at http://www.phillomac.com

50K MUSIC: How did you discover SellaBand? What do you expect there?
Phil: I forget how I discovered it…was just looking for a place to raise money for a recording. I did something similar on a previous album. I had 50 friends and family invest small amounts that together equaled enough to do a complete recording and release. There are other things out there now too like kickstarter.com. A lot of littles can make a big idea happen.

50K MUSIC: How are you going to convince people to believe (and invest) in you?
Phil: I have been doing music for over 20 years, I have 3 kids now and I am still pursuing my passion. I am in it for the long haul. You don’t play because you want to make it, you play because you love it, I guess I can’t really ever let it go once it got in me.

50K MUSIC: It seems to be hard to raise funds on SellaBand at the moment. Do you have a plan B for funding your music?
Phil: Plan B will be to raise the money using a kickstarter model where we get lots of people to give a little to fund the CD in exchange for equity in the sales, and/or swag.

50K MUSIC: You’ve just started your project on SellaBand. Have you thought about the time after reaching the goal of 15k yet? What are your plans then?
Phil: Right now I am working in a new set of musicians. To get ready for recording we are playing around Chicago to tighten our sound and work out parts for new songs. Next show is August 1st at the Double Door downstairs in the Dirtroom lounge

50K MUSIC: And last question: How can we support you to speed up raising your budget?
Phil: Help get the word out…there are people who support independent music and are patrons of the arts…help us reach those people.

phillomac.com

Phil’s project on SellaBand

50K MUSIC: For all those who don’t know Unbuttoned Heart yet (in case there is anyone), please tell us something about you. Where do you come from, what are your roots?
David: We are 5 guys from south Germany, and live in a town called Ulm. Our roots are Rock´n Roll music.

50K MUSIC: You started to raise funds for your album on SellaBand in August 2010. What were your expectations then?
David: At the beginning we didn´t have much expectations, I´d say we saw new opportunities. For a young band without a record deal, it´s always hard to produce an album and even harder to share it with your fans. And that is what we saw in Sellaband, a way to do what we love. And that is: to make music and share it with our fans and friends”.

50K MUSIC: How did you spend the time on SellaBand?
David: We just kept on going our way, with the difference that we took our believers and followers to every place we where going. From small Pubs to big arena shows with the Scorpions or BonJovi. And it feels great sharing all the experiences we make with people that believe in us.

50K MUSIC: You have reached nearly 70% of your budget now. What are your plans once you will have reached your target? What will you use the budget of 21,000 € for?
David: Our Plan is to produce and promote a record that can compete with other international acts. The 21.000 will be used for the production of the record, the incentives for our believers, and of course all the promotion tools a record needs, from a video to a radiopromoter. For more details and incentives you can check out our plan on SAB.

50K MUSIC: It looks like you’re well-known in Germany yet, how about the rest of Europe?
David: I´d say we are working on becoming well known in Germany, and after that we´ll concentrate on Europe.

50K MUSIC: You’ve been opening for the Scorpions, Foreigner, Saga and some more bands of the last century last month. Aren’t you afraid to get lumped together with them and people could consider you to be a little bit antiquated?
David: We never asked or ask us this question when it comes to a live show. In our opinion, it always depends on what the artist makes out of an opening slot he plays. Besides that, we like all kinds of bands from “Journey” and “BonJovi” to “Queens of the Stone Age” so why not open for any band you enjoy listening to. The most important thing for us is to reach people and there is no better place than the stage.

50K MUSIC: There is a bunch of believers who strongly support you on SellaBand at the moment. How do you involve your fans into your funding project?
David: Our believers and fans are the most important thing for us. So, we always try to give them the feeling that they are with us, not matter if on tour or later in the studios. We want to show them, that they are doing the right thing when believing in us and that we are moving forward. Of course it´s a bit easier with people that can come and visit our shows. We hang out, drink a beer and chat with them afterwards. That of course is harder with believers for example from New Zealand, but that is the challenge, to show everyone that we are glad to have them, no matter where they live and who they are.

50K MUSIC: Are there any other ways you do involve your fans?
David: Yes, we have our Unbuttoned Heart Street Team. Fans can promote us in their city and we invite them to our shows or into our rehearsal room and the studio to listen to new songs.

50K MUSIC: What are your plans for the next few months?
David: Make us and our believers happy by recording a great album that shows our views and feelings and of course go out and play live shows to meet all of you!!

50K MUSIC: And last thing: Please tell us one thing about you and your music everybody should know.
David: It´s all about having a good time, come visit a show, meet us and join our SAB ride!!

www.unbuttonedheart.com

UBH on SellaBand

Last time I wrote for 50K MAG, I wrote about how making an album seems to take forever and can drive you totally mad while you wait for it to take shape. I suppose in some aspects, I’m still far from finished but this time, the album is starting to sound like an album and all but the vocals are recorded.

I’m sitting at ‘Sloth’ studios at the moment and my Stepdad Andy Tait is loading up the next track to record vocals on. We started the project at one of New Zealand’s top studios ‘The Lab’, with their top engineer Oliver Harmer and the band tracked live for three days at the end of April.

In between recording the music and recording the vocals, I’ve been on my third tour of Melbourne, Australia with my other band ‘The Twitch’ and we had our best shows there yet. I think going back to places you’ve played is really important to create a decent following, even if the first couple of times you go, you don’t have packed out shows. Being our third time to Melbourne, the shows were really pumping and we took some footage from the shows and have made a little tour video which is up on our Facebook page.

While there we did television performances and radio interviews and we’re really starting to come out from the underground over there. Hopefully we can get back there before the year is out. As well as going to Melbourne, The Twitch have released a brand new video for our song ‘Greenlight’ which looks really professional and we’re currently working on servicing that to television stations all around the country.

In promotional news, I’ve just made myself my first ever website which is really exciting. You can have a wee -perve at: www.fleurjack.com

And I’ve designed and purchased some business cards to hand out at shows to promote the my album, the new website as well my fundraising campaign on AKA Music for album number two.

After releasing the album, I’m going to Canada to play the International Pop Overthrow Festival in Vancouver. My plan is to buy a van and drive through America’s playing as many shows as I can fit into two months.

I think the biggest market for country music is the USA and I am super keen to get over there and see what kind of reaction I get with my new band. To help me with all the flights and travel costs, I’ve setup yet another fundraising campaign on Indiegogo.com where I’m pre-selling my album for $20 USD which will go directly to my touring fund. You can help me out here.

So to wrap up, last time I spoke of madness but this time around, I’m feeling like there’s not much more work left to do on the recording process and it’s time to start thinking about the photo shoot for the album cover, the booklet and album artwork, then it’s time for music videos, touring for promotion and getting all the press releases ready to send out to the media.

Good things take time!
xx

Till next time (and hopefully the album will be done by then) love Fleur
xx

I Am Not The Night was produced by Tristan Ivemy (The Holloways, Frank Turner) and features musicians Alvaro Lopez (also Second Person), Gus Robertson (Razorlight), Max Baillie, Mark Rose and Kate Fedschreiber.

Launch gig will be next Monday at The Troubadour, doors 7.30 pm, Support: Evi Vine and Alexia Coley.

Maybe you’d like to have look at some Second Person videos. I love this most:

Photo by Annick Wolfers/© Julia Johnson

]]> http://www.50kmusic.com/wordpress/2011/05/julias-debut/feed/ 0 http://www.50kmusic.com/wordpress/2011/05/a-tour-round-the-baltic-sea/ http://www.50kmusic.com/wordpress/2011/05/a-tour-round-the-baltic-sea/#comments Tue, 17 May 2011 20:04:42 +0000 Kompis http://www.50kmusic.com/wordpress/?p=1845 They are among my favourites for a while already. Dutch Folk-Pop band The Black Atlantic is touring Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Poland and Germany. Check the schedule:
17.05.2011 – DK – Copenhagen @ KB18 Kødboderne,
18.05.2011 – SE – Gothenburg @ Teater UNO,
19.05.2011 – SE – Stockholm @ Debaser,
20.05.2011 – FI – Turku @ Dynamo,
22.05.2011 – FI – Helsinki @ Bar Loose,
24.05.2011 – LV – Riga @ NABAKLAB,
25.05.2011 – LV – Vilnius @ Pub Artistai,
26.05.2011 – PL – Warsaw @ Powiekszenie,
27.05.2011 – PL – Poznan @ Meskalina,
28.05.2011 – DE – Dresden @ Groovestation

Maybe you’ve already downloaded their debut album “Reverence For Fallen Trees” for free on their website.

About The Black Atlantic:

They started as a project of van der Velde in his off time from his philosophy studies. Gradually the project turned more serious after Geert recorded his first song – a Valentine’s gift to his then girlfriend, now wife and mother of his baby girl – in February of 2006. After posting the song on Myspace van der Velde received some label interest and wrote and recorded ‘Send This Home’ in the early Fall of 2006 with the help of various contributing friends. He eventually abandoned his studies to focus full-time on the band. Live The Black Atlantic made its first appearance, in one of many incarnations, at Eurosonic 2007. Since then the band has maintained a steady diet of touring with a revolving line-up around van der Velde (and for the past 2 years Janssen).

In Europe the band has toured with Saturday Looks Good to Me (usa), Windmill (uk) and Woven Hand (us). The band also opened up most shows for Midlake in the Netherlands and shared the stage with The Tallest Man on Earth in the U.K. In addition to their European shows, the band has toured the US a total of seven times. Most notably they played Filter’s Culture Collide Festival in Los Angeles, CMJ Music Marathon in New York City, NXNE in Toronto, and SXSW 2010 in Austin, one of the world’s largest music festivals. The Black Atlantic has been invited back to play SXSW in 2011 as an official artist. The band is currently slowly working on a follow up to “Reverence…” but spends most of its time on the road touring.

www.theblackatlantic.com

About Alex:

Scouse Alex Highton moved to London in the early nineties to go to college and do a degree in performing arts. This is a surprise when you meet him. None so modest and self-deprecating. This is no actor. Honesty should be his middle name. Heartbreaking songs or simple life observations with lush orchestration played with such a refreshing honesty. You can’t say Al is trying to be anything. He’s just Al.

It’s since beginning simply to just write what he sees that he has produced some amazing work. Woodditton Wives Club mark one was a collection of songs recorded on one mic in his garage, after losing his job and becoming a full time stay at home dad in rural Cambridgeshire after ten years in London.

Somehow one day Ashton Kutcher tweeted about Al and the following day saw a gazillion listens to his myspace. Since hitting the ground again he’s raised the cash for a proper recording of the aforementioned Woodditton Wives Club (via Sellaband) and also a trip to the USA for his first shows in New York, Austin Texas, and Los Angeles.

In a nutshell its like this: Liverpool boy moves to Cambridge via University in London. Writes and records songs chronicling his move from the city to the country, with wife and two girls. Gets attention of Hollywood superstar Ashton Kutcher, among others. Think Harry Nillson, Paul McCartney, Big Star, Graham Nash.

Alex at
MySpace
Facebook
Soundcloud

For further information contact Howard Monk at The Local: howard(at)localism.org.uk

First a great video from Amycanbe …

I love this video … spread the word!

Get a taste of Mount Fabric playing “Sarah and the Multiverse” live …

Btw, their new EP “Secretly an Astronaut” is out now and you can download it on Hairy Wolves Bandcamp Site for 2 pounds … check it out!

Next is Aly Cook’s “Spend It” from her debut album “Brand New Day” …

Do also join Kiwi Sofa every Saturday …

And last but not least a nice little piece from new Cornershop album (feat. BubbleyKaur) …

First: BOA have released their single “Push” and get D-rotation on Swedish radio station P3. They will be gigging tomorrow at Sticky Fingers in Gothenburg. I really like their refreshing Pop and hope they’ll get the attention they deserve.

Second: Amycanbe‘s new single “Everywhere” is also out now. And their new EP “The World Is Round” will be released within the next weeks.

Single Tracklist – 1 Everywhere (edit) 2 Everywhere (Dub Version) 3 Everywhere (Dub Instr Version) 4 Rose Is A Rose (PEACE Mix).

You can watch the recording sessions at Teatro Petrella di Longiano:

Third: Storyfold will release their single “Trick Of Light” on April 29th. Today they send it out to loads of radio statition as they stated on Facebook. On May 20th they will hit the stage at Whelan’s in Dublin.

The next one has the potential to make it into my this years summer soundtrack – Gruff Rhys’ „Shark Ridden Waters“. It’s a great song of the Super Furry Animals singer and guitarist but I couldn’t decide to download the whole album “Hotel Shampoo” yet.

Also a great one is Joan as a Policewoman’s „Magic“ – awesome soul. But also the rest of the album hasn’t convinced me yet:

Joan As Police Woman – The Magic from Ben Reed on Vimeo.

50K MUSIC: You have raised over 130% of the budget for your new album on Pledgemusic in two months. Did you expect it to be that easy?
Billy: Never! But we are so glad that it has been so successful and that our fans want to get so involved in the process of making the record! We feel that they have contributed more than just paying for the music and listening to it – they’ve actually helped us make, and we love the idea of breaking the barriers between the band and the fans!

50K MUSIC: How did you find your way to Pledgemusic? What were your reasons to join PM?
Billy: We’d seen some of our favourite bands getting involved and we saw how cool it looked. We’re always trying to find out what our fans think and feel about our music and our shows and we love meeting our fans after the shows for pictures and to get to know the people who feel the music speaks for them. Pledge Music suited us perfectly.

50K MUSIC: Do you understand this project rather as funding/pre-ordering the album or more as involving fans into your work?
Billy: A little bit of both. The fans are helping us in a lot of areas – by ordering the album now they’re helping us financially in making the album in the studio, and also we’re listening to what the fans would like to see us do when we come to tour the album!

50K MUSIC: I guess fan-funding an album or involving fans this way is a whole new experience for you, isn’t it? Please tell us how you deal with this.
Billy: We’ve always wanted fans to come and help out singing in the studio, and we’ve always wanted them there with us and experiencing the process of making an album anyway, so for us this feels very natural and fun.

50K MUSIC: Does it mean your label will no longer finance your albums?
Billy: It means that we’ll license the album to whoever likes the finished article. We’ve had nobody intruding and suggesting things to us artistically apart from our producer, Stephen Street, which has worked brilliantly for us! We own the album, so we do whatever we like!

50K MUSIC: Do you think fan-funding could be THE way for you to finance your albums in the future?
Billy: It’s an interesting prospect for us on this record, though we’re always wanting to try different formulas in doing things for each album. It’s been fantastic so far, so I can see us seriously considering it again for future projects.

50K MUSIC: You’ve announced your album to be out in 2011. Can you give us a release date yet?
Billy: I wish I could, but even I don’t know yet! Summertime! That’s all I can guess at!

50K MUSIC: You’re in the studio with Stephen Street at the moment. Please tell us something about your work in the studio.
Billy: Well we’ve been demoing and rehearsing these songs for so long now, that by the time we started our first day in the studio with Stephen the songs were pretty much there. Stephen’s sound is exquisite, and he’s made everything sound perfect, adjusting the drum patterns and the feel of certain parts of the songs so they sound just right.

50K MUSIC: Will your fans and/or pledgers be involved in the album production? How are you going to involve them?
Billy: We’re having fans in to sing a gang vocal in the next few days, and we’ll also be playing them some tracks and listening to some opinions! We’re very excited about doing this!

50K MUSIC: What can we expect from the album? Will it be a typical Subways album or will we listen to some new sounds?
Billy: Heavy pop songs! That’s how we like to describe this record. A combination of the first and second records, but every single song we wish we could release as a single!

50K MUSIC: Do you plan a release show once the album is out?
Billy: We may do a release show, though by the time the album comes out we may be somewhere deep in Europe touring! We’ll maybe crack open a bottle of champagne!

50K MUSIC: Will we see The Subways on stages in Europe soon?
Billy: As soon as we can we’ll be playing all across Europe! We’re getting ready now! Lots of noise, fun and sweating!

50K MUSIC: And finally: Anything you want your fans and pledgers like to know?
Billy: We love you, and we’re going to make this the best Subways album ever – just for you guys!

www.thesubways.net

50K MUSIC: You’ve just announced that you’re going to leave SellaBand. Could you please tell us your reasons?
Botond: We have been recording our songs for some time now and felt that we have the material for a good album. Unfortunately, we haven´t reached our goal at SAB and could not wait any longer.

50K MUSIC: You are working on your album at the moment. Could you please let us in on your plans?
Botond: Yes, we´re currently in the mastering stage. We´re also working on the artwork and other smaller, but none the less, important things.

50K MUSIC: When will the album be released?
Botond: The date is not set, but it will be released sometime in april. Right now it´s all a big mess.

50K MUSIC: What further plans do you have for the next few months?
Botond: We will work our asses off to get our album ready and get our music out there. We will be releasing new “sneak a peak” videos of us working on the album. There are already some videos up on BOA’s Youtube Channel.

We´re working on a homepage, a single, we also have signed to Jämmerdosa, who will be distributing us digitally. We´re looking at possibilities to get together a tour after the album. And we have a few more suprises up our sleeves. But more of that later.

The 7 Ps (by Tim Bennett)
When I was asked to write an article about ‘Cracking America’ – I knew it was a daunting task because I haven’t come anywhere close cracking the music scene in this giant country or any where else for that matter.

But I have learned many important lessons about the music business.

Probably the most relevant thing I’ve learned is to live by the mantra ‘hard work pays off’ and I believe it’s essential if you want to have any credible form of success here. There is so much competition and the only way to push on through is to work that much harder than the next band or artist. It’s not just about creating top quality music but also putting together a team who can guide and promote you.

Another thing I’ve learned is that you can’t rest on previous success. The audience moves on.  An associate in the business recently told me he was booking a tour for Keane in the USA. The UK based alt/rock band have previously sold several million albums world wide. He said he was staggered to find that their management told him to book venues with a maximum of 500 seats. He had to ask them again to make sure he heard right. It appears that just because you sell a few million albums and downloads a couple of years ago does not guarantee that you’ll sell out an arena.

So how do you conquer this Everest-like market ? I’ve built a potential strategy list which I propose might work for any beginner or up and coming indie or mainstream artist.

I call these the ” 7 Ps”

1. Potential
2. Practise
3. Produce
4. Perform
5. Promote
6. Provide
7. Precaution

1 – Potential
It is vital to establish your parameters as artist. Essentially this means identifying your musical genre, your strengths and weaknesses, image,demographic audience , commercial possibilities and potential revenue streams.

You can find your demographics from your audience turn out at gigs and through you social network sites.

You can find out more about revenue streams through research on the internet.

2 – Practise
What ever style of music you chose – the only way to perfect your craft is through constant practise.

I think performing with musicians who are better than you is a great way to learn, hone and improve your craft.

It’s especially beneficial to work with people who are constructively critical and supportive.

3 – Produce
I personally believe that self expression, writing and creativity should come naturally to any artist and if they don’t then forming a quality product is going to be very hard.

To be a success in this business you need to have an audio-visual product.

Producing something of high quality is going to be a challenge to any newcomer. The above mentioned practise will ensure that you are somewhat prepared for the rigours of the recording process and the pressures in the studio.

Hiring producers, studios, musicians, engineers and photographers and video makers is a costly expense and the question is how to raise these funds.

Without a large inheritance, winning the lottery, a wealthy family to back you or a record label to finance your expenses there are few options available.

My option of choice (unless you are lucky enough to have one of the above) is to learn to use music recording software ( e.g. protools, garageband ) and use this to demo your songs on Fan-Funding Platforms.

With a quality demo, some self orchestrated publicity and persistence you can reach your funding target.

Some well known funding platforms are Kickstarter, My Major Label and Slice the Pie.

These will allow you to afford and work with top professionals to make a high quality album, photos and video.

In 2009 I raised $31K through Sellaband and finished recording my debut album in May 2010. I was fortunate to work with some top industry professionals including Multi Platinum, Grammy Award Winning Mixer, Steve Hardy and Master Engineer, Ted Jensen, in NYC. This probably would not have happened had I not raised the funds through Sellaband.

4 – Perform
Performing is a vital ingredient of any artist’s career and it helps mould and develop the craft.

I’ve been lucky enough to have performed with some wonderful and talented musicians in some of the top rated, smaller venues in New York city and London. Booking these gigs requires the above mentioned demos and a promoter or booking agent who will facilitate the process of booking the appropriate venues.

It is necessary to bring a good crowd of friends and fans and obviously a huge amount of practise is necessary before going in front of a paying audience.

This kind of practise should be done at home, with tutors and your band mates and then at Open-mics.

Open-mics are a great way to explore your public persona and repertoire.

Busking is also a great way to reach the public and potential fans. However, you must look into the legalities of busking as it is unlawful in some public places.

5 – Promotion and Publicity
Lack of promotion is the downfall of many a brilliant musician. Promotion is the hard graft that goes on behind the scenes and will help bring your music to the masses.

I’ve known many artists who think that they don’t need to promote themselves and some even consider it as a job that is below them. I don’t buy into this and I certainly don’t buy into the idea that you could get discovered playing in a dive bar by a famous producer who wants to sign you even though you only have five fans.

The truth of the matter is that, from my experience, A&R, Managers and Record Execs are more interested in ‘Bums on Seats’ than raw talent.

If you have thousands of fans who follow you loyally then that’s a fan-base who are more likely to spend their money to see your perform, buy your t-shirts, and purchase your downloads, CDs and videos. And those are the dollar signs that the above can relate to. It’s really that simple.

Social Networking sites are a fantastic way of reaching new fans. Myspace is still a viable site although recent gossip seems to suggest that it is on it’s way down, although, it’s still possible reach many thousands of people around the world through this network.Facebook is also a wonderful promotion tool, as is Reverbnation, as well as Youtube which is still the most under-used site in my opinion.

It’s important to spend time interacting with your friends and fans on these sites. Gone are the days of up and coming rock stars in ivory towers. These days, fans want to be able to talk to you or at least be able to message or comment you.

I believe that your fans are your lifeblood – they are the most important thing along with your music.

Without fans you have nothing.

I found that playing in the New York Subway as a busker allowed me to meet thousands of people as well as music industry execs who have given me vital advice and suggestions. I was able to invite these people to my gigs and it brought me a lot of positive publicity and know-how.

Whilst performing in the subway I was also filmed for ABC TV who did a 3 minute segment about my music.

This was shown on prime time TV for a week and exposed me to millions of people.

My catch phrase was ‘ This is the biggest venue in NYC and for a couple of bucks entrance fee I can play to thousands of people’

6 – Provide
Providing your music through distribution sites and social networking sites is the way that you’ll hopefully make enough revenue to support your music and even provide a full time living.

If your product does really well then that will improve the likelihood of you being picked up by decent management and/ or label.

Reaching the US audience and making a success here requires a really dedicated and enthusiastic team of industry professionals.

7 – Precaution
Last but not least, there are many predators in this shark infested business. Most of them just waiting for the next desperate, naive musician to prey upon, bleed dry and leave for dead.

Harsh words, you may think, but sadly it’s not an exaggeration.

Rule number 1 – always read contracts and have someone with legal expertise to look over anything binding.

If you can’t afford to pay an attorney then it is possible to find lawyers who will work ‘pro bono’. I’ve done this in the past and it saved me from signing a disastrous record contract.

Rule number 2 – contracts should always be mutually beneficial.

Rule number 3 – no one can assure you of success or fame and if they do then they’re are almost certainly lying.

Rule number 4 – always do your homework and research potential suitors. Ask other musicians and don’t be afraid to ask industry people for references. You can also use on-line forums for this too.

Rule number 5 – always look at resumes and past history. Look for credibility and past success with the people you are intending to work with.

Rule number 6 – watch out for personality and agenda clashes and trust your gut. If you don’t feel right about the people you’re considering working with, then there’s probably a good reason for it.

Rule number 7 – your ‘ Word’ is very important. Be honest and trustworthy – This will stand you in good stead for all future endeavours.Those who run their mouths without facts to back up their claims soon get a reputation for being such and will not be taken seriously by those who really matter.

I moved to the USA in December 2009 for personal reasons, intending to stay for a month or so.

However, I’ve now been here for a year and have decided to stay long term.

Since that time:
I’ve worked with Grammy Award Winning Mix Engineer, Steve Hardy ( mixer for Bono-U2, Prince, Pink, Jay Z and Beyonce);
worked with legendary Recording Engineer, Ted Jensen ( Metallica, Alice in Chains, Dave Mathews, Green Day, Police, Madonna);
I’ve also made, directed two music videos which have been receiving critical acclaim;
I’m represented by one of the world’s biggest Entertainment Law Firms, Loeb and Loeb;
built strong relationships with highly regarded industry movers and shakers;
played with some of the best session musicians in the USA ;
been included on a compilation CD for GoDIY Records;

I’ve also had the pleasure of working with the very talented and versatile singer/actress, Bambi Monroe aka Taylor Horn.

Thank you for reading and the “Best of Luck”.

Tim at Facebook

As well as my impatience with time, I am also wanting the album to be really freakin’ good (who doesn’t right!?). I want to make an album that people will want to play from start to finish and enjoy all the way through. I want it to be a successful album that people will talk about and as well as impressing other people, I want to impress myself with it.

I have been writing like a mad hatter! Wine in one hand, pen in the other and a cigarette pressed into the end of my headstock. I can’t help but feel like i’m channeling Hunter S Thompson some nights. Is that song finished yet? Is my chorus strong enough? Is the bridge working? Can you sing this note, so I can test this harmony?

I even called my parents today to ask for their opinion on a song. My dad spent the rest of the afternoon locked in his audio cave putting strings to the song I emailed through, so I guess that’s a tick from him and mum was honest about her dis-taste for a chord I had chosen in an otherwise great track. Unlike a lot of peoples parents, mine are always brutally honest with constructive criticism and I can always test out songs on them and know i’ll get honest feedback that I can trust – take it or leave it, it’s always good to get opinions.

Last week I filmed band practice as a way to make people feel like being a part of the album making process. I’ve left all the in-between stuff out of it and you just see the band playing one song in my very, artistically messy lounge.

I will continue to film the album making experience so if you want to stay tuned into it, please subscribe to my Youtube channel.

While working on the album, I am also planning the release tour. I toured NZ four times last year between both my bands and i’ve decided to step it up a notch for my album release. This September, I am going to drag my band to the USA, buy a van and drive for two months. It’s going to take me the whole year to plan all the gigs and of course, save my butt off to pay for the flights, the van, petrol, insurance, food, accomodation and everything else that will go into the trip of a lifetime but no doubt, will be worth every effort.

Once I get home, it’ll be time to do a tour here and then try it again in Australia.

The plan from there is to get into my follow up CD which I am already funding for on AKA music.

In my head, it’s all figured out. I just need to dedicate every part of my soul to turning into reality!

Right – now for the sales pitch:
Please ‘like’ me on facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Friend me on Myspace
Check out my stuff and get behind me with my next album

Thanks very much – all the way from little ol’ New Zealand!
xx
Fleur

Winning a Grammy is a remarkable accomplishment and one that few artists ever experience, let alone an independent 26-year-old jazz bassist and singer. In fact, according to the report I watched on ABC News, Esperanza Spalding’s Grammy for Best New Artist was the first time ANY Jazz artist has won the Best New Artist category.

As a huge supporter of a collection of Independent artists known as “The Pack”, I was quite impressed and excited with Esperanza’s Grammy. Why? Because her success proves that an artist DOES NOT necessarily need to be signed with a big label or have corporate ties. What I did learn, however, is there were a few key ingredients that may have helped her win. You see, Esperanza is a musical prodigy and through the years, she has acquired some famous fans and many critics have applauded her music.

“Esperanza first started playing when she was just 4 years of age and within on year, at the age of 5, she joined the Chamber Music Society of Oregon, in the United States. At the age of 20, she became the youngest faculty member at the prestigious Berklee College of Music.

While she won the best new artist award this year, she’s been around for a while. “Esperanza,” her 2008 album, spent more than 70 weeks on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz chart and was the most successful internationally selling debut that year. She recorded her first album, “Junjo,” in 2006.” (ABC News, February 14, 2011)

As you know, 50K Music Magazine is all about supporting independent music and since I have the same passion, 50K Music Magazine and I thought it would be a natural fit to team up and help promote the music of the indie artists we support. Personally, I am looking forward to this new collaborative effort. It’s a win/win for everyone and with a little creativity and a lot of hard work…who knows, one of the artists we support may be on that stage one day…holding a Grammy.

Anyone who knows me understands the passion I have for “The Pack”. I am proud of these artists; because they are all exceptionally talented, intelligent, and super hard-working artists.

Beginning in November of 2010, Radio Enkhuizen out of the Netherlands started playing music by “The Pack” on a regular basis and just last week, another radio station, Vixen 101 FM out of England welcomed their music, as they played songs by 9 of the artists. Next week, they will play music by the other artists. Additionally, I’ve submitted a couple of CDs to NPR radio from the United States…the world’s largest radio station and a HUGE supporter of ALL music. Next, I’ll be shooting for Los Angeles radio stations…which would be the ultimate prize! People in Los Angeles spend a great deal of time in their cars and because of this…radio is a major part of the LA lifestyle.

It’s all about reaching out to as many people as possible; because if the music is good, people will not only request it…they will buy it.

To everyone who supports independent music…thank you! Collectively, we can all make a difference…it’s our choice.

-Wolfman-

And if you want to support Catself with her new promotion project please check it out here.

50K MUSIC: For all those who don’t know you yet (if there’s anyone at all), please tell us something about Cubworld. Where do you come from, what are your roots?
Cubworld: I’m from the South Pacific. Born in Samoa, Raised in Tonga and Hawaii. I love the tropics. Fresh south pacific breezes and the friendly nature of Island people.

50K MUSIC: You are an old hand at funding your music on SellaBand – two albums within 3 years. Is fan funding the best way for you to finance your music?
Cubworld: Yes, I’d say for me it is. I dont have the means to pull together this kind of money on my own and it’s so hard to prove to a label that your worth an investment these days so yes. It’s fun too .

50K MUSIC: You reached your funding goal on SellaBand for your upcoming album in December 2009. When will your album be released?
Cubworld: I’m hoping for Spring. I am talking to some really inspiring people at the moment that will be helping me. Once we get going I dont think we’ll stop any time soon. More details on that to come.

50K MUSIC: Please tell us something about the album production.
Cubworld: Production…hmm…well, at the moment it’s all acoustic. I took my time finding someone I click with to trust them with production. I dont feel like that last record captured fully what I have to offer to I’ve been real protective this time around. So I guess the answer is yet to be determined. I’d like it to be a pretty strong mix of Coldplay and Jack Johnson..as always haha.

50K MUSIC: What kind of album can we expect? Will it be similar to your debut “Step Lightly Create Out Loud”?
Cubworld: Sorry, I think I answered this on in the last question. I want more of the singer song writer to come out in my records.

50K MUSIC: What are your further plans in 2011?
Cubworld: Release an album, maybe 2 . I need to make up for 2010!!

50K MUSIC: How can we support you?
Cubworld: Hang in there with me. I’ll be putting out tunes and can always use the help spreading the knowledge to friends and family.

50K MUSIC: Anything you want your fans to know?
Cubworld: I FREAKEN LOVE YOU! Seriously, what you have all allowed me to do these last couple years has blown my mind over and over. Even when I get down on myself I think about the support I’ve gotten from Believers and I just lifts my spirits. Thank you all from the bottom of my Polynesian/Scottish heart

For Cubworld updates check out his blog on cubworldmusic.com regularly.