April 2011
6 posts
3 tags
March 2011
3 posts
The Farewell Continental Group of North America:... →
farewellcontinental2011:
Humans Of The Revolution! Welcome! We are The Farewell Continental Group of North America, but you can simply call us Farewell Continental. We are happy to announce that we are going on our first World Tour in parts of the United States of America:
Wed May 11th Grog Shop Cleveland, OH
…
February 2011
1 post
4 tags
Houdini: A few lessons learned
I went to the Houdini exhibit at the Jewish Museum a few Saturdays ago. The overarching lesson to be learned was that Houdini was a great performer and entertainer. That’s why people cared. He did something original and did it the best, and others learned to copy him.
Two other things struck me in particular that can apply to all bands:
1. Free performance
Houdini would perform his...
January 2011
4 posts
30 tags
2010 Holiday Mix Playlist "Open Up"
1. “Something, Somewhere, Sometime” by Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore from Dear Companion
I was visiting Erik and Matt at their office and grabbed a few CDs of their clients. Daniel Martin Moore is one of Matt’s and this is a collaboration album with Ben Sollee produced by Yim Yames (i.e., Jim James of My Morning Jacket) and benefits protecting the central applachian...
12 tags
Lands' End Canvas Wrote Me A Thank You Note
I received this handwritten thank you card from Lands’ End Canvas in the mail last week.
For those of you who don’t know about Canvas, you can read the launch press release for more explanation. In short, seems that Canvas falls in line with the whole push into americana classics (think Red Wing, Levi’s, LL Bean Signature) reinvented for today’s standards/style.
I...
Empires @ Lincoln Hall Saturday 8th w/ The...
December 2010
2 posts
5 tags
Comedian Julian McCullough's Jazzin' Comedy Night
I had the pleasure of meeting New York comedian Julian McCullough this week when he pinch-hit performed at the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace for the Teddy’s Bears for Kids event that I’m in involved in. Julian was very funny and is clearly on the rise. He’s starting a comedy night called Jazzin’ with Sean O’Connor at Jimmy’s No. 43 (great place for beers...
14 tags
Ben Weaver plays NYC Living Room this Friday →
WSJ’s Jim Fusilli previews Ben Weaver’s show with Sarah Jaffe at NYC Living Room this Friday.
November 2010
5 posts
WatchEmpires “Bang”
7 tags
October 2010
8 posts
5 tags
6 tags
4 tags
4 tags
Ben Weaver is releasing a new album called...
September 2010
7 posts
7 tags
15 tags
5 tags
9 tags
Sing It Loud: Time To Say Goodbye... →
It’s never a good feeling to see a project that you are completely invested in come to an end. The “arts” is a fragile eco-system of creativity, ego, hunger, drive, and luck.
I’m proud of these gents to have fought it out on the road for three years, release two good rock/pop records, and literally grow up right before my eyes. Undoubtedly there will be more creative...
8 tags
8 tags
August 2010
3 posts
4 tags
Pricing Matters
Does pricing matter?
I had a conversation the other day with the GM of a record label regarding an artist I manage. I was asking they could sell our singles for $.39 per track (admittedly an arbitrary figure but less than $.99 is the goal), and sell the digital album for $2.99 - $5.99 instead of the advertised $9.99. He asked me if I thought price mattered when a single is only $.99 - $1.29. He...
5 tags
3 tags
Built to Spill Heard that You and Your Band Sold... →
Bands big or small need to invent, reinvent, and grow. I love Built to Spill’s music. They have become a jam band out of the indie rock/alternative rock world and they’ll be better for it for the long term. Innovative live sets keeps the fans engaged and wanting to come back for future shows because they’ll always experience something new.
In the end that’s what going...
July 2010
8 posts
3 tags
Online chats provide press conference worthy...
We held a live online chat with Justin Pierre on Monday to announce the Motion City Soundtrack / Say Anything co-headline tour. We collectively thought of the idea as we were closing in on the announce day and thought that the best way to deliver the “news” was direct from the band to their fans through this medium. Posting information on the website and the social networks, through...
22 tags
13 tags
Getting in the game is the easy part, staying in...
Improvements in technology allow you to produce (ex: GarageBand, Pro-tools, Reason) and distribute (ex: Tunecore, social networks) music inexpensively and easily.
The only barrier to entry is creation.
How will you differentiate yourself from the sea of mediocrity?
Do you have the talent, the drive, and the tenacity to stay in the game?
Five-Tool Players in Music
A simplified check list to strive to be the best.
1. You have to develop excellent musical chops.
2. You have to write “great” songs that compel, emote, connect through lyric and melody.
3. You have to perform and entertain.
4. You have to articulate an aesthetic vision, true to yourself.
5. You have to work hard and earn a little luck.
Sing It Loud's Pat Brown blogs about Life, Liberty... →
Yesterday while we were in Seattle WA (one of my favorite cities!) I had an extremely inspiring experience. At El Corazon before it was time for us to play I met up with some guys at the bar and had a few drinks with them. They told me that they had just got home from a 1 year long tour in Iraq serving for our country.
One of them told me that our music is one of the things that helped...
In the "Land of 2000 Fans"
The other day I was having a conversation with a friend and associate who works in social media strategies. I was lamenting what has become an everyday mantra, “how f*@king hard it is out there” to gain traction and build, let alone reengage and reconnect with the already existing fanbase. I commented that it feels like we start over everyday. Where are these fans that we thought...
June 2010
2 posts
February 2010
5 posts
4 tags
