Indie Band Guru

I love it when I come across a band who has great music that also understands that they have to work hard to get known and are willing to invest both time and money in the band to achieve thier goals.

Let Indie Band Guru introduce you to Last Nights Vice, a phenomenal rock band from St. Louis, Missouri.  They have both the talent and sheer determination to make it.  Thier stage show demands attention and seems to gather them more fans with each show.

Where Last Nights Vice really stand out though is in thier promotion efforts.  The band even has a mascot.   Speakerhead is a big box they made with a working speaker that they wear on thier heads and play thier iPods out of.  LNV uses Speakerhead at both local and national shows blasting thier music for all to hear.

Last Nights Vice also has been promoting thier new album ‘Perfect Little Noise’ with promo videos they made with the help of some movie maker friends.  Another reason why networking is so important.  Check out the videos HERE.

The band also orders glossy, full colored flyers to promote shows and the release of the new CD.  The flyers also include download codes that can be redeemed on thier website for a free track.  When I asked them how they afford it all they said “Mostly we pay for them with money we make from shows and merch sales.  We decided years ago that we would be in the red for a long time.  We definitely pump a lot more money in that we get out.  It is actually cheaper to do a 5000 bulk run of glossy flyers though.  At about $0.03 a piece, as opposed to black and white paper flyers from Kinko’s that cost about $0.07 a piece.” 

The bottom line is, Last Nights Vice is willing to do whatever it takes to get thier music out there to the masses.  Hard work pays off.  Nad it helps that the music is damn good.  Check them out for yourself at www.lastnightsvice.com

  Here is something every band should do. Get videos of yourself up on YouTube! It is damn easy and great promo. One of our favorite hard working bands, Lil Daggers from Florida, show just how easy it is. Video your live show and use some free editing software from the web, and you can make a video that gets some attention to your music.
  Here is Lil Daggers doing “Hungry” live at Don Pedro’s with some funky video editing mixed in. The sound isn’t great but you get the point.

Let’s see your videos!

I came across this and thought fellow indie musicians would appreciate it. The leader of Dirty Projectors, David Longstreth, took talk about how he crafts his music from a wide assortment of sounds, voices, and anything else with a touch of inspiration, as displayed in the Dirty Projector’s 2009 release “Bitte Orca”.  He isn’t the best public speaker but it is nice to get inside the mind of a talented musician.

Feel free to share your music writing process.  Everyone works differently but as long as good music keeps coming out, we all win.

Thanks to technology today it has become so much easier to actually record an album of your own.  A good band with a decent ear no longer has to shell out a ton of money for the privilege of recording in a studio.  You can now have your own studio right in the basement and record a damn good album.

But once you get your heart and soul recorded on tape, or more likely digital media, is it really finished and ready to be released to he world?  In a word, NO!  There will be many little problems on the recording such as pops, clicks, equalization issues, etc.  This is where the services of a good Mastering Engineer come in. 

The music mastering studio is very different from a normal audio recording studio. The room is set up in such a way as to perfect the acoustics of the room to accurately monitor sound.  The mastering engineer needs to hear in detail each mix.  By working with an experienced mastering engineer, the recording artist is also open to more creative opinions and technical advice.

Your recorded material, ideally at the original resolution, is processed using equalization, compression, limiting, noise reduction and other mastering processes such as editing, pre-gapping, leveling, fading in and out, noise reduction and other signal restoration and enhancement processes.  The songs are also put in the proper order, commonly referred to as assembly or (track) sequencing.

In our travels we came across a great company for these needed services.  Check out Sound Affair Ltd.  They have been doing it for over 30 years and have put there touch on some great albums.  They have the only complete Focusrite Blue Mastering system in North America.  Trust us it makes a difference.  Thy are located in Santa Ana, California but you do not need to even attend your mastering session.  you can upload your files directly to them using FTP on their website.  They offer test masterings and free consultations.  When you have the need, get in touch and give them a try.

Brooklyn’s own Sleigh Bells are stirring up some buzz again, right in time for the release of their 1st album Treats.  They have made the song ‘Tell ‘Em’ available as a free download on their website www.infinitybells.com.

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Beware before you hit play, the song is like a punch in the face!  From the first electro double bass drum beat ‘Tell ‘Em’ has you reeling and off-guard.  Then the sweet vocals of Alexis Krauss lure you in further and you are hooked for good.

I love it when a band finds a way to fuse together different genres to make something powerful.  Sleigh Bells has done it with their heavy metal riffs mixing with electro dance club drum beats then a soft semi-rapping vocal in a voice that doesn’t seem to fit in, but oh it does.  One description of their sound that I really liked was Wartime Dance. 

Go get your free download of ‘Tell ‘Em’ now at www.infinitybells.com.  The new  album Treats will be out on May 11th.  Get your ass out there and get it!  And don’t forget to see them live when they come to your town.  It is a show not to be missed.

Trying to put the pieces of our weekend at Coachella 2010 back together. Here is a very fun part of it. If you have any small children you will know this performance well. If you don;t just sit back and enjoy!

As you can tell, fun was had by all in attendence at this show.  I am no longer embarassed to watch Yo Gabba Gabba with my 1 year old.  It seems as if I am not alone.  Even though a few drinks and maybe some other substances might have been helping this crowd out.

It is true in every type of media, Repetition = Recognition,  just look at commercials.  Seeing or hearing something one time really won’t help it sink into a persons consciousness.  But seeing or hearing something repeated over and over will work its way into the human mind and deliver the desired effect.  Recognition.

Now lets apply this to our music marketing.  Seeing the same band name, hearing the same song, and seeing the same logo will make an impression and people WILL remember your name.  That is the start of getting your band known and popular.  This can be done very easily and at next to no cost.

Get the crowd you deserve

First off, play shows often.  Not in the same spot 4 times a month, but get out there in the surrounding towns.  Get you band’s name on different venue marquees.  Now list all your shows in every media you can.  Get the show listed in the local newspapers.  The venues will help with this too if they run ads.  Post the show on every website you can find with show listings.  Put flyers (with your band name in big letters) everywhere that you can.  Bombard the viewers sense of sight.

Another great way to get your band name in front of people is with stickers.  A simple sticker with the name and logo of your band extra large is ideal.  They are cheap and can be placed in all kinds of locations.  Some of my favorite spots are in venue bathrooms, stop signs or traffic lights on busy roads, even outside on the street in heavily traffic areas.  People seek out stimulus when they are in a stagnant position, such as stopped at a red light or using a toilet.

Even more importantly, always talk about your Band.  Don’t just mention that you are in a band, but say I am the singer/guitarist/bongo player for Band X.  When a person hears the name it will work its way into their memory through another sense. Hearing as well as sight. 

The brain works in mysterious ways but when a band name is repeated over and over to someone it will eventually stick.  Even if the future fan doesn’t know how they know your band’s name, they now know it.  Now the next time they see that you are playing a show they will think you are even more famous then you are because they have heard that name somewhere before.  True music fans hate missing out on the next big thing so they will get to your shows, buy your CDs, and talk about how they knew you before anyone else.  All this because they have seen and heard you band’s name so many times that they feel that they know you.

Try it and you will see the results quicker than you think.

The upcoming album by Seattle progressive-pop rockers Minus The Bear is now available for a free listen here at Indie Band Guru thanks to KCRW.  The new album, OMNI, is the bands fourth album, but first with new label Dangerbird Records.  It will be officially released on May 4th, 2010.

Formed in 2001, Minus the Bear earned immediate attention with their distinctive prog-pop hybrid, featuring swirling synths and multi-layered guitar acrobatics. The band was prolific from the start and let loose with a series of EPs and albums, each drawing acclaim and a host of new fans. They embraced the road and began touring extensively, building up a dedicated fan base and discovering the powerful connection they could make when playing live.

The new album features the quirky time signatures, hyperactive riffs, and prodigious hooks characteristic of the band’s earlier work.  OMNI may be the album that helps them crossover to an even larger audience.  There are some indie-pop darlings in there. 

What do you think?

Well it seems as if LCD Soundsystem and their record label have given up trying to hide the new album ‘This Is Happening from the leakers and now have made the entire album available as a free stream on their website:

 Click here to listen to This Is Happening

Give it a listen but don’t fret because I was a little alarmed for the first minute and a half into the album as well.  But when the synth beat kicks into the first song ‘Dance Yrself Clean’ you will know LCD Soundsystem is back. The second song is the 1st single ‘Drunk Girls’ that you have probably heard all over the radio already. It is a song that will be staying in your head for a while.
Listen and Enjoy!

PS. I was having trouble with the website on Internet Explorer but it worked just fine on Firefox.

http://www.lcdsoundsystem.com/thisishappening/

Let us know what you think about the album.

Hope you are enjoying Coachella if you are out in Indio, California. If not here is the full lineup with some music samples of some of the great bands there this year. Enjoy!

Let us know which band you think will be the breakout star of Coachella.  We really love and need your input.