Comments on: GOOD ADVICE FOR YOUNG BANDS

By: Aya

Aya — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 07:10:10 +0000

Agreed. For less-known bands, the most important thing is to let more people know about your music. Exposure’s the first priority.

But it’s still tough coz I don’t think I would waste 5 mins downloading something from a band I never heard of, unless it’s a recommendation from my friends or sites.

By: FTSMETALDOTCOM

FTSMETALDOTCOM — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:20:15 +0000

All of my music I make comes from my home studio, it was alot of work to put together, but to be able to wake up on my days off and walk down the stairs to my basement, plug in my guitar, write music and what not and record in good quality is absolutely priceless.
-James

By: Colin

Colin — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 17:01:04 +0000

Giving away your music for free definitely helps, but getting people to listen to it is the hard part.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 09:29:56 +0000

Tired of reading about old-school guys giving advice on a new-school scene. Out with the old, in with the new. Start a fucking band in 2009, and give us advice then.

By: Santa Claus

Santa Claus — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:32:03 +0000

I dont know. I’m quite fond of shiny things. I also enjoy things if other people enjoy them. Also if somebody else is listening to something and they say its cool, them I think its cool.

By: LEROY AUSSIE DRAGON

LEROY AUSSIE DRAGON — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:08:19 +0000

Hi! Lee here from Australian metal band Double Dragon, feel free to download our album DEVASTATOR at the link below, im seeding now!

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/4617167/Double_Dragon_-_Devastator_(2008)_%5Bmp3_197%5D

GET IT!!!

By: aaron m.

aaron m. — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:42:06 +0000

andddddddddd…that’s just what everyone else is saying. sorry, i’m illiterate.

By: aaron m.

aaron m. — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:41:20 +0000

you could actually set up a half decent home studio for 1500 bucks.

By: Lucifer Sam

Lucifer Sam — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:30:01 +0000

oh yeah… man make vinyl copys of your album and sell those…. vinyl always sells (sometimes)

By: Lucifer Sam

Lucifer Sam — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:28:04 +0000

i work at a professional recording studio and trust me…you do NOT get the same sounds you do at a home studio.. especially if you want your drums to sound good… trust me, listen to a professionally recorded metal album and one from a home studio and you can tell the difference…. but that doesnt matter because no one buys CDs anymore… best thing you can do as a young band is get fans, sell merch, and play shows. and Labels suck now a days with the whole 360 deal. NEVER SIGN A 360 Deal unless you want all the money you make from your tours and merch to go bye bye

By: Canvas Of Flesh

Canvas Of Flesh — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:21:51 +0000

Bogart’s definitely sucks. It’s in such a shithole area.

By: stu1

stu1 — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:37:14 +0000

Totally.

By: razorsharp codpiece

razorsharp codpiece — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:26:41 +0000

I think that it’s all but a requirement at this point to be giving shit away for free as an unsigned band these days. With the state of the industry, a cd doesn’t have the same tangibility that it used to in years past. People are much more inclined to buy a t shirt or hoodie if they liked your set then to spend 10 bucks on your crappy record. In addition to giving away music I think it’s important to still put some thought into an eyecatching way to package it. My band is finishing up 5 new songs right now that we’ll be giving away over the internet and at shows. It’s going to just be in a clear plastic sleeve but it’ll have front and back cover art that we got printed onto gloss cardstock so it actually looks decent. Even though you’re already taking a loss giving away free music, in an image and art driven scene, I think it’s important that your band has a visual aspect going on too.

By: festernaecus

festernaecus — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:20:57 +0000

absolutely. I’ve done some pretty damn good recordings in the range of 1500 bucks. I’ll agree that the question of ‘what is a home studio’ is up for debate these days… the declining price of digital recording gear has reallly changed the game. I’ve been working out of a studio in a basement for the last four years. You could call it a home studio, but the presence of Neve preamps, API eq’s, GML’s and 1176’s distinguishes it radically from a PC with a bunch of waves plugins. No, it doesn’t have 20-foot ceilings and a grand piano and a hot tub. But things we record here come out on labels.
Furthermore, the way the majority of death/black metal new releases are engineered lends itself perfectly to smaller home studios. When every drum on the kit is triggered or sound-replaced (and don’t kid yourselves, for the most part this is how ‘that sound’ is achieved), it doesn’t make a damn bit of difference what the room sounds like. Good gear will always matter, but that’s a situation in which the size, dimensions and material composition of your recording room means absolutely nothing. If you’re trying to make, say, an alt-country album with a wide-open, natural drum sound, that’s a different story.

By: Tim-o-tato

Tim-o-tato — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 19:39:52 +0000

I am in a touring band…MERCH is really the only frontier left these days for bands like mine to make good money. And “good money” does not mean “good money”. But it gets us from place to place.

A lot of bands, mine included, are putting alot of money into designing and printing these shirts to a way where they catch the eye of a potential buyer, so that maybe they say, “Oh, that shirt looks awesome. Maybe i will go check out there music now.”

All you can do is hope for the best really. Our first demo we gave away…but anything that we technically put quite a bit of money into, we are trying to make some money back. It’s just the way it works. My band has helped a lot of design artists by filling their pockets with money to make the “next big thing” that everyone seems to be searching for…

Who knows where this all will lead….but if you ask me, the day of CD’s is about over :( Sadly…..

By: bondedbyblood

bondedbyblood — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 19:34:48 +0000

http://www.myspace.com/kingdoms did this

15 000 downloads later and theyre signed…good for them! Plan works.

By: stu1

stu1 — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 19:28:04 +0000

I think you’re misinterpreting my definition of “home studio.”

By: JRTME

JRTME — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 19:03:16 +0000

Well if those bands paid 1500 for someone’s home studio then they got ripped.

But if you want that home studio in the box with the same old sampled drums, EMG pickup, Dual Rec., too much distortion then I guess that is a good deal.

Am I saying you can’t do anything at home? Nope. I’m just saying there are certain things that benefit from a real studio. There are other factors as well. Like a real engineer who knows what he is doing.

For example this morning on Blabber they reported they are doing the drums for the new Nevermore album a a specific studio. Then they will do guitars, bass and vocals at a smaller “home” studio. Then it will be mixed elsewhere.

This is the more cost effective and correct way to do things.

By: stu1

stu1 — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:51:00 +0000

I’ve seen stuff released on labels at home studios for that much.

By: The Inevitable Nose

The Inevitable Nose — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:29:36 +0000

Here’s my view on the matter. Speculate to accumulate: http://www.theinevitablenose.com/2009/08/loss-leaders-some-thoughts-for-unsigned-bands/