Some Advice For Young Bands: Triangles vs. Squares as Models of Artist Development

   Here are some observations I'd like to share about artist development. If you take your typical local/indie musical artist, starting from scratch, there are some milestones you will need to achieve- regardless of sound/genre/scene etc if you want to ascend from working a day job to being a full-time musician.

  The relationships you need to develop can be described as either a triangle or square.  Let's start with the square.  Musical Artist X is trying to build a square with four corners:
   1.  Record Label
   2.  Booking Agent
   3.  Management
   4.  Public Relations Expert

  Now, let's look at this from the perspective of a new band.  Of the four, perhaps only one is going to be initially obtainable: Record Label.  There are tons of them.  The ones that are going to put out the record of an unknown band are going to want finished songs, so the first piece of advice is "figure out how you are going to record some songs that a record label will WANT to put out."

  Assuming you have accomplished recording your music, you want to put out a series of records in the course of a year, culminating with a full length release.

  Ok, so you've done that.  So now you are looking at Booking Agent, Management, Public Relations Expert.  Hopefully you are releasing a record on a label that has a Public Relations Expert available, if not- good luck. That leave two corners of the square: Booking Agent, Management.

   Now, if you are super lucky (or totally unlucky) you will get Management first.  If you are like most bands, you will not have any management, leaving the next achievable goal after "Record Label"  to be "Booking Agent."  This is where it gets somewhat confusing and unfair in that the best way to get a record label that can afford to release and promote your record is to have a booking agent and vice versa.  Outside of that happy/paradox solution, a band needs to embark on DIY touring: FOR THE PURPOSE OF INTERESTING A BOOKING AGENT.

  DIY touring can be a necessary step, but it is not a solution in and of itself, in fact, if you try it more then once or twice you may end up not having a band.  Thus, when considering the problem of DIY touring you want to think about two choices:  Developing a draw on a regional circuit or attending special events.  Attending special events is a route oft-taking and is often a recipe for failure.  If a band with zero corners of it's square set up tries to take SXSW by storm- it's going to be a failure.  On the other hand, regional touring is a strategy that can work in conjunction with day jobs so longs as the group members are savvy.

    If you can steadily approve your draw on a regional basis in conjunction with releasing records, you should eventually land some kind of booking agent.  Alternatively, you might be able to obtain a manager, but if you get a manager before you have a booking agent, that manager better get you a booking agent first thing.

    Once you have joined a Record Label with a Booking Agent you are ready to tackle the remaining corners of the square:  Hopefully, obtaining a Booking Agent will get you on a Record Label that has Public Relations OR Management that can either the Public Relations for you.  After all four corners of the square have been established, the young Artist will now be a professional Musician.

  A variation on the square is to knock out one of the corners in the square to create a triangle: this requires one of the remaining three corners to do double duty.  The typical combination is Record Label/Public Relations, but one of the impacts of the collapse of the music industry is that having a Public Relations expert independent of a Record Label is more feasible then it once was.

  Thus, for a new artist the goal may be to set up a triangle, with the idea of broadening it to a square or creating a different combination for their existing triangle (for example. instead of combing record label/public relations, combining management/public relations or management/record label.)  The new iterations are a manifestation of the decline in power of Record Labels.

Best Coast On Letterman

  I just wish Beth wasn't so eager to embrace the accoutrement of idiot celebrity culture, but I guess that's just her.  Taking snaps with the Bieb is ok I guess, but it ain't very indie.  I guess... when you sell 50k records in 2010, you can do whatever the f*** you want.  Oh- also I read that Wavves/Best Coast are swapping headlining spots on their current tour- that's cute- and totally a favor to Wavves- we all know which is the bigger act at this point.  It's all good in the hood, I suppose, not worth the breath to complain.

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Dirty Beaches Beijing Show Review

      January 22 of the D-22, Rose House analog recording the theme show, Dirty Beaches final appearance.
The band suffering from a severe cold, eating on the stage singing drug blow the nose, but the general cyclone swept through the entire site. Even the most moderate guy who, in the silence after the reading is not a cry sucker half a step from the back and started looking up.
         Buyiburao at the request of the audience, Dirty Beaches cover of the Stooges's "No Fun". Not really new, it may not make everyone feel great, there are awkward and dangerous. He put down the guitar pop, the crowd moved away.Liwen Tai in the crowd as he held slide, fall. People continue to Tuikai. Then he came to power and apathy to sing: "NO FUN, My Baby, NO FUN". That explosion of the moment, I think this guy will die of suicide, or drug overdose, or drink too much jump the bridge to swim drowned. (POORQUALITYPRIVATEHOUSESBLOG)

Show Reviews: Crocodiles, Tamaryn, Colleen Green & Raw Moans

SHOW REVIEW
Crocodiles
Tamaryn
Colleen Green
Raw Moans
+ DJ Mario Orduno
January 29th, 2011
The Casbah San Diego, CA.


   I've said before that a sold out show is it's own review and that nothing more needs to be said about the matter.  But there are different things to say about a sold-out show: the size of the sell out, the intensity and enthusiasm of the audience, and of course a description of the performance itself.  It's interesting to see the highly developed state of the event preview vs. event reviews.  The first type flourishes, unabated by shifts in media habits amongst the audience.  The second category is about as relevant as the market for 78 RPM records:  Interesting to history buffs.  But I think if you go back to a period when event reviews were significant for individual musical artists, the construction of a narrative of progress around the headlining artist is the essence of a concert review.  Today, I think the point of many event review has shifted to a focus on "the emotions of the audience member about the artist."  That bit is a shame, and frankly I question the relevance.

   The Crocodiles showed the performing chops that have left audiences gasping for breath: Echo in Los Angeles, sold out, 450 in San Francisco, 300 in Seattle, 200 in Albuquerque- shows taking place in the middle of the winter with little or no label support.  That is a narrative of momentum.  I suppose the downside of momentum is losing it or going backwards.  That is the complicated part of having a sell out at a venue like the Casbah:  An artist can sell it out on the way up, on multiple occasions, or on the way down, but the sell out of a venue is a fact.

  I was just as interested to see Tamaryn, who I feel is billed like a solo act but is actually a fairly potent band.  The initial duo of Tamaryn and Rex John Shelverton and frankly, I think it's an insult to call Shelverton a side-kick.  His guitar playing was stand out and elevates the impact of the performance straight out of the blogosphere and into something approaching "major label viable."  I thought the songs were stronger live then they are on the record.  My only remaining question is just how deep the audience passion for Siouxie inspired showgaser vocals go- not a question that pertains solely to Tamaryn, but also to more electronic-y sounding artists like Nite Jewel and Glasser.  It just seems like there is a ceiling there- but I'll certainly be listening to it and cheering it on.  Tamaryn def. needs to tour national- I can't wait to see the reaction in smaller markets in the mid-west and south...

  Colleen Green is going to exist in a space that was essentially carved out by the Best Coast phenomenon. I'm not assigning a moral value to that space, but it was something that was essentially created in the environment of the southern california indie scene, and I would argue that it is something that can be replicated in another artist.  The key, of course, is whether that artist exists or not, and whether he or she makes similarly good decisions.  Best Coast, of course, was a two person group from the start, whereas Colleen Green is solo- something that tells me that an artist is incredibly passionate about their music and dedicated to performing.  In short, I think it's great, and I think that Colleen Green has a viable present and future writing, recording and performing music.

     Raw Moans has an ethereal pop/electronic vibe that shows potential but needs work.  The singer needs to be more dynamic in terms of physical movement, and there need to be some faster songs.  I think the idea of having a male singer performing in the more conventionally female space of electronic duos is intriguing, but the live show needs to be developed so that the singer is making a better emotional connection with the audience- tough to do as the first band on a four band bill to be fair, so no points taken away for giving a good effort in a hard slot.  There were more people there at 915 PM for the first band then I have ever seen in my entire life at the Casbah.  I heard they were doing something on Art Fag- what's is up with that?

   The next step for the Crocodiles is to play 500 capacity venues on the West Coast, but I think they would need strong support.  They are def. ready for the "next step" in western US venues.

Holy Shit, The New M Theory Is Fucking Amazing

     The vinyl record stores in San Diego have always baffled me.  It's kind of like, "Are you in the business of selling music to people that they want or more into being poor and stupid."  M Theory has been soooo bad in the past and kind of fell into the later category.

      But that was the past.  Now M Theory is under new ownership and holy shit, it is fucking AMAZING.  It has turned into like, the best indie record store I've ever been to, because- here is the tip people- they carry new vinyl.  OH MY GOD WHAT AN AMAZING IDEA!!!!! Trying to sell people vinyl records that they WANT TO BUY- wow-oh-wow- so- M Theory is now officially the first and only record store in the county to figure that out, and I know I will be supporting them by spending thousands of dollars a year there and never going to another record store in San Diego.  Thank you, M Theory- you are now awesome.

  And the rest of the record stores- Off The Record?  Lou's? Record City?  What's going on, huh?  Just riding out the clock until retirement?  Then get out of the game and give someone new a shot.