The Music Business Section -

Breaking Your Band Into The

Music Business Affordably

By: George Georgeless

The Internet and modern computer software have revolutionized the music industry.  It is no longer necessary to drop loads of cash on renting a recording studio to produce a demo used to hassle agents and record labels into giving you a minute of their time in hopes of making it big.  Granted access to a recording studio will usually give you the sharpest sound possible (if the technicians know what they’re doing), but your money is going toward presentation, credibility qua appearance, as much as it is going toward your tracks.  Likewise, establishing yourself with a record label is a testament to others’ trust in your profitability, which many people take to be synonymous with talent, yet it is in no way necessary to break into a music scene, land gigs, or hit the road on tour.

Recording:

Recording studios become vital, eventually, but for the new, up-and-coming, or even blossoming band, there are better ways to invest money.  You can spend a grand on a day in the recording studio, but you’ll probably need to come back to punch in a missed solo or a few muddy leads.  This won’t even cover the hourly fees needed for the sound engineer geniuses, who really do work wonders, to go through and mix the instruments, tweak the volumes, and strap a life preserver on those drowned out vocals. 

Instead, spend your thousand or so hard-earned dollars on Logic Pro 8 and some condenser and dynamic microphones. It may at first seem like a large sum of money to drop all at once, but think of it as buying yourself a personal studio with which you can produce professional sounding material that can be adjusted and fine-tuned on your schedule, at your discretion.  Yes, it will take some time to find the perfect setup and to get used to the intricacies of a daunting program like Logic, but the time spent is well worth it.  You are investing in the sound of your band, into being a self-sufficient musician-producer, and into getting the best quality tracks out there for people to hear and love.

Cash problems?  Understandable.  However, a little money is going to be necessary to get yourself off the ground.  If you can’t afford Logic Pro or the fancy microphones, it is still worth investing in a Macintosh computer.  Most Macs come equipped with built-in microphones and a simple, yet wonderful, program called GarageBand.  With a Mac and a midi keyboard, you can create solid tunes that will at the very least get your sound out and into the public, which is the first step toward success.  If you’re in need of a Mac, find a sympathetic teacher (most states give them 15% discounts on such electronics).

Getting yourself heard:

One beautiful facet of the Internet is the instantaneous and far reaching access it provides.  It is no longer necessary to put together an old-fashioned press kit complete with a demo CD, biographies, etc.  Most venues won’t even accept them anymore.  Today most music business is conducted on the web via sites like MySpace.com and with electronic press kits (EPKs) like Sonicbids.com.  When you’ve put together your tracks with Logic or GarageBand, you can bounce or import them directly into iTunes where they can be converted into whatever file is needed, usually .mp3.  These files can be uploaded directly onto MySpace or Sonicbids and are then instantly accessible to millions for listening. 

Connections are important!  Just because your music is up there floating in the ether doesn’t guarantee that people will listen.  You need to network.  On MySpace, spend a day or two making friend requests.  The more friends you have, the more people will be aware that you exist, the more potential listeners and fans you’ll have.  Most music venues, lounges, and clubs have MySpace pages and are amenable to (in fact many encourage) contact through them.  Turn them onto your tracks.  Let them know you’re out there playing—email them links to your EPK or send them a quick message from your MySpace page. 

Here’s a hint: many venues are impressed by bands or musicians with booking agents (this goes back to the whole credibility qua appearance phenomenon).  Booking agents are simply people that have different names than the band members and are usually denoted by a simple title following that different name, “booking” or “manager” for example.  Don’t be overzealous in your contact emails.  Be short, to the point, and give them ample time to respond, at least two weeks, before following up.  The most important thing is that they listen, and they will. 

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