we want a record deal.. so does everyone

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ericbonn

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i am wondering the best route to get a recording contract. does anyone have any contacts or advice. i am from spokane, wa and playing really good shows cd sales are excellent. we play all over college campuses but we need to attract a label. we were on a small label but did not renew our contract. please help if you can.
 
Create a gimmick...
Look at the Insane Clown Posse. They can't sing, they suck at rap, and they're fat, ugly, talentless slobs. But they have a gimmick with thier make-up and thier fucked up attitude.
Teenagers love acts with gimmicks and attitudes, and they're the ones that buy the most cd's.
Do a bizarre publicity stunt that will get you on the evening news. That might work.

Have everyone in your band shave the left half of your heads, leaving half of a mustache, beard, and the hair on your head growing on only the right half.
Sure, it'll look wierd, but you'll be the first band to have that "look".
Record labels don't always want cookie-cutter bands, so you have to at least LOOK original if you don't sound very original.
 
Buck62 had some pretty neat advise.

Another thought; Have you tried an entertainment lawyer? If you don't have a credible manager who can solicite your music then the attorney definately can. My band tried it after beating the bushes with literaly no results. The lawyer got us showcasing for labels within a month.

Start running searches on the net for entertainment lawyers in your area. Surely there has got to be a few Law Firms that handle this sort of stuff in Seattle if that is close enough to you. the deal for us was to submit a demo and press kit and once contact was made we played in the lawyers hometown to showcase for him. Other than that there were no fees unless you get singed...the catch is, if you get a deal you need a lawyer (plus he might require a few points from the initial deal - finders fee).

Just a thought.
 
Buck's right. I had a friend who joined a band over 10 years ago as a drummer. He had no sense of rhythm, his drums were always out of tune, and he always sang off key--if you could call it singing. The lead singer/guitarist couldn't sing either, he just recited lyrics in a menacing voice while playing A-minor chords only. His guitar was out of tune most of the time also. But they invented a label for their music called "voodoobilly" which caught on with the press. Each show my friend did a snake dance and spoke faux-Swahili and the lead singer would do a spark show with an electric sander. They're called Deadbolt, they've been touring nationally nonstop and still do. They have a deal with Cargo records with 5 CDs out now and another on the way, they're on college radio coast-to-coast, and they have a national fan club. They're in demand for Halloween shows and even appeared on an Afterschool Special (the director was a huge fan of theirs). I used to think their fans were really stupid, but I met some of them and they seem smart, hip, and have very respectable jobs and backgrounds. It appears Deadbolt has been accepted as clever performance art by these people by accident. I saw them recently and they still can't play or sing any better than before.

There's a mutual friend who's been studying jazz guitar for many years who's just livid at the success these guys have gotten. Heh.
 
Hmmm... let me see if I can sum this up.

* Shave half of head
* Fucked up attitude
* sing off key
* Play only A minor

Holy shit-I'm on my why to success !!!
I shaved the head, My attitude is seriously fucked up, Singing off key is second nature
but...... OH SHIT.... !$@!@#$&* if I can only learn to play A minor

[This message has been edited by Shailat (edited 06-15-2000).]
 
Just my opinion:

I can't understand why ANYONE would want a recording contract. The deals offered to first-time artists are only one step removed from slavery. They give you no money, have artistic control over you, and own your songs. You'll also have to pay back the advance they give you.

If your band can manage to sell 20,000 copies of your CD over the Internet, you'll have more money in your pocket than if you sold 1,000,000 copies with a record contract.

Just say "no" to slavery.

CT
 
Charles is right.
Big-time labels make all the money and the artist makes squat.
But, try to tell that to the teenagers with stars in thier eyes... they don't care. They just want to be famous and have mobs of girls getting naked and blowing them backstage. It's the lifestyle that they want, not the money.
That's Rock n' Roll. :D
 
Buck & CT,
Youre forgetting the most important aspect in selling a band today -PR.
With out it your a nobody. As stated before you can be a idiot but sell 1,000000 of cd's why? -PR.

Labels have high payed people that there job is to sell you and MAKE you a star. This you can't achive by yourself unless.... you have the mega $$$$$$ to do it yourself.
Selling a lot od Cd's today over the internet and shows etc... and expecting to break out from there to the public in my humble opinion is a fantasy.

I hear success stories (and they are the only 3 I know) but it's all a fantasy !. You may sell soul to the Label but once they have done their job and you can get out of a contract as soon as possible, your 2 or 3 album will be much easir to sell on your own.

If you only knew the amount of people I know that are sitting on boxes of Cd's in their basement, or using their CD's as costers for beer or for making sure the table doesn't shake then you just might think different.

These guys ALL have wonderfull Web sites (things flying at you, colors all over the place, effects shooting out, wonderfull pictures of the band, etc...).
The truth has to be told ! - Nobody is getting famous from this. Sure you have 1000 hits- your friends (you gave them a free Cd remember?) your family, some one time searcher who never buy's.

As for shows ? Great you sold 6-7 Cd's at the local Bar. maybe in 10 years you'll be able to buy that T shirt you've always wanted.

I have a client who is on the top 9 artists selling in this specific style at a major website that sells this kind of stuff. When she gets her check (after taxes, and the site takes a chunk, the adds she put on the net etc...) every 2-3 months, She cries from happiness "YES i have covered half of my expesess" Dont beleive me? ask her yourself.

Yeh Yeh I've heard all about the internet being the future.... We'll see about it in the FUTURE but as of now
A major label is the way to go and even then your no success story untill the label sees money out of you.
If not your yesterdays news.

Good Luck to us all - We'll need it
 
>They just want to be famous and have mobs of girls getting naked and blowing them backstage.

Oh, that part is easy. Never needed a record contract for that! Just grow your hair long and get onstage. If you can't get laid at that point, your problem probably isn't anything that a record contract will fix!

:D

Ahh... the 80's were a great time to be young, pretty, and in a hard-rock band.

"I'm coming at ya live!"

CT
 
>I've heard all about the internet being the future.... We'll see about it in the FUTURE but as of now. A major label is the way to go and even then your no success story untill the label sees money out of you. If not your yesterdays news.

If you want to compare, for every 1000 bands that get signed to a record company, ever wonder what percentage actually end up MAKING rather than losing money? The VAST majority of bands get signed, get an advance, make a video, the record goes nowhere, and they end up in litigation because they owe their recording company $150,000. THAT is the real story out there.

Those who end up "rich and famous" whether from a record company, or from the Internet, or from banging it out in the clubs and self-producing and self-releasing records until they have a following so huge that they get a DECENT recording contract are a tiny minority.

Basically, it's luck and who ya know. If you don't mind selling away your songs for a penny on the dollar, be my guest, but at least go into it with your eyes open.

CT
 
Hey Ron, yer friend's band Deadbolt is one of my favorite bands right now! I play them on my radio show all the time. I just about pissed my pants when I heard "The Mocker" Getting back on topic though, I agree with you guys saying screw the record contract, just do it yourselves. I have frinds who were royally shafted when Seagrams bought Geffen. They were signed, had an album recorded, did a tour with Rocket from the Crypt and were dumped. The record company owns the masters, the best album ever recorded in our neck of the woods will never be released.
 
When I say the way to go is with a label I mean with a lawyer at your side and not like a Schmuk signing papers with out knowing the results.

There are mant different deals you can cut. Not every deal is selling your soul to the devil.

I just finished arranging Brass for a Salsa- rock band here and they paid all expenses them selfs, however the label will do the distribution for them and takeing a serious cut for it. I didn't ask why pay a bundle only to hand it over such a chunk to the label
becuase it was obvious to me that the 5 of them are not going go from shop to shop in every state begging the owner to take it in consignation (hopeing to see cash in 90 days)
, Getting radio time, Posters, playing night shows on T.V.
etc....


* warnning* - The folowing is not for the hobbyist musician.

Selling your own Cd's is the sure path to making a living
... in a car wash.

How many of you guys out there actully paying the bills from music alone?

How many of you guys suportting a family from your CD's?

After buying your equipment, making the Cd's, paying for the Grapic aspect, The mastering (if done pro). the Cd's themself.... how many of you guys make there money back?.

I envey all hobbyist musician's they have a love... they pursue it regardless to the outcome.

For the guys trying to make a living out of this selling your own Cd's is a lot of fun but be sure you understand -
with out a label behind you (even if you make pennies for a while) forget it.

Most signed Artist I know make a living from performing.
People buy tickets becuase they have heard about them from the press, T.v., radio (Lets see you try getting decent air time from a major station with out PR).

But who is going to buy a ticket to a nobody ?

I can only guess Charles that you are single or living at home or a hobbyist or inherited money. If not then tell me your secret, I'll pay cash for it !!!.




[This message has been edited by Shailat (edited 06-15-2000).]
 
Hey, Sludge. Yeah, the most I learned about music industry economics was from Deadbolt. For a while they were making $2 per CD, then after they joined ASCAP it dropped to $1. They do their own promotions, bookings, paying for the producer, name it. I never did get around to asking what they gained by signing with Cargo, but I'm sure it's close to zilch. Pretty depressing. I'm surprised that my friend stuck with that band for as long as he did. He permanently "disappeared" right before last Halloween's show. (Check the archived Nov. '99 messages at http://www.downinthelab.com for the funny ruckus.) I don't think the current live shows will ever come close to the ones he was in, even though he did suck at the drums.
 
Hi Ron. Deadbolt are a source of inspiration to us all. It's nice to see that a band can have so much fun regardless of their level of mastery of their instuments. I just wish they'd come up to Canada, or at least Calgary. We've got some great bands up here that could share that bill. Ever heard of the Forbidden Dimension? They're kinda in the same ballpark, all spooky n' such. Why did your friend leave the band? It seems like it would be such a fun gig.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ericbonn:
i am wondering the best route to get a recording contract. does anyone have any contacts or advice. i am from spokane, wa and playing really good shows cd sales are excellent. we play all over college campuses but we need to attract a label. we were on a small label but did not renew our contract. please help if you can.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

If you're selling tons of CDs and packing people in around your area, expand to areas where you are not doing as well and bring them up to speed.

If you do this long enough, the major labels will come to you. All they care about is being able to make money and if you're making money, you'll be in great shape.

Of course, you may find you're making so much money that it's to your benefit not to sign. That's what happens with most of the bands I work with.

dave @ kathode ray
www.indiebiz.com

Email biz101@kathoderaymusic.com for a free music promotion course.
 
Originally posted by Shailat:



I envey all hobbyist musician's they have a love... they pursue it regardless to the outcome.

Good, hard, facts Shailat!
I don't consider myself a hobbist, but i do look at it this way:
If I self-produce a CD, and it gets noticed, and becomes a commericial success, then that's AWESOME!
If it doesn't, and all I do is end up playing music in my living room, then thats AWESOME!
Click to expand...
 
ericbonn:

Having just entered into a recording contract, there are perhaps a few things I can say that might help you.

The way most bands I know get contracts is by entering into a shopping agreement with a manager. We were lucky enough to have a pertty high-profile mgr. hear our demo and he contacted us and expressed interest in representing us. He then directed us to a good entertainment attorney who we also hired. After showcasing for a few months we decided to sign with Mamoth Records because they have an indie ethic but Universal distribution; we felt we would be a bigger fish in a smaller tank (which turned out to be fairly accurate).

We signed a fairly standard "new band" contract but managed to get a lot of things we wanted including choosing our own producer and co-producing our record. Obviously we couldn't demand a dream contract, being relatively unknown, but we also didn't get shafted.

I know we could have gone it alone and released our own CD but would we have gotten: Nationwide airplay (as many as 25 stations at once), a 40 city corporate sponsored tour (don't have to pay THAT back!), or the opportunity to play several 10,000 to 15,000 seat festivals (you wouldn't believe how much interest you get after one of those!)?

Of course it's up to every band to decide what's best for them. I think we all probably already know which route we wanna take anyway.

Good luck to ya!!
 
Reality Bites!!

Wow!! So many different points of view. I thought signing with a major label equaled big time money. I guess it's just one big mafia?! Now I'm really confused on where to go with my music. The entertainment lawyer sounds like a sound idea....keep them coming, please!! I agree that you need a big label to back you up, this means exposure. If nobody knows you, then nobody gives a sh..how well you play. However, within this world of showBizz, you have to watch your back. I would love some real life solutions to not getting ripped off. Thanks!!
 
Michael Jones has the right idea. If you create something musical that you get excited about isn't that worth more than money or fame? Who cares if anyone buys it or not. If my music makes me feel a certain way when I listen to it then that's enough to satisfy me. If someone else can identify or feel the same thing that I did when I wrote the song, then that's the best feeling of accomplishment there is. If they actually want to pay me for it, even better. But, don't get too caught up in this "I need to be signed so I can make millions" thing because the odds are it's not gonna happen at all. I'm not saying don't try, but stay level headed and don't forget why you started playing in the first place: to make yourself happy.
 
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