It’s The Music Business

Since my last articles on local music went over so well, I thought I'd contribute one more. I think this might be of interest to anyone who's ever picked up a guitar so read on.

I hope the title of this article wasn't deceptive, this is directed at bands and/or artists that are looking to achieve something in the business.

First off, you have to decide what your goals are.

One of my friends (who just moved to Austin), his goal is to be in a sustainable, touring metal band. He's not looking for radio play, or even to make the next "Black Album", he just wants to play and eat.  Great.  He's taken those steps and started gigging within ten days of arriving.

Then there are those who want to just make music.  Fine and not a problem.  This is probably the easiest category. Just practice and book gigs, once again, done.

Then there's the hardest category, the "make it" level of the music business. The touring, recording, hit singles and playing on big stages level.  This is the hardest level of course.  You've got to write great songs, put on a great show and with some lucky breaks you can make it.

This third category is very intriguing these days. Some says the "business" has shrunk, but it's really morphed into a lot of smaller labels, (and smaller paychecks). It's no matter really, it actually means more people are willing to take a chance on a band and help them with touring and other label support. This third area is also where FMX and other radio stations have been known to help out. We can present your music to major labels, call our friends in other radio markets and speak on your behalf to operators of in town and out of town clubs.  Now, we cannot do all of this often. There are thousands of bands out there looking for attention and if we're always shouting "look here, look here" people quit looking.  In the past few years we've only taken two bands directly to the labels and we've managed to bet one bite and a bunch of nibbles and call backs. This means something though, it means those bands (one of which doesn't exist anymore) are still on the labels "radar" and they will on occasion be tracking them and/or possibly even checking up on them.  We've also helped bands in the other two categories booking locals on national shows (where the occasionally make friends and pick up advice) and in other markets.

We're not paid to give advice or make these calls on behalf of bands, it's not our job.  We do it because we fall in love with a project (or song). It's especially hard when there is more than one band that deserves our attention; at that point we have to pick one, and hope they can break through and bring more interest to the next deserving party. As I said earlier, if we sound too many "false alarms" with the record companies they quit listening to us.

Next up-Sharpen your skills

Practically no one is going to like this part of the article (except club owners).  If you are worried about how big the crowd is or how much many you're making at the door, you've already lost the battle. It should be about are your songs "connecting" with the crowd. Are they really listening or are they just partying with you? Stay for the other bands to pick up tips and advice (and sometimes you can learn just by seeing what they do wrong).  Also, video yourself!  You'll be surprised by what you learn; you might spend more time with your back to the audience than you think, you're tuning breaks may be too long or obnoxious and yes, there's going to be some songs that you performed that go over better, and some that need to be dropped from the live set.  Also, does your band "look like" a band?  A great example of this is the band Hinder, who were forced to fire their bass player because he was "out of place" with the rest of the guys (true story). You guys should also agree that if you ever pick up any label interest and somebody has got to go, that that somebody will go so the rest of you have a shot.

Here's the one you'll really hate: learn not just a few covers but a whole bunch of covers.  If you hate this idea, don't move to Austin. One of my friends in a VERY popular all original band was offered a regular gig at a hot club in Austin but was told he'd have to learn two sets of covers in order to play a final set of half originals. So you're too good to play covers, huh?  Zeppelin wasn't. The Beatles, Staind, The Who and a almost everyone else in the business started with covers. Van Halen played legendary cover song sets in order to sneak in one or two originals.  Have you heard of the phrase "you can catch more flies with honey"?  There's a reason why the piano and karaoke bars are packed and you have a dozen people at your show. In addition to endearing yourself to the crowd, you're learning precision and songwriting technique from people who've experienced success. It's like getting a teacher for free.  Now sure, if you're set is short, you're not going to include many covers, you're going to make the most of your time. But if you're on stage for over 30 minutes, you should probably put in a surprise cover or two.  I even had a promoter friend make a band he'd already signed learn an entire album from a band he'd liked coming up as a "learning tool". You can try to take the hard road if you want, but I promise you the bands you idolized played covers.

Play each gig like it's your last

We had a regional band come in for a show and they put on a pretty good set. It just so happened that some big-time promoters were in the audience (they were in town for a show the next night). I introduced the band members to the promoters and all went pretty well. I'll never forget though, the singer saying to me afterwards that she wished she had known they were in the audience that she would have put on a better show. Seriously, even if there's one guy in the audience plus the bartender, you don't know that somebody won't ask that bartender "who's hot" in the area. You should always KILL IT, otherwise don't do it.

Respect your peers

I want to leave you with this final note. Other bands, club owners, sound guys, and others can all be minor stepping stones for you. Your friends are great, but it's the people who are already in some form of the business that MAY take you to the next level. You don't know that the guitar player from some band you opened up for may end up being a guitar tech for a bigger bands and mention your name someday. Be hardheaded in your career choice, but not hardheaded when it comes to taking advice and getting help. And don't be jealous of others successes, they could prove to be a huge gateway to your own.