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Internet-based Publishing for Independent Bands?
Cultural Sublimation asks: "My brother's band is putting the finishing touches on their new album. They have published via a small independent label before, but this time they are considering going for Internet-based distribution. They are quite open to fresh ideas: they are even thinking of releasing the album into P2P networks and using the tip-jar model for revenue. It would
also be nice to give people the possibility of
buying online the physical CD with the artwork.
They are therefore looking for a publisher which:
a) won't take away their rights; b) allows for
distribution via P2P (perhaps even providing
a tracker for torrents); c) facilitates the
tip-jar model; and c) allows physical CDs to
be shipped on demand. What are fellow Slashdot
readers opinion on this?"
If you can't find what you're looking for, build it. Everything you've mentioned (torrent tracker, tip jars, ordering CDs) can be found in OS projects that are available out there. Put them together, or hire someone to do it for you. Then you just have to find a printer for your CDs which shouldn't be too tough.
apache webserver, php 5 with sqlite, some prefab secure donation and 'shopping cart' scripts and a static ip.
Okay, so they can keep their rights, they can upload to P2P networks themselves, and they can sell CDs through CD Baby or similar.
What, exactly, do they need the publisher for? It's certainly not to publish.
PS: d) comes after c).
Dear Recording Artist, Please cease and desist from attempting to make money using illegal P2P networks for distributing your work, and also for trying to make money without signing to an RIAA Approved Record Label (TM). Any further mention of p2p will force us to crush you with immense legislative force. Love, The RIAA
mp3.washingtonpost.com
May need to get a Washington PO box for all I know.... to spoof the system
I got some of my best new music from there including Them Eastport Oyster Boys, Debi Smith and David A Alberding (all in the "Folk" section, but its not the folk my parents knew), also Meleket a cool Reggae group.
OK, its not the ENTIRE solution but your next big problem would have been how to get folk to your website, well the Washington Post website already hads tonnes of visitors, who won't be looking for your music but may try it anyway.
Sam
blog.sam.liddicott.com
CafePress.com has the ability to send out CDs on demand. It's like 4.95 as the base price, I think, for CDs, and if you set the price any higher than that, you get the profits. They don't touch the rights, and you don't have to worrk about doing any of the print work.
Luke
----
Does your Aunt Maggie want to learn about computers, but you don't have time to teach her? Send her top ChristianNerds.com, the Easy-to-Understand Computer Encyclopedia.
Depending on the musicians' needs, CDBaby may fit the bill. While more of a distributor than a publisher, they're one of the biggest online independents in the business and seem to have a pretty good rep.
If there is nothing like this out there, what are we all bitching for? Start one if you don't like the way they are currently doing business.
--
This sig is available via most P2P networks
Magnatune is a great place to check out for alternative distribution. They won't take "just anybody", though. But it's worth looking into.
Their motto is: We are not evil. Check it out.
A bad analogy is like a leaky screwdriver.
Plan-It-X records seems to support this kind of thing, as do many other small independent punk/indie labels. Check out any of them like Hillbilly Stew, Dirtnap, etc. At the same time, why not just do it yourself? Trackers are easy to set up, or you can use a public one, it has virtually no impact on a webserver short of just serving the pages (as long as you're not Loki or Demonoid).
The tip jar will give them some income, but they should reach for other sources as well. Merchandise can bring in some bucks. They should also consider running a blog and a forum, and advertising on both. Gigs and concerts can be a great source of income, and if your friends are good, their fans may be able to come up with a touring schedule for them without their having to find their own venues.
I used to roadie for an indy metal band a couple of years ago, and that experience introduced me to a few online methods of distribution.
First, here are some websites that might fit your bill:
Garage Band
Sound Click
Independent Music Online
And a list of other sites that might interest you: http://www.rmpmusic.com/
If you choose to use a third party website to promote your music, I and many others in my local music scene, still believe a web site dedicated to your band is the best idea. Offer full CD or near CD quality MP3 downloads of your best singles, demos, etc. Add a list of your gigs, news and updates relating to your band, perhaps a press kit full of print-sized logos, promo photos, and posters, in addition to a physical CD to send to record labels and credible review sites and mags. And also offer a way to buy your band's CD off the official website. Use something like PayPal for that. It's easy enough.
Good luck.
...to ihateyourband.com. Let the wolves devour it. (Fuck it. My Karma's shot anyway...)
Creative commons have a purpose branded music sharing license. This lets people share the music non-commercially but commercial use could still generate royalties, of course you can't enforce payment worldwide unless you're the RIAA...
Lulu.com is founded by Robert Young, a co-founder of Red Hat, the famed Linux distributor. Lulu publishes books, images, music, etc. They use on-demand technology, and the creators own all the rights.
I've never tried their music publishing side of the business, but I have a novel published through them (http://www.lulu.com/content/138218). Lulu's technology of fulfilling customers' orders is topnotch, as good as Amazon.com. If you order a product from them, they inform you every step of the way -- when the book (or CD) is produced, when it will be shipped, when it will arrive at your doorstep, etc.
Reality check: you're not going to get rich by self-publishing, but it's a start, and starting online is a sound strategy, because there is a whole generation of people growing up being comfortable with buying things online.
Sun and Fun
Some have asked why do they need a publisher at all. Well, their previous EP was distributed in a large "brick & mortar" chain here in Portugal, and having physical CDs does help in getting the album reviewed by dead-tree newspapers and magazines.
As for internet distribution, P2P is definitely the way to go. It is easy to give copies of official ogg vorbis to a bunch of friends and ask them to share the files on the Edonkey2000 network or others.
Bittorrent would also be nice, but that entails finding a reliable tracker to be the host.
As for the file formats, does anyone know if they would be allowed (legal-wise) to produce official MP3s? (Though they would also release ogg vorbis anyway).
Free storage and people can post reviews! And you can just pass the URL to people that are intrested.
But if your band sucks please do not.
QuidMusic is an entirely new way to buy and sell music.
Instead of recording new music, retailing each copy to their fans one by one in music shops or online, QuidMusic lets musicians deal directly with their fans en masse.
Musicians can now simply put a Pledge £1 for my next release (via QuidMusic) button on their web page. This let's the musician sell their music and not the copies.
This pledge button represents a commitment by the fan to buy the musician's next release for £1. At last there's a way a fan can say "I like your music. Please make more. I'll be happy to buy your next release for £1."
If nothing is released, the fan pays nothing and gets nothing.
But if there is a release, each fan pays £1, and not only gets to download one or more MP3 files, but can also download high quality digital masters too!
If the musician can't really afford to release their next work for less than say £1,000, no worries, they can wait until they have at least a thousand fans. QuidMusic won't release anything until the musician's ready.
QuidMusic is all about a free and fair marketplace in which musicians and fans can meet and decide whether or not to do a deal - with no pressure. Musicians can decide to sell their music elsewhere. Fans can withdraw their pledges.
QuidMusic only makes any charge when something is released (15% commission to cover credit card transaction fees and other costs), so it's absolutely free to try without risk or commitment.
Although a bit dated, the Simple Machines Records Mechanic's Guide has all the info you need about recording, releasing and promoting your band/record/label, along with information on publishing and copyright and a bunch of other stuff. I don't think it has anything about online distribution (like I said, it's a little dated), but all of the comments above should probably fill that in for you. Jenny Toomey, one of the people who put that out is now running the Future of Music Coalition, a think tank (if you will) whose goal is to ensure that future policy regarding music and media is sane and artist-friendly. Well worth a look if any of this actually means anything to you.
I'll turn into a supernova and burn up everything. Well I'll turn into a black little hole and you'll turn into string.
Making the music available is one thing, but getting people to hear it is much harder.
As much as I hate radio and traditional lables, I still haven't found a way to get recommendations for new bands that doesn't suck. At least I can hear new music on the radio.
What options are out there - a 30 second low-fi clip on a website doesn't do it for me. At all.
This is a great resource. It is also a good way to understand what publishing is and why you need it. Publishing is NOT the same as having a lable or distribution. By publishing your song you are able to get another royalty stream in certain cases such as:
* another performer covers your song live or on recording
* your song is played on the radio
* someone wants to license your song for other uses
While there are more comprehensive sources such as the seminal book "This Business of Music," the advice in the Simple Machines guide is short, to the point, and very applicable to people taking a DIY approach.
The only thing record labels are good for is marketing big name artists.
Artists that have already peaked, as far as attracting new fans, always bitch about the same thing when they leave one label for another... marketing dollars.
If you want to replace the record label: don't focus on how your going to make the CD's, I think we established a while ago that any idiot can burn a cd and distribute it. Rather, focus on what will draw ears to the music.
You did ask for an opinion so here it is: Take the band out to venues and PLAY! You can sell CDs directly to your fans -- the internet is too congested for an artist to break out. But, the good news is the internet is the first place where your existing fans turn to for news regarding the band.
If you do sell online: create a website for the band. Add a couple of low-fi mp3 files to preview and a paypal button to take orders. Ship an actual CD with additional content such as liner notes, band photos/poster, lyrics, bio's, mpeg video of a live show on a second CD (cd's are cheap -- attracting new fans is your #1 priority) and anything else you can think of. Remember, your trying to build a relationship with your fans. The stronger the emotional connection, the more likely it is that they will tell thier friends about you and come back for more shows/albums.
Anyway, it sounds like the band is just starting out so your not going to be processing thousands of orders. Slow down and grow the business side to match the popularity of the band (That means the band puts together the CD packages -- have them autograph them while they are at it). Anything more than this is just wasted effort.
As an added benifit, the sweat equity method will bond the band to the fans and create a family type of vibe. This is so much better than the cold/produced/corporate feel most artists have.
Good luck!!
I've been running a small independent label for 6 years. From the sound of it, the reason your brother's band is thinking about an alternative to the small indie label because their last release didn't sell or even get into stores. But, perhaps they should take a closer look at the reasons why instead of just trying to put a band-aid on the situation.
Self-releasing a CD, whether digitally or through a place like CDBaby, will not fix the problem. These days, there's a million bands out there all pushing their music on the P2P networks, on sites like Interpunk (local section), and myspace. Changing their M.O. won't change the final outcome.
They need to start seeing fans as friends. Can a person really call all 1250 "friends" on their myspace site friends, let alone fans? To make real fans, the band needs go out and spend the time getting to know them personally. I'm not saying you can't do this online, but nothing beats meeting someone in real life.
What to know how to make fans? Get out and find them. You can play shows, or if that's a problem, try parking the van in a teenage hangout and talk to the kids. Play your music for them. Give them a burned CD to take away, along with stickers and a good conversation. Those people will tell their friends about you, and nothing beats word of mouth.
Sounds like a lot of work doesn't it? Well, it is. But rest assured that that kind of promotion will lead to a real dedicated following of people who will buy all your CDs, merchandise and anything else.
-- www.punkmusic.com
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