MIX – Music Industry Xplained – Camden Court Hotel, Camden Street, Dublin 2 – April 24^th 2012.

I was recently invited by Hot Press to the last night of the MIX Music Industry Xplained course (I had previously made enquiries about it). It was presented by Hot Press’ very own Stuart Clark. Panellists on the night included:

Christy Dignam, lead singer of Aslan.

Niall Muckian, founder of Rubyworks record label.     

Sabrina Sheehan, Mission PR & Communications.  

Ian Wilson, producer with 2FM radio.  

Willie Kavanagh, Head of EMI.

Here are some notes from the evening:

Willie Kavanagh of EMI recently released Mick Flannery’s new album. He recommended that they delay the release date so Mick went to L.A etc to play small gigs there & to write more. He says that the new album is better because of this, that the songs are much stronger.

He said that hard work will pay off. Promote yourself, work every day. Records need to be 100% before being released.

Know who in a particular publication, radio station etc, you are dealing with. Eg: know what radio DJ’s like alternative music, soul music.

When a band is sending a “press pack” to a PR company make sure they include a photo of the band & some few songs. E-mails sometimes get clogged up so send the music electronically, via USB for example. Just because you do not receive a reply does not mean to keep trying. Be persistent & focused. Be self critical before sending music, don’t just send anything, make sure it is good.

If you have to send e-mails then keep them brief. Short description followed by links to YouTube or Soundcloud etc.

Word of mouth – keep up to date with who & what bands are being talked about. Familiarize yourself with these.

X-factor style acts are not sustainable, they are short term.

If you are in a band & cannot afford to book bigger, more well known venues then try restaurants. They tend to be less expensive. .

Be polite – it doesn’t cost a penny.

If a record company does not end up looking well from a particular act then this act will not be given a second chance. Bands need 2 to 3 albums before they get into things. Give them space to develop.

Christy Dignam says another option is for a band to pay for recording themselves. This gives them more of a creative role. Then give the record company a promotional role.

Sabrina recommended http://45sound.com/ as a good website that can provide a good quality free video of gigs etc.

Internet service providers provide free music. Something needs to be done to prevent copyright. YouTube pay for their content. Spotify – customers pay to join & then Spotify will pay the particular band.

Ian Wilson said that Eurosonic is becoming the new dominant music event. Different acts from all over the world come & play. It’s entirely based on the live music scene.

For more information please see http://mix.hotpress.com/.

The Strypes – “Young, Gifted & Blue EP”                                                                                      

You may recognise these guys from The Late Late Show recently where they performed their debut single “You can’t judge a book by the cover” live. Ryan Tubridy introduced them as having the average age of 15. They are so well knit, like they’ve being playing together for years.

Welcome to the world of Cavan’s own foursome The Strypes. When you first see the EP cover art it’s hard not to think of The Beatles. There are some distinct similarities to the “with The Beatles” cover with the four lads faces shot in simple black and white.

This is not where The Beatles trend stops. The aforementioned opener “You can’t judge a book by the cover” is a short and sweet, no frills, rocker that the fab-four would have been chuffed with in their early days. The guitar sound is very raw throughout, reminiscent of Arctic Monkeys debut single “I bet you look good on the dancefloor”.

All four of the tracks here are old Motown & Blues songs. Bo Diddley wrote “You can judge a book by the cover”. He also had an influence on “I wish you would” which Billy Boy Arnold wrote while working with Bo. This song has a cracking guitar riff throughout with plenty of harmonica added to the tone.

“Leaving here” is a song written by Holland – Dozier – Holland. Motorhead actually covered and released it as the debut single back in 1977. Final track “Got love if you want it” was written by James Moore & covered by the like of The Kinks & The Yardbirds.

I’m looking forward to seeing these live in the flesh sometime soon.

This is a great debut release. A welcome breath of fresh air. Things could get massive if they keep it up.

75/100

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Strypes/209082819114610

Latest albums streaming on NPR

Listen to new Santigold album "Master of my make-believe" now on NPR: http://tinyurl.com/bu8k73b

Listen to Daman Albarn new collaboration "Dr. Dee" now on NPR: http://tinyurl.com/dxkmqgp

Chromatics "Kill For Love" album stream

 

Pretty Much Amazing are steaming the whole Chromatics "Kill For Love" here: http://tinyurl.com/dxbja8t

Katie Kim "Cover & Flood"

Listen to Katie Kim's brand new debut album "Cover & Flood" here: http://katiekim.bandcamp.com/releases.
Katie is playing The Unatarian Church at St. Stephen's Green Sat 21st April 2012. Tickets are €12.00 each.

The Civil Wars "Barton Hollow" album review on High Browse

See my review of The Civil War's "Barton Hollow" on High Browse: http://tinyurl.com/bnx65nm

AA Bondy "Believers" review on High Browse

See my review of AA Bondy's "Believers" album on High Browse: http://tinyurl.com/bqtglkv

Spiritualized "Sweet Heart Sweet Light" stream

 

Listen to the Spiritualized new album "Sweet Heart Sweet Light" here on NPR http://tinyurl.com/7uaxpg2

The Civil Wars "Burton Hollow" album review

“Barton Hollow” is the debut album by double Grammy award winning Nashville country-folk duo of John-Paul White & Joy Williams, collectively known as The Civil Wars.

After a few listens & seeing them live one would assume that they’re husband & wife but they are in fact happily married to other people. They seem to have great banter together, like they’ve been together forever. This really shows up on this rather excellent album. It sounds like they are having the time of their lives playing these songs.

Proceedings start with the plucked acoustic guitar of “20 Years” and the cracking opening  line “There’s a note underneath your front door, that I’ve wrote 20 years ago, yellow paper and a faded picture, and a secret in an envelope” which really sets the ball rolling for the rest of the album. The kind of cutesy bounce of “I’ve Got a Friend” follows before the middle section of the album gets going with the rather stunning piano led ballad “Poison & Wine”. Its repeated chorus of “I don’t love you but I always will” builds throughout the song and sucks you in.

All these tracks seem to flow effortlessly from one to the next. The best song here by far is the title track. It is also the most different sounding song here.  It’s got a real heavy guitar/bass stomp to it & also some quiet eerie whispered vocals towards the end. A brilliant track which John-Paul White announced at the recent gig in Dublin’s Acadamy as the last song they wrote for the album.
Things quieten down somewhat with the piano instrumental “The Violet Hour” - the calm after the storm. Another country tinged song “Forget Me Not” follows suit with its excellent steel guitar and fiddle playing.

This is a rather surprisingly good album. One that I thought I wouldn’t enjoy. This is normally not my cup of tea. I think it would have been rather boring somewhat if they did not include the title track. This really elevates the album for me.

The Civil Wars are playing Dublin’s Olympia Theatre on Monday 29^th October. Purchase tickets here: http://tinyurl.com/c84yero

75/100

AA Bondy "Believers" album review

I started listening to this album in the car but this didn’t really do it justice. It’s wasn’t until I put it on on the home stereo did I really appreciate the different sounds. Just turn it up a little, sit back & wallow in the beauty.

It sounds like Alabama’s AA Bondy (full name Auguste Arthur Bondy) really has his routine firmly nailed down here. Everything sounds so easy to him.

He is the former lead singer with 90’s rock band “Verbana”. “Believers” is his 3^rd album as a solo artist so he knows his stuff.

Kicking things off on this slow burning but rather excellent album is “The Heart is Willing” & the light brushed drumming of “Down in the Fire (Lost Sea)” This drumming continues on “Skull & Bones” which has that slow, eerie feel which reminds me of Radiohead’s “The Tourist”, the final track on their masterpiece OK Computer”.

Some parts of the album even remind me of a film score like on the instrumental “123 Dupuy Street” which is almost like an intro to the following track “Surfer King”.

Although these quieter soundscapes are magnificent nothing really prepares you for the incredible track “The Twist”. It’s a stunning song. The beautiful vocals wraps around an in-you- face heavy bassline.

This album is a great achievement with some really excellent atmospherics & with “The Twist” he’s produced a stunning track. Long may it continue Mr Bondy.

70/100

Alabama Shakes "Girls & Boys" album stream

Listen to the excellent Alabama Shakes with their terrific debut album "Girls & Boys" here from NPR: http://tinyurl.com/6noptn8