Indie Label Spotlight

Starting and running an independent record label is a labor of love that requires paptience, dedication and a passion for music. When you combine technological advances that have made it easier for bands to release material without the help of a label with the current state of the economy, it seems like the days of small, independent record labels are over. It takes a lot of money to put out a record, depending on the size of the project, and many labels struggle from release to release. While this may sound like a gloomy forcast for small labels, there are many out there who are managing to succeed and put out quality records. Here are my two favorite labels that are currently putting out records I listen to constantly. Check out the links, you may just find your new favorite band!

1. Count Your Lucky Stars - The current emo revival still seems to be going strong and Count Your Lucky Stars is the definitive label in releasing most of the best records that come from it. Run by members of empire! empire! (i was a lonely estate), Count Your Lucky Stars was started in order for the band to release their early recordings. Since then, Count Your Lucky Stars has gone on to release landmark albums such as Castevet's "Summer Fences", Joie De Vivre's "The North End" and re-released Benton Fall's "Fighting Starlight". The label boasts an enormous roster that features some of the most popular bands of the current emo revival. Expect more great releases from this incredible label who are some of the nicest people around.
 CYLS Myspace - listen to some of the artists on the CYLS roster.

2. Tiny Engines - Tiny Engines is a relatively new label that was formed around 2008 to put out their inaugural release Look Mexico's "Gasp Asp". The label is run by Chuck, Will and Jeff and ever since the the release of "Gasp Asp" the label has released one hit after another. The label had a busy 2010 releasing the self-titled full-length debut of Everyone Everywhere, Castevet's "The Echo & The Light" and they also plan to release Annabel's "Here We Are Tomorrow" in December. The members of Tiny Engine have excellent ears when it comes to picking out bands and are one of the few labels where you know every record will be good. Also, it doesn't hurt that they also run Beartrap PR, one of the best promotion companies in punk rock.

Too Many Songs, Too Little Time

There are many perks to being a music journalist. You are able to get early listens of albums from your favorite artists, interact with artists you may never otherwise get the chance to meet and help introduce a band to readers. It is fun to do and while there are many perks, many jump into the field because they love music. However, the one drawback is being inundated with so much music. There are millions of bands out there and generally when writing reviews, you are sent so many albums that many fall through the cracks and many times you don't truly recognize the greatness of certain records until a year or two later and you miss out on something truly great that your readers may have liked as well.

I have found myself at times being overwhelmed with the sheer amount of music I am exposed to and sometimes, but as far as problems go, it is a good one to have. The ease at which music can be sent to reviewers since the implementaion of digital press kits is astonishing. In any given year I could easily listen to close to a hundred albums and I generally try and approach each one with a new angle and sometimes that gets rough. Those who do not write album reviews may not know just how much work goes in to each one. You listen to the album multiple times to get a feel for the sound and which tracks you want to highlight before you even attempt to sit down and start reviewing. Also, writer's block is the album reviewer's nemesis and can set in at the worst of times. You would be surprised at the revision that goes in to achieving the final product and how many sentences are written before the words simply freeze up and you find yourself deleting the entire thing and starting from scratch.

However, the feeling you get when that review is finished and everything fits together and the feedback you get from readers makes the entire process entirely worthwhile. The only thing is, you have to keep writing almost constantly in order to combat writer's block and sometimes that is not always the easiest thing to do.

Seasonal Playlists

It seems like fall has left as quickly as it arrived with temperatures being quite frigid lately. However, it is still technically fall, and with that comes another year of making a seasonal playlist and listening to certain albums on repeat. Since the very first mixtape until the rise of the MP3 and iPod playlists, music fanatics have been making mixes that chronicle relationships, the changes of the season and pretty much any other theme that comes to mind. It is almost a yearly ritual where you go through your vast musical collection and pick and choose songs that will fit your mood and your surrounding perfectly. There is a science to it that many adhere to such as making sure the songs flow together, making sure to balance the different styles in the mix, and don't even think about using the same artist twice.

For this entry, I wanted to share my fall playlist and a few albums that I constantly listen to in order to get through the week.

1. Matt Pond PA "Several Arrows Later" - Matt Pond PA is sort of the musical patron saint of autumn. No matter what album of his I listen to, it seems like the perfect soundtrack for when the leaves start to change.

2. The American Analog Set "Set Free" - I listen to this album religiously during the autumn months. One listen to the lush sounds of "She's Half" and you will understand why. The warmth that comes through on "Set Free" make it a prennial autumn favorite.

3. Elliott Smith "Either/Or" - Smith's third album "Either/Or" was the one that started pushing him a little more into the spotlight. Smith's hushed vocals tug on the heartstrings on the mostly acoustic "Between The Bars" and "Say Yes" has got to be one of the most uplifting songs in his catalog.

Fall Playlist 2010

Matt Pond PA "Locate The Pieces"
The Swell Season "Leave"
The American Analog Set "First of Four"
American Football "Honestly?"
Bright Eyes "Classic Cars"
Cat Power "Cross Bones Style"
Damien Rice "Volcano"
Feist "I Feel It All"
Death Cab For Cutie "Transatlanticism"
Papermoons "Live Right"
Elliott Smith "Between The Bars"
The Shins "New Slang"

The Radiohead Effect

Three years ago, Radiohead did something that has altered the way music was consumed and numerous band’s pounced on the idea. They released their then brand new album,"In Rainbows",online and allowed customers to choose their own price starting at free. I remember the day of the release (I think it was) when I stumbled across the article detailing that "In Rainbows" would be available as a download at around 6 a.m. Growing up during the 1990’s, my earliest and only memory of Radiohead was seeing their music video for “Creep” getting constant airplay on the radio and MTV and after that I sort of lost interest. However, I was intrigued at the concept and woke up promptly at 6 a.m. in my freshman dorm room to download the album. I will be honest, I chose to pay nothing for the download as I was low on money and I was not sure if I would like the album. Since I was able to get the album for free, I decided to take a chance.

Turns out, I loved the album. Every song resonated with me and "In Rainbows" quickly became my favorite album of the year. Since I was able to hear a full album from Radiohead with very little risk, I found out I liked the band and was interested in digging around through their back catalog. As a direct result of the "In Rainbows" download campaign, I went out and bought two older Radiohead albums. So while the band might have missed out on profits from my download of "In Rainbows", they in turn caused me to go out and buy two of their albums and I will probably buy their future albums as well.

I noticed that this experiment had an immediate impact after the release of "In Rainbows", but three years later it is clear to see just how much of an impact was made. Countless bands, established or young unknowns just starting out, were selling downloads of their albums for a pay-what-you-want price. Bandcamp, a popular digital music retailer, even allows bands to set the price of their albums as pay-what-you-want. Then there are countless donation-based record labels such as Death To False Hope Records and Quote Unquote Records. These labels most likely did not use Radiohead as an inspiration and would have been around anyway, but they are still part of this shift in the way music is distributed.

Although I call the increasingly popular pay-what-you-want method “The Radiohead Effect”, the truth is they were not even the ones to first toy with the idea. Harvey Danger, an indie-rock band from Seattle, toyed with a similar concept by releasing their 2005 album Little By Little as a free download on their website. What made Radiohead’s campaign the figurehead for this wave of change was the fact that they were a critically acclaimed band with worldwide success putting out their music for free. This is what made journalists all over the world go crazy over the campaign and stay up all night in order to download the album and try and beat their peers for that coveted first review.

I am a fan of this model and while I think established bands could benefit from a similar release model, I mostly like the implications for underground artists. Underground artists do not get the same exposure and rarely make it on the radio or TV and people are less apt to spend their money on a record from a band they have never heard of. Now, with the help of a website like Bandcamp, artists can let people choose their own price and gain a lot of fans through word of mouth and the fact that there is little risk involved for the listener.

I am excited to see how musicians and artists will build off of this idea and what kind of unique distribution methods will follow.

This one is for you Mr. Adams

From what I have gathered from my music loving friends is that Ryan Adams is a polarizing figure. There are those who can’t stand him and those who are willing to spend every penny in order to collect every song the man has written, and trust me, there are many.  I happen to fall into the latter category. Ryan Adams has received accolades from virtually every music publication starting with his work in Whiskeytown and his debut solo album "Heartbreaker", a country album that tugs at the heartstrings with every lyric and melody. However, the stories that have come to stick with Adams for better or worse focus on his personal life whether it was his long history of drug use, the public accosting from Courtney Love or his marriage to Mandy Moore.

Despite what sort of tabloid-worthy stories that have dotted Adams’ past, the fact remains that he is an incredibly gifted and prolific musician. Adams recorded three albums with Whiskeytown, eight solo albums (that were officially released, there are many more if you count unreleased works), three albums with The Cardinals, and one album with The Finger. That is just studio full-lengths since 1995 and does not include a slew of EP’s, singles, or unreleased works that Ryan Adams has talked about that have yet to be released for various reasons.

My favorite example of his prolific writing style involves the struggle to release "Love Is Hell". Adams was made to release the album in two parts at the insistence of his label who were worried over the shift in style. To reach a compromise, Adams recorded "Rock N Roll", an album full of upbeat rock songs , in two weeks in order to release "Love Is Hell". While many critics panned the album, the fact remains that many of the songs on that record were instantly catchy and could have had hit potential, and he did it all in two weeks.

Adams writes at such an incredible pace and it seems that he is constantly finishing new music and sure, being a prolific songwriter is impressive, but are the songs any good? You bet. Whether Adams is writing country, rock or metal music most of his songs are bona fide gems. Not only is his music top notch, but Adams also keeps his fans updated on what he is working on through his Facebook page. So, here’s to you Mr. Adams, for writing such beautiful music and hopefully one day the masses will catch on to your creativity.

Below is a video of Ryan Adams performing "Oh Sweet Carolina" during a rehearsal with his band and featuring guest vocals by Mandy Moore. An excellent performance and song, I hope you enjoy it!

What Ever Happened To That My Bloody Valentine Reunion?

Way back in 2007, Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine fame stated that the band had reunited and tours were in the works. Shoegaze fans across the country rejoiced at the fact that the band would be playing their first set of shows in 16 years. The band blew audiences away with their notoriously loud concerts and frontman Kevin Shields even promised that the scrapped follow-up to 1991's Loveless would finally be finished and their were even rumblings that it would come out in 2008. It is now three years since My Bloody Valentine announced their reunion, and while their shows were considered a smash hit and allowed fans the chance to see them live for the first time in ages, the promised album still has not been released.

The thing that I find confusing is that Shields has stated in numerous interviews that the album is about 75 percent finished and that he has been working on it, yet there is not a single peep out of the My Bloody Valentine camp. This is incredibly frustrating for those who have been waiting years for new material, and although Shields seemed ready to complete the album, I cannot help but feel that the expectations placed on whatever he puts out next are keeping him from finally releasing the album.

Loveless is considered one of the best albums of the 1990's and the gold standard of shoegaze records. Not only that, it has served as a major inspiration for numerous acts. Critics made the members of My Bloody Valentine gods of music, and undoubtedly some of that pressure had to have impacted the band and their willingness to record. What will be interesting to see, if the album is released, is how it is received critically and by fans. Most of the material for the album was written in 1996, so it will be interesting to hear those songs if they go untouched and see how far ahead of the curve the band was at the time.

Hopefully, Shields and company will make good on their promise and release a new album soon.

New Rival Schools Video!

Will, who runs the excellent blog Sound As Language, posted this new video from Rival Schools a few days ago. The song is off their upcoming album that comes out in the spring. I am pumped for this record and I can remember when I literally listened to "Used For Glue" once a day for a loooong time. Hopefully people don't sleep on this record and even though it is their first album since their 2001 self-titled effort (if you don't count their unreleased material), they sound just as strong as ever.