NPMT 2010: Day 2: Technology for the Greater Good

 Rawk Radio    Rawking   

Disclaimer: I’m going to do a few summaries of the panels I attended. I did tape these sessions so when I am quoting, I am doing so from my recordings. Otherwise, these summaries are my opinions on how these sessions shook out. Take that however you want.

Session description:
For decades artists have utilized the power of music to effect social change and transform thought into action.  With the myriad of online tools and social networks available today, musicians are able to spread their influence and awareness through the Web in real time.  This panel will look at the best new media tools and approaches to take in introducing an artist’s cause or message.

Moderator: Chris Cantore - Sounddiego/KPRI

Panelists:
Scott Riggs - Slacker
Nic Adler - The Roxy
Ben Patterson - Dashgo.com

While this panel was a bit thin as far as who was on it, the information from this panel was great. For most of the session, it was just Cantore, Riggs and Adler - Patterson joined late as he got stuck in the infamous L.A. to S.D. traffic. Having Cantore as the moderator was great since I think he’s really someone in S.D. that has embraced new media.  Because even with his knowledge of new media, he still had questions of the panel that really facillated information to the attendees. Cantore first asked Riggs about hellomusic - which is a service that artists submit their music to so that is can be licensed properly for play over the internet. Artists should also register for Soundexchange - this is who collects the funds that internet broadcasters send for playing an artist’s music.

Adler’s perspective really gave a good overview on how social media really created a community on the Sunset Strip by allowing “conversations to happen”. So you have a community comprised of bands, fans, venues who all feel like they are part of this thing that is happening which gets everyone really engaged. They have a crazy amount of fan interaction on FB - like 89% comment on their posts at one point or another!

Cantore brought up how new media like blogs really can break a band these days. We all know P-fork and Stereogum and the like can really bring an awareness to bands that they didn’t have before with traditional media. So between blogs and social media, there is a whole new way of discovery and interaction.

Patterson joined us and gave an overview on what dashgo is - an artist management platform to manage all aspects of the business of your music. What Patterson emphasized from the get go was that bands can give info via twitter/facebook but they also have to get a little personal and show some personality.

Cantore then brought the conversation to the mobile platform. Riggs talked about how smartphones are the avenue for bringing music to the masses. And that includes your car. I have my own experience with that in the rare cases that I don’t get satellite radio in my rental car - some cars will let you sync up via bluetooth and then you can play whatever music is on your phone via the car speakers. Fancy, right?

And then in direct contrast to the previous session (the radio one), Riggs talked about how getting your song on terrestrial radio isn’t necessarily a gimme for success. “These days it’s all about distribution - it’s about figuring out how you can get your music heard, whether it’s internet radio, myspace, or any type of platform.” As far as the live venue perspective, Adler said that they understand the way social media is used so they can really use that to their advantage when booking bands and promoting their venue. He brought up how mobile phones tell their story - they even have wi-fi in their venue so you can take video and upload while you’re there. That is fantastic - it’s so immediate and really brings people into the conversation when they are getting a visual. 

In the closing round of comments before Cantore let the audience loose at the panel, Patterson made the point that as an artist you have to have a plan - it’s not a good idea to release a song on i-tunes 24 hrs after it’s recorded because you don’t have the support in place for that song. (Makes sense...) He said “people aren’t looking for music, they are waiting for it to find them”. (Again, true for those people who haven’t already been described previously as “the freaks”.)

We got some great questions from the audience - the first one was a zinger - is myspace dead? Adler says it’s not as far as listening to a band’s music, but that shouldn’t be your only web presence. Riggs agreed - “it’s still relevant though it doesn’t have the sexiness of twitter or facebook and maybe the activity but it’s still a great place to post your music.”

Next good one - what’s the best strategy for emerging bands? Riggs started by saying that a band should get out and play as much as you can. Then have a good recording - it can just be a couple of songs. Have a web presence and build social media. Adler said to gather content - building content resonates in their offices. Patterson said to get a domain name, register your band’s twitter name and facebook. And connect to other bands - you need that support structure.

And the age old question - how do you make money off your music? Riggs summed it up nicely - “I would say that the voice of reality if you are an up and coming musician is don’t plan on making a lot of money.”

That seems like a good way to end this post....I may get inspired to write a more general summary of all sessions later. Or not.....

NPMT 2010: Day 2: All Things Radio

 Rawk Radio   

Disclaimer: I’m going to do a few summaries of the panels I attended. I did tape these sessions so when I am quoting, I am doing so from my recordings. Otherwise, these summaries are my opinions on how these sessions shook out. Take that however you want.

Session description:
As radio continues to twist, turn and change before our ears, it’s becoming difficult to make sense of the numerous formats and technologies delivering music.  This panel of radio professionals from a diversity of backgrounds will help clear up the confusion and provide useful insight into each radio platform and how they can best serve local musicians.

Moderator: Mike Halloran

Panelists:
Mat Bates - Slacker Radio
Garrett Capone - XTRA
Gary Gorman - Atlantic Records
Lisa Worden - KROQ
Christine Chiappetta - Island Def Jam
Tazy Phillips - KROG The Rogue / skaparade.com
Kevin Stapleford - X1 FM

Quite a panel there. I can’t imagine what people who don’t know the back story of the panelists were imaging as this session unfolded. Everyone on the panel has had a lot of experience with terrestrial radio and the conversation definitely steered that way. I think what the average person sitting in that session wanted to hear the answer to this question - “How do I get my music on the radio?” And certainly there was a discussion about that. But first things first. The question that Halloran posed to the panel to start was “Is terrestrial radio dead?” Kevin Stapleford made a fine point that “radio is really about content. Internet radio is exciting because it’s a different way of delivering the content. Terrestrial radio won’t go away but it has to keep up with the technology”. It was interesting to hear the perspective of the label reps (Chiappetta and Gorman) whose jobs are to push their artists to play songs on the radio. There were a lot of stories about bands they worked with who ended up big after being played on the radio. But in this day in age, that does not translate into record sales or “success” per se. Then there was a whole convo about songs that should have been “hits”. (Slightly Stoopid - 2am - really?) But the session got interesting to me when Mat Bates started talking about Slacker. Did you know they have 15 million listeners? Talk about reach. Bates did a great job explaining how Slacker works and how they program their stations in addition to the tools they have to glean info from each person’s listening habits. Kevin Stapleford also had a good perspective on non-terrestrial radio - he called us “a bunch of freaks” because that group are not your “normal” listeners. Very true. The best part of that conversation was using “boner meters” when describing a person’s reaction to new music played on the radio. Thank Hal for that one.

When Halloran opened the forum up for questions, the conversation got a bit lively. I honestly can’t remember too many of the details since I had a bit of a technology failure and ran out of space on my recorder. There was definitely a difference of opinion on the advice that was being given to the session attendees on how to get their stuff on the radio. Mostly it was stuff about writing a good song but that’s not particularly practical. I don’t think anything that was said by the terrestrial radio people was really encouraging to someone who is starting out and trying to “make it”. For me, it just reinforced how out of touch radio programmers can be about what they play on the radio. As you can probably guess, I have lots of opinions about that, but this isn’t really the forum for that discussion.

NPMT 2010 Session Guide

 Rawk Radio    Rawking   

NPMT is upon us and I’m sure some of you are trying to wade through the session schedule as well as the showcase schedule. Not sure if I’ll post anything about the showcase schedule, but you know that I am on it for the conference schedule. So here’s the schedule by date - the bolded sessions are the ones I will attend - I’ve also included the session description and the panel from the NPMT site.

Friday, August 13th:
1:15pm-2:30pm Music Industry 101: The Basics 2010 (Lafayette Room)
1:30pm-2:45pm Music From the Clouds: Is the Download Dead? (Mississippi Room)
1:45pm-3pm Lawyers, Guns & Money: Legal Issues For Musicians (New Orleans Room)
1:45pm-3pm Demo Review Session 1 (LaSalle Room)
2:45pm-4pm The Future of Music PR (Lafayette Room)
With the music business in a constant state of flux, this panel looks to address the future of PR (public relations/publicity) within that world. Much of the biz is now online, so panelists will discuss changes in distribution of information to the media as well as more basic issues such as working with a publicist vs. DIY. Whether you are looking to promote an artist or an album release, this panel will help you understand the mechanics of modern day music PR and offer useful tips and guidance.
Panelists include: Wendy Brynford-Jones (Hello Wendy PR), Lilledeshan Bose (OC Weekly), Jo-Ann Geffen (JAG PR), Josh Mills (It’s Alive Media), Steve Baltin (AOL’s spinner), Stefan Goldby (buzzine.com)
3pm-4:15pm Social Media and Music: Building Your Network (Mississippi Room)
So you have a MySpace site, Facebook page and Twitter account – now what? It can be overwhelming and confusing deciding how to reach out to fans and build audiences without flooding the world with irrelevant information. Join social media experts to learn how to use these online platforms strategically and to your advantage.
Panelists include: Jeff Kreinik (Front Gate Tickets), Tom Gimbel (Clatterhead), Jason Fisher (Epitaph Records), Larry Weintraub (Fanscape), Sara Berkowitz (Viper Room), Jeff Becker (J2X Media)
3:15pm-4:30pm Demo Review Session 2 (LaSalle Room)
3:15pm-4:20pm Performance Video & VJ’ing (New Orleans Room)
4:30pm-5:30pm Keynote Speaker: KIM FOWLEY (Mississippi Room)
6pm-8pm Happy Hour · Sound Diego presents
8pm-2am Music Festival

My commentary:

At the time of this posting, there wasn’t an update on the Music from the Clouds session - if there is an update on panelists, I will post. The “Lawyers, Guns and Money” session sounds lively! I’ve got a scheduling conflict between the “Future of Music PR” and the “Social Media” session but since the Social Media session has totally different panelists this year and not much has changed in Music PR in the last year, “Social Media” it is. I plan to live blog this one, so should be fun. And last, but not least, the Keynote. Wonder if Mr. Fowley will be commenting on Dakota Fanning and Kristin Stewart as Cherie Currie and Joan Jett in the movie....guess you’ll have to attend like the rest of us.

Saturday, August 14
11am-12:15pm Creating a Music Town (Lafayette Room)
We’d all like to see our respective music communities grow and thrive, and this panel will feature discussions on just that. From increasing audience size and working with other artists to grassroots efforts and corporate tie-ins, discover methods that have worked to strengthen music scenes in the past as well as new techniques for the future.
Panelists include: 1 - Josh Feingold (SESAC), Scott Pactor (Law Office Of Scott Pactor), Scott Sheldon (RM64.com), Mitchell Frank (Spaceland), Tim Mays (The Casbah)
11:15am-12:30pm Management 101: Guiding Your Career (Mississippi Room)
11:30am-1pm Demo Review Session 3 (LaSalle Room)
12:00pm-1:30pm Lawyers, Guns & Money: Legal Issues For Musicians (New Orleans Room)
1pm-2:15pm All Things Radio: Terrestrial, Satellite, Internet and College (Mississippi Room)
As radio continues to twist, turn and change before our ears, it’s becoming difficult to make sense of the numerous formats and technologies delivering music.  This panel of radio professionals from a diversity of backgrounds will help clear up the confusion and provide useful insight into each radio platform and how they can best serve local musicians.
Panelists include: Mike Halloran (radio professional), Garrett Capone (91X), Lisa Worden (KROQ), Gary Gorman (Atlantic Records), Christine Chiappetta (Island Def Jam Records), Kevin Stapleford (X1FM.com), Tazy Phillips (KROG The Rogue / skaparade.com)
1:15pm-2:30pm Demo Review Session 4 (LaSalle Room)
2pm-3:15pm Performance Video & VJ’ing (New Orleans Room)
2:30pm-3:45pm Using Music and Technology for the Greater Good (Lafayette Room)
For decades artists have utilized the power of music to effect social change and transform thought into action.  With the myriad of online tools and social networks available today, musicians are able to spread their influence and awareness through the Web in real time.  This panel will look at the best new media tools and approaches to take in introducing an artist’s cause or message.
Panelists include: Tim Sweeney (Tim Sweeney & Associates), Nic Adler (The Roxy), Kristin Rolla (Myspace Music), Abe Burns (Variety), Matthew Bates (Slacker.com), ben Patterson (DashGo.com)
2:45pm-4pm Getting Your Music Licensed (Mississippi Room)
3pm-4pm Demo Review Session 5 (LaSalle Room)
3:15pm-4:30pm Indie Labels: The Resurgence (New Orleans Room)
Indie labels have weathered the storm and are now setting the trend for sustainability in the music industry. This collection of artists, managers and indie label experts will address artist and label concerns, and take an up-close look at the current label landscape.
Panelists include: Brian Sharp (Century Media), Chris Trovero (Epitaph Records), Matt Halverson (Lefse Records / Waaga Records), Adrienne Lake (Bloat Records), Richard Laing (Sub Pop Records), Pete Klockau (Bloodshot Records)
4:15pm-5:45pm Songwriters Circle: Discussion & Performance (Mississippi Room)
6pm-8pm Happy Hour · INDIGENOUS presents
8pm-2am Music Festival

My commentary:
Nice surprise to see Mr. Cat Dirt himself on the “Creating a Music Town” panel. I have my own ideas about this and especially with regards to SD, so definitely not one to miss if you can drag yourself there by 11am. Featured session for me today is the “All Things Radio”. You have to go just for Halloran, right? But seriously, with three panelists with current or former ties to XTRA and the PD of the undisputed king of terrestrial alt rock radio KROQ, there are bound to be some interesting discussions. Of course, all of you techies will be in the “Using Music and Technology” session - glad to see Mat Diablo from Slacker representing there. I’ll also pop into the “Indie Labels” session after “Using Music and Technology” - another great panel.

Intrigued? You know it. Buy tix here. I’ll see you there!

On Your Radio v.2.0

 Rawk Radio   

You might have heard me on FM 94/9 this afternoon with the illustrious Hilary as part of the station’s Coup d’etat. In case you missed my set, here is what I played:

Nine Inch Nails - Echoplex
My Morning Jacket - I’m Amazed
Kings of Leon - Slow Night So Long
Flaming Lips - Do You Realize
Tegan and Sara - Living Room
Stars - Bitches in Tokyo
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Soft Shock
Band of Skulls - Fires
Brand New - Play Crack the Sky

I originally had LoveLikeFire on my list, but the sets were all running long, so we had to cut a song. (Grab it via ysi link in the listen section if you want to check it out.)

Anyways, it was cool to be on with Hilary, because I was really, really nervous. But I had fun talking about these tunes and the shows that made me love them so much. Really makes me feel lucky to be me.

Checking in on the alt rock charts

 Rawk Radio   

Seems like every time I peep in on the alt rock charts, something surprises me....

1. Dirty Heads - Lay Me Down
2. Muse - Resistance
3. Stone Temple Pilots - Between The Lines
4. Rise Against - Savior
5. Silversun Pickups - The Royal We
6. 30 Seconds to Mars - This Is War
7. Three Days Grace - The Good Life
8. Muse - Uprising
9. Crash Kings - Mountain Man
10. Phoenix - 1901

Okay, this Dirty Heads song? When I first heard it (on XM Alt Nation), I was like, who is this Sublime cover band? Haha, how right on was that? But seriously, why do alt rock programmers and listeners still love this kind of drivel? Check out 2 Muse songs in the top 10 and Silversun Pickups in the top 5 again - this single did much better than Substitution.

From the rest of the charts:

11. Cage The Elephant - In One Ear
This would be the 3rd single from their debut to break the top 10 if it does so....
12. Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
This one was a slow burner, but finally, people get it.
13. Phoenix - Lisztomania
Single #2 on the verge of breaking the top 10.
18. Deftones - Diamond Eyes
Let’s see how far this one goes.
21. The Dead Weather - Die by the Drop
The first single is doing well.
22. Against Me! - I Was A Teenage Anarchist
Great lead single from their forthcoming album.
28. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Home
Never did I think this would make the mainstream alt rock charts.
36. OK Go- This Too Shall Pass
Interesting to see how this fares after their break from their major label.

Seriously, a ton of good stuff on this chart. Should be an interesting summer on the radio.

Things that made me want to write

 Rawk Radio    Rawk Shows   

Sorry for being a slacker and not updating. I guess if I didn’t have twitter I’d be more inclined to write more. But it’s a good time to post something because OMFG, really????

- The 91X Morning show was fired on Friday. And yeah, the news broke on twitter. Take that traditional media outlets! I didn’t listen to their show that often, but I’ve always thought that Mat Diablo was the best thing about that station. It will be interesting to see who ends up there.

- Checked in on the ratings again and while last month’s KBZT rating weren’t as high as the previous months, they are still more than respectable.

- Last week TR unveiled his first post-NIN project, How To Destroy Angels, a collaboration with Atticus Ross and his wife, Mariqueen. The NINternet, of course, promptly freaked out, but there’s definitely a split out there about Mariqueen. I happen to love her voice and I think the single “A Drowning” is amazing. Can’t wait to hear more from them - their EP should be out sometime this summer.

- I know I said I would post some Chicago photos after my last trip, but I am lame. But going there pretty much made me pull the trigger on going to Lollapalooza this year. (Yeah, that and the Strokes.) So expect that a few weeks before Lolla that I will be all Lolla, all the time.

Okay, that is all. I’ve actually got some posts lined up for the next few weeks, so check back in a day or so, or again, follow on Twitter as I will post when links are live.

P.S. Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. If it weren’t for all of you,who would take care of all the wayward children like myself? <3

Another Indie Band takes the Top Spot in Alt Rock and other Musings on Radio

 Rawk Radio   

It’s a good time to check in on the alt charts because of who just hit the #1 spot.

1. Crash Kings - Mountain Man
2. Muse - Resistance
3. Rise Against - Savior
4. Alice in Chains - Your Decision
5. Stone Temple Pilots - Between the Lines
6. Muse - Uprising
7. Phoenix - 1901
8. Flyleaf - Again
9. Chevelle - Letter from a Thief
10. Paramore - Brick by Boring Brick

Yes, that would be another relatively unknown band “crashing” the party with a #1. Congrats to the L.A. based band who, by all accounts, rawk. Also glad to finally see the Paramore single break the top 10 - it’s about time. Looking forward to seeing them on tour with Tegan and Sara in September.

From the rest of the chart:
16. Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
Another band benefitting from a national car ad.

19. Metric - Gold Guns Girls
This is a great second single from the album - it’s been sneaking its way through the chart.

22. Silversun Pickups - The Royal We
Doing much better than the last single.

25. Hole - Skinny Little Bitch
Courtney’s lead single scores her a top 25 spot.

29. Phoenix - Lisztomania
The second single is making some noise.

38. Deftones - Diamond Eyes
The album leaked so we are getting it early. Excited to hear what direction this band takes without Chi Cheng.

In other news....
Checked in on the radio ratings and last month’s gains were not a fluke for KBZT - I don’t remember the last time ratings were this high. The other interesting thing is that I don’t think KIOZ ever had ratings this high either. Kind of mind blowing in a lot of ways, but you guys can ponder that on your own time.

If you listened to KPRI last weekend, you may have heard a familiar voice as Chris Cantore had a couple of on air shifts. This isn’t the first time he has filled in at the station - I’m sure his fans don’t want it to be his last.

Still no word about what Halloran is up to besides some guest spots on satellite radio, but he did mysteriously tweet something about not wanting to move to L.A. I still would love to hear him on satellite but who thinks that it may be a spot on KROQ? I mean, isn’t that the only place that makes sense?

All right, that is all. Hoping to get a post up about some new music I’ve been digging…