Marcato Musician Blog
Featured Artist: Half Moon Run
The latest Marcato-powered artist to be featured on our blog is the Montreal-based Half Moon Run.
Hearing these guys for the first time today was such a treat! Definitely one of the most talented bands I’ve heard in a while!
From their bio: Across the globe from NME to Brooklyn Vegan, tastemakers and musicians (including Mumford and Sons!) are all singing the trio’s praises, and Australia is lucky enough to get the year’s first look, in a run of intimate venues around the country.
Half Moon Run’s unique sound fuses together the restless elements of indie, pop and roots with beautiful rhythmic harmonies, delicate guitar lines and a hint of warm electronica.
You owe it to yourself to check out this live-in-the-studio video for “Call Me in the Afternoon” — the dude playing drums and keyboards at the same time is amazing!
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Featured Artist: Kris Gordon
The latest Marcato-powered artist to be featured on our blog is the up-and-coming Texas-based country star, Kris Gordon.
Kris was born to sing country music. It’s found in his West Texas Panhandle origins and his family’s musical legacy. You can hear it in his voice and his way with a song, and witness it in his seasoned ability to get crowds dancing at every dancehall, club, and honky-tonk he plays.
It’s also heard throughout the 10 songs on Gordon’s debut album, Don’t Let Go Tonight. Produced by Dean Miller, son of country legend Roger Miller, it strikes a canny balance between the best of the time-honored Nashville sound and the Texas Country spirit. Gordon sings of joys, sorrows, mysteries and passions on emotive numbers with a romantic tick or rocking kick. With the first single and video, “The Upside of Down”, leading the charge, Gordon delivers an assured and winning collection of rooted contemporary country that’s right on time and on par to tackle the Texas scene and well beyond!
Check out Kris’ video for, “The Upside Of Down”, here:
P.S. Marcato’s resident country music expert, Natasha, highly recommends “Colder Than A Bad Girl’s Heart”, which you can hear on Kris’ Marcato EPK!
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Featured Artist: 3 Brave Souls
The latest Marcato-powered artist to be featured on our blog is the incredible progressive jazz-funk trio, 3 Brave Souls.
Three generations of Miles Davis alumni — Ndugu Chancler, Darryl Jones, and John Beasley — have joined forces to create a sound inspired by their Louisiana and Chicago roots, filled with thick-pocket grooves and stirring vocals. This self-titled debut for BFM Jazz is in consideration for Grammy nominations in 7 categories!
Check out this funky gem, “Wanna Get Away?”, featuring Sy Smith:
Featured Artist: Mo Kenney
The latest Marcato-powered artist to be featured on our blog is Nova Scotia-native, Mo Kenney.
Mo recently released her self-titled debut on the prestigious Toronto label Pheromone Recordings in partnership with Joel Plaskett’s imprint, New Scotland Records. East Coast rock and roll hero Plaskett isn’t just involved on the label side, he produced and played on the album, as well as contributing a couple of co-writes.
Mo has already garnered serious respect from her singer/songwriter peers. The list of those loudly singing her praises includes Ron Sexsmith, Brad Roberts (Crash Test Dummies), Gordie Sampson, and Steve Poltz. “To hear those comments from musicians you look up to is so nice,” Mo says.
Check out this great live video for ’Déjà vu’ by Mo Kenney with Joel Plaskett:
How to Manage a Record Release With Time and Money Restraints
Well, it’s time for my monthly music business blog and I just happen to be in the process of working on a record release for The Tom Fun Orchestra, under my label Company House Records. I thought I’d talk about how to put out a record nationally with very little time and a tight budget. My example throughout the blog will be The Tom Fun Orchestra’s upcoming “Earthworm Heart” release.
My golden rule for releasing a record is to have the master in my hand before I give the band an album release date. This gives a nice big window of time to get people excited about the album and build lots of hype for the release. Unfortunately this time, I did not obey my own golden rule! Instead, I let the band convince me that they will be done in a few weeks and figured we would have ample time — of course, that wasn’t the case. I actually just got the master last week, the tour starts in a week, and the release is less than a month away. Needless to say, we have our work cut out for us. We are faced with almost no time to get everything in order and very little money since this timeframe leaves us no time to raise the the kind of cash normally required to properly put a record out. Nonetheless, I feel this is a great tutorial since I know that many DIY bands and indie labels are forced into this situation from time to time.
1. Situation analysis / rough planning
After a few listens through the record, we established that there are not really any tracks that would fit commercial radio. From there, we decided the focus should be on short lead press, CBC radio (the Canadian staple!) and college radio. Due to our tight budget, the focus is on finding a firm that can bundle press, CBC, and college radio at a budget rate. A cross country release tour has been booked for some time, so we know we will have the band in all of the major markets nationally. Between the band and Company House, we have a few clever social media folks. We will be making the best use of social strategy possible. This includes a bunch of live footage and other random ridiculous video footage that we will attempt to package into some form of content. Another bonus is the band has someone going on the road with them to take pictures and video. This will help ensure there will be loads of new content throughout the tour.
The band already has a fan base. They have been touring for a few years and this is their second record. Combined with nearly 3,000 fans on Facebook and over 1,400 followers on Twitter, we have some great stuff to work with. In addition, the band has an fan mailing list with over 2,000 people. We will certainly embrace all of these networks of people to spread the word about the release and tour. The record is a different sound than the last record. This could work to the band’s advantage or disadvantage. Assumably there will be people that will not like the shift in style, and others that will connect better than they did with the last recording. Either way, it is safe to say that the record, for better or for worse, could be outside of the current fan-base’s expectations.
I recommend making use of the SWOT analysis in mostly all of these situations. Though it seems like just a weird thing they used to teach you in school, it truly is a great way to understand a situation. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. The first 2, strengths and weaknesses, pertain to internal conditions, whereas opportunities and threats are primarily external. This is what it looks like based on our working example:
Strengths:
- Great record
- Established national fan-base
- Relatively effective team
- Strong National tour
- Significant email list, Facebook and Twitter followers
Weaknesses:
- Long time since last release
- Very short timeframe to create release hype
- Band and label have very little cash to invest in the release
- Band will be on the road during the release which will make release business challenging
Opportunities:
- High potential with current market situation, track record and connections to land valuable licensing placements, which could solve the cash issue and provide additional exposure for the album
- Tour could do better than anticipated, fuelling more revenue to the release project
- CBC radio 3 and college radio could both chart the record nationally which would positively affect ticket sales, album downloads and press uptake
- The change of the band’s sound and style could attract a new audience that was previously less interested in the band
Threats:
- Tour could not turn around as much anticipated revenue, which would further reduce release budget and could adversely effect band morale
- Press, radio and fan-base could react negatively to the recording and the band’s change of style
I recommend the SWOT analysis mostly because I feel that it is essential before starting to develop a plan/team/release strategy. Everyone needs to share information and be intimately aware of the current situation. The plan can then be assembled taking advantage of the positive elements and creating strategies to mitigate the negative risks associated with the current situation.
2. Assembling a team and assigning responsibility
With the tight budget we have decided to go with an affordable press company that also services college and CBC radio. Someone from the label is going to work with one of the band members to deliver a social media campaign and make use of the photographer/videographer who will be doing the tour with the band. There should be an overall project leader designated. The distributer will help get some in-store performances and encourage the stores (what little are still left) to order the recording. Here is an example of a breakdown of our team and their responsibilities:
Label (Company House Records team):
- Project leader
- Build marketing plans
- Head meetings
- Raise money
- Lead placement pitching in US and UK markets
- Help the band optimize blog posts for SEO
- Keep track of online activity
- Assist band with social media campaign
The Band (The Tom Fun Orchestra):
- Tour management and tech
- Managing money
- Creative design
- Conduct press interviews
- Video content
Tour Photographer / Videographer:
- Road pics and video
- Posting pics and video online
- Help with social media
PR & Radio Agent:
- National press
- CBC and college radio
Distribution (EMI Music Canada):
- Head up retail
- Make music available digitally (iTunes, etc.)
3. Weekly team meeting schedule
A weekly meeting is key to keeping everyone on the same page. In our case, everyone is spread across Canada so not able to meet together in person. Skype is our tool of choice! The meetings always have an agenda which is distributed days before the meeting. This way everyone can prepare for the conversation. Additionally, all supporting documents are circulated with the agenda. With everyone well prepared for the meeting we are able to get the job done within 15-20 minutes, so that no time is wasted. Remember, 8 people meeting for 15 minutes is 2 hours of work that is not getting done, so even though meetings are important, it is also necessary to be organized, well prepared and efficient.
4. Team meeting #1 – Refine the plan
Give 40 minutes or so for the first meeting as this will be an introduction of everyone and their roles and a walk through the rough plan with the objective of defining a detailed plan and timeline. The rough plan is used as a guide and a tool to get everyone onboard, but now you should take advantage of these people and tweak the plan out to make the best use of resources. Everyone is part of the plan and it is important that everyone knows their roles, as well as the roles of others. It is critical that shortly after this meeting, a final plan is circulated around to the team so everyone can have a read. One of the key parts is the timeline. This timeline has everything that is going to happen during the project with details on who is responsible. For this we actually use Marcato Musician’s calendar and tasks modules to create every event with automated reminders programmed to keep everyone on point. Every member of the team gets a login to Marcato Musician, where they can all see and subscribe to the timeline, as well as be informed of any deviations from the plan in real time. If someone fails to do their part, it quickly becomes apparent to the rest of the team.
We also use Marcato Musician for communicating all press, radio or other achievements. Here we simply create a message thread, add the entire team and give everyone access to post stuff. As things happen that are relevant to the release, we post them in the thread. Everyone on the team will get an update. These updates are great at keeping everyone up to speed, but also they are great motivators. For example, as the band gets press and radio, the morale goes up and people get excited. As people get more excited, the project will pick up pace. The excitement tends to engage people more deeply into the project and the snowball effect starts to take place. Radio success will encourage press success, which will encourage social medial activity and so on. Since the team is checking off their action items in Marcato and posting successes and project updates in the message thread, the weekly meetings become less about “what happened in the last week” and more about how are we going to pick up velocity this week. It’s also great after the release to have a running list of your achievements to refer to if necessary.
5. Roll out the plan
Keep working on your release and keep track of everything that is going on. As the time goes by you may find processes that need revision. That comes with the territory. Keep on truckin’!
So there you have it! In under 2 weeks we have built a team, put together a plan and have devised a process for the team to collaborate efficiently and effectively. Now, this is not that much different than how I would manage a release with significant budget and much more time, however without those things, this technique may be one of our most valuable assets to this campaign. As for the plan itself, this depends on your budget, musical genre, current level of success and the countries or territories in which you are releasing. Because of these factors I tried to stay away from strategies and focus primarily on management. Managing and delivering a strategy can be much more challenging than coming up with great ideas and plans. This approach forces you to include the entire team in the building of the strategy and track progress as the project progresses. If you stick to this method, you will make the most of your resources and you will be made aware of any problems before it’s too late.
Click here to check out a free track from Tom Fun. If you have any ideas on how we can share this project with the world, please let us know!
Thanks,
Darren
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Featured Artist: Sprag Session
The latest Marcato-powered artist to be featured on our blog is the Cape Breton-based Celtic powerhouse, Sprag Session.
Sprag Session, formerly Colin Grant Band, has developed a unique style and repertoire of music. Lingering somewhere amidst the rich, soulful roots of traditional Cape Breton music and the grooves of a thousand branches of rock and funk, Colin Grant embarks on his latest project: a dynamic and thoughtful mingling of beats and melodies from an extensive host of musical influences. Far from the awkward malaise of mohawked bagpipers and kilted punks, the Sprag Session has created a kind of Celtic fusion that is as much Béla Fleck and the Flecktones and Frank Zappa as it is Ashley MacIsaac.
Check out this great live video of their tune, ’S nice-a-tron:
Sprag Session are performing this weekend as part of the Celtic Colours International Festival. You can find out more about their showcases on their Celtic Colours profile page.
Tom Fun Orchestra releases new single!
Marcato Musician client The Tom Fun Orchestra just released a new single off their upcoming album “Earthworm Heart”. You can stream the single on Soundcloud. Fans have been anxiously awaiting this 2nd album from the band which is set to release in late October or early November 2012.
And if that’s not enough, check out their music video for “Bottom Of the River”. This is from the last release You Will Land With a Thud. It was nominated as Best Animation in a Video for the 2009 UK Music Video Awards.
Client Album Releases This Week!
This week we have four of our amazing Musician clients releasing new albums. Congratulations to Jenn Grant, Tim Chaisson, Mo Kenney and Charlie A’Court. We’re so excited for them (and for the new material to listen to!). We know what an exciting and stressful time this can be in an artists career. Just remember to stay organized and enjoy the ride. Check out their info below:
Jenn Grant – The Beautiful Wild
The Beautiful Wild is Jenn’s 3rd album released by label Six Shooter Records. This album is said to be a depart in style from previous record “Honeymoon Punch” and captures a more dense, exotic sound from the singer. The album reflects finding the courage to lose oneself in the wilderness, in all of its savage and sublime experiences. Get it here.
Tim Chaisson – The Other Side
25 year old Tim Chaisson is a singer-songwriter from Prince Edward Island. His latest album “The Other Side” was recorded at Woodshed Studio in Toronto (operated by Blue Rodeo) and produced by Colin Linden (Bruce Cockburn, Blackie & the Rodeo Kings). The album is said to blends Maritime roots and folk music with a lush yet minimal arrangement creating a heartfelt listening experience. Interested? Buy the album here.
Charlie A’court – Triumph & Disaster
A Rudyard Kipling poem stems the inspiration for the release of Charlie’s much anticipated 4th album, ‘Triumph & Disaster’. Charlie is an amazing and electric performer. If you are looking for a blend of blues, soul and folk then this album is for you. Charlie hopes to reflect with this album that balance is the best approach to life. We completely agree. Buy it here.
Mo Kenney – Mo Kenney
This is Mo Kenney’s debut release. She’s been making waves on the East Coast for the last year or more under the direction of the East Coast’s finest, Joel Plaskett. Mo’s style is fresh and takes influence from classic and alternative rock and combines it with her pop-y singer/songwriter style. We think you’ll enjoy so give it a listen. Buy it now!
Feature Overview – Marcato Musician EPK
Ready to set up, or edit your EPK? Looking for a tool to provide prospective buyers, agents, or press contacts your most up to date bio, contacts, photos, MP3′s, videos and more? Check out this video to see how quick and easy it is to create a professional and customized Marcato Musican EPK.
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Play Fore Kids YMCA Fundraiser
Last week Darren, Laird and Adam had the pleasure of joining Innovacorp‘s Bob Pelley in a round of golf at the beautiful Lakes Golf Club in support of our local YMCA. While this sounds like any normal fundraiser, for the Marcato team it was special. Not only were they having fun and help raise money for kids, they were also swinging golf clubs for the very first time (or in Laird’s case, quite a long while)! The guys had so much fun, and came home with lots of funny stories. Check out some the pictures of the spiffy team and beautiful scenery (Cape Breton is one of the greatest golf destinations in the world!).
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