Tagged: indielabels

I spoke yesterday with the founders of Drip.fm, the platform that's powering Stones Throw Records' new digital subscription service . Sam Valenti IV , who founded Ghostly International , and Miguel Senquiz , Ghostly's head of product development and digital strategy, created Drip.fm as music fans who run their own label. Now they're gradually opening Drip.fm to other labels to feed superfans with an ongoing stream of digital releases. Sam Valenti IV [...]

The Civil Wars , with Grammy nominations in Best Country Duo/Group Performance and Best Folk Album , are an indie success story built on live performance, social media and music licensing. The February debut of their first album, Barton Hollow , gave them a #1 on Billboard's Digital Albums chart and the CD is currently #73 on Amazon's Top 100 in Music a year later. But even without the Grammy nomination, which obviously boosted album sales, The Civil Wars show you can do well by combining what are now well-established approaches to marketing and revenue generation. [...]

A variety of record albums related to the Occupy Movement are set for release including "Occupy This Album " from Music For Occupy with a star-studded list of participants, "Folk the Banks" from the newly formed Occupation Records in London and media claims that Bruce Springsteen's newest work is the voice of the movement though the songs were mostly written before it existed. These releases could bring renewed attention to a movement which has lost much of its early hold on the [...]

A 16 second promotional clip for the latest release by Matador Records act Perfume Genius , that includes two men in a PG-13 embrace, has been rejected by Google and YouTube . Both men are clothed from the waste down as Perfume Genius' Mike Hadreas embraces porn star Arpad Miklos. But Google rejected based on their policy on "Adult Image/Video Content" : Any ads that contain non family safe material are disapproved. I noted to the team that the people in the video are [...]

It's not just the RIAA and big music companies that support SOPA. In another example of the divisions within the music and media industries over proposed anti-piracy legislation and today's anti-SOPA protests, the American Association Of Independent Musi c (A2IM) today offered this statement: "T oday a number of websites are shutting down in protest of proposed anti-piracy legislation. They are taking a unilateral action to make their content unavailable. However, under current law, A2IM members whose copyrights are infringed upon cannot take similar action. [...]

Read this piece late last night on my phone before bed and dreamt about stacks of vinyls as tall as the sky. But seriously, I repost this in full because Captured Tracks ' founder Mike Sniper 's got some great, eloquent points here. I think this a valuable, must-read piece for all music nerds, especially jerks like me who do dumb stuff like start our own labels . mikesniper : I posted a recent Facebook comment regarding our policies with signing artists and found myself getting into [...]

Overall U.S. music sales rose 6.9% in 2011, as album sales increased for the first time since 2004, according to Soundscan. Digital powered the increase, with sales of album downloads up 19.5% over 2010. But for all the talk here and elsewhere about the ascendancy of independent music, indies accounted for just 12.1% of U.S. music sales last year. Here's how independents did alongside the 4, or if the sale of EMI to UMG passes regulators, 3 major label groups: % Of U.S. Music Sales In 2011 [...]

Atlanta-based indie rock group Manchester Orchestra has launched a unique and interactive fan experience for their song, "Virgin" - a track that's been described by as "a song to the fans" by the band. In the spirit of the song's lyrical content, the band has created a campaign for fans to have their voices heard … literally. The project allows fans to sing the chorus from the song "Virgin" from their computer and automatically upload to it SoundCloud. From there, they're able to create their [...]

Though getting " big in Japan " was once considered the province of obscure or outdated rock bands, a variety of artists are finding support for their music in Japan as they build their careers. For example, jazz singer Michelle Shaprow's first release was on a Japanese label, P-Vine , that began a process of partnering with labels in other countries. Rallye Label has also been releasing Western acts focused on pop rock and electronica based on the taste and interests of label owner Fumi Chikakoshi . [...]

The Parlotones are a pop rock band that have exceeded all expectations in their native South Africa and are now seeking a global audience with a special focus on the U.S. Manager Raphael Domalik has been working with The Parlotones in a unique business arrangement in which the investors own the overall company and the band is paid a salary as employees. They're also taking a very thorough approach to marketing and monetizing their brand both on and offline. I recently talked with Raphael Domalik who [...]

Musicians have been using the web to amplify and extend their careers in a variety of ways. One still emerging solution is to create digital archives with content ranging from copies of old newspaper clippings to recordings of live concerts. Recently both the Rolling Stones and Fugazi opened online archives with quite different approaches to content and access that reflect their respective approaches to the business of music . I feel stuck in cliches comparing the Rolling Stones , titans of rebellious corporate rock, [...]

The Association of Independent Music is a trade organization established in 1999 that represents all levels of the UK's indie music industry from individuals to large labels. Though AIM does focus on the UK, they also produce material of use to folks in the States, for example, The AIM Journal that currently appears twice a year with articles of interest to any business-oriented indie artist. The Autumn 2011 issue of The AIM Journal was recently released and it's available as a free download as are previous [...]

A bill that was recently passed by the House of Representatives opens up the possibility of music startups raising $1 to $2 million annually via social media and crowdfunding platforms without having to meet costly registration requirements. This bill would allow for investments by small fry, who are currently shut out of such opportunities, and provide much needed funds to music businesses that can't attract venture capital or wealthy individual investors due to current funding trends. Rep. Patrick McHenry [R-NC10] introduced the [...]

Every day, Daily Downloads offers 10 free and legal mp3 downloads, plus free and legal live sets from around the internet. Today's free and legal mp3 downloads: Various Artists : free and legal 23-track 23 This Year: The Sub Pop Sampler album [mp3] Various Artists : free and legal 7-track Bloodshot Records: Fun For All Ages Sampler album [mp3] Various [...]

This guest post is by Bob Baker of www.TheBuzzFactor.com Since 2006, hip-hop artist MC Lars has been a poster boy for indie music success and the DIY work ethic. After a short-lived relationship with Terry McBride and the Canadian record label/management company Nettwerk five years ago, Lars formed his own label, Horris Records. Since then, he has taken his self-described "post-punk laptop rap" and delivered it to a target audience he calls the [...]

Last week, media blog TechDirt launched a new message board designed to pool the ideas and experiences of musicians, filmmakers, and writers experimenting with new ways to monetize and support their work. Additionally, TechDirt founder Mike Masnick is offering $10,000 to those who submit the best case studies and/or experiences they've had in building alternative business models. "In thinking about this, we realized that what's really missing out there is a true community to help people figure this stuff out," Masnick said. "There's really no great place for a content creator [...]

UK indie music trade group AIM has announced the 2011 Independent Music Award nominees "after careful deliberation from our esteemed judging panel and public voting which saw more than 14,000 people register their votes". The winners will be announced at aceremony on November 10th. Two winners have already been chosen by the judging panel: PIONEER AWARD: LAURENCE BELL, DOMINO RECORDING COMPANY OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO MUSIC: BJÖRK In association with [...]

Community building doesn't only happen on Facebook , and a new indie music discovery site founded by Bill Armstrong of Side One Dummy hopes to build a community of indie music fans more tied to the creators than to Mark Zuckerberg. To help make that happen, Armstrong assembled a unique partnership of 30 top independent music labels to launch TheNewRecord.com . The site is designed as a digital newsstand offering a free filtered environment to play and download new songs weeks in advance of release. Anti-, Sub [...]

Scion A/V's artist list for 2011/2012 is a big one with releases due from punk/metal trailblazers The Melvins , DAM Funk , the Ambassador of Boogie Funk, A-Trak and Steve Aoki ! But they're also stepping up their game with more support for the artists from production to marketing to touring. Scion A/V recently announced their 2011/2012 roster as well as their plans to take their game to a higher level: "Scion A/V...announces today its evolution into full-service music [...]

From the ashes of failed distributor, The Independent Record Collective, three record labels - Frontier Records, Beer City, and Tribunal Records - have launched a new distribution operation for indie labels and bands: Independent Label Distribution (ILD). ILD will handle both physical and digital product and are already handling titles for these indie labels: Adolescents, D.R.I., Les Baxter, Bouncing Souls, Cannabis Corpse, Larry & his Flask, Kill Whitney Dead, August Burns Red, Circle Jerks, MDC, The Dils, Hole, Naked Raygun, Rocket From The Crypt, [...]