Tips and Tricks on the Music Industry

1. Great music
2. Great live performance
3. Roaming sales people with baskets of CDs
4. Sellers hold up product DURING the show
5. Sellers blend in an interact with the show
6. Reward sales people with commission
7. Set up sales table for venues
8. Encourage friendly sales competition
9. More people to sell for larger crowds, enjoy 'ripple effect'
10. Take business cards to gigs and hand out at every opportunity.

In short, this list may not make much sense, but I invite you to read the full article on our new Blog here:

Selling More CD's

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Promo Tip #1: One great way to promote your band is to have your business cards ready to hand out. Many bands consider this a luxury, because printing business cards can be so costly in a shop. VistaPrint allows you to make quality business cards for free, with only shipping cost of under $10.00. I have had cards printed at local shops that charged 4 times that for the same amount of cards.

The online merchant industry in many cases, makes it easy and affordable for many bands to promote themselves in todays world that were not available to us many years ago. We should be taking advantage of what the internet has to offer, while still being cautious beyond belief. VistaPrint is a tried and true company, and offers a wide range to the online purchaser, so consider it when you print your promo cards, stationary, or even have a rubber stamp made with your bands logo.

1. Record your songs during live gigs and pre-production rehearsals. Even a simple cassette recording on a boom box may reveal weak parts of songs that you would waste time finding out in the studio.
2. Have all musical and vocal parts worked out ahead of time. Know what guitar solos you want to use before experimenting at XX dollars an hour.
3. If you are using a computer or a sequencer, prepare all the material before the session.
4. If you need to use a click track at the session, be sure your drummer has gotten comfortable with it before hand if possible. He can get some light rehearsal by practicing with one at a very slow tempo.
5. Rehearse more songs than you plan to record. If you plan to make a 3 song demo at your session, prepare 5 songs just in case. You may decide midstream that one of the 3 that you originally chose does not as sound as strong on the final tape as one of your alternatives.
6. Take care of yourself before and during your session times. Be sure to eat well, get enough sleep (no partying till dawn) and keep your ears as rested and clear as possible.

Now that you have prepared yourself in advance, and you have booked the session time, these tips will help you in setting up in the studio.

1. Be on time or early. You may be charged for the time booked whether you have gotten there or not.
2. Make your studio experience as relaxed and comfortable as possible. Bring snacks to keep your energy up, and beverages to keep you hydrated. If your not comfortable, this will show in the work that you do.
3. Go over your songs with the engineer before recording, be sure you both see the same goal.
4. Depending on the tracking capability of the studio you are using, plan out how you will leave room for the essential parts. This preparation will simplify the mix and eliminate the need for bouncing tracks later.
5. Equip yourself with new strings, drum sticks and heads, cords etc. Be sure to bring extras. Find out hours if operation for local music stores just in case.
6. Stick to using gear you are familiar with, and refrain from equipment you have not used before even if it is better than what you have. These kinds of surprises can cause problems for you in the session.

....To Be Continued........

Now let's talk a bit about the recording process itself.

1. Remember that it's emotion and feeling that make up a song, not necessarily the best technical rendition.
2. If you mess up a part during recording, don't stop and start over. That can cause burnout and frustration, not to mention wasting time. Have the enginerr punch in the corrections.
3. You don't have to fill up all the tracks on the tape. Don't try to force something that doesn't fit.
4. Keep the focus of your music in mind. If it's the vocals, plan to spend the most tome on them. Don't waste time on things that don't highlight the focal point.
5. Get the sound you want while recording. Never assume that you can fix it in the mix.
6. Record individual tracks clean, and add effects later.
7. Try to avoid double tracking everything. Doubling a lead vocal can hide subtleties that make a song personable and likable (although this can work well for a chorus).
8. Know when to quit for the day. If you are really tired, it will show in your work.
9. Keep guests to a limit or out altogether. Guests can distract you and may sway your opinion of how the music should sound.
10. Make back up copies after every recording session.
11. Tune your instruments often.
12. Singers should always bring water but stay away from ice. Ice constricts your vocal chords. Hot tea with lemon and honey works great.
13. Always get a track listing and accurate time log from the studio.

When you are monitoring the mix, listen to your music at moderate levels in your car, or on a boombox. This is how most of your fans will listen to it, and mixing at load levels will fatigue your ears and distort the true sound. Sometimes it's good to take a day off and come back to listen as ears don't last very long in the studio. As you review each mix, make sure you can comfortably hear all the instruments. Tweak the mix on a small pair of speakers at an extremely low volume. You should be able to pick up each instrument even at this level. When you get too tired then quit for awhile. Your better off quiting a session early than wasting time making a bad mix that will have to be redone anyway.