Micheal Bowes - Session Drummer to the stars

Micheal Bowes has been in the business a number of years now, drumming for the likes of Heather Small, Joss Stone and Sid Owen (that's right, Ricky from Eastenders). Here he tells us the highlights of his musical career and some advice on how to get there. 

1. How did you begin your career as a musician?

  I started off drumming in the church, however my first break came when I was up against David Bowie's drummer 'Woody Woodmansey' to do a recording project with a band called B.L.O.W.

2. What would you say were the top 3 things to focus on when building a career in the industry? 

Persistence; Passion; & networking.

3. What has been your highlight in your career so far? 

Performing with Heather Small (M People) at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff for the Tsunami appeal in front of 70,000 people, with live transmission on TV & the Internet. The other was, co-writing a song with Joss Stone, which was later released on her album titled 'Colour Me Free', which went Top 10 in America. The song titled 'Incredible' was later used on the American film 'Morning Glory' starring Harrison Ford. The film was released at the Cinemas in the Uk & America, then later released on DVD & later broadcasted on SKY. I can't choose between these two as they both gave me such an amazing exhilaration & buzz.

4. What advice would you give to a young musician today?

  My advice would be, "an amateur practices until they get it right. A professional practices until they can't get it wrong".

Mel Brown Impressive PR

Mel Brown- Impressive PR




Mel Brown is the founder and owner of Entertainment based PR company 'Impressive PR'. Her company covers industries such as Music, Comedy, Theatre and other large events such as Edinburgh Festival! The company has a roster of artist's such as Snow Patrol, Coldplay and the giants that are Muse! So here's what Mel has to say on to get your band's name out...

As the founder of a very successful PR company (Impressive PR), could you please describe to me what exactly you do to help artists with their careers in the music industry? 

Not all PR companies are the same as ours. We can offer advice at a very early stage - which could be - you are not ready to be placed in the media!  Or it could be that we help to get the image right.  We come up with a strategy - this is bespoke to the band and then once this is agreed implement the campaign.  We are the people who get you coverage in the press and online via our contacts.  Obviously the music has to be good too!

How important do you feel PR is to the success of a musician/artist in today's industry? 

Massively key without this how are the public going to know who you are?

If there is one piece of advice you could give to an up and coming musician/artist what would it be and why?  

Don't put out any music until you are really ready - ideally you will have a good /experienced manager and team around you 

What is the most common mistake you see in a majority of musicians today that impede them in their progress to achieve their full potential in the industry? 

Putting out music when you are not ready!

How often do you think a band/artist should be rehearsing on a weekly basis to stand a chance of competing on a performance level, with other professional working bands in the industry?

If you are committed ideally every day! 

Interview with James Scott

Interview with James Scott from Out Like a Lion 

A bath based indie band, who's first gig was to support the fiery Florence and the Machine! These boys have played the Introducing stage at Glastonbury festival, Won Chris Moyles New unsigned music competition on Radio 1, supported Example and all this in the space of two years and without even releasing their debut album! Not to mention the fact they are part of 'The Agency Group'! They sure are Busy, but how did it all start for their guitarist james, we had a little chat to find out.... 

 Whats your background in music.

When I was about 8 years old I stood up on the kitchen table and played along to Chris de Burgh on my fathers tennis racket. It wasn't long after I learnt "Wild Thing" on an old spanish guitar. My mother took my to Glastonbury in 1999 (I think that's what did it.) I got an electric guitar for christmas and started a band with a friend. We filled up several 90 minute tapes worth of jams and since then I can't remember a time when I wasn't thinking about writing music.

 What makes you want to work in the music industry as a musican?

I just love writing music. In my world there is nothing more exciting than the possibilities that occur every time you pick up your instrument. Also, away from the creative side, the music industry works in a way that suits me. What I mean is, I would hate to work in a prison cell of office dry walls for a company I didn't care for. For me, there is something electric about music; even music associated offices have a relaxed environment.

How did you manage to be played on chris moyles show on radio 1?

When we started this band we were lucky to gain support from BBC Introducing. They actually gave us our first show and since then we have kept good ties. We received an email discussing the 'Chris Moyles competition' and we were asked to submit a track. At the the time all this was happening we were in the middle of recording new material in London. We saw the competition as such gift of an opportunity but we were not confident in the music that we currently had. We were told that there was no way we would have the new songs finished in time so I got the files off the computer at the studio and stayed up all night and mixed the song myself. We managed to get it in just inside the deadline and the song went on to win the competition.

How did you get yourself onto the largest booking agency in the UK/USA (the agency group)?

After the success of being on the Radio One playlist we started to get a lot more emails (which is nice). It was a very exciting time going back and forth to London to have meetings about our band. We met with management companies, lawyers, press agents, radio pluggers, photographers, producers. It was my first insight into the 'behind the scenes' of the industry. Some people even travelled all the way to Bath to meet us. All of this made us feel like we must be doing something right. We got a call to come up to the Agency Group's offices in London and we discussed what they could do for us. I like to know every little thing about what's going on regarding my band, so when I looked up the Agency Group and saw their credentials I couldn't believe the roster. It all happened very fast but not in a "don't make any rash decisions" way, just like with finding our mangers, lawyer and everyone else that make a band work we just liked the people. We said that we wanted the business side of our band to feel like a family and it does.

What advice would you give a young musician today? 

Don't have any boundaries, not just in music but in life as well. 
Don't just listen to one genre of music.
Don't just listen to a band because your friends say "their cool"
Don't be Lazy.
Don't loose sight of what you're doing.
Don't let girls get in the way of music.


Do what you love.
Work harder than everyone else.
Have fun.
Don't be a dick.

The best advice I could give is to create something real, something that's yours. People will see straight through you if there's no substance or meaning. We refer to this as "weight" in our band. ie. "I think that chorus holds a lot of weight." Heavy things move you. People like to be moved by music.

An Interview with Rob Shaw

Rob Shaw - drummer

Rob is one of those guys who is never short of a gig and is always popping up on tv shows and sessions… So we needed to find out just how he manages it. We caught up with him to pick his brain.

Tell us about The X Factor performances this year.

I got the gig the first time around through a guy that I'd met on an audition a few years back. It’s always a good idea to stay in touch with anyone in the industry and it turned out he was doing some fixing. I saw a status on his facebook asking for drummers so I was straight on the case and luckily I manage to do two shows of the last season because of it.

Hang on, you got to play on the biggest TV show in the UK from a facebook status? 

It sounds simple, but I knew the guy from before and it was more a case of calling out to his musician contacts all at once. Opportunities can come from anywhere and you have to be prepared to follow up any potential lead for work.

What was it like working on such a massive show?

It’s great! There is a lot going on though so you have to make sure when your a small part in the whole thing that you nail it first time. There are only ever two or three run throughs of a contestants tune and that includes the live show. Because the show is so big there can be a lot of waiting around but this is a great opportunity to make contacts and meet some top industry players.

“when other people around you give up, just keep pressing forward because none of it will come easily and you have to be determined to succeed.” – Rob Shaw

You recently played for Jennifer Hudson’s UK promo. How was that?

I got a call very last minute to perform 5 tv slots in 4 days, they cram it all in as she wasn’t in the country for long. The shows were The Graham Norton show, The Alan Titchmarsh Show, So You Think You Can Dance, Daybreak and a couple of pop outs for Channel 4. 

Sounds like the perfect week for a musician…

Well it wasn’t all glamour, Daybreak was on so early that the driver was due to pick me up at 5am and as I’m from Brighton I had to provide a London postcode. I borrowed a mates address but as he was away, I slept in my car in an alley in S London… Didn’t sleep much but obviously it was worth it.

What advice would you give to musicians looking to get into TV work?

Do your research and be relentless. Find out who the fixers for tv are and contact them with good pictures and a concise CV. Then just make sure you check in with them and try to get on their radar a bit. This doesn't mean you will get any TV as it is hugely competitive and the fixers always have their main guys that have done hundreds of TVs who the fixers trust way more. Your goal is to make them aware of you and hopefully when the opportunity arises make sure that you get the job done. The main thing to remember is that you are competing against 1st rate professionals who have spent years getting to where they are and they won't give up jobs without a fight. It's not easy but if you do get called to do it, you will enjoy it so much and the hard work that you put in will all be completely worth it.

Big thanks to Rob for the advice and insight into tv work.

Earning that dollar!

So you wanna earn some spondoolies playing music huh??

So to start you off here is my 5 top tips you need to consider when looking to build a career in music.

1 – LEARN TO PLAY

Get on YouTube and check out the leading players in your instrument, this is the standard you should always be aiming for. There is no point competing with a local player if you’re going to compete you need to be competing with the biggest players in your field in the world.

2 – PLAY EVERYWHERE

It’s all very well practicing in your bedroom, but the real experience is out there gigging as much as possible. A lot of musicians think they should be paid from the word go, however the reality is you need to be doing a couple of hundred gigs in originals and covers bands learning about gigging and most importantly enjoying it!

3 – TAKE EVERY OPPORTUNITY AVALIABLE

Something that musicians tend to be very bad at! Take every opportunity available whether it’s paid or not. Even just playing on a mates demo can be a great opportunity to gain experience and you never know what is awaiting in the future.

4 – GO THE EXTRA MILE

Can you sing? How about doing BV’s? 

Can you drive? How are you going to get to gigs? 

Have you good industry standard, versatile equipment? Can your gear provide for stadium gigs, the little pub down the road, studio, pop, metal, jazz? 

5 – “ON TIME, IN TUNE”

My all time favorite rule! In a nutshell do you look the part, are you on time, act professional and are you prepared? Keep in a mind a professional, friendly attitude too as no band is going to want to take you on tour if you’re going to be a pain to live with. Remember the people you meet on the way up are definitely the people you meet on the way down!

STAND OUT:

What makes a musician stand out to me is 100% attitude! I generally assume that when a musician comes to me for advice or looking for work that they are already at a high standard of playing so I tend to pay more attention to their attitude than their playing ability. Keep in mind first impressions too, I know it sounds simple but turning up early having learnt the part to the highest possible standard and wearing relative clothing is key. The amount of musicians who fail at the first hurdle by turning up late, not knowing the track properly, in a superman t-shirt full of excuses is astonishing. 

DON’T BE A REBEL:

In my opinion having a career in the music industry is easy, I’m not saying becoming the next Beyonce, but sustaining a career and earning a living is simple. Yes it’s hard work but it is simple! I feel that where musicians often go wrong is overcomplicating things and not being willing to put in the work. Generally (including myself) musicians have a rebellious streak. Someone who says, “I don’t want the normal 9-5 job” generally has a rebellious nature and this is when they often fall down as they end up rebelling against their own career by not wanting to get out of bed at 8 or having a controversial image because they don’t want to wear the suit and tie. 

So my advice is keep it simple. Look the part, act the part, make sure you have outstanding time keeping and know your stuff!

Written by Damian Keyes, founder of DK Music Management

Scott actually going through one of his practise routines...take a look!! http://scottsbasslessons.com/what-in-my-practice-routine

This guy's an awesome bass player and has a great way of approaching practising, check it out!!..http://scottsbasslessons.com/how-to-approach-practicing

How to get more gigs

Your 5 essentials to getting more gigs 

Over the past 15 years I have had thousands of meetings and tutorials with musicians as students, acquaintances and friends. There is never a week goes past without musicians emailing or messaging me asking me for advice on getting more work and gigs. Unless you are Vinnie Colaiuta or Nathan East you're probably thinking the same.

How do I get more gigs and improve the quality of gigs that I do get?

So here are my 5 best bits of advice for you.

1.     Driving – Do you drive? Do you have a car? If not, then you are seriously cutting yourself off from gigs. Musicians tell me every day that they don’t need to drive as they live in Brighton, London or Manchester. An awesome plan apart from one minor detail…. that’s bullshit! If you are reading this, wanting more gigs and you don't have a car then you do the maths.

2.     Promotion – At DK Music Management we receive CVs every day from all over the country and the world. We read every single one and very few musicians get it anywhere near right.

a.     Do you have a photo of yourself? Do you have a photo that will inspire confidence about you and your playing?

b.     Do you have audio clips which demonstrate your standard? Preferably not your old, original band’s album.

c.      Do you have any footage of yourself playing/performing?

                                                             d.      A website which shows you off as a musician?

 If you don’t have all of these, you are missing out. A website can give a great 1^st impression of you to anyone looking for a player. Even better, you can get it all done for next to no money! 

3.     Gigging - How many times per week are you gigging? I don't mean pretend gigging, rehearsing an original band, playing Guitar Hero or karaoke. I mean actually gigging? For argument sake, let’s say you are averaging 2 gigs a week which are some covers gigs, original band gigs and open mic nights etc. That is great but you are missing out on 5 days a week of gaining experience, meeting people, and all the other important things that come with gigging. Why are you missing out on those gigs? What about pub gigs? open mic nights, playing for local singer songwriters, churches and playing for local schools etc etc.

4.    How employable are you? Do you sing lead or BV’s? How far out of town do you live? How is your time keeping? Do you learn songs exactly to the recording? Can you set up PAs and help with sound? How available are you through the week? etc etc. 

5.    Your look? Yes, I know it’s not politically correct but tough! If you want to be in a boy band, beards are out. If you want to be in a rock band then you can't wear croc shoes! Sounds obvious but too many musicians look like students and we don’t want that look in our bands. Whether you're into Motley Crue or Bob Marley, you have to look the part. Bob Marley, as far as I can remember, never wore a Superman T-shirt!

Over the next few weeks and months we will go through a lot of this stuff in more detail; from buying the right gear, pricing your time, how to network successfully, to the art of depping. I hope this has given you a few ideas. Remember, it’s about incremental steps closer and not jumping out of music college onto a world tour.

If you are a musician looking for work and up and coming auditions check out www.DKmanagement.co.uk. You will find jobs posted and more helpful information.

Over the past 15 years I have had thousands of meetings and tutorials with musicians as students, acquaintances and friends. There is never a week goes past without musicians emailing or messaging me asking me for advice on getting more work and gigs. Unless you are Vinnie Colaiuta or Nathan East you're probably thinking the same.

How do I get more gigs and improve the quality of gigs that I do get?

So here are my 5 best bits of advice for you.

1.     Driving – Do you drive? Do you have a car? If not, then you are seriously cutting yourself off from gigs. Musicians tell me every day that they don’t need to drive as they live in Brighton, London or Manchester. An awesome plan apart from one minor detail…. that’s bullshit! If you are reading this, wanting more gigs and you don't have a car then you do the maths.

2.     Promotion – At DK Music Management we receive CVs every day from all over the country and the world. We read every single one and very few musicians get it anywhere near right.

a.     Do you have a photo of yourself? Do you have a photo that will inspire confidence about you and your playing?

b.     Do you have audio clips which demonstrate your standard? Preferably not your old, original band’s album.

c.      Do you have any footage of yourself playing/performing?

d.      A website which shows you off as a musician?

If you don’t have all of these, you are missing out. A website can give a great 1^st impression of you to anyone looking for a player. Even better, you can get it all done for next to no money! 

3.     Gigging - How many times per week are you gigging? I don't mean pretend gigging, rehearsing an original band, playing Guitar Hero or karaoke. I mean actually gigging? For argument sake, let’s say you are averaging 2 gigs a week which are some covers gigs, original band gigs and open mic nights etc. That is great but you are missing out on 5 days a week of gaining experience, meeting people, and all the other important things that come with gigging. Why are you missing out on those gigs? What about pub gigs? open mic nights, playing for local singer songwriters, churches and playing for local schools etc etc.

4.    How employable are you? Do you sing lead or BV’s? How far out of town do you live? How is your time keeping? Do you learn songs exactly to the recording? Can you set up PAs and help with sound? How available are you through the week? etc etc. 

5.    Your look? Yes, I know it’s not politically correct but tough! If you want to be in a boy band, beards are out. If you want to be in a rock band then you can't wear croc shoes! Sounds obvious but too many musicians look like students and we don’t want that look in our bands. Whether you're into Motley Crue or Bob Marley, you have to look the part. Bob Marley, as far as I can remember, never wore a Superman T-shirt!

Over the next few weeks and months we will go through a lot of this stuff in more detail; from buying the right gear, pricing your time, how to network successfully, to the art of depping. I hope this has given you a few ideas. Remember, it’s about incremental steps closer and not jumping out of music college onto a world tour.

If you are a musician looking for work and up and coming auditions check out www.DKmanagement.co.uk. You will find jobs posted and more helpful information.

Do it Properly!

Demo yourself properly

Hey Hey Hey Monkeys!

I’m pretty sure as a musician you will be looking and thinking about your next gig and how you will get it. So you are looking for that gig….. But is that gig looking for you? You need these gigs to be sniffing you out like a dog around  a smelly bum crack!

This is a video of a drummer who started putting up some clips online of his playing. Not only has he had a million hits on his youtube from all over the world but has landed some serious sessions…. And with marketing like this why wouldn’t he? 

http://www.youtube.com/user/FedeRabaquino

NB – notice even the dodgy mullet hasn’t stopped him!

What I love about this, is in a world where it is so easy to promote yourself as a musician, how many people do it properly? The answer is very few. We are in an amazing time for guerrilla marketing and promoting yourself as a musician. With the use of a laptop and an iphone you can really get ahead of the game. 

For me this answers the golden questions:

• Can he play? 
• What does he look like? A mullety European but acceptable
• Would I want to be stuck in a van with him? 
• Can I trust him to learn the stuff properly?

I would answer yes to all of those questions, he looks like a laugh, he can obviously play (and I don’t mind him over playing at times to demonstrate his chops) and he doesn’t look like he shops at Matalan!

Don’t forget one video like this can get you an opportunity to audition or perform somewhere or with someone cool and that can be the difference between a career and not having a career.

Now check out this video to compare how not to promote yourself. I think after the 1^st minute he actually has a stroke but continues on anyway…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_0ZNho_kuE&feature=related

Now go and put a video together to promote yourself. If you are a singer or guitarist maybe find a backing track to play over. And if by chance you are the axe murderer in the 2^nd clip ‘keep up the good work’

Skill!

Damo

The Demo!

The relevance of THE DEMO!!

Hey hey hey monkeys!

This week has been another mental week with so many gigs coming through that if I had a stick I would shake it at them! We have also set up a facebook page to keep everyone up to date with auditions and gigs.

We receive several emails a day from musicians asking about work and to audition for one of our new bands we are setting up. I am still amazed at the mistakes people make when trying to get a gig. So today I want to talk about demo’s.

Every week we receive hundreds of demo from musicians looking for work. So many people send us demo’s/myspace of original bands. Your demo needs to reflect the band/company you are trying to impress. If you are in a 70’s prog style band with song names like ‘chocolaty bum hole’ keep it to your fan base!

Ask yourself this?

Is it relevant? Pick the aspect of your playing which you need to show off. I would suggest losing any technical muso aspects unless you are trying to impress a technical metal or jazz band. We want to know if you can play for a living so that means (whether you like it or not) simple music played to the highest standard.

Is it instant? If your demo has a 30 second keyboard intro and you have to explain what to listen to (at 2.06 of the song there is a wicked little bass run) it isn’t doing you any favours. If you are a guitarist why not record ‘Mr Brightside’ by The Killers and show your ability to recreate a tough gtr part and accurate sound, then a blues solo over a backing track. Your demo doesn’t need to be 3 mins long. A minute on each track with 3 tracks would show you off and build excitement. 

Is it a high quality recording? Recording facilities are cheap nowadays, a day in a local studio is going to be around £150-£200 a day and if you work around them you could wangle a cheaper rate. What if you can’t afford a few hundred quid to get a quality demo? Simple don’t be a musician! This is your career we are talking about! Oh yes and NO live demo’s unless the quality is absolutely fantastic.

Do you have to make excuses? As I type this I have just received a drum CV via email full of excuses and reasons why I shouldn’t use him/her. If you have to appologise for not having an appropriate demo (or pics or cv) then make one!

To conclude…..

You may be thinking this is all common sense, however we very rarely receive a demo from a musician that is 100% right. All you want to do is be considered for a job so don’t give them a reason to hire you, give them no reason why they wouldn’t!

Once again I need to reiterate this point - Musicians tell me every day that there isn’t work out there. I can assure you, that is bullshit. There is loads, they just haven’t figured out how to get it yet 

Remember!

A demo will represent you and your playing. 3 x 1 minute clips of the right material, played and recorded well with some attention to detail and you will increase your chance of getting a call back. If you aren’t sure what they want to hear, ask them!

Death to false metal!

A career down Le Crapper!

The tale of the French student who dropped his career down the crapper!

This is a true story about an old student who I will refer to as Pierre (as he was French) because that way I can’t offend Davide if he does read this.

Once upon a time there was a French student called Pierre who always wanted to be a sound engineer and work in a big studio, getting paid to make big records from awesome bands. He had applied for many jobs, and sent his cv to studios all over the country. We sat for a tutorial and he told me that a relatively big studio in London had asked him to go for 3 months work experience doing the grave yard shift in the studio from 9-1am.

AWESOME! I felt like I just watched Rocky VI when Ivan Drago starts to bleed and says ‘He is not human, he is a piece of Iron’ and at the moment I could have punched a dolphin! I told him, this was it… the opportunity that would kick start his whole career. However he then told me that with college and studying, his morning job and travelling to London from Brighton and back (which he would personally have to pay for) he wasn’t sure how he could manage and afford it.

My advice was ‘whatever you do, say yes to the job offer and figure out a way of doing it, whether it means not sleeping or eating for 3 months, or living on someone’s floor. These opportunities don’t come round often.

A few months later I went to the cinema to watch an awesome cinematic adventure, which probably had super hero’s in because they are my favourite. Guess who sheepishly showed me to my seat….. Yep Davide… I mean Pierre. 

After weighing up his options he decided he couldn’t afford to pay for his own work experience and would look for something with more sociable hours. 

If you are serious about a career as a musician in this industry, you have to understand that so does everyone else. So you need to fight for it and take any and every opportunity that presents itself, especially doing the shitty stuff that nobody else wants to do.

Peas

Any resemblance to any French people you see working at Brighton Odeon is purely coincidental …. But say from me.

13 Artists Brighton based booking agents 13 artists hosting a huge amount of renowned acts including The Artic Monkeys, Damien Rice, The Stoned Roses, Paolo Nutini, Athlete and Bloc Party amongst many others….

A  Questionnaire to gain insight into the qualities a booking agency look for in the decision to sign an artist

Industry questions:

1.     What advice would you give to an artist on how to increase their UK fanbase?

Play shows! Hang out after shows to meet people. Talk to other bands and get to know as many people as you possibly can. Being nice to everyone goes a long way – remember your band is only as good as the people who like you!

2.     What are the vital attributes a great band must hold to increase their chances of being successful in the industry?

It varies from band to band. Think about all the great bands throughout history and they are not all the same! Also different people think different bands are great so maybe what people think are great attributes varies as well.

3.     How important do you think it is to a musician’s success, that not only are they a great player and performer, but they also hold an extensive insight to the key roles of industry professionals such as managers, booking agents and record labels?

The most important thing is the band / artist and the music. It’s always good to get advice before working with anyone but the role of a good manager is to take away the stress of being a band / artist so they can concentrate of making music. Ask who anyone approaching you who they work with and it should give you a good idea or whether they are someone who’d be good for you but of course meet them and see what they have to say. The reasons artists have all these people is to give advise to the band and help them achieve what they want to achieve.

Agency questions:

4.     Could you briefly describe the process that your company go through when signing an artist to your roster?

We nearly always approach the artist rather than the other way around. We usually send over a plan for what we hope to achieve for the band in a 12 month period. If the artist agrees with what we’ve sent (sometimes after a few amendments) then we usually move forward working together.

5.     What advise could you give to hard working bands who are trying to get signed to a booking agency?

It’s really important to keep playing shows in your area, be that your town or neighboring towns. Keep working hard, improving your live show and building up a fan base. We book all of our artists all around the world and speak to all the local promoters in every town every week so if your band is good enough they will tell us about you and we will come and find you. Look for the good promoters in town that put on shows that you think you’d musically fit on and start there. In Brighton a good start would be playing for the more established promoters like Melting Vinyl, Lout or One Inch Badge, Sticky Mike’s, Audio or Concorde.

6.     What key elements of a bands performance are evaluated when considering signing them to the agency?

This is very difficult to quantify, as difficult as it sounds it usually comes down to the individual gut feeling of an agent. If you’re in a band you’d want an agent that genuinely likes your band and wants to work hard for you, believes that you can be successful and believe they can add something to help the band achieve this. If the agent gets that feeling when watching a band it’s likely they’ll want to work with you.

7.     What are the main mistakes artists make when approaching booking agents with the intention to get signed?

Concentrate on the local profile of your band. It’s not necessarily the best way to get an agent by approaching one but if you do want to approach us as an agency we get hundreds of requests from new bands looking to work with us every week. The main mistakes are sending really long winded emails about your band because we just don’t have time to read them all – if you’re band is good all we need is the music and a couple of sentences. If we like it and have more questions we’ll ask you. Also don’t send really large files of music that clog up people emails – the best format to send things tends to be as a stream over the interest normally via soundcloud or something similar.

8.     Why is it that a majority of booking agents, are reluctant to sign an artist, if they haven’t already got industry professionals such as management on board?

I don’t believe this to be true; I personally work with several bands where I am the only person who works with the band. The main reason booking agents are ever reluctant to work with anyone is time. We have to give the artists we already work with our time and effort it’s just not possible for us to have rosters of hundreds of bands. In that sense an argument could be made that booking agents would be more likely to work with a band with management as the band would have someone on board to help them with the decision making process which would in theory reduce the time this takes.

9.     Would an agency sign an artist by listening to their music alone or would the determining factor come down to how they perform live?

It would nearly always be how they perform live – as a live booking agent it’s really important for us to know what we are booking. It allows us to do so more effectively.

10.  Even if an artist had a really strong live performance, would the size of their fan base on a social media website play a deciding factor in whether to sign them or not?

No not at all. We believe in the long term careers of our artists if you’ve been a band 6 months and only have 100 fans on facebook for example but we believe the band could have a long and successful career then it doesn’t matter.

11.  From an agencies point of view, if you could state the qualities that the ideal artist would have to ensure an efficient working relationship, what would they be and why?

Loyalty, a hard working honest attitude and a realism on the profile of your band.

Should you be Practicing...?

Auditioning

Auditioning

Hey Hey Hey monkeys!

I’m getting everything ready to go on a little tour for the week but before I go I have some thoughts on auditions. While I was at ACM for 5 years and building BIMM a massive part of my job was auditioning musicians for courses. Now I audition musicians for work (which is a very similar process). 

So what is important when you audition?

Well the answer is of course Everything! It’s judgement day and you are being judged! 

1^st impressions

This is the most important area of an audition. I’m not going to patronize you by saying ‘make sure you turn up on time’ because that’s obvious and only a twat would turn up late to an audition. But the amount of times people walk into an audition and blow it straight away. So here are some examples off the top of my head. The guy who walked in a few weeks ago and said ‘Alright fuckers!’……NEXT. The guy who walked in and said ‘Who’s guitar should I use?’ …. NEXT. The guy who was eating a sandwich when he walked in… NEXT! I’m not kidding! Just walk in and introduce yourself and for the love of god smile.

What you wear is important as people will judge you on it. A quick trip to Topman or ASOS isn’t going to cost you much and will make the difference. TIP: research what they are looking for. I hate it when people turn up in smart clothes or suits which don’t fit properly. If your going to wear a suit pick one that fits and looks cool not like a 70’s weather man!

Tip: I absolutely love it when people say ‘I would love this gig’. It makes them sound excited and enthusiastic, which means they will respect the gig and take it seriously. 

Gear

We will talk a bit more in depth about gear in later emails as it’s the one thing I argue with musicians most about. Here is the brief:

• Guitarists – no multi effects… But why? Simple …. They are shit!
• Is your gear 100% working? Problematic amps, broken strings, leads, pedals, bass drum pedals are time wasters and a pain in the arse so organize everything the night before
• Is your gear industry standard?  This is a big bug bear with musicians who want to be different and not use the norm but trust me even if it’s just for the audition take a fender guitar or bass, a valve amp, and stand alone pedals (on a board hooked up). Drummers usually use in house kits but if not don’t take a 25 piece kit as it takes too much time. 
• Make sure your gear is cased so it looks like you take it seriously. Last week a guy walked across town with his guitar in his hand with no softcase….NEXT!

General tips

• Make sure you have learned any tracks not so you can play them right, but so that you can’t physically play it wrong. If you are playing a given part try and recreate it as it is on the recording and think about the sound, feel and timing of the part.
• You are only given one shot at this audition so make sure your playing/singing has authority.
• You don’t have to jump around like your in ‘Story Of The Year’ but you can show your into the music physically whether it be moving, grooving or just looking up and smiling at other musicians. An audition is all about trust. They need to trust you have what it takes so that authority will give them faith that you know your shiz. 
• Make sure they have all of your details, whether it be a card, a one-page cv etc with 2 contact details, mobile and email.  
• If you don’t get the gig, send a friendly email asking what you can improve on. It might be that someone more experienced came along however it’s good to know for next time.

Tip : Remember the golden rule of auditions – ‘If it can go wrong it will go wrong’

Are you Relentless?

Are you Relentless?

Hey hey hey monkeys!

Today, I received an email from a bass player who I haven’t seen in several years. I told him to send his CV in to us, so that we can keep it on file and can contact him when work comes up. He finished his email saying ‘Give me a shout if anything comes up’.

Let me tell you a bit about him, he’s a good player…. Actually no scratch that, he is a fucking monster of a player, lovely guy, he drives, has great gear and is generally a very cool and reliable guy. 

The chances are something will come up in the next few weeks, but will I remember to give him a shout? The answer to this is, I might do, however I might not. I want to let you in on a secret, but don’t tell anybody. When we get calls for musicians, we usually recommend the first guy/girl that pops into our heads. That person popped into my head because they are obviously reliable and dependable and lots of other words ending in ‘ible’ but normally it’s because I had been reminded that day that they exist. 

So if you want work as a musician, start reminding people you exist as a musician on a weekly basis. You don’t have to pester people for work, but simple and creative reminders will make a massive difference.

Here is a text conversation I copied from my phone:

Musician : Hey Damo, not heard from you in  a few months, don’t suppose any work is about as my diary is in need.

Damo : Hey dude nothing yet, but I will push anything I can your way

The reality is, this is bullshit. What it should have said is ‘Oops I forgot all about you because I get similar texts, fb and emails 20 times a day and you faded into insignificance. Harsh, but true.

Over the next few weeks and months, start texting people and emailing them with small reminders you’re alive and keen for any opportunities. Maybe a text saying ‘I’m available for any dep gigs on these dates, please keep me in mind for any work. Post a facebook status right now saying ‘Anyone got any sets for covers bands I can learn in case a gig comes up, so I can be ready?’. Take a phone-video of you saying ‘Hi my name is ….. and I am a drummer looking for some gigs, keep me in mind’

All of these things will keep you in someone’s brain for a couple of days, and it only takes one opportunity to arise and you have ‘The In’. 

Being relentless isn’t about bugging people, it’s about reminding them about you and your playing. The more creative and different ways you can do it the less people will feel you are annoying them.

This blog will go out to a few thousand musicians and if I don’t know you or don’t know you are looking for work, then you have missed a trick!

Forthoseabouttorockwesaluteyou!

Are you Pro-active?

Is this similar to your day as a musician?

• You research local covers bands and contact them all with your CV and a promo video and tell them you are available for any gigs or to cover illness?

• You find a young aspiring (student?) photographer and book a photo shoot offering them £20 so you can get some real decent shots of yourself for your portfolio?

• You record a new promo video for your Youtube site showing off your playing on an iflip or mate’s digi-camera?

• You rehearse/gig with an artist you think is an exciting prospect?

• You add a blog to your website, or start planning/building your website if you don’t have one yet?

• You email companies like DK Music Management to remind us you are up for any gigs or ask what you can do to get more work?

• Call a mate with a home studio and record some new tracks just for the practice (as well as to build your library of recordings)?

• Book in some Sunday or weekday gig, (maybe an acoustic set in a local pub for free or nominal amount)?

I’m guessing you maybe do 1 or 2 of these things per day if you are a pro-active working musician. However you could have done any of these things today. In fact, imagine if you had done everything on this list today. Imagine if tomorrow you were equally as proactive.

What could you achieve in a week? What could you achieve in a month or even a year?  The majority of musicians (in fact humans in general) work at a slow pace, patting themselves on the back if a day goes past and they did a few hours rehearsal, wrote a song or recorded a home demo. However, there are 24 hours in a day and you will be amazed what can be achieved if you want something badly enough.

Have a think about it, because if you did every one of these things on this list without being prompted I’m assuming you’re reading this from a very successful tour and nodding with a smile that looks like you know something about my mum!

Peas!

Now Playing - The Recession

A musicians guide to this recession

Hey hey Hey Monkeys,

Have you checked out the news over the past few weeks? It’s more depressing than the entire Radiohead discography. With failing economies all over the world inc Europe and America and our unemployment on a 20 year high, it looks like we could be set for the next instalment of the recession. Like the sequel to a slasher movie…. And this time he’s back and he’s pissed off!

We have been getting a lot of messages and emails from musicians who are worried about their gigs drying up and plenty who are already feeling the pinch. So the question is, can we do anything to combat this? 

Whether this downturn lasts 6 months or (like the depression in 1930’s) 17 years it will squeeze the market meaning less work for musicians. So you need to improve your chance of getting work.

• I am still receiving inadequate recordings, from competent musicians. In this scary economic time you need to go against your instinct ‘not to spend money’. It’s an investment into your career. So book a day in a studio and do 2-3 proper recordings of you demonstrating your playing/singing
• Pics – An add-on from the above, but this is the first impression of what someone will see, so make sure that first impression is awesome.
• Do more for less. Every day I hear musicians telling me how they need to eat too and how they shouldn’t be expected to play for peanuts bla bla bla. We are all in the same boat and only the strong will survive whilst the rest will be hobbyists working at AMEX or other equally corporate companies. You need to do more favours now than ever before and it will be returned to you. Whether that’s free or cheaper gigs now and again or delivering more than before for no financial reward.
•   You need to be better than you needed to be last month. The standard just got higher. Now there are more people fighting for less money, so think of ways you can improve your playing and what you can deliver (BV’s, gear, technique etc) 
• Don’t lose any gigs you have, protect them by making sure everyone loves performing with you, and that you deliver with your playing EVERY TIME and make the gig is as easy for anyone involved as you can. 

If you are currently gigging 2-3 times a week consistently, then you are probably  doing all of this, whilst at the same time probably panicking regardless. If your not gigging 2-3 times a week and/or not panicking, then read this again carefully. You should be panicking!

I love being a musician, and I am very privileged to play with other great musicians every day. I will fight very hard so this isn’t taken away from me… I hope you feel the same and please don’t forget we are hear to help, so if your stuck get in touch.