Clare Burson, Silver and Ash
Ooooo! New record! No word on official release date. But you can hear tracks here. At first listen, I Will/With You, Everything’s Gone, Losin’ You, likey. She’s sultry, she’s wicked. Dangerously lovely combination. If you haven’t heard any of her older stuff before, buy all of it. Seriously.
Andy Zipf, What’s Going On
Damn, Andy always slays me, especially with covers. Heart him.
Bill Mullins, all of it
Surf guitar rock at its finest. And other stuff too. Straight from Vermont. Hometown boy!
The Cars, Candy-O
Hard to believe I didn’t have a copy of this already and I was desperately missing it. Luckily, Cupid came through on Valentine’s Day, bless his heart. It’s All I Can Do/Let’s Go are perhaps two of my fave songs ever. So happy to have them in my life again whenever I choose. The Cars rule, rule, rule.
The Damnwells (sort of), One Last Century
Sweet Jesus! You know I love me some Damnwells. New record out, download it for free here (annoyingly, it’s through Paste — we being adamant Blurt people around here. But hey, free is free). In any case, good to have the boys back, sort of… Dave and Steve stepped away last year. But still, I fucking adore this band. Lots to dig on this record, still chewing on it. Dandelion stands out. Need to give it a spin in the car. For sure, Alex’s magic scratchy, woo-voice (I know that sounds sappy!) always gets me at the knees. And this one seems made for sync, loaded with ballads, very smart. A little light on the guitar-grit this go around, which, as those of you who know me know… I’ve got a thing for guitars. Speaking of… Chernis has a few new things up his sleeve. In case you missed him 
. Darjeeling Mail’s my favorite.
xo
2/23/09 | Comments (0)Tags: Andy Zipf, Bill Mullins, Blurt, Clare Burson, CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, KATE BRADLEY, NOW PLAYING, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, The Cars, The Damnwells —
As always, the idea is that what unites us is more than music, an axiology that extends from the music to our music-lover lifestyles: how we vote, what we drive, what we eat, what we wear, etc.
The point is, we’re a tribe connected by vibe… hence, this month’s compendium:
1. Newsletters
Shameless self-promotion here folks. Certainly the thought of yet another one clogging your inbox may not be appealing. But on the off chance you want even more Outlandos in your life, we’ve got one. Yay! Sign up here.
2. Pedialyte
I’ve been championing this forever. Perfect for hangovers. Sure, it’s made for babies but what eloctrolyte-deprived adult doesn’t need a little boost occasionally, post-party? Screw Gatorade. This stuff is like magic and there’s way less sugar. Plus the grape flavor isn’t a bad mixer, if you’re in a jam. Hell, even Urban Daddy is on the bandwagon although their brand costs a whopping 42 bucks! The kid stuff is about $6. Economical to boot! Pun intended.
3. Slanket
My dad gave me one for Christmas. Freaking genius. Their competitor calls it the Snuggie. But for sure, the Slanket outdoes them in name alone, tenfold. Plus, Snuggies are backordered for the next 4 months. Who doesn’t need one of these?
Hilarious. And “as seen on TV.” Never thought I’d say that in this blog.
4. Grammar
Okay, I watch The Bachelor. I’m only semi-ashamed to admit that. But has anyone else noticed how bad the grammar/vocabulary is on that show? Like “Jason and I’s date.” Or “an intimate dinner for Jason and I.” Jesus, it’s bad. And then there’s just the blatant overuse of “absolutely.” Good Lord. For those in need of a little vocabulary spice, Wordsmith to the rescue.
5. Mammograms
Perhaps TMI but I had my first one last week. Clean bill although ouchy! For the 51% of you who this relates to, hop on those self-exams kiddies! Save our assets, as it were .
xo
2/15/09 | Comments (0)Tags: CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, IN SHORT, KATE BRADLEY, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, Pedialyte, Slanket, Urban Daddy —
Hell, the Grammys prove that year after year. Obviously, you don’t have to make very good music and people will buy it. It can even be downright terrible. Here’s why:
Sure, the Internet leveled the playing ground for a lot of us but it also muddied the waters; now, everyone’s an off-the-couch artist, writer, photographer, musician. Hence, content, i.e. music, is everywhere. And free. And virtually worthless.
What’s valuable is the way fans FEEL about your music, the connection you have with them, the shared experience. Naturally, if you’re making great music, that helps. But interestingly enough, it doesn’t really matter how good you are… it matters how good your BRAND is. That’s where the money is. From indie to Britney.
Think about it. That crappy cover band that has a gig at the bar down the street every Friday night? They make people feel good, nostalgic, whatever. And then those people buy more beer. And chances are they leverage the shit out of their brand. For example, Boomerang (yes, a real band). Their catchphrase is: “It’s All about… Good Times!!!” You get it.
So whether it’s Boomerang or Radiohead, basic public radio marketing tactics can apply (yes, we’ve been down this road before). But. It’s YOUR job to identify and celebrate your fans, to turn them into super-fans; your brand runs on super-fans.
Keep this in mind: super-fans work for you for free. Largely through word-of-mouth, super-fans act as marketing agents for bands they love. They can’t help themselves.
The trick is to keep them at it:
- Thank
- Reward
- Identify a Need
- Call to Action
- Super-Reward
Reminds you of public radio, right?
Like public radio, your super-fans are integral to your brand. Think of them as equal partners in your quest for monetization; simply put, you can’t do it without them.
Speaking of essentials, our Outlandos intern John keeps this blog going every week by publishing it in various places and wrestling with the nuances of WordPress and the Internet. We really, actually, quite literally, couldn’t do it without him. John is just getting his film career started at Vassar College. By way of thanking him for all of his hard work, please do check out a project he just finished:
Thanks John! As per usual, you RULE.xx
2/9/09 | Comments (0)Tags: CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, Fans, KATE BRADLEY, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, Radiohead —
Guest post this week from a new fave artist (who I can’t shut up about) Chris Velan. AND… he’s Canadian :
Dear Frozen Winter Lake (a.k.a. Lac Mercier),
While you’re out there in the dark, crusted over with ice and snow, I’m in this warm lake chalet, cheered on by the requisite crackly fireplace. In this part of the world (the Laurentian mountains in Quebec), at this time of year, weather is everything and right now it’s a reasonable -5 on the Celcius tip (multiply by 9⁄5 and add 32 if you live in the US or Belize). I can’t help it, though, I really can’t. It’s what IS right now. It’s the is-ness of the situation.
I half-wish that I could be writing from the road with touring stories from towns named after Spanish saints. That will come later on in April when the great thaw begins and I head out to peddle my music. But for the moment, it’s just you and me — You with your (unheard but felt) Darth Vadar mouth-breathing in that unsettling primordial silence and me tippitytapping away, personifying inanimate objects such as lakes.
I chose an autumn-blooming plant called, Solidago, as the title for my latest album after leafing through an old faded book on horticulture. The plant’s more well-known name, “Goldenrod”, sounded like a porn take on a James Bond film so I opted for its Latin counterpart — which really jumped out from the page at me and captured my imagination anyway. The title (for the album) is a nod to this sense I’ve always had of myself as being a hard way learner in the more abstract lessons of life. There was something in the name that I found reassuring and calming — maybe it was the “solid”. Whatever it was, the name stuck and I kept it as a sort of gentle reminder that there is a place in this world for those who are slow to come around to their own truth — and that not all who wander are lost. I have since learned other things about the album’s namesake. It has healing qualities (it’s traditional kidney tonic) and produces dark strong honey (I love honey something fierce). It’s the state flower of Kentucky and Nebraska. And Thomas Edison experimented with it as a natural domestic source of rubber prior to the invention of synthetic rubber in WWII (apparently, Henry Ford gave him a Model T with Solidago tires). No shit.
Why do I even bring up the subject of a late-blooming plant? I guess it’s because I feel a little like you right now, Frozen Winter Lake. There’s all kinds of unseen activity percolating below your unmoving surface. But when that warm spring weather melts away your ice, it’s also going to heat you up and mix your thermoclines, raising life from your depths. That’s what I’m waiting for. And though I may need some time to get my bees together, come late summer I expect to be in full bloom.
Chris
2/2/09 | Comments (0)Tags: Chris Velan, CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, KATE BRADLEY, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, OUTLANDOS MUSIC —
