How Do I Promote an Originals Band?

ithiliendude

Hello all!!

I'm considering taking on a managerial position, or at least coaching from the sidelines position, for a local band. They are a metal band who play original material, and have already been performing for about 5 years. They've never truly taken off outside of local gigs and recording EPs, very few of which have been distributed.

The singer of the band is getting quite exasperated with the fact that his band is going nowhere. Anyone have any tips/advice that I could relay to them?

Any suggestions much appreciated

Miguel_Sanchez

Moved to Bands & Musicians.

ithiliendude

Ah, thanks! =D

ithiliendude

BUMP

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4

here is my 2 cents!

For an orginal band, you need to be playing to people that actually want to hear your music. for origingal metal bands, i would imagine dublin and cork would be a good place to start, the stables in mullingar is also a good spot for metal.

what is the quality of the EP? was it a proper studio recording or a "garage" recording? and does it do the band justice? A bad EP/demo is a lot worse than no demo at all!

Gig as much as you can, in as many different places as you can. Give out the EP at gigs (assuming its good!).


Promoting an original band is hard work, and is expensive as most original bands get payed peanuts/nothing, unless they have a reputation. but you cant get the reputation without some initial promotion!

whats the bands name? put up the myspace link!

ithiliendude

Emilee Damaged Peacock wrote: »

For an orginal band, you need to be playing to people that actually want to hear your music. for origingal metal bands, i would imagine dublin and cork would be a good place to start, the stables in mullingar is also a good spot for metal.

The metal scene in Limerick is dying a death, and as such my friend's band is becoming very demotivated. The singer is the only one truly 100% interested in going somewhere with this group, but the other members are happy coasting along with the occasional gig every now and again. My logic is the more they gig and more publicity they get, the more motivated they'll become.

what is the quality of the EP? was it a proper studio recording or a "garage" recording? and does it do the band justice? A bad EP/demo is a lot worse than no demo at all!

The EP is very good quality, in my honest opinion. They paid to get it properly recorded and everything, so it turned out very well. Unfortunately the drums are programmed in some because they couldn't afford to record the drums properly, but the drummer himself programmed them so they're accurate and faithful.

Promoting an original band is hard work, and is expensive as most original bands get payed peanuts/nothing, unless they have a reputation. but you cant get the reputation without some initial promotion!

With this I agree. They've put a lot of money into it over the years, and I think they're getting sick of it going nowhere, so they're (except the singer) are willing to just give up. In my opinion, that'd be a terrible waste.

whats the bands name? put up the myspace link!

They have a Facebook page, and I think they have a MySpace page too, but no-one really uses MySpace anymore these days. The band is called Septica, and their Facebook page is 'Septica IRL'. Check it owt! =D

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4

ithiliendude wrote: »

The metal scene in Limerick is dying a death, and as such my friend's band is becoming very demotivated. The singer is the only one truly 100% interested in going somewhere with this group, but the other members are happy coasting along with the occasional gig every now and again. My logic is the more they gig and more publicity they get, the more motivated they'll become.



The EP is very good quality, in my honest opinion. They paid to get it properly recorded and everything, so it turned out very well. Unfortunately the drums are programmed in some because they couldn't afford to record the drums properly, but the drummer himself programmed them so they're accurate and faithful.



With this I agree. They've put a lot of money into it over the years, and I think they're getting sick of it going nowhere, so they're (except the singer) are willing to just give up. In my opinion, that'd be a terrible waste.



They have a Facebook page, and I think they have a MySpace page too, but no-one really uses MySpace anymore these days. The band is called Septica, and their Facebook page is 'Septica IRL'. Check it owt! =D

I have heard of them! they were in a band competition a few years ago my old band was in. They were probably right to program the drums for the EP, drums for metal can be difficult to record and mix. to get it right, you need a great engineer, drummer, kit, mics, plus the outboard effects. If they want to make progress they will have to expand out of Limerick, every original band should target dublin, most of the population lives there! Best of luck!

MilanPan!c

If you have good material than all you need is exposure. Just email and call and pester with the material and if it's actually good the work will be easy.

drumdrum

Hate to be bad, but anyone who thinks that Ireland has a real 'metal scene' needs a dose of reality. When was the last time a metal band got big out of Ireland?

Any band who is serious and good go elsewhere either to the states or the UK. There is no scene in Ireland for metal, so I wouldnt bother flogging tons of cash into a band in a scene that can never let them get anywhere. Its a waste.

If you could uproot the band to a better market then great, but by the sounds of things, the band (bar the singer) might be hard to convince!

MilanPan!c wrote: »

If you have good material than all you need is exposure...

...though exposure can only be achieved in a market that large enough / willing to accept you. Ireland doesnt have that for metal, so it doesnt matter how good you are.

Eg, think of any metal band from Ireland that didnt go abroad to give it a crack at the big time. If Ireland had the potential to bring them there, they wouldn't of needed to go abroad.
Its simple, harsh, brutal business...... unfortunate as it causes so much great talent to never get their dues....

MilanPan!c

drumdrum wrote: »

Hate to be bad, but anyone who thinks that Ireland has a real 'metal scene' needs a dose of reality. When was the last time a metal band got big out of Ireland?

Any band who is serious and good go elsewhere either to the states or the UK. There is no scene in Ireland for metal, so I wouldnt bother flogging tons of cash into a band in a scene that can never let them get anywhere. Its a waste.

If you could uproot the band to a better market then great, but by the sounds of things, the band (bar the singer) might be hard to convince!

...though exposure can only be achieved in a market that large enough / willing to accept you. Ireland doesnt have that for metal, so it doesnt matter how good you are.

Eg, think of any metal band from Ireland that didnt go abroad to give it a crack at the big time. If Ireland had the potential to bring them there, they wouldn't of needed to go abroad.
Its simple, harsh, brutal business...... unfortunate as it causes so much great talent to never get their dues....

Sorry if I gave the impression that I only meant Ireland - I didn't - but all of this ^^^ is meaningless if the material isn't any good.

Good material and a willingness to look outside Ireland are prerequisites.

ithiliendude

Hello all!

Hmm, I wouldn't say there's NO metal scene in Ireland, it's just small, like everything in Ireland.There is a good hardcore scene in Ireland, especially in Cork, but unfortunately for Septica they ain't hardcore. There's a few Irish metal bands who have a very loyal and vast following (relatively) like Red Enemy and Shardborne.

I know that's only two out of hundreds of little bands around the country, but I think saying that Ireland has no metal scene is a harsh judgment. Look at BadReputation for example, they are affiliated with lots of different bands, but in my opinion do not capitalise on that gift.

I think leaving the country is possibly the worst idea ever. Septica, from what I've heard through the singer, want to animate the Irish metal scene, and leaving would be counter productive. Besides, they're all young men (20-23) and don't want to emigrate for good. They wouldn't mind the odd gig over in the UK, but they don't have the means or funds to do so.

The EP is good, I have listened to it a few times, and their material is strong and song writing ability is very comprehensive. The songs are creative, and have a great variety in style. They were going to work on recording some new ones, but in the time since I posted this thread one of the members left because 'there were no gigs coming up and there was nothing happening with the band'.

*cough* Which in my opinion is a dumbass reason to leave a band *cough*... jussaying.

MilanPan!c

ithiliendude wrote: »

Hello all!

Hmm, I wouldn't say there's NO metal scene in Ireland, it's just small, like everything in Ireland.There is a good hardcore scene in Ireland, especially in Cork, but unfortunately for Septica they ain't hardcore. There's a few Irish metal bands who have a very loyal and vast following (relatively) like Red Enemy and Shardborne.

I know that's only two out of hundreds of little bands around the country, but I think saying that Ireland has no metal scene is a harsh judgment. Look at BadReputation for example, they are affiliated with lots of different bands, but in my opinion do not capitalise on that gift.

I think leaving the country is possibly the worst idea ever. Septica, from what I've heard through the singer, want to animate the Irish metal scene, and leaving would be counter productive. Besides, they're all young men (20-23) and don't want to emigrate for good. They wouldn't mind the odd gig over in the UK, but they don't have the means or funds to do so.

The EP is good, I have listened to it a few times, and their material is strong and song writing ability is very comprehensive. The songs are creative, and have a great variety in style. They were going to work on recording some new ones, but in the time since I posted this thread one of the members left because 'there were no gigs coming up and there was nothing happening with the band'.

*cough* Which in my opinion is a dumbass reason to leave a band *cough*... jussaying.

You may not have to leave the country... but you won't survive as a band, financially, by looking inward. If you want them to survive they'll need to find a bigger market.

You asked, "How Do I Promote an Originals Band?"... that's your answer. Get the music, whch has to be good, into the hands of people that can help spread the word and make the band money. Bands have a shelf life. If they don't progress they will, with few exceptions, implode. Helping Irish bands progress means helping them get out of Ireland, from a business standpoint.

The size of the country means that a band can't earn enough just in IReland to stay afloat... commercially.

If it's just for the craic, then there's no need to promote them... just keep booking shows and having fun.

MilanPan!c

BTW: I just checked out the songs on the myspace... I'd really recommend getting some better recordings made... those on the myspace are EXTREMELY just ok.

There's a couple of guys in Dublin that have done a million metal bands, including major label stuff, which won't charge you a million dollars to get something good.... much better off with two or three PERFECT recordings then 7 pretty mediocre ones.

That should be job one.

ithiliendude

MilanPan!c wrote: »

BTW: I just checked out the songs on the myspace... I'd really recommend getting some better recordings made... those on the myspace are EXTREMELY just ok.

There's a couple of guys in Dublin that have done a million metal bands, including major label stuff, which won't charge you a million dollars to get something good.... much better off with two or three PERFECT recordings then 7 pretty mediocre ones.

That should be job one.

Check out the ones on Facebook. I think they're better

MilanPan!c

ithiliendude wrote: »

Check out the ones on Facebook. I think they're better

Meh.

I would maybe call Alwyn at Westland or Michael at Trackmix and see what they can do for you. Nothing beats a proper recording!

ithiliendude

MilanPan!c wrote: »

Meh.

I would maybe call Alwyn at Westland or Michael at Trackmix and see what they can do for you. Nothing beats a proper recording!

I agree, a good recording is key to good promotion, really. My band, personally, has managed to get away with pretty standard sounding stuff for a while, but we just do covers. With originals, it's different. I'll keep those names in mind! *types into Google*... =D

This is all academic now, anyway: they've lost half their members due to boredom. So... let's hope their show gets back on the road when they've found new members! =D