Archive for November 2005

Music Miracles and the Power of Intention

Nov 14th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Tips

Welcome to spinme.com, where we help working musicians make more money making music. If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed or our weekly newsletter. Thanks for visiting!Kathy writes about the “miracle” she experienced when a documentary producer contacted her to use one of her tunes in an upcoming [...]



It feels nice to report on something a major label is doing RIGHT.

Nov 11th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: News

Have I been drinking the same Kool Aid as the founder of Elektra Records, Jac Holzman? Cordless, his new skunk works project deep in the bowels of Warner Music Group, marks a return to artist development and smart audience growth. With no huge overhead to support, artists own the masters to EP-like “clusters” that they’ll [...]



All your Mac are belong to SonyBMG

Nov 10th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: News

I finally have a computer that works, with no creaking hard drive, and has not self-immolated (knock wood) and SonyBMG wants to install backdoors on it? Uh, no. I will not be putting any SonyBMG discs into my pristine optical drive, thanks. Lefsetz no likey either.

Track these topics: music+business

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Get a $50,000 music video for $1,000.

Nov 10th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Film

I frequently tell clients that they don’t have to spend too much money on music videos, since there are plenty of talented filmmakers that are happy to work with the right band for free or for cheap as a portfolio exercise. Here’s one of those opportunities, for bands in Athens or Atlanta.

Track these topics: music+business, [...]



Understanding “Local Max”

Nov 9th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Growing Your Audience

Seth Godin just published a blog entry that clarifies exactly what every musician experiences at some point in their career. As you move through your strategy to grow your audience and increase your revenue from music, you hit a point that Seth describes as the “local max.”
Pushing beyond the local max means losing some revenue, [...]



We promise you that Scott’s not on the payroll.

Nov 9th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Books

But perhaps he should be?
For the second time in as many days, Scott Andrew flatters me and the research team with positive reviews of our music business books. I’m proud that musicians like Scott can use the action items in all four of these books to make specific changes in the way they approach [...]



Kate Bush Takes Math Rock Seriously

Nov 9th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Songwriting

Loving the Washington Post’s review of the new Kate Bush album, especially its description of the song Pi:
For those about to math-rock, Kate Bush salutes you.
I mean, who else could actually sing pi to 100 decimal places?

Track these topics: review, music

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Productivity for the Practicing Musician

Nov 7th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Tips

Scott Andrew spills the beans on his music productivity process, including getting clear on why you’re playing certain gigs, and how to combine useful tools (like Yahoo! Calendar and thick notebooks) to keep on top of your booking pipeline.

Track these topics: music+business

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Barsuk Records Prez: “Almost Nobody Is Getting Rich Off Indie Rock”

Nov 7th, 2005 | By Joe Taylor Jr. | Category: Film, Songwriting and Television

And he’s right.
The founder of Death Cab for Cutie’s original record label tells The Stranger about the disconnects that you’re already aware of.
Because so many bands submit music to editors and music supervisors at television shows like The O.C., Grey’s Anatomy, and The Real World, the amount that bands and songwriters earn from soundtrack placement [...]