I don’t know anything about the financial arrangements that artists have to make with mp3.com, but it just struck me that I’ve often had a difficult time getting certain CD’s by musicians outside of the US, and it seems that for those with limited (or no)distribution contracts, that mp3 might be a good way to get the word out.
Brendan, if you’re reading this, your CD came to mind, as well as Sylvain’s Sualtam stuff. Sometimes we can get a hold of this sort of stuff, but without hearing a few tracks in full, it’s hard to know if it’s worth the cost and effort. OTH, downloading a few tunes, or the wholes CD (for a price) from mp3.come would be quick and painless for prospective buyers, and would give your recordings greater exposure.
Of course it’s entirely possible there are reasons this just isn’t feasible, I just don’t know enough about it to know if that’s the case.
On 2002-11-25 11:36, srt19170 wrote:
Brobdingnagian Bards
Clandestine
Neither of these groups are outside of the US, really. Neither of 'em are very trad, either, though Clandestine comes closer. Both of 'em play lots of stuff outside of the Irish genre I’m not sure that they’re the kinds of folks Loren was lookin for.
Clandestine (just fyi) is breaking up at the end of next month. EJ’s going on to form a new band “The Willow Band” or something similar. His solo effort “The Willow” is awfully nice.
On 2002-11-25 11:36, srt19170 wrote:
Amano, Anthea Lawrence, Bardic, Beat Smash Square, Brian Cullen, Brobdingnagian Bards, Cailin Rua, Caleigh, Ceili Moss, Celtic Nots, Celtic Soul, Clandestine, Dust Rhinos, Emarld Fire, Emerald Rose, Forthright, Frankie Gavin, George Nathaniel Lawton, Gypsy Soul, Jim Lawrence, Keegan, Lorica, Mick Tobin, Muckle Flugga, One Eyed Fiona Slainte, Smokin’ Shamrocks, The Black Velvet Band, The Buccaneers, The Homespun Ceilidh Band, The Omadhauns, The Rising Pints, Twisty Willow, Wylde Nept, Yankee Celtic Consort
You forgot Lothlorien (unless they’ve since dropped off MP3.com). Excellent group and MP3.com is the only place (outside of bootleg rips on usenet) that I’ve seen their CDs.
I think it was someone on this board who has an mp3 site commented that the bulk of the money goes to mp3.com, not to the artist. (I guess that’s what happens w/ the usual distrubutors anyway.) I suppose an artist could post sound samples on a web site of their own. That’s how I found out about Fling’s cd’s, which I really like. They don’t have any distributor for their first cd. I liked the samples and ordered directly from the band leader.
Tony
On 2002-11-24 17:39, Loren wrote:
…it just struck me that I’ve often had a difficult time getting certain CD’s by musicians outside of the US…
Brendan, if you’re reading this, your CD came to mind, as well as Sylvain’s Sualtam stuff.
Some of these CDs are available through either U.S. or foreign mail-order, but sound samples may not be contractually available.
I have indicated that I’d be willing to help with U.S. and web-based distribution of independent artists (U.S. and foreign), but no takers yet. For some artists, their effort and expense has already gone into creating the CD, and it’s a relief to be done with the process. Sales requires a different mindset, and some may neither have the time or inclination.
Those artists already with a label agreement might require additional distribution or licensing agreements or even local replication, which in most cases probably wouldn’t be cost-effective.
For most artists, MP3.com is NOT a very feasable venture for any sort of promotion. They changed their whole structure a year or two ago, which had been more of a “We are here for the artists, and we will do everything we can to help newer artists, and make it affordable” -to- “Screw every artist on the planet, we exist only for US, and we expect everyone, especially the artists themselves to pay us large sums of money for the honor of using our site!!!”
So needless to say, it has been very difficult for any new artists to become established using their “service”. Unless you were already established as a world-class artist, and had a LOT of money to pour into their “promotions”, you would still be loosing a lot in the end.
Having a stepfather who’s a lifelong professional musician, and who at one time fronted a band with albums out on an RCA label, I do understand the contractual problems. Mostly I was thinking of smaller independant type releases, especially non US artists with no US distribution outlets…although I probably didn’t clarify that enough in my original post.
So…Thank’s Brian, your post pretty much clears it up for me: Simply not cost effective or worth the effort. Too bad, the original idea for MP3.com seemed like a good one, at least the way I understood it.
Loren, OT, sort of, but do you know of any (PC) software (preferably cheap or free) to record like, mike input directly from the sound card to CD? CDs at about 10 cents each now, are much less expensive than either diskettes or audio tape, and you could catch a whole session and do digital editing to your heart’s content, I think!
TIA,
Bill Whedon
