Apparently a new study has shown that I’m what a lot of people in the business call a “music snob,” which translates into, “I hate everything.”  Everything but The Beatles that is…and whoops, last I checked, they’re the greatest band of all time, so the point is, I know how to pick a winner….and trust me folks, “Love Is Here To Stay” is a winner.  So take it from me…no….BUY IT FROM ME…it’s only $4.99! Or at least steal it from one of your friends who has already supported the cause.  Or hell, send me an email, and odds are, I’ll send it to you for free.

……..

In Other Really Good Deal News: This Thursday, July 29th (tomorrow) we’re running a great special on tickets for our big Highline Ballroom show on August 19th with the lovely Ms. Paula Valstein and Mr. Jonah Smith.

Tickets in advance are $10, but for one day only, we’re running a “We REALLY Love The Fans” special, where if you buy one ticket, you get another one free! If you wait till the day of the show, they’re gonna be $15, so if you have any desire to see this night of music, I suggest getting your tickets definitely in advance, but more specifically on the 29th of July.

CLICK HERE to purchase 2 tickets for the price of 1 on THURSDAY, JULY 29th!

2 For 1 Instructions: Enter the code “LOVE” where it says “Access Code (Optional)” and
then hit the button APPLY ACCESS CODE.  This code is valid for 24
hours starting at 12AM on July 29th.

……

Highline Ballroom (431 W 16th Street – map)
Thursday, August 19th – 8PM
Paula Valstein, Jonah Smith, and Me
$10 in advance, $15 day of show

You can see a few more here!

Tom Hayes
Dave Beck
Emily Mure
Aunt Martha
Heidi Sidelinker
Casey Shea
Matt Singer
Lucius
Lowry
Great Elk
Steve Waitt
Matt Basile
Danny Lanzetta & the Liars Club
FK

I copied and pasted this list of names, and I’m now noticing Matt Basile’s name is there…I’m pretty sure he’s not gonna be there, and not just because his apartment exploded yesterday at 5am.  Luckily for him (not so luckily for us) he was staying the night with the Sheas.  That’s right Basile, I SAVED YOUR LIFE….you owe me BIG TIME!!  And yes, I’m serious, his apartment really did explode.  Don’t believe me?  Here’s a picture of what once was his bedroom.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

If Matt’s exploding apartment proves one thing, it’s that if you’re not using a Mac, you’re fooling yourself.  Yes…Mr. Steve Jobs makes a fine product….a quality product….a durable product.  That’s a Apple ad I’d like to see.  “The iBook – so bad ass, it survives home explosions.”

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Yes, it really survived…not only the explosion, but the firemen hosing down the place.  Well done Jobs, Well done.

In more Matt Basile Related news, after I’m finished watching all my friends a play a few tunes at Bar4, I’m gonna head to none other than Rockwood Music Hall to put on a show of epic proportions.  It’s been a while since we’ve had a 1am showing, but we’ve never played a late one at the infamous Stage 2, so if you’re looking for a party tonight, you know where to find us!  Oh, and buy Matt a drink…he needs it.

Casey Shea
July 9th – 9-ish PM
Bar4
FREE

Casey Shea
July 9th – 1:15AM
Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 2)
FREE

While these awards currently still increase awareness and provide a serious sales boost, like the past and current versions of the Billboard charts they will lose relevance as our industry becomes more and more customer-driven and artist-empowered. Artists and executives tend to have big egos, and big egos need stroking. Award shows are there to stroke, but in the end what really matters? Who cares about the tiny subset of people that votes for a Grammy, when you have millions of kids voting for your band with their Facebook Like buttons and their purchasing behavior?

Seth wrote a great post about sales charts, from Billboard to New York Times Best Sellers, and how they are easily manipulated to achieve a high ranking, and I have previously posted on the need for new metrics in our industry in “The Post-Soundscan Era: Metrics That Matter”. Much in “show business” is still all about “show”, and not so much about “business”. I find it very satisfying to watch that change, and to do my part in helping us move away from these old ways and towards a more transparent, smart and customer/artist friendly business.

Richard Feynman on receiving honors:

“I don’t like honors. I’m appreciated for the work that I did. [...] I don’t need anything else. I don’t think there is any sense to anything else. I don’t see that it makes any point that someone in the Swedish Academy decides that this work is noble enough to receive a prize. I’ve already got the prize. The prize is the pleasure of finding out the thing. The kick and the discovery, the observation of other people using it. Those are the real things. The honors are unreal to me. I don’t believe in honors.”

Related Reading:

• Spencer Fry wrote a great post on staying Under The Radar.
• Little Brother’s Phonte wrote one of the best verses ever, tackling the topic of why he does what he does (hint: it’s not for the props). Listen to “Can’t Win For Losing” here.

Aside from one single book, none of these books were written with the music industry in mind, and that was a conscious decision when I assembled this list. As the old Music Industry model crumbles, I think it’s unwise to try and find inspiration and wisdom from those that are part of the problem. Instead i find myself much more inspired by VC’s, tech companies, social media companies, social entrepreneurs, start-ups, and traditional one-product companies than I am by anyone else in the music industry.

Why listen to Doug Morris, when Seth Godin has much better ideas? The old guard is self-congratulating and reactive, our solutions are proactive and customer-oriented. The old model defends the status quo, our future lies in change. This in a nutshell is the theme of all of my writing on this site, and therefor logically reflected in this summer reading list. When a book has been previously covered in an earlier article on this site, it will include a “Related Reading” link to the article in question. Fourteen books in no particular order. (Sort of.)

• Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business by Danny Meyer - Am I really recommending artists, managers and other music biz folks read a book about hospitality and starting successful restaurants? I sure am! Full of lessons in customer service, pro-active community building, and more this book is required reading for anyone that has customers. (Amazon) (Related Reading: Hospitality In The Music Business)
• Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? by Seth Godin – In my humble opinion the most important book on this list. It should be required reading for every senior in High School. I’m not going to say much more about it and will just hope my recommendation peaks your interest enough to purchase it. You won’t be disappointed. (Amazon)
• Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson - Even Bob Lefsetz has been touting this one! As a 37Signals customer and fan I pre-ordered this the day it was announced. A fast and focused read, with numerous “keep it simple” style lessons and anecdotes. Truly energizing. (Amazon) (Related reading: What If Jason Fried Worked In The Music Business?)
• Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Dan and Chip Heath – The Heath’s write a column in Fast Company Magazine which I thoroughly enjoy. This is a set of anecdotes and thoughts on why certain ideas “stick”, or have traction with an audience, and why others just fade away. Replace “ideas” with “artist marketing campaigns” and get ready to have your eyes opened. (Amazon)
• Getting Real: The smarter, faster, easier way to build a successful web application by Jason Fried, Heinemeier David Hansson, and Matthew Linderman - Don’t let the title of this book scare you off. This doesn’t have to be about web applications at all, and it certainly isn’t a technical handbook. This is the precursor to the aforementioned Rework, and useful materials for artists thinking about their web presence and even stage show. (Amazon)
• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen – A well-known classic in the productivity genre. As the new model of the music industry requires more work done by artists and managers in a shorter amount of time, this can be a good guideline to keep your head above water and not drown in your endless list of tasks. (Amazon)
• The E Myth Revisited – Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber - As mentioned in the byline of this site, artists you should consider yourself entrepreneurs these days. Don’t be a cog in the wheel, be on the board of your own company, with your art at the center. (Amazon)
• Walden; Or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau - Perhaps my favorite book, and definitely the most avant-garde inclusion on this list. Essentially the ultimate guide on minimalism, this book can help teach business men and artists how to run a lean company and not be wasteful in thought or material. Even the NY Times recently wrote about the rise of lean start ups. Lets just say Tommy Motolla and Clive Davis probably never read this one, or else they wouldn’t have helmed such bloated companies. (Amazon)
• Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin - ‘Fans’ are very 2001, these days artists need to build communities of followers, tribes if you will. This is not a how-to book. It’s better than that, and doesn’t assume you can actually write a how-to book on this complex and organic topic. (Amazon)
• Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith – The perfect complementary book to the aforementioned Tribes. Where Seth takes a bird’s eye view, Chris and Julien really dive into the topic. (Amazon)
• The Tipping Point : How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell – One of Gladwell’s well-publicized classics, which provides us with anecdotes and lessons on what exactly stimulates trends and where they might originate. Highly useful for artists chasing that illusive viral video goal, or those slowly trying to build their careers. (Amazon)
• Power Hold’em Strategy by Daniel Negreanu - You need to learn how to play poker. It will help you in more ways than you can imagine. It’s also really fun. And you have to play for money. Otherwise it’s pointless. (Amazon)
• Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion by Gary Vaynerchuk – I mean, look at that title. Now that’s what I’m talking about. Remember, work is not a job. (Amazon)
• Follow the Music: The Life and High Times of Elektra Records in the Great Years of American Pop Culture by Jac Holzman and Gavan Daws - Ahhh finally the only music oriented book on this list. Jac Holzman is a music industry hero of mine, from the era of the real ‘music men’. He made mistakes, but he did a lot of things right. An example to follow, and many amazing stories to learn from. (Amazon)

Book recommendations from your end would be appreciated as well of course. Share in the comments!

Casey Shea
Tuesday, July 6th – 10PM
Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 2)
Free!
Misty Boyce @ 7:30, Luke Wesley @ 8:30

……..

In Other News: Yesterday was July 4th….there were plenty of fireworks like when I dumped my drink on Matt Basile’s head.  No one’s quite sure why this happened, but I can safely say alcohol was a factor.  I can only assume he’s not happy about it and will be looking for revenge come Tuesday night.  Luckily for me, I’m not sure there’s anything he could do that would ruin the gig more than his bass playing already does.

In Other Other News: Did I mention this show is free!??

In Other Other Other News: Did I mention that I co-produced Luke Wesley’s album, and that you can and SHOULD download it here!

In Other Other Other OTHER News: Did I mention this is your last chance to see us for a while?  The next band show will be August 19th at Highline Ballroom with Paula Valstein!

Tuesday, June 29th – 9PM
Brooklyn Bowl
FREE
With Lowry at 10, Dinosaur Feathers at 11

Radio – As I make my way through the city I’m listening to HOT97, on my phone, and Funkmaster Flex plays the new Capone ‘N Noreaga single. I love it. He mentions I can order their new album through HOT97′s (mobile) website or via txt for $4.99, and it comes with two exclusive bonus tracks of Capone ‘N Noreage’s interview with Angie Martinez and a great 6 minute on-air freestyle they did with Peter Rosenberg. I txt CNNWar3 to HOT97 and 5 minutes later the album has downloaded to my Apple Music Locker^ in the cloud. HOT97 receives a referral fee for the sale. I switch from HOT97 to iTunes on my phone and start playing the album from the cloud. Once I  get to my apartment I switch to iTunes on my computer and continue playing it while using Not.es, a start-up app purchased by Apple and integrated into iTunes, to nerd out and read the liner notes, lyrics and credits. Not.es also lists the samples used, and I can purchase the original songs that are being sampled right there with one click. I buy a Bobby Farin track that is listed as a sample for $0.49, and Capone ‘N Noreaga receive a referral fee.

Live Concerts & Merchandise – Last week I went to a Radiohead concert, I got my ticket through TrueTix*, the new ticketing company started by Coran Capshaw that lists tickets at their actual price, including fees, and doesn’t charge you extra if you want to print it yourself. It’s one of my favorite concerts ever and so I text the code they displayed over the merch booth, 20140618, to RHLIVE and I know that when I get up the next day I will automatically get a great recording of the concert, delivered into my Music Locker for $2.99, via the new artist-controlled Amazon service DLVRY*. One of my friends forgot his phone and he puts in the order at the merch booth instead. Another friend already decided in advance he wanted a recording so he was able to tack it to his ticket purchase for a discounted additional $1.99. The recording comes with 5 guest passes, which I’ll send to my friends who couldn’t make it so they can at least hear the magic.

I also bought a limited edition tour T-shirt for $30 , which came with an automatic download of a tour only EP of demos the band recorded on the road. If they end up recording an additional demo later on in the tour, it will automatically download to my Music Locker and notify me. It’s awesome.

Indie Labels – Since I’m a huge fan of Bloomington label Secretly Canadian I make sure to check out their blog and site regularly, often prompted by their monthly e-mail list that I signed up for. I gave them permission to market to me, because their artist selection, album curation and batting average are so strong. I even purchased a subscription which allows me to get 5 of their releases per year for a one time up-front fee of $20. I see there’s a new Antony & The Johnsons record available and I immediately download it, leaving 2 more records in my subscription for the rest of the year. It’s only June, so I decide to tack on a 3 record extension for  $12. Since I’ve linked them up with my Music Locker through my Facebook Connect the music automatically finds it’s way there. Indie labels function as valuable, identifiable brands, where as Major Labels function as service providers with financial clout.

Major Labels – After EMI went bankrupt, and had to sell their publishing to Sony and their masters to Universal, the majors finally set into motion what they knew was their future all along. They acknowledged their strengths (radio and promotion clout, capital, infrastructure) and their weaknesses (knowing their customers, artist development, long-term thinking), and restructured themselves more along the lines of Venture Capital firms with additional services. Jack Johnson is still with Universal, through his own label Brushfire, but now own his own masters and has Universal handle distribution and certain forms of promotion picked off of an a la carte menu of services he can choose to use in exchange for additional points of profit split. He chose distribution (20%), radio promotion (5%), online promotion (5%) and music placement (10%), and splits the profit on the album so that 60% goes to himself and Brushfire, while Universal receives 40% (20+5+5+10).

Direct-To-Customer – Every since Bob Dylan broke with Columbia Records and went direct-to-fan I’ve been enjoying the EP’s and singles he releases whenever inspiration strikes. His Topspin-powered web store lets me download AIFF quality recordings from Bob’s home studio, which let me hear all the little intricacies like Bob’s dog barking in the background, and a coffee mug being put down. Bob’s also been releasing his catalog in Director Cut versions, with commentary between songs, and since there are 58 albums he decided to release them as a monthly subscription service.

I hop over to the Sigur Ros website, which just put their new Anton Corbijn concert movie/documentary on sale. I debate between getting the $1 version that lets me stream it directly to my TV via my Boxee, the $2.99 digital download, or the $20 DVD version with picture book. I decide on the DVD, which actually comes with a free unlimited streaming version so I can watch it tonight with my roommate and some friends.

Offline Music Retail – Ever since Best Buy, Wal Mart and all the other companies not actually invested in the music business decided to stop selling music things have gotten much better. Slowly new style music retailers have started opening their doors in college towns and cities, offering a great music related experience. Vinyl, music related books, digital delivery to your Music Locker, a Mud coffee shop with comfortable chairs on one side, headsets that let you sample any release in the store, cool vintage and new apparel in the Urban Outfitters corner, sometimes even a comic book section, in-store performances, music film screenings at night, and more. Sometimes I go there to spend an hour or two on a day off and I love it, but mostly it’s younger kids with more free time that find themselves earlier in their music discovery journey.

Press – I feel like reading some sarcastic and slightly pompous reviews that often contain a good kernel of truth so I go over to Pitchfork. They reviewed the Best Of Wavves box set, which they laud for it’s innovative and versatile sampling of the singer’s Primavera Sound Festival melt down in 7 of the 10 new remixes. My roommate just received a new payment from his trust fund and there seems to be no more appropriate way to spend it so I get him to order the box set through Insound, via Pitchfork’s referral link. The digital version immediately downloads to his Music Locker, which he then plays over our sound system, and the physical version arrives a week later. Pitchfork has since posted a revisionist review, in which they pan the band, and my roommate was swayed, so I get to keep the box set. I guess not everything has changed.

This story is purely fictional, and set in 2014, when I hope we have figured out to make our industry healthy, artist-driven and customer-focused. When we take advantage of technology and change, rather than fight it, and where we monetize the awesome.

^ Apple will have to enter the cloud based music business at some point. I made up the name Apple Music Locker though.

* Fictional company, with a service and name I made up for the purpose of this article, but boy I hope they will exist in the future.

The Google/MySpace deal ends in ten days, and today Google makes their last payment. There is little to no chance for the deal to be renewed under the same terms, if at all. I hope they can turn the company around, but I honestly don’t know if it’s still possible.

It’s relatively easy to correlate this to similar mistakes made in the music industry. As soon as we started attacking our customers, rather than putting their user experience first, we lost the battle and they left. And this is of course long after we destroyed the artist’s experience as well, by way of unfair contracts and lack of creative control. It’s now our job to destroy and rebuild our industry with our artists and customers’ experience at the very forefront of our minds. We should work in service of our customers, and in a partnership with our artists.

One of my Offline Axioms is that there are no short cuts, that you have to earn everything and aren’t entitled to anything. Marco Arment recently shared a quote from a Richard Dunlop-Walters rant that I thought was particularly relevant to today’s post and both axioms:

“Employing tricks like needless pagination, auto-refreshing (see Salon.com), misleading headlines, and the like is cheating. You didn’t earn those pageviews, you tricked people into giving them to you. And then you look at shit like popups, popunders, double underlined links, Snap previews, Tynt scripts, and so on, and it’s pretty clear how hostile it all is. It’s nothing but money-grabbing. If you’ve got it set up so bad that your readers are employing things like ad blockers and Safari’s Reader, you f*cked up. You did something wrong. You overestimated how much your readers are willing to tolerate.” - Richard Dunlop-Walters

My good friend Ben Wagner and his brother Chris have been working on this for years, and I’m quite excited, as a friend and huge Mr. Rogers fan, to finally see the finished product!

Ben first met “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” creator and star, Fred Rogers, at Rogers’ summer home on Nantucket, Massachusetts. His mother rented the cottage next door, so Mister Rogers really was his neighbor.

On the afternoon of their first meeting, “America’s Favorite Neighbor” asked the young journalist about his job as an MTV News producer. Wagner felt exposed and embarrassed, a PBS mind in a jump-cut, sound-bit MTV world.

Mister Rogers said warmly, “I feel so strongly that deep and simple is far more essential than complex.”

Later, Rogers said simply, “Spread the message, Benjamin.”  I think it’s safe to say Ben is doing his part. Check out the trailer below!