digging out

OK- now that a really jammed packed week is closing I have had time to devote to the label-

1. I updated, put in UPC code and signed off for IODA and the digital side. I also sent them jpegs of the art. I should get an email this weekend or Monday saying I need to give final approval and then IODa will ship stuff to Digital services (meaning iTunes and about 150 other services, few of which have ever sold anything for me honestly)- The three I got done were Sonic Hub, Space March and, (drum roll) a long lost Empire State Human live album (!) that sounds amazing. Aidan Casserely can really sing well live. H17 and Garland Cult are already up.

I did ask today why H17 has not shown up on iTunes even as it sits on EMusic.

I also spoke with Polar BEar pressing. They will get the inserts for Space March, H17 and Sonic hub tday and hopefully ship the finished CDs out a week from Monday, meaning if all goes well I should have them in my hands the following Monday, April 16. April 18 marks the end of another 10 days of travel and day long appointments for me, so I will be wiped out. It'l be nice to see the CDs.


Meanwhile I finally got the promonet to give up the Melody and Mezzo track from the most recent Dance Dance Universe game:

Download "Nightshade Diskowarp" (mp3)
from "Nightshade"
by Melody Mezzo
Ninthwave Media

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dog tired

I am wiped out. I have been traveling (day job stuff) not getting much sleep and last night got 5 hours. I know I need to do a bunch of stuff today- put the new releases up on amazon (enter the stuff so they can put it in their database) and track down the Garland Cult artwork (I have copies, hope they are good enough).
I did release the Sonic hub Cd label, we had the wrong info for a track...

Amazon keeps re-ordering "I Am Gothic" from Spray - but the sad truth is this- I have 3 copies left (plus my 5 archive copies). So- wow, huh? Another sell out, 1000 copies! Well, not so fast. In the move three years agao about 400 CDs (in sleeves, I had not put them together yet) got scratched to hell. Crap. So now the CD is selling ok on amazon and I don't-have-any-left.

btw- I keep "telling" Amazon this- you casn list why you are not filling the order and I keep putting "out of print" but they keep trying to get 2 more copies.

Another example of how digital has changed things. If it wasn't up online I would reprint it in a heart beat, but frankly, now, why bother?

So - I need to get some sleep and then back to work...

on the road again

Ha! Love that little joke, so original.
I am out of town, doing, uh, things. Meanwhile I got to listen to tons of stuff on the iPod. Have to add It;s all in the Drums" to my Konami pitch disc next week.
Meanwhile all the stuff at the pressing plant is on hold, so itll be Wednesday til they start again.
Dave

Whoa!

OK-
Last night secured the rights to a wonderful song by Messers Dez and Ric- "The Whoa Song." It will be a wonderful way to start the Smash Hits album as itbegins with a faux chart countdown show.

Art for Sonic Hub and Space March got hung up today, but should be fixed by now.

Got 37 copies of Before/After in the mail last night to various dance mags.

Groomed the CDbaby account (I try to keep 5 copies of everything in stock there) - so am shipping out 20 Cds to them this week.

Meanwhile - one of my fave songs ever, from Eight to Infinity:

Download "Say You'll Come (Anywhere)" (mp3)
from "WXJL Presents Music For The Masses"
by Various Artists
Ninthwave Media

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Smash Hits

OK- so trying to throw together a Cd to cash in, as it were, on the fact that Melody and Mezzo have a track on the new Konami DDR set.
Spray got "I Am Gothic" on one of these and that song has been their calling card. they even have a whole page of people on Youtube that have done "tributes" to the song

Anyway- back on track- So I am puttng out a Cd with M&M's song (:nightshade") and two mixes of I Am Gothic plus some new stuff. This 'll be a quick, cheap CD- prob about $6.99 on amazon.
Tracks (order not fixed yet and even these may change)
Sonic Hub fea Martin Fry "New Man" Deeks Dub
Spray - I Am gothic" 2007 new mix and new Astromill mix
Electrlouvs "Blonde" Dolby Mix - not not THAT dolby)
M&M "Nightsahde" Diskowarp single mix
The Garland Cult "All Good Things" People Theatre Mix
H 17 - Hands Up - probably Qubiq's long mix
Figaro - Hand on the Gun- Steve Bronski Long Mix
Thought Criminals - I Want tobe a Celebrity "Mix fea Rachel

I am also trying to get a Daz song- the guy who won the Eurovision contest for the UK ( but then lost it to Finiish Glam Metal)

I am working to get these tracks in today.
Also working on a CDr for Konami of new stuff -

Listening to the new Amy Winehouse Cd now- first time in what seems like years thta I have head an album from the majors that is good from start to finish...

Sales this wek (March 19)- 0

P.S. Just got word that the art for Heaven 17, Space March and Sonic Hub are all ready, so pressing should start this week!

art

OK, just got word that the art for the Space March, Sonic Hub and the HEaven 17 single are at the pressing plant.Just leaves the Garland Cult art and the Sonic Hub CD Master to get to the pressing plant.

On tap this week- Send package out to Last FM, send package to IODA of the new uploads (SOnic Hub, new Space March, Synthetik FM- H17 and Garland Cult are up).
Send out promos of Before/After to see if I can respark some interest when the single comes out.

Doing something weird with GarlandCult - probably won;t work. The CD will include a CD of remixes from the amazing Qubiq, the guy who is a remix genius. But the remix CD won;t be online (well, through legit channels anyway). Have to see how that works.

Whats dying, why and how?

Hi
I runa small US record label. Every day I see news reports about how the record industry is in trouble. http://www.Coolfer.com, http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
But hey, we do alright. This is a hobby for me. I don;t make money, every cent I do rake in I put back into releasing new stuff.

This is going to be my record as I try to navigate the tricky waters that are the new industry.

Frankly it all went to hell for us after 9/11. I mean, it did for a lot of people, but for some strange reason people stopped buying music right then. I mean no sales at all for a month, fine. I understod that there was some serious crap going down and people didn;t want to buy warmed over D Mode tribute bands.

But sales never recovered. It's hard to fathom today when i get $100 from Amazon for a month's worth of sales that Amazon used to pop $600 a month without fail. [yeah, those are real number, if you're looking for big time keep clicking...]
And digital has not replaced those sales at all. Just got Jan 07 sales, down 20% from December 06. And December sales were down from Nov, so it's not the gift certificate effect.

I've tried the distro route. We use Super D. God bless em, they try- but who would want to dick around with a label that sells 10 Cds a months?

So- This is what we have ahead of us- Monthly sales of about $500, not $1500 like even three years ago (and that's post 9/11 even).

The good- Konami, licensing to indie movies and once (!) a Fox Tv show (alan Replica showed up in Reunion, remember that show?)

The Bad- retail. Ugh. Radio- no way ever, impossible, Clubs? Well, thought it was easy but' it's damn hard. I don;t go to clubs (and what sort of tasetmaking clubs are in San Antonio anyway) and won;t play that game.

Here's what is happening this week:
I sent 4 releases to actually get pressed (not just popped up on iTunes)-
Garland Cult (uh, already up on iTunes)
Sonic Hub (new single, but the track is up on iTunes)
HEaven 17 (new single, should pop on iTunes soon, it's on Emusic)
Space March - Already up on iTunes but Craig wnet back and remixed and redid some tracks, so this is a new version.

Why so much already up? It's easy- very easy- to pop stuff up on iTunes. But it does just sit there unless you work it.

So next step after I make sure the art is at the presssing plant is to start promo...

That's next week.

Download "Queen Of Summer" (mp3)
from "Children of a Laser God"
by Spray
Ninthwave Media

• Buy at iTunes Music Store


• Buy at eMusic


• Buy at RealNetworks / Rhapsody


• Buy at Napster

More On This Album