The Tough Alliance

iTunes is giving away a song by the German (?) band The Tough Alliance as this week's free track. I Liked it, it seems to sample Pet Shop Boys. So I checked out their whole album and, wow! It is really, really good. Sounds like 1982 updated.
listen in here:

Heaven 17 on True blood

Damn! I forgot that last night HBO debuted the episode that Heaven 17's version of "Don't Fear the Reaper" was in. Seems like a few people heard the song. Out of the blue the song is top #`10,000 on amazon (up from top 150,000!) and is the #3 Heaven 17 song on itunes (never been higher than #6.

Cool!
Anyone see it?

update:
check out http://www.hbo.com/trueblood/ and select episode 4 , music and there is a link to iTunes for the song.

update #2



here's the scene!

lalalalalalalalalla

Smile.dk was top 20 over the weekend on lala.com. Not top 20 indie or top 20 dance or even top 20 electronic, but #19 over all, for the whole site- beating out mjaor labels. This morning they are still #24, not bad.
11 reviews u pon iTunes.
Amazon ranks have disappeared, like they do from time to time.

So we were looking to license the album in Japan, big fan base there, but the first contact we got wanted to give us about $10k, period. For an act that usually goes platinum there (not sure how many that is, but its more than a few thousand!)
So we decided to go it alone and am looking for a Japanese distro co. I got a name at JVC, but now I suspect, after looking around and having heard back - that JVC may think we want a licsene deal ,not just a distro deal. Hmmm.

Well, have to see what comes back from JVC, but I would imagine all we really need is to get the CDs in the stores. We can get it online there fine.

Smile up on amazon

OK, so Amazon finally got the Smile album up.
To your left you can preview the album....

I guess Amazon is now #2 behind iTunes. I have yet to buy anything MP3 wise from them, I sitll really dig eMusic. I have found lots of great music there:

Linstrom - terrific find, although I guess his new stuff isn't on eMusic.
Chairlift - (really just the Bruises song is any good imho)
Burial -

Just to name three. Fro $13 a monht you get 50 songs. I like it.

-Dave

Monday update

Monday
September 22 2008

Smile.dk has been up on itunes since Thursday. Already raked in more sales than 90% of the Ninthwave Roster does in a month (thanks to IODA’s daily update of iTunes sales I know Thursday’s sales already). Also 8 very positive reviews are up. Sweet.
No chart action,,,, yet!

Waiting for art (and some more cash) for the Doki Doki single. I’ll pop it up online this week too via IODA.
Word from Aidan that new Garland Cult is in the works. That didn’t take long :-)

Meanwhile - a little somethin
Emotiquon
"Run Faster" (mp3)
from "Run Faster Remix Single"
(Ninthwave Media)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Rhapsody
Buy at Napster
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Puretracks
Buy at Amazon
Buy at GroupieTunes
Buy at mTraks
More On This Album

SMiLE.dk up on iTunes

Ok, so it only took em 4 weeks, lol, but the album is now up.

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?isGifting=true&playlistId=289707455

Audio Gothic

Empire state Human’s Audio Gothic

OK, so I am kind of focused on the Smile.dk album these days, but ESH sent me a master of their new album Audio Gothic and I need help from you guys.

Here’s the back story. ESH was one of the first bands Ninthwave signed. Todd from ADD gave me a CDr demo of theirs (maybe even the album Pop Robot as I recall) and I loved it. I agreed to put out an expanded version.

Then the band wanted me to put out a sort of remix album, Alpha and Omega. So I did, Pop Robot sold well after all. But A& O did not, really (more later on that). I think it was about this time they released Music for Human on a Mexican label.

Then I put out a single for Liquid Blue, as a pre cursor to the album Urbanism. But about then I really ran into trouble $$ wise and as a result Urbanism never came out (well, it came out last year digitally).

The band went to Section 44 for their next album, Cycles. Can’t blame em.

Then I helped them release a best of and a rarity album last year, as well as some EPs etc. Oh, and three years ago (this next month btw) their version of “Halloween” went to #1 on the iTunes dance chart.

I have been happy to stick by the band and really want to do right by them with this release. So what I need are ideas about how to promote the album…

?

-Dave

glitter

Thursday-

OK- I got the new SMiLE.dk single, “Doki Doki” and gave it a listen. Love a couple o the remixes, there are also some “speedcore” mixes, I am not sure I always get that genre, but people like it. Still, so excited by the mixes that I am going to press up a “real” CD single in a color paper sleeve. If things go well (i.e. sales) I may even try to get it promoted in the clubs. It is a very good, catchy song. I was humming it all evening last night.

The Garland Cult’s remix album is speeding its way along the digital distro channels, it should start appearing next week. Here is the art. I took the album art, changed the color and added the font below, then layered a mosaic filter to achieve a “glitter” effect. Pretty cheesy, but also quick and cheap. I also plan to press up CDrs of the remix album, there a lot of really good remixes on it. Omho.

Also got the art for the next Empire state Human CD last ngith. Good art, very pro looking. The album sounds fantastic too.

Smile dk single - $1000
TGC CDrs - $400
ESH album $1200
Smile Dk promotion $2000
Total (not even including mailing costs) $4600. And last month I took in $500. Yikes!

Amazon rules!

Alllllright! I just got word that Amazon reinstated me. Whew! I will try to be a good lad from now on... :-))

Worst Week (ever?)

Ever have one of those weeks?

First off- ninthwave as a seller got kicked off amazon. Turns out a few Cds got lost along the way and the emails asking where they were went to an old account. So folks who purchased CDs from us directly complained to Amazon (as they should have). Ugh. I am hoping Amazon reinstates us, but who knows.

Meanwhile they still sell our Cds, just from their warehouse or other sellers.

Then I called the pressing plant to see if the new SMiLE.dk album had been shipped. Tunrs out they never got the art and so have been sitting there for three weeks. Carp! Well, they now have the art and will begin processing it asap. But still…

Not that it matters much. The album was supposed to come out Sept 9, iTunes has had the album for three weeks but still no sign. Meanwhile IODA still has not shipped it even to Amazon.

I gotta tell you the album sounds great, too bad it’s kind of cursed so far. But the good news is that we’ve sold about 100 pre orders through Amazon. Plus the band played to 3000 fans down in San Antonio at an Anime convention and in April will play to 10,000 people at a convention in Seattle. Who knew anime was so big? (Not me clearly)

ESh delivered their new album. Good stuff, as always. A few corkers on here too, one that will even get the club push from Ninthwave. But, naturally, we’re a little short this month. We’ll send it along for pressing early October for a late November release.

IODA should get the Garland Cult remix album this week. It’s an online affair only, but I may press up 100 DJ copies like I did for the Figaro album recently (If you want a copy of the Figaro album just paypal us $5- info@ninthwaverecords.com).

More soon