I was reading
All You Need to Know About the Music Business to understand the insight into the music business. The book is informative and useful. The boring part is it covers law, contracts, finance sides presuming you are already kicking in like you got a record deal. I really got bored, slowed down and stopped as it went in depth because I am not there yet.
From the Amazon recommendation page, I found this 'DIY Music Manual' where it says 'Without A Record Deal' caught my attention. I straight away clicked it. And now I am reading it like I'm gonna be there tomorrow and I can do something like 'Beatnik Turtle', the band which the authors of this book belong to.
Internet and today's technology are shaking the music business which is definitely not a good news for some. But it's a very good news for the artists never heard of. In the past, the road to audience was only by playing in your local bar or your music being played on the radio or music companies finding you. Today it's not always like that. Thanks to the Internet that we have platforms like youtube, myspace, facebook, twitter etc. where we can reach our audience directly.
This book focuses mainly on getting to your audience through your own music web site where there is no limitations. Not to be mistaken that it doesn't teach web designing stuffs. But web presence, branding, selling MP3s, CDs, merchandising, getting gigs and things like that. And to do this you don't need third party paying them half of your income. In another word, this book tells a story how 'Beatnik Turtle' did it without any record deal without signing any contracts making the most and the best of the web page. I can call it kinda their biography?
What says here, as the authors called it Manual, are not a new thing. Some points are, in my opinion, debatable. People are already there doing it. I am also preparing myself for doing it for long. But I just don't know where to start and how. DIY Music Manual gave me inspirations and showed me ways to do it. It's gonna be my reference. Different music projects by the band itself and other musicians are exemplified.
Beatnik Turtle may not be famous rock stars. Only from this manual I came to know about them. I visited their page, listened to the music and learnt more about them. At least the boys are doing good making money out of their music, doing gigs and built a fan base. I just joined. Beatnik Turtle rocks.
Rock 'N' Roll \,,/,
