Music these days is just way too much comercialilsed, sanitised clone-garbage. TV shows like 'Pop Idol' (or American Idol etc), X-Factor, and 'The Voice' make for amusing entertainment in the opening stages thanks to the bad singers that really can't sing, is prett bland in the middle, and by the end of it we're hoping something other than the winner's single gets to top the charts.
Thank got for the public upsurge in, I think it was 2009, when Rage Against the Machine beat Joe McElderry to the Christmas #1 spot.
Tom Morello apparently donated all the proceeds from this surprise chart topping to charity. Top bloke!
It's Ironic though - there was a mass facebook campaign here to get RATM to #1 because the media was pumping McElderry's song so much it felt forced, and the emphasis was on the RATM refrain "Fuck you! I won't do what you tell me!" which is exactly what everyone who bought the RATM record did - exactly as they were told.
Yes, I bought the record, and the irony of it wasn't lost on me then either.
Anyway, I digress, so, in support of all the people who work their asses off to make anything of themselves as a musician, I dedicate this post to the unsigned bands of the world.
It really is a gutwrenching slog to do anything as a musician. Finding a band is hard enough, sure if you want to play in pub covers bands until retirement you can get a gig almost by looking in the yellow pages, but if you have the drive, the desire, heck the balls, to get your own music heard then you have a steep hill ahead of you.
You need the right line up, a band that you can rely on to do their job (it's a team effort), to pitch with things that aren't their job - let's face it while it's fun to watch, no one should let the drummer lug ALL of their geard from the van it weight a ton; and running around handing out flyers for a gig is no joking matter either - bands just starting out have to do everything because they can't afford hawkers or roadies. You have to get along with with your bandmates, not just in the 'for a few hours' way that mates do, but in the 'we'll be living in each others pockets for days or weeks on end' kind of way.
Then you have to get gigs, this means trogging around pubs, clubs, holiday camps, events organisers and giving demo cds. Oh? You don't have one of those, no one's going to listen to you, so you'd best get in a studio and record one ... no cash for the studio, then you'd best have a forgiving family and neighbours because you're recording it in your back room on your computer ... Good luck.
Once you have your first gigs the key then is to connect with a crowd made up friends who've come to see you and people who don't know you from Adam and give them a great night. That means mixing covers with your own material.
Then, and only then, can you build a following, look for a showcase gig and pray that the right A&R guy hears you. Of course today it's a little easier thanks to the wonders of the internet; email, social media, youtube, are all great platforms to promote a band.
Do all that, get lucky, and be in the right place at the right time, and you could go far.
It's a slog. Don't let any TV show convince you otherwise.
These guys below have done what they have the hard way - so please, show them and other hard working bands a courtesy, listen to them, buy their stuff, and tell your friends to do the same.
Hashtag Alice
Rooftop Farmers
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