Indie Sounds NY & Austin

Worth Checking Out: Fantrail

Fantrail - from the Austin-based company of the same name - is a mobile application that allows musicians to interact with their fanbase.  For iPhones and Androids.  It looks cool, and it's free.

A Dizzying Tour of Web Music Tools ...

Thanks to PM MGMT.

Gelsey Bell on Copyright and Why It's Good For You!

According to the U.S. Copyright Office "Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression."

Most musicians, when they release music on a CD or lyrics on the web, include the © symbol or the word 'copyright' in the package or post.  And indeed, that is more than enough to copyright it.  Others might mail themselves a package containing the CD as proof of its existence on a certain date (the postmark).

But should it come to actually challenging someone else on your copyright in a court, and seeking legal redress, formal registration of copyright is going to be required.

Fortunately, the registration process is neither difficult or expensive. NYC singer/songwriter Gelsey Bell recently undertook that process for her latest CD ... and here are some tips from her for the rest of you ...

International Bands @ SXSW: Managing Expectations and Making the Most of Your Investment - Part 2

Applications for showcases at the 2011 SXSW are open. Dart Music International's Dave Dart has some more wisdom for overseas acts looking to make the trek to Austin, or to other festivals in the USA.

Part 1 of his article is here.

If you've lined up the funding and are ready to come to the USA for your first tour or festival, getting yourself organized is key. The visa and festival selection process requires you to apply at least five months ahead of time. It's often helpful to think about a tour as several different components, then make sure you have each one mapped out. You can think of them  in broad categories like: immigration, venues, transportation, housing, rentals, publicity, and living expenses.

International Bands @ SXSW: Managing Expectations and Making the Most of Your Investment - Part 1

Applications for showcases at the 2011 SXSW opened about a week ago.  While there is no separate submission deadline this time for international bands, the organizers urge those from overseas to submit early.  But for those international acts, there's way more to making it at SXSW and in the USA than submitting early, as Dart Music International's Dave Dart explains below ...

Let's face it, Austin during SXSW is pretty much the center of the universe for music, film, and interactive entertainment.  Whether your goal is to make new business contacts at home or on the opposite side of the planet, it is the place you want to be.  Unfortunately, so do about 2,000 other showcasing artists (and twice that number of "unofficial" attendees).  So it's important to plan early, incorporate your SXSW trip into a long-term (two-year) strategy, and understand the process.

Kate Tucker Gets a Kickstarter for White Horses...

Kate Tucker is an Ohio-born, Seattle and New York City-based artist.  On March 26th, she started a project with Kickstarter.com to fund the release of her new record, White Horses.  The deadline to raise funds for this project is tomorrow ... and this is her own story of the endeavor ...


Photo by Thomas Stuby

Last fall, I spent twenty days in a Seattle studio making a record.  I paid for it out of my own pocket and felt very good about how it turned out.  I planned to release it on my own little label, Red Valise Recordings, as I had done with my two previous albums.  But I was at the end of my resources financially, so I sat on it for a while trying to figure out how I would get the songs out to the people who were waiting to hear them. 

Five Minutes With John Pointer

Local musician John Pointer is a man of ideas, always up to something new, always looking for a new way to expose his - and other people's - music.  Shows at the ZACH Theatre are his latest brainwave ...



Indie Sounds: You have something cooking at Zachary Scott Theatre - the ZACH - this weekend. Tell us about it?

John Pointer: I've been working full time as a musician in Austin since 1996.  In 2007, the ZACH asked me to play Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar, and that's where this started.  I realized that there was a whole group of people over there who would prefer not to go to a bar to see live music - over 20,000 on their email list alone.

Five Minutes With Benji Rogers of Pledge Music

Benji Rogers of Marwood is up to something new. Since his return to the UK last year, the one-time New Yorker has been hard at work creating Pledge Music, a new kind of label that allows artists to raise money from their fans to fund the creation of albums, contribute to charity and retain ownership of their works.  It all sounds too good to be true ... so Indie Sounds decided to get the scoop.



Indie Sounds: What is Pledge Music? Why did you start it?

Benji Rogers: Hi Pete. Pledge Music helps artists fund their albums, keep 100% of their rights and raise money for charity. I started it because I wanted to use it, and because none of the alternatives appealed to me. It was designed to combine maximum flexibility for the artist both during the "Pledge" and afterwards. That is why we insist upon the artist keeping 100% of what they make from the sale of their records.

Austin Set To Create City Music Department

Following proposals formulated last year, the City of Austin looks set to create a department dedicated to developing the local music community.  Indie Sounds got the scoop from Paul Oveisi, owner of Momo's and a leading advocate for the department's creation.



Indie Sounds: Why does Austin need a music department?

Paul Oveisi: It only needs one if it wants to take itself seriously as a music city. Every city with a strong music presence has more substantial civic resources devoted to foster, develop, encourage and deal with all things music. At least as it pertains to city policy. Austin should be leading by example.  At this point, I'd say we rank near the bottom in terms of City resources devoted to music. 

Austin Musicians Support Brewster McCracken For Next Mayor

In Austin, support for the local music scene is an election issue ... and Brewster McCracken is the man that local musicians, venues and music biz people are backing.

"The artists and and professionals who bring us these shows, they need leaders who understand the critical role the music industry plays for our local economy," McCracken said.