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Artist wants feedback on releasing cds...


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Hi Guys,

I was talking to an Australian artist who is looking to release some of his older material from back in the day. From what I have heard, the quality is excellent - some great sleazy influence hair metal. He has done a lot of work on the audio and it's fantastic sound quality.

But the guy has been completely out of the loop in terms of the music industry for many years.
(Put it this way, he threw away 50 copies of his bands vinyl becasue he thought no one would want it... not realising there is one on ebay with a $100 price tag...ouch!)

Anyway, he is unsure of the whole industry these days and is interested in peoples views on:

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

 

2) physical vs dowload

3) cdr vs silver press

4) indie release vs reissue label

5) price


I told him I would get some feedback from his target maket which I guess is folks like yourselves, so if you could give some feedback on the above it would be most appreciated.

The responses I gave him were as follwos, but thats just 1 pair of eyes:

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

Limited market, but there is definitely a market there for a good quality product

 

2) physical vs download

I suggested both.... a good quality physical product for those who like a physical product, and a download if he desires. Silver press + booklet with photos and bio.

3) cdr vs silver press

Silver, as cdr would limit his already limited audience by half again.


4) indie release vs reissue label

seems content to do the lot himself which I said would be excellent. there would not be an issue selling an indie product if the word gets around as being a great quality product. personally i think indie is also a draw card to collectors.

5) price

$15 for a good quality silver pressing.

 

 

 

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I agree pretty much with everything you have stated above. Although I am not sure if doing it the indie way would be better. I am not sure what kind of sales numbers would be different between indie or using a reissue label. I can only imagine it being far more with an official label, but I am positive it won't line his pockets nearly as much. If I were to pick a label it would probably be Demon Doll. Seems like this would fit the style of music described. I definitely would not recommend FNA (only cdrs). Eonian is good but it seems like forever to get anything new from them.

 

and...silver pressed, silver pressed, silver pressed.

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Hi Guys,

 

I was talking to an Australian artist who is looking to release some of his older material from back in the day. From what I have heard, the quality is excellent - some great sleazy influence hair metal. He has done a lot of work on the audio and it's fantastic sound quality.

 

But the guy has been completely out of the loop in terms of the music industry for many years.

(Put it this way, he threw away 50 copies of his bands vinyl becasue he thought no one would want it... not realising there is one on ebay with a $100 price tag...ouch!)

 

Anyway, he is unsure of the whole industry these days and is interested in peoples views on:

 

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

 

2) physical vs dowload

 

3) cdr vs silver press

 

4) indie release vs reissue label

 

5) price

 

I told him I would get some feedback from his target maket which I guess is folks like yourselves, so if you could give some feedback on the above it would be most appreciated.

 

The responses I gave him were as follwos, but thats just 1 pair of eyes:

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

Limited market, but there is definitely a market there for a good quality product

 

2) physical vs download

I suggested both.... a good quality physical product for those who like a physical product, and a download if he desires. Silver press + booklet with photos and bio.

3) cdr vs silver press

Silver, as cdr would limit his already limited audience by half again.

4) indie release vs reissue label

seems content to do the lot himself which I said would be excellent. there would not be an issue selling an indie product if the word gets around as being a great quality product. personally i think indie is also a draw card to collectors.

 

5) price

$15 for a good quality silver pressing.

 

 

 

Yep you summed it up.

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I can only speak for myself here, most people might think differently.... If I REALLY like something I want to have it on CD (silver pressed preferably, and JEWEL CASES please!!!) and ideally you get an instant download after ordering the CD. I realize this might be difficult to set up as it needs extra ''programming'' for lack of a better word

 

I haven't listened to the songs you posted yet but if I think a release is kind of so-so but I still want to support the artist and am interested in hearing it I'll just download the album. Sometimes I don't feel like waiting for a CD but still want to hear it that's when I'll download it. If there's a release I'm really looking forward to and know I'll like I do both order the physical CD as well as the download cause I can't wait to hear it :D A lot of times overseas shipping takes a week or more so that's when I'll do that

 

I couldn't care less whether it's on a label or released independently and price.... I think 20$ is fair even if I have to pay extra for shipping. Pure downloads 10, maybe 12 $

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the safest bet is to start a crowdfunding on this project with approximately $15 to $20 to see how's the response, and for me, definitely a silver pressed disc and please use a good quality one because I have two or three CDs from sleaszy records and I can say, they're quite horrible and some tracks were unplayable or skip :(

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I did suggest crowdfunding, but being old school he wasn't overly keen on that.

He just wants to get the music out there as its been sitting there ready to go for decades.

He even said rags n riches had a album release / album launch but the album itself never saw the light of day.

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One of the factors in choosing indie vs. a label is whether he has the resources himself to produce a quality finished product (mastering, graphic design and layout). If the artwork/booklet/digipak/whatever looks like shit, it doesn't matter how good the music is. That's one area where a label has more resources, as well as distribution... although these days, between eBay, Amazon, CD Baby, and selling direct to resellers like MBM, NEH, Aor Heaven, etc., and self-promotion on social media (again here is an area where resources/know-how may come into play, especially if he is "old school" and somewhat social-media averse), a band can do a LOT on their own.

 

By cutting out the middle-man, it opens up the door considerably with respect to profit. Manufacture is no longer a barrier. Assuming you have quality files, bundles of 300+ digipaks, shrinkwrapped jewel case with 4-page or 8-page 4CP/4CP printing with same on tray card can get your per-unit cost down to reasonable.

 

For example, I just did a quick quote via DiscMakers (there are other outfits out there that are cheaper, but I use them as a worst-case scenario reference point):

 

Silver pressed CD with full color printing.

8-page full color booklet

Tray card printed color both sides.

Shrinkwrapped

300 units.

INCLUDING shipping from U.S. to Australia.

3 week turnaround.

 

US$1,159.00

 

That's US$3.86 per unit delivered to Australia. If it's going to the U.S., knock off $150 from the total.

 

Going up to 500 units drops the per-unit cost to US$3.32 delivered and 1,000 units gets a delivered cost of US$2.15 per unit. For less-known acts, I don't know that I'd want to press more than 300...

 

Doing a 4-page booklet instead of 8 drops the cost almost $200 to $962 delivered. It's a question of how extensive do you want the package to be (liner notes, bio, commentary, etc.). Going the other direction, if you REALLY want a polished package, going from 8 to 12 pages only adds $40 to the total, 16-pages another $55. (Anyone remember the High Vaultage reissues with their MONSTER booklets?)

 

You can shave money by doing black & white only on interior of booklet or tray card, but the savings are nominal. Keep it polished.

 

As add-on services, DiscMakers can do distribution through both CD Baby and Amazon. It doesn't add too much to the package cost. You can also add on promotional posters as well.

 

 

No, manufacturing costs aren't the issue any more; it's the upfront production costs, graphic design, promotion, and order fulfillment (shipping supplies, taking payment, customer service, dealing with returns) that are the big questions...

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Sounds very nice, I'll definitely be getting this on CD if it comes out! So he's the singer?

yeah, he's the singer.

 

He has recently released some new solo stuff he's been working on and just at the moment has a great deal going on his bandcamp page. (Note: I believe this solo cd is cdr). Its more modern a maybe a more melodic / possibly even experimental compared to the old stuff he has in the vaults. Check it out if you are interested:

http://mazz-xt.bandcamp.com/album/at-the-brink-of-eternity

 

downlaod the album for $AUD2 ($US1.50)

or buy the physical disc for $AUD7 ($US4-5) + shipping

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Thanks for that extensive reply Dan.
I'll direct him over to this page so he can read the responses.

I know he's got some quotes locally, but unsure how these compare.

Pretty sure he wasnt aiming at doing a big minimum run (500), but was rather looking for someone who could do in the 250 range.

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Hi Guys,

 

I was talking to an Australian artist who is looking to release some of his older material from back in the day. From what I have heard, the quality is excellent - some great sleazy influence hair metal. He has done a lot of work on the audio and it's fantastic sound quality.

 

But the guy has been completely out of the loop in terms of the music industry for many years.

(Put it this way, he threw away 50 copies of his bands vinyl becasue he thought no one would want it... not realising there is one on ebay with a $100 price tag...ouch!)

 

Anyway, he is unsure of the whole industry these days and is interested in peoples views on:

 

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

 

2) physical vs dowload

 

3) cdr vs silver press

 

4) indie release vs reissue label

 

5) price

 

I told him I would get some feedback from his target maket which I guess is folks like yourselves, so if you could give some feedback on the above it would be most appreciated.

 

The responses I gave him were as follwos, but thats just 1 pair of eyes:

1) the market for late 80s early 90s hard rock

Limited market, but there is definitely a market there for a good quality product

 

2) physical vs download

I suggested both.... a good quality physical product for those who like a physical product, and a download if he desires. Silver press + booklet with photos and bio.

3) cdr vs silver press

Silver, as cdr would limit his already limited audience by half again.

4) indie release vs reissue label

seems content to do the lot himself which I said would be excellent. there would not be an issue selling an indie product if the word gets around as being a great quality product. personally i think indie is also a draw card to collectors.

 

5) price

$15 for a good quality silver pressing.

 

 

 

I agree with everything you have stated above. Of what I heard I would definitely pay 15 to 20 dollars. Indie or reissue the sales would not make much of a difference....but it would sell more if a silver pressed cd......not a cdr. The artist will not get rich but will make some cash on it. There is a limited market and a lot of underground fans will definitely buy the product. Also make sure the artwork ans a proper booklet with history and as much pix as possible and fans will pay the 15 to 20 dollars. I would say Demon Doll....but they did a cheap job on the Legs Up cd....the booklet was so so...no pix and flyers from the day...but you make the call.....a proper pro booklet would make a huge difference. Eonian is very good and very professional in the artwork booklet and silver disc........but it seems like forever to get anything new from them. Get those bands material released...you have a purchase from me already :git:

and...silver pressed, silver pressed, silver pressed.

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  • 2 months later...

here's a samples of what we're talking about:

 

 

 

These tracks are great.

 

Here's the result of this project ... All I can see this is completely awesome if these samples are anything to go by!

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=icURa_XqTwY&feature=youtu.be

 

A few killers and a few clunkers in there. There's almost a prime-time Poison type vibe to some of the songs. Like Dan says, though, the production on these doesn't compare well to the first two songs.

 

Whatever the case, I'm very interested to hear this thing.

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  • 2 weeks later...

OUT NOW!

Rags N Riches - Shipped Wrecked Out In The Street
Rags N Riches - Australia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icURa_XqTwY&feature=youtu.be

Ginn - One Man Army
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQQv9F2C1nI&feature=share

1st time on CD!
silver pressed!
limited to 250 of each so get in quick!

http://mazz-xt.bandcamp.com/

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