 | | Apartment 26 | |
| D.I.Y.2K: Indie: Lo-Fi No More "We don't believe that you have to do everything the system way," Pitchshifter frontman J.S. Clayden said. "System dictates that you get signed to a record label, you pay a million dollars to get someone called in to produce your record... all the money's gone and you get an album that doesn't sound quite how you wanted it to. Our idea is that we do all the demo work we can at home, we record every single thing that we can at home, then we go into a studio for one week. We record the guitars and drums on two-inch tapes and make them sound phat and mix them all on computer... People tell you, 'You can't do this, you can't do that.' Screw all that. You can do whatever you like. It's what comes out of the speakers at the end of the day that matters."  | Pitchshifter's
J.S. Clayden | |
What eventually came out of the speakers was the band's 1998 Geffen debut album, "www.pitchshifter.com," whose title pointed people to the band's Web site. The online venture boasts a tour diary, current band news, lots of AV, and free audio samples for those who want to tinker in their own home studios. Pitchshifter and Apartment 26 are just part of a wave of artists who know that driving potential fans to the Net is just as important as driving them to the merch tent when it comes to getting your name out there. For these groups, the Internet offers the opportunity to put what is essentially an electronic press kit directly into the hands of would-be fans. | Public Enemy's
Chuck D | |
"You don't need a lot of money or to look right or whatever to get on the Internet," Clayden said. "You don't need a lot of money, you just get online and that's it. I don't think Fiona Apple and Celine Dion need any help from the Internet to sell more records, whereas bands like us and Korn and the Deftones and Limp Bizkit need some help for people to find what we're about on the Internet, and that's a good way to do that."While the Internet provides new acts with an effective recruitment tool for potential fans, established acts are also finding that breakthroughs in digital distribution are helping them to regain a bit of the D.I.Y. ethic (and creative freedom) for themselves.Witness the case of Public Enemy. The hip-hop heavyweights did their time on a major label, and after growing tired of making money for others, decided that the Internet could finally help them get their music to listeners without going through traditional methods. The seminal rap outfit hooked up with online company Atomic Pop, which made the group's new album, "There's A Poison Goin' On," available for digital download well before it hit stores."Public Enemy is a small fly in the buttermilk," Chuck said of the move. "The bigger picture is how things are going to change... It just signifies an important event, and when it comes out, it's going to hit us like shrapnel in all different areas."It's a lesson that new artists are quick to learn, as they turn to the Net to give them an edge in the music business. Of course, without traditional word of mouth to drive people to your site, you might as well be planting a flag in the Yukon and waiting for someone to stumble across it. That's why after his band's set on Ozzfest's second stage, Apartment 26's Butler can be seen handing out fliers to concertgoers. The more D.I.Y. changes, the more it stays the same.If you want to see how some acts are doing it themselves online, explore the following sites: |
