Bluemill Studios - A blog for musicians and songwriters.

Record Store Day

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 14:08:00 +0000

Today is officially Record Store day! Find a record store and buy some vinyl (or plastic).

RecordStoreDay.com

Goldstar

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 13:11:00 +0000

Goldstar: "Check out this site I found called Goldstar. They have half-price tickets and member reviews of concerts, sports, theater and more.
I'm already a member! https://www.goldstar.com/join?p=F1821207RB"

Physical vs. Digital Music Sales

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 14:26:00 +0000

Craigslist + RSS + Google Reader = Great Deals!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:35:00 +0000

Who has the time to keep trolling through Craiglist to find deals on gear? Here's an easy way to setup a search and be notified a la "watching" items on eBay.

Go to your local version of Craigslist and enter a search term.
When the results page comes up, click on the orange RSS button.
Choose Google Reader as your RSS reader.
Keep a browser tab open showing the RSS subscription.

As people list items that contain your search term, you will see new entries in Reader in real-time.

How bands can use the iPad

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:09:00 +0000

If your band plays live, then you are familiar with the practice of collecting emails from the audience. How cool would it be to use the iPad to capture the emails??

Simply create a web page that has the capture form and submit button and presto! Instant opt-in and no typos! You can also create a profile on Reverbnation and use that to capture emails as well.

The audience will be impressed with your tech savvy and they will get to test out the iPad. They will definitely remember you.

Tired of playing to the same 10 friends?

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 13:55:00 +0000

A new website promises to help bands fill the room for their next gig. CreateTheGig.com is in pre-launch mode and it's goal is to create a true win-win-win for fans, bands and venues.

Fans name their own price for a ticket and interact with the band on the gig setlist. Once the attendance minimum (set by band) is reached, the fans are charged for the ticket and the venue is selected.

The Web Has Not Destroyed Record Labels, Say Record Labels

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:06:00 +0000

Getting a following online and sustaining a band are two different things. Once a band has a large rapid fanbase, they will need help to manage their existence.

Unless the band are absolute artistic purists, they will need to hire a team for touring, marketing, pr, distribution, publishing, design, engineering, project mgmt, html, etc.. It's hard to imagine a band can create awesome music AND those things without help.

That said, a solid indie label can provide that support and the band doesn't have to sell it's soul in the process.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Forty-Four

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 13:38:00 +0000

A community of musicians/creators have come together to form the "Forty-Four." This is a project/site dedicated to creating music.

On any given Sunday, a random group of musicians get together and create one piece of music. The tune is then posted to the website and shared freely with a Creative Commons license.

A Friend of Pat Robertson

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:29:00 +0000

One of the greatest bands in the last 20 years (IMO) released this EP a few years back. Did they know something??

iTunes Album

Instant Collaboration Tools for Songwriters

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:13:00 +0000

Over that past year or so I've been testing various tools for quickly recording ideas and sharing them with collaborators. As of today, I believe the perfect solution is upon us - if you have an iPhone.

The FiRe app by Audiofile Engineering has reached a point past Beta, in my opinion. The app costs $4.99 and has an impressive list of features as of it's latest version dated 1/5/10. The best feature integration is the isotope DSP. Using isotope you can apply compression and gating while recording, which really helps in live sound situations.

The killer app is the integration with SoundCloud. Each recording saved in your iPhone using the FiRe app can be uploaded to SoundCloud. From there, your collaborators can listen or download. They can even write comments at any given point in the waveform.

Alternatively, the latest version of the iPhone OS (3.1.2) comes with an app called the Field Recorder. You can record using the internal mic and each time you connect to your computer, those recordings will be synced to your iTunes. Each recording will show up in your music library after each sync.

If you use any of these apps, post a link to the mp3 so we can hear it!

What Matters Most

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:27:00 +0000

Seth Godin has compiled over 80 riffs from some of the most dynamic people on earth. You can download the pdf here. Or, you can read it online here.

Playing Live to 20 vs. 200

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:36:00 +0000

Open question: does the audience opinion change when a band is playing for 20 people vs. 200?

Assuming the band performance is equal, if there were 200 people packed in front of a stage jumping and jiving vs. 20 standing in the back - does the overall perception of the listener change?

PlugdIn Podcast: Top 20 (18) Moments in Rock 'n Roll

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:36:00 +0000

Johnny Dangerous and me discuss our picks for the top 10 greatest moments in Rock history.

Defending the case for 1000 true fans (or is it 40)

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:04:00 +0000

Matthew Ebel was interviewed by Ariel Hyatt on his somewhat unique, but effective approach to being a full-time artist.

I'm blown away that a core group of 40 people can provide enough leverage to do his thing. His results around the subscription model are very encouraging. Essentially, his story is the blueprint for how independent artists can live the dream.

I see it as two parts: talent/skill + creative business acumen.

The REAL challenge is to be consistent and balance the two. Let's face it, that's hard to do and figure out how to pay the bills along the way.

New Podcast Series: PlugdIn

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:51:00 +0000

Something I've been planning for some time now and finally launched it!

The PlugdIn Podcast is a weekly discussion with (hopefully) interesting people involved in music, design, video, social media, charities and many other topics.

Here's the link to this week's episode. Enjoy!

Launching ProToolsTutorial.com

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:12:00 +0000

We're excited to finally launch our sister-site, ProToolsTutorial.com!

It's light on content since it was turned up this morning, but keep checking back. We are going to fill it up with articles and videos on getting the most from Pro Tools LE.

3 Quick SEO Tips For Artists Websites

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:06:00 +0000

As a band or artist with a website these days, you need to take advantage of every possible technique to get visitors.

Here are three quick tips to optimize your site for search engines.

1. Add descriptive sentences to your title tags for each page in the website. i.e. "My Band - Rock covers with killer vocals"

2. Use headings (h1, h2, h3...) whenever possible in the body of each page.

3. Save each website page with a descriptive name. i.e. myband-liveshows.html

The Golden Age for Indie Artists?

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:53:00 +0000

Yes, I believe it is true. The problem for most indie artists is that they haven't written their best stuff - yet.

I experience this year after year. When I started publishing my songs in 2002, there was absolutely no buzz. Then, gradually I started writing better songs and performing them better. And being a true weekend warrior for the most part, that took longer than expected since I am not doing 5 shows a week.

These days, I do get the occasional stranger walk up and say they really liked one of my originals.

This article by Michael Laskow puts it all in perspective.

Songwriting Tip # 2 - complimentary melodies

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:00:00 +0000

Sting, Peter Gabriel, The Eagles - they are all masters at complimentary melodies.

Like symphony compositions, many great songs have multiple melodies weaving in and out of each other. They don't have to be complicated. Take one base chord and experiment playing two different melodies at the same time. A multi-track recorder or another musician will help you achieve this.

3 Custom Drum Loops

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 22:35:00 +0000

3 loops in 48k MP3 format. Custom made in Bluemill Studios using a Gretsch Birch kit. Right-click the link below to download for your own use.

Loop-100
Loop-101
Loop-102

Post a comment here with the link if you use them!

The "Blueprint" for Indie Artists

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:19:00 +0000

Derek Sivers interviewed Amber Rubarth about her success and tactics as an indie songwriter/performer. The interview is eye-opening in a few ways, but amazing how she managed everything herself for a very long time.

The interview.

Using the Creative Commons License

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 23:48:00 +0000

CreativeCommons.org has created a means for artists to protect "some" rights of their work. For example, this would allow artist to freely distribute his or her work from a website, but restrict use of other entities to sell those same works. The standard copyright that's been around for over 100 years protects the creator's work from any usage or alteration by anyone.

This new flexibility has been widely adopted by many independent artist who see this as a way to gain exposure. Jamison Young is one artist who has benefited from this innovation.

At CreativeCommons.org, you can register your works and attribute your work appropriately. For any artist who collaborates, this can clear the air to allow for some rich creativity.

Using a Mixing Board with Pro Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:02:00 +0000

If you have a mixing board with 8-16 channels, you can use it as your primary mic source in the chain. Here's how:

First, plug all your XLR (mic) cables into a channel on your mixing board. Then, using a snake or individual 1/4 cables, route the output from each channel on the board to a line in on your Digi 002/003.

Make sure the your select the button setting for "line" on the first four channels on the Digi.

Next, open up a new PT session and add 8 mono tracks. On the input of each track in the session, set the input on the first four to Mic/Line 1,2,3,4. Then on the next four, select Analog 5,6,7,8. Also, add a master fader in the session.

Now test the levels of each mic input on the mixing board. You should set the trim/gain on the board as high as possible to get a nice, hot signal.

Next, press "R" on each track in the PT session. Using the fader on the mixing board, get your levels on each track so the meter is bouncing 50-75% in the track on the session.

Finally, check your overall mix on the master fader and your are ready to go.

One man's songwriting process

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:23:00 +0000

walk around the house with guitar and improvise melodies/riffs on the acoustic guitar
stumble onto something cool
grab cell phone and record it
rinse, repeat
transfer sound files via bluetooth to mac
import wav's into pro tools
build on ideas

What is your process?

10 ways to promote your music online (without your own website)

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Echlin) — Thu, 08 May 2008 02:59:00 +0000

10. Sign up for CDbaby.com and get distribution to all digital outlets.
9. Press your CD through discmakers with the web bundle and get onto digstation.com
8. Post up to 6 tracks on myspace.
7. Create a facebook page about you and your music.
6. Create an ilike.com page and post bulletins and blogs to 5 different sites (including myspace).
5. Create a blog on blogger (free) or and tell everyone what you are up to.
4. Post an article on digg.com talking about your release and include a link to your music and/or your blog.
3. Post a video of you playing your song or something else creative on youtube.
2. Send a "gift" track or album via iTunes to your superfans (cdbaby will hook you up on iTunes).
1. Write a killer song and email to some people.