I am currently studying Music Performance at [College]. I am creating a leaflet to inform the college students of the current state of the music industry, and why it is in this state. The current decline in record sales, due to illegal downloading is a massive issue and I feel people need to know more about this and what it is doing to the industry.

Below I have several questions for you, that I would greatly appreciate you answering to help with my project.

Thank you.

It was great to have the opportunity to think about the questions that were being asked, and just for the hell of it I  thought it would be worth sharing my responses here.

The Decline in the Music Industry Questionnaire

1. Has the number of Artists signed to your label decreased due to illegal downloading? If so, how are you coping with this?

No; we’re a new start up so can’t measure decrease in artist sign up – but very aware that possibility to create a business model that returns profit is much harder in this environment

2. How much is illegal downloading affecting the businesses profit margins?

We launched a single in January this year which got lots of positive response but few sales – we suspect this is because the track was shared rather than purchased.

3. Is the performance of live shows boosting record sales or increasing to amount of illegal downloads?

Live shows are replacing record sales as the most efficient route for artists to make money and retain control of supply.  I can see that the increase in downloads in leading to an increase in live shows, but not convinced it is occurring the other way around.

4. Do the artists on your roster show any doubt in the music industries current situation?

Yes; they know it is harder than ever to break through and make money.

5. How has the label adapted to deal with problem of illegal downloading?

The cat is out of the bag; unfortunately a new generation is growing up thinking that illegal downloading is ‘ok’.  The X-Factor culture is presenting the music industry as a fast track to cash through sales and endorsements – the reality is that most artists will have to struggle for years to make a decent living – if ever! Our challenge is to put value back in to the experience, so that artists can start to earn again – that probably means something we haven’t thought of yet.  People do still massively value the music experience, but we have lost control over supply.  What people seem to still aspire to is a connection with a band, a cause, a movement – something to ‘belong’ to.  We are aiming to create a new kind of co-operation between artists and fans where creativity is valued and rewarded.

6. Is there a decline in interest from unsigned acts?

Do you mean interest in getting signed?  Reports in the press say that’s not the case.  Even if it was true I would say this is not because of illegal downloads; more that there is a lot of scope to ‘do it yourself’.  In fact, the system that makes illegal downloads a problem, also makes it much easier for new bands to gain exposure.

7. Are they any thoughts on how to deal with the dwindling physical sales? Like new, innovative Promotion ideals?

We see Radiohead have arranged the release of ‘The King of Limbs’ as an amazing example of how reimagine the market; create a ‘buzz’ and a desire for music buyers to be involved with the product they are releasing.  This is far more than just making a CD available to buy in the shops – the old model.  Of course they have had a long time to build up their reputation and give them the option of taking this route; it is a bigger challenge for us to translate this in to something similar which will create a desire to engage and pay money for music from new / unsigned bands.

8. In a hope to bring back the “physical disk” would you consider dropping the price of albums for sale in stores?

A new generation of music buyers equates music with internet / download.  It is more likely that CD will go the way of vinyl and find its own niche market.  Dropping the price won’t make people go back to buying disks – exclusive / limited availability might – e.g only available at gigs.

GRINDHOUSE joins Random Candle to release their new EP Dead Town Blues.

On April 6th Random Candle will release the first EP from Punk/Glam band GRINDHOUSE. The band have been working hard in the studio to with the intent to achieve something that all musicians are striving for – a new sound!

The Dead Town Blues EP will be released for download only, through all major music stockists on 6^th April! This will be celebrated with a release party at the Intrepid Fox in central London on the same evening! Come down have a drink and listen to the new project from seven pm.

The combination of rock riffs and punk vocal styling makes GRINDHOUSE stand out from other punk bands.  They understand the anger generated by the original punk movement but are young enough to have consumed the new punk scene that reared its head in the early noughties.

Their strong guitar riffs and  shouted/ sung vocals shine with vital energy, and the live act delivers in spades;  but the recording process has not stifled their live sound -  you will feel the emotion and anger through the speakers.

Tracks received a strong response from listeners when they were played on label founder Jim Distortion’s show on London station Recharged Radio; which was plenty of motivation to track them down and sig n the band to the Random Candle label.

Every member of the band are in their teens but youth hasn’t prevented them from already achieving a sponsorship deal with Dead or Alive Clothing as to go with the deal with Random Candle!   There has been no shortage of hard work done by the band to find the next gig and raise their profile  and this is a great match for the label ethos of the more you are prepared to do for yourself the further you get.

Reviews and interviews with the band would be a great asset for any radio station or publication. These guys really understand how the game is played in this world of music nonchalance and will work hard to get where they are going – massive stages and heavy record sales.

Please contact the label for music and information or to arrange interviews.

Contact Jim Distortion on 07795820089.

jim@randomcandle.co.uk

GRINDHOUSE joins Random Candle to release their new EP Dead Town Blues.

On March 21st Random Candle will release the first EP from Punk/Glam band GRINDHOUSE. The band have been working hard in the studio to with the intent to achieve something that all musicians are striving for – a new sound!

The Dead Town Blues EP will be released for download only, through all major music stockists on 21st March 2011.

The combination of rock riffs and punk vocal styling makes GRINDHOUSE stand out from other punk bands. They understand the anger generated by the original punk movement but are young enough to have consumed the new punk scene that reared its head in the early noughties.

Their strong guitar riffs and shouted/ sung vocals shine with vital energy, and the live act delivers in spades; but the recording process has not stifled their live sound – you will feel the emotion and anger through the speakers.

Tracks received a strong response from listeners when they were played on label founder Jim Distortion’s show on London station Recharged Radio; which was plenty of motivation to track them down and sign the band to the Random Candle label.

Every member of the band are in their teens but youth hasn’t prevented them from already achieving a sponsorship deal with Dead or Alive Clothing as to go with the deal with Random Candle! There has been no shortage of hard work done by the band to find the next gig and raise their profile and this is a great match for the label ethos of the more you are prepared to do for yourself the further you get.

Reviews and interviews with the band would be a great asset for any radio station or publication. These guys really understand how the game is played in this world of music nonchalance and will work hard to get where they are going – massive stages and heavy record sales.

Please contact the label for music and information or to arrange interviews.
Contact Jim Distortion on 07795820089.
jim@randomcandle.co.uk

HI guys

i thought id write-up a concert i went to last night as i never actually do that and id like to! Please understand i only had my iPhone as a camara and i ended up at a VIP table in the balcony so it was a little out of the poor phones reach!

I turned up at the Forum in Kentish Town and heard the tribal chanting of Murderdolls fans and i wondered to myself, why would there be so many outside of the place! Then it hit me, the mile long (literally) queue was ticket holders trying to get in to see their black clad punk rock heroes! I contemplated going home i really did but as the ticket was bought for me by the drummer in my band Chris Church, otherwise known as Boing Boy i thought it would be seen as rude if i was to bail. I walked past everyone in this long line and noticed a few people i knew faces from Hertford and my past in rock! It was exciting in a way to see so many little MurderDoll clones and the vibe they gave off!

There is something that needs to be understood about fans from a band whose ethos is “Dont give a fuck about what anyone else says about who you are or the way you dress! Fuck them be who you want to be!” It seems they all want to support Wednesday 13th the lead singer who’s style can only be described as dirty rock and black! I love the scene as it reminds me that people who don’t adhere to life’s supposed rules do exist and are keeping the live music scene alive

I met up with Boing Boy and his GF and we duly waited for not as long as i thought i would but the struggle to stay focused on the front door was not made any easier by the fact my bladder was fuller than a parrot’s beak at nut time! So we get inside, all pee issues taken care of and we go through the doors to be met with the wall of sound that is The Defiled! They had just given away their album in Metal hammer and seem to really have a good following! Normally the first band is ignored and everyone makes a b line to the bars to get themselves suitably lubricated to mosh for the main band! It’s a shame the Forum had to give them such a shallow, bad sound as all we could hear was the bass drum a smudge of guitars and the occasional word shouted by the lead singer!

We had a beer and then we were treated to the curtain going on up for the change over! Now you may thing this was a theatre affair so they could change the bands gear over in privacy but no it was a brown curtain that basically covered the middle part of the stage held by two roadies i christened the curtain boys! Not the best thing to tell your friends you do for a living! You swagger off the tour bus, walk to the stage and hold a curtain. Has a certain disappointment factor to it right?

After what seemed like the longest of times the “curtain” was dropped for us to be greeted by the prancing of makeup wearing black leather clad fops who were basically Bon Jovi with a Kiss complex! Seriously maybe im getting old but the music was terrible and the performance was like they had never been on a stage that big the bass player (I don’t care what his name is) looked actually too scared to play his strings or maybe it was simply that he didn’t need to, he was there to be pretty to the young girls screaming for them! Now that alone is not the best commercial for a rock band now is it? Girls screaming really should be saved for pop titans such as Take That!!! Anyway they did us all a favour and left the stage!

By this stage we had been offered a Vip table to watch the main band due to a situation that arose! This could have been all bad but turned out to be the best of things as everyone was ok and i got to see the band from on high and sat down! I know im old but im not moshing anymore for two reasons one i get far to into it and end up stuck in the loony bin middle of the swirl and also ill break these days so best i just stay out of it.

Watching the build up to the Murderdolls entrance was almost as interesting as the band themselves as the crowd were truly pumped for these american punk dirt rockers! The chant of MUR- DER- DOLLS was heard no less than four separate times! It was a tangible feeling of expectancy! I’m a crowd watcher i love to see the excitement and the reaction of the people who paid the entrance fee which is getting harder and harder to do as just like everything else in the world it’s getting more and more expensive!

The lights went down and the crowd at the Forum went mental, CHICKEN ORIENTAL screaming chanting and just really enjoying the moment! I truly think these guys in the band have managed to capture their scene so strongly people would have given up their lives to worship at the temple of the MURDERDOLLS! Well it seemed that extreme to me at the time maybe i was carried away by it all but that in itself is the measure of this band!

Joey Jordison is no stranger to playing stadiums with Slipnot but seemed really in his element in this band where he swaps his drums for the guitar and obviously is nearly as good on that as he is tub thumping! Weds 13th was the perfect front man last night as he had the crowd in his hand he said ,make noise and we all did, he said sing along and we all tried! It was great for me, a front man of several bands over the years see a man who just gets how to do it! I had a great time through the show and really marvelled at the live music experience as i always do! It’s the reason i keep on performing, as i have the power just for that stage time to wow a crowd and have them having the best of times as a response to my music. It’s the best feeling in the world better than drugs, not better than sex but nearly and better than Jack Daniels and people who know me will understand the high level that makes it!

If you get the chance see the MurderDolls live it is the best of shows and thanks to Boing Boy for the ticket!

Love Respect and Dirty Rock n Roll

Jim Distortion

www.jimdistortion.co.uk

www.distortedbreed.com

www.facebook.com/Distortedbreed

www.facebook.com/lifesdistortion

Search JimDistortion on facebook and join in my life

PS this is the video for my fav song they played last night!

Distorted Breed are one of those bands who could have easily fallen down, because of the inherent American biker rock style of the music. But it all holds together well on the EP The Wrong Road (Random Candle). There’s a real power and energy here, fuelled by influences from Black Stone Cherry and Black Label Society. What’s more, led by thundering vocalist Jim Distortion they’ve got a real Brit grit about them. One to watch this year.

A great review from Malcolm Dome Total Rock Radio and Classic Rock Magazine.

AMAZON

ITUNES

Click on the shop names to buy the single! Available on most download stores now!

Christina Novelli ft. Silent House Party – On Your Side

TRACK RELEASE: 10^th January 2011

Label: Random Candle Ltd

Random Candle is pleased to announce our first single release for 2011 will be ‘On Your Side’ – a new track from Christina Novelli, featuring additional vocals from Jamie Farrington of Silent House Party.

On Your Side is a simple, infectious, pop experiment with two great and contrasting vocals gracing an infectious, driving, disco bass line.  ‘On Your Side’ is available for download exclusively from the Random Candle Online Store from 10^th January 2011, and worldwide digital release from 17^th January 2011.

TRACK DETAILS:

‘On Your Side’ is the first collaboration between Christina Novelli; Jamie Farrington and Jack Randall of Cambridgeshire based Silent House Party; and Manchester based writer Stu Miller.

The track started taking shape in July 2010 after Stu had a chance meeting with Christina’s father – TV chef Jean Christophe Novelli – at the Whitehaven International Festival in Cumbria, where Christina was supporting N-Dubz.

Stu sent a rough acoustic idea to Christina and called on close friend David Potts (ex-Monaco frontman) to start building the foundations for ‘On Your Side’, with Stu playing all the instruments and Pottsy taking care of recording and programming duties.

The original plan was to turn the rough idea into a rock song however, after Christina had been impressed with his vocal in a demo she had stumbled upon, it was suggested that Jamie Farrington from Silent House Party should be drafted in for verse vocals.  From there the track began to naturally evolve.

Christina laid down the vocals in Pottsy’s home studio, Jamie sent in a vocal track that he and his bandmate Jack Randall had written and on Pottsy’s recommendation, rock drums were swapped for hip hop loops.  And that was that.

The song was mixed by Christophe at Oxygene Studios in Manchester, well known and respected for his work in Manchester and has worked with literally 100s of artists including Hard Fi, Kid British, The Fall and many others. The track was mastered by the equally respected Paul O’Brien at POBaudio.

Random Candle


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