Industry news & advice blog

Who better to offer advice to unsigned and emerging artists than those who have been there themselves?! A selection of amazing bands & artists including Blossoms, Pulled Apart By Horses, Georgia, Kagoule and God Damn share their words of wisdom & some spot-on advice.

The Orielles (Heavenly Recordings)
The Orielles went down a storm at Canadian Music Week back in May 2016 and then signed to Heavenly Recordings in November 2016. They play A Heavenly Weekend at Hebden Bridge’s Trades Club on Saturday 20th January alongside Hooton Tennis Club and The Parrots. Drummer Sidonie gives her advice: 

“Be persistent & tenacious! Don’t let people put you down about doing what you love. I’d also say to try & get involved with as many new people as possible. This could be anyone from a member of a band that you support to the sound engineer at a venue, they can give you good advice or contact for furthering your career.”

God Damn (One Little Indian Records)
Last year saw the release of God Damn’s second album ‘Everything Ever’ and a mega UK tour with US bands Red Fang and Torche. Frontman Thomas Edward says:

“The advice I give to all new bands is to become self-sufficient. At least from the start & for as long as possible. Learn to drive, buy a car/estate or people carrier with a big enough boot to fit you, your band & all your gear in. Then get a roof box to fit all your merch that you & your mates have put together in. Next, book as many gigs as you can. Drive to London & play as many shows as you can, drive to wherever & play as many gigs as you can! If you haven’t got rich parents & you’re not willing to brown-nose everyone in the industry then have a good flexible job on the side to prop things up. Watch as many bands as you can. Be nice. Try & say something positive to fans, bands & new friends when you can, no matter how jaded the vector breaks you.”

Georgia (Domino Records) 
Last year saw the super-talented Georgia hit the road supporting The Kills across the UK & Europe with her thrilling hybrid of Grime and Pop. Her latest single ‘Feel It’ is out now. Punchy and straight to the point (just like her music!) she gives us her insight:

"Don’t stop at anything! Time is your friend. Make sure you’re happy with the music your making before people get involved & don’t rush."

HECK (NPAG Industries/Division Promotions/X Ray Touring)
If you were to buy Kerrang! Magazine and HECK were nowhere to be seen, chances are it's a) a fake copy b) the page has been pulled out or c) you're in a parallel universe. They've received plenty of support from the magazine and are basically always on the road. This makes for great advice from shouty guitarist Matt: 

"When you start out, and in fact all through your career (both in a band & generally as a decent human being) the most important thing you can do is be approachable. Being a polite, thoughtful & generous person will get you everywhere. Talk to people. Don't shy away behind your artist’s mystique, you're in no position to put up a veil between you & your audience, you're in the race to be remembered! At the same time, you shouldn't be afraid to say 'no' to certain things. Unfortunately, there are people out there that exist just to take advantage of you but you just have to trust that you are fully aware of your own self-worth. When it comes down to it, you'll know if what you're being asked to do is right for you & your progression. If you are ever unsure then it all comes back to talking. Ask someone, you're now part of a very tight community of people in bands just like you, many of whom have been through it all before, use your position to your advantage. And finally, just don't be a dick & you'll get on just fine!”

Kagoule 
Last year Kagoule were awarded the PRS For Music Foundation’s Momentum funding, securing their progression to album number 2 which they’ve just wound up working on with MJ from Hookworms. They’ll be teasing some new material at their gig at Paper Dress Vintage on 19th January. Guitarist and vocalist Cai has some wise words:

“Never assume a show is pointless. You never know who may be watching. A show with 500 fans of a band your supporting may feel great to play but not actually benefit you. Whereas for the 3 people who turn up to your own headline show in Inverness, one of them might be best mates with the head of your favourite record label & it turns out one of the other is in that band Mogwai! We made the mistake of not giving our all on a certain show because we felt like it wasn’t worth it & have regretted it ever since. Play every show better than the last & no matter where it is or how many people there are!”

Alpha Male Tea Party
Smashing the math rock scene and making regular appearances at the likes of ArcTanGent festival, Alpha Male Tea Party are currently running a Pledge Music campaign for their 3rd album ‘Health’ due out in 2017.  Bassist Ben has sage advice for bands: 

“Only put out the best material that you have. Not everything you write is going to be good, so there is no need to record a song simply because it exists."

Pulled Apart By Horses 
Last year the mighty Pulled Apart By Horses played some dates with Twin Atlantic and brought out a brand new single ‘The Big What If’. This year they’ll be hitting the road in March & heading to a city near you! Frontman Tom offers his merited advice:

“I would suggest that someone in the band or a few of you learn to drive. Another thing would be to invest in a van of some sort for touring. This would save so much money. We've spent so much money in the past & have struggled with stuff because of this, it costs a fair bit to hire vans & even more so if you have to pay for someone to drive you around too. Another thing would be to get some music out there as soon as possible. We recorded our first demo with a friend of a friend for £50 in the live room of a pub and put it online as soon as we could. It's pretty hard getting shows if people don't really know what the band is & what vibe you're going for. If you can't find anyone that can do it for cheap then geek into recording yourself. Rob our bassist has self-taught himself Pro Tools, we bought a cheap digital 8-track Zoom recorder & have been doing all our own demo recordings (plus some recordings that we've ended up releasing) for the past 5 or 6 years now. I wish we would've got into it a bit earlier on... It's been ace to develop our demos ourselves & could have potentially saved us a lot of money on previous releases.”

The Lovely Eggs
Mark Riley session stars and the pillar of inspiration for DIY bands worldwide, The Lovely Eggs have been doing things their own way & making up & breaking their own rules for many years now and don’t plan on compromising this any time soon! The pair give us their nuggets of advice:

David: Just stick with it, just do what you you’re doing and don’t get affected by what you think you should do. Don’t do what you think you should do, just do what you need to do.

Holly: Don’t jump through hoops just to please people. Be who you are! And it will work out or it won’t work out, but at least you’ve been true to yourself.

Weirds (Alcopop! Records)
Newly signed to Alcopop! Records and after touring with Vulgarians in November 2016, you can catch Weirds playing in Brighton this Saturday 14th January at Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar & they’ll also be gracing the stage at Camden Rocks later in the year. Heed guitarist Zach’s words of wisdom:

"The main advice I think we can give to anyone just starting out isto enjoy it. Early on, play as many shows as you can & get chatting to as many like-minded people as possible (and support them!). It’s probably very easy to get wound up in the whole ‘competitive’ nature of the being in band but it’s not about that whatsoever. At the end of the day it’s about the music that you enjoy making & listening to. The internet &  free shows are a great way to give people the chance to hear/see what you’re about & sometimes that means playing for little or no fee but fuck it, if you believe in it & you have something about you, people will listen to you & come to your shows. Don’t compromise, believe in your music & persist.”

Doe (Specialist Subject Records)
Doe released their debut album in September 2016 and are rapidly making their mark on the Indie Punk underground scene. They play The Victoria in London this Friday 13th January. Guitarist & vocalist Nicola shares her tips:

“Don’t let the fear of not being knowledgeable enough hold you back. No-one really knows what they’re doing, it’s just a bunch of people pretending with varying levels of confidence. Knowledge & ability comes with the experience of playing music live & getting exposure to as many different situations as possible. Also, don’t let dudes undermine you, because they will try to constantly.”

Fizzy Blood (Killing Moon Records)
Since 2014 Fizzy Blood have supported The Dead Kennedys, played Download Festival and toured South Korea! Catch them at a free entry BBC Introducing gig at Leed’s Brudenell Social Club on Wednesday 18th January.

“Don’t try & rush into doing everything at once because you see other people doing it, it’s not a race. Focus on your band & make sure you’re good enough & you care enough about it to commit to it before doing anything else. Once you think you’re there, start small (gig with your mates, get to know all the local bands & promoters in your scene & get involved) then work your way up. Things will happen naturally when you’re ready & you are actually good enough. Also, don’t be afraid to be different. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t just do things because you think that’s what bands do. Think outside the box!"

Blossoms (Virgin EMI Records)
Do they really require any introduction? Since their humble beginnings in Stockport not too long ago, Blossoms have ticked every box of every musical life-goal going in the past 24 months. Frontman Tom shares his knowledge & experience on moving up the ladder: 

"Aim high, work hard & be determined. When we got together, it clicked & we felt confident & believed in the songs. We didn’t know how long it would take, but we just kept going & doing shows & eventually met the right people. It all came gradually & you have to work for it. We never aimed small, we always said we wanted to be a big band. People who've worked with us have said that the work ethic we bring to the table is infectious & I think this helps people believe in you."