Electric Minute

Hailing from the dusty state of Oklahoma, Electric Minute is one of the newest bands to hit the Christian music scene. Electric Minute has all the necessary elements to succeed as a band in this particular genre. The music is both informative and catchy and the lyrics are very inspirational. If I were to present them to I would present them as they are. Electric Minute. Their website is impressive but missing some key factors. One key factor is that they should have a sample of their song on the website. New fans may want to check the band out but they may have not heard any songs so they want to hear a sample. This can help draw in a new audience and help market their songs. Also, I would recommend that Electric Minute get a video out for their new single “Even Then.” The song is catchy enough to become a hit on the Christian Charts but they just need to capitalize on a video. Music videos in the mid 2000’s were starting to die off but with the explosion of youtube.com more people are making music videos than ever. It’s almost like youtube.com is the new MTV. Numerous people watch these music videos on youtube.com and it can potentially help make Electric Minute’s “Even Then” a viral hit. Drawing from their impressive EPK a music video seems like the logical next move.

I personally feel that Electric Minute needs to write more songs. All I could find on the Internet was three songs. Each song was different than the previous one, which is good as it keeps the listener guessing. Also, Electric Minute needs to have full-length versions of their songs on the Internet. On Myspace, Reverb Nation, and Youtube, places where most people go to find new music, they only have one or two songs and it is not the full version. Even their single, “Even Then,” is not out in the full version. Buyers want to know what they are buying. I myself am not going to buy something by listening to a 45 second sample.

One last suggestion I would give to Electric Minute is they need to move from Oklahoma. While I know they live in Tulsa, which is a nice town, it is not some place people get discovered. Outside of Tulsa and Oklahoma City there is really nothing in Oklahoma. Electric Minute can just go on playing local shows in Tulsa and never go anywhere or they can get out on the road and play dates on a real tour. This will help expose their music and gain new fans. They should re-locate to a place like Nashville where they have a decent chance of getting discovered by a major record company. But I digress, this band has a lot of potential and with good songwriting and solid producing this band could potentially be the next big thing in Christian Rock. With a few tweaks here and there they should be on their way. 

In Honor of Mardi Gras...

Alright, so if you have been New Orleans before you know how crazy that place can be. Drinks, women, strip, clubs, and bars that seem to never close down. I've only been down there once but Jesus it was wild. And then there's the music. New Orleans has a rich history of producing some of the best music and musicians and you know all the great musicians are playing every where in New Orleans right now because of Mardi Gras and since today is Fat Tuesday I thought I would grace y'all with some great New Orleans music....

Classic New Orleans song done by one of the most well known New Orleans native. Dr John doing Iko Iko with a little help from his friends.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=objvCrF7XEU

Classic Tom Waits talking about where I wish I was right now...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=objvCrF7XEU

Legendary New Orleans band The Meters getting real funky...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNzilDmPpCg

A band not known for their New Orleans music but heres a song they wrote about the Big Easy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBydsRzjFcI

Trombone Shorty has been playing in New Orleans since a small kid and hes one hell of a horn player...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybhhsuuc2ss

One of my all time favorite singers...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfgGVlS1eUY

Everyone in Nawlins' knows Kermit...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-atDxmfnIrI

Other countries dig on some Nawlins music as well....Ladies and Gentleman The Kinks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPMYkITzxn0

New Orleans band Galactic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vs3wHqhWQPE

The Band doing a little nawlins funk...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RjqcTsxx-8&feature=fvwrel

Little Feat doing some classic New Orleans, man Billy Payne can tickle those ivories

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FekVR_SC5M

That's it for me right now but I will be back soon with some more sweet sweet Nawlin's music.

In Honor of Wanee....

In honor of Wanee I'm putting up some choice clips from the festival....

Classic Mule doing a great cover of Steppenwolf...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-5J2fgqcyo

Widespread Panic with a little help from Warren....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCATWVQ8RGA

North Mississippi All-Stars

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdn6xZvX0u8

The one and only Dr. John (said in a cajun accent)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-qX_1WSn68

The best band of 2010 and so far of 2011...The Black Keys

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hHF4o5GIEU

A legend and my home state hero, Levon Helm with a little help from Warren...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tCT6lnvYDI

Stephen Stills covering a classic from his time...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7d6icIZFiM

Bob Weir in 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LBXW5TiwdQ

Last but not least, the whole reason why the festival goes on... The Allman Brothers Band
Expect Robert Plant to come and sing this one with The Brothers...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5KLd9nsR5o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCMolV4WMBc&playnext=1&list=PL54602CB2CEF69EB8&index=62

Also be careful because cops will arrest you if your are screwin around...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_dx_QG_zmY

WANEE

So today they finally made the long awaited line-up announcement for the popular Florida music festival Wanee. It is located in northern Florida in a small town called Live Oak. The event is a three day music festival that takes place up on the Suwanee River at the Suwanee Park. This is and always has been a festival for and run by The Allman Brothers Band. There are many off-shoot projects that are playing including a first ever Wanee performance by the Warren Haynes Band, and of course Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi are playing. Oteil Burbridge is playing with The Lee Boys. This year also includes Widespread Panic (who are back from last year) Steve Miller Band, North Mississippi All-Stars, Taj Mahal, Ween and many more. The big addition this year is former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant and his Band of Joy. This is definitely an interesting addition and could lead to a possible collaboration between Plant and The Allman Brothers. The Brothers have been known to close with Dazed and Confused at Wanee and a Plant cameo would blow the metaphorical roof off the place. I have been to this festival three years in a row and have always had a good time. If you are a hardcore Allman Brothers fan then this is the festival for you. The Brothers always "bring it" at this festival and there are always a bunch of special guests during the two nights they play. It takes place in April which is nice because two years ago it was in June. If you have ever been to Florida in June then you know how incredibly hot and humid it is. The heat isn't the only thing to worry about, it rains almost everyday in Florida and while it is nice to cool off it really tears the park up and walking around becomes a hassle.  So if your game for three days of good times and music then I would advise you to hurry up and get tickets because the festival has grown so much over the past three years and with the addition of Widespread you are sure to get a lot of hardcore Spreadheads and their fans travel well. In 2009, there was probably 8,000-10,000 people at the festival which was a good size crowd but last year the crowd was 17,000 strong. Gotta love the perseverance of Panic fans but 17,000 was a little too much for me. I don't think I will be able to go this year which will end my three year run but I think last year was a great way to retire from a festival because lets be honest, the line-up last year was better. Anyways, if your going then have safe travels and for us not going we will be patiently waiting for the setlists and bootlegs to make us feel envious for not going.

Truth and Salvage Co.

What do you get when you put four singer-songwriters in one band? Well if the band is Truth and Salvage Co. you get a pretty damn good album, and an even better debut record. They are not afraid to wear the influences on their shoulder and they wear them well. Their mixture of roots-rock and country tones propel this album as a top contender for one of my favorite albums of last year. Produced by Black Crowes lead singer Chris Robinson, the songs have an earthly flow that can be enjoyed anywhere from the mountains to the beach. Songs like "Hail, Hail," "Call Back," and "Jump the Ship" have such a jubilant quality that it makes it hard for the listener to believe that this is just their first album. The songwriting is crisp and when you have four different songwriters the material never gets monotonous or boring, but instead it gives the album a very even pace and you'll be surprised by how easily the record flows that when you listen to the last song you'll forget you just listened to a whole album. The song "Welcome to L.A." should be played at every bus station in Los Angeles so that all the Mid-Western kids getting off the bus to achieve their dreams can get a quick tour of the city via song. Along with having four songwriters they also have four singers and these guys can sing. Harkening back to the complex harmony arrangements of Crosby, Stills, and Nash and The Band, Truth and Salvage blend their harmonies very precisely through each and every song. These guys can play their instruments too. Take "Rise Up," the break down in the middle of the song busts in to a duel guitar solo with matching harmonies. If you are thinking this sounds like The Allman Brothers Band, it does, but tipping your hat to an influence is not necessarily a bad thing. The ultra catchy "Old Piano" is a fine display of what good songwriting and great singing can do for a record. Its melody and great hook are enough to make this song a hit on the radio, but of course they won't play it because radio doesn't play stuff this good anymore. Finally, the closer of the album "Pure Mountain Angel" is one of the most beautiful closers I have ever heard. Its opening gospel-tinged piano playing is elegant and the harmonies are out of this world. It is a fine way to wrap up an album to say the least and I definitely look forward to what this band has in store for the future. If it's anything like their debut record then they will have a long and healthy career.

Running The Market...

Social media is everywhere these days and business' that don't latch on to this social phenomenon will be out of business before they know it. I am here to inform people about 3 different social platforms and three tips to help make the most  of the platforms in their digital campaigns.

1. www.facebook.com: This is the mother of all social media platforms. There are over 500 million people on facebook and it is continually growing, especially in the business world. According to http://econsultancy.com/us/blog/6619-four-best-practice-tips-for-facebook-advertising they say a great tip for utilizing facebook would be to "cross-reference targeting options when reporting." This is essentially means that when you find that target demographic you are looking for do a cross-reference and see if you can find any other demographic you were not searching for. Once this search is done you can concentrate your marketing fully on this healthy demographic. Another tip would be have a "vanity" url. This means that you have your company name in the facebook website so that consumers can easily find your page. For instance, if you were target your facebook website should look like: www.facebook.com/target. This makes searching for your company much easier. Another tip for marketers would be to create a "click through rate ratio." This will allow marketers to see how many people are clicking on their adds and how many people actually visit their website. This is an effective way to see if the money you are spending is being used properly. If you see a particular campaign is not going the way you want then shut it down and create a new one.

2. www.twitter.com: I just found a great website that has many tips on how to effectively use twitter the right way. The website is http://www.twitip.com/10-tips-to-be-effective-at-marketing-on-twitter/. Tip number one would be to know the difference between spamming and posting. For a business this can be crucial, because people who follow you don't want to read nonsense about you going to the grocery store. If they follow you its because they want to be informed about your business or your product. Make sure that when you decide to tweet that the message be conveyed clearly and keep people anticipating your tweets instead of tweeting every hour. Tip number two would be to engage in conversation with your followers. This will make them feel as if they are part of the company, and while you are doing this you can gain valued information such as complaints or maybe you have some people do surveys that would benefit your business. Tip number three would be make sure your twitter page looks nice. You want your twitter page to seen in a flattering light so I would recommend to hire someone to make sure your page is up to date and that it looks professional.

3. http://www.linkedin.com/: This is the most professional of all the social media websites. This is where a lot of people come to look for jobs. At http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/6-powerful-linkedin-marketing-tips-for-small-businesses/ they have a handful of tips that will help you better utilize linkedin.com. Tip number one would be to create Linkedin ad campaigns. This is beneficial because you won't get a lot of views from random people but from people who are interested and may want to help you or maybe looking for a job. Tip number two would be to start a blog about your industry and post a link on your linkedin page so that people may visit. If an employer sees this and recognizes that you know what you are talking about then you might get a job offer out of it. Tip number three would be to get recommendations you attract more clients. According to http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/6-powerful-linkedin-marketing-tips-for-small-businesses/, they say in order to get recommendations you have to give out recommendations. I mean "What better way to really market your business than by having your colleagues and clients share your expertise?"

Here are some videos to help out:

A little shameless self-promotion

If anyone is interest here is a couple of links to a couple original songs that I wrote

This one is called Build my Life Off the Land

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4J3wo0yfq0

This one is called Always Doin Me Wrong

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz6rDofYgvw&feature=related