Division USA

Harmonies…Not Just For Breakfast Anymore

divisionnick — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 05:19:54 +0000

Tell me if this has ever happened to you.

You spent hours on your own as a string musician, perfecting your scale runs, dialing in the perfect tone, leveling the volume output of your multiple channels, and effects. Then, you go to rehearsal, join you band members, and the crystalline tone and presence you developed sounds muddy, or blows everyone out of the building. Sound familiar?

It happens. It happens because instruments together cannot sound like they do in a vacuum. Multiple guitars (and yeah, even bass guitars when they’re not mixed right into oblivion) have to complement one another. A band may have two guitar players with perfect individual tones, but once they’re in the same room, they’re a half- or quarter-tone away from one another and the collaboration is just garbage. Furthermore, anyone trying to sing over the combination is completely lost between the notes (like the infamous Runnin’ with the Devil soundboard).

Just like instruments, the multiple voices in a band have to match up, even when the band is simply delivering gang vocals. Tone isn’t the only aspect of a vocal delivery. Two members could technically deliver the same tone, but pitch and timber can make those voices clash worse than a flat fifth.

Vocal performances are just like musical performances. No one can operate in isolation and expect that what they’re singing is going to perfectly match the other singers in the band. String instruments occupy exact places in the musical spectrum, and voices do, too.

Band members who play together should rehearse together with the exact tone they’re going to use on stage. They should also practice singing together before they take the stage and expect that every note and phrase will be just fine. No band wants to deliver perfectly practiced guitar harmonies only to sing in a manner that sends listeners out of the concert hall. Take the time to harmonize. The results are fantastic.

You practice to improve your individual performance. Rehearse to perfect the band’s performance. Then go slay ‘em when you hit the stage together.

Ever skip a rehearsal night because certain band members can’t be there? Do those band members sing? Is it possible to get the singers together alone to work on harmonies? If it is, don’t overlook that opportunity. Instead of a night apart, the singers in the band can work together on the tweaks and tuning that accelerates the group from mediocre to magnificent. Harmonies can be tricky, and they take work, but the results are absolutely worth the effort.

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Get the Word Out: Your Band Mailing List

divisionnick — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 18:17:41 +0000

Bands use many marketing methods to get in touch with fans. Like any marketing approach, the better the relationship the band has with its fans, the stronger the ongoing relationship will be. (This is the age-old categorization of warm vs. cold markets.) Some examples of cold market marketing include fliers at venues the bands will be playing or placed on cars in the parking lot during shows. Bands might also post images of the band members or cover artwork. These methods are very “spray and pray”; targeting a very broad audience with little response.

One approach that bands can use to convert casual fans into dedicated ones is to build a relationship. Bands should develop an ongoing communication with those who are interested. While it’s difficult (or even impossible) for a band to know all of its fans, band members should be familiar with some of the core diehards in their fan base. Between shows, bands can keep in contact with fans in a number of ways. Posting news and contests on the band’s websites is one way. Keeping up in the band forum on relevant topics is another. Sending emails out to a mailing list is one proven method bands can use to keep fans up to date and interested in upcoming concerts and new releases.

Who should be on the list?
Signing up for a mailing list is saying “yes, send me info on your band.” Bands should make this as easy as possible from all the other places fans go for information. The official page, social network pages, band member sites and forum should contain a method for subscribing to the mailing list. Fans should also be able to sign up at shows. (One aside on this – make sure they’re signing up because they like your band, not because one band member sent his hot girlfriend out for signatures.)

Several music promo services have ways to manage your mailing list. Reverb Nation has a very thorough system called FanReach to manage emails. Bands can import names, see who has subscribed on their own, and track how many people have opened the emails and clicked on links. The addresses are qualified; meaning recipients have to opt in, so the band isn’t spamming the people who might be interested in its music.

What should be in the emails?
Remember that the purpose behind the email is to send relevant updates to the people who want them. Sending a “what’s new” email once a month isn’t a bad guideline, but it has to interest fans. Don’t send an email every time a band member gets a haircut or changes guitar strings. Announce things like upcoming shows (once they’re confirmed, not in the works), appearances, interviews, new endorsements, progress on recording the next project, and major changes like distribution. Provide links to purchase show tickets, the band’s music, and yes, to subscribe to the newsletter. (The recipients may forward the emails on to friends.)

It’s acceptable to send additional emails one and/or two weeks before a show. Keep these brief, and if possible, target only the recipients in the market where the concert is held. (There’s no need for international fans to be told about a show they can’t attend. If they’re mega-fans, they’ll be active in the forum and will be discussing any plans they have to attend.)

The mailing list should be a means for a band to communicate, establish and strengthen relationships with fans. It should be informative, even entertaining. In the modern age, fans are bombarded by information 24×7. They may really like your band, but not hearing from you for months makes it hard for them to maintain interest. Keep them excited about your upcoming events and treat them like real human beings when they attend.

It’s a relationship.
Without them, your band doesn’t exist.

nK, Division

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Remembering the Words

divisionnick — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 02:00:04 +0000

I get asked a lot about memorizing lyrics. A segment of our fans/friends is always asking about how singers can memorize the words for dozens of songs. Personally, I’m more impressed with the way the instrument players memorize all their parts. Lyrics are at least words; giving them structure used in everyday life. Riffs aren’t (outside of the hours of individual practice and band rehearsals).

So, what are a few tricks singers can use to memorize all those words?

Repetition. It’s an oldie but a goodie; the favorite of many foreign language instruction services, and the Catholic Church. Repeating a phrase, sentence, soliloquy, or speech builds familiarity with it. Repetition allows the singer to feel out which parts have any difficulty, and knowing the words instead of struggling to remember them allows him or her to focus on delivery and performance. It’s hard to be rocking out to a song when you’re concentrating on what you’re supposed to be singing.

Visualization. Mental images that key a word or phrase can help a singer to recall lyrics. I had a friend walk me through an interesting exercise in memorizing the first ten entries on the periodic table of elements by a visual walkthrough. Visualization is also useful for success in performance. The mental image of delivering a vocal line well can help overcome mental hurdles. (On the other hand, dreading an upcoming note, line or song will ensure you botch it.)

Abbreviation. I want to include acronyms in here, too. This is the practice of taking the beginning of each line and creating a way to remember them. I have two examples of this from “Short Attention Span Society.” The first words in each of the similar lines in the second verse are Perspective, Objective and Directive. Combining these, I use the acronym P.O.D. to memorize the order. (P.O.D. is a Christian rap/rock band, best known for their hits “Alive” and “Youth of a Nation.”)

In the third verse, the words are Subjective, Deceptive and Corrective. I abbreviated these with the first syllable, resulting in “sub-decor.” Since that’s an actual word (related to construction), I can fall back on that to remind me of the order of the lines.

My advice is to use any of these, alone or in combination, or any other techniques that work for you. Singers are all unique and we tend to be odd creatures of habit. Find the habit that works for you, visualize success, and before you know it, memorization won’t be a problem. (You can move on to practicing your metal god moves in the mirror!)

See you on the road,
nK, Division

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Gemini: Playing in Two Bands on One Night

divisionnick — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 02:10:09 +0000

Guest Blogger: Brian Dobbs, bassist of “Iris Divine” and fill-in bassist for Division

Today’s blog is about Brian’s experience as a member of both bands; from rehearsals to performance. (Brian was amazing. He learned deep nuances to Ron’s very complex bass work in a completely minuscule amount of time. He’s incredibly smart, and he is such a great fit with ID, it’s hard to say a negative thing about him. So, we won’t! Here’s Brian’s take on playing for both bands in a very short window of time.)

“Gemini:

After the untimely departure of Ron, I was asked to fill in the bass spot for Division as they searched for for a new bassist. I was immediately struck by the lack of bassists in this region, but eventually was quite flattered that Division thought of me to fill in, and that they actually believed that I could learn Ron’s parts. (Or at least fake them good enough.) Division and Iris Divine has always had a good working relationship, having collaborated to perform a night of classic metal, mixing up our members in a great night of music last Fall. After thinking for a bit, I agreed to at least give Ron’s bass parts a serious try. I had heard him play live, and knew that it would not be an easy task, as Ron is an incredibly active player. Where most bassists would settle for the easy part, or say something is good enough, Ron throws in that extra lick or riff or fill wherever he can; he always keeps it interesting. Knowing that it would make me a better bassist, I couldn’t pass it up.

I started by immersing my self in the music, playing ‘Trinity’ and ‘Control Issues’ non-stop at work. I was in the middle of moving, and right after starting to learn the parts, I had some work done on my shoulder which prevented me from raising my left hand above my waist for a few weeks. So practicing the required hours a night was really not an option. You really get a better appreciation for music when you play it instead of just listening, and this case was no exception. Division’s songs were easy to learn, but hard to play, if that makes any sense.

Compositionally, they are laid out very intuitively, and have a great flow. (To learn Iris Divine songs, I generally need a graphing calculator and a Gatorade.) I was never bored, as the licks, easy or hard, we catchy as hell.

We only got two rehearsals in, and the band was very supportive and cool, once they got past the ‘I hope this guy doesn’t suck’ phase, which only took ~80% of the first rehersal. In fact, I did so good at the first practice, for the second, we skipped the music, and jumped straight to the crack whores and meth.

I’d like to say that I did an adequate job on the night of the show, but, an anyone who’s been to a Divison show knows, the guitars we so loud I wet myself and couldn’t remember my name, let alone pick out bass parts.

So a big Thank You to Division for this opportunity. It was a blast.

“

Brian and his band, Iris Divine, are recording for their upcoming release. Check them out live with Division and From the Ashes of my Sins at Fat Tuesday’s in Fairfax, VA on August 21st.

Brian can go back to the one-band per night schedule, now that Tim has joined as Division’s full-time bassist.

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Balancing the Band with Life

Noodles — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:12:41 +0000

Unless your last name is something like Mustaine, Romeo, or Loomis, then you’re probably doing a lot more than just playing guitar for a living. If you’re anything like me, playing guitar probably doesn’t do much more than cover the beer you’re drinking, especially if you’ve noticed how much beer costs at your typical club. Since most of us have no desire to live in the back of a car, eating Ramen noodles (no relation), that means the day to day drag of a full-time job.

Division is playing at O’Shaughnessy’s is Old Town Alexandria this Friday (three sentences in and I’m already plugging a show!), and that means there is a lot for me to do before then. I have two guitars to change strings on, band practice Thursday, and a ton of gear to load. With a new car, I also get to figure out how to load all that gear. 4×12 cab, 5 space shock rack, amp head, toolbox, pedalboard case, couple stands, and two guitar cases don’t fit in a trunk, even if your trunk, like mine, is large enough to hold three or four dead bodies. Not that I have any people in mind to fit back there…or do I?

I can’t change strings tonight before practice, since Murphy will simply guarantee I break a string on Friday. I’ll have no time Friday, so it happens on Thursday after band practice. Who needs sleep, anyway? It’s also fun to have the wife grumble the whole time you’re doing it, since you haven’t been home for 14 hours. At least all the gear will get loaded tonight, since I need to take it to practice tomorrow. Here is where I pine yet again for a rehearsal studio that is ours, with a lock on the door, where we can leave all our equipment, instead of loading and unloading it two or three times a week. So, two days out of the week, I get to think about the sign in the parking garage at work: “We are not responsible for unscrupulous employees breaking into your car, stealing your shit, and selling it on E-bay, that will be $6 to park,” or something to that effect. Then, after working all day, I get to drive from the traffic capital of the DC Metropolitan area, Tyson’s Corner, clear over to the other side of the Virginia beltway. Maybe I’ll get a chance to eat in peace, since it is closer that the King George, Virginitucky gig last Friday. July 2nd. With everyone trying to leave town. Plus weekend traffic. Dammit.

Does any of this sound confusing yet? The life of a working stiff slash working musician is a confusing place.

Onto time number four of six for the week that involved my car and gear. If my last name was Mustaine, Romeo, or Loomis, I’d be chilling out in a bus while someone does this for me. That reminds me, does anyone know a good chiropractor? Does anyone know where to park in Alexandria? Does anyone know why the hell I choose to do this with my free time?

Playing a local show is a bit like working for the federal government: no one seems to be in charge of anything, yet you need everyone’s approval to blow your own nose. Most clubs don’t really know what they want, but they’ll let you know what they don’t want if you try it. All sorts of surprises generally await you, like setting up on a postage stamp in a corner, not having enough outlets to plug into, no one there to work the door, and on and on and on (it’s heaven and hell?). With no one taking charge of the show, locals generally squabble over start times, set times, what order to play in, who gets how much for what part of the PA they brought, what gear (if any) you’ll be sharing with each other.

At the end of the night, I get approximately nine dollars and seventy-three cents for your trouble, and I get to do the car/gear thing for the fifth time. After I walk halfway across Northern Virginia to find my car (seriously, if anyone can tell me where to park in Alexandria, I’d really appreciate it). I usually get home after three in the morning, shower, and collapse into bed. Weekends are better, since I don’t have to wake up at get ready for work time, but the family still wants to more than watch me sleep all day. It is far, far worse when the kids are really young, though, since they don’t give a damn that daddy has only been out for four hours when they start jumping on daddy’s chest. Ah, the joys of parenthood. Luckily, mine is thirteen and likes sleeping in more than I do (suck it, Mike!). Doing this on a weeknight is sheer torture, and coworkers usually wonder why you look like you contracted mononucleosis the next day.

None of this was enough for me, though, which is why I play in two bands. Did I mention that I’ve got five gigs this month? I’ll sleep when I die…

–Noodles

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Do it yourself? Well, mostly…

mblevins — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 23:04:33 +0000

Some of you have been reading my blogs about recording the band. It was originally a goal for “Control Issues” to do the whole thing ourselves, partially for the experience, and partially because we could see that this is very definitely where the “music industry” is headed, so we might as well start getting ready for it.

If ever there was a topic for a good, spirited argument, this is it. I’ve had several, in pretty much all the formats you can think of. (Well, I don’t think I’ve used the USPS to conduct this argument yet, but I digress…) Regardless, it’s never (or very seldom) actually doing it ALL yourself. Many people with way more experience than I possess have told me that, much like being your own lawyer, the person that is his own mastering engineer has a fool for a client. That’s why we chose Bill Wolf of Wolf Productions to master the “Control Issues” CD. He did a much better job than I can ever dream of doing. Some things are best left to the specialists.

With that as our working paradigm, we’d like to announce (in conjunction with our label, 2/5ths Gone Records) that the “Control Issues” CD will be distributed by none other than Nightmare Records. Mainman Lance King has built quite the powerhouse of a label and distribution company up in the Great White North of Minnesota, and we’re proud to be associated with Nightmare. The CD should now be available from *your* favorite distro – including iTunes, for those so inclined – since Lance works with just about everybody. If it isn’t, well, ask them why not, or buy it from Nightmare directly.

Here’s to a long, fruitful partnership with Nightmare, from all of us!

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Some…call…him…

mblevins — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 14:19:43 +0000

It’s always nice to go into a weekend with something good to announce. It seems to me that we are deluged by bad news throughout our day – news stations do teaser stories about the latest disaster or scandal, and on-line headlines scream their dire warnings of the coming apocalypse. Perhaps it’s the knowledge that people will be ignoring the news over the weekend that drives it, the need to stamp something in the mind of the viewer or reader so they come back the following Monday, or pick up the weekend special magazine to read that in-depth piece, or watch the latest installment of The Big Scandal on the Argueball shows on Sunday morning?

Worst of all, bands frequently seem to announce the departure of members on Fridays. We did it ourselves, not too long ago. This time, though, I refuse to play along, and would like to impart some good news: After many trials and tribulations (related hilariously by Dave here), Division has found a bassist.

Please welcome Tim Regan to our lineup on bass guitar.

Tim’s a long time fan of the band, and as a guitarist with Burning Shadows, we’ve already shared several stages, including our home base at Jaxx. He had all the assets we were looking for in a bassist – talent, drive, experience, and a sarcastic sense of humor. He’s also yet another engineer, which will prove useful when a.) things break and b.) he has to pick up our bar tabs for the next year, Metallica-style.

You’ll get to see Tim for the first time on July 16th at O’Shaughnessy’s in Alexandria – or just go to any power metal show at Jaxx. He’ll be drinking a Guinness and throwing the horns…

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The Black Metal Tee Shirt

divisionnick — Tue, 25 May 2010 02:45:31 +0000

Fewer pieces of rock memorabilia are as instantly recognized as the black concert tee shirt. AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Overkill, Judas Priest, Metallica, Megadeth, Slipknot, Guns N’ Roses, The Rolling Stones, Kamelot, Michael Jackson, Def Leppard. Every big rock band, and this isn’t restricted to just rock by far, has black concert tee shirts as part of their merchandise.

Let’s look at why bands do this.

Above and beyond all else, having tee shirts is a fan-driven practice. For many years, the concert tee shirt represented bragging rights for fans. Jeff might claim to be a huge Dio fan, but he didn’t call in sick to work or skip school to drive two hours to catch Dio in concert. Mike did, and when Mike showed up the next day in his Dio concert tee shirt, he could not be F’ed with.

Some bands event went so far as to print two versions of the shirts. One was available in stores, but the second version with the concert dates was only available at live shows. This helped to authenticate those bragging rights.

A second reason is recoupment. We’ll talk more about this in future blogs regarding getting signed to a label, but recoupment is a situation where the label fronts money to a band to get a recording completed. The band gets an advance, but must repay the label the advance plus additional fees and royalties. (I’m simplifying here.) The band may still have exclusive rights to images (just not the audio), so anything they make on tee shirts goes right in their pockets. This is useful in offsetting touring fees, equipment expenses, travel, etc etc. The label gets most of the CD sales. The band makes its money on merchandise.

Here’s the biggest danger for a small band attempting to use the concert tee shirt as a means of income.

One Size doesn’t fit all.

Think about items where they’re the same for everyone. CD’s, hats, bumper stickers, even shot glasses.

When a band has 100 of an item, and that’s a “universal” or “one size fits all” item, it’s very easy to calculate potential sales, or potential marketing (if you’re giving them away). If the band has to get 25 small shirts, 50 medium shirts, and 25 large shirts, it risks not selling all 100. The band has to find that number of fans of each of those sizes. It becomes a little tricky.

So, what’s a band to do?

That’s the easy part. Figure out the answers to the following questions. Are our fans the kind of people who wear black concert tee shirts? What are our fans willing to pay for black concert tee shirts?

How many of these shirts do we have to sell to make our money back? to make a profit? Is this a realistic expense for us (taking into account recording, touring, mastering, duplication, etc.)?

So, let me hear it. Are shirts something that makes sense for your band to sell?

And fans, why do YOU buy the memorable concert tee shirt?

One love,
nK, Division

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Ronnie James Dio, 1942-2010

Noodles — Sun, 16 May 2010 19:42:17 +0000

I stared at that title for five minutes before I could even begin typing. The legendary voice of Rainbow, Black Sabbath, and Dio. The man who gave us the devil horns. An icon in the metal community. One could drip praises and adjectives on Ronnie James Dio all day long. An army’s worth of awesome packed into a diminutive 5’4″ frame.

Ronnie was the gateway to real metal for me. One of the most epic beatings of my life came when my Catholic mother found her ten year old son playing a record with a demon drowning a priest on the cover. I loved the dragons, swords, and sorcery imagery, the sing along choruses, and the powerful, gritty vocal delivery. I would get in lopsided arguments over the best Sabbath lineup. I became the master of the quick draw horns. Even as I grew older and moved onto darker, heavier things, I never stopped listening to keyboard-drenched tunes like “Rainbow in the Dark”. I even forgot how to pronounce the letter “R”. LOOK OUT!

Tonight, I will be drinking a beer and watching “Heaven & Hell: Live from Radio City Music Hall”. Your music will live forever.

So live for today,
Tomorrow never comes.
Die young, die young,
Can’t you see the writing in the air?
Die young, gonna die young,
Someone stopped the fair.

–Dave

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ISO Bassist (who can handle the material, has a day job, and isn’t psychotic)

Noodles — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:09:03 +0000

Ah, the hunt for a new musician to play in your band. It’s like mixing a job interview with a personals ad. Not only are you looking for someone who can play the song, has “pro gear and a pro attitude”, doesn’t have any substance abuse problems (short of drinking way too much on road trips), can afford rent, and has a car to get them to and from practice/gigs, but you’re looking for someone you can see yourself hanging out with on a regular basis. After all, we’re certainly not in this for the money (see the “isn’t psychotic” part). A tall order, for sure.

So, imagine, if you will, what you expose yourself to when you put your e-mail address and phone number on little tear-off strips of paper in music stores, and “specific and concise” ads online and on newsprint. Before anything else happens, you get invited to invest in new businesses, tour Europe, help someone’s uncle in Nigeria, enhance your, um, manhood, and take part in exciting and invigorating new opportunities to form grassroots campaigns promoting grassroots campaigns in the areas where grassroots campaigns occur. Just the thing my wallet and manhood needs! However, no one prepares you for the cold, hard fact that no one is going to actually respond to the substance of your ad for, oh, about a month.

Then the phone starts ringing.

I had a very interesting conversation, between acts three and four of my stepdaughter’s school play, with a man who sounded old enough to be my father. Acid jazz and Stanley Jordan interest me, too, but I am not sure if he bothered to read the ad. He obviously bothered to go look us up on MySpace, since I never heard from him again. Buddy, if you’re reading this, I hope you find your way back in the door, since your resume sounded interesting as hell. At least you were normal. The guy I talked to about changing oil in a Winnebago in between speeding tickets and entertaining childhood antidotes of shooting at law enforcement was a little more bizarre. Then there are the guys who call close to midnight on a Thursday, or the ones who don’t understand e-mail attachments. Rounding all that off, there is Mister Aren’t-I-So-Enthusiastic, who will be no-showing his audition and never answering phone, e-mail, or Facebook messages ever again. Meanwhile, did you know we have an album out? Go buy a copy and catch us live in June…or July…or August…or whenever the hell we find a bassist. AHHHHH!!!!

Having said all that, we have had a handful of talented individuals show up for an audition, and have a few more lined up (maybe they’ll even show up). We feel like we’re getting closer, but the stories of learning the material that comes from every potential bassist is a reminder of just how high Ron set the bar before moving to Texas. If you’re reading this, I hope you walk into an audition and rip some faces off, since I guarantee you that you’ve scared some potential auditionees off. Until then, Brian Dobbs from Iris Divine will be helping us out with some shows, most notably this Friday, May 14th at Fat Tuesday’s in Fairfax, Virgina. Come on out and buy me a beer, and I’ll entertain you with stories of 7-string Conklins, Google Docs, and Volkswagen accessory belts.

–Dave

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