June 25, 2008

Newsletter #49

In This Week's Issue:

1. Your Invited: 3rd Digital Press Conference for Social Media Makers, Bloggers, Podcasters, and DJ's
2. Join Cyber PR on Blip! 
3. THIS WEEK'S 3 FEATURED ARTISTS
4. NEW – THIS WEEK’S FEATURED CYBER PR ARTIST VIDEO
5. THIS WEEK'S FEATURED RESOURCES: A BLOG, A PODCAST, & A STATION
6. New Media Pioneer: Gary Hill of Music Street Journal

3rd Digital Press Conference for Social Media, Bloggers, Podcasters, and DJ's

Ariel Hyatt of Cyber PR, Lou Plaia of Reverb Nation, & John Warden of Rive Video cordially invite you to our 3rd Digital Press Conference for Social Media Makers, Bloggers, Podcasters, and DJ's!
 
Ariel, Lou & John cordially invite you to an evening of drinks, snacks and EXCLUSIVE Interview Opportunities with artists from Cyber PR, Reverb Nation, and Rive Video. Bring your recording devices, cameras and laptops & come capture exclusive interviews, drops & station ID recordings, and impromptu jams with some select bands and musicians to be announced soon.
 
Our Digital Press conferences are famous for being a great place to get hot material for all of your broadcasting pleasure.
 
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
4PM – 8 PM

Ariel’s Parent's Fabulous NYC Home:
7 W 81st Apt 6A
New York, NY 10024

Please email contact@arielpublicity.com if you have any questions or if you will be attending so we can get you on the guestlist if you have not already RSVP’ed.

Join Cyber PR on Blip!

I love this Internet video site and you will too!
Find the latest music videos by Cyber PR artists!
http://cyberprvideo.blip.tv/

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THIS WEEK'S FEATURED ARTISTS

Woodfish
Genre: Rock, Jam, Pop
http://www.arielpublicity.net/artists/2458
The music of Woodfish can be described as a combination of rock, jam, funk and progressive styles which, infused together, provide audiences with an intoxicating and entertaining musical experience. Whether playing in a concert hall or an intimate barroom, in front of 3 or 30,000 people, Woodfish remains true to the spirit of rock and roll by bringing charisma and passion to every song they write and perform. At a Woodfish show a wide range of audiences, from young children to baby-boomers; hip-hoppers to punk rockers; tweens to teens and college students to jam band enthusiasts, are often seen moving and grooving together throughout an explosively energetic performance which typifies the live Woodfish experience.

Jetsunma-Ellinwood Ranch Blues
Genre: Blues
http://www.arielpublicity.net/artists/2461
Jetsunma is a modern, street-wise Brooklyn-born woman whose personal mission is all about universal compassion. She fuses urban contemporary beats, rhythms and harmonies with blues and electronica.

Duane Andrews
Genre: Jazz, Folk, Acoustic, Instrumental, Swing, Celtic, Classical
http://www.arielpublicity.net/artists/2453
Heavily influenced by the brilliance of early twentieth century French Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, Duane Andrews’ unique blend of jazz and traditional Newfoundland folk music is consistently recognized by both industry and fans with awards and accolades.

Featured Artist Video:
"Running Out of Feelings" by Second Dan
Genre: Rock, Indie-Pop, Rock-Pop
http://www.arielpublicity.net/artists/2452
"Bringing Down Goliath" is the debut album from New York City based indie-rockers, Second Dan. The album doesn't just have good songs, they have the potential to be anthems. Like hearing U2 for the first time in the early 80's, Second Dan's album captures that mixture of intelligent songwriting with infectious music reminiscent of The Replacements with a nod to Brit-pop Oasis and early Radiohead.

http://cyberprvideo.blip.tv/#1010405

Featured Blog:
Lithium Radio
http://lithiumradio.blogspot.com
Lithium Radio is an indie rock music blog that is daily updated with CD Reviews. You can check this blog out for the latest review from Cyber PR Artist Ionia.

Featured Podcast:
Indie 500 Show
http://indie500show.com/
Indie500show.com is the companion site to the Indie 500 Show podcast.  Indie 500 show is counting up to the top 500 songs in independent and unsigned music. Each week they feature a “Lucky 13”, this weeks show feature Cyber PR artists Donna Lewis, and Blood Red Sun.

Featured Internet Radio Station:
L'eixordador.com
http://www.eixordador.com
Internet radio show showcasing the new releases of pop, rock, indie and electronica music.

New Media Pioneer: Gary Hill of Music Street Journal
http://www.musicstreetjournal.com
http://myspace.com/musicstreetjournal

Online Website showcasing progressive rock, music reviews, music news, music interviews, progressive metal, and all other types of music.

Q: Do you do CD Reviews on pretty much any CD that is sent your way or do you pick certain ones?

A: There are actually a few facets to the answer to that question. First off, we will review anyone - no matter what genre or whether they are independent or on a label. So, from that aspect we don't pick and choose what things are and are not open to be covered at Music Street Journal.

Now for the flip-side of the blade - first, we don't do negative reviews (it's a waste of our time and our readers' to tell them how terrible something is when there is something else good sitting on the shelf because we don't have time to get to it). So, if something is sent to me and I find that I couldn't do a positive (like it more than dislike it) review of it, I'll pass it around to one of the other people hoping that someone can cover it. If no one can spin it in a positive (but honest) light, then we just don't cover it.

Another aspect is that every issue is half progressive rock. That's because we started out as a progressive rock only zine and it's a bit of a tribute to the people who have been with us from the start (over 10 years ago). So, if the music doesn't fall into that category it can take a while for us to get to it.

Finally, since we are trying very hard to keep this site alive, we support the labels and artists who support us first. That means those who buy banner ads and sponsorships get first priority. If I only have time to cover one CD and I've got one from one of our supporters and one from soneone who doesn't do anything for the site, I choose to cover the one from the supporter. It's not pretty, but it's a fact of life. The site is in a struggle to stay alive with rising costs and I scratch the back of those who help us in our fight to live.

Q: Which do you enjoy more: CD Reviews, Book Reviews, DVD/Video Reviews or Concert Reviews?

A: Frankly, I'd say I enjoy all equally, but there are different elements to each of them. CD Reviews - we do ours track by track so they tend to be time consuming - so that's definitely a point against them.  Book Reviews - since you need to read the whole book this one is also quite time consuming. DVD/Video Reviews - this is probably the easiest of the bunch - at least in terms of time involved - so I'd probably pick this one in a pinch. Concert Reviews - I love seeing a good live show, but it's really a lot of work. For one thing there are often hang ups with tickets and credentials at will call - and sometimes you make the drive for nothing because you can't work it out. On shows where I'm shooting pics, the first three songs become a blur because I'm more involved with getting the best shot than paying attention to the performance. Still, this whole experience can be a lot of fun.

Q: What is your preferred genre?

As mentioned above the site itself is predominately a prog rock site - by at least one half. Personally, I'd have to say I prefer prog and metal over just about any other genre (but I can't stand death metal growling). Of course, I also love just about any music if it's done well from classical to jazz to hip hop to country to pop to punk to electronica - you get the picture. It's all about the quality and conviction involved.

Q: You do an issue a month. What made you decide to do it monthly?

A: Actually, we do an issue every other month. Honestly that decision was made so long ago I don't remember the exact thought process. I know that I started out monthly and after a few months changed to monthly in the winter and every other month in the summer and eventually shifted to just doing them every two months. Honestly, the issues we do are huge - this next one I'm planning something on the order of a hundred to a hundred and ten articles myself (mind you that is subject to change) and very time consuming, so I can't imagine doing them any more frequently.

Q: Do you have advice to others starting their own website?

A: Can I say, "don't?" OK, that's basically a joke. Let me say this - keep it small. Limit the amount of time you spend on it. I didn't follow those rules and it has become a killer. We bring in millions of visitors a year to the site, yet it still loses money - I don't believe it's possible to run a site like this and have it pay for itself. And since I put in sixty plus hour weeks at a money losing endeavor I have to spend extra time making a living and it means that I have no life. So, despite the fact that you can seemingly grow a site like that endlessly, don't let it dominate your life. I know you probably wanted something positive, but that's the truth behind the scenes. MSJ has stayed around longer than most sites of its kind - and I think I know why the others folded. They chose to devote their time and efforts to things that made them money and to living their life. You need to keep the whole thing under control in terms of how much time you spend or it will dominate your life.

http://www.arielpublicity.com

http://www.bandletter.com

http://www.myspace.com/ArielPublicityNY

http://www.twitter.com/cyberpr

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