Music Success In 9 Weeks Blog Challenge Week 3- Part 1 -Optimize Your Website …..or go blind trying

I’ve been thinking about updating my website for some time now. And have recently found a hosting site I’ve been happy with. I previously had a website I had created I was very fond of but was more static then I wanted so I decided to try something new.

I have built up some solid friendships and dare I say it fans on various music and social sites. So at the outset my biggest thought in creating my new website was building a sense of community. A site that would welcome posts but reject spam.

I also starting blogging and am still trying to make it a part of my every day thinking. A lot of music hosting companies offer 30 day trials so I decided to start there. At first I wanted to integrate my past template but found no one really provided that option with all the other goodies I wanted to incorporate. I first tried the 30 day trial through Reverbnation and Bandzoogle built around similar template provided formats. For someone with no previous website experience I would highly recommend it. Everything drag and drop and at your fingertips. Curiosity did get the better of me and I upgraded to the Pro Plan before months end with Bandzoogle. I still felt I wanted more.

I wanted to integrate my blog. I tried Blogger,Typepad and then decided on WordPress for the apps. Im scoured all the various WordPress hosting sites. The internet is littered with so many warnings of which sites to avoid. The problem is with every recommendation there is someone else claiming this host sucks.
I used my time at Bandzoogle to design a rough concept of my new website. I played with all the features and decided what worked and more importantly what didn’t.

I came across a site in my late night search that was hosted in my backyard. Local hosting could that be the answer? So far for me it has been. I went with a company called E.P.K. Hosting and powered by WordPress Mu.. I loaded my blog and tweaked a few of the features started with my flash picture intro and was on my way. Yes, don’t tell me I realized before publishing the site that it was taking too long to load so I axed the full page flash template and went with a much faster option. I’m still working on perfecting the site but I think it’s now something workable. I’ve just got to get my head around loading HTML code into WordPress and I’ll be a happy (internet) camper.

Now comes the hard part putting it all into play.

Music in 9 Weeks Blog challenge – week 2 /15 second pitch.

parker an indie music for the mind body and soul. “Throwing a bone to the couch potato.”

Music Success In 9 Weeks Blog Challenge Week 2

parker’s genre: Indie, Alternative and Easy Listening.

Bands we’ve been compared to: Snow patrol,The Verve,Pete Yorn,Crowded House, James Blunt,Travis,
Echo and the Bunnymen.

Influences:Peter Gabriel, Elvis Costello, R.E.M., Billy Bragg, The Cure, The Smiths, Squeeze, Blondie, U2, Pink Floyd,David Bowie,The Clash,Irving Welsh,Anais Nin,Henry Miller,John Irving,Cary Grant,Warhol,De Limpica,
Dali,John Lennon, Mel Blanc

What kind of impression does parker want to leave: passion,strength,risk,peaceful,moody,ambient,

Bigger Than A Bread Box

parker

There’s something distasteful about managing your own band and at the same time incredibly liberating.
I know in the past setting goals was done very tongue and cheek. “We’ll take whatever you’re willing to give.” Now luckily I’m starting to see past that. Take ownership.

I remember my first year in high-school Science class. My friend Richard was having a Birthday party at the Legion Hall. I said to him “Well if you need a band.” I had no band at the time. I wanted one.
So we agreed on fifty dollars for the night. Then I recruited my friends who seemed most like a band to try to make this happen. I claimed I played guitar but after our first rehearsal it became painfully obvious how bad I was. I sang and wrote songs but I was a little tone deaf. It was declared I would be the bass player. When we hit the stage (I’m not sure when I noticed) they unplugged my bass amp. Still I jumped about and looked the part. I even got to sing on the odd song. Now I wanted to be the front man.
But how?

As I continued my music pursuit I was mostly regulated to playing Tambourine, Cowbell, and even whistled during one song. I had drive. For me music has always been less about technique and more about feel. Pure emotion.

parker is whatever Thomas and myself want it to be. I’m done with the diplomatic band process. When you choose to record songs based on the cool guitar lick, or percentages of players who also want to sing one of their compositions. We’re the most unlike any band I’ve ever been a part of. OHHH The Power!!
And with it comes a great deal of responsibility and pride. I’m a part of the inception, design and production.
There’s no one to blame but myself and occasionally bad luck and timing if things don’t pan out. The distance from your goals is self determined.

The fantastic thing I’m discovering and developed on the various music and social sites we’re on is the friendships. Something I as never expecting. I can’t believe the amazing support we’ve had. We’ve started to cultivate a musical community. Currently more than anything this stands out as what I’d like to see continue to grow. Our website even though I do love it is a bit too static and I’d like to break down more barriers and expose my inner parker.

What a perfect opportunity to start these exercises. We’re about to head back into the studio to finish our next album. I’ve also made the decision to make this more of a full time pursuit. I hated my day job so bad that I think I manifested through prayer and misunderstanding a way out and into the unemployment line. Thanks to the merciful heavens I’ve been left naked with only my music and art to fall back on. I even attended workshops recently on How To Find The Job Your Best Suited For and no matter how I spun it always came back with the same answer. ARTIST
If only it was that easy. Well maybe it is. Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life (right?)
RIGHT!!!!
Well it’s the one thing I haven’t tried. So now I can walk back blindly into the recording studio but with a real sense of purpose.

First Month Goal:
From July 15-August 15
Improve the website. Make it less static more interactive.
Continue blogging.
Establish presence with social networking.
Continue to FIND ways to Sell and promote parker’s first CD “BOMBSHELL”

Three month goal:
August 15-Nov 15
Record mix and master new parker CD.
Design new CD artwork including E.P.K.
Start my own podcast
Establish promotion plan of new CD.
Look into Film and T.V. placement
Rehearse live show.
CD Release.

Nov 15- Apr 15
Release music to targeted Blogs
Build street team
Source potential sponsorship
Remix Contest
Film video for song
Play live gigs
Look into openings for festivals

Apr 15-Oct 15
Play at festivals
Look into touring-Travel

…. That’s as far as my projection can take me before my brain explodes with sing it Frankie!!! antici pation.

My main goal is to do what I love and to appreciate the process while it’s happening.

Tom

parker

Congratulations to Thomas (of parker) for his Dora win

Dora Awards spread out evenly
By JOHN COULBOURN, QMI Agency

The quest to dominate the Dora Mavor Moore Awards ended in a four-way tie Monday night as the awards, honouring the best in Toronto Theatre, were handed out during a ceremony at the St. Lawrence Centre.

When the curtain fell, there was plenty of cause for celebration in the camps of Luminato, Soulpepper, Tarragon and Theatrefront — each of whom managed to walk off with four awards.

Luminato’s wins came not only in the general theatre category where they claimed a Dora for best touring production for their presentation of Ex Machina’s Lipsynch, but in the musical theatre division, where of the best new musical Dora went to R. Murray Schafer’s The Children’s Crusade and the dance division where the Nederland Dans Theater’s Shoot the Moon/Wings of Wax/Second Person took the Dora for best production. Luminato’s fourth Dora was also in the dance division, where Richard Sacks’ collaboration with a group of Red Sky musicians took earned the Dora for best original sound design/composition for their work on Tono.

Soulpepper, meanwhile, picked up three awards for their production of Parfumerie, including Best Production, Best Direction (Morris Panych), and Best Set Design (Ken MacDonald), scoring its fourth for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? when Diego Matamoros picked up the Dora for best actor, all in the general theatre division.

Tarragon also took home four awards in the general theatre division — two for Courageous (best new play to playwright Michael Healey, best supporting actor to Maurice Dean Wint) and two for If We Were Birds (best actress for Tara Rosling, best original sound design/composition for Thomas Ryder Payne).

Theatrefront, meanwhile, claimed its four awards in the smaller independent theatre category, all of them for their ongoing episodic production of The Mill — which in addition to claiming the Dora for best production, also took honours for best set design (Gillian Gallow), best costumes (Dana Osborne) and best lighting (Andrea Lundy).

Other notable wins include: Donna-Michelle St. Bernard for best new play, in the independent theatre division, for Gas Girls; Heidi Strauss, for best original choreography in the dance division, for a work titled this time; Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People in the theatre for young audiences division for their presentation of Youtheatre’s In This World which garnered best production honours;

Birdland Theatre and Talk is Free Theatre for best production in the musical theatre division for Assassins; Jeff Lillico for best actor in the musical theatre division for his performance in The Light in the Piazza and Louise Pitre for best actress in the same division for her performance in The Toxic Avenger; The Canadian Opera Company and its partners for best production in the opera division for The Nightingale and Other Short Fables.

Also honoured at Monday night’s award ceremony were Philip Akin, artistic director of Obsidian Theatre, who received the Silver Ticket Award in recognition of his contributions to the development of Canadian Theatre and production craftsperson Lokki Ma, who received the Pauline McGibbon Award for emerging theatre artists.

john.coulbourn@sunmedia.ca

What would Paul do?

Just received Music Success in Nine Weeks by Ariel Hyatt and have decided to take the blogging challenge.
My Fifa fever has been abided and Spain has walked away with the world cup. I wish I could afford to hire
Octopus Paul as parker’s new band manager now that he’s going into early retirement. And I wish I could
afford to hire Ariel as our publicist. Unfortunately this is not to be at this time and I must venture to answer
these questions myself. I’ve always read books, gone to seminars, listened to podcasts, and read magazines
on making it in the music business. So this part is not new to me. However implementing these ideas, following
through and (gasp) blogging about it brings an uneasy sickness to my stomach. I’ve read articles by Ariel on
Music Think Tank and on her own blogging site. I’m impressed by her candid manner of getting down to the basics and straight forward delivery. Of course I’d love to win the challenge and the publicity package she offers. After we recorded parker’s first CD “Bombshell” I made the biggest mistake a musician can make. I didn’t have any money left for publicity. At the time of recording we we’re working with would be management
and I assumed I could now resume the role of artist. However life has a funny way of changing what we sometimes feel is pre destined. Reality set in and the manager got cold feet. The crazy thing is this happened
with two potentialmanagers after that. So now I have claimed this responsibility and it feels right. I think I lingered for too long under the delusion ” if only someone could help us” instead of if only I could help myself.

And now no more idling I’m ready to make the fist baby step.

Bombshell Promo!!! – parker’s MySpace Blog |

We’re offering a New Promo at

http://parker.bandcamp.com/

. You can now download our CD Bombshell for 6$. Or receive both the download and physical copy for 10$.

18 Stories Down

http://ping.fm/Ro6uc 18 Stories Down

Another Great Depression-Had to come back and listen

Another Great Depression -had to come back and listen.
Well. though I had added this song to my just started playlist, I have had it on my mind since I first heard it this morning and haven’t been able to get it out of my mind, so I had to come back and listen again. The feel of the vocals, lyric’s and music are so easy and wonderful. I have listened to others of yours, but I think this is for right now my favorite. I am not a very good reviewer, just wanted to say I love it. I love your style.

Cathie Fredrickson

Just Say When chosen for TheSixtyOne

Working on some New suprises. Thanks for all your comments and support. We just made the Homepage today for theSixtyone. Please drop by if you get the urge.
http://ping.fm/L5mHZ