hello friends..im a bit curious. this question is for all surfbands that have released albums. I wonder how you got a recordlabel to put out your album. if the label have heard you and asked if you where interested in releasing an album..or did you ask some label to put it out..or did you put it out yourself?

Cheers!

The reality is that we do not wash our own laundry - it just gets dirtier.

www.myspace.com/tumbleweedofsurf

I release my recordings by myself now. But my old band The Looney Tunes were asked to release our debut with String Records. After a show the person behind that label, Thomas Ritter, approached us and we handed him a casette tape (this was in the winter 92/93), and closed the deal soon after. All three LT albums he released on vinyl. However for the second and third the money came from Gee-Dee, who had licensed the first one and now licensed the latter two in turn to String for vinyl release.

The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann

You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy.

I have my own record label...'Koloa dub lab'. You really just need a good distributer locally.....and an internet pressence.

http://www.myspace.com/koloadublab

The TakeOffs
"Kauai's Only All-Instrumental Surf Band"
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-TakeOffs/312866840587

There definitely isn't as many labels releasing surf/instro music as there used to be (mid-90's). I think there are definitely advantages and disadvantages to going with a label. With Double Crown, I think what we offer is an established reputation for quality music for the last eleven years or so. I know we have lots of regular customers that buy just about everything we put out, with very few complaints, so we must be doing something right! I think a label is also helpful with distribution and getting your music reviewed in quality publications. Record labels serve as a "gatekeeper" - the perception being that if a record was good enough to warrant a record label's attention, then it must be good. Having said that, it seems that with surf music I'd say that the quality of self-released CD's has gotten much, much better over the last few years or so. It used to be that self-released CD's had crappy inkjet printed artwork and were often CD-R's. Now that prices have come way down it's easy for bands to put out discs on their own.

If you can sell 1000 CD's at shows on your own, then self-releasing is probably the way to go to maximize profit. If you don't play shows that often, but still have good music then a label, if they're willing, is probably the way to go. For example, the Surfites "Big Pounder" CD is one of the best selling Double Crown CD's ever, but they are a studio band and really don't have a way to sell discs. On the flipside, Slacktone probably is better off self-releasing, since they seem to play lots of shows.

Being on a label is also helpful for licensing deals, to some extent. I think movie and video game producers are more willing to work with labels than individual bands.

I could go on and on - each band's situation is different. Just thought I'd throw a few of my thoughts on the subject out there.

Sean
Double Crown Records
www.doublecrownrecords.com

Surf CD's / Vinyl / Fanzines / DVD's
Aloha Screwdriver - Lunar Wobble CD
The Nebulas - Euphorion LP / CD
Supertubos - The Fourth Drive CD
Continental Magazine - Issue #38 w/17 Song CD

Back in the 90's there was a cool label, Upstart, which had Los Straitjackets, Laika, and the Halibuts. I wrote them a letter about my band at the time (Surf Report) and never heard back. It didn't matter because as it turned out, we played enough to sell our cds overselves. But I still wonder what happened to Upstart.

Anyone got the skinny on what happened with that very instro-friendly label?

Look at RadioHead & Barenaked Ladies they left thier labels to self release & produce and make more money doing it them self's and they both said I qoute "All thanks to the internet, it has brought us more closer to the fans, we make our money with mp3 sales, ring tones, tours & merchandise etc..." they also spoke that they get to keep every dollar per cd sold and take every single dollar for them self's, with being with a label it comes down to the label gets a bigger % per cd sold the artist takes the scents per cd sold that's why many are doing it them self and figured out "hey we make make more money doing it our self's" the internet & digital age!

Major labels are loosing money do to peer-to-peer sharing less sales of cds in general, everyone is buying MP3's or sharing (stealing)

I think we're coming into an age where bands might not need a label or the big guy to hold the artist hand and take the bigger % from the artist now bands are gettting smarter and the tools are here already.

Look at Tower Records half the store have been closed down do to lack of cd sales and other cd shops will close as well but I think the mom and pop cd reocrd shops will still be around.

-Kyle

Beyond The Surf YouTube channel
Beyond The Surf Instagram
The Verbtones @ Instagram
The Verbtones @ Facebook
The Verbtones @ bandcamp

JakeDobner
The Indie music stores are doing better than ever. Indie labels are going to be the big labels of tomorrow. I don't think labels will be replaced. If you don't have a label you need a distributor, publicist, et cetera. Physical records won't be gone for a long time. I think LPs will outlast CDs though.

Radiohead is a huge outlier. Those guys really did it right and that is partly thanks to the make-up of their fanbase. Their albums may not got platinum 4-5 times but they are probably the biggest band in the world that combines several factors that would prevent the Rolling Stones or washed up artist like that from getting that spot.

I have to disagree with ya indie labels are not the tomorrow or to become bigger then the big boys the point is that the artist keeps every single dollar for them self's the tomorrow is here already, the tomorrow is the bands calling the shots, the distributor is the band the website and all channels the bands have to sell cds besides an indie label or major,
when your not a big band like radiohead you yourself the core of the band is the pulblicist, booky the foot work but shit man who are we kiddin' we're talking about surf it's an easy easy thing to self release, book gigs and to be on top of the game if you have the mojo and know the right people and connections and the sad truth is sometime it boils down to who you know and the promoters, venue owners, if not you'll be stuck where your at going know where.

-Kyle

Beyond The Surf YouTube channel
Beyond The Surf Instagram
The Verbtones @ Instagram
The Verbtones @ Facebook
The Verbtones @ bandcamp

Last edited: Mar 10, 2008 22:55:37

I have little experience here except as a college station music director, but I think online promotion is getting more and more important or if nothing else I don't think you can deny the opportunity. However, a CDBaby and a personal website aren't going to get your name to float in front of the eyes of your average web surfer. I think that's where a label comes in.

I think Double Crown is a perfect example. I know they have stuff that I like so I keep a look out (and check their ebay auctions!) and when I think "I need more surf" I can go to Double Crown and be presented with a few options instead of trying to remember what unsigned artist I wanted. It's like when you have to buy something on an errand and you forget what it is; it'll be easier to remember what it was you're supposed to buy if you remember which store you were going to than showing up in Wal-Mart and combing the ailsles.

Storm Surge of Reverb: Surf & Instro Radio