“The music industry from an A+R and strategic marketing standpoint has been super lazy. They fell into a trap of using “data” to found who to sign without deeply considering that any person can make a song that pops off on TikTok but not everyone is built to be a star IRL, perform, build a real fan base and be an actual working artist.”
As Ari Herstand says below (embedded below at the six minute mark), there are artists out there with “gazillions” of Spotify streams but can’t sell 50 tickets to their hometown show.
Theo Katzman doesn’t have the streaming numbers, but he routinely sells out 1000-3000 cap rooms.
In this clip Theo Katzman explains his producing style – one take. One shot. One crack at it.
He stresses the performance in recording.
Yes, with technology, you can “comp” (sort of like splicing together multiple takes), but what if we got really good at doing it all the way through? In one take?
I’m pretty sure that’s how Vulfpeck makes their amazing performance videos and probably why they’re so captivating.
Theo mentions how playing in a room together means Jack Stratton (in the video below) has to play the drums just right, or else his performance will bleed into those vocal mix and ruin the take.
Like – how many degrees “better” is vocalist Monica Martin from doing this? Her skill, competency, and confidence in her abilities, from doing it live and in the moment?
And seriously, watch that video. It is pure magic. I watch it every now and again and tear up; it’s so beautiful.
I write almost everything in one take. These posts, most of my Social Media Escape Plan work, too. Get an idea down, make some cuts, and schedule it… onto the next.I’ve been writing publicly online since 2001, and this works for me. Are there mistakes? Sure, but this ain’t a book, and it’s not precious. There’s a time and a place for that, but I feel like all these years of writing are my “one-take performances” that allow me to speak with confidence and candor when I get in a room with people to discuss these sorts of things.
I think that anybody who is encouraging you to make a TikTok hit is probably brain dead. Don’t listen to them. Usually, those tactics don’t work. I’ve never done an actual ‘tactic’ and had it work.
There are people you didn’t reach yesterday because you didn’t display your art in a small gallery in Denver, CO, or play a set in a nightclub in Chicago last night, either.
They say not being on TikTok is a missed opportunity, but we miss opportunities every day because we are singular creative beings and have to do the dishes or cover a shift at work.
Sure, “everyone” is on TikTok right now, but everyone is at a club you’re not at, too. You’re not in a room with other creative people, working on a project with people you love.
There are missed opportunities, but maybe it’s time we were more selective about which ones we care about.
Going back to 2004 on my Flickr account has thrown me for a loop. I mean, between that time period and the tens of thousands of photos I have in my Photos app, it just made me realize how consistent I’ve kept with photography. Not in a grand way, by any means, but I’ve always messed around with cameras.
In the 90s I remember shooting shows with my little point and click Kodak (got one on eBay last year). During my Bike Nerd days I had a Canon PowerShot SD940IS and Canon PowerShot S95 (see ’em here).
Got a Nikon Z30 because I’ve wanted to make videos but found I’m loving taking photos with it even more. Even the iPhone 14 Plus has me shooting more, and being more mindful when out and about.
Thought this photo was fun just because of the wall of green ends so abruptly with that blue sky.
Seth Godin recently posted ‘Two chicken jokes,’ which – pardon the pun – cracked something open for me.
“Conversations and interactions become more than rote performance precisely because we can create, seek out and relieve tension.
Instability into stability and back again.”
Forget clicks and viral hits; the foundation is conversations.
I’m part of Scott Perry’s ‘Creative on Purpose‘ group. On Mondays and Fridays, we have a 30-minute call with people from a range of professions, ages, and backgrounds.
A 30-minute Zoom call for work can usually be summed up as “this could have been an email,” while conversations with amazing people can break things open. They can change your life!
Conversations with friends led to Metal Bandcamp Gift Club, which helped sell thousands of albums.
I’ve been discussing starting a music gear flea market with a friend.
Another friend and I are having conversations about launching a zine.
Is there a guaranteed outcome? Will this new thing become my big break? NO ONE KNOWS, and that’s the wonderful dance between instability and stability.
Will this music gear flea market work? There’s a chance it might not go well!
Will we get this zine launched this year? MAYBE?!
At some point, we have to stop posting and start discussing.
If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been on a bit of a tear lately with the “blogging thing.” Did you notice the new domain name? I’ve had sethw.com on and off since, like, 1999 or so because it went with my weird one-man-band act I did. But lately, as I’m now easing into my later 40s, I wanted something that reflected my new vibes, and sethwxyz really worked. Like, the alphabet goes wxyz, right? Seth W… xyz. Oh my god, I love it.
Anyway, since I’ve been writing or blogging so much, I’ve definitely felt different things pulling themselves together.
Like, I’m not spending multiple hours a day writing, but I do a lot of thinking and walking and taking voice notes on occasion, which I rarely revisit, but just doing them helps my brain put things together.
“Companionship content is long-form content that can be consumed passively — allowing the consumer to be incompletely attentive, and providing a sense of relaxation, comfort, and community.”
After reading that whole piece, it was like, oh my god, no wonder I love those Noah Kalina videos, right? And he even mentioned in today’s video, near the end, how you could just have his video on in the background, you don’t even need to really watch it.
There were a few days where I’d find myself in haze after laying around and just scrolling through Instagram Reel after Instagram Reel. It was like when we were kids, and they used to say we watched 10 hours of TV a week or something, but now it’s like we consume 10 hours of video a day, but in 15 to 30-second increments, and it’s draining, as Anu says here:
“Consuming content requires attention, and everyone has an attention ceiling. This is the basis of my belief that short-form video has an upper limit. It’s not that short-form isn’t as good or as entertaining as long-form, it’s that it’s distracting and ultimately draining.
The mental energy consumed per minute of content consumed must be higher for short-form video than many types of content. I think of this as the “drain ratio” (as in energy drain) for a given piece of content or even a whole genre. (I doubt if anyone’s scientifically measured this, but I’d willingly commission a study on it).”
Maybe that’s why I like watching Craig Reynolds of Stray From The Path when he does his drum streams.
I don’t have to pay full attention, but it’s just fun to be “in the room” when he offers a sarcastic comment or self-deprecating humor.
Maybe I’m just getting old, or maybe it’s the after-effects of living through a pandemic, and things are just off, man. I’m not sure, but I just need the slow chill vibes these days.
HINDZ is another great example. A little softer than watching Craig on drums, but still… I guess it’s all about the person. I know what I’m getting from these folks, and there’s a peacefulness to that.
This is also similar to “body doubling,” or virtual co-working sessions that I’ve seen around. I haven’t really dabbled in those quite so much, but I know some people really like those.
Love this so much, from Tina Roth Eisenberg (Swiss Miss):
“This past Saturday I invited my neighbors and a few local friends to a “pop up coffee shop” in my kitchen.
The premise: Doors are open between 9am and noon. Coffee and tea is flowing and there are baked goods and fruit to snack on. Pop in for a quick hello or hang for as long as you’d like.”
