Guitar Noise

A little over a year ago, I received a copy of Dayelle Deanna Schwartz’s The Real Deal to review. I found it to be a great book for the person looking for not only insight, but encouragement as well. The music business is a harsh reality, but Dayelle’s friendly and inspiring style made it seem a little less so.

This year, she has updated and expanded upon her earlier book, Start and Run Your Own Record Label, and her approach is very much the same. Dayelle leads you in a wonderfully logical progression, starting with coming up with reasons for doing so and working through the steps of setting up your label, financing it and keeping it solvent. Not to mention the “little” things like setting up your legal needs and signing up artists!

As in her previous book, she loads each chapter with voices of experience. Even though Dayelle has gone through all this herself (she successfully created and runs Revenge Records), she adds personal commentary from a diverse group of professionals. Danny Goldberg, Dave Roberge, EL-P, Jane Siberry, Valerie Vigoda and Michael Hausman are but a few of the many, many CEO’s, label founders and presidents, artists and managers who have taken the time to pass along some valuable information.

And there’s a lot of things to give advice about. New record labels are coming out every day it seems, and for many people looking to get their music out into the world, this may indeed be the route to take. But there’s a lot to consider: how to record, where to record, how to promote and market, how to make the best use of the internet…

Dayelle runs through an exhaustive list and always makes a point about stressing the positives. In the chapter on “Creating Your Product,” she offers this advice in the section titled “Choosing the First Release:”

No one knows everything, including you. Get input from those who know what’s selling in your genre. Ask for suggestions about making your product more marketable. Learn by keeping an open mind. Don’t take all negative comments seriously. But if a number of folks make the same suggestion, such as a bass line needs changing or a different drum riff would make the music sound more current, give it serious thought. Don’t take criticism personally. Not everyone will like your music, and negative comments don’t mean it’s no good. That’s why a wide range of feedback helps determine if the product needs work. Don’t ignore anything that might make your recording stronger.

It’s this combination of sound and friendly advice that make Dayelle’s books well worth a look. If you’re thinking about launching yourself into this frenetic world of indie labels, then you certainly should think about having some great information to keep you company.