I get the feeling that a lot of people write off the insights of Trent Reznor because he’s responsible for the largest commercially viable industrial-rock band of the past two decades; a genre a lot of people seem to hate on. However, if you’re able to get beyond your preconceived notions of the man I suggest taking a moment to read through one of his latest musing: My Thoughts on What To Do as a New / Unknown Artist.

You may think that Mr. Nine Inch Nails wouldn’t have much insight for a new band but his advice is surprisingly insightful. He points to a lot of specific tools to take advantage of and sends the whole thing home with this gem:

If you don’t know anything about new media or how people communicate these days, none of this will work. The role of an independent musician these days requires a mastery of first hand use of these tools. If you don’t get it – find someone who does to do this for you. If you are waiting around for the phone to ring or that A & R guy to show up at your gig – good luck, you’re going to be waiting a while.

It really is a great read and I suggest you consume it at your earliest convenience. Then immediately sign up for an account at Bandcamp and Artisdata if you have not already.

Codaphonic have released a brand new EP entitled Edison’s Rival*. It’s four tracks of smart, catchy, enjoyable pop rock and it should be enjoyed at your earliest convenience. As an added incentive to buy the physical record it is packaged with four hand-screened prints from Boss Construction; each one correlating to a track from the disc. You can, and should, view them here. Details on the release:

Digital Download – 100% free, no email address required, high-quality audio. It even comes with a bonus fifth track for good measure!

Physical Version – four tracks, four prints, $5. It’s crazy cheap!

Full disclosure: this is the second release from yk records; my own personal record label experiment.

The Non-Commissioned Officers have just released three videos for songs from the Make-Out with Violence soundtrack. Each piece features footage from the film with subtitles for the goings on contained within. If you’ve not seen the film it might be a good introduction to some of the exploits of the film and if you have seen it, it’s a nice reminder that local filmmakers can make a quality product. Watch them all and if you somehow don’t have the soundtrack yet, go buy it…. immediately.

• Sweet Eleanor
• Ride
• No Means No

Heads up via The Cream.

This Saturday, July 11th, will see the release of Mean Tambourines EP entitled War. The four track rock excursion was produced by Roger Alan Nichols and will be available at shows starting immediately. The band will be playing at Exit/In, for free, along with The Non Commissioned Officers, Mikky Ekko and Perrin Lamb. If you’re into catchy rock songs with memorable hooks sung via vocals with just a hint of desperation and earnesty (read that as a compliment, as it is meant as one) then you’ll want to head out this Saturday to Exit/In.

→ Mean Tambourines – War

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• Bows and Arrows have posted two free songs for download over on their blog. “Carbon” is taken from 1010 Eaton Street and “Tiger” is a new unreleased track for your enjoyment.
• Next Big Nashville registration is coming to a close soon. If you’re in a band, please, go register before July 13th!
• A bunch of bands have joined twitter including (but not limited to): How I Became the Bomb, Caitlin Rose, Harrison Hudson and Those Darlins.
• New concert series announced called Live on the Green that starts Sept. 9th. Sponsored by Lightning 100 the first iteration features Citizen Cope, Space Capone, Ricky Young and Here Come The Mummies. Hopefully some more compelling artists get booked.