The Price: The Intense Life Cycle of the Working Musician
Last time, we discussed the ooey, gooey guts of what it takes to go from jamming in your basement to playing shows, making connections, and maybe, just maybe, starting to make your living as a working musician. This time, we talk to three bands about what it takes to perform at the next level in the music business.
Dealing with the Management Question
Once the time comes for recording albums and booking tours, it’s also time to start considering professional management. For Red Blanket, a Canadian thrash-funk instrumental outfit, the decision has been put off for the time being. “It’s just us booking everything,” says guitarist Daniel Stewart, “handling funds, getting press, we do it all ourselves, cause we’re so goddamn DIY.”
This approach works for Red Blanket because they’re all about the business side of things, from booking shows strategically to guarantee large crowds, to designing and selling huge amounts of custom merch to fund tours. However, if you’re more like Louise Post, the fearless frontwoman of Veruca Salt, you might have to put your career in the hands of, well, handlers—managers, agents, PR people, and even accountants. “I’ve never been very savvy about my “career” as a musician,” admits bandleader, Post, “I tend to be impulsive and impatient, to a fault in regards to business, because my real focus is always on the music.”
And so we arrive at one of the notorious conundrums of professional musicianship. Focusing on the music has to be top priority, but hiring professionals to “take care” of the business side of things, can leave you at the mercy of those whose judgment and integrity boil down to the bottom line—dollar signs.
Career Crossroads: True Story
In 1998, Veruca Salt’s independently run label, Geffen Records, merged with corporate giant Interscope. It looked like Geffen might get obliterated in the corporate crush, so on the advice of their management, the band bailed out for a new deal with Beyond Records. But in a savage twist of fate, Geffen continued to operate with great success within Interscope. Veruca Salt, on the other hand, would never again gain the visibility or mainstream success they had enjoyed through Geffen. “In hindsight, I think I’ve followed some questionable advice from managers,” Louise Post says regretfully. “The business end of being a musician has always baffled and overwhelmed me a bit. I’m working on that, and still learning how to balance outside influence on my decisions with following my own gut instincts.”
Based on the stories our bands tell, it seems that trusting in the integrity of the people you’ve got working for you may not always be wise. “Integrity in the entertainment business can be a very grey area,” warns DeVotchKa frontman Nick Urata. “In fact, the whole industry is grounded in bloodsucking. So we eat a lot of garlic.”
The life of the working musician, with or without bloodsuckers and garlic, ultimately boils down to a cycle of creating, recording, touring, and then, if you’re lucky, having time to relax and reflect far away from a rehab facility. But wait! There’s still the small matter of successfully recording your first album with a major label.
Once in the Studio…
Every band’s studio experience is different. There are a million “how-to” guides out there on the exact steps involved in recording an album, but what many musicians don’t foresee is the need to get along with their band mates during those endless, cramped recording sessions.
No matter what, the process is going to be long—fourteen-hour days, technically arduous, and nothing like performing live. “Recording is never fun,” confesses Red Blanket guitarist, Dan Stewart, “It exposes you for not being able to play perfectly every time, unless you can, and are a total jerk about it.”
Veruca Salt tells a different story. Veteran rocker, Louise Post says the experience of recording live is a joy she relishes. But she also makes the point that recording in-studio can be difficult when you’re flying solo. “I have always balked at the notion of being a “solo artist” because of the images [that it evokes] of me and various paid studio musicians or ‘session players’ all creatively crammed into a timed-session. I am fueled by the energy of four people together, sharing an identity, equally invested in and excited by the outcome.”
While Louise paints a much prettier picture of the studio recording experience than the one offered by Red Blanket, to be fair, Veruca Salt has seen almost a dozen band members come and go before arriving at their current incarnation. It seems that making music, just like making love, is equal parts magic and hard work. If you want to be successful, you’ve got to find a way to get along.
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Author's biography:
Anne Stewart is an author, music journalist, and songwriter based out of Victoria, British Columbia. While biding time awaiting the publication of her best-seller and subsequent retirement on a yacht Ken Kesey-style, she writes for multiple online publications and runs her own successful web design firm, Float Solutions.
