Now that the holiday season is upon us we continue to focus our attention on helping independent musicians with up to date resources and indie music news .. This winter issue of the EvO:R Newsletter is crammed full of great articles of interest for the Independent Musician, with news of interest from around EvO:R, the world of indie music and a bonus from the Frank Cotolo archives...

Pop Music Icons
Pop music is usually comprised of happy, upbeat rhythms with simple melodies and lyrics that relate to love, relationships, sex and dancing. It is not a genre that is meant to bring deep and serious world issues to the fore, nor is it meant to invoke introspection and reflection. It's there simply to bop around to, and join in the rousing chorus at the top of your lungs. Its feel good music, designed for fun and lighthearted entertainment.
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Rock Music and Its Genres
Rock music comes in a range of forms so the chances are good that everyone on this planet will be able to appreciate at least a few songs. Having said that, rock music is not a style that appeals to everyone.
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Heavy Metal Rock Is Still Alive And Well
Even if heavy metal is seen by many people as evil and destructive it is still very popular among young and old. It is pretty obvious that the thing teenagers today (and yesterday and tomorrow) are crazy about is music. Of all the musical genres the one with probably the most enthusiastic fans has to be heavy metal and all the hundreds of sub-categories, whether it is classic hard rock or grindcore.
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Bouncing Boston - There's Something About Juliana
Juliana Hatfield has been consistently releasing music since the late 1980s, but has never really tasted any widespread success, despite having a moderately large fanbase. Hatfield's deeply personal song-writing style has made her a hero for the outsider, and the themes of her songs often cover intimate issues such as loneliness, disillusionment and relationships. In a magazine interview in 1992, when she was 25, Hatfield claimed to still be a virgin, and thus furthered her status as an alternative icon.
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Perfect Bands - The Who, The Beatles, And DEVO?
Because of a TV show I saw last night I'm in the mood to write about what I consider to be basically perfect bands. That means almost every song on every album sounds good. Today I've chosen The Who The Beatles and DEVO, and yes, I know Queen, Rush and Sabbath should be on the list, but let's try just 3 at a time. And most of this piece is going to be about the Who anyway.
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Is The Music Business Eating Itself Alive?
Much debate has risen over the years between music industry moguls and music connoisseurs about the decline in records sales and quality of music. On one side the music industry claims that downloading music has caused a decline in record sales. While music enthusiasts claim that it's the continuous release of mediocre music that is losing the buying public. Who's Right?
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Old Man Brown Releases New CD Return On Indie Label Boat Shop Record
Nashville, Tennessee-November 13, 2007-Old Man Brown is based in the Baltimore area, playing their own brand of original rock, blues, soul and funk that honors earlier traditions that have been forgotten with much of the new music coming out today.
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The Internet Crossroads of Music Downloads
Music today is one of the most followed hobbies in the world in fact much more than a hobby it has become a rage and in many cases a career. People connect it with divine feelings, soul attachment and peace of mind. People like to listen to different kinds of music be it hip hop, jazz, trance, rock, pop, classical etc. However everyone has a personal choice and preference and hence the demand for a particular genre of music is fluctuates from place to place. But the fact is that the demand for good quality music has always been there and will always be there.
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Make The Most Of Your Music Player On MySpace
Once you've established your myspace site, selected a terrific photo or graphic that accurately signals your primary artistic sensibility to casual surfers, and your band name or label name signal the same (hopefully), a few practical strategies can be employed to help you maximize your marketing efforts. These basics are worth mentioning because I see so many artists overlook them that I cannot assume that you know to address them. We'll start with your music player, as your music is, of course, key to your marketing efforts.
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Free Old Time Radio Shows on the Internet
I am in the same location that I am each day about this time, in the kitchen preparing dinner for my family. As usual, my radio is on to a talk station, since I prefer to listen to someone's ideas rather than some disc jockey's selection of music that they like to hear. However, the inane conversation today is simply too much, and the frequent commercials certainly do not help my mood.
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Organic Farmer Wins Great Lakes Songwriting Contest
ANN ARBOR (MI) - An organic farmer from southern Michigan, an art publisher from Wisconsin, a sophomore from the University of Michigan, and a former child actress from New York City are among the winners of the 2007 Great Lakes Songwriting Contest.
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The Music Industry's Root Canal
In fact, I received innumerable Google music industry alerts over the past several weeks that revealed how the long-time powerful major record labels are exhibiting desperation through their attempts to present "new" old methods, i.e., boxed music sets of enormous content that have long been abandoned in the interest of industry progress. Obviously, it is safe to say that the majors are now out of "fresh" ideas.
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THE MESSAGE: Hip Hop Is The New Apple Pie
The House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection chaired by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) convened to address the issue last week. The hearing was a made-for-Jon Stewart event -- these media-clueless hacks straining to persuade (not force) titans of the recording industry to stop releasing hard core rap -- one of the industry's few remaining golden geese. Our leaders, however, would find it easier to sleep at night if they knew that, after more than a generation in the cultural bloodstream, rap has become as safe as milk to a young audience that is in no way shocked or corrupted when they hear the dirty words that guys like Snoop, Dick Cheney and Mom & Dad use in public every day.
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The Association Of Independent Artists Helps Give Indie Bands The Recognition They Deserve!
The Association of Independent Artists (AIA) was started in Los Angeles, CA. Its founders, Bruce St. Hilaire and Robert Hensley, could see the potential and importance for indie artists to get their music heard without relying on being signed to a major label, and instead using the Internet as a major networking tool and resource for bands to do it themselves.
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Cool Gizmo Alert: Sonoma Wire Works' RiffWorks
It never fails. I'm sitting in my studio jamming away, when I discover the greatest riff of all time. The riff to slay all other riffs. The King Kameamea of riffs. I HAVE TO record this! Okay...so I put the guitar down, (first mistake), go get a mike, run some cable, open my recording software, adjust all the settings...figure out what tempo I am playing....I should put a drum loop down? Yeah... That would totally rock!
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The Lesson We Learn From Dying Young
Gerald Levert, singer, songwriter and producer: born Philadelphia 13 July 1966; (three children); died Cleveland, Ohio 10 November 2006. Gerald was a member of the 90's R&B group, Levert; a member of LSG with bandmembers Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill and of course, recognized as a powerful solo artist. He was the son of O'Jay's singer, Eddie Levert.
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Indie Music Takes on the Majors
Tommy Boy Records' Tom Silverman has said that independent record labels are responsible for 30 percent of music sales and 80 percent of all releases worldwide. If indie music were a major label, it would be the biggest in the world -- and in a way, that's what's about to happen.
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How to Double Your Gig Revenues by Selling Merch
Of all items artists can sell at their gigs, wearable merch such as T-shirts, baseball or trucker caps, hoodies, baby doll shirts, long sleeve T's, and skullies, sell better than anything else they can sell, even better than CDs. Why? Because your fans feel that your coolness rubs off on them when they wear garments with your name on them. They just become a smidge cooler than they were before as soon as they walk out their front door with your T-shirt on.
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Einar Vilberg
Einar was one of the websites founding fathers. He was also the first International artist to grace our pages when we opened in the late 1990's. Over the years Einar has sent me many great songs from his vast collection of hits that he has recorded. In late 2005 I convienced him to let me release a compilation CD of the Best songs from his collection. Once he agreed to allow me to make this compilation Jef Peace at Peacework Music Network took exactly 30 seconds to agree to distribute the CD. Now we are proud to offer his fine music to the world.
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2nd Story Band
2nd Story Band co-founders, Meagan Lane and Geoff de Mers, grew up in the 50's and 60's during one of the most musically rich periods in the evolution of American Pop Music. It was a time when Rock-a-billy, Doo Whop, R&B, Tejano, Calypso, Cowboy Music (C&W), Swing, Rock and Roll, Folk and Folk Rock could be heard on commercial radio.
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Nicki Sutherland
Nicki Sutherland is a singer-songwriter par excellence. Her album "Precious Things" is replete in solid songwriting and percussive acoustic guitar with intricate, enticing melodies. Nicki mixed the recording herself and the results show her care. The voice and guitar, the melodic mainstays of her material, are foremost. Sutherland's delivery is personal and warm; each of the album's ten tracks is a 'precious thing.'
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ESJ is looking for writers/poets for our next issues. All work is appreciated and will be published (with the exception of articles containing racism, bigotry or other demeaning topics) Also, this is a PG-13 rating and will be censored if you do not edit it. Please e-mail The EvO:R Street Journal.