The Air Leaks Out

Cartel, The Honorary Title, Weatherbox

Monday 9/3/07
House of Blues-Las Vegas, NV
Gross: $8,437
543/1,800 (30.2%)
Ticket prices: $17.00, $15.00

Tuesday 9/4/07
House of Blues-Anaheim, CA
Gross: $9,241
525/1,075 (48.8%)
Ticket price: $17.50

Friday 9/7/07
Avalon-Hollywood, CA
Gross: $17,754
992/1451 (68.4%)
Ticket price: $22.00

You remember Cartel, don’t you?

Obviously you’re not alone. Most people don’t remember, or just don’t care. THEY WERE THE BAND IN THE BUBBLE!

If their goal was to get TV exposure and break through…it didn’t work. Proving once and for all that MTV is no longer a kingmaker. All the stunt did was give the band a negative imprimatur that will haunt them for the rest of their career.

There are no easy paths anymore. Not if you’re a band, playing credible music. If you’re great-looking, a popster, maybe you can get some YouTube/TV/radio exposure and run your record up the Top Forty chart. But chances are, you won’t do well at the box office.

I’d say we’re back to 1970, but we had a healthy radio scene in 1970. Now we’re in chaos. We’ve got a million bands, a million places to hear them and a populace that’s overloaded. You’ve got to build your fan base one by one. And treat each customer right. For he is your future.

Can you imagine the meetings with MTV? We’re gonna make you STARS! Oh no, you’re not. You can’t make musicians stars ANYMORE!

As for the album, it’s not even in the Top 200.

How could a band be so misguided?

By listening to the usual suspects.

Believe me, the bands know more than their handlers these days. Because the bands are Web-savvy, and go on the road. They’ve got their ears to the ground, they can feel the pulse. The pulse isn’t at MTV or on the radio but in BEDROOMS! Yup, that’s where you find out about everything now, the BEDROOM, in front of your PC! How can you get screen time? That’s the most important consideration. How can you motivate people to get others to listen to you, and like you.

All the new ideas aren’t coming from the old farts, but the kids. When the old fart tells you about making a deal with V-Cast, getting you on television, roll your eyes, he just doesn’t get it. He just wants to cast a wide net to try and capture some ignorant fans to generate instant revenue, so he can boast about his SoundScan number. What are the odds you’re even gonna HAVE a SoundScan number, when your audience steals the music, trades it, THAT’S HOW THEY FIND OUT ABOUT YOU!

So, once again, it comes down to the music. Cartel was a middling ban with a small fan base. The fact that they metaphorically lit themselves on fire on television makes no difference, their music didn’t penetrate, it wasn’t mass appeal enough. Those who did tune in were in it for the social drama.

If you’re not making mainstream music, forget about the mainstream outlets, you’re wasting your time. Your fan base is not there. Used to be there could be a sudden conflagration as a result of MTV exposure, but that’s when the mainstream and the hip merged. But they diverged after the turn of the decade. Hipsters want nothing to do with tripe, and those adoring Britney don’t see music as lasting, don’t see it as a life force. And the media only wants sizzle. They’re only gonna cover you if you make a big splash. And Cartel made a big splash, this story was everywhere, but the audience just didn’t care. Mainstream media out of touch with the audience? Say it ain’t SO!

The majors are killing themselves. Trying to play the old dying game, looking to you to cough up some of your touring and merch income to get them to their numbers. You should know better. That they can’t do much for you. You’re the innovator. It’s in your hands.

This is a read-only blog. E-mail comments directly to Bob.