I have been following all of the emails to you about CYHSY. I am amazed at all of the people just now hearing about them from your emails. And amazed by people judging them from a few minutes on U Tube or Myspace. They were THE buzz band at Bonnaroo last year and I must stay that they tore the stage down. It was fucking fantastic. 5000 kids screaming every word and losing their minds.

To rewind a bit, we started a distribution company about three years ago whose sole mission was to get exclusive content for indie record stores. There are many out of deal bands and web only merch that my guys want to stock. So, we go and get em. We also get signed artists to do cool stuff just for the indie store base.

Summer before last, I got a call from one of my guys saying that they were having a really difficult time getting Clap Your Hands Say Yeah who had just gotten a favorable review on Pitchfork. I asked where they had gotten the product from before and they answered "From the band". Hum.

So, I went to the band’s website and ordered 2000 or so copies from them. I get this call minutes later from Nick Stern asking me what up. I knew Nick worked at Atlantic and we had common friends. He told me that the band had been packing and shipping CDs to stores themselves but it was getting to be overwhelming. Plus they needed to go on tour. He told me he was cutting a deal with ADA but it would be a while before they could ship product. I smelt opportunity and a short window.

So, we cut a deal. We would help the band until they got their real distro deal worked out. I paid them one way in cash. We sold 13,000 copies in about six weeks time and I figured the band put about $80,000 profit in their front pocket just from doing business with a few hundred indie record stores for a few weeks. I remember Fedexing Nick a check the day we got the first order.

I remember emailing stores that we had CYHSY. Some stores came back with a WHO? Those same stores were ordering 120 units at a time just a few weeks later. I have NEVER seen something spread this fast.

So, love the music or not. That is irrelevant to the argument. For the first time I felt the power of lightning buzz on the internet and got to see a band first hand responding nationally to that buzz on their own.

We have more stories like this. It is happening and is great to see.

Don VanCleave
Coalition of Independent Music Stores
3738 4th Terrace North
Birmingham, AL 35222

As usual, I’m shocked by your attitude towards Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. I’m convinced you haven’t listened to their new record, and I’m saddened that the model created with this band isn’t given more recognition by the one person who has called for all the changes we’ve actually put into practice. To call what we’re doing "IRRELEVANT" undermines every single email you send out.

"There’s no buzz here, nobody cares."

I don’t know what world you’re living in, but I think selling 19,000 records in a week means lots of people care. Maybe you’re talking about that traditional buzz you’re used to, the barrage of radio and video, snipes and singles, playing the game. This is a band that’s never made a video, never played with Nickelback at a radio show, never done all those things every other band is forced to do. The marketing/publicity/radio/video budget for this record is under $15,000. They made a record, they put it out. And they live much better than 95% of all bands I’ve worked with, including the vast majority of acts I worked with during my time at a major – all this while owning their masters and publishing, touring in a bus, and not being forced to do anything they don’t want to.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUIsP23LTk0

You’re so fond of using Pollstar numbers to prove people don’t care about bands – go check out ours, from around the world. You’ll see the band has been headlining shows for a year now, and maybe 5 or so haven’t sold out. Check the numbers from last time they were in LA, two sold out nights at the Fonda. Check out the numbers in Tokyo, London, Paris, Hamburg, Minneapolis, Boston, Chicago, Seattle….go look Bob, you’ll see that people do actually care ALOT about this band.

Last year you made some list of 25 things that band’s should or shouldn’t do. CYHSY had followed 24 of them, the one exception being that they played Letterman. I can never fault a band for wanting to play that show. It’s fun playing on the same stage the Beatles played on. But seeing as how we’re pretty much your poster children, I’m amazed you don’t show us more respect.

And go listen to their music. You might actually like it.

Nick Stern
Manager, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah