24/10/07
Wow, I haven't updated this for months!
Well, the Nemesea CDs still haven't sold, so a bit of a disappointment there. But after many weeks of nothing happening, it's been a bit of a busy time for me on SAB. Some transactions at last! First off, I was lucky enough to win 10 gift parts from Brian, of Vegas Dragons, for successfully predicting the date the Dragons would reach the $50K. That meant I had more parts around than I'd bargained for.
I promptly invested them, but one artist (I won't go into details) managed to alienate me, so I had to pull parts, and again ended up with some unexpectedly spare! Two other artists have benefited from that! Then Elise ("Light") informed me today that she is quitting SAB. Sad news, in a way, but not altogether unexpected. But again, two artists have benefited from the parts. One is the fantastic Bim, who I'd never supported before, but always wanted to. So, every cloud has a silver lining. I'm sorry my only way of investing at the moment is by recycling "spares", but it does occasionally still provide a bit of excitement.
09/07/07
I keep fantasizing that one day I'll wake up and somebody will have bought one of my Nemesea CDs.
Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy? ;)
19/06/07
Wow - my page just passed 1000 views! OK, I know it's not a lot in the context of SAB, but it's a lot for me - what a milestone.
Sorry I've not been around much. I've been away in Italy, and come back feeling refreshed. I didn't realise how much I needed the break.
I'm several skin-tones darker now - amazing what Mediterranean sunshine can do. I know it's not good for me really, but I sure as hell feel better! ;)
I was anxious that the CDs/downloads might have been released while I was away, or some more artists reached the 50K, but I don't seem to have missed much, except the launch of the forum. Also I was surprised (but pleased) that Ray's site now has official SAB endorsement. That confused me at first!
My favourite artist, Kirt, has been busy while I'm away - nice work, as ever. I can't wait to see what he'll do with the 50K, and I've no doubt he will make it.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the scale, my other "pet" artists, Sundial Project, have reached the $500 mark - a modest but psychologically important barrier. C'mon boys, you CAN do it. ;)
29/05/07
Playing the waiting game. I want to believe in more artists, and/or boost my "belief" in those I've already supported, but I'm conscious I already have a few hundred dollars tied up in SAB, and I'd like to see some returns, before I invest still more.
So near and yet so far: Nemesea should be releasing the first fully SAB-funded CD really soon, and only then will the believers begin to see whether this has a chance of paying for itself.
'Til then, it's wait and see.... If I start making any money, I won't hesitate to plough it back into SAB, but the problem is the whole process is too slow. We still only have a tiny fraction of 1% of bands recording, and none offering free music yet. This after nearly a year. What this means in practice is there are no new funds coming back in to believers, to boost the charts further down. With the exception of a few wealthy believers, people can't keep buying parts every month, but never recouping their investment. The top priority HAS to be to return profits to investors, so they have something new to invest! Otherwise they can only window-shop.
09/05/07
Rainy.
Bored.
08/05/07
Hehe, I wonder if SAB Management read my blog? ;) Or is it just a happy coincidence that right after I expressed my frustration with the slow progress, I get a notice saying my CDs will be ready soon?
I am pleased to see there is an option to sell some or all of the CDs. Not that I don't want a treasured limited edition CD of my chosen artists, but 30 of them (so far) could be a bit much! I was already wondering what I was going to do with them all, and thinking I might have to be initiated into the mysteries of eBay! I wasn't sure how much of a market I would find there, or what sort of price I could get, so I think I'm happier letting SAB take care of it. Plus it's much less hassle for me than having to advertise on eBay, and send the CDs off to buyers myself.
08/05/07
Still a little disillusioned with slow progress today. There are so many great bands here, whose chance of reaching the $50K is approximately zero. I thought SAB would be different, and that artists would flourish purely on merit, with everyone having a realistic chance. But I now see that for all but a lucky few, the recording studio is still as much of a distant dream as it would have been in the "old", traditional music business. In fact, I think there are a few acts here who are more likely to get signed by a label, than to ever reach the $50,000.
Of course, there may be more site views, and hence more believers, once the free music is made available. But if, as now looks inevitable, only four artists are recorded and ready for download after a whole year, this is hardly going to attract masses of new punters.
29/04/07
Today's a sad day, because I've had to "disbelieve" in one artist - and it was an artist I've tipped before, as well. Always a shame when this happens: some artists just don't seem to "get it", and I wonder why they signed up, really. They seem to expect success handed to them on a plate, without doing anything in return. The particular artist I'm thinking of couldn't even manage to say thank you. What's happened? Are they ill? Have they died? Maybe the band broke up? You're just left wondering...
Of course, the other side of the coin is that for every artist I don't believe in any more, somebody else stands to gain, so this week's lucky winners are Sheet Metal. Who are...um...a metal band. Bet that would've been hard to guess without my help, eh? ;) Good luck to Dreb and the boys!
20/04/07
Well, here I am again.
I must admit, I am beginning to experience the first frustrations with SAB, and the first realisation of the possible flaws - from a believer's point of view, at least.
I've realised very few artists are going to reach the $50K in a realistic time frame, if ever, and that means most of my money is going nowhere for the foreseeable future.
This is a very ineffective form of investment, although very effective for Sellaband, as they are getting the interest on my money, instead of me!
There begins to be a case for doing what at least one other believer has already done, and not investing in any artist until they are within striking distance of the $50K. Otherwise I fear my investment will be lying dormant for literally years! It might as well be shoved under the mattress!
Even some artists I've believed in, who seemed to be doing well up to now, seem to have plateaued at this point, and are not attracting many/any new investors.
What do I do now? Take all the money back out again? Re-invest it in somebody who has a chance?
I am also concerned about what happens when the free music is eventually available for download. I'm not convinced we will attract enough advertisers OR downloaders to make it pay, on top of which, if I've understood correctly, we have only a year to achieve it. After that, the rights revert, so however big or successful the band becomes AFTER the first year, we (the believers) won't have a stake in it any more. How many bands make it big in the first year? It's likely the richest pickings will only materialise after the band has already parted company with SAB.
And even any earnings we've made will only be distributed once a year, so I can see a scenario where you wait (for example) two years for the band you've backed to reach the target, a further 6 months (approx) to record the CD, and then you only have one year, during which you earn pennies, which are not actually credited until the end of the calendar year, and not paid until the next quarter! So what's that? Maybe three-and-a-half years waiting for pennies? The return on investment is not only small, but takes FAR too long to materialise.
Well, maybe I'm just having a bad day, and I do appreciate it's not all about money. I've been enjoying the music at least, so I wouldn't argue I've had nothing in return for my investment. I'm just frustrated it's so slow, and that there are some great bands it's not worth backing, because at this rate, they won't reach the studio 'til 2030. :(
05/04/07
Dear All,
I am going away for Easter, and won't be around for a while, so sorry if I don't answer your mail and comments.
I haven't stopped believing - back in a few days. Hope you all have a good Easter.
20/03/07
Well, no posts for a fortnight, and then twice in a couple of days. I like to be unpredictable. ;) Really got withdrawal today, when the site went down for a while. Even though I knew I couldn't be missing any excitement, because nobody else could log in either!
I've invested a little extra pocket money on SAB these last few days. I'm always torn between supporting artists I've already backed and have great faith in, and encouraging a few outsiders, so I try to do a mixture of both.
I very belatedly realised what I was missing out on with with Vegas Dragons. Somehow I'd just never got round to listening to them. Bad mistake. A class act, and one that gets better with each listen! It's quite heavy, but without all the clichés that sometimes go with that. A truly sophisticated slant on a popular genre. And my two outsiders are Sundial Project and Jessie Coutts: two artists that really couldn't be further apart, musically. Sundial Project remind me slightly of The Cult meets Linkin Park (fortunately I like both!) , and Jessie is reminiscent of a more sultry and less angst-ridden PJ Harvey. I'm really surprised neither of them is (so far) getting a lot of attention on SAB. Perhaps they're just slow starters.
18/03/07
Well, as you can tell, I am hopeless at blogs. Nearly a fortnight since my last update. Been out for a good, but tiring and somewhat emotional day in London. Just thought I'd check Sellaband before bed, and was in time to watch Clémence reaching her $50,000 - and scoop 5 parts in the nick of time!
However, my main money is still on Kirt, whose birthday it is today. Happy birthday, Kirt! :)
As ever, I can't reward all the artists I feel deserve it. If I have already believed in you, then don't worry, I have not forgotten you. If I haven't: well, your time may come.
I really am going to bed now, because, after false promise of Spring, it really is the most cold, howling night here! Went out this morning with summer clothes on, and enjoyed drinks out on a roof-terrace. Just hours later, the gritters are out, preparing for blizzards. That's the good old British weather for you!
05/03/07
Well, a sad day today, as I've just had to part company with an artist I had believed in. I really don't like having to do this, as I believe in people for a reason: it's really a shame if they don't live up to their potential.
In contrast, it is also a good day today, because I've just received two fantastic CDs from Kirt - or technically, one from Kirt, and one from his alter ego, Knaeckebroedt. He never short-changes his believers. If you fancy a punt on an artist who's a bit outside your usual genre, try $10 (or more) on Kirt: you won't be disappointed, and you just might be converted! :)
The same goes for Elise ("Light"). To be completely honest, this would not normally be my type of music. But she wins out for sheer quality, and commitment. Again, believers will not be disappointed. She takes great pains to maintain personal contact with them, even though this must be getting increasingly difficult, with the growing numbers.
Two artists I am more than happy to recommend, not just to other believers, but to any other artists who want to know how to attract believers, and keep them! Just watch this pair, for a lesson in how it's done. ;)
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Hey, I've just noticed I've got a blog! I wonder how long that's been there? Every time they add a new feature, it takes me a while to notice. I don't think it was there this morning...
To those who've been wondering why I've been a bit quiet lately - it's OK, I've not lost interest in Sellaband. It's just I've had some rather difficult things to cope with recently. I can't go into too much detail - but it's something all of us have to face, one way or another, at certain times in our lives.
I know, from your lyrics, that some of you I believe in have faced these dark times too. ;)
Continued good luck to all of you!
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