Hi I am Shayne Locke, CEO of Cowbell Digital Music.

I count it an absolute honour to be asked to write for Music Goat, which has been a great source of information on indie artists and the side of the music industry that isn’t often talked about. The Goat has asked me to provide a bit of a background about me, and what I do before I start the whole blogging process. So here goes.

Twelve months ago we started a record label – which is rather ironic since we release everything digitally or on cd! On starting the label, we asked ourselves what we would want if we were artists. The number 1 answer was – To Own Our Music. Not give the rights to our music away.

A big inspiration to our company setup was Terry McBride of Nettwerk Music in Canada. His philosophies answer the question of Copyright Control that we posed so we decided to run with the model that has been so effective for Terry. Cowbell Digital Music was born and the big point of difference was Collapsible Copyright (artists owning their music).

Everything about the label was different. Focus on digital, multiple service agreements and helping artists connect with fans by encouraging the use of social networking.

Another major point to our label has been the establishment of Cowbell China. As of last month, we are the first independent label to be officially on the ground in China with an office in Shandong province and the support of an official government run website. No other indie label has managed to get to this point so we consider it a privilege to be able to take our artists into China.

With all the massive leaps that we are taking as a label, we are also establishing a second platform to help new emerging artists find a voice. With a focus on the music community it totality, it will cover all genres, all styles and give artists a sense of belonging while also allowing an artist’s growing fan base to buy their music at a price set by the artist.

So please keep an eye out for my posts as I shed a bit of light on what is happening in the industry and maybe even provide a few options for the struggling artist in all of us.

For more information about us, head over to www.cowbell.com.au

Shayne Locke
Cowbell Digital Music – It’s Your Choice.

Do you like talking about and sharing thoughts on “anything” music related? If so, I am opening up the pages of Musicgoat to anyone interested in blogging (writing or via video).

You can write about any music related topic. You can share videos. Do CD reviews, live show reviews on video or written. You could share your own music or favorite artist with the world. You could write about instruments, music tech, music websites. Whatever! The sky is the limit.

This is a great way to get your feet wet in the world of blogging if you are just beginning. Or a great way to pimp your own music passion or music endeavor – whatever that might be.

Also, I have many artists who submit work to be reviewed. You would get a chance to hear and comment on a variety of new music.

If you are interested, contact me now and let me know what you are thinking.

Yep, you read that right. Sir Elton John is going to be doing a tune with Alice In Chains on their upcoming album “Black Gives Way To Blue”. For the record I usually don’t do a ton of press release stuff but this is above and beyond Musicgoat worthy. I mean think about it, Elton John and Alice In Chains? I couldn’t have made it up if I tried. Can’t wait to check it out.

Anyway, here is the rest of the press release with some statements from the Jerry Cantrell. Read it and let us know what you think in the comments below… Read the rest of this entry

Deaf Ear Records in Downtown LaCrosse Wisconsin

A month ago I had the pleasure of visiting a music store for the first time in many, many moons. I stopped in at one of my old favorites, Deaf Ear Records in LaCrosse Wisconsin, and realized how much I missed the experience and thought I would share it with you.

Back in the day (the late 80’s and much of the 90’s to be exact) I was the guy that could go into the record store and easily lose a few hours thumbing through albums, CD’s, cassettes and much of the other merch. For a geek there is a mild buzz associated with this (I would compare it to the buzz wild game hunters get when tracking a wild animal minus the blood and guts or the shopaholic gets when looking for their 400 pair of shoes).

One by one I would fingertip my way through hundreds of titles looking for something to pop out at me. Maybe the album art was cool. Maybe the artist sounded familiar since friend mentioned them once or maybe the used section provided a few long lost or hard to find favorites. Pure bliss!

This type of experience wasn’t for the non-geek. There were Read the rest of this entry

Excellent Willie Nelson Show I Went To A Few Year Back

I’m feelin a little frisky tonight so I am just going to throw this out there Seth Godin style and see what happens. A quick story and some “hopefully” useful advise.

A few months ago, a few friends and I realized that a lot of time went by between shows (because we’re all parents and semi-slaves now). We realized that it had been a long time since we felt the excitement and the energy you can only get by attending a live music event. We knew that our music loving souls were in need of a recharge and we knew we needed to do something about it. So we did!

We made a pact that every time there is a show within about a 100 mile radius, we were gonna make sure we made sure everyone else knew about it and then take it from there.

It worked. We’ve all been to many shows this year and there are many more in the works. We don’t always get to go together but we have made it a priority and are better off because of it.

Now if you are suffering from a serious case of live music deficiency, here’s a quick tip to improve your live music nutrition.

Look for a show in your area and just make up your mind that, come hell or high water, you’ll be there. Just make the decision. No more, “I’d like to go”…JUST GO.

Take a friend if you can. If not, screw it, go by yourself. You’ll meet some new people and chances are you’ll have something in common and you’ll have a new Facebook pal to share the music love with.

Guest post: Susan Kemman resides in South Park (no kidding), is a Prog music nut and is the Assistant Director of  - and talent scout for – the The Highest Independent Music Tour in the World, The South Park Music Tour. Take it away Susan!

The Summer will be brimming with competitions, festivals, tours and holiday bashes;  many opportunities for getting your Band a gig or a little name recognition.   Talent Searches, Tours and Battle of the Bands  pay out prize money or comps equal to what you would earn at a gig, ALL for just a one hour performance.   Networking with the Bands and Industry people at these Events can offer tremendous earning potential by breaking you into new Venues. 

Here are some simple tips to get an edge over your competitors: Read the rest of this entry

Just when you thought the flute was strictly for use in the symphony and Jethro Tull tunes, someone comes along and adds a little beatbox and a lot of flavor. Check out this video featuring a guy named Nathan “flutebox” Lee. Read the rest of this entry

Did you get a chance to watch the Rock Hall induction ceremony last night? I saw the first and last half of it because my wife wanted to watch a movie. Hopefully I can catch a re-run so I can check out the Run DMC portion of the show.

I figured I would take a few minutes to share my thoughts and get a conversation started to see what you thought.

First, it is always cool to see dudes at that age still getting the job done. Little Anthony and the Imperials were fun to watch – My 2 year daughter was even shaking her butt a little. It was one of the times were I knew that I heard the songs before but didn’t know who did them – now I know. Read the rest of this entry

Yep you read that right, the hard rock band Seether has covered the Wham! tune “Careless Whisper” (you can hear it on Seethers homepage and you can check out Wham! here).

I heard it on Sirius Octane this morning and I – like the DJ who introduced the song – have been struggling with it since (just a little bit). On one hand, from a creative freedom standpoint,  it is cool that Seether has the balls to cover a tune by a band that – to put it mildly – doesn’t quite fit the their image.  

On the other hand, from a shoot-yourself-in-the-foot standpoint, you have to wonder what their fans think about it. I can’t imagine that the typical hard rock fan is pumped to sing along with “I’m never gonna dance again…”. And speaking from a long history as a metalhead, this sort of thing would be punishable by death back in the day (lol).

Now I don’t mind Seether and the 80’s teenager that still hangs out inside of me has a soft spot for “Careless Whisper”. But, I am just not so sure they belong together. What do you think?

The other day some friends on Mixx sent me a MySpace profile of a young dude named Alton Skaggs (click his name and listen). As you can hear, he is very talented and has a bright future. He reminds me a little of an amazing guitarist by the name of Andy McKee.

Well, that whole experience reminded me of some of the amazing video I’ve seen on YouTube of various child musical prodigies. Young children that play instruments and sound like they have been playing for years.

I went and I rounded up a few videos to share with you. Check’em out now. Read the rest of this entry