Record labels – signing to one is the ultimate goal of many a band. That being said – so many people seem to fundamentally misunderstand what they do or how they seek out bands. I’m currently sitting here with the ability to do A&R at a decent handful of labels, but as I spend time doing the research I’m getting increasingly frustrated in finding bands who I think would make sense to sign. So what I wanted to do was take a little bit of time to outline some of my process for picking up bands with the hope that you can learn a thing or two and maybe it inspires me to figure out who or where I need to be looking. Ultimately what a label is looking for is a band with momentum, who have proven they can keep their shit together, have the drive to keep going and of course that mysterious ‘X’ factor.
4. Bands With Momentum
So here’s the thing – record labels are lazy. This is the primary rule of getting signed. They want a band where it’s a sure thing. They just, in an ideal world want to be able to provide backend and financing to get the record out and then use their connections to help elevate your band. The thing is their connections will only want to get involved if the band has some momentum going on and they think it will benefit them. Remember – people only care about themselves, they don’t give a shit about you. So if you are trying to get signed you need to have something going on like a lot of touring or festival slots – something quantifiable that shows people actually give a shit about you.
3. Keeping Your Shit Together
This is the other big one – if you are going to not be a lot of work for the label you need to show that you have your shit together. I’ve signed artists to great deals and then watched them self sabotage time after time. It’s cool that I got to sign the band, but if they can’t keep their shit together then it’s just a waste of everyone’s time and money. So when looking for bands I always want them to be able to show me that they are groups who can maintain some degree of professionalism. I don’t want a band I have to handhold through everything – I don’t have a lot of time to invest in a band who I might make no money off of and who will probably go nowhere. Showing you are educated and motivated is essential.
2. Showing You Have Perseverance
As a part of the general thesis of labels being sort of lazy and wanting to do the minimum amount of work possible is the key notion that you need to show you have perseverance and the resources to keep going out there and slugging it out. What I see time and time again with bands is that they will tell me, ‘As soon as we get a record deal we will totally hit the road for you brother!’ of course this is basically never the case. The bands who consistently tour after getting signed are the ones who consistently toured before getting signed. This is the same for being active n social media, cranking out new music, etc. Getting a label doesn’t suddenly make a band competent, it’s just another core boost.
1. The X Factor
Then you get to the annoying intangibles. There has to be a certain charisma to your band, the sort of notion that what you can do can really go somewhere. It’s hard to figure out but an experienced A&R person can identify bands that have the X factor. Sometimes that factor is so strong that you can overcome not having some of the other key elements a band needs to get signed – but this is rare. Similarly, a band can totally have their shit together, but if they don’t have that mysterious final X factor to push them over the edge… they’re screwed. I know it sounds kind of woo-woo so I will give you this hint – if your frontman has no charisma, you’re screwed.
MATT BACON
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Matt Bacon is a consultant, A&R man, and journalist specializing in the world of heavy metal. Having worked with everyone from Glam Rock icon Phil Collen of Def Leppard, to post Black Metal titans Alcest, by way of legendary thrashers Exhorder as well as labels including Prophecy Productions and Ripple Music, he has dedicated his life to helping young bands develop. Having started his own blog at the age of 14 he views his career in artist development as ‘a hobby that got out of hand’. In 2015 he formed Dropout Media in order to better support the artists he loves. We sit here now, years later with countless tours booked, records released and deals signed, and loving every minute of it.
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