Dear All,
I have been held up in a recording studio for almost 5 weeks after 6 long months of hard work. As I write this letter I am sitting on a plane to Germany to start a Euro tour. Times are crazy over here but I am happy to announce that with the recording of the newest DH record out of the way I am able to get back to writing this little blog. I have tons of questions backed up and I will try to upload more as I complete them but it will be slow at first. So from European soil (or over international waters actually) I give you a long awaited Ask the Dude. If you live anywhere in the US make sure to come out to this years Summer Slaughter tour and say what’s up!
The Dude
Dear Dude,
I have just come back from the recording studio (an expensive professional, won’t say who for anonymity) we as a band felt that by paying good money for a great demo/mini album (5 tracks) we’d be able to show record companies what our music is really like.
It went brilliantly, and even though I do say so myself, it sounds amazing, and I don’t seem to be the only one who thinks this. The producer, who after many days saying things like ‘fantastic, sounds massive, I love that bit there’ etc turned around and casually said ‘I can’t wait to pass this to XXXX, you know the main bloke at XXXX records (major label), I’m gonna ask him one question, why would you not wanna sign this band?, and I don’t think he’ll be able to, anyway, I’m gonna go and get a coffee…’
Now I know this guy was and is in a popular band from the 90’s, who have recently started touring again (Main stage at the main metal festival here in the UK) so I know he actually knows people in the right places (apparently he also mentioned a couple of other labels he is in touch with too).
Anyway, my question is, at the cusp of this exciting development in our bands career, I’m worried about how this is going to affect my life. I have a full time job, along with my boyfriend, and we have a house together, at the moment I’ve been doing recording, practice and touring by working around my job and stuff and booking time off. I want to be in a signed band and would have no problem with turning my job in to tour etc, but at this stage in our career, I really just want to know, what is the reality of being able to live off of a band that just got their first contract? I know at this stage you don’t get much money and it’s hard graft, but do you just get paid enough for you as person to live through the day or would I be able to send some rent money to my boyfriend? Where do you stay when you’re not touring? Would I maybe get paid enough (if I was frugal) to take my boyfriend with me, you know just give him enough to eat and sleep in the hotel rooms we would hopefully already get…?
Basically, while I’m excited about maybe being signed, I don’t want to get carried away, and want to know what’s it’s really like, so I can keep my feet on the ground.
Thanks,
Reality Check
Dear Reality Check?
Sounds to me like there are a few things going on that might not be the best things to facilitate a budding music carrier. I mean, shit, trying to do a band for a living is really, really hard. But trying to do a band for a living and support someone else while propelling your carrier, that’s a whole other set of problems! But lets not get too ahead of ourselves. These questions need to be broken down so we can look at the SEVERAL underlying themes.
First as I mentioned in the opening paragraph touring in a band full time is hard work and supporting someone else on a bands dime is even harder. I have been in bands with members who have as little as a phone bill a month to members who are helping to pay their half of a marriage that supports a baby. And while both are hard the latter is MUCH harder. After 14 years of a band many members of darkest hour have very little. That’s not to say we don’t have much or that “very little” is all relative but it is to say that well, no one is rich by anyone’s definition. Some of us own homes with our wives and some of us cant keep the power on at their apartment. The same can be said for most “big” bands that we tour with. Fame is an illusion and it’s easy for people to “THINK” that an artist makes way more money then he or she actually does. So much of selling records is about building perception that its often times even hard for the actual artist to be able to tell the difference (and trust me that’s tricky business when that happens). So what’s the reality of being able to live off of a band that just got their first record contract? That question is pretty much like asking what the probability of wining the lottery next week is. The chances of you being able to sustain ANY form of life let alone a decent quality of life are very thin. So thin in fact that with the way the music business is going your chances are getting thinner and thinner. Now that was not written in an attempt to dissuade you from trying or say that it’s not possible, it’s just well to tell you the truth - its very unlikely.
Now do I think you will be able to “get paid enough to have your boyfriend sleep in the hotel rooms and eat with you on tour?” Ah absolutely not. Lets face it if your boyfriend loves and cares about you well then he will not want to be dead weight. You would be surprised how many musicians rely on the support and hard work of their significant others. I can say for a fact that without the help of my wife I would be fucked! And the same can be said for many successful dudes and dudetts out there. You just need to take some time and look at your relationship. Does he work? Why not? Is he willing to work while you are on tour in order to supplement the income of your band? It seems like if he cares for you and your relationship with him then he will want you to be able to tour, pursue music, and facilitate that by working hard so that money wont be such an issue. You have a house together, that’s both of your responsibility. So first things first, let’s get this dude a job, because a relationship should be a 50/50 give and take.
Second we need to manage our expectations. As artists you will always have people telling you you’re hot shit. And if its someone that is working with you in the form of a producer, manager, or agent well then you can expect even more of a sugar coating. Having a positive outlook is good but having overblown expectations is taking that to an unhealthy extreme. If I had a dollar for every time someone at a record label, management, or booking agent told me I was going to “hit it big” I would be a lot better off then I am now. So take this producers’ excitement with stride. Now this doesn’t mean don’t get excited and it doesn’t mean stop pursuing it or take it slow. It just means you have to understand all the angels. Its great that he is excited, its great that he is going to throw around the tunes and get them in the right hands (after all that’s half of getting signed right there), and its great they he likes the musical collaboration you have just completed with him. But don’t quit that day job yet, you have to stay focused on the real prize, writing and recording fulfilling music while making that home life work.
That brings me to my last point, know what your goals are. Look if you want music to take off so you can make some quick cash, screw around with your friends on tour and get paid, or just NOT have to get a real job, then your priorities are all messed up. There are much, easier, faster, simpler, ways to make money. If that’s your goal I am afraid you’ve already lost. That’s not to say if money isn’t your sole focus that you can’t obtain it. It’s just to say that based on my experience your going to end up failing because no one, even the dudes at the top, end up with all the cash. Now I know your just asking, will I be able to sustain a bit of a life? To that question I have some good news, it is possible. But it takes work, teamwork actually. Yes you can make “rent money,” you can manage money to meet monthy and daily expenses, but it takes organization, collaboration, and sacrifice. Darkest Hour makes ends meet but like I said even a band of our size still has plenty of the same problems that your facing. I think you need to get that significant other of yours to understand that he is tied to your success, that if he loves and cares for you he will help you pursue you dream, there is a way that you can both make this work but, its going to take sacrifice on both sides.
In conclusion this is what I am saying, you’re already making it work! You’re paying the bills, practicing, touring, and recording. You’re following the opportunities that arise. All you can do is continue moving forward. But It’s not the all or nothing road you think that’s ahead. Rather, this IS being in a band. The constant struggle to make financial life work while you pursue your life of art. Even the dudes in Van Halen face this on some level its just the nature of trying to build a life in the music business. Don’t let this letter talk you out of pursuing life in music because making a dollar is hard. Rather let it motivate you, its ok to work three jobs while trying to do a band. Its ok to struggle with making both lives work. To really make a band or life as a musician work you have to be ready to make it happen by any means necessary, and from the looks of it you have a really great start. So sit down with that dude of yours and talk about how you can make it work. Keep grinding it out and getting that cash from your 9 – 5 job. Keep you eye on the prize: Making music work while not neglecting your life. I believe that if you stay focused, work hard, then the right opportunity will come along that will allow you to spend more time on music. With faith in each other you and your significant other can make your bills work and your dream a reality.
The Dude
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