The Podcasts of the panels are here
Please note that these are unedited and so, although in the main perfectly fine, there there may be some short lulls in the conversation.
Saturday Night Bands
Saturday Night Music
Sidebars
These are short sessions that will take place in the Monkey sidebar. Each session will be helmed a by a single person and will either be instruction, inspiration or both.
Dave Haynes from SoundCloud will be showing the best ways to get good use out of SoundCloud, Solobasssteve will be explaining how he keeps his career going and playing some of his remarkable music. Andrew Dubber will deliver ‘Deleting Music: How the music industry is erasing culture in the digital age’.
What Is Unconvention
The third Unconvention was held in Salford in June 2009
The fourth Un-Convention is in Swansea?, but what is it?
Un-Convention is not about the music industry.
Un-Convention is not about the business of music.
Un-Convention remembers the words business and industry are prefaced by the word music.
Un-Convention celebrates music. It’s purpose is to provide a forum for those of us who work at the grassroots. For artists and musicians that want to understand how to get their music heard and how to practice their craft. For labels who want to champion this music and to spread the word. For people who want to work with music whether they be promoters, publicists or creatives.
Un-Convention understands that the most interesting stuff happens on the margins. We don’t mind the mainstream. We just don’t find it relevant.
Un-Convention is a forum for ideas, for creativity, for shared experiences and knowledge and for seeing and hearing great artists.
Un-convention doesn’t believe in ‘do it yourself’. We believe in ‘do it together’.
Un-Convention is unconventional.
Un-Convention is a not for profit grassroots led music conference for DIY and Independent music makers and companies.
“Most people I met are thinking at the same level; I don’t like fancy conventions where no work happens. Events like this are about ideas.” Vijay Nair, International Young Music Entrepreneur winner, India
“Un-Convention is fucking awesome, there is so much shit that passes as a voice in the music business and this feels like it is cutting to the essence of what people need to hear.” Martin Atkins, Killing Joke / Nine Inch Nails / Author Tour:Smart, Chicago
Panel 5 – Getting Your Records Reviewed: The Hows, Whats and Ehs?
Hosted by Gareth Main (Editor of Bearded)
Panelists: Hamish Macbain (Reviews Editor NME), John Brainlove (Brainlove Records & Charm Factory PR), Stephen Ackroyd (This is Fake DIY)
Ever found yourself getting your records beautifully pressed and then thinking ‘how do I get it reviewed?’ Unfortunately, working out how to get your record listened and written about is the last checkpoint on the list of most small labels, and it is regularly an uphill struggle for independent labels to get media outlets to notice there music.
The trick is in knowing the rules, if you want a print magazine of website to listen and review your music, you need to know how to submit it, to who and when. PR companies know this info, but can you afford to use them? Will your record be reviewed even after they’ve submitted it for you? You’re in a very competitive market, and sometimes magazines just don’t have the resources to review every record.
This panel will give you an insight into how magazines and websites choose which records to review, the fundamental differences between submitting releases to each and some basic – but often overlooked – rules on how and when to send in a release.
Panel 1 – Project Breakthrough – Bursting out of the Bubble
Panelists: Andrew Dubber (New Music Strategies), Steve Lawson (SoloBassSteve), Ruth Daniel (Fat Northerner),
As ‘unsigned’ becomes a redundant term, how do bands burst out of the bubble and gain profile and audience.
“Project Breakthrough” was a headline in a US computing magazine in 1975 when the first home personal computer kit was unveiled. ‘The Bubble’ is the overpopulated crowd that ‘undiscovered’ artists exist in. Project Breakthrough, therefore, is the term that we are using, for the purposes of this debate, to describe the mission of the ‘undiscovered’ artist to gain exposure and build following in the contemporary music environment.
The concept of an ‘Artist Page’ is now completely prevalent, the ubiquitous MySpace page is still the market leader with many similar services trailing in it’s wake. Facebook’s Artist pages are becoming more popular and Twitter is emerging as a viable tool for spreading news and harvesting fans.
The panel will investigate what the realistic aims might be for an emerging artist and will consider the basic set of materials and tools that any artist might need to begin their ‘Project Breakthrough’. The panel will also consider various strategies used in successful campaigns by niche artists and those hoping to break into the mainstream.
These ideas and this information is relevant to artists in any genre of music or with any level of aspiration. The panel will be highlighting the basic building blocks that will equip an artist to begin the job of getting themselves and their work noticed.
Panel 3 – Social Networks – How to Engage and How to be Heard
Panelists: Carl Morris (Native/Sleeveface), Lisa Matthews (Welsh Music Foundation), Colin Consterdine (Sound of Monkey)
As Social networks develop and mature how do we integrate them and their access to audience to create a rewarding relationship for artists and fans. What is the best way to use Facebook? How does an artist or label get the most out of Twitter? What other services are essential or useful?
As Web access and music move on to phones and netbooks it’s never been more important to have a proper grasp of the potential in this area.
