Silversun Pickups, and the success of an Independent Record Label....

Alternative/Indie rockers' Silversun Pickups are the "poster-child" band for Dangerbird Records, an independent record label based in Los Angeles.

The band originated in the Silver Lake music scene in L.A. and is comprised of four mutual friends spawning from previous bands in the area. Brian Aubert - guitar/lead vocals, Nikki Monninger - bass/vocals, Chris Guanlao - drums, and Joe Lester - keyboards/samples/sound manipulation. They released their debut EP "Pikul" in July 05' and recorded "Kissing Families" which is still my favorite song to date.

Dangerbird records signed the band to an independent record deal and released their follow-up first full length "Carnavas". Silversun Pickups hit the road in support of the new album and first two singles "Lazy Eye" and "Well Thought Out Twinkles" which entered the Billboard modern rock chart in the Top 10. While on tour, SSPU blazed the stage at a "little" (sarcastic) music fest called Coachella, and shared the stage with some of rocks great bands on the road including Snow Patrol, Foo Fighters, Kaiser Chiefs, Wolfmother, and Ok Go, scooping up new fans along the way. Key licensing opportunities arose with the success of the singles, with placements in the ever popular Guitar Hero/Rock band and Tony Hawk video games.

"Swoon", the bands newest 10 track album has received the most commercial success for any release to date thanks to the first single "Panic Switch" which can be heard all over commercial radio nationwide, and a video played on heavy rotation at MTV and VH1 (Define heavy? They don't play video's). "Swoon" was released April 14 09' with positive reviews by critics and charted at #7 on the Billboard Music Charts selling over 42,000 copies. Check out their newest single "Substitution".

"Some songs are very quiet and delicate, [while] others are just fucking loud." (quoted lead vox Brian Aubert - Alternative Press Magazine)

Top 5 reasons why they rule:

1) Kick-Ass female bassist/back-up vocals who is mistaken for the lead singer.
2) Drummer raises crash symbol up over his head.
3) They are on an independent record label and have out-sold the majority of major label bands.
4) They make more money per album sale due to the fact they are on an indie label.
5) Going on a limb - Major labels want them but cannot have them!

-Look out for flying Origami birds.....

Queens "Somebody to Love" covered by the Cast of "Glee"...

Well...No need to get into specifics here. I admit that I am not the biggest "Glee" fan, however I happened to catch this episode which featured the cast of "Glee" covering Queens' "Somebody to Love" and was blown away!!!

Fox network newest high school drama/comedy series is not much different than others in the past however, obviously "Glee" focuses mainly on the glee club which performs anywhere from 5 to 8 classic songs or current chart toppers' per episode and of course touches on other typical high school dramatics. Breaking out into song and dance is the standard for theatrical shows in the past; however, "Glee" takes a different approach as song's featured in the episode are performance based, not spur of the moment. "Glee" is a very theatrical show and is not for everyone, however, they have found their niche and successfully crossed-over into an extremely popular late night TV series....Inspired by High School Musical? I'd say so...

Love it or hate it, you must respect the vocal intricacies and layers of harmonies that are combined to create these power-packed performances that are surprisingly easy to clear with their respective record labels. Props to the musical director and casting agent for finding a great blend of cast and songs. Specifically, Bronx native Lea Michele who grew up on Broadway's "Les Miserables" as a youth and more recently starred in "Spring Awakening". Her vocals are out of this world! Take a listen to "Somebody to Love".

Freddy Mercury eat your heart out....haha

Also, stay tuned for a series of "Glee" soundtrack albums released via Columbia Records. Volume one is set to release November 3th, 2009.

Who is Justin Bieber? - The next budding pop-star and only 15 years old!

Up-and-coming pop phenom Justin Bieber came on the scene at the age of thirteen when he decided to post some home video performances of him covering several pop songs on YouTube from his home in Stratford, Ontario. It began as somewhat of a joke for his friends and soon after exploded into a YouTube celebrity. He covered songs from Usher, Neyo, Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, among others and racked up over 10,000,000 views.

Justin's immense following on YouTube caught the eye and ear of Scooter Braun, So So Def's marketing executive, which lead to a meeting with R&B star Usher in Atlanta. Not too long after, in October 2008 with Usher's approval from music mogul L.A. Reid, Justin Bieber officially signed with Island Records.

Justin Bieber is not only a tweenie-bopper dream, he is a self-taught musician who plays several musical instruments including drums, guitar, trumpet, and piano which adds to his repertoire and surprisingly nice voice. Don't think he writes much of his own material; however, he still has many years to develop his writing skills. Justin has worked with some of the games' best producers including The Dream and Tricky Stewart who produced smash hits like Beyonce's "Single Ladies" and Rihanna's "Umbrella". Working with production teams of this type caliber is invaluable for young artist's who are spawning into global giants in the business.

Check out Justing Beiber's newest single "One Less Lonely Girl" which has trickled into commercial radio worldwide.

When I heard homeboy on Z100 last week here in NYC I knew it was only a matter of time. Do us all a favor and go easy on him, he's still only 15 and doesn't like girls, so he claims. Unlike the Jonas Brothers, there was no mention of his virginity....Thank god!

Albino MC Speaks the truth, Introducing...Brother Ali

I've had Brother Ali on my radar for a few years now, your boy can really rap! He's not rhyming about cars, hoes, and bling, he speaks the truth. He's a "real" dude and that's whats conveyed in his lyrical content.

Moving around a lot as a kid, Ali set up camp in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Living as an Albino, Brother Ali faced adversity within the hiphop community and life in general. Questions about his race were a common occurrence, however; Brother Ali has taken it all in stride and is now one of the premier underground MC's in the game. His rare genetic condition added to his unique look, which in my opinion gives him an edge and helps to stand out in a over-crowded independent hiphop scene.

Ali is currently signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment which is distributed through Warner Music Group. Check out his fourth and latest full-length album "US" which dropped Sept. 22nd 09' and debuted at #56 on the Billboard 200 Chart.

Keep an eye out for the Minneapolis hiphop scene....

Muse.....The New British Invasion?

Muse is currently the opening act for U2's 360 Tour, need I say more? To even be considered an opening act for U2 is beyond the scope of any bands imagination.

Muse was formed at a community college in their hometown of Teignmouth, England in 1994 and have since become one of the most popular bands in Great Britain and Europe and finally starting to catch major fire in the US. Major recognition started following the East/West Records release of the bands third album "Absolution" which featured stand out tracks "Time is Running Out" and "Hysteria". Muse relentlessly toured the UK and US in support of "Absolution" and performed they're largest show to date at the Glastonbury Festival in England in 2004. A wave of emotions followed when drummer Dominic Howard's father died of a heart-attack an hour after the show.

The follow-up album "Black Holes and Revelations" was released on Warner Brothers Records in July 2006 and charted number 1 on Billboard in the UK and crept up the US Billboard charts to a number 9 position. The album was considered a huge success and launched Muse into the forefront of rock stardom largely due to the impressive singles "Supermassive Black Hole", "Starlight" (my personal fav.) and "Knights of Cydonia". I can highly recommend checking out all three of these tracks if you have not done so already. The success of "Black Holes and Revelations" garnered Muse for world-wide tours and headlining acts on the worlds festival circuit, exposing they're sometimes under-appreciated talent to the rest of the world.

The long awaited album named "Resistance" dropped this past September 2009 and charted a well deserved number 3 on Billboard. First single "Uprising" was released a week before the album and featured a live performance at MTV's Video Music Awards while the band was embarking on yet another worldwide tour in support of the new album.

Spin Magazine: "They turn to the next logical ladder rung of pretension: symphony. And they may have finally found the perfect category to fuse with their ever-swooping brand of rock."

The New York Times: "The Resistance, the crispest Muse album yet, is unapologetically and ambitiously beautiful."

Show support, buy an album for a change....

The "Big 4" Major Music Companies....

As of today Oct 1, 2009:

1. Warner Music Group

Atlantic Records Group

Warner Brothers Records Inc.

Rhino Entertainment

Independent Label Group

2. EMI

Angel Music Group
Capitol Music Group

Blue Note Label Group

Caroline Distribution

EMI Christian Music Group

3. Sony Music Entertainment (Formerly Sony BMG)

Columbia Records
Epic Records

RCA Music Group

Zomba Label Group

Legacy Recordings

Sony Music Nashville

Provident Music Group

Sony Masterworks

Red Distribution

Syco Music

Sony Music International

4. Universal Music Group

Interscope/Geffen/A&M

Island Def Jam Music Group

Universal Motown Republic Group

Universal Music Group Nashville

Universal Music Latin Entertainment

Sanctuary Group

The Verve Music Group

Decca Label Group

Universal Music Enterprises

V2/Co-Operative Music

********Please note, there are too many sub-labels and affiliated companies to list. If you need further information you can visit wikipedia's website under record labels. Or, click the links above to research about a specific company.

Currently, major music companies make up for about 75% of all music sales in the world. Each of the four majors are comprised of record labels and sub-labels. For example, under the Warner Music Group imprint is Atlantic records (a major record label). Under Atlantic records is Bad Boy records (a sub-label of Atlantic). It can get pretty complexed although this is pretty much the standard "flow". Mergers and acquisitions are typical practice throughout the label game and seem to be a yearly occurrence.

Why should artists/bands chose a major label? Great question...

Major label representation is "probably" still the best option for artists/bands, however the DIY (Do-It-Yourself) structure is becoming more and more prevalent. Major labels will be able to invest more money into your project and give you the larger advance compared to independent labels where you may not get an advance. However, in my opinion the most beneficial reality of a major label is the fact that they have the biggest budget to work with. Meaning they can spend big bucks on marketing and promotion. Major labels are technically "investors" to bands/artists, and will in turn take a big chunk of the money you make which is determined by the type of record deal that you sign. More often than not, if you make $10 on an album sale the label keeps $9 for relatively unknown artists which are new to the label. Sounds like a rip-off right? But thats the model that has been in place for years. If you don't like it, stay independent. I will certainly respect it....

NBA Superstar Lebron James inspires film and power-packed soundtrack via Interscope Records...

Lebron James made the leap from a St. Vincent-St. High School in Ohio, to the NBA franchise Cleveland Cavaliers without missing a step. The talent and ferociousness that King James exudes on the hardwood is baffling. He is now a global superstar and has recently inspired the film "More Than A Game" about his career to this point.

Just yesterday, Interscope Records released a soundtrack which features heavy weights in the hiphop game including up-and-comer, Drake, T.I., Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z, Chris Brown, Kanye West, Eminem, and many others. The album was released mainly by Interscopes' sub-label Zone 4 Inc/Productions headed by producer Polow Da Don. Singles on the album include "Stronger" by Mary J. Blige, "Drop It Low" by Ester Dean, and "Forever" a hard-hitting track by Drake featuring, Lil Wayne, Kanye, and Eminem, a rather tough track if you ask me.

I'm sure Interscope President Jimmy Iovine jumped at the opportunity to work with Lionsgate films and Harvey Mason Media on this project. Not only is this a great project to be a part of, but its bound to be a big seller in terms of albums. Welcome to the music business Lebron. To celebrate, Lebron hosted a star-studded album release party last Tuesday September 22nd, at Marquee here in NYC.

It seems like LBJ is becoming more and more comfortable here in NY, a la his Yankee cap obsession and palin' around with Jay-Z. As a hardcore New York Knick fan, I'm hoping Madison Square Garden becomes his permanent residence in 2010 as he will become an unrestricted free-agent. Let the bidding war begin!