For over two weeks, the annual Vivid: Light, Music and Ideas event has turned the city of Sydney into a bustling hub of creativity, culture and inspiration. On the last day, Indent and MusicNSW teamed up to present FEEDBACK – a music conference for 12 to 25 year olds at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, aimed at providing young people the opportunity to get a foothold in the ever expanding and seemingly far away land of the music industry.
A day full of impressive keynote speakers and panel discussions, networking, live music, and a tote bag full of goodies to take home, whether you were a band member, a solo artist, interested in the managerial side of things, or a budding journalist, there was something for everyone.
After being introduced by the lively MC of the day, Dom Alessio, current host of Triple J’s Australian music show Home & Hosed, the first keynote speaker of the day, Brendan McLean, launched into his upbeat talk about why it’s okay to be a bitch.
Known for his opinionated and pot-stirring articles, McLean educated the room about why you don’t need to reply to comments that any strong-voiced article is sure to create, and warned us to be prepared for personal backlash. He also mentioned the term that some dread to hear, ‘indie’, and posed the question that his very first article about the questionable Jagermeister ‘Independent’ Music Awards stirred, what truly is independent?
As the speech ended and it turned into a Q&A session between McLean and Alessio, an interesting question was brought forward, when you involve yourself in so many occupations and fields of work, what do you call yourself? What should you be known for? The witty reply from Mclean, who does everything from writing, to acting, to singing and songwriting, was that having just one job is no longer the way of the world, therefore we should not be pigeon-holed into one career. So in that case, what would he call himself? A professional opinionator of course.
The next segment, and first panel of the day, was ‘What Can We Learn From Heavy Music?’ Featuring Graham Nixon from Resist Records (Parkway Drive, Confession, I Exist), Bec Reato from Deathproof PR, Nick Yates from We Are Unified. editor-in-chief of Australian Hysteria Magazine, Joey McGahey, and facilitated by Stu Harvey, host of Triple J’s punk and metal show Short Fast Loud, this discussion was particularly useful for any band or artist trying to break through in the hardcore/punk genres.
Touring was other major discussion point. Where do you tour? When and how often? How do you even get the chance?
The overarching advice was, wherever you’re from, you need to create solid connections and a strong fan base there. Creating those connections with other artists in the area, and having people who love what you do, gives you something to show those major city venue holders – give them a good reason to put you on, that you can pull a crowd.
In saying that, Graham Nixon advised, once you’re out touring major cities, going back to small regional towns is only something to be delved into when you’ve made a bigger name for yourself, when you are sure people will come – quite the paradox.
The panel also opened our eyes to just how much planning goes into a album release – multiple months worth for a week’s notice. But it was this planning, this promoting, that got Amity Affliction to that top spot Nick Yates confirmed. There’s another fine line needs to be drawn here; while promoting is super important, too much of it, and will cause a negative affect.
After a lunch break to soak in the momentary sunshine on Sydney’s Circular Quay, everyone was back with another panel – ‘D.I.Y Or D.I.E.’
As the name suggests, this discussion was heavily based around the independent music movement. Featuring musician and video director, SPOD, Nic Warnock (RIP Society), Emily York (Penny Drop), Nicci Reid (Wing & Gill), and facilitated by Adam Lewis (Radiant on FBi/ GoodGod Small Club), all the panellists demonstrated that independent musicians, record labels, etc. stem from someone’s passion to do something that isn’t already in the mainstream.
Being independent, while tough, can prove extremely rewarding. Because you’re left doing everything on your own, you learn all the mechanics and skills of whatever area you’re involved. For example, aspiring musicians will find themselves learning all the bits and bobs about recording and producing, helping to organically expand their skill set, and in such a competitive industry, having those few sets of extra skills can go a long way.
This talk was backed up by the brilliant and caffeine hyped case study of Urthboy. As someone who seems to have been involved in every aspect of the music industry at some point in his life, particularly his part in what is now the biggest hip-hop record label, Elefant Traks, there is better no example of an independent making their way into the mainstream world, and still holding onto that indie label.
As he talked through his career and gave copious amounts of advice, he ended his talk with an inspiring conclusion. He told listeners, we should not walk away inspired, that walking away inspired simply brings no cause to action. Rather, what everyone in that room was advised to do, and what anyone with any goal can do, is to write down a list of the steps that need to be taken to get you closer to your dream, work on that, and just see where you are in 365 days time.
Another short interval and we were back with the Don’t Stop Believin’ panel consisting of recently de-hospitalised Jason Whalley (Frenzal Rhomb), Grey Carey (Umbrella Music), the event’s MC Dom Alesso, Sweetie Zamora (Remote Control Records, FBi radio host), Samantha Clode (Triple J magazine) and facilitated by Jonno Seidler (The Vine/ One A Day), who were a tad disappointed they didn’t get to break out into a musical number. They started off by revealing what their first jobs were; whether it was studying psychology at university, working through a business degree, or thinking down the lines of music blogging rather then radio presenting, it showed that it was the little opportunities you take that can place you somewhere you never thought you would be.
The million dollar question of how to get notices in whatever you do ended up having one universal answer: don’t be shit. Whatever you do has probably already been done, so make it different, give it something unique. That, and get to know people. Get off the Internet, get out into the real world, and go to shows.
At the end of the day there was no quick fix answer or easy way, working in the music industry, in any aspect, is a hard but rewarding slog.
