Pet Marmoset’s Jason Gears and JP Pedersen teamed up to host a borderline clandestine interview, in order to learn the ins and outs of The Ascetic Junkies’ new album “This Cage Has No Bottom.” The Ascetic Junkies kindly shared deeper insights into their recording techniques, favorite picks from the album, nooks and crannies of their home, and treasure boxes. Feel free to have a listen!

Download: MP3 of Podcast

Artist Info: Digital Press Kit

Timber Carnival Records band and Portland’s own, the Ascetic Junkies, just released their first video from their album “This Cage Has No Bottom.” Completely hand-drawn and flash animated, by the Ascetic Junkies’ own Cole Huiskamp. It seems that the Ascetic Junkies talent knows no bounds. Check it out!

Why Do Crows? from Ascetic Junkies on Vimeo.

Here’s some music and information for your perusal as well. Feel free to share with friends. We love sharing.

+ Download: God/Devil/Gov’t (mp3)

+ Download: Water From Wine (mp3)

+ Street Date: 11.16.10

+ Contact: Saxon Baird | saxon@petmarmoset.com | 646.647.5402

Pancake Breakfast is a nine-member roots machine from Portland, Oregon. Most of their songs were made up on a little farm, far away from the big city. Pancake Breakfast brings an old time rootsy and down to earth feel mixed with a whole lotta fun, to the masses. And there’s nothing more down to earth then having a nice sit down chat. Pet Marmoset’s Jason Gears and JP Pedersen sit down with Pancake Breakfast to discuss the record, how the band came to be, and some candid dialog. Note: Gears is the latest (and greatest!) addition to the Marmoset Team.

I just caught this video over at pampelmoose.com and found it so straight forward and to the core of what independent artists need to know and absorb, that I’m re-posing it here for Marmoset followers. Please, no matter how much of a late adopter you may be or how much you enjoy having and holding a physical CD in your hands, understand that the world is changing and is moving forward… with or without you.

As Mux Mool explains, kids (aka consumers) don’t want to buy CDs – they just want to get music and get it onto their iPods so they can enjoy it. Cut to the chase and give them what they want. Embrace digital (and having an effective digital strategy).

As artists, you really need to stop thinking about “releasing your next CD” and start approaching things as though digital format (ie: mp3, lossless, etc) is truly the only thing most people care about today. Start thinking about 1) your next digital format release, and 2) other creative compliments to the digital format release that may be interesting, compelling, and an added value to your fans.

In my humble opinion, CDs are a dead medium/format. While they are not truly dead yet in real terms (my friend Lee Cohen just reminded me how CD sales still outweigh digital sales in most markets on planet Earth), the trends are overwhelming and powerful, and in short time, say a year or so, digital will quickly overtake CDs in gross sales in the United States (probably your target market, right?). In fact, many researchers predict that digital sales will beat physical sales worldwide by 2016, if not sooner.

The Bottom line: stop thinking in terms of CDs. Get out in front of the trends and think about digital format and creative merchandising strategies you can develop to compliment and add value to your digital music.

…Thanks to Dave Allen for sharing this at Pampelmoose.

My business finance-minded friend, Adam Steffen, recently passed along an interesting article he read in the New York Times about how new solutions are emerging for how artists can fund their projects, recordings, etc. This especially piqued my interest, being I’m fresh off of eleven days as SXSW in Austin, where I overheard a variety of conversations and stories about artists using solutions such as Kickstarter to help fundraise from fans to financially support their next record.

In fact, while in Austin, I spent one afternoon catching up on things while working in a coffee shop (Highly recommended: Thunderbird Coffee at 2200 Manor Road), where I made the introduction of some cook kids in a band named, The Dead Trees. (Brief aside: The band recently spent a couple years in Portland before landing in LA, and after chatting for few minutes, it became clear that we have a handful of mutual friends. Portland’s small-world effect never ceases to amaze me!)

The Dead Trees have finished writing and recording their new album, however, they ran out of cash as they approached the mixing phase. There is a certain producer who they are hoping to hire, if their budget allows, plus after mixing, they’ll need to pay for other basics such as mastering, duplication, publicity, a digital/online marketing strategy, plus any other complimentary efforts they may need, like making a video and touring. They guys actually handed me their iPhone and headphones right there on the spot and invited me to listen to a couple of the rough mixed new songs. (Note to artists: never be too shy/proud/cool to play your music for new people!) In all honesty, I loved what I heard and if I had an extra $17k laying around, I would seriously consider funding it myself. Yes, it was THAT good. Not to mention, it doesn’t hurt that their manager also manages The Strokes…which has to open some doors along the way at some point.

The Dead Trees are using Kickstarter to raise funds for the record they’re making, asking fans to chip in and become virtual shareholders in the project. The perks of becoming a shareholder include a long list of options, depending on your support level, such as an advance copy of the record, signed 12″ vinyl, an advance copy with customized CD artwork, a home recording of a cover song of your choice, a Skype-based music lesson with any member of the band, and the top donation level allows you free admission to any and all of their shows for the rest of your life. I love the creativity and innovative places where this band’s mind is. You can check out their Kickstarter campaign page here: The Dead Trees on Kickstarter. And if you like these guys, maybe consider giving them a little boost.

At the time of this essay, the band has 67 financial supporters and is getting close to the half-way point to their $17,000 goal. Also worth noting is that the Kickstarter platform requires a timeline for all fundraising campaigns. The Dead Trees have 72 days left to raise the balance of what they need…and the real “kicker” is that if they don’t meet their goal within the fundraising campaign period, all bets are off, no money will exchange hands, and the band would be back to square one with no additional financial support. With Kickstarter, either you reach your goal or you don’t. There is no gray area.

As this crazy and unknown landscape otherwise known as the music business continues to reveal new learnings, changes and surprises in the coming months and years, I believe this fan-supported fundraising model may be something for unsigned, independent artists (that most of you!) to seriously consider. So far, I like what I see… If you can inspire and lead your fans and followers, your opportunities are endless.

Here’s a link to Friday’s New York Times article on this topic, which I recommend reading:

New York Times: You, Too, Can Bankroll A Rock Band

Hey y’all!  As you can tell, the Marmoset blog has been nearly non-existent for the past several months. It’s not because we’ve fallen off or have lost any enthusiasm or anything like that… It’s actually because we’ve been quite busy, launching a number of new ventures, projects, working on publicity campaigns and strategy for clients, plus a whole lot more.

You may have noticed that we launched a proper record label: Timber Carnival Recorders. We’ve very excited about the community of bands and artists we’re working with and are truly humbled by the talent that each of them bring to the table. We encourage you to take some time to check them out and give them a listen.

As you can see, we’ve also relaunched the Pet Marmoset website and have finally started identifying what we do publicly and have started offering our talent and services to the masses. If you are an artist or a band or an organization who is curious about what we do and how we can help you, please don’t hesitate to reach out and say hello. You can reach me (Ryan Wines) by email at ryan@petmarmoset.com.

We’ve also expanded our team and the scope of services and capabilities that we provide. You can learn more about our talented team and what we do at www.petmarmoset.com. We are incredibly fortunate to have such an amazing team of people to work with and team with on a wide variety of projects. Pet Marmoset PR + Digital Strategy is committed to helping artists do what they need to do to make others aware of your work and create opportunities for growth and overall success. It’s not easy, but we can definitely make it easier for you. From web hosting, to email marketing, to direct-to-fan sales strategy, to content strategy and development (photos, videos, recordings and more), to merchandise strategy, to distribution, publicity, social media strategy, and a lot more. We’re working with some of the most talented people creative people in the Northwest and are capable of doing some pretty amazing things. Please let us know what you need and how we can help you.

Last, but not least, the folks of Pet Marmoset (ie: Joe, myself, and the team) are involved in launching a brand new entity with our new friend and creative music composer guru, Brian Hall of Polyphone Music. This new and separate venture will be called Marmoset Music and is essentially a new kind of music house and boutique music licensing agency, focused on collaborating with the uber talented music community of Portland, the Pacific Northwest, and beyond to produce custom composed music for commercial use (ie: advertising, branding, creative use, etc). We are in the process of uniting a ridiculously talented community of artists and advocates who can help leverage and better monetize our (the community’s) existing talents in maximizing new opportunities (and monetizing them!). In fact, if this is something you have experience with or are interested in learning more about, please contact me directly at ryan@petmarmoset.com. We’re super excited about this venture.

Okay, now for confession… When bloggers don’t blog, they feel guilt, shame, defeat and a lot of other self-depreciating feelings. Sure, that may sound weird to most people (normal people), but for bloggers, not blogging regularly is something akin to not mowing your lawn or not shaving. It’s public and it’s an obvious indication of neglect. Talk to any serious blogger and they’ll tell you the same thing.

Well, we don’t want to feel bad about not blogging any longer. The Pet Marmoset blog is back and we’re coming strong. Like LL Cool J said, “Don’t call it a comeback – we’ve been here for years!”. In addition to ramping the blog back up and posting again with greater frequency, we’re also changing our approach to the Pet Marmoset blog and will be focusing on the following areas:

+ DIY Strategy for independent artists.

+ Industry news related to DIY strategy and the rapidly evolving state of the record biz.

+ New strategies, campaigns, sites, etc for Pet Marmoset clients, friends and others.

+ Case studies from our real experiences. (As opposed to other industry “experts” who talk a good game, but don’t really do anything)

+ Quick suggestions, thoughts, and questions to get conversations started and wheels turning among our audience.

+ Occasional reviews of nachos and other musings of our team.

In summary, while we’ve been busy doing a wide range of things, we’re back with the blog – so be prepared for some good news, strategies, rants and more coming your way. Thanks for following and subscribing to the Pet Marmoset blog and for your ongoing interest, support, and collaboration with us. There is nothing better than being part of an active, vibrant, positive and helpful community and we sincerely enjoy being part of such a community with you. Please keep in touch and let us know how we may be able to help each other and work together in the future.

I’m not sure what it is lately, but it seems like here at Team Marmoset we’ve been into the animation videos lately. Perhaps, it’s because we’re tired of the same ol’ rigamaro or maybe animation is the hot, new medium for music videos. Whatever the case, it brings us to our Video of the Week,  “On the Water” from the New York based band,  The Walkmen.

How are these guys tied to the Northwest you may wonder… you know cuz we try and profile what’s going on here in the NW. Let’s play the 7 degrees of  Kevin Bacon game to find out. The Walkmen’s US label happens to be Gigantic Records who just released one of own local favorites, The Builders and the Butchers new album Salvation is a Deep Dark Well. Okay, so there’s only two degrees to the Northwest but for fellow Portlanders, you know there really is only two degrees of separation in P-town anyways.

Is it me, or does this feel a little like Watership Down?

On The Water from Nir Ben Jacob on Vimeo.

Joe Solis | Team Marmoset

New music from Built to Spill

In August we mentioned that Built to Spill has a new album coming out titled There is No Enemy on October 6th. Recently, the boys dropped their first single off the album “Hindsight” which can be heard coupled with a small Doug Martsch interview over at Pitchfork Media right HERE. The track is classic Built to Spill and should satisfy fans of the Idahoans.

Stream the new Norfolk & Western LP

Lo-fi, Portland indie-rockers Norfolk & Western have just finished up their latest LP, Dinero Severo. While the album doesn’t have a release date, you can stream the album in its entirety at the Norkfolk & Western website. The only catch is that you have to sign up for their email list. Click HERE to sign up and to learn more about the new album.

Team Marmoset | Saxon Baird

New Blitzen Trapper

Blitzen Trapper has released a song off their upcoming EP Black River Killer due out August 25th on Sub Pop. The track “Silver Moon” is a mellow, laid-back affair and sounds very much in the vein of Tom Petty’s Wildflowers-era (read: awesome!).

02 Silver Moon

The Dimes appear on Penny Jam at St. Cupcake!

The Dimes recently appeared on the Portland-based weekly video podcast site Penny Jam. The performance at Portland’s delicious St. Cupcake showcases the four-piece decked out in 1776 revolutionary garb a la Paul Revere & The Raiders and performing the sweet-folk diddy “ Abigail, Don’t be Long” off their upcoming LP The King Can Drink the Harbor Dry due later this fall. One question: Didn’t the English wear the red coats?

Urban Weeds – Portland

On a non-music note, there is a new, über-hip Portland-based blog called Urban Weeds. The site mimics the super popular, fashion blog The Satorialist but specifically singles out fashion-savvy Portlanders who are found out and around the city. The blog visually documents one aspect of the vibrant, creativity that characterizes Portland. With so many cool bands and artists, it is easy to forget that despite being hidden with the Willamette Valley, Portlanders are rather fashion-forward as well! Check Urban Weeds out HERE.

Interview with Modou Dieng

PDX Pipeline recently published a great interview with Modou Dieng of Worksound Studios. The interview explores Dieng experience as an international artist from Africa, how he ended up in Portland and his vision for Worksound– one of the most exciting, multi-media art spaces in the Northwest. Check it out here.

photograph by Christine Taylor

Saxon Baird | Team Marmoset

Dandy Warhols record “Blackbird”

Many may remember that Portland-based The Dandy Warhols once proclaimed on their 2003 album Welcome to the Monkey House that once Michael Jackson dies, “we’re covering blackbird” by the Beatles. For those of you wondering how Michael Jackson’s death relates to The Beatles 1969 song “Blackbird” off the White Album, Jackson acquired the rights to 250 Beatles songs by purchasing ATV Music in 1985 for $47.5 million.

So were the Dandy’s serious about their lyric? You bet. As announced on July 31st, the Dandy Warhols have released the single “Blackbird” available for purchase, download or as a package-deal with their 2009 release The Dandy Warhols are Sound on their website HERE.

Guitar Hero 5 to include Elliott Smith??

Do you play Guitar Hero? If you don’t, you might actually be interested in trying it out now. It seems that Guitar Hero has exhausted their metal/alt-rock songbook and is now turning towards Indie-esque tunes for their next release Guitar Hero 5. Some of the songs featured will include, Vampire Weekend’s “A-Punk,” Elliott Smith’s “L.A.,” Band of Horses’ “Cigarettes, Wedding Bands”, TV on the Radio’s “Wolf Like Me”, Weezer’s “ Why Bother?,” Arctic Monkeys’ “Brainstorm” and many more. I have to admit, the idea of faux-rocking out to some of these tracks opposed to AC/DC is rather enticing. Check out the entire set list HERE.

The Decemberists play new music!
Just last week we announced The Decemberists have embarked on a new, Fall tour (sans Portland-date…tsk tsk) and now the band has new music! This weekend, the band played the famous Newport Folk Festival and in addition to playing he entirety of The Hazards of Love, the band played some new tunes that can were captured by the fine folks over at NPR. Check it out on their site.

Saxon Baird | Team Marmoset