Album Capsules
by Mark E. Waterbury
Voivod - Voivod
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Cathedral - The VIIth Coming
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7 Rivers - Path of Fire
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William Topley - Feasting with Panthers
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Bill Wright Band - BWB 3
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Head of Lies - Clay and Needles
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Otep - Sevas Tra
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Ingram Hill - Until Now
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The Temps - Soon We'll Be Gone
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Bulleon - The Look
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Crossroads: Bassist Jason Newsted of Voivod
by Mark E. Waterbury
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Industry Profile - Andy Karp - VP A&R - Lava Records
by Mark E. Waterbury
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Feature Article: The Many Facets Of Integrity
by Mark E. Waterbury
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Scott Turner's Song Publisher's Perspective
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Music Biz Opportunities
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Music Industry Marketing Showcase
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Copyright 2004 by Music Morsels, a Serge Entertainment Publication.
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 TM© March 2003
Feature Article: The Many Facets Of IntegrityBy Mark E. Waterbury
How Loyalty and Keeping Your Word can Help You in the Music Business
Webster defines "integrity" as "adherence to a code of values." I'm not sure how musicians define it. Some may think of the paradigm of integrity or lack there of is when their favorite band puts out an album that is a bit more commercial than the norm to gain popularity; or selling out their integrity for money. If that is your narrow view, then you have a serious problem, because any band or musicians that have made a large scale success of themselves must have a prodigious amount of integrity. Without it, all the inroads that you require in this business are going to be very difficult, if not impossible, to obtain.
There are many facets to integrity and a weakness with any one of them can make your climb to success even more difficult. Perhaps a most glaring example is keeping your word. A common area where musicians tend to not keep their word is surrounding live performances. Supposed you are booked into a new club, whether it is in a new town or your own hometown, and they ask you to supply flyers for a show. You figure, "Why bother?" So you blow off sending the flyers because you think it's unnecessary or you don't feel like making them or spending the money to get them made. Whatever.. This is just one example of your lack of integrity although it represents something that may seem trivial to a band (and the keyword here is SEEM) and IS noticed by the person it affects - the club booker. A club booker is trying to make money for the club so he can keep his job, and is still trying to put cash in your pocket as well. If you say you are going to do something that will help bring people in the door and then you don't, you may get the blame if there is a lousy draw, even if other factors other than the lack of flyers contributed to it. That booker is going to remember that you did not send the flyers that you said you would, and he may just return the favor and blow you off when you want another gig there. And let's remember the ripple effect. He could easily tell the other bookers he knows in town about what you did and that may shut you out in that market - all because you did not keep your word.
Keeping your word, of course, goes beyond this tiny example, and extends to everyone involved in your music career. If you tell your manager or publicist you are going to do an interview at a certain time, and then you don't, that reflects negatively on you with the publication or radio station that took time out of their busy schedules because they liked your music enough to want to help spread the word. And if you go back on your word too many times with the professionals you work with, you may end up getting dropped by your label or manager. So the lesson is plain and simple: If you don't think you can do something that someone asks you to do, be honest and up front with them about it. Don't say that you are going to do it when you have no intention of doing so or even if you think there is a remote possibility you may change your mind along the way. Because in the meantime, your team around you is acting based on your decision - they are investing time and resources based on your decision only to have you back out later? Very unethical.
More hypotheticals: You tell a booker at a club you've never performed at that you have a great draw in the area even though you don't, just so you can secure the gig. Or you tell them you are going to promote the gig heavily and then you don't. So what happens when that gig is unsuccessful - especially if because of your less than truthful approach you secured a guarantee out of them? It's much better to be honest and upfront, even if that means you have to take a piece of the door as an opening act instead of getting that guarantee. You will have promoted your band with sincerity, and the club will note those efforts, and may ask you back even if it is a lousy night because they will know you did what you could. Exaggerating to pump up your band to others is not the only untruthful behavior that can hurt you. Any lies, exaggerations or omissions to those who work hard for you, such as your manager, record label, publicist or booking agent, can really bite you in the rear and set you back in your endeavors. There is just no good reason to be dishonest with people busting their humps helping you with your career, period! If they believe in you and your music, then the least you can do is be upfront and straightforward with them - even if something negative happens, you need to be honest about it and not be afraid to admit being wrong if it was a problem you created. Take ownership for the problem and do everything to correct it! Those who work with you are sure to understand and help you out, whereas if you hide it from them, it is sure to crop up later and cause problems for both you and those working with you.
Your ego can be another facet that has the potential to ruin your integrity. Every musician has an ego, just like all artists and people in general. A certain amount of controlled ego is healthy; it helps fuel the passion to excel at your musical creations. Conversely, too much ego can result in serious problems. Going back to my previous example about exaggerating about your draw, some musicians and bands think they are so good that they are way above playing in clubs for a chunk of the door. Face it; in this shaky economic climate when consumers are being much more frugal with their disposable income if they even have any, you need to take any gig you can get just to get your name out there and make a few more fans. Even national acts with reputations have to take pieces of the door sometimes, and if you are trying to break into the huge markets like New York, L.A., Chicago, Atlanta or Seattle, chances are a door split is the only way you can get paid. And you are not above hanging up flyers, sending out note cards or emailers to your fan base or doing other tasks to help increase your draw at a show. Look at our Crossroads article this month, if Jason Newsted, the former bassist of one of the biggest bands in rock and roll's history can lick, label and stuff envelopes, so can you! And never think you are too big to do interviews or get coverage from small town papers or independent weeklies and monthlies. Every bit of press helps, and you never know - that music editor for the weekly in bum-f**k, North Dakota may be a writer for Rolling Stone someday. It's OK to think your music is great, your live performance is stupendous and you are all phenomenal musicians. But it takes much more than having all those factors to be successful, and you won't make it if you just think your music will sell itself. You also have to watch your ego around your bandmates and the professionals working with you. If you carry the attitude that your own personal feces smells like a bed of flowers, then you are liable to garner a reputation that is going to make others steer clear of you, and that is the kind of negative info that can also spread like wildfire throughout the industry.
Loyalty is another important factor, such a fleeting one and an important facet of integrity. Be loyal to the professionals who are helping your career, your bandmates and especially your fans. Granted, if you have a jerk in your band who is becoming a cancer or if your manager is ripping you off, you don't need to be loyal to them. But if the people you work with are hardworking and helpful to you and believe in you, the least can do is be respectful to them. You need to listen to those trying to help your careers, they're putting their blood, sweat and tears into it as well. Listening to and heeding their advice can be the best kind of loyalty. Showing up at rehearsals, band meetings and gigs on time can help solidify loyalty in your band, and if you look at some of today's most successful bands, many have had the same lineup for a long time. Loyalty begets longevity in this business. And it is absolutely paramount that you are loyal to your fans. As long as you can be loyal to them, their reciprocal loyalty is going to keep your career growing, because they will recommend you to their friends and become some of your most tenacious promoters. I recently saw the great songwriting troubadour Steve Earle perform in Atlanta. It was the last night of this leg of Steve's tour, and he was sick, had been for over a week. But he still took the stage and put on one of the best performances I have seen in all my years of attending concerts. That is loyalty to your fans, and when you have bands canceling gigs at the last second because they got the sniffles, that is not loyalty. There are occasional circumstances that are justified when gigs are canceled at the last minute, but all too often bands look for excuses to cancel. People who do that should find a different career, because you don't have the passion...or the loyalty. Fan disappointment can lead them to look towards other bands - and take their friends with them.
So there you have a few samples of how integrity is important in this business and how the lack of integrity can be detrimental to your career. I could go on endlessly with examples - probably enough to fill a book unfortunately. A lot of musicians who lack integrity are probably not being malicious about it, they just don't really have the passion and the lack of integrity morphs from that. Because true passion for music should inspire you to want to polish your integrity to keep your relationships with business professionals, fans and band members fortified. And relationships are what this business is all about.
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