Malibu Entry # 16 (edit 1)
Sat Nov 11, 2006 11:15 am
Gatherings and Celebrations
As Eisley's record nears completion, lives weave together joined by common goals.
Dinner Party. Eisley holding their name sake.
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Craig delivers a warm, uplifting, encouraging speech about Eisley... a sort of state of the union meets lamp lighting address.
The very important part of Rick Devoe management who aren't actually named Rick Devoe.
The band hangs out together by the fire outside.
Rick Devoe, Richard Gibbs, Weston DuPree hang.
Shot of big Eisley w/ little Eisley.
People help celebrate Chauntelle's birthday...
She just popped out of her little play couch.
Well, it's not the entire team. Obviously WB has a big staff. And "Chubba" didn't get to come 
. Does this post remind you of one of those stupid rag magazines where industry people have to be scene?
Down Times/Up Times
The Band down with this record, but ready to up and go home.
Hey Everyone!! Wow. We're back up. (as opposed to "down") So terribly sorry for the delays. This was a major, major move. New server. Massive migration of data. These forums are insanely fat. Sorry. We're still running the search query part of the functionality in the background while we're all enjoying hanging out again.
Well... dang, now that I spent way too much time sorting through and tweaking images, I'm kinda burnt out. I could spare you guys the "words" part of this. Or I could come back later and do it... hmmm. And, I have to pick up the band ANY second.
They've been tweaking each and every tune today - measure by measure - deciding what, if any, to redo, to scrap, to add onto, to color, to edit; like Weston decided he wanted hand claps on a song, and wanted to bang on a rim of a drum for one song... The girls re-sang vocal parts... Chauntelle added some ripping guitar parts... you know; that kind of stuff; a very important phase. btw... it's the last phase. This record is all but done! That's why they're ready to return HOME.
The Dinner.
It was the small one. The big one is coming
So... yeah, just what it looked like in the pics. An invite to Eisley's A&R's house - all our fam' who's here, all management, all production team, etc. - just to hang out, eat together, sorta ease into this project. Right now, it's all warm and fuzzy. All the work load is on the band/production team in the studio. Soon, they hand off the ball... the games begin. In 4 months, the band, the label, management - all will be promoting and pushing this little disc like crazy. So, it's good to all get on the same page.
NEXT MONDAY Their A&R comes out to hear the tunes. Those of you who when with us through this last time remember a completely different scenario. Think about it. The record is practically finished, and WB has only heard one uncompleted song. ha ha ... That's actually quite cool.
NEXT WEDNESDAY - is the Warner Bros. official listening party - out at The Woodshed. Yep. That's an important meeting, as you might guess. Why? Because - if they like it, they will build it...and if they build it, more will come. We can get into why it's important for Eisley to grow (way bigger) at some point, but for now - suffice to say, if WB isn't into the record - not much is going to happen.
I mean, sure... Eisley can continue to grow at the same pace with no problem... perhaps exponentially; but if anything significant is going to happen beyond more touring (which is good, and that will continue) WB has to really, really believe in this record - and get behind it.
I can't say whether that will happen or not, but I'm going to make a prediction that they're going to be at least three times more enthused about this project than they were the last one. This supposition should prove to bring about an entirely different result. If there are "singles", it's going to mean something entirely different... entirely bigger. We can talk all about this stuff, but most of you already understand how labels operate. If not, tell me and I can go deeper.
BUZZ OVEN CHRISTMAS SHOW '06!
Eisley will play one show before the new era begins.
Yes, that's my picture... my pictures are slaves to serve a higher purpose than glorifying myself. I don't care if they use it...
I guess there's not really much to say. You can imagine why we're doing it... 1.) Christmas money!! and 2.) Learn the New Songs! ha ha... The later is really more important. They need incentive to brush the cobbs off the new record (tracking will have been a while back by then) and do a dry run rehearsal/gig. I have no clue how many new songs they'll do... but, I'm sure there'll be some of them presented. More on that as I get info.
I gotta go. Cheerios. bd
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on: Label Love
An interesting comment got me thinking:
NegativeThree said: "Haha you almost made it sound as if WB gets to choose whether or not they like the album. good one - Wink. "
I wasn't sure what he meant about me making it sound like WB was getting to choose whether or not they like the album, but I'm guessing he meant: they won't have a choice. ha ha. This comment just got me thinking; I thought I should clarify a few things in my post.
I do think they'll like it. But, I think they should have liked the first one too; or - they should have liked it more. So, I'm re-phrasing the thought. The operative word is now: believe. I might like chocolate chip cookies... but i BELIEVE in brownies!! See the difference?
I've been convinced that WB really likes Eisley; really - even loves them, in a way. Unfortunately, it takes more than that. These people coming will probably be the biggest fans of Eisley at the label, so I'm not concerned that they won't like the music. The question is - how much money are they willing to bet on them? Say they have 100 horses. Some are faster, some have potential to be faster; Which ones get groomed and trained? Which ones do they invest in? Which bands are going to get the attention?
I don't have a clue. The band-side team can push, but there's really nothing Eisley can do. It's not the wheel that squeeks gets the grease... it's the wheel that gets them where they want to go that get's the dough (i made that up). Example: A jillion labels have a jillion bands, right? Which ones get pushed on late night TV? (answer: the ones they believe in; The ones they believe can sell a jillion records).
Indie band on major is good for all of us; not for stock holders and ceo's. Art is commercial if demands a market. Welcome to the world of fine art - sold commercially. Let it be known: Eisley hasn't set out to create commercial art. They have not conformed to that model. So, let's see if the label can push past the norms this industry.... the conventions... the standards... the gate keepers that are not as Fine Art friendly as they should be.
on: BIG
Who cares? Why does Eisley need to be big?
They don't. They don't care. They aren't caught up in some race to be the biggest band... or to be known... to be famous. Those of you who know them know this.
Getting signed to a major is like placing your band on the fast track... it's like getting dropped on a corporate conveyor belt that accelerates you through... your life-span. All bands have a beginning and an end. What you're hoping for is that l o n g stall in the middle. ha ha... Little bands don't last. Not on majors. Sophomore records are critical. It's that simple!
Do I believe WB will keep Eisley? Yes. If any label has a history for nurturing their artists, keeping their roster so that they have a great back catalog... so they can one day sell a Box Set, it's WB. Seriously, most labels sign bands, hit radio hard, if it flops, they toss the band. I'm just making a point... Box sets bare the names of bands who have grown well beyond where Eisley is now. Fleetwood Mac had a box set for sale a few years ago... 20 year mark I think. But how many hit songs did they have? Ever hear Rianna? It's possible to write amazing songs that end up on radio. It's not all cheeze. With subscription radio and web radio taking root, I expect that Eisley will have success beyond "Room Noises".
As Richard say's, "I think Radio is going to have to come to them on this one..."
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