Making Strides

Cancer sucks.

 

    Every year it touches the lives of millions of people, but we believe the disease can be cured in our lifetime.  The American Cancer Society: Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk is a way to help do just that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Spaceship Days are proud supporters of Kate & Leanne's Mighty Boo Bees   (why The Mighty Boo Bees? Click the link and find out! ) mission and hope you all will join us in helping them reach their goal.

 

 Together we can make a difference.

 

 

C

From One Indie to Another: 5 Tips to Promoting Your Music

People will often ask us what we do to promote Spaceship Days.  Whether its of the shameless variety or not, self promotion can be something of a slippery slope.  Here are some of the things that have worked for us.

 

They might work for you too.

 

1. Engage your fan base  

 

In 2011 everyone is an expert at social media, so much so they actually forget to take the time to be  social.  Instead of posting links all over the place, waving your arms and shouting "Buy this!" try just saying "Hello."  The personality of your band can be just as endearing to people as the songs you play. Don't be afraid to show some.

 

 

 

2. Figure out what works for you... and what doesn't

 

Newsletters are cool, but if you're sending out 2000 emails that only 9 people actually open, it might be time to try a new tactic. Making music is a creative undertaking; use some of that same mojo for your messaging. Try a blog, or video. If you're tech savvy, add an updates page to your website. The only limit is the depth of your imagination.

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Don't be shy

 

There are a bazillion different websites that cater to indie artists. Use them.  No one will ever stumble across your music unless you toss it under their feet.

 

 

 

4.  Think outside the computer

 

Never underestimate the power of a face to face connection. Visit popular venues. Watch shows.  Meet people. Talk to other artists and their fans. Pass out stickers, download cards, even CD singles if you can afford them. Flyers aren't just to advertise gigs.  Throw a cool picture and a link  on some 11"x17" and now you have a poster. Many a song are on my iTunes  simply  because I saw clever album cover on a piece of paper pinned to a coffee shop bulletin board.

 

5. Share the love

 

  If there is a band or artist that you particularly enjoy, tell people.  The object of your attentions may or may not respond in kind, but  in this business you can never have enough good karma.

 

 

 

C

Online Music Awards!

  We of Spaceship Days are very excited to announce that we were selected Best Pop Act of the 2011  St Helier Cider Online Music Awards   !

 The three of us are completely humbled by the overwhelmingly positive response we've received from all over the world. To Butterflies Radio, Reputation Media , Woody Radio and everyone at IMGlobal we appreciate everything you've done to help us tell our tale  everywhere, and helping our music reach ears across the cosmos.   

 To  Taylor Van Arsdale our PR Rep Extraordinaire: glad you're here to keep those doors and windows flying open to let us in. We're honored to have you on our team.

To our friends and fans: the outpouring of support that all of you have given us has been nothing short of phenomenal. YOU made this happen. We could not have done it with out each and every single one of you.

  Although we will be the ones holding onto it, this award is yours; we truly, deeply thank you.

Respect

M, C, & G

We Play Well With Others

  For as long as I can remember, Matt has been a fan of Depeche Mode. I however, was not.

 

All that changed in the three minutes and thirty or so seconds it took for me to hear the acoustic version of their song Personal Jesus. Suddenly, I wanted to go off and listen to as much of their music as quickly as I could beam it directly into my brain. Instead of telling me 'I told you so' (which I imagine he really wanted to)  Matt quoted Martin Gore.

 

  " A great song will sound great with any treatment" Matt intoned with Jedi-esque wisdom, "whether it's keyboard pop with a full on symphony or stripped down to just a boy and his old acoustic guitar -- that last part wasn't Gore, it was me."  he added with a grin.

 

Any treatment indeed.

 

 It was that philosophy that kept our minds  thrown wide open when we crossed paths with veteran remixer  Marcel Agterhuis. There was a little anxiety involved, its true; the three of us have worked together long enough that we weren't sure what to expect of another creative lad wanting to jump into our sandbox. Would he hog all the toys, or unload with the hose and get everything all muddy?  The only way to know was to just set up the play date, and see what happened. So we did. And were glad for it.

 

  Marcel took our song My Life With You and shaped it into something a little bit different.

 

The  My Life With You (Cold Blue Stars REMIX )  

and  My Life With You (First Kiss on the Moon REMIX)  are the result of his attentions.  

 

These songs are the first collaboration of this sort for us and we enjoyed the results. More than that, we enjoyed learning that we can play well with others after all.

 

 

C

 

Online Music Awards

We have been nominated for Best Pop Act in the 2011 St. Helier Online Music Awards
Here is Ace of Base making the announcement:

We'd like to invite all of you to visit the  Online Music Awards  page, register, and vote.

This is a fantastic honor for us, as potential nominees were submitted to the selection panel by music fans internationally. If we win, the party will be at Greg's house.

Thank you all

M, C, & G

Good Cause

 

 Outside an occasional foray into the realm of the visual arts, music is what Spaceship Days is all about. We try not to stand on soapboxes, keep our politics to ourselves, and focus all of our collective efforts on creating as many pop music masterpieces as we possibly can.

 

  With all that said, there was one particular Cause that we (as Band Daddies) couldn't help but get behind.

 

 Presented by Reputation Media, we are glad to be a part of the As Heard compilation album

 

 

All profits from this release will go to the BBC Children In Need (click for more information). The album is available HERE!! on iTunes and will eventually be carried by all major digital retailers.

 

Other As Heard artists include:

 

 

BAMBI MONROE

JACKSONS WAREHOUSE

JOY HOLLON

IAM: YOUR HERO

KERRY KELLEY

AUDIOBURGER BOY

UTOPIA CAFE

MELISSA VAN FLEET

HAUNTING HEATHER

SKEAUXSHA

THE SHANKLIN FREAKSHOW

MATTHEW MEADOWS

ORANGESPINE

RADIOSTAR SF

 

 

We hope you enjoy it, and thank you in advance for contributing to this worthwhile charity.

 

 

 

M, C, & G

of Spaceship Days

Breaking Up is Hard to Do

 In the immortal albeit slightly lesser known words of Mr Gump:  

 "It happens."

 The Police. The Fugees. The (real) Smashing Pumpkins. Wham.

 Be it the ubiquitous "creative differences", conflicting egos, or just the desire to move on to something new, Life has a way of getting bands to call it quits.

   After the demise of grey, I myself remember feeling like I had been tossed aside by a significant other for a taller, cooler bass player with bigger sunglasses, a better car, and more comic books.  A scant handful of hours later I found myself at a local venue engaged in some dedicated wallowing with the assistance of a friendly bartender.  I had run into an acquaintance there, another bassists who's band had also passed away after a long period of illness.

Our  boo hooing was largely confined to shouting in one anothers' ear as the live act that was still enviously alive and rocking was quite loud. We used the silence between songs to fill our cups and privately reflect on all the could-have-beens.  Someone had the bright idea to form a band together--but as we both played the same instrument that train of thought didn't travel much farther than the next refill.  I listened to war stories about tour dates with Rollinsband. I divulged until then secret details of our New Orleans adventure. Slowly, the pity party turned into a memorial of the good times. After a while watching other people play didn't make me quite so sad.

Eventually, the show ended, we said our goodbyes and Life -- as it always does -- went on.

  The first time I heard These Black & White Flames I thought "Cool!" 

They had the sound of a band from our neck of the woods even though they lived all the way across the ocean.  We shared some of the same influences.  Following their progress, through video and headphones became a favored pass time. 

 Unfortunately, the band as we knew it is no more. The musician in me was bummed by the news, the feeling colored by understanding and memory. The fan in me though, was saddened in a whole different way. The loss of  getting to hear what a band will do next, one of my favorite things about music, made me frown my way through a listening of From the Inside of Outside.

Hopefully, we will see the members of These Black and White Flames  again.

Until then, I'll always have my ipod.  And the t-shirt.

C