The response to our new website and mailing list? Lackluster.
Our cultural irrelevance after releasing nothing in 2007? Second to none.
Our current plans? There is always talk.
[We] got a bone to pick with capitalism and it’s because there are no capitalists willing to throw money at a diffusely organized collective with no business plan.
So what are we to do? Expand the franchise…
{A summary of the remaining text can be accessed in perpetuity through the link at screen right.}
NotRock is looking for bands; here is what we are looking for:
Geography
We are willing to work with anyone, but the collective, cross-promotion system works best for those in Morris County and Northern New Jersey.
Medium
To date we have released music recordings, but we have projects underway in film, photography and literature. Anything that can be mass produced is of interest. Mass produced means a first run of 50-1,000 copies depending on projected demand and promotion.
Genre
We are not interested in material that is racist, sexist, homophobic or of similar caliber. We are not opposed to any recording technique that sounds good, but a stereo mix is obviously preferred. If you need assistance recording please contact us and we will work out an arrangement.
NR Catalog #
To get a number for a completed CD, e-mail the following to notrockrecords@gmail.com:
Band name and photo
Web site
Link to music samples
Short biography (approx 300 words)
Discography
Album Name, Track #, Year Released
Photo/scan of the album cover, sample from insert and CD
If the above information is consistent with the criteria below we will issue you a number. Catalog numbers will not be issued until records are ready to produce; in the past, numbers have been locked up for years as the recording or production process stalls. We will then add your release to our catalog. This is not limited to new releases – follow the same process if you have a current album that you want added to our catalog.
This is not a highly formal, rigid review process, it’s more to give us an idea of what to write on the website when we officially release the album. If your band/release meets the criteria, you are more likely than not getting a number. If you cannot get a release-quality recording with your current set up, we will help you as best we can.
In return we ask you print the NR number on the spine of your album, and also include on the back and booklet:
NotRock Records, www.notrock.com
We will come up with a numbering system for non-CD releases as needed.
Compilations
Once we have five or six new releases we will likely put together a compilation. These generally sell for $1 or are included free with album purchases. A certain number will be given to bands to hand out free or sell at shows.
Price
Pricing depends on the quality of the recording and packaging, as well as the number of songs. Currently we are committed to prices between $4-$10. For our current releases, prices were determined by taking the material cost per CD and adding $1-$2. This is because the final price includes postage for online orders. Many bands choose to donate any profits to NotRock as a whole to assist in funding compilations, studio time and web hosting due to the group effort of mass assembling and making CDs by hand. However, this is by no means necessary to be part of the collective.
Packaging
If you would not personally pay for it, then your packaging probably needs work. Things that are frowned upon are one-sided copies, the cheap copy paper straight from the machine, and CDs labeled with marker. Contact us if you need help with design, screen printing or stenciling and we’ll help to the best of our ability. Inserts do not have to include lyrics, but should contain something of interest.
Ordering
Once you have a number and your CD is available, orders will theoretically flood in to NotRock via mail. We will arrange how to handle this on an individual basis. Likely, we will collect the orders and money and get it to you, with your band shipping the CDs. Perhaps, depending on our cash flow, you can either front us the CDs and we will pay you after the sale, or we can pay you for 5-10 CDs at a time. If profits are going to NotRock, we will buy CDs up front at cost.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Monday, January 14, 2008
New Mailing List
Over the years we have complied a large list of e-mail addresses. However, it is likely that for every new one collected, another was recorded incorrectly or abandoned by its owner. To get a better sense who's interested, we're setting up a new mailing list.
To be added, send an e-mail to notrockrecords "at" gmail.com, of course replacing "at" with @ and eliminating the spaces. Feel free to include a subject, preferably something that will not get shunted into the spam folder.
If that's too much effort, rest assured that anything e-mailed out will also be posted on notrock.com, as well as myspace.com/notrock. The advantage of taking 30 seconds to get on the mailing list comes when we decide to do some highly-limited mailing list only releases. Granted you can steal the songs from your friends, but you won't have the artwork.
Further, if NotRock ever has a cash windfall and an inordinate amount of time and accomplices available, we promise to release something on vinyl for the mailing list alone. Perhaps that is adequate incentive...
To be added, send an e-mail to notrockrecords "at" gmail.com, of course replacing "at" with @ and eliminating the spaces. Feel free to include a subject, preferably something that will not get shunted into the spam folder.
If that's too much effort, rest assured that anything e-mailed out will also be posted on notrock.com, as well as myspace.com/notrock. The advantage of taking 30 seconds to get on the mailing list comes when we decide to do some highly-limited mailing list only releases. Granted you can steal the songs from your friends, but you won't have the artwork.
Further, if NotRock ever has a cash windfall and an inordinate amount of time and accomplices available, we promise to release something on vinyl for the mailing list alone. Perhaps that is adequate incentive...
Thursday, January 10, 2008
News & Bands Update
The new site appears to be fully operational as of this morning (see first post for details). It's been slightly over a year since the last news update, and NotRock has had no releases in some time. This, however, does not mean operations have ceased. Being a collective, NotRock has no "roster" in the traditional sense. The roster is whoever is releasing something at present. Though there are currently a good number of past and new bands operating with NotRock associates, it remains to be seen which will release a record under our banner.
A round up of bands one should be aware of:
Annoying Customer - Reformed; myspace.com/annoyingcustomermusic
Jesse Chan: Active; smg.photobucket.com/albums/v446/punchwall/
The Do Nothing Machine: Disbanded
Emphasis: Disbanded; myspace.com/emphasisisachannel (fan site?)
Feelwant: Disbanded
Feu de Joie: Disbanded; myspace.com/feudejoie
Gingermurder: New Ralph project; myspace.com/gingermusictomurderby
Graystone: In the ether; myspace.com/graystone
Insouciant: Active; myspace.com/insouciantmusic
Khantra: Indefinite hiatus; myspace.com/khantra (fan site)
Letterbox: Disbanded; myspace.com/letterbox
And of course there's a few more that existed or do exist, with plans of recording ranging from none to in process.
A round up of bands one should be aware of:
Annoying Customer - Reformed; myspace.com/annoyingcustomermusic
Jesse Chan: Active; smg.photobucket.com/albums/v446/punchwall/
The Do Nothing Machine: Disbanded
Emphasis: Disbanded; myspace.com/emphasisisachannel (fan site?)
Feelwant: Disbanded
Feu de Joie: Disbanded; myspace.com/feudejoie
Gingermurder: New Ralph project; myspace.com/gingermusictomurderby
Graystone: In the ether; myspace.com/graystone
Insouciant: Active; myspace.com/insouciantmusic
Khantra: Indefinite hiatus; myspace.com/khantra (fan site)
Letterbox: Disbanded; myspace.com/letterbox
And of course there's a few more that existed or do exist, with plans of recording ranging from none to in process.
News Archive
Here's a collection of the sporadic news updates from the last two sites, starting 03/2004:
11.21.06 - New Release! Feu de Joie and Graystone have new full length records out now - see catalog for details.
08.15.06 - Current catalog is up - several new releases are nearing completion.
07.30.06 - New site with more news and website updates to follow. Feu de Joie site in the works.
12.01.05 - It is now almost the end of the year, and there's news to go around. Look for info on the site on Fue de Joie and their upcoming record. Khantra quietly went on indefinite hiatus twelve days after the last news announcement. Their final interview accompanied a special feature in the Sunday Washington Post that week - see the archives at your local library for details. The rumor mill has it that there are basically no active bands on the roster except for Fue de Joie, although officially this is unconfirmed as contact is sparse after the hurricane tore through. We are considering taking legal action to hold several of these musical outfits to the obligations agreed to in their contracts.
08.12.05 - It's been a while, so here's the big news round up. Ned's solo project is now available. This is not a typo. It is $3, unless he just gives you one, and the first cd is amazing, and I haven't listened to the other one yet because it's on one of those small cds that I'm not about to put into my car player. In other news, Graystone and Adzam have full lengths on the way, and as a reminder Insouciant has a newish single out with the best material to date.
02.25.05 - Just a reminder. Tomorrow is Jamnesty. Unfortunately Khantra is not playing this year, but that's no reason not to attend... And that is because NotRock is being represented by two excellent bands, both relatively new. They are Feu De Joie (Ralph, James, and John), and Adzam (Tom and Greggy), and they will be playing at 550 Ridgewood Road in Maplewood with our good friends Kid Presentable (show starts at 12, see www.reznorproductions.cjb.net for details).
01.08.05 - Small updates. As previously stated a new Insouciant single is out and a sound sample has just been added to the media page. There is also a new song available off Graystone's Tunnel Light EP.
12.16.04 - It's a great day for all you Insouciant fans, a new single has just been released, featuring three, count 'em, three songs. See our catalog page for all the info and how to get a copy. Soon other things will be released as well, but at the moment I do not know what they are. Have a happy and safe holiday season, and remember, there are no dinosaurs in the bible.
10.29.04 - The new Graystone EP, Tunnel Light, is now officially available from NotRock. It contains 6 brand new songs and can be purchased for $3, see catalog page for details. Also, if you have not seen the Khantra site in a while, please note that the show at Cedar Lake scheduled for Oct. 30 has been cancelled - we are also dismayed.
10.14.04 - Sorry for the lack of updates. Good news and bad news all around... Annoying Customer has apparently reunited and will be playing a show with Khantra down in south NJ on Nov. 6. The new Graystone EP is complete but you wouldn't know it yet because Brian should be scanning the cover and e-mailing it to me for the catalog. Lastly, Emphasis is no more. Other projects are currently in the works by many people, more details to follow.
07.15.04 - Yes, the new Khantra full length, "The Red Album," was released with little fanfare some time ago. You can order it now along with the new Adzam. A new Graystone EP is nearly complete. Sound samples will be available soon for all the new stuff.
05.21.04 - Welcome to the new NotRock website in production. In addition to the design overhaul we are getting ready for a deluge of updates including the upcoming release of a Khantra full length, a change in direction for Emphasis, a bunch of other releases, and info on some new projects. And perhaps there will be some shows as well. Stay tuned.
03.12.04 - Upcoming excitements include the release of Graystone's second E.P., Khantra recording, and two tentative shows in April (one featuring Khantra, the other Emphasis) both on the same weekend! See band websites for details.
11.21.06 - New Release! Feu de Joie and Graystone have new full length records out now - see catalog for details.
08.15.06 - Current catalog is up - several new releases are nearing completion.
07.30.06 - New site with more news and website updates to follow. Feu de Joie site in the works.
12.01.05 - It is now almost the end of the year, and there's news to go around. Look for info on the site on Fue de Joie and their upcoming record. Khantra quietly went on indefinite hiatus twelve days after the last news announcement. Their final interview accompanied a special feature in the Sunday Washington Post that week - see the archives at your local library for details. The rumor mill has it that there are basically no active bands on the roster except for Fue de Joie, although officially this is unconfirmed as contact is sparse after the hurricane tore through. We are considering taking legal action to hold several of these musical outfits to the obligations agreed to in their contracts.
08.12.05 - It's been a while, so here's the big news round up. Ned's solo project is now available. This is not a typo. It is $3, unless he just gives you one, and the first cd is amazing, and I haven't listened to the other one yet because it's on one of those small cds that I'm not about to put into my car player. In other news, Graystone and Adzam have full lengths on the way, and as a reminder Insouciant has a newish single out with the best material to date.
02.25.05 - Just a reminder. Tomorrow is Jamnesty. Unfortunately Khantra is not playing this year, but that's no reason not to attend... And that is because NotRock is being represented by two excellent bands, both relatively new. They are Feu De Joie (Ralph, James, and John), and Adzam (Tom and Greggy), and they will be playing at 550 Ridgewood Road in Maplewood with our good friends Kid Presentable (show starts at 12, see www.reznorproductions.cjb.net for details).
01.08.05 - Small updates. As previously stated a new Insouciant single is out and a sound sample has just been added to the media page. There is also a new song available off Graystone's Tunnel Light EP.
12.16.04 - It's a great day for all you Insouciant fans, a new single has just been released, featuring three, count 'em, three songs. See our catalog page for all the info and how to get a copy. Soon other things will be released as well, but at the moment I do not know what they are. Have a happy and safe holiday season, and remember, there are no dinosaurs in the bible.
10.29.04 - The new Graystone EP, Tunnel Light, is now officially available from NotRock. It contains 6 brand new songs and can be purchased for $3, see catalog page for details. Also, if you have not seen the Khantra site in a while, please note that the show at Cedar Lake scheduled for Oct. 30 has been cancelled - we are also dismayed.
10.14.04 - Sorry for the lack of updates. Good news and bad news all around... Annoying Customer has apparently reunited and will be playing a show with Khantra down in south NJ on Nov. 6. The new Graystone EP is complete but you wouldn't know it yet because Brian should be scanning the cover and e-mailing it to me for the catalog. Lastly, Emphasis is no more. Other projects are currently in the works by many people, more details to follow.
07.15.04 - Yes, the new Khantra full length, "The Red Album," was released with little fanfare some time ago. You can order it now along with the new Adzam. A new Graystone EP is nearly complete. Sound samples will be available soon for all the new stuff.
05.21.04 - Welcome to the new NotRock website in production. In addition to the design overhaul we are getting ready for a deluge of updates including the upcoming release of a Khantra full length, a change in direction for Emphasis, a bunch of other releases, and info on some new projects. And perhaps there will be some shows as well. Stay tuned.
03.12.04 - Upcoming excitements include the release of Graystone's second E.P., Khantra recording, and two tentative shows in April (one featuring Khantra, the other Emphasis) both on the same weekend! See band websites for details.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
NotRock.com Changes
Changes have been made to the NotRock website and the way it is hosted on the internet. The domain, www.notrock.com, will remain, but the website has been reformatted into a blog. The start page will show the most current posts, as well as contact and ordering info, links to NR bands, and the complete catalog. A $ means the record is available; records without a price are out of print. Send an e-mail to notrockrecords@gmail.com if you want to be added the new mailing list - there just might be new releases this year.
Posts are currently open for comment. If the unfettered, anonymous internet democracy becomes a problem, comments will require approval or will be shut off depending on administrative desires.
The switch is for several reasons:
1. Cheaper; no more paying for content hosting.
2. Access; NotRock can edit and anyone can comment without web-design knowledge.
3. Web-based; no Flash, Photoshop or time for detailed site design needed.
Thanks to those that are still reading for your continued support and interest,
NotRock & Co.
Posts are currently open for comment. If the unfettered, anonymous internet democracy becomes a problem, comments will require approval or will be shut off depending on administrative desires.
The switch is for several reasons:
1. Cheaper; no more paying for content hosting.
2. Access; NotRock can edit and anyone can comment without web-design knowledge.
3. Web-based; no Flash, Photoshop or time for detailed site design needed.
Thanks to those that are still reading for your continued support and interest,
NotRock & Co.
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