hundreds of pages, pages, pages for words

sorted my itunes by typing “stereo” into the search box so today has been an oh no not stereo & stereo skyline listening party :)

not only is this interview from one of my favorite humans, but a pretty informative about diy “record label” & making a living doing so

The Los Angeles band Oh No Not Stereo does very well on their own terms. Named after vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Sky Nielsen’s ear-damaging ATV accident in 1993, the group - which also includes drummer and vocalist Mykul Lee - is a duo that adds touring musicians as needed. Their business model could be a blueprint for any band’s success in the current new world order, and we caught up with Neilson via email this week to talk about the unique choice of running a two-person band as an LLC, ways of reaching their fans, and the struggles with keeping their heads up in a rapidly metamorphosing musical world.

When did the band start, and when did it get to be “serious,” for lack of a better term?

Neilson: We started our band in June of 2003 in Los Angeles not long after Myk and I met at a music store in Hollywood. From day one we spent a lot of time writing and jamming together, and once we noticed how many instruments we could collectively play, it didn’t take us long at all to come up with a concept for our band: a high-energy independent duo who made their own good records and when you saw them live, they made you feel like you were watching The White Stripes on speed.

Ever since that summer in ‘03, we’ve been working day and night on our band with the same goal in mind - just keep working hard, always be touring-touring-touring, write, and meet as many people along the way as possible! Granted, we don’t sound like The White Stripes at all, but that original thought of doing everything between the two of us and ‘Not Talking About It, Just Doing it’ was the first motivating principle that still carries us today.

You seem to be on the road a lot. Was that the plan from the beginning of the band, or did it just happen that way?

Neilson: Touring has always been a crucial part of what we do. For us, touring is just as important as writing. Not just because we’ve gotta have somewhere to play the songs we write, but also to accept the challenges of putting our music in the hands of strangers around the world, then following up with them and reaping numerous benefits that define success for us. Obviously when we are asked to come on the road with another band, it’s a hell of a lot easier and different than booking it all ourselves, but this doesn’t stop us from formulating our attack plan across the globe on our own. Yes, we have always planned on touring, and we will continue to tour until we are physically not able to. We don’t get homesick; we get toursick.

Being on the road as much as you are, it must be tough to keep a day job. Are you all making ends meet from revenue from the band?

Neilson: We don’t have day jobs; we spend literally all day working on the band. There are more responsibilities involved with our band than one would think, so it keeps the two of us really busy. Plus, since it’s only Myk and myself in the band, it’s a lot easier to self-sustain when we’re not touring - as opposed to most other bands these days who have sometimes five to six full-time members. When we hit the road, we hire a guitarist, bassist and tour manager, so this keeps our combined living expenses low, especially when there’s just two of us dividing up the money that we make. We’re fully independent, so there are no hands in our pockets - which means if we make a dollar, we pocket the full dollar.

With free downloads and file sharing, there doesn’t seem to be much money in the music itself. Can you describe what you do to keep the whole thing rolling along?

Neilson: CD sales would barely even be on our “pie-graph” of money that we make. Publishing and licensing deals that we enter into, however, are gold-mines most of the time. We maintain 100% ownership of our masters at all times. Whenever a third-party publisher comes along and wants to license a song (or even sometimes our full catalog of music) we sell them the rights to do so as long as we remain in control of the length (term) of the agreement, and as long as the contract isn’t exclusive in any way.

We have several deals out there right now who are all profiting us (and them too) WAYYYYY more than CD sales would help a band of our stature. We’re not on commercial radio, we don’t have a booking agent to ensure consistent ground-breaking tours, we don’t have big-named management to put our product in hands that we cannot reach ourselves. Just because most people don’t know who we are doesn’t mean that we can’t make money off the music that we create. We work the internet just as much as we work our instruments, and that’s where we generate enough opportunities that pay off, keep our machine well-fueled, and make re-investment possible.

As a band, you seem to use little video clips on your pages and YouTube more than most. Was this a conscience decision for marketing or was it just what it looks like - a bunch of guys goofing around?

Neilson: When we first started posting random video blogs to our website(s) we noticed that all the stats on our sites were skyrocketing more than ever! Of course we are familiar with the act of engaging your fan base, but we saw that this was something different. Just giving your fans the chance to see a video of you goofing around at a show promoting the band (even something stupid like eating a hamburger while talking about Michael Jackson) pays off when they continuously come back to see more. I wanna see proof sometimes, too, that the bands who inspire me are just normal dudes who like to have fun and sometimes don’t take life too seriously. Generally the non-music related “random” video clips always get the most response. We are our own administrators on our websites, so we are always paying attention to the stats, adjusting to what we can see works best!

Oh No Not Stereo is set up as an LLC (limited liability company). What were the advantages to that?

Neilson: Our first thought to protect our personal liability was that if we get sued for stenciling or stickering anywhere in the world, we’d be done for. Then when taxes get involved, we had to show initially that we were spending more than we were making…an LLC was perfect Mykul’s and my legal partnership, especially on the plain of finding investors if we need to do so! We have everything operating through the LLC so we are never personally held liable for anything (bad) represented on behalf of our company. Like if I threw a Molotov cocktail through a church window…no, wait. I better not.

You are all about the DIY work ethic. If a major label came calling with a deal, would you be opposed to signing?

Neilson: We are absolutely big fans the DIY work ethic because at some point, every musician should realize that they’re in an industry where you’re either taken seriously and professionally, or simply considered a hobbyist. With regard to major labels, we aren’t just gonna wait around for some A&R guy to ‘discover us’ and ‘develop’ our band. That’s our responsibility, especially in the days when labels aren’t really helping bands get started anymore! We define our own success right now by always being open-minded to any idea that will deliver our music to masses that we aren’t able to reach ourselves, even if that means joining forces with a bigger entity. It’s gotta be the right deal, of course. We have a lot of professional integrity as a band, not only because we work hard and practice good business, but also because we have acquired a team who’re capable of (and ready for) almost anything.

Are there some new videos or albums in the works?

Neilson: We are releasing a single in June while we continue to work on our next album. This is our attempt to cater to the short attention span of the general public :) We’ll have a music video for the single as well, and also a proper re-vamping of our online presence. We have a great concept attached to the campaign of the single, and are very excited to unleash it in June. Anyone who is reading this interview and would like to download our latest album ‘003’ for FREE (password: onns003), please do so and let us know your thoughts!

As an unsigned artist, it looks like you still have some endorsements from music gear manufacturers and also with some companies not directly music related.

Neilson: We are very fortunate to have acquired such a great list of sponsors who take very good care of us. Their understanding of our independent status (in all regards) saves us a lot of money and stress while on the road and in the studio. Hollywood Guitars, Orange Amps, Fender Corp., Ernie Ball, SJC Drums, etc etc. Thanks to them we get to eat!! Haha. Same with a lot of great clothing lines that hook us up with great stuff for the road! 7Lightningbolt, Elmer Ave., Roy G Biv, Patriarch Clothing, and more…they take awesome care of us and keep us looking sharp.

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