According to their home page, “Pure Volume is a website for the discovery and promotion of up and coming artists and musicians. Each artist has a profile that typically contains basic info, updates, photos, shows and music for streaming. Artists have the option of making each of their songs available for free download. Listeners and fans can also create profiles to interact with artists and each other, as well as track and share music they like.”
Pure Volume allows for users browse according to artist, genre, or location. They can also post and comment on forums pertaining to different genres of music, culture, entertainment, musicians, gossip, fashion, and more. They can even check for bands on tour in their area as well as check out recent and featured albums.
Pure Volume has been widely acknowledged as the leading social music site since its launch in 2003 and has received a lot of positive feedback in newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, New York Times, Newsweek, and more. This site also made its name known at top music festivals around The United States, including College Music Journal’s Annual Festival in NYC and South by Southwest. It has sponsored many tours such as Rockstar Energy Drink’s Taste of Chaos, the Take Action Tour, and Vans Warped Tour. Pure Volume has also partnered with companies to promote new music such as Hot Topic, Vans, M-Audio, and The John Lennon Foundation.
What is Sonicbids?
Sonicbids is a similar Web site that helps bands get gigs, but this site connects the bands to promoters to help them get booked. It includes over 150,000 bands, singers, songwriters, and performers of all kinds, and 14,000-plus music buyers of all kinds, including promoters, licensors, festival programmers, and so much more. Bands come here for gigs; promoters come here for bands. We have lots of both. Simply put, we want Sonicbids to be the common “language” that people who make music, and people who book music, use to connect and interact with one another – no matter who they are, where they work, or what passport they carry.
Sonicbids has sponsors from BMI, Disc Makers, and Oasis CD Manufacturing, and partners with companies such as College Music Journal, The Hard Rock Café, Musikfest, National Association for campus Activities, and National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
The team at Sonicbids works to connect musicians to promoters to help showcase good music. It is clearly stated in their mission:
Who Created Sonicbids?
Sonicbids was the brainchild of Panos Panay. He came to the U.S. from Greece in 1991 to attend Berklee College of Music but later made the choice to study Music Business. After college Panay became an agent for Pat Metheny, Chick Corea, and Al DiMeola for seven years.“It was a real blast,” he says on the website, “and I learned early on the value of doing something that you love.”
Here’s a video of him that comes from a clip from a DVD entitled “What is INDIE?”
The “eureka” moment, as he calls it, came when he got frustrated with the fact that he was not able to go through the plethora of press kits from musicians who wanted to get booked my him, and how expensive it got mailing out press kits. “All along I kept thinking that there had to be a better way for musicians and promoters to connect with each other than bulky and expensive mail-in press kits.” He then figured that it would be easier to use the Internet to connect musicians and promoters for booking information.
I Think Everyone Knows About MySpace
MySpace was originally just an online community that connected people from all over. Among other applications for filmmakers and comedians, it has been a place for famous and local bands to get their name out there. MySpace Music is the source for both mainstream and alternative music. People now have the chance to create playlists and download songs from many artists. MySpace recently teamed up with Universal, BMG, and Warner Music Group to compete against iTunes.
Aside from the United States, MySpace is available to people in many countries of Europe, Canada, Latin America, and Asia Pacific.
For two years now MySpace has had a little music label known as MySpace Records. It showcases their favorite artists. Their top favorites right now are Katie Voegele, Mateo, Meiko, Christina Milian, Pennywise, and Sherwood, to name a few.
It is easy for bands, musicians, promoters, and everyday listeners to sign up for Pure Volume, Sonic Bids, and MySpace. If you want your music to be heard:
Musicians and artists click here for Sonicbids
Promoters click here for Sonicbids
Colleges and universities click here for Sonicbids
Labels and agencies click here for Sonicbids
Listeners click here for Pure Volume
Artists click here for Pure Volume
Musicians click here for MySpace
Check out the video I made about the New Haven-based alternative rock band, The Smyrk, about what they use when it comes to booking shows. Also be sure to fill out those polls when you have the chance!
You can check out The Smyrk on www.myspace.com/thesmyrk and www.purevolume.com/thesmyrk.
S96fd5 Thanks for good post
By: johnny on January 1, 2009
at 7:46 pm