Interesting approach to selling and marketing an album from Josh Freese, former NiN drummer and "one of the most sought-after session sticksmen in the biz" [Soundcheck]

Josh is offering a range of options for fans who want to buy his new album, including the following. There are several other options, most of them pretty original. Check them out at Soundcheck or at the official site.

$50

• CD/DVD double-disc set
• T-shirt
• “Thank you” phone call from Josh for buying Since 1972.You can tell him what you like about the record that you purchased, orwhat you thought sucked. Ask whatever you want, like “Is Maynard reallyTHAT weird?” or “Which one of Sting’s mansions has the comfiest beds?”or “Are Devo really suburban robots that monitor reality or just abunch of dads from Ohio?” or “Why don’t the Vandals play more stuff offthe first record?” It’s your 5 minutes to yack it up. Talk aboutwhatever you want.

$500 (limited edition of 15)

• Signed CD/DVD and digital download
• T-shirt
• Signed cymbal and sticks
• Meet Josh in Venice, Calif., and go floating together in a sensory-deprivation tank (to be filmed and posted on YouTube)
• Dinner at Sizzler (get your $8.99 steak and “all you can eat” shrimp on)

$75,000 (limited edition of 1)

• Signed CD/DVD and digital download
• T-shirt
• Go on tour with Josh for a few days
• Have Josh write, record and release a 5-song EP about you and your life story
• Take home any of his drum sets (only one, but you can choose which one)
• Take shrooms and cruise Hollywood in Danny from Tool’s Lamborghini OR play quarters and then hop on the Ouija board for a while
• Josh will join your band for a month … play shows, record, party with groupies, etc.
• If you don’t have a band he’ll be your personal assistant for a month (4-day work weeks, 10 am to 4 pm)
• Take a limo down to Tijuana and he’ll show you how it’s done (what that means exactly we can’t legally get into here)
• If you don’t live in Southern California (but are a U.S. resident)he’ll come to you and be your personal assistant/cabana boy for 2 weeks
• Take a flying trapeze lesson with Josh and Robin from NIN, go backto Robins place afterwards and his wife will make you raw lasagna
  

The Karmafan app got a slightly new look this week. Let us know what you think and how we could improve it. Or install the app if you haven't already. The Karmafan app makes it easy for artists to collect voluntary support from their fans. And it's free to use.

Dave and Kulpreet

The Karmafan Team

Karmafan profile: http://www.myspace.com/karmafan

Karmafan app: http://apps.myspace.com/karmafan_app

What is mufin?
mufin is your music discovery engine, using which you can easily discover millions of songs of new music

The Music Ally Weblog had a fascinating and detailed piece last week on the results of Radiohead's experiment with their album In Rainbows last year.

Despite the fact that the album was released for free, there "were three million purchases of In Rainbows, including physical CDs, box-sets, and all downloads - including those from the band's own website and from other digital music stores", which is even more interesting when you consider that "their previous three albums sold in the low hundreds of thousands".

Sales were probably helped by the extra publicity, but fans felt a very direct connection the band when they realised that they alone were responsible for how they reacted to the free release. And many decided that the music was worth something to them.

One interesting footnote to the experiment was that "BitTorrent downloads did indeed greatly outnumber those from Radiohead's official site", which would suggest that bands don't really need to invest heavily in distribution.

Bottom line - get enough loyal fans willing to distribute an album and the work will find its way to the people who want it.

Not everyone can make a living doing something they really enjoy. As Seth Godin points out:

Today, there are more ways than ever to share your talents and hobbies in public. And if you're driven, talented and focused, you may discover that the market loves what you do. That people read your blog or click on your cartoons or listen to your mp3s. But, alas, that doesn't mean you can monetize it, quit your day job and spend all day writing songs.

That's the dream, but only some people can live the dream. The rest of us have to do what we love in our spare time and hope that one day we'll be able to devote more time to it.

But there is always the temptation to create according for the market, to change your style or follow the latest trend. Sometimes that might work, but Seth encourages artists not to "wreck your art if it doesn't lend itself to paying the bills".

In fact, his advice is to create without concern for commercial value, arguing that the "twist is that as soon as you focus on your art and leave the money behind, you may just discover that this focus turns out to be the secret of actually breaking through and making money".

Sounds like good advice to us here at Karmafan. If you create something you value then there's a very good chance that others will value it, too. And they might just be willing to give you a little something in appreciation of your work.

The Karmafan Team

Karmafan MySpace app

Hi there,

So our new Karmafan MySpace application is now easier to install than the widget - i.e. no more uploading images, no more code to add to your profile, no jive. Just a few clicks and bingo, you're flying. And we're quite proud of it, we have to say.

Artists - you've made the music, you've earned the fans, now all you need to do is add the Karmafan MySpace app and feel the love come your way. What are you waiting for?

Install or view the Karmafan MySpace app

Let us know what you think. Email joanne@karmafan.com or send us a message when you've tried it out.

The Karmafan Team