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I bought a copy of “The Manual” by Jimmy
Cauty and Bill Drummond in 1996. I'd been looking for a copy for years. Some of it made sense, some of it didn't. I liked the writing style and the advice given. I sent the receipt as
proof of purchase to the PO BOX printed in the book and requested The
Guarantee.
This is the reply that Bill Drummond sent back on headed paper. By reply Bill Drummond became the first Unaware Patron of Iron Man Records. Blame him for everything. A lot has happened since 1996. Your Insanity will do.
Your Insanity could help Iron Man Records to release more music on Vinyl via Patreon. There are 15 Patrons currently supporting the record label, you are invited to become a Patron too.
Iron Man Records has been running since 1996. The label has released over 30 records and continues to work hard on a daily basis. Iron Man Records wants to make all new record releases from the label available on Vinyl. The label will continue to make everything available through digital channels. You are invited to get involved.
Why help Iron Man Records? Here's a quote from Detroit Poet John Sinclair, who released an album called "Mohawk" through the label in recent times. This sums up the sort of thing going through my head when I started out trying to bring people together to do something under the label name of Iron Man Records at the start of it all in 1996.
"One of the most important things to
young, formative artists is having a group of one’s peers that one can
be a part of, can talk to, work with, work out ideas, etc and can give
crucial support.
Modern society has succeeded to a
frightening degree in alienating artists from one another (and of course
from people in general; or at least vice versa) and atomizing what
could be a vital, active community into a group of lone, defensive,
hung-up people who are afraid to talk to and/or work with anyone but
themselves and (maybe) three or four friends.
A community of artists means that a
group of highly conscious people can help each other in very real ways.
Artists working alone are cutting themselves off from sources of
inspiration and influence that can help them immeasurably in their work.
The lone artists have no one to listen
to their work, no one to offer criticism and ideas that would bring
their work into sharper focus with itself. Hard to get as excited, as
completely involved in one’s work by oneself; when you can talk about it
with/to others who are trying to do the same thing as yourself and
communicate it to others, you can achieve and maintain the state of
consciousness Henry James called “perception at the pitch of passion.” And who better to communicate to than those few people who are operating
at the same level of awareness and involvement as oneself?
We are now in a period of expanded
consciousness in all the arts. NOW is the time to find out what’s wrong
with your work, NOW, at least get an inkling of what other real people
will think of it and how it communicates.
In reality, the journey from 1996 has been back-breaking, and the record label has generated a mountain of debt. Everything I earn as a Tour Manager goes into keeping Iron Man Records moving forward, and in doing so providing a platform and focal point for everyone involved with the label. I manage to ensure that new records come out every year and during difficult times perhaps every two years. Without fail, Iron Man Records continues to release records by some of the most interesting and talented artists, writers, and musicians. The label seeks to share what resources it has, and provides an alternative to the onslaught of pop culture and everything that goes with it. There has to be something that opposes the nonsense that we are surrounded by every day, there has to be a meeting place and platform for those that demand an alternative. There has to be a mechanism to share contacts, resources and ideas.
I
don’t expect everyone to like what the record label releases, but at
least the label gives you a choice. You don’t have to buy everything
from “the man” and you don’t have to work for “the man” either. As the saying goes: "We may never defeat these swine, but we don't have to join them." There’s
always another way, and for Iron Man Records and the musicians, artists
and writers it works to support “the show must go on, by any means necessary.....or until we are all eliminated”
I can handle the logistics of running Iron Man Records by myself but I could use some help in releasing more Vinyl. At
a time when “ownership” of music is becoming less important, and
digital services are making “access” a much easier way of listening to
more music than ever before, we have been left with a problem to solve.
How can the record label continue to release physical records by artists for people to
“buy,” at a time when anyone, with any money left, can “access” more
music for free, or at a fraction of the price, using streaming digital
services?
We all know how to google an album, or a song, and find it for free. We’ve all done it. We all know how to access music on social networks for free, and through Streaming services like Spotify. Some of us buy our music from download sites. I think its fair to say some of us listen to more music than ever before,
and choose to only spend our money on music from our favourite groups.
Iron Man Records has invested a lot of time and effort into making
every release available through as many digital services as possible ensuring all the artists get a chance to be heard.
You can find all releases from Iron Man Records on iTunes, Apple Music, YouTube Music Key, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Play, Deezer, Groove, Rhapsody, eMusic, Simfy Africa, iHeartRadio, MixRadio, MediaNet, VerveLife, Tidal, Gracenote, Shazam, 7Digital, Juke, JB Hi-Fi, Slacker, Guvera, KKBox, Akazoo, Anghami, Spinlet, Neurotic Media, Yandex, Target Music, ClaroMusica, Zvooq, Saavn, 8tracks, NMusic, Q.Sic and others.
From the stats, it is clear that plenty of people want to listen
to the music Iron Man Records produces, but they don’t always want to pay for
it. Many people want music as cheap as possible, and ideally for free. They would rather have access to music, than ownership of music. Fair enough,
I can accept that, enjoy the music the way you want it. But how can the artists be supported to produce more work if people want "access" rather than "ownership?"
It makes me laugh when you hear
people talking about how they won't buy music from Amazon because Amazon
doesn’t pay its workers a fair wage, and then get drawn into a discussion
about what sites to use to find music for free without having to use
Amazon.
People forget that starving musicians have to go to
band practice, pay for their rehearsals, record their music, and work
out a way to release their music. Many musicians have to plan and
finance the costs of touring to promote their music by themselves.
Musicians also need to eat and have a roof over their head, and I do
too. Some of the more popular releases on Iron Man Records might achieve 23,000 streams over a five year period but only sell about 60 downloads. In the same period they may only sell about 150 physical copies on cd and even less on vinyl. It's a strange time for music if you are operating independently. There's not much money coming in from sales here at Iron Man Records yet more people are listening to the music Iron Man Produces than at any time previously.
These days, it’s interesting to note that many musicians
would probably earn more per hour, packing boxes and packages for
Amazon, even on the poor wages that Amazon pays, than at most gigs they
end up playing. But lets move on, you get the point. It's a tough time for musicians and artists, and you have to be mad to carry on aginst such odds that are always stacked against you.
Where does Iron Man Records find itself in the digital world?
Streaming is taking off and I have always loved vinyl as a format. I want to return to making every release on Iron Man Records available on Vinyl,
as well as via streaming, downloads and on CD. It's madness in the current economic climate, but a little bit of madness is just what is required. To be fair, in the UK,
not many will buy the vinyl Iron Man Records produces, the real market for Vinyl
at the moment is in places like France, Germany, or Czech Republic, Austria and other places in Europe
who can’t get enough of it. Vinyl provides a good incentive for any band with Vinyl for sale to go and tour. And that’s what most of the bands on the label do when given the chance. Touring is also the main source of income for most of the bands I work with. Producing vinyl increases the opportunities for the bands and artists to earn money from their work playing live.
Some
years ago I was talking with a friend in Czech Republic, while on tour
with Police Bastard. He was talking about the state of music and he
summed it up like this. “I google new bands and their music, and listen
for free. If I find a band I like, I will find out where they are
playing and go and see them live. If I like the concert I will buy their
album on Vinyl even though I already have it as a digital file on my
computer. The digital files are for listening to on my
phone or sending to friends, the Vinyl is for my collection and I listen
to it on my record player.”
This
friend was also the same person who booked Police Bastard to play,
organised the promotion of the concert, cooked the food for the band, and
gave us a place to have a wash and sleep after the show. People like
this are what makes being in a band worthwhile, they actually care
enough about the music to do something to help. Their involvement with music isn't just about getting it for free, or getting access, that is just the start of a complex process.
It
is clear to me that if you can produce anything of value in terms of
your music, a digital version is necessary so people can access and even
download your music on their mobile devices. But if you are serious about your music, you must
release it on Vinyl so the really passionate fans of your music, like
our friends in Czech Republic, can get a copy to add to their collection
and enjoy when they are at home.
Iron
Man Records is capable of releasing records and making them available
worldwide across pretty much every digital platform. Producing CDs of
each release is also affordable within the context of selling physical
copies, sending out to press and radio and keeping things ticking over. Vinyl however, is a little bit tricky.
Producing a record on
Vinyl is about three times more expensive than producing a cd, which
means you have to sell three times more records to recover the upfront
costs. So something has to give. Either
the records are released as digital only, or the releases come out on CD
first to test the market, or I have to find three times as much money upfront to release a record on Vinyl.
This year has been tough for Iron Man records, income from selling physical sales
has continued to decline. In fact physical sales of everything both CD,
Vinyl and DVD has steadily declined year on year since 2004 when I
started keeping a record. The physical sales are declining because the market has a greater choice of music than ever before, peoples consumption habits are changing in a digital environment and what I am selling is becoming a smaller and smaller part of that market. Habits are changing all the time and the
market is choosing to access music rather than owning music. Times are changing and either Iron Man
Records changes too or it’s game over.
Where am I going with this? In simple terms I want you to sign up or subscribe to insanity.
I want to start releasing records
on Vinyl again and I need help reducing the front
end costs. I’m not asking anyone to pay
for everything, nor am I asking anyone to pay me to run Iron Man
Records, I can look after all that myself. What I want to do is invite people to contribute to reducing the costs of producing albums on Vinyl. In exchange for help and support, you will get a copy of everything
the label produces, as it becomes available. Supporters will get access to digital
files of everything, so you can listen on portable electronic
devices, and you will get all sorts of other benefits. For example:
free stuff from the Iron Man shop, stickers, email updates, free
tickets, and whatever else I can think up as I go along. There is method to the madness and all you have to do is join in.
I would like
to think that if you like what Iron Man Records does, if you
would like to encourage the label to produce all releases on Vinyl, and
if you would like to support struggling musicians who are up against it
on a daily basis, then please consider offering your support to the cause.
I have put together a page on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ironmanrecords which I think is an
interesting way to raise money. This will help
produce Vinyl in small quantities and to the highest standards with regards to artwork and packaging. Patreon lets you make recurring
monthly donations and thereby helps to reduce the upfront costs of
producing music on vinyl.
Anyone who donates will get a copy of the vinyl produced and a number of other benefits. Anything from £1 a month or more is actually really helpful, and
knowing a small regular sum is coming in each month allows me to plan
more effectively.
Everything the label produces is accessible for free online anyway so you can have anything, anytime if you look for it. Offering a small monthly donation means that regardless of what goes
on, Iron Man Records can keep releasing music on vinyl and keep helping
the bands and artists to survive, and to make more music.
Let me be clear: Iron Man Records is not in the pop business. In fact it’s just not in business. The debts are what it’s worth. The
label is trying hard, during a particularly tough time in the history
of recorded music, to help musicians and artists develop a sustainable
future. And to me, the simple way to do that, is give the bands
and artists a Record to sell, at their gigs, that people would love to
buy.
Iron Man Records wants to create Vinyl, something really special,
something that presents music in a format that people want to keep and
enjoy. That’s it really, life isn’t just about computers and social
networking. There has to be an alternative.
Have a look here and any comments, good or bad are invited.
Mark – Iron Man Records
Police Bastard - Dead To The World – Digital Release (23rd November 2015)
Tracklisting:
1 Thug Nation
2 Mental Slave
3 Sweatin' Green
4 Mandatory Suicide
5 Death To The Unbelievers
6 Powerless
7 No Security
8 Enslaved
9 Second Skin
10 A Lesson In Human Control
11 Gulf War Syndrome
12 I Crush Worlds
13 Death Of Meaning
14 Dead To The World
15 Second Skin (Remix)
16 Relationshit
(For a review copy of Police Bastard - "Dead To The World" and all Police Bastard bookings please email: ma...@ironmanrecords.co.uk)
Last Under The Sun - are recording a new album at Framework Studios, Birmingham.
Dufus - Seth Faergolzia of Dufus and a group of amazing musicians
will be traveling Europe again this year performing Seth’s music http://www.faergolzia.com/
'Moon Equipped' - Recorded 1992 on board Judith, a Dutch barge on Thames at Battersea Bridge on 4 Track cassette.
'Mina' - Recorded 1993 at John
Stewart Hall, Yatesbury, Melbourne House, Avebury, also on 4 track
cassette and released to mark 100 years since T.C. Lethbridge's birth.
'2000 TC' - Recorded 1994 John Stewart Hall, Melbourne
House, The Henge Shop, Avebury, 4 Track cassette, digitally remastered
by John Davies 2014.
Steve Fly is a native of Stourbridge UK, now an Amsterdam resident who plays
drums, spins vinyl, writes novels and literary and cultural commentary.
He maintains a flock of websites and works in various other art forms
without visible restraint. His other music projects have included New
Flesh, Garaj Mahal, Temple Dragon band, John Sinclair and The Cosmic
Trigger Stage Play. Buy it on iTunes here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/they-came-to-starburg/id935832302
"John
Sinclair - renegade poet, scholar and cultural revolutionary.....an
Archetype of the 1960's art, music and literary synthesis, still kicking
with both feet on his trajectory for cultural transformation. Mohawk
features ten tracks from his book of verse: always know: a book of monk.
Beatnik poems, great odes and personal reflections of the Be-Bop jazz
persuasion, all flowering together."
John Sinclair is best known as the Sixties "marijuana" activist who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for giving two joints to an undercover policewoman. He was eventually freed when John Lennon and Yoko Ono spoke out on his behalf.
Less understood is his role as the founder and chairman of the radical anti-war group, The White Panther Party, an offshoot of the Black Panthers. The Black Panther Party was a militant political organization formed after the brutal murders of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Robert Kennedy.
The Nixon Administration and the FBI launched a secret program called COINTELPRO to disrupt and ultimately destroy the Black Panthers and the Anti-War movement. As part of this program, John Sinclair was set up and imprisoned on marijuana charges. When the government could no longer justify denying him a bond over two joints, they falsely charged him with a Federal conspiracy to blow up a CIA station, in order to make him disappear.
Framework Recording Studios,
Birmingham. The Recording studio is based on Floodgate Street in
Digbeth, and is run by Simon Reeves (UK+44) 07790 158210 or email sifra...@gmail.com
Framework Studios has worked with Napalm
Death,
Carcass, Cathedral, Meathook Seed, P.J.Harvey, Ride, Family Cat
and
other acts including Harpies, Damn Dirty Apes, Last Under The Sun,
I.O.D, Godsize, Long Time Dead, Locus of Control, Piss On Authority,
Police Bastard, Spirit Bomb, Selfless and more.
ok, that's all for now,
cheers
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