White Lights Go Bang is available on iTunes - sculpture by Les Perhacs
What matters most these days - whether you're a band playing in meatspace, or a big label shoving another 'swing-for-the-
White Lights Go Bang should be an extremely upsetting album to any major label. How could basically three guys and studio musicians make a major label quality dance rock single so good?
FREEDOM
"I gave Dan and Jerome total freedom - and a lot of time - to make a dream record they both would be happy with. Just an invitation to give their best," says Executive Producer Ian McGrady.
"My input was usually 'you cool?" That was about the extent of it.
"Look - the music industry has yet to shake it self out of the rampant theivery (let's call it what it is) of music tracks, the humiliation of music to the power and precedence of the music player, and the democratization of production capability. While those things may lead to more music, faster, they don't necessarily breed better music. Major labels know this and still know it's worth it to pay for talent," says McGrady.
"But they should also be on notice after this album. It's as good or better than any major act's first album. I'll put it up against anyone's, any time."
DISRUPTIVE
While major labels go for sustaining genres and types of music, they won't know how to quantify an act that is commercially viable yet is also not a slave to genre. Majors have to look towards sustaining genres they and Billboard already believe in.
"What they can't do is invest smaller amounts of money in smaller acts -- I mean, less than $100,000 -- in creating new stuff. And home-brew can't turn out this kind of record," says McGrady.
"If major labels are looking for the future, I'm it. Major-
You can't make a great record with a committee, says McGrady. "Dual headed management can kill any project. There was nothing implicit in the album except commercial viability," says McGrady.
"That's why we firstly ran it by hit-master Lawrence Dvoskin of Cool Guy. Give the songs a little tune-up that Jerome would agree with. Then once the songs came into Dan's hands, he really knows how to take musicians to their next level. Jerome let Dan take him down this road.'
So the best single off what is likely to be the best album of 2010 came with that "can-do" spirit right out of the gate. Highly competitive, with just a few people influencing.
"You look at albums today, and they're like certain sprawling, massive, operating systems, trying to be all things to all people. They're so big you wonder what they're actually doing other than trying to co-opt you again."
"Don't get taken in. Let Zeta Vang take you away," says McGrady. "Go ahead. Dance your a-- off. It's ok."
White Lights Go Bang is available on iTunes.
"We just made an album that is... distinctly us. It arose out of a chemistry between Jerome and Dan, and a spirit of heroism that I can proudly say I brought to the mix."
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
