Demos--Are Labels Listening?

This morning, I had the fortunate opportunity to be passed a demo by Alastair Ottesen, a self-described "disciple of classic pop and folk artists such as Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, John Lennon, and Elliott Smith." Indeed, his vocals were reminiscent of the late, great Elliott Smith and the recordings also showcased the artist's work on guitar, piano, harmonium and organ.

The 5-song EP was entitled "You Can No Longer Blame it On the Machines" and I thoroughly enjoyed it enough to visit the artist's official website and bandcamp pages to try and hear more or look into tour info to get a good idea about the artist. I soon found out that the first track off his latest EP, "Life is But a Dream" is up for free, and another self-titled album, released a year ago is also available for streaming and purchase.

Above is the cover art for the latest EP, which I was assigned to listen to. Ottesen is one of many Brooklyn-based musicians trying to get exposure. As I read the short cover sheet and listened to the Self-Released EP, I wondered about record labels and unsolicited demos. I have been on many label websites from JagJaguwar (Bon Iver, Women, Parts & Labor) to Sub Pop (Fleet Foxes, CSS, Band of Horses) to bigs like UMG and WMG.

Under FAQ's, both Universal and Warner simply say that they do not accept unsolicited demo material and that an artist must be recommended to one of their labels by a well-known lawyer, manager, producer, radio dj, etc. Whereas, Sub Pop says that although they don't listen to demos every day, bands are welcome to send them in. However, they do mention that it is extremely rare for a band to get signed on the strength of a demo alone. JagJaguwar states that they "do accept demos and do listen to everything [they] receive". They also leave specific instructions for digital submissions should a band decide to submit their music online instead of in physical form.

The process through which artists go from virtually unknown to managed and publicized, with licensing deals lined up certainly does not come with a road map for the artist nor the label. And now, with technology that makes it easier than ever before to share and play music, the industry is becoming increasingly interesting as a jungle of up and coming artists try to be heard.