Onstage Trivia News - About IndieBiz.com - DuckMusic.com

In 1993, I was in college at the University of Memphis working on my degree in Commercial Music. I also had a job coordinating street promotion around the region for a well known promotion company out of Los Angeles.

While all of my friends were interning at various local operations, being forced to sleep on the studio couch between recording sessions, and basically being abused by the established industry, I was promoting major label bands, hanging out with major label bigwigs, and having lots of fun. It was very exciting...at least during the beginning.

I didn't see it right away, but I was part of the major label machine. For most of these guys, it was all business.

I was excited to be working with the musicians that I was hearing on the radio, but my supervisor's only concern was increasing the bottom line. Even when bands were in the Top 10 and selling 50,000 albums or more a week, our results were never good enough.

I don't have a problem with working hard, but the product we were pushing was anything but music. I was just glad to be there while most of the people I worked with would have been just as happy if we'd been coordinating taste tests in local grocery stores.

The situation got so frustrating that I eventually left. If I had wanted to totally ditch art and worry only about the bottom line, I would have gotten involved with finance or accounting.

I used the knowledge I had picked up and started collecting songs from bands I knew and releasing them on cassettes and CDs for promotion. Unfortunately, there were only so many bands that I knew.

I wasn't quite finished with my degree and had free computer access, so I put up a page on the University web server. I needed a name for my new "company," so I named it "Kathode Ray" after the cathode ray tube that televisions contain.

Musicians are often one the the first groups to pick up on technology, so I soon discovered that I was not alone. It was definitely the start of something, but I had no idea how big it would be until a few years later.

What started out as a way for me to kill time between classes and pick up a little extra money has become my career.

Thanks to being in the right place at the right time, the Internet Revolution, and lots of hard work, today Kathode Ray consists of a publishing division, a record label, and a promotion/marketing consulting company. The companies that I once worked for now hire my company and our client list includes several well known names.

Kathode Ray Music specializes in guerrilla marketing campaigns for companies that are looking for new and cost-effective ways to compete in today's marketplace.

IndieBiz.com is a low cost consulting option for independent musicians and labels. We offer IndieBiz members the same benefits our corporate clients receive, but at a fraction of the price. In fact, IndieBiz clients get a lot more.

Kathode Ray Music isn't just another company bubbling under the surface. We don't just sell dreams or ego strokes. This is the real music business.

Take a look at what our clients say. Take a look at what the industry has to say about us with their comments and press.

We have the resources to take your musical career to a new level. If you're willing to work, we have what you need.
-- Gabe Linden