Great new deals on 3 and 6 hour rehearsal slots and a new “Nightowl” slot 10-12:30..

One day demo deal down to only £60!

The project was kindly supported by Creative Scotland and the Cash Back for Creativity programme , Red Dog Music, Drum Central, Sing For Smiles, The Rotary Club of Portobello , Cocoa Creative Consultants and Out Of Hand distribution and promodiscs.

Imogen has an exceptional ability to find interesting ways to involve her fans in her music videos. This time round she dropped in on some of her Edinburgh based fans (13 of them to be precise) with a camera crew in tow. Making use of the specifics of the location, the on-site piano (of course) and the clothing of her host fans, she set about improvising what would become the scenes of the video.

Squeezing 13 film locations into one day doesn’t leave much time to dilly daddle, and this is a really great music video, so well done Imogen & crew:)

Verden Studios are delighted to announce the young bands and musicians taking part in the Verden Demo Project 2012. Supported by Creative Scotland’s CashBack for Creativity programme, which re-invests the monies seized from criminals back into cultural activities for young people across Scotland, the programme is supported by the Scottish Governments CashBack for Communities Initiative.

The successful applicants benefiting from the project this year are:

Megan D – A very gifted sixteen year old singer/songwriter with a talent for writing insightful poetic lyrics. Inspired by the likes of John Mayer and Bob Dylan.
www.soundcloud.com/megandmusic

Mothertone– A four piece low slung heavy metal/rock group with a more melodic approach to vocal performance than is usually found in this genre. Influences include Black Sabbath, Fu Manchu, T Rex and The Melvins.
www.facebook.com/mothertoneband
Karmataus – A rock trio who refuse to conform to the norm, influenced by the likes of Queens of The Stone Age, White Stripes and the Deftones.
Soundcloud.com/Karmataus
Holly Wilson – Holly is a singer/songwriter proud of her Scottish heritage and not afraid to make use of her accent. She is a big fan of acts such as Frightened Rabbit, Eddi Reader and Amy Macdonald.
Facebook.com/hhollywilson
The Southpaws – Are a trio who like to explore the harmonies through their own blend of blues, funk and rock.
www.facebook.com/TheSouthpaws
Nic Tate and the Sharks – Are an all-female all-singing harmonious 3-piece featuring guitars, drums and cello. Their influences include KT Tunstall, King Blues and Tom Waits.
Soundcloud.com/izzyflower

David McDonald, Youth Arts Manager at Creative Scotland, said; “It’s brilliant to see such a diverse range of young musical talent that will benefit from working with Verden Studios. In this Year of Creative Scotland CashBack for Creativity has enabled eighteen recording studios across the country to open their doors to young musicians, giving them access to professional standard recording facilities. Creating professional demos will provide our young musicians with an opportunity to build on their passion for music, learn about the music industry and who knows may be even take their careers to the next level.”

Pledge Music is a ‘fan engagement platform’ aimed at unsigned bands looking to finance their recording projects. Established in 2009, it already has an extensive roster of acts that demonstrate that it works. A lot of unsigned bands come through our doors here at Verden Studios so this concept really caught our attention.

This beautifully formed post-Internet, post-music industry concept allows bands to run a fundraising campaign that involves their fans right from the start. The method ensures that any unnecessary middlemen are kept well out of the equation, helps musicians to retain the rights to their music and allows artists to raise money for their favourite charity.

Here’s how it works:

1. Launch your campaign.

This involves creating a profile @ pledgemusic.com, providing fans with some background on what the target is, and what the money is for. The campaign is time limited (30, 60 or 90-day) so you’ve got to be ready to promote the idea from the outset using all available means!

2. Engage your fans.

Your pledgemusic profile allows you to offer ‘exclusives’ to your pledgers whilst the campaign is active; MP3s, videos, press releases; that sort of thing.

3. End of campaign.

Your campaign is a success as soon as you reach your pledge target. If this happens (pledgemusic reports a 73% success rate) the money is deducted from your pledgers accounts. Pledge music take 15% and the rest is yours unless you want to donate to charity. If you don’t reach your target, your fans are not charged, so there should be no hard feelings.

So, if you or your band have something of a steady fan-base, pledgemusic is a great way for you to fund your next recording in a way that benefits both you and your fans. There are already lots of UK-based bands making use of the pledge platform; Orkestra Del Sol completed a successful campaign for their latest album Lung Capacity and my own band Lorraine McCauley & The Borderlands are currently running one to help launch our debut album Light In The Darkest Corners.

http://www.pledgemusic.com/artists/orkestradelsol

http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/lorrainemccauley

If you want to read more about pledgemusic, check these on-line reviews:

http://bandinabox.freehostia.com/shows/2010/11/pledge/

http://www.lyricloungereview.co.uk/robs-blog/pledge-music/