Last year, I had a chance to attend a "metal meet-up" during New England Metal Fest weekend. A panel of experts led by Metal Blade owner Brian Slagel talked about everything from how to sell a record to how to promote it and get bands tours. It was very insightful to see their perspective on these issues, and while some of the topics they talked about didn't directly concern me, . It looks like it's happening again. During the NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers) convention, there will be another metal discussion titled "The Current State of the Metal Marketplace" being held on Sunday, May 16th. The panel line-up features some heavy hitters in the metal business world:
Group Leader
– Brian Slagel, Metal Blade Records
Participants
– Pat Egan, Relapse Records
– Vaughn Lewis, Manager, Killswitch Engage
– Austin Stephens, Roadrunner Records
– Bram Teitelman, Metal Insider/The Syndicate
– Sarah Wefald, EMI Label Services/Caroline Distribution
This should be a must for anybody looking to work in the industry, or if you happen to be in a band and want to get educated on how things work. NARM is offer a special metal package for $99 ($49 for students!) which includes this panel, a full day of Crash Course lessons which includes a crazy amount of topics, as well as a cocktail party (translation: professional rager!). Here is all the info.
