Finally! P&J gets behing the local music scene...

[Frosty Jack]

Big article on Page 3 of today's P & J. Thank God they've finally got their fingers on the pulse of Aberdeen's vital and cutting edge music scene.

Press and Journal Article

reckon one of them works for Aberdeen Journals?

[RicoAUBL]

*slaps forehead* oh dear, oh dear

less of an article and more of a classified ad

some old dudes want to start a band... but dont have a singer..

it's exciting stuff

just a thought...

but can i ask EVERYONE

to click where it says e-mail the editor

and write something about the bands you like from aberdeen

and this website and ours (of course) www.aubl.net

chuck your bands one in there if you're in one

etc. etc.

[The Ghost Of Fudge]

yeah. i saw that. bit of a joke realy

hey, let's storm the P&J like we were all going to storm northsound.

go on, it's a nice day.

[lepeep]

"The four-piece band play cover versions of songs by Coldplay, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, the Eagles and Bryan Adams."

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....*huh ?...wah ? ...oh*...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[ghost]

Jesus, they gave that article more space than Del's weekly column!

[Guest Bob]

I mailed them this:

USE THIS E-MAIL ADDRESS: pj.editor@ajl.co.uk

Today, the Press and Journal had an article on a local band called Mid-Life Crisis. The local music scene regarded this coverage as so unusual and noteworthy that news of it soon spread like wildfire. Aberdeen journals is covering a local band! came the cry, and so naturally I went to investigate. I think its great that a band like Mid-Life-Crisis can get such fantastic exposure and support when all they needed was a classified advert. What baffles me is why Aberdeen Journals ignores the rest of our citys vibrant and exciting music scene while writing 1, 000 word articles for a group of well meaning amateurs. Quite frankly, it's pathetic. When is Aberdeen Journals going to start supporting Aberdeens music scene instead of giving us the cold shoulder?

[ghost]

Angry letter emailed. Shit, I'm late for the MIDI class!

[Frosty Jack]

Angry letter emailed. Shit' date=' I'm late for the MIDI class![/quote']

I'll certainly look out for that one in the letters page tomorrow -

Shit,

I'm late for the Midi class!

Yours,

Disgusted of Danestone.

Seriously, a load of emails could be a very good idea indeed. Wake them up a bit, and if they get enough of them, they might realise the potential increase in new, younger readers if they start paying attention to Aberdeen's music community.

[Hog]

Fucks sake, that "article" is like something from the Scot-ads

[framheim]

just emailed them this:

Hi, it is with great dismay i read an article in your paper today about a band called mid life crisis who play covers of popular rock songs and are in need of a singer. While i appreciate their predicament surely the space you gave to this band would have been better used to promote the young bands in Aberdeen who actually put time and energy into creating their own music and to whom it is more than just a bit of fun and a hobby.

Aberdeen is incredibly lucky in that it has a large and varied local music scene disproportionate to the size of it's population. With the increased interest in Scottish pop music in general just now due to the success of bands like Franz Ferdinand and Snow Patrol surely now is the time for the Press and Journal and Evening Express to fully get behind the local bands in Aberdeen(not just the covers bands) and give them the support they deserve. Bands such as Eric Euan(recently voted best band in aberdeen at a local music awards night), Politik, Dedalus, My Minds Weapon, The X-certs, Contra, Lift, Red Man Walking, Sidca, Masamune, and so on all deserve regular coverage in your papers because they put everything they have into creating music and trying to make a career out of it not just a hobby. If you can send a reporter to a highland league game which attracts a hundred people then surely you can send them to watch local bands who attract similar crowds?

Another point i'd like to address was the continued absence of any coverage of the GoNorth music festival in your paper. This is a yearly music showcase festival which attracts bands from all over Scotland and Europe as well as bringing record industry people up from all over the UK. The festival is usually centered on Belmont Street and is advertised and promoted well in advance yet receives no coverage or acknowledgment in the P & J or the Evening Express despite being supported by the UK music industry as a whole.

I appreciate there was a feature recently on Fat Hippy Records but they are not just an unusual case in Aberdeen, they are the norm. Currently there are a number of young people who are trying to establish record labels in the North East and all could use the support of a newspaper that was prepared to finally acknowledge what's been happening in Aberdeen for over ten years now, a music scene to be proud of, a music scene that is just as healthy as Glasgow or Manchester's and a music scene that is ours and needs your support.

Thanks

David Officer

[Guest Jake Wifebeater]

A bunch of has-beens in a covers band gets a huge ad? Fuck's sake, why do we even bother?

[Guest Bob Double Jack]

Jesus' date=' they gave that article more space than Del's weekly column![/quote']

Del's weekly column is in the Evening Express.

also, from the type of article, it would have been the band that would have contacted the paper for the article, rather than vice versa. I know a lot of people get on the back of the paper for their coverage of the local scene, but there was a full page article on the mighty Fat Hippy records a few weeks back (which no doubt everyone who complained about it will complain again.)

Did anyone notice Driveblind got a review on page 3 a couple of weeks ago for their Drummonds gig before supporting the Charlatans? Didn't one of them work for them?

PArdon my cynicism.

http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=149235&command=displayContent&sourceNode=149218&contentPK=9590294

(by the way, yes i know that they are signed to a major label and this may have contibuted to the article - there are certain wrangles between getting stories and getting them printed).

[Guest Stripey]

What exactly do you expect the P+J to do? Like Bob DoubleJack said, those guys got that article either because they know someone who works there, or most likely, because they called up the paper.

Do you expect them to send someone down to every single one of the 100's of gigs that go on? These aren't special events. I'm sorry but I think you are just acting like you deserve media exposure.

The GoNorth thing, all someone had to do was ring up a few newspapers and get them to come down and cover it.

What exactly do you think the papers should be doing to cover the local scene?

[framheim]

the p and j have always been exceptionally keen to print any rumour regarding driveblind and i have no doubt that this is probably due to a member working for them at one point. can't remember which one it was who worked for them.

it doesn't matter that the band contacted them, why print that? when we were organising an all day gig at the beach ballroom we sent a press release to the p and j and the evening express to try and obtain sponsorship and they refused to even talk to us and this was with a man on the inside fighting our case(plus it was for charity). so don't take one article about fat hippy as anything other than a token fucking gesture. plus it was a tad patronising as well. as all p and j music articles seem to be, they seem to think it's all some kind of phase people go through. humour them and then they'll go away.

hopefully if people send them well constructed letters and emails then they might start to get the idea.

[Guest Bob]

"Did anyone notice Driveblind got a review on page 3"

I'm sure Driveblind did since one of them used to WORK fro Aberdeen Journals explaining said coverage.

[Guest Bob]

the p and j have always been exceptionally keen to print any rumour regarding driveblind and i have no doubt that this is probably due to a member working for them at one point. can't remember which one it was who worked for them.

it doesn't matter that the band contacted them' date=' why print that? when we were organising an all day gig at the beach ballroom we sent a press release to the p and j and the evening express to try and obtain sponsorship and they refused to even talk to us and this was with a man on the inside fighting our case(plus it was for charity). so don't take one article about fat hippy as anything other than a token fucking gesture. plus it was a tad patronising as well. as all p and j music articles seem to be, they seem to think it's all some kind of phase people go through. humour them and then they'll go away.

hopefully if people send them well constructed letters and emails then they might start to get the idea.[/quote']

I'm with you 100%, remember the disappointment of the Beach Ballroom event never happening, and even though you didn't mention Point of Origin in your letter I still think you're alright. Haha!

[framheim]

What exactly do you expect the P+J to do? Like Bob DoubleJack said' date=' those guys got that article either because they know someone who works there, or most likely, because they called up the paper.

Do you expect them to send someone down to every single one of the 100's of gigs that go on? These aren't special events. I'm sorry but I think you are just acting like you deserve media exposure.

The GoNorth thing, all someone had to do was ring up a few newspapers and get them to come down and cover it.

What exactly do you think the papers should be doing to cover the local scene?[/quote']

i expect them to acknowledge it and to support it. we do deserve media attention. obivously i don't expect them to send someone to every gig that happens. but some serious articles and reviews wouldnt' go amiss. don't pretend that all it takes for the p and j to cover something is just to ring them, they are not interested. it's been tried. they fob you off or get it wrong. they need to realise that it's serious.

[Afro Droid]

Just sent this:

I writing to express my dismay that your newspaper found today's page 3 article on the band 'Mid-Life Crisis' news-worthy, especially given the number of original, exciting acts this city produces. Aberdeen's local music scene far surpasses any other in Scotland.

I'm sure that MLC are a competant group of musicians, and wish them the best of luck in their search for a singer, but as an active contributor to Aberdeen's music scene I find it insulting that the best our local newspaper can do in terms of coverage of our scene is an article on an amateur covers band.

Aberdeen's music scene is one of the most vibrant, busy and diverse in the country, with many local acts taking their music across the UK and the world, with little to no help from local media AT ALL. A recent article on Fat Hippy Records were condenscending and inacurate. This city's musical export does not begin and end with Driveblind.

I hope you can see what this city has to offer and start to give the hard work that a number of people do the recognition that it deserves - people like Dave Stewart at the Foyer, and Brian Youngson of Fudge fanzine - it's these people, after all, that help kids get off the street by giving them the opportunity to do something positive and creative.

[purplefrodo]

I don't know about you but i always thought the point of a local newspaper having journalists was so they could find what was going on in the local area...not just 'serious' news like "the stonehaven old peoples fund are organising a charity jumble sale this weekend" but also sport, music etc. So therfor sending a journalist to a gig once a week doesn't seem like a lot of hassle to me...or maybe i'm just ignorant. I just think its a sad day when the public has to phone the newspapers to get any decent articles published.

[Guest Ibid]

It depends if they have musically inclined staffer writing their music page. The Northern Scot at this end of the NE always has good coverage of both original and cover bands. They particulary like The Method, Crunch, The Blue Gum Ears and Small Enlosed Area. Mind you, the further West you go, the more diverse the music scenes get. While Aberdeen has a lot of great bands, it's a little limited in diversity.

If you get on at them enough they will write an article. I think the charity angle on this story swung it as a human interest thing. You have to remember, the P&J is a newpaper, not a fanzine. Although they could do a bit more.

[framheim]

Mind you' date=' the further West you go, the more diverse the music scenes get. While Aberdeen has a lot of great bands, it's a little limited in diversity.

[/quote']

how so? granted there's large amount of punk and metal bands but there is also a diverse range of other music in aberdeen.

[jester1470]

If ypu want things like the Press and Journal, Evening Express to do a peice on local music then get the music to them, invite them to gig, send them press releases when something big happens, phone them up when there's an event. Sometimes you'll get success, sometimes you won't. These people will not come for you, you have to go to them !! I've managed to get quite good coverage for the act I manage including several pieces, and even a full page interview in the Evening Express. It's about approaching them and doing it professionally, send out your demo with professional photo's and a well written press release. Don't treat them like the bad guy's because they don't show do a piece on your band, they won't do everything, but they might do more. Maybe the reason that sometimes they're not doing a piece on every band is because they don't see something newsworthy about every band, they won't do a piece on your band unless there's a reason for it !!

Cheers

Stuart

[Afro Droid]

If ypu want things like the Press and Journal' date=' Evening Express to do a peice on local music then get the music to them, invite them to gig, send them press releases when something big happens, phone them up when there's an event. Sometimes you'll get success, sometimes you won't. [/quote']

More often than not, you don't. I contacted both the EE and P&J when Psycho A Go-Go toured with The Wildhearts (who had a top 20 single around that time), and they weren't interested. Ditto when Neil Leyton has been in this country.

EDIT: And I was working as a press officer for RGU at the time, I knew all the journalists, they just simply weren't interested in covering anything other than the blandest AOR and cover acts.

[jester1470]

More often than not' date=' you don't. I contacted both the EE and P&J when Psycho A Go-Go toured with The Wildhearts (who had a top 20 single around that time), and they weren't interested. Ditto when Neil Leyton has been in this country.

EDIT: And I was working as a press officer for RGU at the time, I knew all the journalists, they just simply weren't interested in covering anything other than the blandest AOR and cover acts.[/quote']

I wouldn't classify Jo as bland AOR and she isn't a cover act but she has got coverage, she was covered when she played with Marillion, when she played with Midge Uere and an interview. I also knew the journalists at the Jpurnals and have never had a problem getting coverage, it may be that the music bothe the Wildhearts and Psycho a Go Go were playing isn't generally the kind of music that they perceive the readership of their publications listening to, that's not a dig at you but they wioll paly to their target market. I've never had too much problems getting them to listen, you don't always get a response, but soemthimes you do, and thats the only way to do it, keep trying. If you hit them just before they go to press you may get a piece too as it gives them something to fil;l the space. We've not had luck with every press release we've sent to the P&J, but I'd reckon we've had about 1/3rd success rate which is pretty good comeback so to say they're not interested isn't true !

Cheers

Stuart

[Afro Droid]

I wouldn't classify Jo as bland AOR and she isn't a cover act but she has got coverage' date=' she was covered when she played with Marillion, when she played with Midge Uere and an interview.[/quote']

Argh - don't get me wrong, I wasn't suggesting she was, I think she's great.

it may be that the music bothe the Wildhearts and Psycho a Go Go were playing isn't generally the kind of music that they perceive the readership of their publications listening to, that's not a dig at you but they wioll paly to their target market.

You've probably got a point, but top 20 single ya know?