Online Diary (August 2011)
Sep 1, 2011 Latest News
Firstly I would like to publicly thank Angela Cassidy of NOVA Radio for her amazing support before and after the release of ‘Secret’ She was without a doubt a massive contributing factor to its success and I am sincerly grateful xxx
31/08/11
It’s the last day of August, The fairy lights are on that surround the window in my bedroom making it feel like a christmas morning. The weather outside could just as easily be typical of late December rather than the end of a Summer that never really happened at all. As I look around I see the incompleted Rubiks cube waiting on the side… I complete it as to restore harmony where there once was chaos. The pile of clothes on the floor need re-washing and drying. My cat, Stab, has shed all his hair over the end of my duvet where he rests at night… I have some chores to do basically. For breakfast I have a few choices but I know that after some deliberation I will always reach for the that green tin, put 3 slices of bread in the toaster and prepare to grate some mature cheddar… sometimes if I’m feeling continental (and if my housemate Tom hasn’t eaten them all) I might include slices of pork pie to add a little je ne se quoi.
Today I must use my time wisely; by organising my life and completing as many lines of my to-do list as possible! The last of the invoices need sending to Slicethpie and then the singles are in progress. Everything else is pretty inconsiquential… but must still be performed to alliviate any forms of depression that might sink in. I download an image from Facebook to show you, on the 14th September I will be back at The Bedford performing solo acoustic – this will give me the chance to perform some newer material as well as meet some new musicians and play to a fresh audience. >> while you check that out I shall go and feed myself and my cat
30/08/11
Had a radio interview at Southsound Radio this morning in Bristol. It will go out on air next weekend sometime and I will post the interview on here for you to check out. Also had a rehearsal with the band and we played through our set for next Tuesday at The Bedford (London) At the end of the session we worked on Fear as I feel it could be a strong contender for the next single… Here is a recording of the rehearsal from my phone.
Here are a few pictures I have collected over past couple of days. Screenshots from the radio stations that have played Secret so far as well as a newspaper cutting from The Weston Mercury. The board at rehearsals contains songs and our intentions with them for the meantime. It looks like we will record 4 more songs at Abbey Road and then record 2 or 3 songs acoustically elsewhere (such as If I Fall, Real & One Step At A Time) These acoustic tracks will be added to the album too.
…Oh and one more thing… here is a copy of a playlist that Dave from Hafren FM has sent out to be viewed by most of the major record labels apparently. I guess this is for royalties purposes but it should help that they might see my name amongst others that are familiar to them… and wonder, “who is this guy then?” – you never know.
29/08/11
Well August went pretty quick didn’t it?! But what an eventful month it was… My skydive video should be ready to post soon along with a little documentary about the day. Another big thankyou to everyone who sponsored me 
I played at The Coronation Tap last night in Clifton – Bristol which was another event to raise money for the Charlie Derrick Music Bursary (Footprint) and here is a video of a new song I have been testing recently. It is called Fear
Also here is a video of Red Alert by Basement Jaxx from last night too.
It’s been basically a week of gigging. I should be getting the physical copies of the single underway sometime next week. Will finalise some of the details tomorrow once everyone is back at work. Also I will need to wait for money from STP to clear before the printing can begin.
I have a radio interview tomorrow with Southsound Radio in Bristol. I am working mostly on getting exposure over the airwaves at the moment and stockpiling the interviews in the interview section of the site. You can see what has been done so far by clicking HERE
If you are interested in seeing myself and my band performing then we will be at The Bedford (London) on Tuesday 6th September as well as the Fleece & Firkin (Bristol) on Thursday 22nd Sept > tickets are £5 and are available direct from me if you send an email. I can leave them on the door for you ready.
23/08/11
Most of the past few days have been spent celebrating… I am now back down to Earth and ready for phase 2. So here are my thoughts about the single release and I also thought that I’m glad I started off with a single unlike other STP acts who go straight out with the whole album; it was a little like testing the water and I know it will lead to a growing fanbase and in turn to a better return on your investment (which is the most important thing anyway) Some of you might be looking for a quick return – I am sorry but it’s likely to take time if it is to be done properly. I don’t want to rush things and end up with a bad product.
Alright guys!
Hope you are well… Now let’s get things into perspective…
The fact that the single didn’t make a dent in the UK charts doesn’t upset me at all and I want to explain why:
I was already aiming way beyond my reach to attempt it but I knew it was worth a try. I think it’s safe to say I have learned a great deal from the whole experience and I am not finished yet either… The fact that it reached #1 in the Amazon rock charts & #4 in iTunes singer/songwriter charts speaks volumes and I can use this to my advantage when promoting future material. It’s definitely something that not many independant musicians can say they achieved. In my local area, the subject of this release was passed around by word of mouth on a big scale and my name has much more weight now than it did before.
The track took 8 months to finalise – it’s been released for 1 week; there is so much more time for the song to grow on people and make its way into the ears and eyes of new music fans. The video is WAY better than I thought I would be capable of (massive thanks to Rhys Hayward for directing it and being amazing http://www.rhyshayward.com) I’m so happy with the quality of the entire product. REMEMBER that this is the 1st single of many and I have songs I would consider to be MUCH better on the way… things can only get better and I know they will.
The physical copies will be ready in a week or so and they can be pre-ordered on the home page of my website if you would like to get one – there will not be a great deal of profit from it but I will most likely use that to go back into recording – all income from amazon and iTunes goes back to investors (I will need to organise this with STP to get a transfer to you depending on your investment amount)
The only way is up my friends. Everyone who helped promote this single should know I am very grateful
Ryan
The fact the single got where it did can be used in promotional material to hopefully raise a few eyebrows and get some attention. It peaked on day one and didn’t have the momentum to keep going. With this in mind I will aim to plan a 7 day promotion strategy for the next single sometime in the Autumn – I hope this will make sales more consistent and from the back of Secret’s release there should be a lot more eyes on what is coming next…
I will be making 1000 physical copies of the single next week and putting them in various pubs/shops around my local area. I am hoping to be able to sell about 500 of them relatively quickly whilst using the other half mainly for promotional prurposes and reviews etc… the artwork is almost ready and here is a rough idea of what it will look like:
I am putting all relevent info/audio/vid files regarding Secret into one zip file to keep it all safe. I may show you guys everything that went into it very soon. I am now looking to get more radio play using the Amazon and iTunes chart positions as a point of interest. Don’t forget the track is still available to buy and may get a second wind if enough people start hearing it. You never know eh?!
16/08/11
If you have a smartphone, download a QR reader and scanner app… then scan the QR code below. How cool is that!? It will be added to the CD artwork design to bring more traffic to the site as well as on my beer mats (of which I need to order a lot more of)
So yesterday went well; #4 in the iTunes singer/songwriter charts (which is dominated by Ed Sheeran) #1 in the Amazon rock charts (knocking the Foo Fighters off the top spot) and something like #208 in the UK charts. If the momentum stays up then I don’t see how a top 40 placing isn’t possible. It would be the first time a truley independant artist has achieved this I think, making it music history or something?! I’m not gonna over think it in case it doesn’t happen though… Gonna be promoting some more today as well as doing a few chores. The CD artwork needs to be sorted ASAP as well as more business cards and beer mats.
Here is a link to Blog that someone posted – please have a read http://bandmusicreview.blogspot.com/
You can keep an eye on chart position here: currently at 235 but highest so far has been 204 http://ax.phobos.apple.com.edgesuite.net/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wpa/MRSS/topsongs/sf=143444/limit=300/rss.xml
I’m back at thet op of the TalentWatch charts too… click HERE
15/08/11
Release day!! currently at number 6 in the singer/songwriter charts on iTunes too… not bad considering it’s only 1pm. Since the 11th I have just been gigging and working on new songs. The music video is on the home page for you to watch and I made this short video just before midnight last night
It’s all in your hands now. I might do a little bit of promotion each day but I dont want to come across as spammy… There is a lot of support so hopefully I shouldn’t have to do much more myself which I think is better. Anyway it’s been a long journey and there’s plenty further to go. Onwards and upwards!
11/08/11
There is too much to tell you to fit into todays update but I will try. Firstly I went to see Rhys Hayward earlier to check out the finished music video and I was blown away! I can’t wait for you all to see it and I think it captured the songs meaning perfectly… also I didn’t look to bad in it which was what I was worried about most. You will have to wait til Monday to see it.
I have written something for you investors to read – click HERE
I have recorded demos now for the following songs and have been at it for hours: FEAR, REAL, SENSES, MR SELF DOUBT, THE BIGGER PICTURE, TURNING 30 & LITTLE SUN… all of which are still at early stages but a lot of the work has been done. Will wait to meet with the band to see where we go with them. Here is a little video of The Bigger Picture for you to check out. It’s the first song I have ever finished on the piano… I know it’s a little sullen but it’s hard to play upbeat on an intrument you are still struggling with; slowly does it
Tomorrow we will be playing at The Balloon Fiesta in Bristol which should hopefully be a huge crowd and a great chance to get noticed. We (the band) will be rehearsing tomorrow from 3pm and heading to perform for 6pm. If you’re in the area come and say hi as I would love to meet you and get to thank you personally for your investment.
I have had an offer for some gigs in Hawaii!! I will definitely be chasing up on that one so will keep you posted. The phone is going off a lot these days with booking requests and I am struggling to keep up with all the messages I am getting. If I haven’t replied it’s just me playing catch up – I intend to reply to them all personally. I think it’s very important to do so.
I have a collaboration on the cards with a singer local to me called Sarah Edin-Winn… it would be an understatement to say she is a brilliant singer; she is something else! I am looking forward to working on an original piece with her next Monday.
Off to Taunton tonight to play and Mambo Bar which I’m looking forward to a lot. I will be airing some of the new originals as well as cherry picking my favourite covers.
I should have a few more radio interviews on the horizon so keep an eye out for more additions to the INTERVIEWS section of the website.
Only thing left to do is promote the hell out of the release and hope to god that enough people buy it to get into the charts. If it works then anything could be possible. I am prepared for the worst though as I know apathy has a great strangle hold on most as well as financial concerns… but then again it’s only 79p! Again here is the Facebook event to invite all your friends & family to. FACEBOOK EVENT TO INVITE EVERYONE TO
I have an hour now to relax before I head off so gonna spend it with some Sean Lock most likely as he is a comedy legend, maybe even some Stewart Lee. Who knows. Thanks for reading. Over and out
08/08/11
What a week! – loads for you to see and watch and listen too (eventually) I have written a handful of new songs and the latest is called ‘The Bigger Picture‘ I have uploaded all new lyrics to this page on the site http://www.ryaninglis.com/2010/11/lyricsnew/ should you wish to have a little looky. Right here is a link to have a look at the pictures from my skydive:
http://www.ryaninglis.com/2011/08/skydive-5th-august-2011/
There are no words to describe how cool it was… you should just do one for yourself. It will be a little while until the full amount of sponsorship raised can be added together but it is roughly £7,000 in total. Thanks to everyone who put some money in the pot. You can still donate by visiting my just giving page here http://www.justgiving.com/Ryan-Inglis. A video (documentary) of the whole day will be coming soon as well as footage from the jump itself… maybe in a weeks time.
Went to see Roger Styles perform in Bayards Cove yesterday. You should check him out sometime. He really is great to watch and listen to
The filming for the music video was completed today with me singing into the camera… I am not used to doing such a thing but I think I did an OK job. Will be seeing Rhys tomo to see what he has edited together and then it’s most likely gonna be available same time as the single release (fingers crossed)
Every one who wants to help promote the release needs to go HERE and spread the word. The preview video is below for you to see and pass around too
Off to see Jo O Donoghue tonight to finalise the artwork for the physical copies of the single. Lots to do… plenty of time to do it in… but I had better hurry more coming soon. Lots to share with you.
01/08/11
AUGUST already??! Jeez… well this month is the biggest one of the year both personally and professionally. The past few days have been all about gigging and to be honest I have avoided the admin side of things in favour of songwriting which I’m happy to report has spawned some new tracks and potentially the final touches to a few old ones that have been taxing me somewhat. I will record some acoustic demos from home and get these mothers into production. Latest song which I wrote last night is called ‘REAL‘ and it is a fairly simple song about friendship. I have enjoyed performing ‘You’ve Got A Friend’ – Carole King/James Taylor over the past few weeks and wanted to write something of my own which would portray how much a true friend means. I’m hoping it will be as poignant and catchy… currently deciding whether to include a middle 8 or to leave it as Verse/Bridge/Chorus/Verse/Bridge/Chorus/Chorus; nice and short.
‘Fear’ is something that helped me get a few things off my chest at the moment; you may be aware of my skydive which is happening on Friday… I am scared. The song is written from the perspective of fear itself and I’m happy about the lyrics. Just need to check the middle 8 works – The chorus is a straight I / VI / IV / V progression which you will find in tons of catchy, hit songs and the verse uses some tapped harmonics & percussion for the technique side of things. Will post a video or an audio clip when I’m ready. I’ll describe the other songs once they are demo’d to fill you in on what they mean and what I am trying to achieve with thier existence.
I have to keep promoting the single over the next couple of weeks so any help you can afford to lend will be invaluable. I have created a facebook event to invite everyone to http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=232102290162111 A personal video is on the way as well as the music video itself and a ‘making of’ documentary.
I just came across a blog post about me and would like to share it with you. Don’t know who wrote it but it certainly cheered me up
http://sparkster.hubpages.com/hub/Best-Undiscovered-Music-Ryan-Inglis
Here are the latest video stills of the music video
