The Making of the Manbox EP
For those of you who don't know, Manbox (which equals Mansions + Weatherbox) have a self-titled EP available in crazy limited CD-R format.
How do you make a Manbox EP? Here's how:
1. Quickly have two complete strangers record an EP of songs via the internet with 2 completely different recording programs...one of those programs being terrible.
2. Burn 200 cdrs (well, have a sad intern do it...guess what interns...there's never going to be any more openings in the music business...EVER! We tricked you into being a cdr and social networking slave!)
3. Spray paint 200 cdrs. (do not open window if you wanna have a "brain party")
4. Find a friend of a friend's photobucket page and then ask them if you can use one of their drawings for free. Send them some cd promos from 2001 as payment.
5. Cut a stencil of this drawing.
6. Have another "brain party" and spray paint 200 cardboard cd cases
7. put a giant Doghouse sticker on the back (this is called "branding" If you don't know what that is you don't know anything about business and shouldn't be running your own spray paint cdr label)
8. stamp all the cardboard cd cases with a doghouse logo on the spine..."double branding!"
9. print out some cd inserts on a color printer which is mostly out of color ink. This will give the project a "vintage" feel. Making something vintage makes it more credible and you'll be able to sell the product to an older demographic. (you'll probably even get a great review
on "in-the-know websites" like pitchfork, stereogum and AOL Music!
10. Have a dude randomly draw something awesome for the project. Find a low resolution jpeg of this and print out a blurry insert with the tracklisting on it. If it is blurry then it is mostly likely extremely "difficult" to read. If things are difficult, then they are challenging and therefore "experimental" "music" "experimental music" is big right now... so guess what...you've just "branded" yourself to a new "target demographic"..this is called "music marketing" and "juicing the goose"
11. find some yarn in your office. Instead of throwing out the yarn, cut up 200 pieces of it and stick those in the cardboard cases. This is what we call a "mystery item" "mystery" is a type of business model. Do you know who Nine Inch Nails are? Thought so...guess what??...you fell for a "mystery item business model" and didn't even know it. Enjoy listening to Pretty Hate Machine!!!...even if you don't like it?
Labels: limited edition, Mansions, Weatherbox, webstore
posted by Kyle @ 11:25 AM
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