New Blog Thoughts....
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I haven't posted a new blog on the site in a long time. I've been updating our MySpace blog frequently but I better start updating this one, as well.
Things have been insane for me, as of late. But all in a good way. There are a lot of things that the staff and I are working on for the future. Some are really big and some are more at the groundlevel.
The big thing is we need to update this site. We are being held back on doing a lot of things because we are trapped in this body (design). But before we can go to a new design, we need to make sure that are new ideas are incorporated. Otherwise, we'll have a new site with old ideas.
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Posted by tim.towner on February 28, 2008
Buffet....
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I like to watch shows or biography's on successful people because it motivates me to keep doing what I'm doing. I was watching a show on Warren Buffet tonight and it made me realize how much the buying/selling of stock is similar to being an A&R guy.
Before I tell you why, I'll explain who Warren Buffet is, in case you don't know. He is the 2nd richest man in the world behind Bill Gates. Buffet started his own business when he was like 15 or 16 years old. Eventually, he got into buying and selling stock, which made him his billions.
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Posted by tim.towner on September 23, 2007
Parallel Universes...
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Before I get called insane, I watched a program on the Discovery channel tonight. It was about how the universe was created, the Big Bang and other eye-opening proven theories.
Now, after watching this show, I understood why there are psychics, ghosts, deja vu, the Bermuda Triangle, spirits, angels and all the other supernatural stuff that goes on in the world. It opened up my eyes.
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Posted by tim.towner on September 19, 2007
Industry Reaction....
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As most of you know, I decided to post an online interaction I had with Jason Tate over the weekend. I thought a lot about it and decided to do it. I had no idea how the industry or visitors to the site would take it.
For the most part, the reaction was in support. There were several people that were neutral and I didn't have any negative reactions, so far (aside from AP's side, naturally). Understandably, I had some industry people that didn't want to take any sides, which I totally understand. It's a tough business and not many people want to take that chance to offend a popular webzine.
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Posted by tim.towner on September 18, 2007
Surreal....
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I sorta took this weekend "off" from music. Football season started and there was a ton of games to watch. But I really shouldn't have. I have a ton of stuff to do.
In the last month, the site has been mentioned on WarpedTour.com and in the current issure of Alternative Press magazine. In both cases, it was because of a band giving us a shoutout. The Hint and Dropout Year were the bands that were nice enough to do that.
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Posted by tim.towner on September 10, 2007
Warped and Beyond....
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Warped Tour
I’m finally back home after spending 8 long weeks on Warped. This was my 3rd full Warped Tour, in a row. Most people don’t even finish their first one. It’s extremely demanding and very hard on your body. Not only do you sit in the hot sun and humidity all day, but you have to move your tent, merch and whatever else, back and forth.
I worked the Immortal Records (Scary Kids, ACOP, Hot Rod Circuit) tent and ran the SmartPunk street team. This was my first Warped where I had double duty. I thought I bit more than I could chew, during the first week, but it quickly worked out. I also had to try to run the site but the staff definitely picked up my slack.
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Posted by tim.towner on August 29, 2007
Upside Down World....
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It's been a few weeks since I last updated my blog. I am doing my third straight Warped Tour and it's amazingly hard to get internet time.
I'm working for Immortal Records this year and helping out the SmartPunk street team. It's very overwhelming at times but just builds my experience and connections. Warped Tour is one of those jobs that you definitely get a sense of self-accomplishment when you're done.
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Posted by tim.towner on July 17, 2007
Calm Before The Storm....
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Well, I have one full week at home before I head off to my third straight Warped Tour. This is what it's like:
It's 8 weeks of music boot camp.
It's 8 weeks of organized chaos.
It's 8 weeks of going deaf.
It's 8 weeks of sleeping in a coffin in a bus.
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Posted by tim.towner on June 18, 2007
Crazy Times....
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I went to watch a local show that featured The Cover Up and our Top 30 Unsigned band The Stiletto Formal. Also, LoveHateHero played with Raining & OK.
The music attorney who's most famous client is/was Hawthorne Heights was there checking out The Cover Up. I told Trevor, the lead singer of Raining & OK, to give their demo to him. They did. I send Dan an email to make sure he checks them out and he already replied. Good sign.
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Posted by tim.towner on June 11, 2007
State Of Mind....
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I can tell my nerves are getting a little jumpy, lately. The pressure of accepting the Warped Tour job is already being felt. I have a lot to try to do before I leave. It scares me that I won't be able to baby the site for hours every day. That really scares me.
I'm a Virgo and they are known to be control freaks. And I probably do fit that profile. I'm trying to delegate more responsibilities to staff members. But there is that part of me that wants to look over their shoulder to make sure everything is done on time. But I'm not a dick about things. How can I be when they are doing it for free? Hell, so am I! Plus, I'm not a dick :)
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Posted by tim.towner on June 06, 2007
Warped, Again....
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Back in 2005, I did Warped Tour with Greeley Estates. After it was over, I said I would never do it again. It is one of the hardest experiences of your life. I just found out that I'll be doing my third straight Warped Tour.
I had zero ambitions to go on Warped, this year. The site is taking up a ton of my time, as it is. But I was approached about a possible job and the idea kept nibbling at my brain. I then listed all the advantages and disadvantages. The advantages far outweighted the disadvantages. I would be stupid not to go on Warped.
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Posted by tim.towner on June 04, 2007
Changes....
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Again, it has been a few days since I posted a blog. I always seem to write it down as a thing "to do" but it still gets missed.
I just read one of the six "donts" of running a website and one of them was not updating your blog. I even tell bands to make sure they update their blogs. I am guilty.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 30, 2007
Greeley Lakes....
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On Thursday night, I went to watch my buddy's band play called Raining & OK. They were opening the Madina Lake show. I remember that Madina played on the Greeley tour for about 2 weeks so I text Ryan, the lead singer, and told him that they were in town. I was hoping to see Ryan.
Ryan says that the guys are doing pre-production but he'll sneak out to the show, since Madina played really late. So that was good.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 25, 2007
Crazy Day....
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This day has just been bizarre for me. It started in the weeee hours of the morning. I normally take a nap around 8pm and get up around 11pm and work on the site until 3am. Well, this morning, I fell asleep at 8pm but didn't wake up till 230am. So, I just decided to stay up the rest of the day. I actually really liked that. I was wide awake until around 8pm. But that was the beginning of my crazy day.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 23, 2007
Bleed Me....
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Last night, I went to two rock shows. The first one was two bands in the Top 30 Unsigned list. It was Lydia and The Maine.
After that, we had to go across town to downtown Phoenix to see another local show. But this had a special acoustic performance with Jim Adkins, the lead singer of Jimmy Eat World. He's very big in the indie scene, here in Phoenix. Definitely a supporter of local music.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 20, 2007
Kick My Butt....
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Alright, I've been behind on a lot of things with the site, including my blog. This is a huge learning experience and I'm starting to get caught up on things. I was up till 430am, this morning, catching up on emails. I got about halfway done.
There is one thing that I wanted to blog about that has been bothering me when I go to bands sites. I thought I would just voice my opinion and why not to do it.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 17, 2007
Slacking....
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It's been a few days since I made a blog entry. I am trying to make this a daily or once every 2 day routine. This website has made my life a organizational test. I would give myself a C-.
I wanted to let bands know how important it is to have accurate contact information on their MySpace, Purevolume and websites. I've already have a few A&R guys contact me for a band's contact information. They stated that the information was hard to find or not reliable.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 12, 2007
Stressful Interview....
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A few hours ago, we finished our interview with Tom of MxPx. It was a very stressful day, for me because of the interview. And Tom was extremely nice about everything.
Both my interviewers, here in Phoenix, had finals all week and 3 finals today. So I had to help with the questions and I had to make the phone calls to their tour manager to get all the times set. Time was winding down and all the questions were not done. But we finished them at the end.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 09, 2007
I Don't Think Normally....
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People that know me will tell you that I always think 'outside the box'. I don't know why that seems to typify me. I always try to find a twist to make an idea not so normal.
This site is the prime example of my strange way of thinking. Sometimes, I do things that goes against the grain with this site. I made it a point NOT to have the word 'punk' in the site name. I made it a point NOT to look like a news site. I made it a point to NOT cover the major label bands. I set myself up for failure.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 07, 2007
So Much Promise....
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It's been brought to my attention from several people that they actually read this. Well, before I begin, please excuse the very first post. I was extremely stressed out and on another world. I think my mental state has returned to normal.
The site was in a very big review meeting on Friday. It was to determine if I had to worry about our advertising or not. I really don't feel like making calls to random music companies to try to get them to advertise with us. The site is so new that I think it'll be hard. Even though our world ranking is skyrocketing, lately.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 05, 2007
Blinded By the Lights....
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It's been a couple of days since I made a post in this blog. I'm finding that I really need to buckle down and get organized.
Running a website has been a huge eye-opening experience for me. I never knew how challenging it was. And with all the attention the site has been getting, it really has put more pressure on me. But I'm having fun and it definitely doesn't feel like a job. This is my job but it doesn't feel like it. Yet.
I'm so far behind on my emails and MySpace messages. I will spend a lot of hours catching up and I hope to be caught up by Monday. I thank all of you for your support and I promise I'll get to your emails.
Someone told me that, eventually, I won't be able to answer everything with a personal message. I can't imagine that day because I always try to be personable in everything I do. Being friendly and available for people is a huge part of a person's/bands success. I will find a solution for that.
I can see myself going to high schools and colleges and giving speeches about the music business. That would be sweet! Or even letting them submit their demos at a music conference or something. I think that would be fun.
I am going to try to see my parents and sister, this weekend. They only live about 20 miles away and I never see them. Now, with the site, I don't even see friends. It takes so much of my time. Even with 10 staff members, I still have a ton to do. Just to give out assignments is a whole task in itself.
I guess I sound like I'm complaining about this. I'm really not. I'm having fun. This is just a whole new experience for me. I'm a deer in headlights and I"m waiting for the car to pass, so I can continue my life journey. But, dammit, I'm still frozen from the lights!
Posted by tim.towner on May 03, 2007
Calming Seas....
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My first blog post was a definite sign that I was stressed. The days and weeks building up to the full site release was a pressure I really never experienced before.
Today was a relaxing day. I didn't really do too much besides planning more things and talking to people on AIM. My screen name is definitely getting out there. I don't mind. I will just have to go invisible more often. I want to be accessible for people but there is a lot of work to be done.
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Posted by tim.towner on May 01, 2007
A Crazy Reality....
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Wow....That's all I can say. My world has been turned upside down in the last 2 months. This site has not only affected my life but the staff and bands on the Top 30 list. I never anticipated the industry reaction. I never felt so overwhelmed.
I'm a person of simplicity. The people that know me will tell you that I'm pretty quiet and I like to stay behind-the-scenes (just ask Greeley Estates). I'm finding I have to be more assertive and vocal when you run a website. I'm adjusting, though.
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Posted by tim.towner on April 29, 2007
