Friday, July 16, 2010

Websites to Promote Your Music w/ Reviews



 Reviews of all the websites. 
by FroBot

Please be aware, that I may have made some mistakes when going through, and by all means, search deeper into these websites. Due to compatibility issues with my computer, add ons, mac vs windows, etc....things can go wrong for me, but erroneous for you. These links will go straight to my profile page.

Also, please read my blog all about these websites - http://djfrobot.blogspot.com/2010/07/frobots-5-day-journey-to-promote-2.html

1. Last.fm

Review : This one has a nice RSS feed. Make sure to clean out your favorite artists after making it because it automatically puts favorites based off of keywords from your BIO and profile info...and its almost never correct. It looks bad to have all these favorites of bands with 0 hits and not even music uploaded. There are tons of great groups to join. I found some cool ones about ableton, and funky house...other good stuff too. When I looked through the groups, some had some really cool conversations going on too, and totally underground tracks. Also, this website seems to hit really well even after 2 days...one of the best actually. So I would really recommend checking out other artists on this website, and working from within here. It seems hopeful!

2. Artistserver.com 

Review : This is another nice little website. It has a nice place to upload pictures. You cant use HTML links on the main page...but there is a button that says HOMEPAGE at the top, so it can get you to your main page. It also has a place to blog, so if you are running a blog, you can post some of your blogs on your own webpage, and its just a quick copy and paste from your website...pictures included. This was really handy! Its a good place to meet other self releasing artists, and not so much in the way of groups. They do have a charts section, which has their best electronic music based off of really specific genres...which is nice for finding exactly what you want. They also have a forum sections, and it looks like the category called music has some cool mixes in it too...but not much conversation going on. This also has some RSS feeds, I connected Twitter.

3. Soudclick.com

Review : This is a nice little website which returned a couple hits right after opening the profile without doing much...so, it seemed hopeful. This has a nice little feature where you can point youtube videos straight to your account, and then even decide which one is on your main page....like an inpage video playlist. This was neat. I was able to direct a bunch of videos. It also has photos. There arent groups or favorites or anything but you can subscribe to artists. They have a charts list where you can check on small genres...and always have a top list of each genre. You will also have a USER account and ARTIST account when using this website.


4. Reverbnation.com

Review : This website is really great. I knew about this one before, and has all the tools you could ever need to promote yourself. This however is not a dance based site, so it is filled with a lot of indie bands...which is still cool. They can help you distribute if you like, however I have never used their system so I cannot vouch for it. It has a great way to connect straight to the artists facebook account just via a link...and only to an artist page...which is nice. If you want RSS they got it. You also can become fans straight on reverb nation, I am just not sure how many artists besides HUGE artists are using this for their fan connection. It looks really nice though. This one does provide nice hits, I had it set up a little before but never used it. Somehow, I already have 195 fans, and I never did anything on it for like a year....but I am not sure how many of those are click spammers or not...anyway, seems good. 

5. Acidplanet.com

Review : A much more simple website. Doesnt allot much in the way of content upload besides audio & video. Still, there are some really cool artists on this webpage...and you can search by exact genre. There seems to be a lot of uploading going on, but many people dont have profile pictures...which leads me to believe less real activity...but I cannot be sure. There also looks like a blogs & pictures section, but only on the pro account. Also, HTML does not work on the main page...but there is a link to get to your webpage.

6. Mp3.com (no page made)

Review : I had uploading troubles with this website. This website has been around since the beginning of the mp3 revolution. There is a pending approval that seemed to take a while for me to receive. Also, maybe it was my time of day, but the website was running bloody slow when I was working within the artist section. There is a blog sections, and also forums for communities. It also has charts, but is pretty saturated.

7. Besonic.com

Review : This is a german/english website. It has some nice features like a nice page, photo uploads, and some other good stuff. The community is more on a buddy system, where you becomes friends with people. They have charts and a star rating for tracks.  They also have a forum however its not very specific, and pretty open to everyone in the community all on one forum. Which means a lot of release posts. But, still a good website.

8. Artistopia.com

Review : Small little independent website for uploading music. For free accounts, 3 uploads and 3 pictures max. A lot of the features of this website need to be accessed be a pro account, which I am not sure is really worth it until I feel it out more. This website has forums that are moderately sized but are pretty well organized into groups so you can get into discussions. However, they are not very active...sometimes a month goes by without posts in certain topics. They do offer charts by genre, however the electronic chart is just that...electronic.

9. Audiostreet.net (still pending)

Review : Seems like a pretty big website. It took a while to receive my pending approval...but that could be a good thing...checking for real artists. It has a nice place to upload pictures, up to 20 of them. It has a blog place to write blogs. Has a video upload section, but no connection to youtube. You must be a premium member to be featured in the featured artist part of the website. The forums are pretty inactive except for the promotion forum...which goes without saying. I also ran into a few problems with the audio uploader, but I did manage to get one track on there. It may have been me, but some script errors came up a few times. You can connect to other people by friend requests to user accounts. No html allowed in certain parts of profiles and blogs.

10. Soundlift.com (awaiting approval)

Review : This website offers different languages besides English, so hopefully that means a nice international crowd. It took a while for tracks to get approved and my profile to be put online. It really only offers a band photo and not much for uploading besides video and audio..and video looks like its still under construction. You can rate tracks, but not really favor artists. There are some pretty active forums though.

11. Unsignedbandweb.com

Review : This is a nice little website that makes a nice page for you. Has a nice photo section, and an easy way to upload your music. It is important to put your WEBSITE in your TRACK LISTINGS on this site, because when if shows your main page, it shows your bio in a small scale-able box, and then shows your tracks below it. More info is pertaining to your tracks on your main page than your actual bio. Also, it lacks a MAIN PAGE connect to your homepage. This website also gives your band its own little forum. The main forums are pretty much full of song promotions, and not much talking really. This website also has a cool little UNSIGNED radio stations section. It also has a charts section with moderately large genre selection per chart. In a couple of days of just leaving it sit before I came back, I had 21 listens...so that was interesting.

12. iSound.com

Review : This website seeming really promising because literally within hours of signing up, I was receiving friend requests. There is a 5 picture maximum. It has a great way to connect your youtube playlist embed code straight to your videos section, which means if you are using youtube to keep all your videos inline for your homepage or something like I am, its super easy to add the whole playlist right to your videos section. There is no HTML permitted on site for free users, but there are nice links to your homepage right on your main page. Within a couple days of making a profile, I had 34 views and 19 plays...which is pretty fast without uploading much content. This website really looks promising for promotion. Connection to people seems to work on a FRIEND basis, where you can find other LISTENERS & Artists. Genres are a little bit broad, but still pretty good. 

13. Ourstage.com

Review : This website is an MTV partner, and is a little less electronic based...but still has an electronica genre. You can enter 1 track into a contest each month...which is fun. This website is getting a lot of publicity on the web recently. The pictures section was a little glitchy with firefox, I had to readjust the window screen to get certain things to fit....maybe because the website is so flashy. There is a place to post your blogs or general posts. You can also vote for other tracks on this website in the contest sections. A neat little thing about fan clubs, you can listen to the OURSTAGE audio radio...and then add them as a favorite or rate the track directly from the player...and also buy the track directly from the player. I couldnt really find a way to listen to only a certain genre on the radio...so, its full of rock and stuff which I dont wanna hear...so I would probably never use it...but cool idea. It would be nice if there made the player genre specific....because this seems like the future of music. You can also allow ourstage to sell your music...but I did not. It just didnt seem very electronic specific to do that.

14. Overplay.com

Review : This is a great website that allows you to put HTML in your bio. Good for your links. You do need a banner on this webpage that is 405 pix X 110 pix....so you need to make one if you want your main page to look nice. 5 song max for free users, and they will distribute if you upgrade accounts....however I did not. Something GREAT about this, is since it allows HTML on the first page, you can upload your youtube playlist right to your MAIN profile page, and it fits really nicely and balances out the page. Be sure to get pictures on here because they show on the main page just below your videos....its a beautiful layout! Even with your video taking up your bio, there is still a homepage link on the very top, clear to see! I really really like this websites layout. They also have a lot of other features like overplay radio....the message boards are mostly full of promotions....but they have some other genres where labels are looking for artists, and artists who need artist. This looks really cool...chances can be taken here! Watch out for mass marketers with sign up fees though when dealing with forum posts. There are also awards and contests on this page. You can favor artists, and they show up on a tab on your main profile. I would really try out this website. 

15. iLike.com

Review : Another great website with some GREAT RSS features. You can directly connect your youtube, twitter (both ways) and myspace. Check your account settings to make sure you add your social network links....they have a nice section for it. The photo uploader was a little quarky...in that when I uploaded a picture to it....and refreshed, it didnt show my photos there. So I tried a few different times, still nothing. Then I came back after playing with other features....and my photos were there. So be patient sometimes to see your photos. I did get them all up though. It has a nice place to blog right on the website too. They also distribute if you want them to. As with a lot of music based websites, you can LIKE bands, become fans, send messages, and buy their music...directly from this website. Seems really clean, and nicely put together. It seems a little more based on staying connected with artists rather than groups of artists sharing tracks with eachother....but, it is REALLY big...and easy to keep updated with RSS.

16. MyMusicStream.com

Review : OK. This website is a little weird in how to get your main website pointing to your homepage link. They seem to want to sell you a domain name....and even after emailing them personally, and getting a response back how to change it, I did exactly as said...and cant find anywhere to add my already made domain. I dunno shit. But what was nice, since they allow links in your BIO, its easy to get a couple links up there. The video section only really permits uploads....and I didnt want to go all uploading videos everywhere....its a little rough. And full HTML is not totally allowed in the bios, so I couldnt load a youtube playlist. It has a NEWS section which is a nice place to blog if you want...but no real RSS feeds or anything. The forums arent REALLY active, but there are some underground tracks sitting in there.

17. mp3unsigned.com (did not use)

Review : I did not like this website, and had a lot of trouble with it.

18. Jamendo.com

Review : WARNING. I realized after signing for this, I could not shut off my free downloads, and found torrents of .ogg files via bit torrent. So if you are using SALE links...be careful with this website. If you dont mind free download torrents...go for it. This website is really hoping for you to work in within them for your updates, blogs, etc. You can RSS to different outlets OUT...but no IN. But, you can add links within your bio, and they also show your website on the very top of the page. Theres no real way to show tons of social networking connections unless you connect within your blog. Also, no photos or video sections. The blogs section makes a unique blog direction based off your artist name. This website does have groups, and had a few tiny little groups going on. Im sure there a little communities hiding in there...small....but sometimes great. I checked out a group about synth nuts...and it seems like it had some good content. And something really interesting here...the forums are full of ALL KINDS of talk. Website errors, a little promo, and technical info! That is really cool to see! Its like a free for all on the forum...and full of the most interesting topics.

19. muzic.com

Review : Had trouble uploading mp3s, even with different formats. I will try back later.

20. AirPlayDirect.com

Review : This company is a little different. They help you get airplay. Im not sure how well this website works...and I could only upload 1 song to it with a free acount, and 5 pictures. But, it gives you a profile page, with a homepage link right on the front. Within a day or 2 of signing up, I was getting a few emails about airplay contests...so, maybe its something to play around with. I will have to wait and see about this, I just dont know.

21. TheMusicHutch.com

Review : This website makes a cool jukebox out of whatever genre of music you want to listen to. The genres are very indepth, so you can listen to underground music in a jukebox of only a certain genre...of all user uploads. The profile is VERY basic...and being that im colorblind, setting the colors for this was a bitch for me. HTML is OK in your bio page. This page is like super underground...and it really only has a community of PEOPLE (no groups or anything)...the thing its best for is finding uploaded video and music from users...and putting it in a nice radio player to listen to. Kind of a neat idea!!!

22. Muziboo.com

Review : Good webiste. It allows links in the bio but, I could not embed a youtube video player. You can upload photo albums...however to upload a few in a row, maneuvering the website is a little funky. There is also this HORRIBLY ugly ad that shows up above your name on your profile. Its gone with a pro account, but....for an add, its just terrible to have on your profile page. It will only show a TINY little photo of your main picture, a GIANT ad, then your tracks and bio on the side. I mean, it is what it is, but....its really ugly. The connection to your social networks is mostly OUTGOING...so check your preferences. If you leave it just regularly connected to twitter...it will automatically send a twitter post when you LIKE a song...which can be really annoying. So check your settings.

23. uPlaya.com

Review : Great and easy to use website....well put together. However it is mostly promising that your song gets heard. It kind of puts together a press kit for you. The site is SO easy to navigate, and easy to understand. Make sure to update everything related to UPK. This is your profile really. It connects right to all social networking sites on your main page, also a straight connect to your youtube account under video gallery. I was able to upload a bunch a photos no problem. They do offer pay things on their site like entry into contests, and bigger accounts....but, I didnt sign up. I really really like the layout of this site though. Its very user friendly!

24. mVine.com

Review : Hard to navigate. Freeze ups all over the track viewing part. Couldnt get my pictures uploaded. Forums are kind of dead. I dont know about this website.

25. MusicForte.com

Review : Another nice and easy to navigate website. Lets you connect to twitter and facebook. Lets people add you as a friend on twitter right from your page...and then works outgoing after that. NO HTML on the bio page, but a link to your home page sits at the bottom of your bio. It was a little bit hard to find...but its still there. I was also getting emails within a day of signing up of people viewing and adding me as a friend. They have an internet radio station, but it looks rather broad genred. They also sell your music too. There didnt seem much in the way of communities though. But they do have charts and whatnot.

26. RecordScout.com

Review : Easy to use website. Lets you upload pictures too. No HTML on the bio page and also I had a  terrible time finding a link to my homepage....which I never found...so this will be hard to track really. I just put text in the bottom of the bio. The forums are dead...so I dont know how this website will be.

27. HitLab.com

Review : This is an interesting website that analyzes your tracks using DHS (Dynamic Hit Scoring) to see if your track has potential. I dont know how real this all is, but the account is free. It lets you upload pictures, and link your blog and even embed a youtube video in your blog. You gotta pay 30 bucks to see if your tracks a hit...I dunno how well this works for us dance producers. So, I dont know how much I will use this site. The profile is there though.

28. JukeBoxAlive.com

Review : Small little website. Allows pictures, and video uploads...although no real connection to youtube or social networking. It does show your details on the front page...so make sure you fill it out or it looks bad. You can add your LINKS to social networking on the main page nicely on the right. Now the cool thing about this website, is that it has a radio player per genre. A little more broad...electronic is just electronic. Good idea though! The homepage makes a nice little slideshow out of all your photos....starting with your main one. Really easy to navigate.  This did however have that AWESOME blog feature where you can just copy and paste your blog. Mine worked perfectly! This is great for bloggers. When you post a blog, it comes up on the PEOPLE main page as long as its new. Communities seem to be in the way of commenting on tracks, blogging, and becoming friends.

29. iJamr.com

Review : A weird little website with very little features. Small community. I didnt really understand the point...they sell your music...but its really limited. I dunno. I probably wont use this website. It does let you show your links on your main profile page...so link HTML is ok! It does show them at the BOTTOM of your bio, but if its long, you wont see it on the main page unless they read your whole bio. You can connect to facebook and twitter and view your twitter tweets right on your profile page...but within a tab. Its community also has GROUPS.

30. DJTube.com

Review : A cool website dedicated to electronic music a little more than others. A great photo uploader that can do a few photos all at once. I had a little trouble getting a video up...some script error. I dont know what that was about. It has a blogs section, but I couldnt just copy and paste. But still good for text. This website doesnt have ALOT going on...but, we will see how they build their site.

31. BandCamp.com

Review :  This little outlet basically sells your tracks right on a homepage. No real place for pictures besides your track pictures. PUT LINKS in your track info for this, because it shows up beautifully on the main page. Also make sure to have good track info because that shows up on the main page, rather than a bio or anything. Tags are good to have too. People can share your tracks on many outlets if they like it. I will have to track the links to see how this works. They also have a big blog directly connecting to wordpress....so wordpress users will like this. 

31. MusicSubmit.com

Review : To activate this, it looks like you gotta pay.

32. Artists-First.net

Review : This website just basically sells your music. I gave it a shot, because it doesnt cost anything, and this is all an experiment. Its not a community at all. Not sure how it works. Make sure you have your tracks updated, and your store updated under admin. Tracks are under products (either single or album, however you uploaded it).

33. RecordUnion.com


Review : This website basically only publishes your tracks if you plan to get a UPC through them. If you are already distributing your music....then this wont really be needed. If you want to distribute....this webpage has this funny quirky DOG who tells you all about the website. Obviously who ever is behind this operation has a sense of humor....which is really smart marketing. I would be inclined to try this website just because of its attitude.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is awesome post and very helpful post. Keep up the good work.Thanks for sharing.
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Big Mouse World said...

Great bllog you have here

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