Started as an initiative for and by independent musicians, this guide just went online (it’s still in beta). Its goal is to collect and share useful information for all musicians trying to get their music out there by any means, “to help [them] win fans globally by getting [their] music created, distributed and just plain noticed”.

From legal matters to playing live to manufacturing a CD, all issues concerning indie bands are addressed, with loads of links and info. The “Music hosting sites” tab lists Jamendo of course. Thanks guys!

http://blog.jamendo.com/2008/08/27/the-indie-band-survival-guide-now-online/ 

To request a review copy or an interview with the band please, contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com, or visit amazon.com.

Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their 18 full-length albums.

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

Singing the book’s praises, Panay states “It’s the most comprehensive such book that I read in a while, very well written, and one of the first ones that really looks forward and talks about all the tools that an empowered band should have in their arsenal: blogging, selling music online, getting music into podcasts, learning what to pay attention to when designing your own site, etc.” Available now through St. Martin’s Press, Panay concludes “There’s many of these ‘Indie Band’ books out there but for me this is one of the best.”

Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their 18 full-length albums.

To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com, or visit amazon.com.

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

            CHICAGO (July 25, 2008) – Featuring music by Chicago’s Beatnik Turtle, television network, AmericaOne, picks up DVD review show, DVD Geeks.

                        Penning the theme song and bed music, the band’s tunes are now being heard in 26 million homes. The band also recently released 12 albums on iTunes, compiling songs from their 2007 “Song of the Day” campaign, which received over 170,000 song plays on www.TheSongOfTheDay.com

            Band members Randy Cherktow and Jason Feehan are also releasing a book in 2008: The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It–Yourself Musician through St. Martin’s Press in August to bookstores nationwide.                                  

            Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums.

            To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com.

# # #

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

            Entitled “Star Wars (A Film Like No Other)”, the video is a humorous tribute to the three original movies set to the tune of a traditional Irish folksong. Combining clips from the Star Wars trilogy, the video has racked-up over 27,000 views on the Star Wars official website and is available for viewing and voting at the AtomFilms’ website.

            Band members Randy Cherktow and Jason Feehan are also releasing a book in 2008: The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It–Yourself Musician through St. Martin’s Press in August to bookstores nationwide.                                  

            Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums.

            To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com.

# # #

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

            Consisting of 13 rockin’ Irish pub songs energized and re-interpreted, these lovers of the Emerald Isle and Mother Earth put a twist on traditional Irish odes after making up their own St. Patty’s Day ditties.

            “When coming up for songs for March at TheSongOfTheDay last year, we hit on the idea of re-interpreting these old songs into our own style,” said band member, Jason Feehan. “That is, rocking them up, plugging them in, adding horns, fixing old/out of date lyrics, treating them to new arrangements, and writing new music on top of the public domain stuff. The result is Sham Rock.” 

            Band members Randy Cherktow and Feehan are also releasing a book in 2008: The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It–Yourself Musician through St. Martin’s Press in August to bookstores nationwide.                            

            Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums.

            To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com.

# # #

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

Consisting of 13 rockin’ Irish pub songs energized and re-interpreted, Sham Rock was recently featured on NPR’s Second Stage as part of the RPM Challenge, ‘The Wire’ magazine’s annual open invitation for musicians to produce an entire album in just one month.

“When coming up for songs for March at TheSongOfTheDay last year, we hit on the idea of re-interpreting these old songs into our own style,” says band member, Jason Feehan. “That is, rocking them up, plugging them in, adding horns, fixing old/out of date lyrics, treating them to new arrangements, and writing new music on top of the public domain stuff. The result is Sham Rock.”

Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums. Band members Randy Cherktow and Feehan are also releasing a book in 2008: The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It–Yourself Musician through St. Martin’s Press in August to bookstores nationwide.

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

Setting its release through St. Martin’s Press this August, co-authors Randy Cherktow and Jason Feehan takes readers through the trials and tribulations of making music as an unsigned band, from booking and PR to contracts and concerts. No strangers to the music world themselves, the co-authors also play in Chicago-based band Beatnik Turtle. Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums.

To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com.

www.beatnikturtle.com

www.thesongoftheday.com

www.beatnikturtle.biz

CHICAGO (March 5, 2008) – Chicago-based band, Beatnik Turtle, will release 12 albums on May 6, 2008.  

Compiling songs from their 2007 “Song of the Day” campaign, which received over 170,000 song plays on www.TheSongOfTheDay.com, the band will digitally release an album representing each month in 2008 on www.CDBaby.com

.           Band members Randy Cherktow and Jason Feehan are also releasing a book in 2008: The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It–Yourself Musician through St. Martin’s Press in August to bookstores nationwide.                                  

               Combining brassy tunes with indie-pop sounds, Beatnik Turtle is a band that never slows down. Always up for a challenge, the Windy City brotherhood work and play just as hard, recording a Song of the Day or Song of the Week with the same amount of fun and dedication as one of their five full-length albums.

            To request a review copy or an interview with the band please contact Matt Harris at mharris@greenlightgopublicity.com

# # #

For Chicago’s Beatnik Turtle, they recorded an album and snagged a place in the RPM Challenge, ‘The Wire’ magazine’s annual open invitation for musicians to produce an entire album in just one month. Showcasing their collection of tuned-up, rocked-out Irish folk songs, Sham Rock, the band got the Emerald Isle treatment at NPR’s Second Stage when the site featured the album’s win yesterday. With less than a month to record, produce and mix, Beatnik Turtle may be the fastest Irish-loving reptilians since the Hare’s slow but steady competitor.

* * *

Enlarge

NPR.org, April 3, 2008 - Beatnik Turtle is a remarkably prolific and fiercely independent rock group based in Chicago. The eight-piece band includes a full horn section and has been making music for the past 11 years. Beatnik Turtle spent all of 2007 releasing a new song every day through its Web site. With that kind of output, it was relatively easy for the band to produce a full album in just one month as part of the RPM Challenge. The result is a collection of Irish drinking songs called Sham Rock.

This is the second year Beatnik Turtle has participated in the RPM Challenge. For this year’s album, its members decided to reinvent traditional Irish folk songs. “I’ll Tell Me Ma” was originally a children’s song.

“It seemed the best candidate for a pop-rock treatment,” Beatnik Turtle’s Jason Feehan says. “The original song has its roots as an Irish children’s song — you know, one of those playground sing-alongs. However, we opted to rock it up, building it off an active guitar line. From there, we added some thick harmonies and horns.”

In its 11 years of making music, Beatnik Turtle has released seven albums. Its members write music for TV, film, and theater. This year, they plan to release 12 albums, which will feature the 365-plus songs they wrote in 2007. Feehan and bandmate Randy Chertkow also write books, including The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do It Yourself Musician, due out later this year.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89340071