It's a marathon, not a sprint

Here s a paradox. Because Irish radio is more inclined to play demos from unknown acts than its UK counterparts, bands naturally spend their limited funds on studio time, pressing up CDs and distributing them to DJs. The problem is that most of these bands are simply not ready to record.
It gets worse. These demos are aired and heard by other bands who think their first excursions into songwriting are better, so they spend their money on doing exactly the same.
The end result? Radio shows with good intentions give airtime to ill-prepared bands, lowering the quality threshold and doing more damage than good to the prospects of emerging talent.
Nowhere is the obsession with cutting a track more prominent than on the Hot Press/Heineken Demo Marathons, where musicians proffer their wares to a panel of music biz professionals. The prevailing mood is frequently one of misplaced energy.
Last Autumn, the Marathon visited eight Irish towns, spending a day in one-to-one discussions with six acts from each area. Music genres were almost as disparate as personality types. In a single day it was perfectly possible to meet practitioners of funk rock, followed by a trad act, before ending up with an all-girl pop band.
At its most basic level, the meetings allowed artists the opportunity to ask questions about the workings of the music business, but there were times when the questions were going the other way. Industry eggheads like Johnny Lappin (music publisher), Jackie Hayden (Hot Press), Hugh Murray (Sony A&R) and controversial rock critic George Byrne found themselves querying the objectives of the acts. Why did they want to make a CD? Why did they want a manager? Why did they think they would be big in America?
Reality check
Too often, artists were preoccupied with all the wrong things, at the expense of the basics. And the most basic element, and one that was frequently absent from this year s round of seminars, was a strong song, well played and well recorded. Craftsmanship is getting better, says Jackie Hayden, but there s a dearth of outstanding songs.
What the panel frequently got instead was talk of Three albums in my head and the desire to play any and every style of music .
Reality is somewhat less fanciful. Making music is a business and if nothing else, the panel did their bit to impose some level-headed thinking on wistful, musical minds. Even the most artistic spirit has to bend into shape to meet market forces. This means a defined musical style, a clear sense of a target audience, an idea on image and above all, the unquenchable desire to succeed.
Of course, not every musician wants to be the next U2, and many marathon participants were content to receive some informed tips and guidance. But for the most part, panellists were faced with musicians and songwriters of widely different styles and ability, united by the dream of making it big.
Confronted with industry experts, artists get a very real taste of what it s like to parade their songs before record companies. It s a snapshot of the way the industry would react, says Johnny Lappin, it s an invaluable experience, although it can be pretty tough.
As Hugh Murray is keen to stress: The honesty of the panel is one of the best things about it. But it can be a long day and God help the last band in if they re not any good.
No two acts respond to the panel s treatment in the same way. The best come with a tight band biography and know exactly who is on the panel and what to ask. Others saunter in and respond to even the slightest criticism with an almighty sulk. Some come for an argument and not much else. Clearly, it s the first category that gets most out of it.
On the other side of the table, the panellists remain enthusiastic about the Demo Marathon, because it does a job that no-one else is doing.
Hugh Murray again: Information. That s what bands need. They quite often don t have a clue how to get started on even the most basic level.
Jackie Hayden agrees: There s a huge gap in our education system. We have to teach people about the business.

Regional variations
The marathon also offers a unique insight into different regional attitudes. The bands seem a little more sussed in the North, says Sony s Hugh Murray. They know the radio stations and the kinds of people they should be talking to. They re much more business like, Jackie Hayden agrees, and will come with questions for specific members of the panel.
Slightly further South, he found a similar enthusiasm: In Cavan you re more likely to get people turning up with pens and papers. I think they re genuinely grateful that somebody s paying them some attention.
Some regions also demonstrated a misplaced belief that they had to go to Dublin to make it. George Byrne was irritated at a recurring theme: People were talking about trying to break into the Dublin scene. It s a myth. There is no scene to break into. If a band s busy gigging in its own area don t worry about Dublin.
It was bands who aren t gigging at all that caused the panel most concern. There were a worrying number of acts who knew more about inertia than ambition. The message, as always, is: if you don t try you don t make it. Jackie Hayden is bemused that this most fundamental point still escapes a lot of Irish musicians.
They seem to have this belief in the back of their minds that they re going to meet someone with a magic wand who s going to make it all happen for them, he says. They just don t realise how hard it is.
If you think you can handle the truth and are prepared to learn, look out for the 1998 Demo Marathons. The first announcements will appear in the May issues of Hot Press.
You have been warned . . .

Ten tips for making it
1. Practise, practise and practise.
2. Don t worry about a manager until you have a career to manage.
3. Just because you ve recorded something in a studio, it doesn t mean you have to release it.
4. Identify the people who can help you and make sure that when you get through to them you have your pitch well prepared.
5. Be a good listener. However smart you think you are, there are other people who will always know more.
6. Demo tapes should be three songs max, with the best song first.
7. Recordings do not need to be 24-track perfect but they do need to be listenable.
8. Tune up before you turn up.
9. If any element of the band is a weak link, get a replacement.
10. If you are a live band, gig, gig and gig again.
11.* Get a copy of the Hot Press Yearbook.
* This is a rock n roll list, and goes all the way up to eleven.

Where they went and who they met
Dublin: Carole Treacy, Beach, Schroeder s Cat, Freelance, Sugarfunk, King Sativa.
Athlone: Clostridium, Outcry, Ray Flannagan, Stamp, Knightshade, La s.
Kilkenny: Strange Fruit, Purple Ocean, Nave, Junk Museum, R6, Spiral Rise.
Cork: Hubble, And The Rest In Jellies, Pacer, Junkyard, Rumblefish.
Wicklow: Crysis, Isobel Duggan, Shelley, Blis, Sugarcane, Booster.
Galway: Jack Healy, Mick Dunne, Sugarbaby, Loz Anne McCarthy, Eamonn Campbell, IDM.
Cavan: Jacuzzi Jungle, Eunan McIntyre, Tara Cooney, Dave Conway, Chanduris, The McCluskeys.
Belfast: Siobhan Skates, Richard Curran, Substance, Wide Awake, Jaded, Dent .