I know nothing

Wow it’s been a while since I’ve posted! I would expect a couple posts per month from me… that seems realistic at this juncture. So.. I definitely won’t be filling up your readers, but I hope to keep everyone in the loop as to the progress we’re making.

This weekend is very important for the life of our album. Pete and I head to Ohio to work with Chris Weibel (our producer) on the second mix. I’ll upload the new copies of the tunes you’ve already listened to, and maybe include a 3rd once we’re back.

Here’s what I am realizing more and more every day that I am further along in this process: I know nothing.  I thought I knew something about the music industry… but not anymore.

I started talking with Luke Myers about marketing stuff. I am still in the market (by the way) for a Manager once everything starts coming together. More on that later, but if you’re the managerial type and you think working on an album project could be cool… leave me a comment with why you should be our manager!

I’m also expecting a couple cover designs shot over soon from Ryan Davis – I can’t wait!  I’ll upload those for you to check out as soon as they come in.

Anyway, as I talk with Luke, and look more and more into things like artwork, marketing, mixing, all of that crazy stuff that goes into an album project… I realize that I know SO little.

With that in mind, I’ve started reading two books:

1. The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution by David Kusek & Gerd Leonhard, and
2. Donald Passman’s famed: All You Need to Know About the Music Business. As best as I can tell – these are the two premiere books on the subject.

I’ll keep you posted on what I learn from the two books. When I’m done, I’ll post reviews.  If you’ve read these or others like it – let everyone know what you think in the comments.  I’m open to book suggestions too.  I’ve just started reading and I already feel WAY over my head!  For instance, do I really need to hire a lawyer now that I am coming out with an album?

In the midst of all of this stuff I’m learning, I am asking bigger-picture questions like: What does God want to do with this album? Why did I write these songs? What role do I see for the music once the album drops?

My goal for the last week of January is to keep on figuring out exactly what it is that I don’t know, so I can have some kind of game plan for the next couple of months.

For right now – I need to focus on these mixes and make sure this weekend goes REALLY well. I’m looking forward to some time hanging out with Pete, who I consider my best bud.

Have you ever taken on a project that was WAY over your head?  If so, what was it?  How did you manage?  What did you do to stay on top of it, and learn what you needed to learn?  Let us hear about it in the comments.

Tim Shutes Album Project

Welcome,

If you know me well, you know that I’ve been workin on an album for almost 2 years now.  It’s something I keep relatively close to the vest, because it’s so important to me, and because of some strong convictions I have about the project.

A lot of years ago (when I was in 11th grade) I heard a call from God to be a song writer.  Throughout college and the years to come I began writing.  This album is a step of faith for me because my songs are very personal – a real look inside my life.  It’s kind of a “going public” of my prayers, difficulties and joys over the past 5-6 years.  Think of it like publishing your journal for the world to read.

That said, I’m excited about the project.  It’s almost complete – we’re in the mixing stage – which means that all the recording is done.  The musicians on the album, Pete, Nate, Matt and Allan are all the best I know at their respective instruments.  I can’t wait to share some of our current mixes with you (nothing final yet) to get your feedback!

I’m going to use this site to chronicle over the next month or two the steps we’re taking with the project.  Here’s some of what you can expect.

• links to song previews
• artwork previews – as we narrow it down
• frequent updates – the closer we get to release, the more you will get out of this site.
• feedback: by leaving comments, you can influence the project by giving us mix ideas for songs you’ve heard, artwork suggestions, song title suggestions, etc.
• Inside look into what it takes to complete an album – we’ll pull back the curtain on our successes and failures and give you an up-close look at what it takes to pull off a project like this.

Whether you know me well or not, here are some ways you can get involved right now.

• Pray.  Seriously.  None of us have any desire to be famous.  We want the album to point people to Christ.
• Bookmark this site.  Add it to your RSS reader.  We need your input to pull this off.
• Share the music.  All the mp3’s we upload will be free to download and share with anyone up until the time of the album’s release.  Ultimately, the album will be for sale, but if you’re content with a previous mix – enjoy it free of charge.  The mixes will only be available up until the time of the album release.  Think of it as a reward for being a part of this whole process.

Finally – I am in the process of playing in a few shows.  I have a full time job that I LOVE (youth pastor @ PVCC) but I would also love to come lead worship, or share some music with you @ your coffee house, church, campus, or other venue.  Just leave a comment and I’ll get back to you at the email address you specify.

HOW TO COMMENT:  click the “comments” button.  It might say “No comments” or it might say “32 comments” – just click it and the rest should be self-explanatory.

Tim