Now this is the way to include the fans

Thought this was cool. With the recenet announcement of Day of Fire doing the fan financed cd and the packages they are offering and Bride possibly doing the same thing, I see where SonicFlood has taken a different approach. While thier music maybe a little mellow for some, I actually like this approach. Doesn't seem to include sending money to the band to finance recording.
http://jesusfreakhideout.com/news/2008/05/14.SONICFLOOd%20TO%20LET%20FANS%20ACT%20AS%20EXECUTIVE%20PRODUCERS%20ON%20NEW%20ALBUM.asp

I like SonicFlood. I love their debut CD when Jeff Deyo was still the primary force behind the band. After the live CD (their 2nd), Jeff departed to do his solo thing. His music has been equally as good, if not better, than the original SonicFlood disc.

When Jeff left, so did the remainder of the band. Only Rick Heil, bassist brought in after the CD was recorded for touring, ended up with ownership of the name. He put together a new band, and their material has been really hit or miss with me. "Resonate" was ok, but could have leaned heavier on the rock guitars. I think that disc could have been awesome if they had rocked it out more. "Cry Holy" was a total misfire in my opinion. SonicFlood, while known for doing covers of popular worship songs, fell to a new low of just copycatting renditions of worship songs that everyone was familiar with. If you're gonna do a worship record, you have to recreate cover tunes to sound like yourself--not make yourself sound like everyone else (Kutless did this with "Strong Tower").

"This Generation" was then done. Once again, great songs were put out, but they just weren't rockin' enough. This could have been brillance as you saw SonicFlood write simply lyrics that shared their own heart for God. They did away with the cover tunes (just like Jeff Deyo has done) and started looking for a new identity. However, to really capture people's attention, Rick Heil and Co. need to think about what it was that attracted people to them on that debut CD. That is the one everyone knows. The rest of their catalog few people remember.

When they find that identity that they've been searching for since the debut, then SonicFlood can be a force to be reckoned with in the rock worship genre. Until then, they blur into an endless sea of repetitiveness that is so prevalent in that musical arena now.

I checked the SonicFlood site. You do get to vote on the artwork, what songs are to be included, etc. However, to get the password to join in the fun, you have to follow the links. Those links take you to their online store where you pay $10 to be a producer. So, ultimately, it IS a fan financed album.

I didn't check the site out so I did indeed miss this. I sure hope that this just doesn't become a trend for a lot of bands. I mean I know that it is hard to make money in the music field but it can't be that bad to resorte to fans financing the music. It's especially tough for me to critisize Day of Fire for doing this. I love that band and support them but it's just to big a risk to take for something that could ultimatley backfire. I notice that Bride has been silent on this (the silence is madness) ever since they made the announcement. Maybe they will realize it is a bad idea and not go thru with it.

On the surface, it seems like a good idea for an established band. But, without guarantees of a CD or your money back if the project does not happen, who really wants to get on board? Too many people have been burned by preorders months in advance and are reluctant to do so again.

How can you tell when a band is pretty much finished and in need of retiring? When they cannot get a label to sign them and front the money for recording. Sure, the band has to pay that back, but that is all part of the process. If there are no labels willing to take a chance on you anymore without a finished project in hand, then you probably aren't going to be very profitable for them.

Some of these artists would be well served in spending some money on putting together their own studios and doing things themselves. Look at Saint. That's what they did. And, they only start taking preorders once a new CD is at the production plant. It is a model that works.

Maybe it's time for them to get day-jobs.

I bet these bands still have their day jobs. It is getting harder and harder for musicians to make a living at playing music unless they have multiplatinum sales or a huge fanbase from their glory days.

Well it sounds like they need to get better day jobs.

I know it is probably very costly to produce a quality (commercial grade) album, but if you can't secure the funds from a record company or on your own, maybe you should scale back and do a budget record.....or just not record at all.