Radio, Radio... The sound salvation

Repeat after me: "I, (state your name), will liberate myself from the vertiginous tether of the status-quo also known as the mainstream machine!"

Although, should mainstream radio ever invite EWO to their very elite private party for Jerks, we would certainly be remiss of the above statement and decline ever having uttered such damning wordage... our hypocrisy knows no bounds.

That said, if you're tired of the repetition and the monotony of mainstream FM, you have far more choice than you may realize. College radio is a refreshing alternative, Satellite radio offers a wide variety of themed stations... but probably the most under rated form of radio listening is on the web. Specifically Indie web radio.

I know, I know... "the sound quality blows, the streaming is never smooth, my speakers suck!"... For the longest time I thought the very same things. But as father time keeps on keepin' on, the technology improves and new amazing organizations emerge to improve on a growing trend.

Enter indielove.ca
Indielove.ca plays straight through your iTunes (other methods are also available). The DJ's have personality plus and play really great Independent Canadian artists from coast to coast. As for sound quality, get off your ass and buy a pair of decent speakers from Futureshop for $40 and you'll be golden... you cheap bastard!

Yes, EWO is currently on their play list, and yes we need you to request the tunes as often as possible. But our admiration for Indielove.ca reaches far beyond the realm of shameless self promotion. I have found other acts I truly love - Ninja Highschool and Drowning Girl are just a couple of great examples. So get online, there's no sign up, there's no charges and no hassle.

Next blog - Spooky Burlington!

Jason Flores-Holz

The CD artwork incident

OK, so we all know that artwork is subjective. Everyone has a very different idea of what they find aesthetic, grabbing or cool. Same goes when a band is trying to hammer out a clear direction for their branding or look n' feel. Which, in turn, will usually stem from the album artwork.

I am a graphic designer and Illustrator... this is how I make my living. That is to say that I'm pretty positive I know what I'm doing when it comes to design. However, I work far more effectively when I design by hand first, scan the piece and use Photoshop to take the piece to the next level. Being an artist with a classical animation background, my work tends to lean towards the cartoon or comic spectrum of illustration. So, using those skills, I came up with a graphic that I felt truly reflected our look n' feel and kept our theme in mind...

... wait, let me back track here for a second. I want to elaborate on the theme of the album cover before we continue. Easy Way Out did easily agree on the title and theme... We wanted to create a positive message that proclaims our sense of pride in putting on such a powerful performance that makes any show we play - our show... regardless of who's headlining. This philosophy or rather "mantra" has really proven effective in helping us tap into that extra energy required to give you 200% every time we play a show. The phrase we chose to title the album is "Steal the Show".

That said, the first design, in my natural style totally conveyed this message... and, I felt, also provided a much needed sense of humour to our look n' feel. Here's the original album cover that will not be on the CDs you will be buying soon:


"It's too cartoon-ey"... "It's too kid-ish"... "we're not YTV muthaf***a!"... (sigh) the look and feel I was going for was now thrown out the window and so I was sent back to the drawing board with a highly detailed brief. "Not so cartoon-ey, but maybe like a tattoo,... oh and grimy... muthaf***a!"

I then sketched up a tattoo-like layout, classic tattoo banners, 2 crowbars for a frame...


...and the boys seemed to like the concept. Although after my reaction over the decision to nix my previous album cover, one has to wonder if they were just trying to avoid a repeat performance.

It was time to start realizing our vision of the new cover. The boys had more direction for me; "Make it look grimy!"... "Make it look sick!"... "Put our picture on it, we ain't humble muthaf***a!"

The album went through many revisions, multiple spell checks, last minute editing and 3 proofs, but it was all worth it. Here's a sneak peak of what the album looks like:


I wish I had a release date for you. But the lack thereof will hopefully drive your interest into a frenzied salivating urgent rush of rabid want or need. I can promise, that as soon as I know when the CD release party is... so will you.

Until next you read...

Jay Flores-Holz
EWO

Indie-Pendence Day has arrived...

"Fear makes us jump into things that aren't good for us. If you're convinced you need a label deal to survive as a musician, you probably won't have a career. People get abused when they enter into relationships out of desperation, both in romance and in business"

- Daylle Deanna Schwartz "I don't need a record deal"

Easy Way Out is an Indie Band. There's a statement... I wonder, though, if y'all know what that really means. Indie Band... in it's most basic form, it's a band that develops a serious career in music without the help of a major record label either by choice or because... that's just the way it is... for now.

Being Indie-pendent also means more control, integrity and self education. It also means struggle, hard work and determination.

Nowadays, an Indie band has far more resources at their finger tips than ever before. So creating a successful career using those resources is far more realistic than it has ever been.

Improved technology allows us to record inexpensively, connect with a potential world wide fan base and create a buzz that supersedes the street.

That said, Easy Way Out, are declaring our Indie-pendence! We are proud to be a part of such a thriving subculture in North America. That's not to say that if a development deal came our way we wouldn't seriously consider it. However, for Easy Way Out, for now, dreams of super stardom are fleeting and unrealistic. Lets face it, statistics show that you have a better chance at winning the lottery or getting struck by lightning than being offered a deal by the majors.

Ah yes... a career in music.... actually earning a living playing original music. It's right there in our reach and Easy Way Out is gonna pluck that career right out of the Rock stratosphere and hold it tight against our hips.

With that, dear reader, it is with humble regard that we request your support. We'll make a deal with you, we promise to bring you new songs and new sounds every time we play if you'll spread the word. Tell everyone you know about Easy Way Out, bring all your friends and family to the shows, buy the album and play it in your car when you're giving someone a lift (yes the album is finished an it's coming very soon), invite friends on Facebook to join our group... be our buzz! There is only 6 degrees of separation between us all and word can travel if you give that word some life.

Expect to see a big difference in Easy Way Out... a proud Indie-pendent EWO!

Jason

Welcome to the Official Easy Way Out Blog. Should you choose to subscribe, or even just visit regularly, you will be ingesting everything from important EWO news to completely random rantings and ravings. My name is Jay, I am by far the nerdiest member of EWO and therefore I will be your Blog Host bringing you a more intimate and personal portrayal of EWO and it's members and fans... as well as info about folks we share the stage with... venues we play... the struggle of musical independence and much much more. That said... Thank you for subscribing and we'll see you soon.

Jay Flores-Holz
Easy Way Out