Casey PhillipsFor all the romantic notions we tend to smear on it like honey on burnt toast, the life of a touring musician can be tedious, hardscrabble and a host of other unflattering adjectives.
Absence of glamour aside, there's not a musician worth his salt who hasn't daydreamed of hitting the road and making some semblance of a living off his talent. But making any progress as a band - one whose ambitions are more grand than simply playing the occasional bar show, anyway - can sometimes feel like one big Catch-22.
First, you need to build an audience, but some venues won't even consider offering gigs to bands without a demo to offer up as a business card/application/cover letter. That's problematic, though, because recordings require booking studio and engineering time, which costs money, which you don't have because you're a gigless musician.
You can see where this is going.
So yeah, being a musician is tough, but if you seriously want to pursue it, here are some "expert" tips I can offer up:
* Publicity is free and awesome, but journalists are a busy bunch, so make it easy on them by putting together a press kit with links to a sample track, your contact info, a decently written bio and - most importantly - a high-resolution publicity photo. If nothing else, this will probably earn at least a concert announcement, if not a full-on article.
* Similarly, social media is free, and if you're not on it, you're robbing yourself of an excellent portal for discovery and interaction with fans.
* Take advantage of opportunities to get in front of an audience. Chattanooga has boatloads of communal jams and open-mike nights, and playing these can help launch a career. Last year's Road to Nightfall champion, Ryan Oyer, got his start playing open mikes. Did I mention these are free, too?
* Speaking of Road to Nightfall, this now-traditional battle of the bands is an excellent opportunity to spend a little dough - the entry fee is $50 - for the chance to win up to $2,000, 25 hours of professional recording time and a headlining spot during a summer concert series attended by thousands.
Even if you're not the overall winner, semifinalists from the five preliminary rounds will receive $500 apiece, a chance to open for another Nightfall artist and will perform during the March 26 finals, which are juried by industry professionals.
You have until Monday, Feb. 8, to submit your application at www.gigcityproductions.com/road-to-nightfall-2016. Now, what are you waiting for?
Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205. Follow him on Twitter at @PhillipsCTFP.