1. Songs
First of all, get some songs done. Make sure they sound homogeneous and compose in a simple structure, using these 6 parts: intro, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, outro. Try to make each song dynamic - do a moderate part, a quiet part, and finish off with a climax. THE LYRICS ARE REALLY IMPORTANT. Write most of them in First Person - that way anyone who could relate to the topic, would find it easier to sing along. Emotional songs sell. Negative emotions make people vulnerable, and that's why they should be your main focus: "I Suck", "I'm depressed", and "I Hate You" lyrics. There is an exception to the negativity rule: the "I Rule" and "I'm the Best" songs tend to sell a lot, too. Everybody loves singing a song about how cool they are (don't forget the First Person rule). Now, make sure that more than 50% of your lyrics are substantial, depending on the lifestyle you have chosen to represent. For example, if you're a punk band, make sure to include political and unconventional topics, or else you're gonna lose credit and respect, and no one's gonna take you seriously.
2. Attitude
You have to choose a lifestyle that your band represents, and then you have to really overhype it. Defend your causes, and always try to prove a point. People love that. And with attitude comes symbolism. You need to create a symbol of that chosen lifestyle - it could be a part of your outfit, a logo, a gesture... something that people could easily imitate and recreate. Explain to them what's YOUR meaning and concept of life, or what's the reason behind your rebellion. That's the most important thing: ALWAYS overhype; define a new genre, act as if what you are doing is special, explain WHY it is special, give the audience many words, confuse them, make them believe you're a higher being. Before all that, make up a really cool band name: unique, easy to spell, and easy to remember. Use Google and see how many search results there are for that name - the less, the better.
3. Indirect Involvement in the Media
To get the word out, though, you need to have good public relations skills. I divide PR in two divisions: direct and indirect involvement in the media. I'll start with the latter, which is also the easier one, as long as you have connections. Make a list of all the well-known people you know, and start contacting them. They could be musicians, actors, or just some local popular kids. Make them wear your band's t-shirt. Influence them into mentioning your project in interviews, or press conferences. If they are musicians, ask them to cover one of your songs. Or you can remix one of their songs and have it on their album. Convince everyone you know to give your music maximum exposure at parties or radiostations, if you know any DJ's. Once you have an album out, call all the music magazines and e-zines, and ask them to review it.
4. Direct Involvement in the Media
Do a research on bands that represent the same lifestyle and ideals you do. Go to their shows, stay after the end, talk and take pictures with them. That way others can recognize you more easily, and you also make good connections. Do interviews: talk about your concept, rebellion, etc. Do TV appearances: talk about your lifestyle, talk about how great your equipment is, and don't forget to spread controversy, if you wanna be scandalous, but never fuck with the media themselves, because they can destroy you. Write your band's name and include it in as many places, as many times as possible - use stickers, posters, markers, whatever you got. And of course, don't forget to take countless pictures of your band with everybody looking great. Invest in a music video, and make sure that the budget is high enough to make it look incredibly impressive.
5. The Internet
Pay for an official well-designed website with sections like Pictures, Press, Bio, Media, and Merch. Make a MySpace profile with a simplistic, but legit, design - easy to navigate, with Merch and Tour Dates on it. The songs on the player should be worksafe. For a beginner, hide the profile views and the number of friends you got, and put in "New Profile" in the headline. Never comment back and never reply to messages - that would ruin your celebrity status. A fun thing you can do on the internet is spread rumors and controversy about your band. Make up stories about getting kicked out, doing crazy shit on stage, hate mail, lawsuits, etc. And don't forget, kids: include the band's name EVERYWHERE!
6. Live Performances
Being in a band, you gotta understand that you are an ENTERTAINER. Most people don't get impressed by a good musical performance... in fact, most won't even know the difference between a good and a bad one. All they care about is getting a kick out of the show: meeting people, acting irrational, getting autographs. So don't worry about having little talent or skill. Work on your GIMMICK! Before every show, rehearse your dance moves and your speeches. Stage presence makes for 60% of the concert. If you wanna be edgy, hire stooges and stage some scandals: plot the event; inform the club owners and pay them before the equipment damage is done (if there is any). Make the stooge attack you or boo you off the stage, get in a fight with them, have fun with it. Learn from the almighty Andy Kaufman.
Never headline if you're a beginner. Make friends with other similar bands and open for them. Otherwise you're likely to get little to none audience (excluding your friends and family). Try to get involved in festivals and battles of the bands. After a good show, get off stage, meet the fans and talk to them. Sign some autographs, let them take some pictures with you, make out with them; in two words: make the fans feel special. That's your guarantee that they're gonna come back next time you're playing. And they're definitely gonna spread the word. Another part of live performances are parties. You and your band buddies get invited to a party - what do you do? Treat it as a show! Rehearse what you have to say before going. Analyze possible situations that are gonna make you look cool. Play your music.
7. Album Production
Finally, once you've gained some momentum, it's time that you produce an album. Think of an overall concept, a theme for the whole album. Tune up and optimize all of your instruments. If they're not good enough, rent some better equipment. Produce at least one hit song, even if you have to compromise with your values - these are the risks you take to be successful. Finally, get someone to record and mix all of that for you, and you're ready to go.
That's my formula for success. Drop me a line if you find any flaws in it.
