BLOG FOR INDEPENDENT MUSICIANS

What Print Resolution Should You Use for CD and Vinyl Artwork?
Print resolution determines how much detail your artwork contains, and how sharp it will look when printed. Whether you're creating a CD booklet, vinyl jacket, poster, or sticker, understanding resolution... Read more...
How Much Does It Cost to Press Vinyl?
How much does vinyl pressing actually cost? Most independent artists spend between $1,200 and $3,500 for a first run. Learn what affects pricing, see real cost examples, and calculate whether... Read more...
How to Plan Your First Vinyl Release
Planning your first vinyl release? This practical guide covers quantities, packaging, artwork, mastering, timing, and what to think through before you press your record. Read more...
What Happens After You Press Your CDs or Vinyl?
What happens after your CDs or vinyl arrive? In this interview with Rob Bach from Spinney Media, we talk about fulfillment, online sales, and how artists can get physical music... Read more...
What to Include in a CD Booklet (and How to Prepare It for Print)
Not every release needs a booklet. But when it does, it changes the experience. This guide breaks down what to include, how to design it, and how to prepare your... Read more...
How to Turn One Album Into a Year’s Worth of Content
Learn how to turn one record into 12 months of engaging content — keeping fans excited and your music in motion all year long. A practical guide for independent musicians... Read more...
How to Stop Chasing Hype and Building a Lasting Music Career
Ariel Hyatt is a powerhouse in marketing and PR for independent musicians. She’s written several books on the subject and is a sought-after speaker at events like SXSW, Grammy Camp,... Read more...
How to Sell Your CDs and Vinyl at Local Record Stores
Record stores are normally run by passionate music lovers, and they often have loyal customers who want to support local music. Getting your CD or vinyl onto their shelves is... Read more...
Merch, Music, and the Magic of Social Media
Utilize social media to build a community of superfans eager to buy your CDs, vinyl, and merch. Read more...
Sell CDs, Vinyl, and Merch on Bandcamp: A Guide for Independent Musicians
As an independent musician, finding the right platform to sell your music and merchandise can be a game-changer for your career. In this article, we’ll explore why selling your CDs,... Read more...
Selling Merch, CDs and Vinyl on Spotify
We all know that streaming pays artists next to nothing, but did you know that you can sell your CDs, vinyl records, and merch via Spotify? Read more...
The Art of Selling CDs, Vinyl, and Merch via Email
Email marketing is by far a the most effective tool in your music career toolbox. No other forms of marketing gives you better return on your investment. And the best thing is that... Read more...
VIDEO: How to Sell Thousands of CDs Using Digital Marketing
Interview with successful singer-songwriter, Taylor Bradshaw, about how he has used digital marketing to sell tens of thousands of CDs. Read more...
VIDEO: Q&A with Artist Coach Wendy Parr
In this video interview with artist coach Wendy Parr we discuss how to fine-tune your artist persona and focus on your strengths, unique skill set and personality traits to take your... Read more...
The Ultimate Guide to Selling CDs, Vinyl and Merch on Your Own Website
Your band's website is the headquarters of your online presence. Set it up to sell CDs, vinyl and merch that your fans will love! Read more...
Selling CDs and merch at your shows
Whether you’re a rising local artist or an international touring musician, selling merchandise at shows can be a significant revenue stream and perfect opportunity to engage directly with your fans.... Read more...
7 Effective Ways to Sell CDs, Vinyl, and Merch
As an independent musician, you know that tangible CDs and vinyl carry with it a sense of authenticity, a connection to your artistry that digital formats can't fully capture. It's... Read more...
Shine on Promo
Hearing your song on the radio is something that most artists dream of at some point. Shine on Promo is a radio promotion company that helps independent artists promote their singles,... Read more...
Featured Artist: Basic Printer
Basic Printer features driving synth runs, whimsical hooks, and quirky samples - a sound that is anything but basic. We chatted with Jesse from Basic Printer about synthesizers, authenticity, social media... Read more...
Q & A With Our Mastering Engineer
Interview with Tom - our chief mastering engineer about what mastering really is, mastering by a human vs. computerized algorithms, how to communicate clearly with your mastering engineer and much... Read more...
Why Does It Take So Long To Make Vinyl?
The production times of vinyl seem to get longer and longer. Why is that? Will it ever get better? What should you do while waiting for your vinyl to be... Read more...
How To Succeed After You Create
We had the great honor of talking with Corrin Campbell, co-founder of Indepreneur about the ins and outs of marketing your music. Corrin is a fabulous artist in her own right.... Read more...
Raster vs. Vector Graphics: What's the Difference?
Similarly to music, the world of design is vast. Raster? Vector? What are these strange words? What does it all mean?! As musicians we recognize the importance of strong design and the role... Read more...
14 ways to advance your music career from the comforts of your home
A lot of what it takes to have a successful music career can be accomplished from the comforts of your own couch, wearing your pajamas. This article outlines 14 things... Read more...
Why are You a Musician?
Why are you a musician? What kind of musician are you? Who do you sound like? Who are your fans? These are all questions you should answer before quitting your day... Read more...
Atomic Disc Spotify Playlist
Atomic Disc is now curating Spotify playlists from artists we have done CD duplication, vinyl pressing or CD replication for. This article outlines how to be featured on one of... Read more...
How to book your own tour
Have you ever wondered how to book your own tour? This article lays out the steps necessary from research, contacting venues, booking calls, promotion, advancing, etc. Let's get you started... Read more...
Podcast: Todd Demma on Touring
Podcast interview with Todd Demma, tour manager, drummer, tech, production manager and jack of all trades. Road stories, touring tips and more from the man that's toured with the Cult,... Read more...
Music Publishing 101
In this Atomic Disc Podcast episode, we are talking to Jana Cleland, from Red Brick Songs, about music publishing. What exactly is music publishing and what does a music publisher... Read more...
Digital Distribution
Here are some quick insights on the topic of digital distribution. We compared three popular companies offering the service, then we set up an agreement with the one we think... Read more...
Happy Holidays from all of us at Atomic Disc!
We've had a little too much fun here at Atomic Disc. Watch our silly rendition of Deck the Halls to see for yourself... We promise, no elves were harmed during the production... Read more...
Secrets for Spotify Success
In the very first Atomic Disc Podcast, we interview hip-hop artist Enkay47 about his success with Spotify, YouTube, and Facebook. READ MORE... Read more...
Is it too Late to Record a Christmas Single?
T’is the season to be jolly… and make some extra cash by releasing a Christmas single or two. Of course you should have started planning your Holiday promotions in May…... Read more...
5 Types of Emails to Send Your Fans
Email marketing is kind of like dating. It might take a few interactions before you can expect someone to... buy your album. And just like dating, or any human relation for... Read more...
How to build an email list from scratch
It's fairly common knowledge today that email is among the most effective and affordable marketing tools. So let's not waste any time with a bunch of statistics to prove what you already... Read more...
What is a UPC and do you really need one...?
What are UPCs? What are they used for? Do you need it? How can you get one? All of these questions are answered in this article. READ MORE... Read more...
Featured Artist: THIRD SEVEN
What do you get when you combine a talented songwriter, cellist, singer, percussionist, a plethora of electronics and a loop station? A one man enigma named Billy Mickelson also known... Read more...
How to plan a successful CD release party
Once your final mix is done you're itching to share your new music with your friends and fans. So you hurry up and schedule a CD release party, right...? NO! Your... Read more...
4 Foolproof Ways to Sell More Merch at Your Shows
We recently conducted a small survey asking two simple questions. Quite a few people kindly filled out the survey and what we found was rather interesting... Spoiler alert: It inspired us... Read more...
Atomic Disc will stand with those who support immigrants, refugees and basic human values.
We are not the kind of company that feels the need to express our political opinions, but there comes a time when silently standing on the sidelines is no longer acceptable. So we at Atomic Disc will stand with our friends at Bandcamp in their efforts to oppose the ban on immigration. READ MORE... Read more...
How to book gigs - from a club owner's perspective
Have you ever wondered what club owners are really looking for when booking bands? We had the pleasure of talking to Doug Hoffman, co-owner of Salem club, the Space, about booking... Read more...
What exactly is CD-Text?
We often get phone calls from customers asking if track listing and artist info will show up when their CD is inserted in a computer or CD player. This article... Read more...
Featured Artist: BRANDYN BURNETTE
Brandyn Burnette is a progressive soul artist from St. Louis, Missouri whom, despite his young age has hundreds of songs under his belt and has toured with the likes of... Read more...
We Just Want To Say Thank You!
On this Thanksgiving Eve, all of us here at Atomic Disc would like to take a little moment to thank you. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to help you get your CDs made. We are thankful that we get to come to work every day and be a small part of fantastic music projects from around the world. That is why we will donate $5 per order to charity. READ MORE... Read more...
Featured Studio: South Sound Sound
“If the band is coming into the studio for the first time, my biggest suggestion is that they are well rehearsed” says Jason Suko, owner of South Sound Sound. Like... Read more...
Featured Artist: Whetherman
Florida based folk band Whetherman just finished a month long tour of Europe, playing 33 shows in 30 days. We had the great pleasure of talking to lead singer Nicholas... Read more...
Meet Chris - our new production manager
Chris Bettis took over as production manager at Atomic Disc, after Kristin went off to Norway to work as a nurse. He has a wide background in music as a... Read more...
3 more tips to prepare for a successful blog campaign
You might ask "Why is it important to connect with bloggers about my music?" It’s important for many reasons. The music industry has changed dramatically in the last 5 years... Read more...
How to submit your track list to Gracenote using iTunes/Apple Music
Now that you've got your album finished you may be asking yourself, "how to get your track list submitted to Gracenote for iTunes?" Or perhaps, maybe you hadn't thought of... Read more...
Featured Artist: Emily Logan from Urban Wildlife
Urban Wildlife is an indie folk band from Portland, OR who just finished a quick tour of the west coast to promote their sophomore album, "Strangers" scheduled for release in... Read more...