About a year ago, Duff McDonald—a writer for the New Yorker, Fortune, Vanity Fair, et al—began kicking Numero’s tires for a piece about how in an industry in record decline, we were beating the odds and succeeding. Earlier this week, the article hit newsstands and mailboxes, nestled in-between NASDAQ indexed corporations in Bloomberg Business Week. You can read the full text here, or check the spot on info graphic below for our “recipe” for success:
About the photo. The whip-smart Daniel Shea was sent over to our office to shoot to the madness. He went well over his three hour budget, but we hardly noticed as we were too busy recreating the cover to Minor Threat’s “Salad Days” 7″:
Summer is fast approaching, which means that internship season is upon us. The Numero Group is seeking bright-eyed individuals, interested in working within the ranks of the Numero Group this summer. Unpaid positions are available in realms of research/editorial, design/interactive, and business development/customer relations. Interns must be willing to commit at least 15 hours a week, own a laptop, and be able to work from our Chicago offices. The internship period is flexible, but begins in late May and ends in late August. The Numero Internship is a great opportunity for anyone looking to learn more about the music business from an independent standpoint.
All applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and work samples. Applications are due no later than April 15th. Applications will be screened over the following weeks, and all applicants will be informed of their internship status no later than April 27th.
Submissions can either be sent electronically or to our physical address:
The Numero Group. 2348 South Marshall Blvd. Chicago, IL 60623
Digital Submissions should be sent to info@numerogroup.com with the SUMMER INTERNSHIP_[Desired Department] in the subject line.
Filed under: Methodology | Tags: Black Sabbath, Female guitar players, Medusa, Rock
When the Winter Solstice creeps stealthily over the frozen plains of Illinois, you will hear….
Not pictured: 36 pages of notes + a 5 foot x 1 foot poster filled with text about Codeine’s non-album discography. That said, here’s a description of the contents above:
Top: Front side of the 5 foot poster.
Middle: Duotone silver print of When I See The Sun box, wet proof of The White Birch (on reverse board, natch), inside gatefold of Frigid Stars LP.
Bottom: Inside gatefold of Barely Real, outside of Barely Real, outside of Frigid Stars LP.
We’ll delve into the booklets next week.
Richmond illustrator Eliza Childress entered our lives as a result of a contest we held to customize a label that paid tribute to one of our favorite custom labels, Boddie. Artistically, she hit it out of the park, into another park, and then out of that park.
Unfortunately, her ambitious composition was penalized for its beauty, missing the mark on Boddie’s budgetary, whatever-works aesthetic and ethos. Eliza took second runner up, making her the perfect contestant for WTNG: Solid Bronze.
As we’ve said before, WTNG pays homage to the radio station-generated talent searches of yesteryear. For inspiration, we sent Eliza a clump of our favorite facades, and she generated this colorful masterpiece, depicting the waterfront of our native Chicago. The back photo reveals the spot varnish (the glossiness engulfing the sillouetted skyline), which is also present in dashes on the cover. You’ll have to see it to believe it! This will go on-sale at select locations on April 21st as part of Record Store Day. The album contains small-pond celebrities from 11 North American markets.
But back to our homegirl, Numero completists will also recognize Eliza’s work from the digital sequel to Eccentric Beats and Breaks. There’s been talk of putting this on tape. Negotiations are currently at a standstill.
There is so much more insanity on her website, Psychedelic Voyage. Her rates are reasonable, and her output is clearly ridiculous. Bonus Track: A T-Shirt she designed for our buddies at Steady Sounds in Richmond (where fine Numero products are sold). Now this is how you design a T-shirt!
You rock Eliza! Keep up the good work!
Filed under: Methodology
To date, The Numero Group has remunerated nearly 500 singers, players, and songwriters to the tune of over 2 million dollars in royalties. When you buy from Numero, you can do so with the knowledge that money from your purchase goes to the people who made the music in the first place. If 10 people in a house on the southwest side of Chicago can find a way to accurately report to their clients, then the major media conglomerates who control 70% of the marketshare should be able to do the same.
If you’ve ever wondered where the earthy digital dig imagery from our website was shot, look no further than this video:
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When Numero was in its infancy we were hitting Out Of The Past hard, spending 6 hours trolling through penny 45s on the hunt for anything that looked weird. Most of our original Bandit records were pulled from this place, and our old style of shooting the singles in their sleeves was made possible by their plethora of dead stock 45 sleeves. Certainly worth a visit if you’re ever in our fair city. That side of town is a bit rough, but if two of our employees can ride their bikes through there on a Friday evening in mid-July without being shot, you should be fine.
Filed under: Methodology
While going through an old projects folder, I (Ken) happened upon a handful of correspondence from our very own Rob Sevier as we struggled to find our footing in those first two years. A few prescient bits of that correspondence follow.
We briefly flirted with the idea of licensing major label catalog, Rob was less than enthusiastic:
From: Rob Sevier
Subject: Re: WEA List
Date: February 23, 2004 12:26:18 AM CST
To: Ken Shipley
These lists are like fucking dollar bins. Here are the meager possibilities:
Elektra
KILROY, PAT LIGHT OF DAY EK 7311
NOONAN, STEVE STEVE NOONAN EK 74017
ST. JOHN, BRIDGET ASK ME NO QUESTIONS EK 9101
ST. JOHN, BRIDGET SONGS FOR THE GENTLE MAN EK 74104
Warner
VALLE, MARCOS BRAZILIANCE 1654
Atlantic
ALEXANDER, HAROLD RAW ROOT
FINCH GLORY OF THE INNER FORCE ATL SD 36124 (if this is the band I think it is.)
RASPUTIN’S STASH RASPUTIN’S STASH ATL SD 9046
Boddie’s optimistic beginnings:
From: Rob Sevier
Subject: New possibility
Date: January 8, 2006 1:24:17 PM CST
To: Ken Shipley
Finally, a letter I was BCC’d on. Our first communique with Lou Ragland, regarding a widely circulated mixtape
Subject: Hot Chocolate
Date: January 28, 2004 8:06:55 PM CST
To: Lou Ragland
BCC: Ken Shipley
I received your email from my friends over at [redacted]. I’m glad to hear from you, until yesterday I had no idea who made that song, and it’s one of my favorites. The cd that you heard was a copy of a legendary mixtape that has been passed around for years and has been broadcast on the radio several times. Almost all the artists and song titles are unknown (to me, at least.) I’m curious to hear more about your music and life, so please get in touch and let’s talk about how we can work together in the future.
Filed under: Methodology
In anticipation of our upcoming night at the Hideout, we thought we’d share a recent interview conducted by Mark Bazer for his Interview Show, conducted—conveniently enough—at the Hideout a few weeks back. Guaranteed to be the least or most informative 14 minutes of your day, depending upon your employment situation.
Proofs for the CD version of I Travel Alone arrived over the holidays, bringing us one hurdle closer to the mid-March finish line. The box set’s stoic facade comes courtesy of Cleveland photographer George Shuba, who spent much of the ’60s and ’70s immersed in the arena of rock, documenting Ohio dates by everyone from Aerosmith to the Zombies. His archive is so star studded, it’s a wonder that two unpublished rolls of Lou Ragland studio portraiture from the late ’60s did not fall through the cracks of his cataloging system. Numerous stills of this well-lit Cleveland luminary are included in both the CD and LP versions of I Travel Alone.
