But let me make it up to you. I’ve been posting elsewhere.

Some of you may remember that back in June, I shared my vision for my future?

Well, I’ve been testing and refining it — I found some interesting legs along the way — and now I have a full-fledged business plan.

And I announced it on my brand new web site, AriKoinuma.com.

Please go there, and read it now. I hope you read both the summary and the detailed versions.

And leave me a comment, send me well-wishes.

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OK, did you go and read it? Great! Now you can go on reading below — you’ll know what I’m talking about.

My Vision for Aries9

Now, what does this all mean to the future of Aries9?

I said before that I have another album’s worth of songs in the can. And they will be the first I’ll record once I start working on my business full-time.

I am so excited about my songs, and the lessons I learned from my first album that I can apply to it.

When I release it, I will release it in several ways. From the launch of my business, I will release all my music in “standard” grade mp3 for free.

Yes, that’s right. I am willingly joining the evils of digital music revolution.

But there will also be higher-grade mp3s and of course, CDs. I will sell those.

Why am I giving away my music for free, you may ask. Well, I’m doing so because I want my music to travel to far, far away, to the ends of the internet. I hope to hire a virtual assistant and have my music posted on every mp3 sites out there.

I’m doing so because I believe in the power of my music. It’s hard to stand out when I’m not gigging and promoting myself in the physical world — plus, there are so many songs out there, just releasing a few good songs isn’t really noteworthy.

But I believe that if I keep releasing consistently good music at a very prolific pace, sooner or later people will take notice. My songs are my greatest assets, and I myself feel that the average quality of all my songs are rather high. And when I used to write children’s songs for Songs of Love, I tasted what it’s like to write within a strict time-limit. I rose to the occasion every time and wrote good music, some great, even.

So I’m intending to write and release 40 songs a year. Not all of it will be the Aries9 moniker. If you’re fan of Aries9, you may not like other stuff I put out. But the chances are, you’ll still enjoy them, as they are all my songs, and they are all good.

40 songs a year is a lot of music. A typical album contains 12 songs or so, and if an artist releases one album every other year, it usually takes 6 years of a career to reach close to 40. I’m proposing to do that in a year.

And if I keep building up my catalog that way, I can amass a formidable body of work that is noteworthy.

Aries9 will be my outlet for my heaviest, darkest, most complex and most ambitious music. I realize that my first album isn’t that dark or that heavy — and the second album won’t be a major departure, though it will be a step in that direction. And after that, I plan to incorporate more metal and prog rock influences. The songs I am writing now go down lower and are meaner. I LOVE it.

Probably in the first year, I will also release my first album for my “sensitive rock” project, Aristotle’s Hope. It’ll be a nice contrast from Aries9. I am a big fan of acts like Toad the Wet Sprocket, Jars of Clay and Death Cab for Cutie — and Aristotle’s Hope will be inline with that. I have enough songs there to make an album as well. Plus, I have plans to venture out into roots rock and children’s music.

So, what’s next? I’m afraid I’m going to remain somewhat inactive on the Aries9 front, as I gear up the other aspects of the business to support what I do here. But I promise you’ll be the first to know, when I start making music. I hope it will be soon — within the next few months. I still fully plan to release my next Aries9 album in 2009.

In the mean time, check out my self-improvement blog Our Best Version, my new music recommendation site Smart Music Review. And keep checking the AriKoinuma.com blog to learn the latest news. Thanks!

I’ve been meaning to do this, but I’ve been scared to.  But now is as good of a time as any.

To let the world know what my intentions are.

My World Domination.

I am not kidding.  Here is how I plan to start:

By writing and recording music, and distributing it freely, using blog as the delivery/distribution mechanism.

In the other words, I’m going to pursue a blogging business, with a twist — offering music as the center piece, with writing served on the side.

No, I can’t post a new song a day.  But I plan to release at about one-a-week pace.

Yes, I’m ripping off the model Jonthan Coulton used.  I don’t think he can sue me, though, unless he patented his business model 

In all seriousness, when I read what he did, and when I read Steve Pavlina’s post about how to make a living as a blogger, dots connected in my head.

I’ve had problems with traditional business model of recording and touring.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to play live and I plan to do so.  But what I am really exceptional at is in writing, arranging, producing — “constructing” music.  Plus, touring is hard for a family man.  And putting and keeping a band together is a baggage I don’t need right now.

I’m making music that is “me” — and I also needed a business model, a method of pursuing my music making as a business, that is also uniquely “me” and suits my needs, personality, and style.

So how does the “mp3 blog” model enable me to do that?  Here is how:

• I’ve always planned on having a life-long career, putting out music in multiple genres.  Aries9 is my first and primary love, but I have songs that don’t fit this project’s range.  Specifically, I plan to put out music that are:
  • Gentler/uplifting rock, using more acoustic guitars, like Jars of Clay
  • Children’s music. Collaborating with my wife, who’s a terrific singer
  • Film/classical/instrumental music
  • Blues/roots/folk
  • And of course, more Aries9!

  They will be organized under various project names, so people know what to expect. Aries9 is one of them.  My range and versatility is wider than most musicians — comparable to Zappa, They Might Be Giants, and Steve Wilson of Porcupine Tree.

• This business model combines everything I know — music, writing, online business. In addition to releasing music, I’m going to continue traditional blogging. This blog (well, it’ll probably move to arikoinuma.com) will be my central music blog where I release songs, discuss how my business model is working, and give tips to other musicians, songwriters and home recordists. My other blog will continue to discuss my other passion of realizing one’s potential as a human being. Blogging alone, when done, is proven to make a profitable business. Combining that with music (I will blog everyday, even on the days when I’m not releasing new songs) will be a potent match.
• I can build up momentum without having to rely on live gigs/touring initially.  My family and I will be happy.
• Remember, I’m bilingual. Once I build up my catalog and web sites in English, then I can duplicate the whole thing in Japanese. Another one of my unique assets being utilized.  Japanese music industry is in even worse trouble than American counterpart.  A musician’s success story will be good news to that country.
• I work well with deadlines and when imposed limitations.  I get more creative that way, and make better music when I don’t have time to second-guess what I’m doing.
• I have a wealth of other ideas that I can experiment with — like allowing fans to commission songs, recording Phil Keaggy-style improvisation daily, writing e-book on how to sequence realistic drumming (my specialty) and so on.

How am I going to make money, when I’m releasing songs for free?  Well, I will put ads and affiliate links on my site, in addition to offering CDs and more traditional music merchandise.  I’m also toying around with the idea of subscription/membership for a low monthly fee — for additional content, free CDs and T-shirts, and so on.  Of course, I’ll take donations. 

The idea is to build up a suite of web sites which attract high traffic.  Once I have the traffic, there are many ways to earn income from it.  Not to mention, it’ll help me play gigs.

So, when am I going to start this?

As soon as I can.

Here’s where you come in.

Obviously, it takes a lot of time to create tunes at a pace where I can release them on a weekly basis.  I have most of the equipment I need to start this right now, but what I need is time.  I did my research and I’m confident that if I do this on full-time basis for 2 years, I will be able to build up a sustainable business.  And my income potential will grow exponentially from there, as my catalog builds up.

I need something, some kind of arrangement that will allow me to spend time building this for 2 years.  There are many ways that can happen.  Getting a grant.  Finding investor(s)/patron(s).  My blogs taking off traffic-wise.  Getting a loan.  Inheriting (?) a house I can sell….

I just need to find some way of doing this without starving and neglecting my family.  Going at this in a “working 2 full-time jobs” way is not acceptable.  Everyone will be so stressed if I did that — and that’s not conducive to making good music.  The whole point of doing this is to make everyone happy.

I just need to find time to do this, without sacrificing my family’s well-being.  But I’m open as to how that works out.

So, if you like me or my music, and think this idea has a potential, do me a favor — just mull over my plan in your head.  Be on the look out for ideas, hints, and inspirations for what can allow Ari 2 years’ worth of music-making time.  If you have any ideas or questions, let me know.  (comments are open below) And look forward to the day when you can come back here and find a new tune that’ll surprise you and thrill you.

I strongly believe that the world will be a better place when I’m making music all the time.  What I outlined here is just a start — once I get this thing going, I’m going to use my knowledge to help others live a life of pursuing their passions.

But above all, I believe that my music is good.  People get happy when they listen to my music.  Me getting prolific and releasing a lot of different music will be good for the world.  And my success will be an inspiration to many others.

So — thanks for reading.  And send me your well-wishes, prayers and kudos.  If you think I’m lunatic and my plan will never work, then kindly keep that opinion away from me.

The important thing is that I have a vision I’m excited about, and I’m going to boldly pursue it.  While I have every reason to believe I’ll be successful, ultimately, that’s not what matters.  I’m having fun pursuing it.

Life is what happens when you’re on the way.

I was so amazed when after about 2 hours, I realized that I just wrote the lyrics to the whole song, from the beginning to the end. And it’s as good as anything I’ve written! I was elated.

Many writers advise trying to write on daily basis — whether it’s good or not. We don’t produce great material by simply turning the switch on. We produce by simply churning out a lot of stuff, and then picking up the best from the duds. I’ll be the first person to admit that most of what I write are generic, boring music. What I choose to release to the public, though, are stuff that are the exception, not the norm.

Plus, I am not a very fast lyrics writer. I can write music pretty quickly — sometimes it takes as long as the song is. Play it once, capture, and there it is. But words come slowly to me usually.

So it was very surprising that I just flipped the switch on and cranked out stuff that meet my standards on the spot. That’s not to say I won’t tweak it in the future — I’m a tweaker with lyrics. I keep playing with words and details until I start committing vocals to tape (and then tweak some more….). But the skeleton and theme and tone are all set. The song went from vague and ambiguous to focused and realized.
I think it helps that I’m “branding” my music for this Aries9 project. This is my progressive modern rock — I put all my heavy, aggressive and complicated music in this bucket, with the lyrics focusing on darker stuff. I know what I demand of myself when I’m making music for Aries9. It’s like knowing exactly what my client is looking for.

It also helps because I’m at a point where I’m not really trying to make a “point” with my lyrics. Some artists consider it very important to communicate a lesson or a moral with their words — and I used to think that way, too. Except the songs I wrote with that kind of intention didn’t age well. The songs that stay with me tend to be abstract collages, assemblies of rhymes and metaphors that tell me how I’m supposed to feel but doesn’t really tell me a clear story or a message. I like swimming among my words, twisting and turning, wondering what they all mean. I sometimes discover a new way of interpreting my own lyrics, years after the song is written. That’s what I love about my songs. Or should I say — that’s the ideal kind of lyrics to me for this style of music. The music is pretty heavy-handed, so if the lyrics get preachy, it can be a real drag.

I can also tell you that I am a writer who adjusts my style to the style of music and who I’m writing for. In the future I plan to release/pursue other styles of music, and they will feature a completely different kind of lyrics. A folk song, for example, is a better vehicle for a more cohesive story with concrete details, in my opinion.

Anyway, it was very gratifying to just sit down and be able to write stuff that I get excited about. Writing songs is fun, fun, fun. I can’t wait to put it all together and share it with you and the world.