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Where should I send my EP for review?
I'm an unsigned singer/songwriter type with a new 4 track EP, looking for places to send it for review and exposure. I realise this is a funny thing to post on DIS, but I expect they'll just be happy I'm not bothering them with it! So far have submitted to: Dots and Dashes, Live Music Scene, Fake DIY and Bearded Magazine. not expecting replies from many. Cheers in advance!
you could start
with posting a link here?
Find reviewers who have positively reviewed stuff which is in some way similar to what you're doing
Many writers write for multiple zines / blogs or whatever you want to call them. If you contact the source itself, then there's an outside chance that someone who writes for them will browse a list of hundreds of unsolicited demos etc (if they're that organised that is) and pick one, but then again you may also win the lottery.
Give us an idea of style and I can make a few suggestions. Also, Google is your friend here. Do you know about the related: qualifier in Google? If not, take a look at these (based on your current suggestions):
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=related:dotsanddashes.co.uk
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=related:www.live-music-scene.co.uk
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=related:www.thisisfakediy.co.uk
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=related:www.beardedmagazine.com
Post the link here too.
Thanks, I didn't know about
related searches. I'll have a nose about on those. Here's a link to the EP on Bandcamp http://alexparkersongs.bandcamp.com/ and my site http://www.alexparkersongs.com. I guess the style is acoustic British pop music, but I always struggle to pin it down. As you say, the odds of reputable sites giving me the time of day are fairly low, which is why I'd like to send it to as many places as possible.
Contact the journalists directly, get a dialogue going with them
Don't lie about what you're doing, but just being human about it all helps distinguish you. Everyone who's sent me a personal email who evidently is talking to me and not just part of some giant copy/paste chain I've ended up reviewing.