Yep, NMC was five years old on 1st October (where did that time go?), and coincidentally this is the 1,500th review or news post, an average of 300 a year but I’m sure you’d worked that out already.
There have been many ups and downs along the way as is always the case with enterprises like this, but overall I feel NMC has been a success.
We are one of only three such publications in the UK that I know of that are dedicated wholly or in part to the Nordic music scene.
As things stand we should go through 100,000 web page views this year for the first time and that isn’t bad going for a part-time ‘blog’. Ok, we aren’t Pitchfork or Rolling Stone, but I wouldn’t want to be anyway. Once you get big with the general public you attract not only those that are interested in the music but also those looking for a fight.
Fortunately we’ve had literally only a couple of those in five years and I’d like it to stay that way.
While more ‘hits’ are always welcome I’m more concerned with the ‘quality’ of the reader. I don’t much care for that word but it helps explain why we are always looking to attract more industry representatives to the site.
We’ve already acquired quite a few followers from other music media including some high profile ones from big publications in Europe and other continents, and mainstream media journalists, also record producers, label managers and A&R folk (yes, there are still some left, AI hasn’t replaced them all yet).
I’ve always struggled to get and retain writers. Doing this regularly is one hell of a commitment and numerous folk have been and gone along the way. Earlier this year Dominic Stevenson, who has since relocated from Denmark back to England, joined the team and is producing excellent reviews, mainly of albums.
But we always need more. If you fancy having a crack at it and could manage one review a week (that includes live shows, you can still sometimes get free review tickets) then let me know.
Right now the volume of requests, from traditional routes like PR representatives, also from artists themselves and either direct or through social media, is overwhelming and I’m having to pass on seven or more requests out of every 10. That’s a ratio I’d like to improve as soon as possible.
A quick nod too, to the ‘Webmaster’ who keeps the site up and running, Stefan Arsenijevic, in Serbia. Let me know if you need a website and I’ll pass on the message.
One thing I would ask artists and bands to do is to put NMC reviews on their social pages if they like them. It benefits both parties. Many do this already but those that don’t are missing a trick.
A quick word about live performances in the UK. If you are a Nordic artist or band we’d like to see you here. I know it’s expensive and difficult with all the ‘Brexit’ related extra administration. But if you fancy giving it a go we will always try to support you as best we can with publicity.
I’m also keen to see artists playing in my home town in the Manchester area where there are a couple of venues that would suit artists at different levels of development, holding up to 1,000 and 150 audience members respectively. Again, contact me if interested.
Now I’d like to ask you for ideas for what we should do next. NMC, like every ‘blog’, needs to evolve. Some sections, like ‘Best album’ and ‘Best Live Show’ and even ‘Down Memory Lane’ have virtually disappeared this last couple of years. They could return or there could be something new. Tell me what you think.
One final thought. Any contribution to keeping the site going would be more than welcome. We have a link on the site to ‘Buy me a coffee’ and you can contribute from as little as 5 British pounds, about six euros or less. Every bit helps!
Thanks for reading this and happy listening!
