Length between singles...

[nemisis633]

Hey everyone,

this is sort of a non-gear related question but I need the information none the less so. I turn to gearslutz once again for wisdom.

I was wondering what the typical time lapse between single releases is for an album. I'm assuming its something like 2-3 months. That seems to be what I'm noticing on my own anyway.. Big hit comes out, 2 months later another follows off the same album...

any information on this? I'm trying to somewhat promote a band I sort of took under my wing...

cheers,
Jon

[Ol' Betsey]

Hi Jon,

There's no set rules really.

First questions: Is this a singles orientated band? And what type of music? What do you hope to achieve with releasing one or more singles? Do you have the money to truly "promote" A single ie. pluggers/press?

I'm not sure, but I seem to recall that there are relatively few singles released commercially in the States (as opposed to the UK (and Europe somewhat) where people are still kinda trying to put singles into the shops). You mainly go to the media (radio/TV/press) with the single as a promotional tool and then only release the single if you've got pretty substantial support.

It also depends on what your promoting (album/tour) and how the singles settle into your promotional strategy.

You can have one single a few weeks to a few months before an album release to help promote the release of said album. You can have a series of singles to draw awareness to an act and then release an album after you feel you've built up a decent enough vibe.

You can release an album, book a tour, and then use a single to draw attention to both the album and tour.

One thing though, it's all very expensive and don't EVER expect to make your money back on a single. It's like pissing it down the drain.

If you've got the right act with the right song at the right time it can really help set things up but remember, the albums the thing. If you want any longevity you gotta have a great album behind it. Well, not always, but that's another story...

Sorry if I haven't answered your question but there's really no easy explaination.

Good luck,

R.

[nemisis633]

I suppose I didn't define what I ment so much. my fault. I'm more reffering to the schedule thats posted on the back of disc's sent to radio stations. It's my understanding that they basicly have "release dates" for each song on an album. This keeps the same song on the radio all over the country at the same time. Am I wrong about this?

thanks,
Jon