Sweet Eaters is my bandmate Geoff Bennington's and my new project, created after two years of touring together with IVA. We've had a great time playing music together and wrote a slew of new songs. We've chosen our five favorites for a new EP, and we need your help.
Geoff's previous band, Gillian, has had critical success as has my IVA project since it's inception. Our combined creative forces have given us good momentum. Since embarking on the project, we've serendipitously been offered a studio share at Brooklyn Studio Collective (greatly reducing our studio fees) and have found fabulous musicians from two years playing in New York.
Here's a breakdown of the $29,650 we need to raise to make this record possible.
Producer Fees $5000
Band rehearsal fees for recording $1000
Studio musician fees $2400
Studio rental fees $3600
Studio engineer $1000
Mixing engineer $2500
Mastering engineer $750
Social media promotion $9600
Legal fees $500
Album artwork $500
Printing of 100 CDs $350
Printing of 100 Vinyls $650
Administrative support $1800
Total = $29,650
Your donation brings you right into the action, giving us the power back in a tough new landscape for independent musicians.
Thanks to the advent of streaming, artists can't keep up with the tech giants underpricing our music. Spotify, who owns by far the greatest streaming marketshare, pays us only $.0005 per stream for records that cost tens of thousands of dollars to create. Touring also no longer support artists and allow them a living wage, as you can read in this excellent article from the Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/apr/25/shocking-truth-money-bands-make-on-tour-taylor-swift
*All that is to say, you can be proud of your vital part in the creation of a beautiful record.*
IVA has had three successful fundraising campaigns for the "Leap", "Traitor" and "Nobody's Woman" EPs. I'm so grateful for this previous support as it made the sounds I heard in my head accessible to all. It also brought together a beautiful community of artists and fans to make them a reality.
We have some set reward donation levels ($50, $75, $100, $250, $500, $750 and $1000) yet you can donate any amount you wish.
**Gifts of $100 or more include exclusive 7" vinyls with Sweet Eaters personally created artwork and messages for you, plus a bonus track only on vinyl.**
Please get us off the ground with your donation and help make this project a success. We need you!