- Record the album in a garage using analog tape. Bill the album as a "back to rock" roots album. Include a splice of the analog tape in the first hundred thousand or so copies. As a side benefit, the album will be inexpensive to record and produce.
- Bring in legendary, Nevermind producer, Butch Vig in order to make a "real" rock album, forming the first tie to the band's first and probably biggest fan base, Nirvana fans.
- To further solidify the tie, bring in former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic to play accordion and bass on track number 10, I Should Have Known.
- Complete the circle by admitting for the first time, in the band's 15 year, 7 album career, that track number 10 is indeed about Kurt Cobain.
- Have legendary and influential musician, Bob Mould of Husker Du perform backing vocals on track number 3, Dear Rosemary. Bob is still fairly active in large political movements and can spread the word.
- With an understanding of how videos work in the YouTube age, allow the fans to make the videos for all of the new album's songs, and let them submit them in a "contest." In this way, the fans will serve as champions of the videos and will filtrate them among their friends and folks who might give them a job. As a side benefit, no huge video production costs are incurred.
- In keeping with the reality of the YouTube world, make an inexpensive, admittedly kick-ass, parody video for the song White Limo. Humor is likely to go viral.
- In keeping with the "garage," theme, go on a Garage Tour, playing in a handful of lucky fan, contest winner garages in major cities. Note: major cities were included in the tour probably in an effort to create a grassroots, groundswell of fan support. (If you saw the Foo Fighters in your friends garage, you would probably tell a few friends about it now wouldn't you?)
- Release a DVD documentary about the band's history, leading up to and ending with the creation of the new album so it is fresh on your mind ... "Must go buy now."
- In either a stroke of brilliance or marketing luck, Krist Novoselic leaks the information that he, Dave and Pat Smear did in fact "jam" on some oldies and when asked by the others, "what should we play," he said, and I quote, "Oh f$%ck it, let's play Teen Spirit." (Did Butch Vig happen to have his finger on the record button?)
- Proving that this band was made for the YouTube age, put out a tour, promo video that, well ... you have to see for yourself: hot buns
Again, I reiterate, let the Foo's market the bejesus out of their album, I do not begrudge them. I would rather see them around for another ten years versus extinct because of some unwritten, music-as-art moral standard. This band, or more than likely, Dave Grohl, seems to be taking a cue from the KISS Army marketing days, when KISS released everything from cartoons to lunch boxes to dolls in order to brand themselves and make a buck. Grohl even admits that the idea for the new tour promo spot is similar to the commercials KISS would release before going on tour.1.
In another sense, it seems as if YouTube and its viral nature was made specifically for this band and they just had to be patient enough to wait for the technology to catch up with their video sense of humor. The Foo Fighters released the video for Big Me in 1996 and Learn to Fly in 1999. YouTube was created in 2005 and seems to be a perfect match for the humor found in these videos.
It's almost as if the KISS make-up nowadays has been removed and replaced with a sense of the inane and ridiculous.
Case in point: Long Road to Ruin
1. Chelsea Lately, 9-7-2011
Building a Small Business That Warren Buffett Would Love - Available Everywhere, Spring 2012
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