The Keys, and Beyond…

The following review is by Kathy Parsons of MainlyPiano.com. I must say, this is one of the better reviews I’ve ever received, and I’ve received a lot of reviews over the course of the 11 albums that I’ve released! After reading, be sure to check out Kathy’s site at MainlyPiano.com for more reviews - lots of wonderful music to find there. And now, without further ado, the review:

Ticket To Antarctica is an exciting album of electronic music inspired by a cruise KevOz and his wife took to Antarctica in January 2008. Something of a soundtrack for the trip, the music ranges from quiet and meditative to very bold, upbeat, and fun. Some of the atmospheric sounds that accompany the music suggest icy cold, but the music is consistently upbeat and overflowing with the joy of discovery. KevOz has been creating electronic music for quite a number of years, but I believe this is the first time I’ve heard any of his albums from start to finish - and it certainly won’t be the last! This is music that is personal yet accessible, complex enough to stay interesting with many listens, and very positive in spirit.

Appropriately, the album begins with the title track. The sound of a cold wind starts our musical journey. The first minute or so of music is mysterious and quietly majestic. Then a rhythm track is added that quickens the pulse and suggests a building excitement as the travelers approach their destination. “Crossing The Drake Passage” has a strong sense of adventure and drama, moving forward with a pulsing beat. “Deception Island” is much more ambient and eerie. When the rhythm kicks in, the mood becomes much lighter. I really like this one! “Blue Ice” is gorgeous, suggesting the majesty and awesome beauty of the surrounding landscape - also a favorite. “Penguin Dance” is pure musical fun. Carefree and energetic yet not quite graceful, it is easy to imagine these large birds moving and grooving to the music. The marimba and other tropical sounds near the end are a bit of a surprise, but add to the party atmosphere. “Antarctic Lullaby” has a simple, beautiful melody on a bell or crystal-like sound with a strong rhythm and strings in the background - a fascinating combination. As the piece evolves, the soothing melody goes into the background as the strings and percussion come to the front, adding energy and excitement. “Iceberg Maker” is darker, more mysterious, and a little bit ominous. Chilly winds and crashing sounds contrast with sparkles and a gentle rhythm - another favorite! “Return Voyage” brings us back home with high spirits and many thrilling memories.

Ticket To Antarctica is a joy to listen to on many levels. It can provide a bright, uplifting musical background, but don’t leave it in the background too much because you’ll miss a lot of the beauty and fun! It is available from www.kevoz.com, Amazon, CD Baby, and iTunes. Recommended!

Just a quick note to let you know that I’m on a few social networking sites…in case you didn’t know. :)

Here they are:

Fan me on Facebook

Friend me on MySpace

Sub me on YouTube

Tweet me on Twitter

Looking forward to connecting with you further…see you there!

If you know me at least a little bit, you know that I’m a big fan of sharing my music. But, it’s not always easy to do. Sometimes, you have to click a link to go here, and then there, and then fill in the box to get your song, etc., etc. :) So, I’ve decided on a new approach.

From now through the end of January, you can download the following 3 new songs from Ticket To Antarctica for FREE. Yep, free!! Just go here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/kevoz11

You’ll then see that the following 3 songs are priced at $0.00:

~ Blue Ice
~ Penguin Dance
~ Antarctic Lullaby

These 3 tracks are the middle of my new album, and the diverse nature of them kinda gives you an idea of the variety of music on my latest creation. Antarctica is not just a quiet “chilled-out” place; it’s also filled with wonder and excitement. And I tried my best to capture that with Ticket To Antarctica.

Is giving my music away for free the best marketing strategy? Maybe not. :) But, I don’t make my music to market it - I make it to express my feelings and emotions…if by chance it rings true to you, then I’m sure you’ll make up your own mind to listen to more.

Feel free to pass this link on, by the way: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/kevoz11 - I’d like to give some free music to your friends, too. ;-)

Thanks for reading and listening!

KevOz

Just wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday. :) Happy New Year!

See ya in ‘10,

KevOz

Just wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!!

Talk to you soon…more to come in ‘10!

KevOz :)

As some of you already know, I love to travel just about as much as I love making music - which is a lot! And I also enjoy taking lots of pictures during my travels. This year, I decided to branch out a little and put together some merchandise at http://www.zazzle.com/kevozdotcom based on my travels. I’ve been to Antarctica, China, Scandinavia, and Egypt over the past couple years…just to name a few places. They’ve all been awesome experiences, and I’d like to think I’ve captured at least a little of that feeling in the pictures I’ve taken.

While I’ve got several items available at Zazzle, by far my biggest seller is my 2010 Egypt calendar. It’s definitely got pictures of wonders of the world that many of you probably haven’t seen (in person) before. And I think my calendar does a great job of bringing you up close and personal to the BC days of Egypt. You can go here to have a look for yourself: http://www.zazzle.com/egypt_2010_calendar-158529072909135407

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

KevOz

About a month back, I started a little contest for my fans, where they can suggest friends to my Facebook fan page - in hopes that they’ll become my fans there, too. The Top 15 fan referrers (meaning those who refer the most friends who actually become fans) would receive free music from me. I thought this was a fun idea, and I wanted to post it wherever my presence was so that others could join in, or maybe even come up with a fun marketing idea of their own that they could try (if they’re an independent artist like myself, that is). You would think that most any social network would allow you to post a description/link to this type of event, right?

Wrong! :(

I’m not going to be naming any names here, but there is a social network that I was once a part of (I’ve since decided to remove my content/presence and dedicate my networking efforts elsewhere) that did not think this was a good idea. In fact, the admin there removed my post (it was on my “blog” over there at the time) and sent me an email about it, stating “we are not Facebook or MySpace” and that I couldn’t post this type of content on my blog on my own page there. There were a few other sentences in there, too - I must admit that I don’t remember it line for line, but at the time, I was immediately aggravated.

You see, this was a networking site that was supposedly tailor-made for an artist who creates music in the “New Age” genre (which, if you are familiar with my music, would definitely be one of my genres). In bold letters at the top of the home page, it stated (and still states) that the network is for those who “LOVE, SUPPORT, PROMOTE OR CREATE NEW AGE MUSIC”. That would fit the bill for me, right? And it also noted in the paragraph below to “post your events”. Well, that’s what my above-described post would be, wouldn’t you think? Well…I guess not - not in the admin’s eyes.

I did write back, and even though I made it clear that I was upset about their decision, I also noted that I respected their wishes. After all, they’re in charge of their site, not me. I let them know that aside from people possibly wanting to participate in my contest, maybe my fellow artists would run with their own spin on the idea (as I had posted/shared a few of my marketing ideas on the site in the past). Didn’t matter - I got a second response, stating more or less that I could just let everyone know “how to run the contest”, or let everyone know how well it worked out afterward. Well, that’s not really all that great - what if this contest posting would’ve been someone’s first discovery of me and my music? Maybe it would lead them to expand their horizons and discover not just my music, but those of artists whom I enjoy, too. That’s how this whole networking thing is supposed to work, right?

Well, not in that network’s eyes, it isn’t. Or, at least it wasn’t in my case - before I removed myself from the site a day later, I got a direct email from someone else through the site, inviting me to their radio show. I guess that type of promotion is allowed? And there was (and still are) at least a few blog postings on their home page promoting everything from CD releases to piano lessons. Oh well, I guess it was just my unlucky day or something.

But, not to worry. :) Seeing as that site didn’t see themselves as MySpace or Facebook, they probably won’t ever have that type of reach. And that’s OK for them, and me. I’ll be happy networking on other actual networking sites. Maybe you’d like to join me? I’m at:

Facebook
Twitter
MySpace
YouTube
My Free Music Mailing List

Thanks for reading and hearing me out. Whoo! Feels good to get that off my chest. :)

If I don’t talk/post/chat/email with you by Thanksgiving, have a Happy One!

Giving Thanks to Friends:


Fall Contest from KevOz

This fall, I want to give thanks to all of my Facebook friends with a special contest. Here’s how it will work:

1. Become my fan on Facebook. It’s pretty easy. Just go here, or click on “Become a Fan” in the little display box below. (Note - if you’re not already, you need to become my friend on Facebook, too - you can do that here. You’ll see why in a minute.)

KevOz on Facebook

2. Shoot me an email, either on Facebook or to KevOz AT KevOz DOT com to let me know that you’re participating.

3. Once you’re on my fan page at Facebook, scroll down and look under my picture (Yes, there is a rather large penguin there!). You’ll then see a link that says “Suggest to Friends”.

4. Click on “Suggest to Friends”, and the following will appear:

5. Select as many friends of yours as you wish (the more you select, the better chance you have of winning!), and click “Send Invitations” when you’re ready to invite your friends.

Um…that’s it! The rest is my job. :)

I will then total up how many friends of yours become my fans, between now through Thanksgiving, November 26, 2009. (It will be easy to count because you will show up as a mutual friend when I click on that fan to view his/her page. This is why you probably should be my friend on Facebook, too - so that I can count your totals accurately!)

The Top 15 contest entrants with the highest total of referred friends who become my fans will win their own copy of my CD “Into Orbit”.

The contest entrant with the most referred friends who become my fans will also receive 2 more copies of “Into Orbit”, and 1 copy of my latest CD, “Ticket To Antarctica”. If this is you, you’ll have music for yourself, plus a couple stocking stuffers for Christmas!

Again, this contest is ongoing through Thanksgiving, November 26, 2009. I’ll contact you via Facebook shortly after Thanksgving if you’re a winner. If that’s the case, you’ll need to email me your address so that I can mail you a CD! Free Shipping! :)

This contest is open to everyone.

I want to give you my music as a thank you for being my friend! I hope you enjoy participating in the contest. :)

Thanks!

KevOz

What makes a song great for you? What part of the music is the driving force? Is it the bassline that moves you, the drummer’s snare hits that pull you in, the riffs from the guitars, the piano trills, the sounds from the string section, the vocals (and are lyrics important?), or just the overall “sound” - the melody - that make you a fan of the song? These are just a few examples…feel free to respond with your own if they’re different!

Music is such a wonderful, universal thing. And I’m curious to know just what about it resonates within you.

I just put together a music player widget that has all of the tracks from my Ticket To Antarctica album. It’s yours for free to add to your website or blog! Here it is:

You just need to click the “Get Widget” thing right above here, and then copy the code to add to your site or blog. Easy! I made this widget - and many more - at Widgetbox.com.

Hope you enjoy the widget!