After three releases in nearly six years, Beverly-based roots rock quartet Ross Livermore Band is taking a different approach to releasing its music in 2014. Starting with “Change It For The World,” premiering here, the group will release a new song with an accompanying video every month, making for four three-song EPs by the end of the year. Livermore, the band’s lead singer, sees this as an opportunity to try something new and hopefully find a way to translate with the rapidly-moving Internet audience.
“We’re doing this based on what we look for in a band,” he says. “If someone tells me to go check out a band, the first thing I do now is go on YouTube.”
Livermore and his band have typically used touring as a way of extending the buzz after an album’s release and earning money as musicians. The band will continue to tour, but sees this as a model that can continue to connect universally.
“After we put out our last full length album, we felt like it was one of those things where you put so much time and money into it, and despite it all coming out great, the buzz wears off shortly after,” he says. “This time, we wanted to experiment a bit and see how we could get these recordings to stick around for an extended period of time.”
Late last year, Beyonce released a surprise album as a visual package. This was considered a mold-breaking move by many, similar to how Radiohead released “In Rainbows” on a pay-what-you-want scale in 2007. Unlike Radiohead’s release, however, Beyonce’s model seems to be easier to recreate by bands of any scale. Yes, it’s less of a money-making tool than a promotional tool, but in the digital age, the two go hand in hand more than ever. Just look at Timeflies, a band that we profiled late last year, which accrued a massive following by posting a new video every week, labeling them as “Timeflies Tuesdays.” Livermore has yet to find out if the formula will work for his band, but he says he is excited to put the band’s own spin on it.
“The only thing about Beyonce’s campaign that I didn’t quite agree with is that she released it all at once,” he says. “I think especially since we don’t have the level of popularity that Beyonce does, releasing these videos and songs incrementally will keep people invested.”
The Ross Livermore Band continues with its soulful style of Americana pop with “Change It For The World,” which you can watch above. Hooks are plentiful and sunny vibes lead the way, making for a vital pick-me-up as we approach February. Check it out, and stay up to date with the band’s regular video releases all year long on its website.