SUPERSONIC 2007
The diskant team report back from their fun day out at the Supersonic festival in Birmingham. Headlined by Sunn 0))), Mogwai, Om and Qui with sunshine, cake and films it really was the perfect festival experience.
Read more >>

Firstly the most important thing to note is that we're not professional reviewers, we don't get paid for this so we generally only review things if we're really excited about them. We prefer to write positive reviews so if we're indifferent to your record or dislike it then it probably won't get reviewed.

Here's some of the most common questions:

I can't find your postal address! What is it?

We've always moved house quite often so we don't post an address on the websites. We've tried to set up a PO Box but it would mean I could only collect mail on Saturday mornings which is useless. It's not my fault I live at the opposite end of town from my job and use public transport. If you want to send us stuff then email the Robot and he'll provide you with our current address.

I sent you my record ages ago! Did you get it? Are you going to review it?

The short answer to this is I don't know. When records arrive 99% of them go straight into the review box after a quick glance (the others go straight on my stereo). When the box starts to fill up, or the reviewers start asking me for records, we go through all the CDs in more detail and pick out the ones that we think certain reviewer s will like. They get posted off and the others go back in the box. After a CD has been put back in the box about 4 times it usually goes in the bin as we obviously have no-one suitable to review it. At no point does anyone have any clear memory of which records I sent to which person or which I threw out. I trust our reviewers to listen to everything they are sent and review those which they find of interest at a time when they are ready to review them. This may be a week after you sent it, or 6 months. If you want more organisation send your CDs to a publication with paid staff.

So, how will I know if you've reviewed it?

If you'd like to stay informed about whether your record is reviewed we recommend you subscribe to the RSS feed for the Reviews weblog which will notify you of new posts. Add this url to your RSS reader of choice: http://www.diskant.net/reviews/atom.xml

Alternatively, you can also join the diskant newsletter which is sent out once a month with details on all the new content you might have missed that month including all reviews, interviews and articles. Sign up here.

What kind of bands/labels do you review?

We'll accept stuff from pretty much any band from any country on any label. If you take the time to send us something then we'll take the time to listen to it. Obviously we prefer certain types of music and by reading through some of our past reviews you might be able to work out whether we're likely to hate your record.

What should I send with my record?

We prefer to get some kind of packaging as it's important to the whole concept of the record and band information is useful too whether in the form of a press release or just a link to a website with information. Things we don't need include glossy photos, 50 page press packs or jewel cases as these will all be discarded to save on postage to the reviewers. Bribes are always nice, especially edible ones.

Why don't you review stuff by [trendy/famous/cool new band]?

Probably because they haven't sent us their records to review. The records reviewed on diskant are stuff we get sent plus the records we've bought ourselves. We're also very very bad at promoting ourselves so there are very few PR companies sending us stuff at the moment. But there's plenty places to read about the new bands that are doing well so we're happy to spend our time promoting the little bands that often get ignored. I'm not necessarily saying all the bands we cover are better than [insert current hip NME band] but they sure need the publicity more.

Who decides what records each person reviews?

They do. Our reviewers are free to write about any music they happen to be listening to whether it be new or old. I send the majority of the records we get sent out to sthe reviewers fairly randomly although I try to match them to a reviewer who is likely to enjoy the record. If you'd like your record to be reviewed by a particular reviewer then mention that in your letter/email and I'll see that they get it. Or contact the reviewer yourself and send it direct to them.

Will you come and review our gig?

We're happy to receive invitations to review gigs [even if we have to pay to get in!] although you'll have to find some way to interest us out of the house. We can't promise to review gigs even if we attend but you'll probably get a mention on the weblog. We are mainly based in Glasgow, Oxford and Nottingham with a few people in Leeds, Liverpool and Newcastle. That's right, we don't have ANYONE IN LONDON, gasp!

Do you review demo tapes? What about CDRs? Can I e-mail you MP3s to review? Can you just listen to them on Myspace?

We accept any formats for review as long as they are posted in to us. Don't ever e-mail us MP3s or we will hate your band on principle. And no, I'd rather not spend my time wading through Myspace to hear your band. Just send a CD.

Will you review my fanzine or book?

I love to get fanzines and books and wish people would send them more often. We're also interested in reviewing independent film, especially music related film. If you're organising a film festival or local showings then please get in touch with us and we'll see if we can send someone along.

There's also a more general Frequently Asked Questions page.

Any other questions feel free to e-mail the Overlord.