How to pack it, that racket: the ongoing saga of the Pocket Rocket EP

So having uploaded Pocket Rocket's new music to all of the band's sites; set up all the necessary links in an attempt to suck any passing surfers into a Pocket Rocket maelstrom; and created the website/gateway URL, which is now the epicentre of the Pocket Rocket web experience; we get to the question of the hard stuff. The stuff you can hold in your old-fashioned hands. Once known as the record, then the CD. Both round, and both now history. The latter is however still useful to up-and-coming, and even down-and-going (over-the-hill) bands such as mine, as a kind of musical business card.

The question is how to present our new CD EP? Despite being in a band of (mostly) working men, we are all feeling the pinch. This is largely due to the fact we all have young children. That disposable income that we look forward to returning one day soon, has yet to re-materialise. For me, a full-time job would help, I suppose. Right now, I can flick through the Argos catalogue, I can even go there and put the catalogue number on that little bit of paper with the little blue-biro that they provide. I just can't take it to the counter and pay for it. Some nights I sit in my living room and look at my hi-fi system and wonder how I ever afforded to treat myself like that.

So, cost is a concern.

Back in the early days, this EP would have been on cassette. The master copy of the cover would have been lovingly designed, cut and stuck together, and given to my dad to photocopy at work. On receipt of the 'demo' design, my dad, being an ad-man - and a direct marketing ad-man at that - would then say something like, "you know, son, you don't want to do it like that, you want do it like this", and would proceed to show me a Radio Rentals direct-marketing campaign in full colour and with flaps that folded up and bits that fell out and stuff. Right, Dad.

But this is a CD. And my Dad has long since shuffled off this mortal coil. So I/we need to decide on what type of 'case' or cover I/we want. And how many CDs I/we want to produce? I say 'I/we' because, while I have discussed much of this with Pocket Rocket's drummer, to call a meeting of the whole band and discuss the issue, would delay the decision making process by about six months.

My thought process goes like this: Full plastic case-thing? Yuck! Digi-pack? Nice, but probably too expensive. Card wallet? Possibly. Have to check the cost.....No, too expensive. Colour insert in vinyl sleeve? More affordable, but could look a bit demo-ish, if not careful. But then, who are we trying to kid? We ain't got distribution. We ain't got a record deal.

1000 CDs? Too expensive. 500 CDs. Too expensive. 100 CDs. More affordable. 50. Not enough CDs.

The thing to also consider is that we will be giving most of these CDs away at gigs. Most bands do this. And if they don't they are losers. The best, and quickest way to get your music out there is to give it away. You can put a price on your CD on-line, but this is only to keep up appearances.

So after considering all of the above, I've decided to opt for 100 CDs which I can get copied for 80 pounds. This and a colour insert (12 x 24cm printed on one side and folded in half) in a vinyl sleeve (Maplins, 9.99 for 100).

Including the colour copying then, this amounts to about 120 quid for 100 CDs. 40 quid each. Not a great price, but getting more money together right now to manufacture more, for a better price per unit, would be almost impossible. We can barely afford to rehearse. And we have an equipment-cage bill of about 200 quid.