You don't get anywhere dreaming small," is a simple phrase with a powerful meaning that Mike Martin, owner of both Doc's Music Hall locations and Folly Moon Music, lives by. In an effort to increase Muncie's local music scene and empower independent artists, Martin has been hard at work to make such things happen. His advocacy of the importance of developing a strong local music scene has sparked a cultural revolution in Muncie.
Michael Martin Band
Martin's motivation to make something of the Muncie music scene comes from his personal passion for music. He started off as a musician, and played his first gig at the Herot during an open-mic night in 2002. That same year, he teamed up with a few other local musicians and formed the Michael Martin Band. His country/roots rock/Americana band started off playing every Tuesday night at the Locker Room. Eventually, the band began playing regularly at Doc's Music Hall and have been on the rise ever since.
Folly Moon Music
In 2003, before the emergence of Myspace and other indie music marketing entities, Martin and six other musicians wanted a way to help book and promote themselves while developing the Muncie's music scene as a whole. They founded Folly Moon Music as a result. FM Music serves as an independent record label. The Michael Martin Band was the first band signed, and the inspiration for their slogan, "Music with a Meaning, People with a Purpose."
FM Music also conducts a number of different services as a self-sustaining multimedia production and marketing company. It provides CD production and printing services, such as for T-shirts, hats and stickers for local artists. It also distributes its merchandise by selling directly at Doc's Music Hall and through its Web site at www.follymoon.com.
Martin named FM Music after Folly Beach, S.C. Its laid-back atmosphere is the same approach he strives to capture. In 2005, Martin and his bandmates packed up and moved to Charleston, S.C. to further pursue their career. As Martin and his band lived and played in Charleston, he continued FM Music in Muncie, and would return every couple of months.
Doc's Music Hall
However, in 2006, Doc's Music Hall went on the market, and Martin couldn't pass up the opportunity to buy the bar and music venue that sparked his career. The collaboration of FM Music and Doc's Music Hall was Martin's attempt to enrich Muncie's technology, diversify its culture and give local artists more opportunities.
In the fall of 2008, Martin also successfully opened up another Doc's location in the Village. The addition of Doc's on Dill Street has enabled students to experience and support live music close to campus.
Senior elementary education major Mary McKeen works directly with Martin with booking and promotion.
"Since Doc's on Dill has been open, the crowds have continued to grow every weekend," McKeen said. "I think it's great he brought that to the Village so people can see the alternative to a dance club. There's live music and there's culture right here."
"The idea behind both Doc's venues is to educate artists on how to promote and book themselves," Martin said. "We're trying to make this independent music scene grow and help to empower artists and let them know they can do it on their own."
Senior advertising major Nick Armogida also works alongside Martin with booking and promotion.
"The Muncie music scene has definitely grown over the past couple of years," he said. "With Doc's and Doc's on Dill alone, they play six nights a week of live music. Mike gets about 24 different local or regional bands playing a week. It's a tremendous change and incredible addition to Muncie. He is making the music scene the hip and cool thing in the community."
Eight Stories High is a local jazz and rock fusion band comprised of Ball State students. As keyboardist for the band, Senior telecommunications major Aj Wilson attributes much of his band's success to Martin. Wilson and his bandmates got many of their first opportunities playing at Doc's Music Hall, and are now regulars on both venues' rotations.
"Mike provides bands with gigs every night at the bars," Wilson said. "It helps us out as musicians to get our music out there and heard, and at the same time, provides the community with something positive and cultural."
Downtown Development
Muncie Downtown Development is a company that "facilitates growth and development for the healthy heart of the city."
As program manager and events director, Cheryl Crowder plans Muncie's 12 annual events, and includes an element of local music every time. Crowder feels that increasing the Muncie music scene is a quality of life issue.
"Music is art. Art of all kinds brings people together," Crowder said. "The sounds of music in Muncie are so important to the entire cultural scene."
Martin and Crowder collaborate to provide Muncie with these major events. Martin does the booking and promotion of bands for such events as Muncie Music Fest, Ribfest and Muncie Gras. Because of Martin, the Muncie Music Fest alone is able to host 40 different bands on three different stages and seven venues downtown each fall.
Backyard Broadcasting
Martin also joins in efforts with Backyard Broadcasting to produce a live weekly radio show every Monday night that airs on Max 93.5/96.7 and is hosted at Doc's Music Hall. Audiences can also tune in via Webcast by visiting www.fmmusiclive.com. Because unsigned artists rarely receive opportunities for radio airtime, Martin developed the show as a way to get their music heard. Every show, Martin interviews a local or regional independent band that is currently on tour and promoting an album. The show also includes a live performance by the artist. In addition to the featured band, many local artists affiliated with FM Music get their music played during the broadcast as well.
Band's Achievements
Since his return to Muncie, Martin's success through the Michael Martin Band is equally as great as the business side. The band continues to play shows across the nation and remains a local favorite.
The band's 2006 album, "Going for Broke" received honorable mention in the Star Press' Top 25 Albums of the Year. The band's single, "John Wayne Song," also made the Star Press' Top 25 Songs of the Year list.
The Michael Martin Band landed a national promotion deal in 2007 with The Jager Music Program. Also in 2007, "Still Green," an independent film, included the band's song "Sunday Morning Blues" on its soundtrack. The band played at the film's premier this past weekend in Worcester, Mass.
Once again, the band made it on the Star Press' Best of 2008 with their independent album, "Home Grown Volume I." Their third album was also recently released, and is available for purchase through FM Music, or via free download at the band's Myspace page.
Future Plans
On June 1, FM Music will have space in the local independent music store Village Green Records. It will sell retail such as CDs and clothing. It will also provide opportunities for Martin to host shows at an all-ages venue.
Martin is an entrepreneur and an advocate of the promotion and empowerment of local artists. Martin has been making major changes to Muncie's local music scene and overall culture of the city by providing a positive, artistically-focused community. His dedication and knowledge of the music industry has lead him to develop Muncie's local music scene from the ground up, and the future looks bright for Martin.
He looks for major growth in the next five years. He hopes to sign new artists to the label, create a recording studio, open a franchise in South Carolina and continue to develop the current venues. FM Music and both Doc's Music Hall venues are valuable assets to Muncie's development, and has great potential to instill a sense of culture in the community.
Martin's goal is to "make Muncie a vibrant, cool, music scene". He aspires to turn Muncie into the "Austin, Texas of the Midwest" where live music and local artists are the basis of the community's culture. "It's a very outlandish goal - but I'm cool with that," he said.
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