Having only released two singles to date, Careless Sanctions continue to roll on their newest single, “Cognitive Ability”. And it’s clear people are paying attention to the Chicago progressive metal band. Though the single has only been out for two months now, it’s racked up almost 46k streams on Spotify alone – quite impressive for such a new band. And it’s clear they’re utilizing the right strategies to develop a fanbase.
The local Chicago metal band used platform tools on Facebook, Instagram, Spotify Canvas, and more to create an immersive, engaging experience for metal fans. When Careless Sanctions were strategizing the release of their second studio single, “Cognitive Ability”, their goal was to make an impression like they never had before and make sure that Careless Sanctions’ name would become a known name within their scene after its release.
“After the amount of energy that goes into the shows, ourselves, and taking into account critical feedback about your passion, you feel like you have to take it up a notch,” says Alessandro Limone, vocalist of the band. For the band, “taking it up a notch” meant having a sharper focus on marketing campaigns across social media, streaming success, fan engagement, and music streaming opportunities on all music platforms to drive the kind of energy that metal fans are known for.
Alessandro turned to Spotify for Artists tools like Canvas, for an impactful punch that would help create the perfect storm of attention. With activity around the release of “Cognitive Ability” exploding, they’re driving engagement any way they can. “A big part of our strategy was making sure that before we even put out new music, that we were using platform tools to re-engage our fanbase and help drive an increase in followers.”
Leading up to the single’s release, they used tools like Spotify Canvas to re-engage followers by creating custom Canvas’ on their back catalog with new imagery for their track “Wavematter”. “Our drummer Adam is very talented. He created custom Spotify Canvas’ both for our first single and our new release. The Canvas he created for our new single gave off a ‘world on fire’ vibe and the rest of the band loved it.” This caused a spike of 30% in listener numbers and resurfaced further interest in the band.
“An engaged fanbase will get to sink their teeth into what you’re releasing in its fullest form,” explains Alessandro. “The listener can take time to understand the message to unravel the story, and Cognitive Ability is tied to its visuals. We wanted to create an experience that kept listeners engaged, because they’re taking in each song in all forms while consuming it.” With the audience primed for Cognitive Ability, it was time to make noise on the big day. 3-4 months of campaigning on social media, content creation, resurfacing fan engagement, and more lead up to one crucial moment. Strategically engaging the audience before release to make sure awareness was high when it dropped made for great results, specifically, an average of 4-5 streams per listener. Fans weren’t just interested, but also invested in the music. “We were really impressed with the results in comparison to ‘Wavematter’,’ says Alessandro. “It’s such an amazing thing to see with your own eyes. It shows us that people are taking all of it in patiently and going back to really digest the music.” This campaigning showed positive results, not only in release-day fan engagement, but also in developing a larger loyal fan base which was what they were aiming for; 35% of listeners who saw things like their marketing campaigns on Facebook, Instagram, and tools like Linkfire pre-save and Spotify Canvas saved or added the track to a playlist. This was a sign that they were reaching the right listeners along with new listeners which was a huge win for the band. ”Metal gets a bad rap and you’d think unless you’re some huge band that you won’t get those kinds of streaming numbers. That just isn’t true. The metal community has some of the most loyal, passionate, engaged fans out there, and there are listeners all over the world that want more of it. You have to think about bands like Architects and Bring Me the Horizon who are from the UK or bands like Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! from France who have immense listener numbers outside of their own country. This single release has been a really nice eye opener for all of us about the lengths that dedication and effort can really take you to. Even for a small potatoes band like us. We have listeners in the UK, Europe, and even Australia now. Work hard, look to the other bands for influence, ask others for advice, and create a plan. People out there want to hear your music. You just have to put in the leg work to tell them about it.”
Careless Sanctions is a five-piece Progressive Metal band from the suburbs of Chicago, IL. The band performs in venues all around the Chicago area and is developing a larger listener base to make their mark on the scene. Over the years, the band have opened for high-profile artists such as Secrets, Outline In Color, Rain City Drive (formerly Slaves), Brojob, Falsifier, Great American Ghost, Saliva, Demon Hunter, and more. The band is building momentum towards their next release plans and show no signs of slowing down. To listen to their music and follow Careless Sanctions’ on their quest to find their sound while posting about shenanigans like trying to play inside of closed down fast food restaurants, please visit http://linktr.ee/CarelessSanctions. For further inquiries, send an email to csanctionsofficial@gmail.com
