History & Future of If You Make It
If You Make It was started during the summer of 2006. Before I moved to Brooklyn, I used to live in a big house in New Paltz, NY. We had shows in our basement, and a lot of great bands came through. Unfortunately after leaving, I realized that there was no documented proof that we did anything. Sure, there are couple of tapes lying around, but nothing the really captured all the energy put into and let out, at these shows.
So I left New Paltz and moved down to Brooklyn. Once I started my new job, I realized I had enough money to try to start cataloguing the bands that were around me. Luckily enough, I already had a lot musical talent within my circle of friends, which had grown exponentially bigger with the influx of Long Island and New Paltz into Brooklyn/Queens. Luckily for me, both Bereafest and Stay True Paltz were coming up, and Halo Fauna was playing in both. So I loaded up my drums and camera and set out for these shows. Over that summer I recorded over 50 bands indoors and out. I learned a lot about what to do, such as bringing a tripod for 12 hours fests, and making sure your batteries are always charged.
Lately, I started a new project called "The Pink Couch Sessions", which was born out of my need to control the sound at shows. I hated being left to the mercy of a bad PA, or screaming kids. So I invited people over to record in the privacy of my living room. After the 3rd video, I decided that the lighting was too hectic and bought myself some studio lighting (re: Cheap photo lights). Given that my apartment is on the small side, sometimes it's pretty tricky to get a good angle or shot, leading me to cut out the second camera.
Over the last year, I've introduced a couple of new features to the site. One of the biggest additions has been the Free Album section. Utilizing Amazon's S3 CloudFront servers, I am able to provide downloads of some amazing bands, all over the world. The albums run the gamut of old demos to brand new LPs, and they come from some of my favorite bands/artists.
I have also recently started amassing a comics section, with music themed submissions from your favorite artists. An interview section will also be introduced in 2010, with intimate updates from some awesome bands and groups.
Equipment used: Panasonic GS-320 and a Canon HF-10.
I couldn't have done any of this without the help of my friends. Thanks to everyone for the effort you put in, I hope this site gives you a little more back. Special thanks to Jeff Ledellaytner for the intros, and Eric/Dom for recording some of the Buffalo shows. Some icons from Fam Fam Fam are also used on this site.
Katie Pallatto
Dominic Armao
Jeff Ledellaytner
Jared Santiago
Eric Ayotte
