Fully Altered Media

Fully Altered Media Fully Altered Media is dedicated to securing placements for creative musicians and arts organizations in print, online, syndicated radio, and television.

05/27/2026

Arguably the greatest bebop tenor saxophone solo of all time. Rest in peace and power, Sonny Rollins. One of the greatest to ever do it.

From my mid-twenties to my mid-thirties, I was extremely successful in jazz PR. One might say influential in promoting t...
05/25/2026

From my mid-twenties to my mid-thirties, I was extremely successful in jazz PR. One might say influential in promoting the careers of artists. I enjoyed multiple years with Top 10 albums on critics‘ year-end lists, acclaim from the jazz press, the New York Times, All Songs Considered, Weekend Edition or Fresh Air; even the occasional Rolling Stone review. Later, I expanded my sphere of influence into Europe, Japan and Australia. And yet, I now feel deeply unfulfilled and underwhelmed by the reach and impact of my PR work. I have found new life in management, my podcast work and a recent venture into curation and nurturing the scene.

The media and industry relationships I’ve built since 2006 still provide me a decent living. But at a certain point, I cannot accept someone’s money if I don’t feel like I can bring them value. This does not apply to everyone, but I do have to turn down far more than I used to; often for people whose music I truly love. So I wrote this series of posts on how to market jazz to advise musicians and anyone who might think of hiring a publicist, how to move forward without one or considering all the things one can do to effectively make their story and their music reach real people. These marketing posts will be an ongoing thing, but at the same time I want to get back to my original purpose for the Substack, which was to tell the stories of the people who make the music industry work. From the person who takes tickets at the door of your favorite club to the uberfan you see it every show to the managers, engineers, promoters, administrators and even musicians who rarely see the spotlight. If I turn you down, don’t take it as discouragement. It’s a really hard calculus deciding what to take and what not to take and the music and story have to really turn me on. Plus there are so many ways beyond PR to get heard now.

Oops, I did it again….Part 2 is up now on my Substack.
05/20/2026

Oops, I did it again….Part 2 is up now on my Substack.

05/20/2026

Can I pay a working journalist or editor to edit a piece I've written. Ideally we're not very close or I don't pitch you in your beat.

The media landscape is forever changed. Legacy outlets like the NY Times and Rolling Stone often read like celebrity new...
05/12/2026

The media landscape is forever changed. Legacy outlets like the NY Times and Rolling Stone often read like celebrity news tabloids because they’re in the business of clicks. I’ve spent years thinking about the media shifts and if what I offer PR clients is worth it. To some extent I believe it is, or was; it might still be. But there have to be other concrete elements in the marketing mix to achieve visibility and some fort of general awareness. The decision on what to spend on after a record is finished is not as cut-and-dry as it once was. This one is amply previewed but the real meat is behind a paywall. I put a lot of time and thought into this and I hope you will subscribe for $5 a month (at least temporarily) to read what I have to say on this topic. I have 20 years of accumulated knowledge and experience. This is Part 1 of at least a three-part series.

Run! Do not walk to listen to this first single by the incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist (guitarist and double b...
05/01/2026

Run! Do not walk to listen to this first single by the incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist (guitarist and double bassist) Tal Mashiach, “Titu” featuring his longtime collaborator Anat Cohen and his core band of Gadi Lehavi on piano, Panagiotis Andreou on double bass and Ofri Nehemiah on drums. His second Anzic Records album. “Who’s Around?l will be released June 26. A lot of the time I try to find a narrative for people, but with this record, the narrative is plain old, beautiful music. If you can listen to this record and tell me this is not beautiful joyous heart-led music, I don’t know what to say to you.
Tal says “’Titu’ is inspired by my backpacking trip to Brazil and features the amazing Anat Cohen, with whom I share a deep love for Brazilian music. Anat and I have been making music together for over a decade, and she is truly one of my favorite musicians. The song also features my friends, the incredible Gadi Lehavi on piano, Panagiotis Andreou on bass, and Ofri Nehemya on drums..”

Long Play Festival started last night at Roulette and Pioneer Works. Over five nights this year, the longest edition yet...
05/01/2026

Long Play Festival started last night at Roulette and Pioneer Works. Over five nights this year, the longest edition yet, plus two full daytime days of programming on Saturday and Sunday May 2-3, 70+ concerts will unfold from David Longstreth to Shoko Nagai & Satoshi Takeishi. From Julia Wolfe’s Pulitzer-winning Anthracite Fields to the Billy Hart Quartet. 70+ concerts across Middle Brooklyn. My joint number one picks are Jeff Lederer, Mary LaRose & The Wildebeest Quintet playing unheard music by Eric Dolphy; Satoshi Takeishi & Shoko Nagai’s Vortex; John Hollenbeck’s GEORGE, Billy Hart Quartet with Nicole Glover and Amina Claudine Myers, whose solo album “Solace of the Mind” from 2025 on Red Hook Records was second or third favorite record of that year. This festival, the spiritual inheritor to the Bang on a Can Marathon, previously held every June at World Financial Center, was initially planned for 2020, but mother nature had other plans. Officially launched in 2022, with truly expert programming by David Lang, Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe and Sruly Lazaros, Long Play has established itself as a staple of the early spring, centered around the three Bang on a Can composers. They all have B-I-G E-A-R-S (all due respect to that other Springtime confad I happen to contract for). If you want to come, use the code ‘LPSide’ for 20% off tickets at checkout: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/long-play-festival-2026-tickets-1979786361301

If I could see everything I want to see, I would be at all these:
- Amina Claudine Myers
- Billy Hart Quartet
- BlankFor.ms, Jason Moran, Marcus Gilmore
- Colleen
- David Longstreth
- David Murray, Dezron Douglas, Nasheet Waits
- Florent Ghys
- GEORGE
- John Luther Adams
- Julia Wolfe
- Marty Ehrlich
- Matmos
- Miles Okazaki
- Sam Prekop
- Sarah Davachi
- Secret Chiefs 3
- Shelley Burgon
- Shoko Nagai and Satoshi Takeishi
- Sylvie Courvoisier and Wadada Leo Smith
- Kris Davis Trio
- Trevor Dunn
- Wildebeest with Jeff Lederer and Mary LaRose – There’s a Yearnin’

This Friday prepare for your mind to be blown.
04/27/2026

This Friday prepare for your mind to be blown.

Today is a momentous day. It is the release day of an incredible record, CEIBA, by Simon Moullier, an artist who I’ve be...
04/24/2026

Today is a momentous day. It is the release day of an incredible record, CEIBA, by Simon Moullier, an artist who I’ve been so fortunate to work with for the past six years!!! Simon first called me around May 2020 in the throes of the early pandemic and told me about a record called “Spirit Song.” That was six years and six records ago. // I’ll be honest the first record now truly pales in comparison to the last two quartet records “Isla” and “Ceiba.” In my opinion, these two albums are modern era corollaries to Ambrose Akinmusire’s Blue Note debut “when the heart emerges glistening” and Aaron Parks “Invisible Cinema.” But also I feel that “Ceiba” truly gets its core inspiration from the 1997 masterpiece by Kenny Garrett, “Songbook.” Sure, Lex Korten is no Kenny Kirkland and JK is no Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts. Rick Rosato is strong, but no Nat Reeves. I feel like the band cohesion of Simon’s current quartet truly recalls that hard-hitting postbop vibe. and moreover that ethos of jazz which has sadly been marginalized by fleeting trends in music. // I feel Simon is an old soul who is destined to collaborate with the remaining elders we have with us and is indeed convening with their spirits. I feel like he is definitely representing and channeling the legacy of Bobby Hutcherson while moving it forward. in fact there is a tune on this record directly in tribute to Bobby called “Mr. Hutcherson.” // I think you will be blown away by the tunefulness and the care of the melodies that waft in your ears for hours after listening - “Fuji” “Iron Giant,” “Low Blues” and the title track “Ceiba” named after an almost 600-year-old tree that grows in Puerto Rico, but also can be found in West Africa and Mexico as well. CEIBA is out today on Simon’s own label and at the top of the Apple Music ecosystem on Jazz Currents. Thank you to everyone who has supported Simon in his journey. The best is yet to come!!!

Listen: https://orcd.co/zb5v48e

Ok I’m ready for your comments. 🤦🏻‍♂️
04/22/2026

Ok I’m ready for your comments. 🤦🏻‍♂️

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