Sachys: If you lived in a city like York in the UK, for $125 (around £77.50) you could have recorded an 8 track E.P. in a studio with a well respected engineer / producer. York of course has quite a bustling music scene, but I'm just giving an example. Thing is, I can't imagine people wanting to donate for you to get equipment - if it was just money to record with then maybe.
I avoid kickstarter (advice for anyone) unless you're a known name / licence / brand. IndieGoGO may be worth a shot but as I deal in doing album artwork for bands and musicians quite a lot, I can tell you the best way to get money to release an album is to save any money you can from gigs / busking and
get those preorders!
Build up from digital distribution as well.
Fans will pay to grab a copy of an album they want and if yer gonna sign it and throw in a tee shirt or poster theyll only want it more. I actually know a guy who managed to fund an album and press it from 40 fans alone paying upfront.
So, to put it short:
1). get funds for recording from gigs etc
2)
Design! - they way you look / come across does matter - you need a logo, photoshoot, press pack etc (blag some students if nothing else!)
3). sell digital copies to the general public and get a short disc run (50-100 or so - fairly affordable) for your preorder fans!
4). build
I wish I'd seen this thread sooner TBH as I could have given better advice earlier.
Good luck with it CymTyr!
125 quid to produce and record an 8 track EP is astonishing. Around here you're looking at 125 quid an hour.
Also, it was my fault for assuming I had generated some buzz from giving away the equivalent of thousands of dollars of free music. I try not to take anything for granted, but it was an honest mistake on my part. I learned.
I appreciate your advice but the only thing I wanted to do was reward the niche group of people I thought I had that I thought enjoyed my music. I don't intend on getting into the industry.