Disc Continue hits the road

"My brother and I find that it's harder and harder to get someone to open a door in the music business," said Disc Continue co-owner Chad Bush. "I really feel that's all it takes — just a couple people helping you out. So we figured if no one else is doing it, maybe we ought to."

Together with his brother Grant and friend David Horton, Bush assembled Sounds of Atlanta 2002 v. 1.0, a CD featuring local electronic artists. Disc Continue is using the compilation as a promotional tool at the Winter Music Conference, held in Miami March 23-27. Record execs flock to the annual event looking for new talent, but the trip can require the sort of money independent artists usually don't have.

"The main reason we did this for artists is that it'll cost us a couple thousand dollars to go down there for a week," says Bush. "It's a great thing that they provide, but it's just not realistic for everybody do go down there."

The compilation features Trouble Maker, DJ H.Y.S.T., Assembly, Lil' Steven, DJ 43, Jonathan Allyn, 12" Gangster and Nomadix. The Bush brothers appear on the CD as Wunderkind, but spin under the names Flooressence and Frequinci. All participating artists responded to an Internet posting. Instead of paying $750 to appear on the official Winter Music Conference CD, Disc Continue contributors paid $80. (Bush says the fees covered the costs of duplicating the discs.) The label plans to do annual compilation projects for the Miami conference, and would like to branch out into other conferences and genres.??