Music labels often consist of many people and a lot of money; however, one student is proving all that is really needed is the will to share music and originality.

Sophomore Nic Ross, with the help of friends, runs an online record label titled Modicum of Silence, a Web site that exclusively features works from bands and musicians in Northwest Ohio. Ross said the idea for the label came in August 2008 when his band first formed and started recording their own music.

‘It started off as a blog and it picked up steam,’ he said. ‘Then we started taking music from friends and put it on the Web site, and it’s grown from there.’

Ross said all of the music on the Web site is free to those that want to download and share it, as long as credit is given to the creators of the music.

‘We dubbed our form of licensing ‘copyleft’ instead of copyright,’ he said. ‘We find the current state of the music industry is centered around money more than creativity. So, the focus and the basis of our label is creativity, expressing yourself and pushing the limit.’

Charging others money for music is an idea that goes against his ethics, Ross said.

‘It really doesn’t cost me anything to host the Web site, so I have nothing to lose. So those who want to download the music off our site have nothing to lose,’ he said.

Rebekah Burchfield is a graduate student who plays in a band named the Wards of the Mayor. Burchfield and her band have songs available on Ross’s Web site.

‘Our band played at the same show as Nic’s a while back and we all kind of hit it off,’ she said. ‘Then Nic offered to put some of our songs on his Web site, and we gladly did.’

Burchfield said Ross’s label allows her band to share their work with like minded musicians.

‘Local music scenes are very fragmented and nothing is really concentrated,’ she said. ‘Nic makes it easier for bands to get the word out and that’s important to creating a more cohesive music scene in Northwest Ohio.’

The songs available from Wards of the Mayor were recorded by the band members themselves, and the next step is to have some professionally recorded, Burchfield said. If and when that happens, Burchfield said they would collaborate with Ross.

‘We would be happy to have him host our future work on the Web site,’ she said.

Chad Foltz, of Montclova, Ohio, has played with Ross in a number of shows and often goes to him for advice when working on new pieces.

‘I’ll bring songs to Nic and sometimes he’ll add in some things that are missing, like a drum pattern,’ he said. ‘Sometimes I trust his input more than I do my own.’

Foltz also has songs on Ross’s online label, and it has sped up the process of him becoming a musician.

‘Without the Web site, I definitely would just be sitting in my room with a borrowed guitar,’ he said. ‘It has connected me to a lot of people who are like me, people who are not trying to do anything more than make music.’

The web address to Ross’s label is: http://www.modicum.us/. Ross said there are over 60 recordings comprised of albums, demos and live audio recordings from various artists available.

‘If people want to get their music out, they should feel free to contact us,’ Ross said. ‘People can have a voice that the whole world can hear.’

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