Zachary Houle, the Canadian music editor for Popmatters.com, has chutzpah—and the Indiegogo campaign to back it up. For "reasonable" fees, the Ottawa-based Houle will provide several services for your aspiring musical project, dispensing advice about labels and PR, critiques of your live show and demo, band-name ideas, album-name ideas, and other valuable tips to help you become the next War on Drugs.

Here's a little taste of Houle's spiel.

I'm willing to provide expertise to UNSIGNED musicians. In saying this, if you agree to use my services I WILL NOT, I repeat, WILL NOT review your album or EP for PopMatters.com. I have to maintain my journalistic integrity. Nor, if you have an album or EP out there or about to be released, will I ever ask you for money for review consideration. That's my pledge.

However ... .

If you're still struggling to get heard and get the stars aligned for you, I can help you.

For one, I can listen to your demos and tell you what's great and the thing about your music or act that will twig the interest of the media (I have seven years of freelance journalism experience for the likes of SPIN, Canadian Business, the National Post, the Ottawa Citizen and others). I have connections with writers in Canadian music and the metal genre. And where I don't have connections, hey, I know people who I can turn to for advice.

I will also tell you — quite honestly — what stinks and needs fixing. (One of the most flattering things I was ever told by a fan of my music writing via e-mail is that I "tell it like it is", which was helpful to this individual in terms of buying music. I think I still have the email if you want to see it.)

WARNING: If you agree to hire me to listen to your music for honest feedback, that feedback is yours and yours alone. If I find my feedback as a quote in the press anywhere, I will get mad. You won't like me when I'm angry. :-) Seriously, you have to agree to protect my reputation.

Now, as someone who's in a similar position to Houle, I can sympathize with his hustle. Music journalists dwell near the bottom of the income spectrum. But using crowd-funding to earn extra revenue? That's kind of crass, man. It's safe to say most of the public has reached exhaustion with such maneuvers. Can't you use LinkedIn, like everyone else, Zach? [Insert sarcastic chuckle here.]

Houle's Indiegogo launched December 22 and he's yet to receive a donation. Rest assured, though, people in music journalism's penurious realm will be keeping tabs on this campaign, which ends February 20, 2015. What I'm wondering is: Would any upstart musicians reading Slog contribute to this thing to gain access to Houle's expertise?

To learn about everything Houle can offer—including for a mere 1,250 Canadian dollars, lyrics of a Guided by Voices nature to 10 songs—go here .