Musicians are hardly new to the use of applications as a way to loop fans in on the latest news and tour dates, but indie band Middle Brother is taking the use of mobile to a new level by letting users stream their entire debut album ? before it even releases ? for free through its iPhone app.

The band?s self-titled album is scheduled to be in stores and online March 1, and the sneak peak is exclusively available through the application, which debuted in the iTunes store Feb. 8. Partisan Records, Middle Brother?s label, initially released just two singles from the album onto the application.

?What?s important to us is giving fans a direct connection to the band and letting them have the fullest fan experience possible,? said Dave Godowsky, label contact at Partisan Records, Brooklyn, New York.

Partisan Records is an independent, artist-run label that represents bands such as Deer Tick and Delorean, and was founded in 2007.

The band Middle Brother is composed of three musicians who all come from other groups?John McCauley of Deer Tick, Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes and Matt Vasquez of Delta Spirit. Their debut was at Austin?s 2010 South by Southwest music festival.

Behind the scenes
Streaming the album might be what draws fans to the application, but it is not necessarily all that keeps them there.

Inside the app, users can watch six videos of Middle Brother?s live performances, see the band?s most updated tour schedule, join a mailing list, see photos, comment on a fan wall and chat with other users, as well as link to Facebook, Twitter and Myspace.

Videos will soon expand to include daily footage from the road, including exclusive interviews and clips of the band backstage.

Users see this screen upon first opening the application.

A look inside of the new iPhone application from Middle Brother.

?Fans are especially curious to anything that helps lead them behind the curtain,? Mr. Godowsky said. ?We depend on anything that helps corral the fans.

?Mobile is a common thread across all these fans,? he said. ?And it?s a way for them to interact with each other as well, which supports the natural word-of-mouth.?

A free-for-all approach
Consistent with other applications in the music industry, Middle Brother?s is free, and not ad-supported.

?It is not monetized,? Mr. Godowsky said. ?We believe that if you make the fans happy and allow them to full integrate themselves into what the band is doing, it will ultimately be in everyone?s best interests.?

The application lets users link through to Ticketmaster to purchase concert tickets, or to the band?s official Web site, where fans can buy t-shirts and music.

Partisan Records is looking to expand Middle Brother?s reach by further incorporating mobile into live experiences and offering prizes to fans who use the application most actively.

?[The application] has exceeded expectations,? Mr. Godowsky said. ?People are flocking to it and telling friends, tweeting about it, and showing strangers next to them at shows.

?It?s been really fun to watch it grow so fast,? he said.

Final Take
Rheana Murray is staff reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York