FOOLING YOURSELF????













What do you want to do with your music? Do you want to do it for fun or are you contemplating to go for a career? You probably have been in this situation a million times, or you have pondered the idea. Should you do it or shouldn't you? You say it is so hard to do such a thing, but what isn't challenging in life?

So if your doing it for fun, then have fun! Hope you enjoy the times you have and don't regret anything.

However, your putting all this time into practicing, getting fans, self promoting 24/7, 365 why not try and take it to the career level? I'd say it would be a risk worth taking if you try and set out to make it your career! Anything in life is not 100% safe, so you might as well get your act together and start planning this out!

*remember I'm taking into account you have a decent fan base already...Some basic questions to ask yourself before planning to make your music your career:

* What Genre are you in?

* What type of venue do you see yourself playing at, is it a restaurant, concert, pub, hall, etc...

* What would be your start up costs? Example: Equipment, Instruments, etc...

* What would be your running costs? Meaning what do you have to consistently pay for each month. Including food, housing/rent, clothes, car, etc...

* Do you have an easy time talking with people; not signing; but how do you react to the public. If you don't react very well you might think about taking some public speaking classes, etc... These will really help you out!

Okay that is basically what you need to figure out before planning to take your music seriously and make it a career. You can do this, so keep reading!

What you need to do next is to plan out how your going to create your career, what will be your income?

Some Income Examples:

* CD Sales, Digital Song Sales
* Royalties (this might be difficult)
* Merchandise Sales, t-shirts, pants, hats, etc...
* Fan Club - Subscription Based - Exclusive Content
* Venues/Tours - Get a decent cut or don't do it!
* Market yourself, open up grand openings to stores, play live music at car shows, get contracts from local companies needing to promote their product.

Now you figured out your potential income, how do you do all this and still focus on your music? Get a management & promotions team for yourself, not a street team! And a record label, the record label might have a promotions team within its organization so that is up to you how that will work. Remember do your research on these organizations and meet in person with them. This will help in the long run!So from there everything should be running smooth, keep getting at least 3-5 venues every week, with decent profit cuts. Make sure you sell your CD and merchandise at the show, basically get a person or persons to help do that; maybe someone from the management and promotions team.

Now you're actually in your career doing what you love!

Extras Tips:
* Make yourself a budget in Excel or other similar software. Creating a budget and really sticking with it will benefit you greatly! I highly recommend it.
* Budgets include, income, expenses, and other costs. Make sure you save your money too! Don't go spending everything! You might also want to do a 60/40, 60% saving and 40% spending, that's a good percentage to help you save for unexpected costs.







Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Nickelback, Someday
Bryan Adams, Summer Of 69
REM, Losing My Religion
Hamell On Trial, The Date
Peter Townshend, Let My Love Open The Door



Local Artist Of The Day:


Count The Days

BEAUTIFUL MUSIC CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE











We are here for a purpose. We are here to make a difference in the world. The music in us is put there for a reason not just to create personal wealth or make us feel good about ourselves. But it can take a long time for some of us to find our purpose in life. It's not a thing most people know from birth. It's something we learn in time. One day, we just feel it - like a "calling" - it hits us square in the nose; not like a boxer, more like a scent of perfume.Beautiful music makes a difference. Words of hope change lives. A joyful experience heals the broken hearted. Music can inspire. It can take us on a journey of discovery. We are all spiritual beings. The person inside is hidden by masks. We don't often reveal our true identity. While deep inside, the person we truly are is screaming to get out, nature takes it's course. The circle of life remains unbroken. But, the artist is different. Music is the window to the soul. When a musician plays, he wears his heart on his sleeve. Folk music became a full-blown craze. Coffeehouses sprang up everywhere. The "mainstreaming" of folk music actually led to the discovery of what was truly the real and meaningful.

It was a generation of naivety perhaps but nevertheless it was a generation that wanted to make the world better. Before the Berkeley Free Speech Movement began, anti-communist hysteria had pervaded the United States.George Orwell had written about words like "freedom," "democracy," and "justice". Orwell said "(They) have been abused so long that their original meanings have been eviscerated ... Americans have been conditioned to accept the word "democracy" as a synonym for freedom, and to believe that democracy is unquestionably good."Orwell was right about the use of meaningless words in politics. The "American dream" had created a society devoted to the wealth and the exploitation of the fellow creatures. Some people were discovering that democracy is not freedom. Free speech was stifled. French philosopher-novelists, Camus and Sartre, started young people thinking about new ideals of existentialism.

Organized by the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), at its peak in 1960, over 400 schools were affiliated with NSA. In the '60s, NSA responded to a despotic atmosphere that produced a radical militant protest mood on campuses across America.The Free Speech Movement was spreading. Berkeley was a training ground for student protest. College kids began listening to Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and electric blues. The NSA supported Students Against The Draft, opposed the war in Vietnam, and participated in civil rights struggles. For many students, a cultural revolution began in 1964, during "Freedom Summer" in Mississippi.The sixties happened because they had to happen. The need for change will never change. Student radicalism may one day rise again. In with the good air, out with the bad ... not a bad notion, not at all unrealistic.










Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Seal, Kiss From a Rose
Aerosmith, Sweet Emotion
Bread, If
Deep Purple, Smoke On The Water
Seether, Truth






Local Artist Of The Day:


Helpwanted

Music On The Internet






With the IT development every one no has a chance to record copies of the favorite music from different internet websites. The country’s GNP is highly influenced by the music industry. Therefore, the music industry can influence the life of each and every person. The production costs in the industry are very high and producers are doing everything possible to cut the costs and to run the business as efficiently as possible.

The music industry maintains its control over the music it distributes by the use of copyright laws. These laws allow the originator (or owner) of the music (also books, pictures and movies) to control its release and reproduction. People and companies that want to reproduce or use the music must pay a fee to the owner of the music. When the most common way to own a copy of a particular piece of music was a vinyl record, the music industry was not overtly concerned about unlawful duplication of its products. Improvements in technology have changed the format of the music that available at retail outlets (digital recordings, Compact Disks) and how some consumers acquire copies of that music.

Personal computers now have the processors, sound cards, software, and memory to record, play, and faithfully reproduce a particular piece of music infinitely. One of these new advances in software is file-sharing programs. These programs allow a person to go to an Internet web site and by using the program download digital copies of the music. These copies are as clean as the original recording and are in effect free to the consumer. One such company that provides the software and downloading service is Napster. Napster provides a web site that allows users to gain access to music files from other users by downloading them for their own personal use on their computer.

When one CD is not sold, many sectors of the economy show negative effects. At the wholesale level, the artists that write and record the music, companies that manufacture the CDs, containers and labels, trucking companies that move the CDs to music stores all lose money. At the retail level the owners of the music stores and finally their employees all lose some money when a music is distributed outside the normal distribution method (as well as the owners and employees of used CD stores). These losses do not include the lost tax revenues that the Federal, State and local governments do not receive as a result of these downloads, thereby reducing the amount of money available for public projects.

The Internet has presented the music industry with both a problem and a solution. With so many people using the Internet to download music, whether Napster survives or not, music downloading will continue. The number of Napster users grew from 1 million in February 2000 to over 9 million in December. Other free services provide Internet users with the same service as Napster. Many businesses have already used the Internet to bypass traditional retail merchants. Companies such as Lands End effectively by pass the retail distribution system to manage and sell their products through catalogs and their web site.







Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:



Zakk Wylde, In This River
Tool, Sober
Pearl Jam, Daughter
Breaking Benjamin, So Cold
Ted Nugent, Free For All



Local Artist Of The Day:

Tony Jones

Choosing An Electric Guitar: Main Points To Consider

By: Peter Mack








Ask any guitarist, and they will you that nothing comes close to jamming with a guitar. In fact, no other instrument has influenced modern music so much as the guitar, and its ongoing popularity is reflect in its ubiquitous appearance in bands, radio stations and music videos throughout the world. Certainly one of the coolest instruments, the guitar is synonymous with contemporary pop and rock music. That said, no guitar is more symbolic of rock music than the electric guitar.Whether you are an expert or a mere learner, getting a new electric guitar is a thrill. Perhaps you have only ever played an acoustic guitar, and want to branch out? Maybe you are simply learning guitar from scratch? Whatever your reasons, buying an electric guitar means you will be able to play searing riffs and haunting melodies like you have never experienced with any other instrument.

There are a number of things to decide upon when choosing an electric guitar.

The first decision you need to make is what body shape you want your guitar to be. To date, the most popular guitar shape is the solid-body Les Paul shape. You can also opt for the SG Style, which has a thinner double cut-away body. Other most common shapes are the Stratocaster and Telecaster.

Once you have chosen the shape of your guitar, you will need to decide what pick-up you want, either single or humbucker pick up. These refer to the copper wire that is wrapped around the bar magnets. As its name implies, the single pick-up it is composed of one copper wire wrapped in a single coil around a single bar magnet or several rod magnets. The humbucker pick-up, on the other hand, uses two coils which tends to increase the intensity of a guitar’s sounds.

Choosing the right bridge is another important step. You will need to decide between the stock tremolo, double-locking or Floyd Rose double locking system. Depending on the style, the strings may be positioned differently, looser or tighter, and more or less responsive to your touch.These are just some of the things you will need to consider when you select your new electric guitar. The choice you ultimately make will vary depending on the sort of music you want to play, as well as your knowledge and level of experience. Your budget will also bear upon your decision, and for those with less money, secondhand guitars are always an option.

Seeking help from friends who play the electrical guitar, or staff at the music store is always invaluable. Once you have the right guitar, your playing will be more enjoyable... and the better for it.

Peter Mack writes for electricguitarshow a website of electric guitar articles and fender guitar resources.








Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Gordon Lightfoot, Time In A Bottle
Neil Young, Old Man
Little River Band, Oh, What A Night
Pantera, Walk
Paul Simon, You Can Call Me Al



Local Artist Of The Day:


Calveris

Music For Mobile Phones











The craziness started in 1998 when the Finish mobile telephony operator called Radiolinia launched the first ringtones. This business was obvious designed for Nokia phones.From that moment, ringtones became a profitable developed market including mobile phones music downloads and a market of multimedia content extremely dynamical which offers any type of polyphonic sounds.

Envious on the registered success of music players machines, the mobile telephones producers started to address the Ipod users represented market, through the embedment of a high players into the mobile phones.

Sony Ericsson launched phones under it's Walkman brand, based on the catalogue of kindred companionship Sony BMG, number 2 in the world in music business.Nokia Corp., the mobile leader sales, notified an alliance with The Microsoft Corp. in order to permit the subscribers, to load music from computer on the mobile phones, similarly the mode of which acknowledged digitally players operates.Unlike the owners of MP3 players, the Nokia users can download different tracks on the mobile phones through wireless, and subsequent may transfer them on computer for his storage or duplication on CD.

In this context, the increased popularity of music downloads and ring tones shall impel the business digit of the sector named global mobile music to reach more then 9.3 billions dollars within 2009, as a report of Junipers Research says. While ring tones and real tones downloads will still be on top with a business digit of 4.8 billions dollars, is waited as the full-track downloads market to breed from 20 millions dollars to 1.8 billions dollars in 2009, while ring tones, which already generates substantial profits in Asia, to sweep out 2.7 billions dollars to world level, up to the end of decade.








Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Steve Vai, The Silent Within
Jim Croce, Operator
Don McLean, American Pie
Smokey Robinson, Tears Of A Clown
Fall Out Boy, Sugar We're Goin' Down





Local Artist Of The Day:


Jim Bianco

FIND GUITAR TABLATURE ONLINE











The guitar is one of the most popular musical instruments and the online guitar community probably the most popular of its kind. There are thousands of guitarists connected via online communities sharing guitar tabs, tips and stories and there are many of websites dedicated to sharing guitar music, tablature and even guitar lessons. Some you have to pay for, but there's a lot out there for free.

Beginning guitarists and professionals alike can take advantage of what is available for free on the Internet. It's true, you can really download guitar tablature for free on the Internet. There are literally thousands of pieces available for download, everything from classical and jazz music to rock and pop. Try typing "guitar tablature", "guitar tabs" or "guitar sheet music" into your favorite search engine. This will bring up a plethora of websites which offer music for download. Some sites will charge a membership fee, but offer samples for free so that you can try them out. At first it is difficult to sift through all the sites and find one that is suitable for your needs, but stick with it, and you'll find exactly what you want.

Some sites specialize in specific music genres, such as classical or rock. Some sites have audio samples of the sheet music so that you can actually listen to unknown pieces before you download. In the end you may choose to pay a membership fee to take advantage of added services that these sites provide.But before you do that take advantage of everything that's free. The Internet is such a great place for picking up guitar tricks and tips or even learning the instrument on your own.Start by doing a Google search for "Free guitar lessons" (use quotation marks) and the top five search results will yield websites with archives full of free guitar lessons. These lessons are designed with the absolute beginner in mind. The advantage of learning the guitar on the Internet is that you can take your lesson whenever you have time or are in the mood and you never have to leave the comfort of your own home. You'll start off with all the basics: learn about the parts of the guitar, learn how it works, learn scales, strumming patterns, chromatic scales, as well as many songs to play. Despite the relative ease of the Internet, lessons should be taken in the order that they are written.

And remember, your Internet lessons may be free, but they aren't miracle workers, you still have to commit to a regular program of study and practice.









Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Humble Pie, 30 Days In The Hole
Green Day, American Idiot
Finger Eleven, One Thing
Nickelback, How You Remind Me
Billy Joel, My Life






Local Artist Of The Day:


Them One Guys


On a personal note: Happy 19th birthday to my son Eric, I love you very much!!!!!

THE PUBLIC WILL NOT FIND YOU!











That's right the public will not find you. You need to show the public you're out there and ready for them!

A few ways would be:

* Get played on as many radio stations as possible (Internet & FM/AM)

* Get as many interviews, reviews as possible, you need to build up your reputation!

* Get your fans involved as much as possible. Tell them to spread the word, give them options to spread the word about you online and offline.

* Play at as many different venues as possible. Gaining fans from these venues can really help you.

* Going on tour with other bands/artists or just playing a venue together will also help you gain their fans and vice versa.

* We know you love your music, but lets hear some testimonials about your music too. Either from fans or even a trusted resource such as a music magazine.

* Put everything you got into anything you do and you'll get results! Don't put only half of your effort into it, that will get you no where.

* Getting awards! If your band or you as an artist gets an award that puts your marketability alot higher.

* Once you know what you want to do and have started making music then you need to look into getting with a Management & Promotions Team and also a Record Label that will get your music out there. These are the two best resources you can have. And make sure to do your research on these companies! Don't jump into anything right away.









Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:




ACDC, She Shook Me All Night Long
Cat Stevens, The First Cut Is The Deepest
Diamond Rio, One More Day With You
Drowning Pool, Bodies
Elton John, Can You Feel The Love Tonight








Local Artist Of The Day:


David Kender

MUSIC AND IT'S INFLUENCE ON THINKING












Music as a cultural form can be examined in terms of the meanings encoded and decoded by different producers and audiences. Specifically, producers of music operate within the context of certain political, social and economic conditions and with the particular intentions. These could be to perpetuate an ideology through the exercise of ideological hegemony or to express resistance. On the other hand, music is used by people in structurally subordinate positions to comment on social problems, express their dissatisfaction with the state of society and resistance to hegemony and the ruling order. We can argue that music has always been a channel for expressing ideas that oppose and inflame hegemonic powers. We shouldn’t censor music just because of violent, vulgar and abusive messages it promotes to the world. Like movies and TV, music is also seen as influencing the behaviour of its audience, particularly the teenagers. This is clearly true, given that music audiences divide themselves into “Tribes” (creating different subcultures), where their hair is grown longer, clothes becomes more unconventional and drug use becomes central activity. Therefore a Self-fulfilling prophecy is created.

Many Theories were trying to explain the influence music has upon the teenagers, such as The Frankfurt School. The Frankfurt School envisioned the media as a hypodermic syringe, arguing that the contents of the media were injected into the thoughts of the audience, who accepted the attitudes, opinions and beliefs expressed by the medium without question.

Many artists and teenagers deny that violent music is seen to influence teenagers. Commentators on the current furor over rap music should bare in mind that we have already been there done that, back in 1950s, when the likes of Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis were horrifying politicians and parents because of the lyrics that contained violent, drug and sexual references. It can be argued that the marketing strategy of music companies changes the way music spreads. In order to generate more sales and profit, music agencies launch a lot of large-scale promotion. Posters, videos and advertisement of singers can be seen everywhere in order to persuade its audience to buy the products. Certain steps have been taken to make parents aware of the type of music their children listen to. One would be “The Parental Advisory Sticker” that has been enforced upon records that have foul language and mature content. Originally, this sticker was intended to indicate that anyone under the age of eighteen could not purchase the labelled album. It has not only been argued that the rap and hip hop music influences teenagers, but the metal music has also faced sever censorship, especially because of its allusions to sex, drugs, and booze, not to mention its indecipherable lyrics. Rock and roll has largely been seen as a form of rebellious music for just about as long as it has existed. Because of the implications and hidden meanings associated with rock, some old-fashioned beliefs continue to cause a discrepancy amongst the population of the time.

Many musicians have jumped in on the fight against censorship. They believe censorship violates the first amendment which talks about “Freedom of Speech”.
A rock artist such as Marilyn Manson who is one of the most controversial artists in the world today, one who chooses to express himself in a way that provokes in the most extreme methods possible. It has been argued that Marilyn Manson is protected by the First Amendment who guarantees freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of association (assembly). It also protects the rights of citizens to worship as they please and the right not to be forced to support someone else’s religion. Manson uses this freedom fully, getting his message across by any means possible, mainly to the younger generation.

However, the artists and producers defend the musical lyrics, and claim that these acts come purely from self-inspiration, not extrinsic influence such as their music. In addition, over 1,000 studies later, we have not really made much progress and many questions remain. Are some people less able to distinguish between artificial and real lyrics? Is some censorship justified in order to protect out teenagers? The more we seek to find the answers to questions about the effects of media violence, the more questions seem to be generated. As Mr Blanket said:” We need to talk to the record producers, to the distributors, to those actually engaging in the music business about what is and isn’t acceptable.”









Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:



The Who, Pinball Wizard
Three Doors Down, Love Me When I'm Gone
Nickelback, Photograph
Bryan Adams, Summer Of 69
Kiss, Beth




Local Artist Of The Day:


Calveris

Music - Food of Love?











Music can be the food of love, as the bard didn't exactly write. He wasn't wrong when he didn't write it though, few people will disagree that the right music can really enhance a romantic situation. Whether it's a first date or a full on steamy one-on-one session, the rhythm and nuances of music can have a subtle or not-so-subtle influence on our basic emotional state which can make all the difference between a great moment and a mediocre one.

Music and romance have a long standing shared history that extends right through our culture. It is thought that the earliest examples of music, as with many art forms, were created for ritual purposes and one of the stock ritual form common to all human cultures is the marriage or union ritual. Music's contribution to these early rituals would have been to bring the various participants closer together; rituals have primarily a social function, validating and concreting certain truths that uphold the social order, such as the creation of a family unit within the larger tribal context. The power of these rituals in early cultures is often greatly enhanced by the addition of a unifying influence such as repetitive rhythmic music, which helps to establish a common mood and set the emotional bar.

The use of music for rituals and rites of passage such as marriage has survived, albeit in somewhat more sedate form, into the modern day. Perhaps closer in spirit to the ancient tribal rituals, however, is the modern day nightclub environment in which, repetitive rhythmic music and mind altering substances are used to create an alternative reality in which the individual is subsumed by a larger, tribal mentality. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many people choose these venues as the place to carry out their own courtship rituals.

Of course, music has long had a more sophisticated and genteel relationship with romance. Whether you like it or not, love is one of the driving forces behind the production of great art throughout the ages, and music is no exception. From the beginnings of folk music, through the great romantic composers to the modern charts (look at the top 10 next time you get the chance and see how many love songs you can count) love and music enjoy a reciprocal relationship, each feeding the other inspiration, drive and momentum. From the rawest of rock music to the most sophisticated and delicately executed classical opus, from the basest of sexual instinct to the finest and most gently expressed romantic sentiment, for every stage of the romantic spectrum there is a corresponding musical counterpart.







Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:



Eagles, Take It To The Limit
Jimi Hendrix, The Wind Cries Mary
Pantera, This Love
Meatloaf, Life Is A Lemon And I Want My Money Back
Hamell On Trial, Coulter's Snatch




Local Artist Of The Day:


Them One Guys

Developing An Original Sound











Developing an original sound is very important if you've ever dreamed about having a successful music career. Today I often see young artists following a popular trend or trying to sound like someone famous. This may get them a gig, but it probably won't get them a recording contract. If you want to stand out from the crowd and be noticed by the record industry, you'll need to have your own unique style and voice. Not necessarily bizaare, just something that defines you.
As a songwriter and/or musician, you may have tried to mimic the style and sound of your favorite group or singer at one time or another. This is normal and can be beneficial in the early stages of your musical development. Much can be learned from observing and studying the legacy of rock n' roll giants who have paved the way before us. But you are a unique individual and, as such, have something original to offer as well.


I have personally been a fan of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones throughout the past few decades. These two super-groups rose to fame, almost side-by-side, during the early 1960s. Members of each group were friends and would sometimes hang-out together. But over the years a debate arose as to which is the greatest rock band in the world- The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. Well, if you're still undecided, consider this. Back in 1963 when The Beatles were beginning to be recognized as the hottest new phenomenon on the music scene, The Stones were also charting on the radio with a song called, "I Wanna Be Your Man." Funny thing is, the song had been written by Lennon-McCartney and given to The Stones as a favor.


Although their music may have shared some similarities, the two groups were distinctly different and each had their own original sound. For instance, The Beatles presented a musical picture of fun, social consciousness, and extreme creative energy. Their producer, George Martin, once said: "The Beatles definitely had an eternal curiosity for doing something different." The Stones on the other hand, have a more tough, raunchy and rebellious image. In fact, they used to be known as the "bad boys" of rock n' roll. These differences are reflected in each group's songs as well. The Beatles gave us "All You Need Is Love" whereas The Stones gave us "Street Fighting Man."


I've never had the priviledge of seeing The Beatles (other than George Harrison, that is) in concert. But I did see The Rolling Stones three times and even got back stage once! So, you might say both groups have had quite an influence on me musically. I was also heavily influenced by Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, among others.


You will begin to develop your own original sound when you start using your unique personality, experiences, and perspective to express yourself musically. By combining these attributes and perfecting your musical skills, you will be moving along the road to success.








Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Little River Band, Oh, What A Night
Louis XIV, Finding Out True Love Is Blind
David Essex, Rock On
Billy Joel, Only The Good Die Young
James Taylor, You've Got A Friend




Local Artist Of The Day:


Ryan Smith

The Life Force, Music













Since humans first walked this Earth we have been banging inanimate objects and noticing tonal harmonies in all that we do. Music evokes such a deep rooted emotion in us, connecting with our inner being on an infinite number of levels. From the depths of depression to the awesome high of life itself there is a music which can touch us in a profound manner at every single step of the way.

Someone once said to me "I don't like music" ... I simply couldn't fathom this concept of actually not liking music. I could obviously see how one could dislike a certain type of music but to not like any music at all was a totally alien idea to me.

I was lucky I suppose, growing up, I was privy to the tastes of my "60's generation" parents and all that hippy stuff, along with a fine selection of very early blues, reggae, jazz and some really raw grooves which have all but been lost to our super fickle modern generation. In fact my Father owned one of the first copies of the first 45 from a label named Chess. Worth a fortune now no doubt. Music has always been a big part of my life.So why does music reach us at this most basic level? What is it about the human being that makes us crave this "soul food"? Well, music is a multifaceted means of communication. It is possible through music to create all the acoustic features that we use in our everyday language. Furthermore, these acoustic features can be generated in a very definite way. This makes it possible for composers to reach us at our most primeval state, simply by structuring the music according to predefined patterns. The most basic musical element that we respond to is a rhythmical beat or pulse. If you need proof of this then notice how a newborn baby will begin to rock or move to the beat without prompting. This is the human instinct naturally reacting to a rhythm, the roots of which are deeply imbedded in all of us. This is the case whether you like music or not.

The next level of musical recognition is the conscious awareness of the interval between certain vibrations or frequencies. In other words the musical scale. It was not long before humans realized that certain notes work together and certain notes do not - harmonious sequences and discordant sounds.In fact, not all that long ago a discordant sound was associated with the work of the devil because it made the listener feel quite uncomfortable. These days we have moved on with many modern jazz musicians purposefully using discordant sounds - something which horrifies the purists.

One level up from the musical scale is the combination of many different types of musical instrument. This is what we know today as pop music, orchestral music and many other genres. It pleases us when we hear harmonious combinations of many different types of instrument. These chords and harmonious sequences connect with us at our most basic level. It is these musical progressions which can evoke such strong emotions in all of us.

To this day, there are no generally accepted definitions of this musical complexity at a logical and objective level. Many people report that when they hear a piece of music they really like and which touches them emotionally they will feel the hairs on their arms stand on end. This is hardly a scientific observation but is one of the only indicators we have telling us when somebody is emotionally moved by piece of music.

To be perfectly honest, maybe the scientists should just leave it alone - I believe some things were not meant to be explained. Music is music and it makes us feel the way we do because of some ancient connection handed down from generation to generation. The best thing to do with music is just enjoy it! Without music the world would indeed be a very dull place.










Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:



The Doobie Brothers, Drift Away
BTO, Taken' Care Of Business
Fall Out Boy, Sugar We're Goin' Down
Green Day, Time Of Your Life
Rascal Flatts, God Blessed The Broken Road ( For my sweetheart Mike)






Local Artist Of The Day:




Calveris

HOW TO GET YOUR BAND HEARD










Getting reviews can be one of the toughest things for any new band. It's not just trying to figure out who the best people to send your cd to, it's making sure they listen to your band and actually write the review. Music writers get an avalanche of band's cds each week. Some really good bands get overlooked when it comes to getting reviews because they don't follow a few simple but golden review rules. If you don't follow these rules you might as well make that stack of CDs then chuck them in the bin;

The Golden Rules of Getting your band reviews

Be INTERESTING, sounds obvious, but if you can't be arsed with your output then why should anyone else care about you?

Make sure your contact details are on EVERYTHING, several times I've been sent a totally blank cd by a band. Even if it's an amazing band the chances are I'll never know who they are as the CD pretty much always gets separated from the covering letter (if there is one).

Make sure you know who you're sending your band's stuff to, there's no point in sending your death thrash black metal to a rumba magazine is there?

Don't bother sending your cd to millions of labels, they will just go in the bin.Review contactsThe biggest challenge when planning a PR campaign for you band is getting contacts. You can spend months looking up publication/ zine contacts on the web only to have your press packs returned undeliverable. This is especially true with webzines, they are often started with fantastic enthusiasm by the people behind them, then left to rot after a few weeks.

Reading your band's reviews

The next part of your 'get heard' challenge is reading your band's reviews. Sound daft doesn't it! But think about it for a moment, you've spent months finding contacts, stuffing envelopes with your world changing cds, but how are you going to get copies of the reviews if they are published? 99.99% of zines/ magazines will not send you a free copy of their publication. Most zines (especially the big ones that you really want reviews published in) get sent anything up to 100 cds a week, if they sent out a free copy to each of those 100 bands then they wouldn't have any copies left to actually sell! So what do you do? You subscribe to every single one of these publications, in fact you'd probably have to as the chances of your release / demo getting reviewed when you think it will be are pretty damn rare. So you'd have to buy every copy of the magazine (or whatever) until you happen across your own review.

So is this all worth it? Of course it is silly! Getting reviews brings exposure, interviews and about a thousand other positive outcomes!Here's an easy answer...There is a solution to all these problems if you have a bit of cash. Use a PR company, they have all the contacts, relationships with the publications they are sending your output to and will even send you copies of your reviews when they come out!










Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:




Elton John, Rocket Man
Ted Nugent, Free For All
Finger Eleven, One Thing
Journey, Open Arms
Neil Young, Keep On Rockin' In The Free World











Local Artist Of The Day:



Helpwanted

MANAGE YOUR TIME






You CAN do everything.

Repeat.
You CAN do everything.

What you cannot do, however, is do everything at the same time, or create a day that’s longer than 24 hours.The two most important aspects of time management are acceptance and choice. When you think of time in terms of acceptance and choice, you’re never “wrong”, “bad”, or “lazy”, you’ve just made certain choices. When you think in terms of discipline and willpower, however, your inner critic can really do a number on you. We already have low self-esteem as artists; let’s not add to the problem!!

Here are some tips for using choice and acceptance to manage your time.

Decide what you want to have time for. What keeps getting pushed to the back burner or rushed through? How will you spend your time once you’ve made your songwriting dreams come true and you’ve become the artist you’re meant to be? Nourish this vision until it’s clear in your mind. It’s essential to know what you’re working towards. Remember, you won’t always be this busy unless you choose to be.

Choose not to be this busy – for one week, track your time using a time log. You can make one yourself; simply chart out (on paper or on the computer) your day in fifteen-minute intervals and then record what you do in each of those blocks of time. Completing a time log will illuminate how much time you’re spending on different things. Look carefully at the choices you’re making. What do you most want to do with the time you have available?Accept your day job for what it is – a source of the financial support you need to eat and live – and write songs!

Practice feeling grateful for the job you have, instead of feeling resentful about the time it’s taking away from your songwriting. For instance, what recording equipment, CD’s, manuscript paper, software programs or musical instruments have you bought from the money you earned in this job? Also, the job is giving you life experiences, and most likely lots of opportunities to interact with other people. Your passion is to communicate with people through your music – how can you take some of that passion and apply it to your day-to-day interactions? What kind of stories do your co-workers have to tell? What ideas do those stir up for you that you can use in your writing?

Look for a “day job” that’s meaningful and that’s taking you in the direction of your dreams. Do you need some ideas? Try meditating to access inner wisdom and spiritual guidance. If songwriting is your primary passion, what’s your second passion? What ELSE gets your juices flowing? There’s no need to be in a job that doesn’t make you feel alive, in order to support what does. Some artists that I know get lots of fulfillment from teaching children or adults about their craft. Others take jobs that involve public speaking, to give them more experience and confidence talking to groups. Some take jobs in music stores, where they can have lots of time to learn about the newest equipment, meet lots of fellow artists, and get a discount, to boot!

Schedule time with yourself for your songwriting, collaborating and rehearsing. Keep these dates with yourself and others as sacred appointments!Be good to your body and don’t sacrifice sleep for productivity (if you keep doing that, you won’t be in much shape to produce anything!).

There are only a couple of things that we really NEED to do every day. Everything else is a choice.









Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:




Hamell On Trial, Civil Disobedience
Black Label Society, Been A Long Time
Bob Marley, Red Red Wine
Steppen Wolf, Born To Be Wild
Meatloaf, You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth







Local Artist Of The Day:



Jason Gisser

NEIL YOUNG











After Neil Young left the Californian folk-rock band Buffalo Springfield in 1968, he slowly established himself as one of the most influential and idiosyncratic singer/songwriters of his generation. Young's body of work ranks second only to Bob Dylan in terms of depth, and he was able to sustain his critical reputation, as well as record sales, for a longer period of time than Dylan, partially because of his willfully perverse work ethic. From the beginning of his solo career in the late '60s until the late '90s, he never stopped writing, recording, and performing; his official catalog only represented a portion of his work, since he kept countless tapes of unreleased songs in his vaults. Just as importantly, Young continually explored new musical territory, from rockabilly and the blues to electronic music. But these stylistic exercises only gained depth when compared to his two primary styles: gentle folk and country-rock, and crushingly loud electric guitar rock, which he frequently recorded with the Californian garage band Crazy Horse. Throughout his career, Young alternated between these two extremes, and both proved equally influential; there were just as many simpy singer/songwriters as there were grunge and country-rock bands claiming to be influenced by Neil Young. Despite his enormous catalog and influence, Young continued to move forward, writing new songs and exploring new music in his fourth decade as a performing artist. That restless spirit ensured that he was one of the few rock veterans as vital in his old age as he was in his youth. Born in Toronto, Canada, Neil Young moved to Winnipeg with his mother following her divorce from his sports-journalist father. Young began playing music in high school. Not only did he play in garage rock outfits like the Esquires, but he also played in local folk clubs and coffeehouses, where he eventually met Joni Mitchell and Stephen Stills. During the mid-'60s, he returned to Toronto, where he played as a solo folk act. By 1966, he joined the Mynah Birds, which also featured bassist Bruce Palmer and Rick James. The group recorded a couple of singles for Motown, which were ignored. Frustrated by his lack of success, Young moved to Los Angeles in his Pontiac hearse, taking Palmer along as support. Shortly after they arrived in L.A., they happened to meet Stills, and they formed Buffalo Springfield, who quickly became one of the leaders of the Californian folk-rock scene. Despite the success of Buffalo Springfield, the group was plagued with tension, and Young quit the band several times before finally leaving to become a solo artist in May of 1968. Hiring Elliot Roberts as his manager, Young signed with Reprise Records and released his eponymous debut album in early 1969. By the time the album was released, he had begun playing with a local band called the Rockets, which featured guitarist Danny Whitten, bassist Billy Talbot, and drummer Ralph Molina. Young renamed the group Crazy Horse and had them support him on his second album, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, which was recorded in just two weeks. Featuring such Young staples as "Cinnamon Girl" and "Down by the River," the album went gold. Following the completion of the record, he began jamming with Crosby, Stills & Nash, eventually joining the group for their spring 1970 album, Deja Vu. Although he was now part of Crosby, Stills & Nash, Young continued to record as a solo artist, releasing After the Gold Rush at the end of the year. After the Gold Rush, with its accompanying single "Only Love Can Break Your Heart," established Young as a solo star, and fame only increased through his association with CSN&Y. Although Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young were a very successful act, they were also volatile, and they had split by the spring 1971 release of the live Four Way Street. The following year, Young had his first number one album with the mellow country-rock of Harvest, which also featured his first (and only) number one single, "Heart of Gold." Instead of embracing his success, he spurned it, following it with the noisy, bleak live film Journey Through the Past. Both the movie and the soundtrack received terrible reviews, as did the live album Time Fades Away, a record recorded with the Stray Gators that was released in 1973. Both Journey Through the Past and Time Fades Away signaled that Young was entering a dark period in his life, but they only scratched the surface of his anguish. Inspired by the overdose deaths of Danny Whitten in 1972 and his roadie Bruce Berry the following year, Young wrote and recorded the bleak, druggy Tonight's the Night late in 1973, but declined to release it at the time. Instead, he released On the Beach, which was nearly as harrowing, in 1974; Tonight's the Night finally appeared in the spring of 1975. By the time of its release, Young had recovered, as indicated by the record's hard-rocking follow-up Zuma, an album recorded with Crazy Horse and released later that year. Young's focus began to wander in 1976, as he recorded the duet album Long May You Run with Stephen Stills and then abandoned his partner midway through the supporting tour. The following year he recorded the country-rock-oriented American Stars 'n Bars, which featured vocals by Nicolette Larson, who was also prominent on 1978's Comes a Time. Prior to the release of Comes a Time, Young scrapped the country-rock album Homegrown and assembled the triple-album retrospective Decade. At the end of 1978, he embarked on an arena tour called Rust Never Sleeps, which was designed as a showcase for new songs. Half of the concert featured Young solo, the other half featured him with Crazy Horse. That was the pattern that Rust Never Sleeps, released in the summer of 1979, followed. The record was hailed as a comeback, proving that Young was one of the few rock veterans who attacked punk rock head-on. That fall he released the double album Live Rust and the live movie Rust Never Sleeps. Rust Never Sleeps had restored Young to his past glory, but he perversely decided to trash his goodwill in 1980 with Hawks & Doves, a collection of acoustic songs that bore the influence of conservative, right-wing politics. In 1981, Young released the heavy rock album Re*Ac*tor, which received poor reviews. Following its release, he left Reprise for the fledgling Geffen Records, where he was promised lots of money and artistic freedom. Young decided to push his Geffen contract to the limit, releasing the electronic Trans, where his voice was recorded through a computerized vocoder, later that year. The album and its accompanying, technology-dependent tour were received with bewildered, negative reviews. The rockabilly of Everybody's Rockin' (1983) was equally scorned, and Young soon settled into a cult audience for the mid-'80s. Over the course of the mid-'80s, Young released three albums that were all stylistic exercises. In 1985, he released the straight country Old Ways, which was followed by the new wave-tinged Landing on Water the following year. He returned to Crazy Horse for 1987's Life, but by that time, he and Geffen had grown sick of each other, and he returned to Reprise in 1988. His first album for Reprise was the bluesy, horn-driven This Note's for You, which was supported by an acclaimed video that satirized rock stars endorsing commercial products. At the end of the year, he recorded a reunion album with Crosby, Stills & Nash called American Dream, which was greeted with savagely negative reviews. American Dream didn't prepare any observer for the critical and commercial success of 1989's Freedom, which found Young following the half-acoustic/half-electric blueprint of Rust Never Sleeps to fine results. Around the time of its release, Young became a hip name to drop in indie rock circles, and he was the subject of a tribute record titled The Bridge in 1989. The following year, Young reunited with Crazy Horse for Ragged Glory, a loud, feedback-drenched album that received his strongest reviews since the '70s. For the supporting tour, Young hired the avant-rock band Sonic Youth as his opening group, providing them with needed exposure while earning him hip credibility within alternative rock scenes. On the advice of Sonic Youth, Young added the noise collage EP Arc as a bonus to his 1991 live album, Weld. Weld and the Sonic Youth tour helped position Neil Young as an alternative and grunge rock forefather, but he decided to abandon loud music for its 1992 follow-up, Harvest Moon. An explicit sequel to his 1972 breakthrough, Harvest Moon became Young's biggest hit in years, and he supported the record with an appearance on MTV Unplugged, which was released the following year as an album. Also in 1993, Geffen released the rarities collection Lucky Thirteen. The following year, he released Sleeps With Angels, which was hailed as a masterpiece in some quarters. Following its release, Young began jamming with Pearl Jam, eventually recording an album with the Seattle band in early 1995. The resulting record, Mirror Ball, was released to positive reviews in the summer of 1995, but it wasn't the commercial blockbuster it was expected to be; due to legal reasons, Pearl Jam's name was not allowed to be featured on the cover. In the summer of 1996, he reunited with Crazy Horse for Broken Arrow and supported it with a brief tour. That tour was documented in Jim Jarmusch's 1997 film The Year of the Horse, which was accompanied by a double-disc live album. In 1999, Young reunited with Crosby, Stills & Nash for the first time in a decade, supporting their Looking Forward LP with the supergroup's first tour in a quarter century. A new solo effort, Silver and Gold, followed in the spring of 2000. In recognition of his 2000 summer tour, Young released the live album Road Rock, Vol. 1 the following fall, showcasing a spectacular two-night account of Young's performance at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, CO, in September 2000.












Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:




Neil Young, Heart Of Gold
Neil Young, Keep On Rockin' In The Free World
Neil Young, Old Man
Neil Young, Cinnamon Girl
Neil Young, Southern Man







Local Artist Of The Day:



Picciuto

Singers And Bands - The Artist Showcase

By: Tom Gauger









After attending countless artist showcases through the years as a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency, I’ve decided to touch on some practical ideas that will help promote your artist career and give you an increased chance at a possible record deal. After exploring much of the information available online, I determined to stay with easily grasped concepts and ideas that would help artists avoid some of the common mistakes.

First let’s make it clear that not every act deserves an artist showcase, at least not in the light of pandering to record labels in an ongoing campaign to secure a record deal. If you’ve read any of my articles, you know I try to tell it like it is and so once again, I will not shy away from the truth that not every artist deserves an outlet to showcase their “talent.” The reason is not simply because the band is no good, but because maybe there is not a maturity or serious quality from the members or a definitive goal in place that everyone is rallying around. Other reasons may include lack of a unique playing quality or an act that is simply playing cover tunes. Let’s talk about cover tunes for a minute.

Don’t play cover tunes unless they are specifically asked for, or unless you are a cover band playing wedding gigs, etc. If you are truly looking to get a record deal, then showcase your own music. This notion that your audience can relate to you and your band simply because you are playing music that everyone knows is false and misguided logic. Would you have cared, the first time you heard one of your favorite groups, that you knew any of the material – I bet not. You were so into the music and groove you wanted to hear more and buy the record. You think of big groups today that at one point were nobody, and just imagine hearing them for the first time, would it have mattered? – I bet I’m right again. Moral of the story, play your own music.

Before you begin to look at the possibility of a showcase, look at your objectives. Each showcase doesn’t necessarily have to be about the record deal, but that should certainly be your ultimate objective and therefore, everything that you bring to the table ought to encompass and revolve around that goal. For example, you might showcase a particular groove and set of songs, which you would like to take out on the track and test. Is the audience really digging it or is it not you. Likewise, you can showcase for a lesser goal, but yet an important stepping stone to a record deal signing like pushing upcoming events or visibility to obtain additional bookings, etc.As you start planning a showcase, who will attend? – Friends or will music industry personnel be present? Each artist showcase ought to be driven by a marketing approach. Do you have an artist logo, professional bios, pictures and press kits made? These can not be a “friend of the group did it for us,” looking press kits. They have to shine and look pro like music industry individuals are already in play and are looking at your act. Don’t overlook these elements. You might check out artist press kits, bios and press blurb writing at ReelMusician.com.How will you go about promoting your showcase? You have to look beyond stapling flyers to telephone polls, etc. Have you thought about creating a jingle or station ID or local radio personality piece for free in hopes that you will get some radio and TV exposure? You ought to look at local radio stations and write a mix according to the style of the station and your band – see if you can’t get some promotion that way. Cable TV advertising is fairly inexpensive. You might consider going in with everyone in the band and buying some advertising from cable or local TV stations.

If you don’t already have it, and I’m sure most do, get your web site up and going and make sure that you have a page for upcoming events along with pictures, bio, contact page. Websites do not have to be expensive. You can get your website hosted for $5 - $10 a month. You most likely won’t get a lot of traffic, but you will get credibility with the public and within the music industry crowd – This will prove to be invaluable later on down the road.

What will your showcase consist of and what can you do to stand out from the crowd? Your act needs to look like they’ve been at this for years with a comfort level exuding from who the band is. How long is the showcase? You’ve heard the old expression, always leave the crowd wanting to hear more. Far better to do a rather short showcase with knock out tunes then a lengthy, drawn out, can’t wait to get out of there, gig. Work with your song lineup and tweak the number and length of your set at rehearsal until it feels right. Have everything figured right up front. Who’s going to speak when and try to hit all of the “what ifs,” as much as you can. You want this showcase to “wow” the listeners and create some momentum and energy.

Re-think your image and make sure that it matches who you are. People are not that stupid and can almost immediately recognize when an image is forced and manipulated and not natural to the group. Better to have a natural image, true to who you are, than an image that you think just has to go with your style of music.In closing, make each and every showcase count, with calculated marketing and a thought through line-up so when the music industry execs start showing up, they have something to go back to the office with!






Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:


Boston, Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore
Finger Eleven, One Thing
Jim Croche, You Don't Mess Around With Jim
Ted Nugent, Free For All
Nickelback, Someday



Local Artist Of The Day:


Calveris