Monkey Allen
Fork and spoon operator
They might have a rich old uncle who died
They might have a rich old uncle who died
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moresound
Loud Sun Studios
..... I'm getting better.
Lt. Bob
Spread the Daf!
Soooooooooooooooooo your still a virgin there huh Lt.?
well, I played starting in the 60's and was on the road during the 70's so I got laid plenty ........ some I'd rather forget!
But it wasn't a factor in me learning to play.
C
chamelious
www.thesunexplodes.com
Bob, apologies if i seemed arrogant, obviously everything i say is just personal opinion, if it seemed like i thought i was "right" its just bad wording on my part.
But like i said, its mostly the original bands that throw in an obvious cover that i don't "understand".
If you've watched our single/music vid you'll have heard that i'm fine writing music that switchs between Harmonic minor and Natural minor (its not done by accident!), other songs have key modulation, one is written entirely in 5/4, etc etc. Just saying, i know my stuff as far as i need to. I'll never practise playing in any key signature at the drop of a hat because i'll never need to do that.
Again apologies for my misleading wording
But like i said, its mostly the original bands that throw in an obvious cover that i don't "understand".
If you've watched our single/music vid you'll have heard that i'm fine writing music that switchs between Harmonic minor and Natural minor (its not done by accident!), other songs have key modulation, one is written entirely in 5/4, etc etc. Just saying, i know my stuff as far as i need to. I'll never practise playing in any key signature at the drop of a hat because i'll never need to do that.
Again apologies for my misleading wording
C
chamelious
www.thesunexplodes.com
I'm not sure if you're talking about me, but i wasn't really bitching, just enquiring!
Don't think theres much left for the Labels these days, most of the unsigned bands we've spoken to and played with have had offers and decided to put stuff out themselves, labels are asking for a cut of literally everything these days, down to the badges on the merch stand.
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bdenton
New member
Au contraire, my friend...
My diatribe is not really addressed at anyone in particular; I just picked this thread because it contained a lot of comments dealing with how difficult it is for bands to make a living.
Back in the day, quite a few artists made a whole lot of money, while a lot of artists made some money, and had a shot at making a lot of money.
Unfortunately, today, a very small number of artists make obscene amounts of money, while the rest of the artists make very little money, if any at all.
What I hope to show, if I have time to write more tonight, is that while there are some extremely large forces and societal shifts that have contributed largely to the current situation, it is to some extent the result of artists getting exactly what they wanted.
Unfortunately, I don't have any "magic" way of fixing the situation that confronts younger artists today.
But I hope that by presenting a broad overview of the situation, even if perhaps flawed by my own perspective, some of the bright younger artists that are out there might be able to come up with some ideas that might lead to a solution...
Lt. Bob
Spread the Daf!
Well thanks for the clarification.Bob, apologies if i seemed arrogant, obviously everything i say is just personal opinion, if it seemed like i thought i was "right" its just bad wording on my part.
But like i said, its mostly the original bands that throw in an obvious cover that i don't "understand".
If you've watched our single/music vid you'll have heard that i'm fine writing music that switchs between Harmonic minor and Natural minor (its not done by accident!), other songs have key modulation, one is written entirely in 5/4, etc etc. Just saying, i know my stuff as far as i need to. I'll never practise playing in any key signature at the drop of a hat because i'll never need to do that.
Again apologies for my misleading wording
I actually didn't take offense ..... you were fairly mellow on presenting your point of view.
Had I thought you were being arrogant I'd have been a lot more nasty in my response but you weren't and so I thought carefully about what I said.
Mainly I was just trying to get you to see that there can be joy and creativity in doing music in other ways than the single thing you're focused on right now.
You don't have to, of course.
I feel very strongly that everyone has the absolute right to approach their art in the way they wish and no one else has the right to try to change that.
Art is in our minds and your mind isn't the same as mine.
But I do think it's a mistake to cop such an attitude about other approaches that you can't see any value in them at all.
And since you've stated your discouragement about certain aspects of what you're doing right now, I'd just like to help you see that it's NOT the only way.
It's only in your mind that there's no creativity in other ways of playing and I simply hoped to expand your view.
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Greg_L
Banned
Lol @ you goons typing out fucking phone books.
Lt. Bob
Spread the Daf!
lolbut sometimes people actually like to discuss stuff. That often takes more space than does "shut up you're a faggot"
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Greg_L
Banned
but sometimes people actually like to discuss stuff.
That's crazy talk.
M
moresound
Loud Sun Studios
grimtraveller
If only for a moment.....
A hearty cheer for Dr Robert !
Other cynics could tell you that they spent decades getting laid with no hint of an instrument in sight !
{Well, not a musical one}.
}forms of music.
The few viewpoints I might've had about the home recording scene and the kinds of people on it prior to joining HR would have been utterly miniscule and unrepresentative. Now, having read and been involved in a number of discussions/debates, I have a clearer idea of things than say, this time last year.
Ah sez gimme mo' that krezzie tokk !
Of course a cynic could conclude that if sex was the only motivation, the love of the music was secondary if even existent and therefore a mere means to an end.
Other cynics could tell you that they spent decades getting laid with no hint of an instrument in sight !
{Well, not a musical one}.And this, for me, was always and still is the motivation. I won't even criticize orchestral musicians who play strictly from a score with no individual freedom to do their own thing every time they play ~ if they dig what they are doing. If you think about it, a guy like Charlie Watts who was a jazz afficianado long before he joined the Stones and still is and has no songwriting input in their songs and hasn't in 48 years, still knocks it out night after night when what's left of the Stones are on the road. Why ? Because he loves playing and unlike alot of musicians, doesn't look down on 'lesser' {
}forms of music.One of the things about good forums that really make them more than just advice centres is that one can engage in long discussions with different people who have had vastly different experiences and can add their perspective and add to one's own scope and help one take into account other points of view, especially ones that you may not initially understand or agree with.
but sometimes people actually like to discuss stuff. That often takes more space than does "shut up you're a faggot"
The few viewpoints I might've had about the home recording scene and the kinds of people on it prior to joining HR would have been utterly miniscule and unrepresentative. Now, having read and been involved in a number of discussions/debates, I have a clearer idea of things than say, this time last year.
Gimme more of that crazy talk !
Ah sez gimme mo' that krezzie tokk !
Armistice
Son of Yoda
I pretty much took up guitar because all my friends played and they seemed cool and had girls hanging around all the time... so I put 2 + 2 together and decided I'd be a famous guitarist... and have girls hanging round me too.
I realised later I'd made a tactical error and should have been a singer - this realisation occurred at my first big, real gig with a substantial audience in attendance, when I stepped up to do a blistering solo in Evil Ways which I thought would make even Carlos Santana envious, only to realise as the spotlight focused on the crowd in front of me that the only people standing in front of me where guys playing air guitar going beserk and shouting "Yeah man!" whilst on my left, in front of the singer, were possibly thousands of incredibly good looking nubile chicks casting goo goo eyes in his direction EVEN THOUGH HE WASN'T CURRENTLY ACTUALLY DOING ANYTHING!!!!!
Hello....LOOK AT ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was gutted, but it was too late to turn back, so I stuck with it... and on the whole it's turned out OK. All my friends dropped guitar playing a couple of years later when they realised I could smoke them (or that's what I told myself, anyway) and I'm still going all these years later. Also, they all got fat and bald...
That has nothing to do with this post, but I was reminiscing whilst being bored at work... a dangerous combo!
Continue...
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mcmetal
New member
I pretty much took up guitar because all my friends played and they seemed cool and had girls hanging around all the time... so I put 2 + 2 together and decided I'd be a famous guitarist... and have girls hanging round me too.
I realised later I'd made a tactical error and should have been a singer - this realisation occurred at my first big, real gig with a substantial audience in attendance, when I stepped up to do a blistering solo in Evil Ways which I thought would make even Carlos Santana envious, only to realise as the spotlight focused on the crowd in front of me that the only people standing in front of me where guys playing air guitar going beserk and shouting "Yeah man!" whilst on my left, in front of the singer, were possibly thousands of incredibly good looking nubile chicks casting goo goo eyes in his direction EVEN THOUGH HE WASN'T CURRENTLY ACTUALLY DOING ANYTHING!!!!!
Hello....LOOK AT ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was gutted, but it was too late to turn back, so I stuck with it... and on the whole it's turned out OK. All my friends dropped guitar playing a couple of years later when they realised I could smoke them (or that's what I told myself, anyway) and I'm still going all these years later. Also, they all got fat and bald...
That has nothing to do with this post, but I was reminiscing whilst being bored at work... a dangerous combo!
Continue...
I took up guitar because i just liked the sound of it.Of course i though it would help me pick up chicks too but it probably hindered me more since i spent more time alone practicing than actually hanging out.
When i started playing out in a band i had the same experince.They all go for the singer.I used to get pissed off whenever we had someone videotape us.Always the same crap,I'd bust into a lead and all you saw was the singer standing there drinking a beer.Half the time i barely even made it onto the tape.
Of course there was the times where i'd bust into a lead or intro riff to start off a tune and they'd pan over to the other guitarist.He had long hair and was skinny,i was the fat bald guy.
I had a friend of our drummers say once that i didn't look like a guitar player.I asked him what a guitar player looked like and he didn't have much of an answer.
Getting back to the topic of this thread though touring is tough and nowadays even tougher.I've never toured so i can't offer advice.I do know that people don't support live music anymore.I remember my old guitar teacher saying that even though he didn't get signed and go big time that in his eyes he "made it." He made his living by playing guitar and teaching.
I remember a music scene that supported both original and coverbands.The original bands networked together and drew out a crowd at the dive bars and made hardly any money.The cover bands played the better venues,got paid a lot better,and basically got to walk into a place with an already established crowd.
When things started dying off the original bands played for their girlfriends and the cover bands got replaced with djs.The internet helped bands network and get their music out but it also made the artists lazy.
Bands forgot how to actually send out mailing lists.Most bands got so lazy that they don't even send out e-mails anymore.They just post where they're playing on myspace and think crowds will magically appear.What the hell is a flier!? You mean i gotta pass these out! Then they piss and moan about playing a dead club.
Hip hop became popular and killed off what was left of the live music scene.It's all about programming beats and dance clubs now.
I'm single and i go to the dance clubs now.I hate it but why would i wanna go to a dive bar and support an original band with a crowd of 10 of their friends and no women.I'll wait and go to see national acts when they come close by but even they're not drawing crowds these days.
Bands that do tour are barely getting by.A lot of national acts go tour for a few months and then have to find a day job when the tour is over.Credit cards can only go so far.
Supercreep
Lizard People
Supercreep
Lizard People
Remember when I said you live in the van or crash on stranger's couches? I meant it. No rent, no bills, just keeping the van running and gassed up.
There isn't a lot of money in touring for an unknown band. That isn't the same thing as saying it can't be done. Lots of bands are doing it right now.
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AbuseTheMuses
New member
I took up guitar because I'm really not good at anything else. It has left me homeless, broke, bumming beer at gigs, travelling the world and hanging out at Paris Hilton parties, trashing nice hotel rooms and slumming it in not-so-nice hotels. It has gotten me in fights - verbal and physical - it has gotten me arrested for indecency and disrespect of a cop - it has got me free time in other people's recording studios which otherwise would have cost about a thousand bucks a day... it has gotten me cleaning up sewage on the side or being a bike messenger, flipping burgers or scamming off of girlfriends, living under a bridge on a piece of cardboard or flying 1st class back and forth to italy or france every couple of months without a care of who is paying for it... the point is, when you take that backpack and that guitar case and that scratchy notebook full of half finished ideas and a greyhound ticket and just go... you are going off to WAR and you never really come back. ups downs, highs lows blah blah is easy to say and romanticise and use as an excuse for being otherwise just a worthless loser. So in the end you just have to do it because it's what you do. Is it work? yes. is it hard work? yes. is it work that pays off... not really... but that one VIP treatment classy meal or limo ride or 1st class plane ticket... or the feeling when you make an awesome recording that you can hypnotise yourself with, or rocking out a room full of people who you dont even know but getting them all on your team... makes up for every throusand packets of ramen noodles and unheated living conditions and disapproving family members who didn't get a christmas visit.
Artists have a long and proud tradition of being broke and hungry and appreciated after they're dead, or too old to actually revel in it.
Artists have a long and proud tradition of being broke and hungry and appreciated after they're dead, or too old to actually revel in it.
grimtraveller
If only for a moment.....
The way things are set up in the 21st century, I suspect that tradition is about to meet it's Waterloo.........
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AbuseTheMuses
New member
I blame American Idol, Dancing with whatever, voice fixers, overblown nobody bands full of mediocre crap that sounds just like everything else, Kelly Osborne and Elvis's kid and so on getting contracts because of the who knows who ('Vedder Voice and The Pearl 20 Matcchbox Creed' who took over from the 'Great White Lion-Snake') upping the 'ante' on what people expect a production to be. The days of watching band play because they rock hard and raw live have been nerfed by an expectation... "Hannah Montana", Jonas, etc (hey at least Hansen had a drummer with a name for teen-beat to parade instead of some old dude paid to ignore the fact that he hates the brats but has a family to feed)... video killed the radio star, mp3 killed the video star... still who can rock a group of people? a dude with an accoustic guitar singing right in front of them, or a dude who needs everyone to hear his new track of compressed pitched corrected vocals on his hifi system with his midi backdrop to tell him how great he is.