Not to be too dramatic, but instrumentation can sometimes make or break a song. You might have a beautiful melody and clever, thought-provoking lyrics, but if the music surrounding your voice is clashing and interfering with it, the message isn’t going to come across as intended. So what kind of backing tracks should you use…
The old guitarist joke is that singing is wasted time between guitar solos. This is because guitarists are always looking for opportunities to show off their skills, be flashy, and play parts that keep themselves entertained. Solos are where stylistic choices and creativity really have a way of shining through. And while the ability to…
Songwriting can take a variety of different forms. The problem is that you can get stuck in a particular way of writing, unable to say anything new with your songs. Your style may have served you well to this point, and may even be something you can fall back on in the future, but if…
There are more domain name extensions available today than ever before, and by that we mean web addresses that don’t end with the typical .com, .org or .net conventions. There isn’t necessarily any shortage of .com addresses, though without a doubt they tend to be more sought-after, and you will rarely if ever find three,…
Music videos are awesome tools for promoting a release – old or new. But maybe you don’t have the budget to be able to do a lyric video or traditional music video. Or, maybe you just want to try something a little different. Despite what you might think, it is possible to create a great…
Recording and releasing a cover song is a great way to gain exposure as an artist, since it can serve as a gateway into your original material. One way to achieve this end is to do what the likes of Pomplamoose and Igor Presnykov have done – reinterpreting songs in their own unique ways and…
This is an exciting time for you. You’re just about to release a new EP. This might be your first release, or it could be your eighth. Either way, completing a recording is a massive achievement. Congratulations. But wait. You can’t actually put your music out into the world without cover art. Oops! This happens…
Success isn’t necessarily a science. Most individuals come upon it after much trial, tribulation, and experimentation. They push themselves to keep taking risks, even if they don’t seem to be getting anywhere. There is no better teacher than mistakes – your own, or even the ones others make. But you’ll never create learning opportunities for…
The CAGED system is a concept every guitarist should take some time to understand. Not only does it provide a framework from which you can instantly create barre chords, it also teaches you what the most commonly used guitar keys are, and why they are so popular. The CAGED system is also a stepping stone…
Looking to get more gigs? Beyond putting together a press kit and sending it to every venue and promoter you can think of, there are many other ways to drive interest in your music and find new performance opportunities. Here are four underused tactics for getting more gigs. 1. Highlight Your Gigging Experience With A…
Every guitarist – regardless of what their stylistic interest are – should learn how to play the 12 bar blues and understand how the form works. Many rock and roll and country songs share a similar format, since they are basically derivatives of the blues. So when you understand the 12 bar blues, your understanding…
YouTube is an amazing platform on which to build a presence as a musician. It gives you the opportunity to showcase your musical sensibilities and style in video format, and get your content in front of a large audience. But getting to that point takes time. Although there are a few “growth hacks” you can…
You don’t have to put in 10,000 hours of practice to become good at guitar. If you want to master the guitar, then you will definitely need to embrace a longer-term journey, as there is simply too much to know and learn. But when it comes to improving, there are really just a few habits…
Guitar solos today are often little more than little “fills”, short segments of quick licks that lead right back into the bridge or chorus of a song. This type of solo requires little thought, and isn’t hard to construct. One of the reasons this happens is because a lot of guitar players today aren’t confident…
Unfortunately, there is no known way in the universe to extend time. So the only thing you can do to be more productive is make better use of your time. There’s a limit to how many songs you could realistically produce in a day, week, or month. But if you could improve your processes, and…