Looper pedals are cool. They allow you to build backing tracks for yourself to solo over, or even harmonize with yourself without the need for backing vocalists. Artists like Riley Armstrong, Jacob Moon, Andrew Bird, and many others popularized looping in their live performance, and it has fast become a go-to tool for independent and…
As you accumulate guitar pedals, your mind will naturally turn to a pedal board enclosure to house all your compact effects units. A solid pedal board makes your side of the stage tidier and neater, protects your pedals, and prevents accidents from occurring (i.e. accidentally kicking one of your pedals out of the signal chain)….
Most piano players – especially purists – prefer the sound and feel of a grand piano if not a concert grand piano. Of course, most of the time, such a piano is out of reach due to the exorbitant cost of ownership. For many students, teachers, and performers, the opportunity to play a grand piano…
If you’re looking to buy an acoustic guitar, there are a few things you’ll want to be sure of: You get a good quality instrument, and You get it for a good price. Now me personally, I’m a big fan of Amazon. It’s because of this that I’ve done the leg work for you and…
It’s one thing to be a musician or music lover. But if your best friend, significant other, spouse, or family member is one of these unique creatures that hate everything, it makes birthdays and Christmas kind of tricky. People often say it’s the thought behind the gift that counts. But if the person receiving the…
So, you’ve decided to put together a guitar effects pedalboard. Congratulations! This can be a fun and exciting process. But at some point, you’ll likely begin to realize how complicated things can get. If you want to make use of multiple pedals, you must connect all of them, order them in a way that sounds…
The music industry changes fast. Artists need to adapt quickly, and so do their managers. In the past, acts often lost money on tour, so they could promote their albums. Artists and managers alike would reap the profit generated from the hefty sales of their recorded music. First, piracy took a huge chunk of that…
Workplace related health problems are very common. They can range from mild injuries, to chronic pain, to debilitating health conditions. Certain workplaces can also render you more susceptible to contagious illness. Musicians are not immune to this! Our workplace is often mobile, loud, and overwhelming. Daily activities like practicing, rehearsing, working in the studio, and…
So, you just heard a killer beat you want to use in a song. There are plenty of hit songs based on samples. Just think of Beyonce’s “Crazy In Love”, Rihanna’s “Work”, Eminem’s “My Name Is”, or Kanye West’s “New Slaves”. Ultimately, we’re all influenced and inspired by the music we’ve heard, and since there…
Making music videos is difficult. Video content is important, and it still seems to be one of the best ways to get your music in front of people. The problem lies in coming up with a good idea and then having the financial and practical means to make that idea a reality. If you don’t…
I like to travel. In the last few years, I haven’t done as much travelling as I did between 2011 and 2014 but I still made it out to Japan once and British Columbia multiple times. When I was a teenager, my guitar used to go with me everywhere I went. And, if it’s not…
The stereotype of the “starving artist” has pervaded our public consciousness to the point where people believe that it’s impossible to make money with music. This is simply not true. You may believe it to be true (I did), especially if you grew up in a smaller city. You may not see many examples of…
Video is all the rage right now. As a musician, you already know the importance of video marketing. Music videos, for instance, are powerful tools for helping you get exposure, make more fans, and book more gigs. Today, if you aren’t using videos to market your music, you’re probably leaving opportunity on the table, because…
Noise cancelling headphones are awesome for certain situations. Maybe you want to listen to your music at work, but you can’t have your colleagues distracted by excess noise. Perhaps you’d like to listen to your music at the gym without being bothered. Or, maybe you need a good pair of headphones to sleep on the…
Getting views on YouTube is getting harder. It’s becoming difficult to drive viewers to your YouTube channel and off of their social media platform of choice. Once you have people watching your videos, you need to keep them on your channel watching more of your videos. This drives up your traffic and visibility, and if…