Ramblings from an Independent Music Artist

So in my last blog, we covered some really, really unprofessional situations you might run into with your band, or a member thereof, wherein you may be faced with having to have (for example), your frontperson bow out for the latter half of a show, or an entire show altogether. Now is where we talk in detail about a  contingency plan  to keep you from looking stupid in an uncomfortable situation.  Yeah. It's a really important thing to consider, and something we don't all think about until it's too late and we're wishing we had a backup plan. Granted, if your drummer breaks his leg or your bass player has to get stitches on his fretting hand, those are pretty much situations where it's simply time to cancel the gig, unless you happen to have an incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist in the band who can bounce around to whatever instrument is needed and do the job, and I'm not sure about you guys, but most folks I know only play one or two instruments, and a l...

Kudos to those of you have Custombucker-equipped Gibson Custom Shop guitars out there and gig without any issues. I had the "pleasure" of sharing the stage a couple weeks ago at a very important gig with some dude who really struggled embarrassingly to rein-in the microphonic feedback from the Custombuckers on his top-end Murphy Lab "aged" blue Custom Shop '64 SG Standard, and it was perplexing to say the least. Most players I've ever ran across who are dumping over $6K on an instrument or piece of equipment generally know what they're getting before buying it. Every spec list on the Custom Shop SG's clearly states they use Custombuckers, and Gibson is pretty clear these are unpotted pickups like the originals on which they're based (which is one of the appeals, in some ways). I didn't realize there were still people out there who don't know that an unpotted humbucker (especially a covered one) can be more prone to squealing under certain...

Has lyrics and chords...still forgets lyrics and chords... On a recent thread I saw, a participant wrote in asking about something most people in a band will have to face at some point or another: how to get rid of a member that is holding you back or robbing you of your enjoyment in general.  He wrote: I am finding myself in a tricky situation. I want to "fire" my singer, but in a way that a bit more delicate. The problem is that he and the drummer seem to be really good friends, and I dont want to loose the drummer. He is a good guy, but cant seem to create any original vocal melodies\lyrics. He has been using the same melody lines for the last 3-4 songs, and parts of the same lyrics for a few songs. One time he accidently sent me some demos from another band he is in, and he is using the same melodies\lyrics for those too. it's like he only can only play one chord on the guitar. Wow. Been there, done that. More times than I care to admit. Since my beginnings in my teen...

  WHAT THE HELL? From Jonathan Horsley in Guitarist Magazine in November, 2025: It doesn't take much to set the guitar-playing public off. But if there is one subject in electric guitar that’s guaranteed to ruin Thanksgiving dinner, it is the idea of relic'ing a guitar. For some, a pre-worn finish is a crime against humanity, up there with not muting your guitar when tuning up. Others think it looks cool. Many might argue either way, but isn’t relic'ing just a case of tying a guitar to the back of your car and doing donuts in the carpark? In a recent interview with Guitarist, Fender’s Chief Product Officer Max Gutnik tries to explain that there is a lot more to it – claiming it has taken their luthiers years to perfect (?) the relic jobs we see on its Custom Shop builds. "Perfect"? Um...no. “You know, relicing is hard to do. It’s ironic because people think you can just drop it a few times and drag it down the street,” says Gutnik. “But it’s actually a really inte...

 First off, I AM a guitarist, so I have every right to say everything I'm about to say. While some blogs I write are a little more from an objective, general perspective, many of the guitar-centric ones I write are written from my point of view as a guitarist with a conscience. And I realize that guitarists HATE to be scrutinized, just like vocalists, drummers and other musicians, but especially by other guitar players. Well either stop reading or put on your big-girl panties if you're a "lead guitarist" who might be a little sensitive on the topic. Oh so many years ago when I started playing guitar, my primary influences ranged from AC/DC to the Sex Pistols to Nirvana, and I just wanted to be a guitarist in a good band. In the beginning it was all power-chords and downstrokes, punk rock fury at its finest. When I actually started learning a couple of simple scales (ones like major, minor, blues, pentatonic, etc. that are the foundation of "guitar solos"), m...

  OK, this topic was actually started by my buddy Eddie some time ago, but I thought I'd carry it over here and toss my 2 cents into the ring (comments are welcome): "Does a song have to have a solo to be 'good'?" I'm noticing a number or reviewers bagging on bands, or at least taking "points" off when a song does not have a solo in it. Personally, i don't think it should be a "deal-breaker." The first Stone Temple Pilots CD has no solos at all. i can't cite the source, but i remember reading that somewhere, and realizing that i didn't even notice in all the times i had listened to it. i just really liked that CD (still do), and that was all that mattered.  I think the worst thing a guitarist (or any potential soloist) could do is add a solo just for the sake of having one. If there is no statement to be made, then don't say anything. Now don't get me wrong- i like a great solo as much as anyone (Vai's "Call It ...