Live Musician Central

News, Reviews, and More!

  • Matt’s Weekend Album Picks 5-17-08

       Happy Saturday everyone! I hope all your gigs went well last night. Mine was kind of slow. We played the Canyon Inn in Salt Lake City and the fact that the Utah Jazz lost to the Lakers really put a damper on the mood. So the show suffered because the crowd was bummed out. We gave it all we had though and got some good cheering and a group of people that had a great time dancing.

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  • Sunday Funnies – How To Become A Musician

       Have you ever played with a guy who thought they were the greatest musician in the world simply because they had the whole “Stage Act” down? I saw a band where the guitarist had long curly blonde hair, a ripped bod and a sweet, white Gibson Les Paul Custom. He’d totally throw himself into a solo and do all the classic “Rock Guitar God” poses and swing his shaggy head of hair all over the place while he was soloing. The girls seemed to be into it but I gotta tell ya, his guitar playing SUCKED! It was sad really that he was getting away with it. It was a lesson in stage presence to be sure and how far that could carry you.      (more…)

  • Creating A Setlist Using iTunes iMix – Dance Set List 1

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    Billy Idol – Mony Mony


    icon   It’s tough finding sure hits for your live band to play. You want songs that are going to fill the floor every time you play them. I’ve been playing the Billy Idol version of Mony Mony since 1985 and it’s STILL filling the floor when my band plays it. Am I sick of the song? Yes I am. Am I sick of seeing a crowd of people dancing and yelling and having a great time watching me play the song. No I’m not.

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  • A Lot Of The Time Playing In A Band Is Work

       I’ve been playing in bands for 27 years but I still remember how great it was starting out playing in a band. I remember when it put me on top of the world just to make it from the start to the finish of a song together as a band. We’d be stoked and play the song over and over loving every minute of it. We learned the songs just for the joy of playing them together. After we had some songs down then naturally we wanted to play some gigs. So we played a few school assemblies and did a few songs and had some great success. Once you’ve played in front of an audience then everything else becomes a quest to get back onstage in front of a crowd. This is where the whole process of learning songs and preparing for the show starts to become work. (more…)

  • Mixer For Live And Studio Use, the Phonic Helix Board 18 MK1 FireWire

    Phonic Helix Board 18
    Phonic Helix Board 18 MK1 FireWire

       I’m always on the lookout for good deals on products that you can use for multiple purposes. Today I’m going to tell you about the Phonic Helix Board MkI FireWire. It has been replaced by the MkII but is virtually the same board with a few cosmetic changes. I’m talking about the MkI because you can get a great deal on it right now on eBay.   (more…)

  • Choosing Current Music, Grammy Winners

       One way to stay current with your bands song selection is to keep an eye on the yearly Grammy Awards. The Grammy Awards are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the record industry. Debate has raged about whether the Grammy Awards actually represent the sentiments of the public at large and I’ve knocked the Grammys many times. I feel like they really miss the best of industry a lot of the time. But I have to say that the Grammys do get the public interested and they get those of us in the music industry talking.    (more…)

  • Support Your Kids Talents

       One thing I’m really grateful for is how much my parents supported my musical ambitions. They paid for piano lessons when I was really young. Bought me my first good instrument, a Cornet. Then when I said I wanted to play guitar they got me one for Christmas. That alone changed my life forever. When I needed a bigger amp after I got in a band, my parents bought me one. It was such a good amp I still have it today, 24 years later.   (more…)

  • Stage Banter, Speak To The Crowd!

    This is just a quick tip on Stage Banter. When you’re up there onstage and you’re not playing, don’t forget to talk to the crowd! You’ll lose them quick if you’re up onstage having a discussion amongst yourselves. The crowd will see you as either confused or simply uncaring that there’s a crowd of people there to watch you.
    If you’re not sure what song you’re going to play next make sure you have somebody on the microphone talking to the crowd while the rest of the band decides what song is going to be played next. That’s why you want to make a set list at the beginning of the set so you don’t have to fill too much airtime with stage banter.    (more…)

  • Sony Acid Pro 6 Professional Music Workstation

       I have a fully equipped studio in my house and at the heart of the studio is my Digidesign Digi 002 Rack Music Production System. This Digidesign interface will work with several different software music workstations. The Digidesign Digi 002 Rack Music Production System runs with an included copy of Pro-Tools LE. The really great thing is that there are several other software suites that run seamlessly with the Digidesign Digi 002 Rack interface using the Digidesign drivers. So if you can find a Digi 002 Rack on eBay you can use it with software suites other than Pro-Tools.
       Today I’m going to review and discuss a sotware that I’m very fond of, Sony Acid Pro 6. (more…)

  • American Idol, Talent or Hype?

       It’s amazing to see all the press coverage and the numbers of viewers that American Idol attracts. I’ve talked to a lot of musicians about the show and I always ask them their opinion. I usually get a mixed reaction with some believing that there’s some real talent on there and some believing that it’s all rigged and that the songs are recorded in advance.     (more…)