Live Musician Central

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  • Complete Portable P.A. System Yamaha EMX512SC/S115V

    Yamaha EMX512SC/S115V
    Yamaha EMX512SC/S115V P.A. System Package

       If you play in a smaller live band such as a 2 to 4 person group then I’m sure you understand the need for a smaller P.A. system. A lot of acoustic duos will go out and play with a small amp, a couple mics and a pair of small speakers. But with a larger 3 or 4 person group I’m sure you’ve learned that you need more than just a  little 4-channel powered mixer head and a couple of speakers.

       I’d like to talk about an excellent P.A. system for smaller groups of two to four people. The Yamaha EMX512SC/S115V is a complete P.A. package that will have your smaller group completely covered for all your P.A. needs. At the heart of the system is an dual-channel, 500 Watt per channel, powered mixer that has 8 total microphone inputs. The really nice thing about the EMX512SC is the added bonus of four of the eight channels being able to function as either mono microphone inputs or stereo line inputs. This gives the amp/mixer a total of 12 input channels.     (more…)

  • How To Choose Songs For Your Live Band To Play

    Billboard Hottest 100 Hits
    Billboard Hottest 100 Hits

    One of the biggest challenges of playing in a cover band is the simple act of song selection. This simple task can make or break any band. A well chosen song list can give your band the edge in a very competitive cover band market. So how do you choose a winning setlist for your live band to play?

    I’ve learned the hard way over the years not to pick songs from the heart. That’s the biggest mistake that most bands make when choosing songs. They will pick songs that they love and assume that if they love the song, everyone else will too. That’s not necessarily the case because I can tell you that a lot of the songs I love and would like to play in a band have never been huge sellers. I like complicated, progressive rock music that most people that aren’t musicians just can’t grasp.   (more…)

  • Sunday Funnies – Total Eclipse Of The Heart: Literal Video Version

       Today for the Sunday Funnies I’m posting up a very hilari0us version of the Bonnie Tyler music video for her hit, Total Eclipse Of The Heart. I remember when this video came out and we would watch it and try to figure out just exactly what they were trying to say in the storyline of the music video. Well, in the Literal Video Version the entire video is explained in the lyrics!    (more…)

  • How To Listen To A Shoutcast Stream With Winamp Or iTunes

    I’ve been doing some live online broadcasts of my live band lately using Shoutcast. Shoutcast is a technology that allows anyone to broadcast audio from their PC to the Internet. Shoutcast broadcasts in MP3 or AAC+ format and can be played by Winamp, iTunes or the somewhat unreliable mini-player at Shoutcast.com. Broadcasters using Shoutcast can have their station listed in the Shoutcast.com Radio Directory.

    I’ve had a lot of listeners complaining that the Shoutcast Mini Player has been crashing browsers and computers. So today I’m going to write a tutorial on how to listen to Shoutcast Radio streams using either Winamp or iTunes.    (more…)

  • Gig Report – Bonne Nuit Live Online Concert

    Bonne Nuit
    Bonne Nuit Is A Band Featuring Live Musician Central Author – Matt Rushton and his sons Erik, Austin and Skyler

       This past weekend my latest live band, Bonne Nuit, performed a live online concert. First of all let me tell you a little bit about Bonne Nuit. It’s a band that features myself, Matt Rushton, on lead guitar and vocals. I’m also playing with my 3 oldest sons, Erik on guitar and vocals, Austin on Bass Guitar and Skyler on drums. Their ages are 18, 15 and 14 respectively. So as you can see, we don’t play in any bars.

       Bonne Nuit plays primarily current rock hits such as Kings Of Leon -Sex On Fire. We also do a couple classic rock numbers and a couple of originals. We’ve been learning songs and rehearsing for about 3 months now and we finally have enough material to do about a 1.5 hour show. So we decided we’d follow my own advice given earlier on Live Musician Central and broadcast a live online concert.    (more…)

  • Sunday Funnies – Throw It On The Ground SNL

       This week I’m putting up a video clip from Saturday Night Live. This is an Andy Samberg doing a little rap song called “Throw It On The Ground”. I think his view of what should be thrown on the ground is a little twisted in this one, but of course that’s what makes it so darn funny! It’s also what makes it worthy of being on Live Musician Central Sunday Funnies.    (more…)

  • Behringer Eurorack UB2442FX-PRO Mixer Review

    Behringer Eurorack UB2442FX-PRO Mixer
    Behringer Eurorack UB2442FX-PRO Mixer

    The most important component in your live band’s P.A. system is the mixing console. Without a mixer you’re not going to be able to mix your live sound properly when playing a gig. I’ve written a couple posts such as “You Need A P.A. System To Play A Gig” detailing how important having a good P.A. system is to the success of your band.

    Today I’m going to talk about a budget mixer made by Behringer called the Eurorack UB2442FX-PRO. I know that many of you that have experience with Behringer equipment are rolling your eyes right now and I don’t blame you. Behringer has a reputation for cheap equipment that doesn’t always come with the best build quality. I know I’ve had my share of problems with Behringer equipment but at the same time I’ve been able to use Behringer products quite successfully in my studio and with my live band.   

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  • The Who Superbowl Halftime Show Review

    Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend
    Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend of The Who

       I would certainly be remiss in my duties if I didn’t give a post to review the Superbowl halftime performance of one of the most legendary live bands of all time, The Who. First of all let me tell you that I am a huge Who fan and I have been since the very first time I heard them. The Who are actually one of the biggest influences on my playing and songwriting. Still, I’ll try to be objective about their Superbowl halftime performance.    (more…)

  • Sunday Funnies – Monty Python Lumberjack Song

       For todays Sunday Funnies we’ve got a good old Monty Python classic, the Lumberjack Song. This song has brought many a laugh over the years and it’s always good for a chuckle. I hope you enjoy it just one more time.   (more…)

  • Microsoft Zune HD vs. Apple iPod Touch Review

    Microsoft Zune HD
    Microsoft Zune HD

       A good portable music player is not only a great personal entertainment device, it’s also essential to have one to use with your live band. You can use it for learning songs while your practice as well as using it to play break music at gigs. Today we’re going to take a look at the Microsoft Zune HD and how it compares to the Apple iPod Touch.

       The overall capacity of the two music players is relatively the same. The Zune HD is available in a 16GB and a 32GB model while the Ipod touch is available in an 8GB model, a 32GB model and a 64G model. Apple offers the Ipod in both smaller and larger models than the Zune, but I feel like the Zune hits a good midpoint. 16GB and 32GB both let you have a fair amount of music and video on your device. Apples 8GB model will only let you hold a few hours of music along with one or two full length videos. To be fair, I was somewhat disappointed that Microsoft didn’t have a larger size of the Zune HD available.   (more…)