How a music conference can help your music career

16-May-2015 By Leave a Comment

So you heard a music conference is coming to town, did you?
If you’re into music at all, you’re probably curious, and considering bopping along to see what all the fuss is about. The words might seem familiar, but it might not be clear what really goes on at a conference for the music industry; who and what they’re for.

A music conference might sound like an intimidating experience; it’s chock full of big names, weighty topics, and technical talks. But it’s a forum which offers real insight into the world of music employment and all of the fascinating elements found within.

So who is it for?
Anyone with an involvement in, interest in, or healthy curiosity about how the music business works. The industry has changed dramatically over the years, never more so than in the last 10 years, yet music progresses on unimpeded; a truly unstoppable part of our human culture. With all of the different panels, talks, and masterful guests, the insights at any music conference stand to be outstandingly valuable.

What happens?
A guest usually books a ticket, allowing him access to the limited number of spots in whichever venue is hosting the conference.

The ticket allows a guest exclusive access to the speakers, members of the press, industry professionals, headhunters and scouts, and many more movers and shakers in the sphere of music.

The program will outline the times and topics for each slot, and the guest should then look for as many or as few of these as he or she is interested in attending. Refreshment breaks provide time to pause, and chat with other attendees. Hilarious interviews, insightful anecdotes, and group participation are all par for the music conference course.

Is it really boring?
What? No! If you’re interested in music, the day will fly by before you know it. There really is so much to learn, and when you get lots of music people together in one place, the buzz in the air is straight-up infectious! There’s no telling what could happen, really. Interviews with bands you like or artists who make you scratch your head in amazement; finding out what really happens behind the scenes; the chance to get hands-on and try out new technologies and advancements; rubbing elbows with the greats; it can all happen at a conference.

Do I have to know a lot to understand what’s going on?
Absolutely, categorically: no way. While knowing a little about the music industry might give you direction of interest, one of the coolest things about a conference is the wealth of unexpected and useful knowledge you’ll come away with. Since it’s an ever-evolving scene, there’s always something new to learn, wherever you are on the scale of knowledge, so sit back and enjoy.

What do I stand to gain from attending?
New experiences, new friends, new things to talk about at dinner, new ways to connect with just about anyone, new ideas and inspirations, new directions and informed career choices; it’s all up to you. The better question to ask yourself is what you stand to miss out on by neglecting the opportunity.

The next time one comes to your city, do yourself a favor and book in for the learning curve of a lifetime. And if you’re in and around Dublin on June 12-14 you should check out youbloom’s very own premier music fest. With over 60 bands and a full conference it’s an awesome opportunity you can’t miss! For more information click here and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Stop Worrying and Love the Bass Guitar

18-Apr-2015 By 1 Comment

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bass Guitar

Stepping off stage after a monster set of modal jazz I notice the fans and how they flocked. The sax, keys, and drummer are usually the first to be approached. The singer just as often. I, the bass player, seem to be able to navigate the crowd completely anonymously, not a single person inquiring about my destination. It’s rare to gain great public acclaim as a bass player, that’s just not our role.

The lead guitar player? Sure. The trumpet soloist? Absolutely. Bass? Ideally, you only notice it when it’s being played poorly. Otherwise it serves a function in music that is completely supportive. An odd mix of introvert and extrovert that personifies “support” in the best of ways. I believe that the core elements of music and the instruments that play them have something in common in their organizational and social cultures in relation to other instruments. Said plainly, the musician’s personality can and often does echo their instrument’s emotional role in music.

The role of the bass as a function of music is to support the melody, harmony, and rhythm of a piece. Any instrument performing the bass role has a musical duty to both lead and follow the other musical elements to keep them all in concert. The bass has implied harmony and obvious rhythm to its part and it is usually thought of as the second melody.

This is a great musical example of the potential dynamics of an individual’s role in a team. In the first few years of my bass playing I wanted to play fast and use complicated techniques to be really impressive on my instrument. During college I noticed that every other young bass player was trying to do the same thing as me and none of us were getting any gigs!

The guys who were getting gigs were simple, solid as a rock, supportive players. They were members of their teams and naturally assumed a type of leadership role that exists somewhere between being fully in charge and just being a silent partner for approval. Thinking about you’re role in whatever team you’re in, how are you supporting that relationship and how do you keep everyone on track in whatever project you’re working on?

The bass player in a band does a couple of key things that have become stereotypes over the years. They keep the drummer on track. This means the bassist has to agree with the drummer about the tempo and feel of a song and then work to maintain those musical elements. By providing the bass line, the bassist gives the whole band the core harmonic information. The key of the song and the chord progression. This helps the singer identify their pitch and keep soloists on track by giving them a reference to the form of the song.

At the end of the night, after I’ve packed up my bass and I’m ready to head home, I’m happy that I get to continue my role as a supporting musician. I never really wanted to be the stand-out, I’d rather just help everyone be the best they can be. It’s a great way to be in charge without needing credit for it. It’s that great mix between introvert and extrovert and I’ve come to develop respect for the supporting roles over time. I learned to stop worrying. I learned to love the bass guitar. I learned to love being a part of a team. And I’d love to talk to you after my set, but if you don’t want to, that’s fine too.

Self release your music like CommonUnion59

09-Apr-2015 By Leave a Comment

What does it actually take to self release your music?

Well, lucky for us, one of our very own youbloom artists, CommonUnion59, released their second album, “Heartbeat Serenade” on February 11th of this year and were kind enough to share their experience with the youbloom community.

“The most important thing we learned is that the overall effort of putting an album out is probably half musical and half business. You have to come to terms with that fact when you plan your project,” Steve shared. And let’s face it; many musicians may be great at performing, but not so strong business-wise. That is why picking a solid team at the beginning of the project is vital to the quality of the finished album.

“It might help to think of yourself as kind of a general contractor who, when building a house, may do the carpentry but finds the plumber, the electrician, etc. because he just doesn’t have expertise (or the time) to do it all himself,” Steve said. Not only is it important to pick a qualified team of engineers, press agents, promoters, and musical contributors, it is also really important that you work well with these people and they understand your vision. “Go for quality over quantity and find the best studio you can afford.”

“We asked ourselves this simple question, how do the major labels do what they do?” Steve said. “First, they get the music created.” Steve advised to have as much of the music completed as possible when you get into the studio. This will save you time and money overall. On the same note, he suggested that you be flexible as well. There are always unforeseen surprises along the way, some of which may be beneficial to the outcome of your album, as CommonUnion59 experienced.

For example, Laura explained to us that the song, “Heartbeat Serenade” was one song that was unfinished when they got into the studio. They only had a few words written down as well as the basic melody. “We knew we wanted to have fun with it and give it a psychedelic vibe so it was almost like a side project that we kept coming back to as we recorded everything else.” Turns out, they loved what the song turned into so much, that it became the title track for the album.

Steve and Laura also learned the importance of being open to straying from the plan when they were recording their song, “It’s Alright.” Laura shared, “We did two versions… The first was a straight ahead rocking take which we liked a lot, but when we tried a more rock-a-billy feeling version, we really loved it, so it’s the one we ended up using. We hadn’t thought about doing that way in advance so it’s like a bit of unexpected studio magic that we embraced.” Though there may be some unforeseen hang-ups in the studio, there can also be some beautiful surprises along the way that might entirely transform the album.

After the music is created, Steve stressed the importance of making the final product relevant amongst the competition. One step in doing that is to have the music mastered after it is recorded and mixed. “It really does make a difference since you are being heard alongside so many other artists that do it too.”

Another step to meeting the competition is to gather reviews way before the release date. You want to have publicity growing for your album even before it is released. Sometimes doing this means hiring a publicity firm that has experience pushing albums to the people who need to hear them. Remember that there are tons of other musicians that will also be releasing albums the same month (and even the same day) as you.

The final step in matching your competition is to get airplay. The more you can be heard and in the more places, the better. “This part is not easy for sure since the majors have such a lock on most of radio, but it is still possible,” Steve shared. It is important to pull all of your resources and, once again, look into hiring someone that does this for a living. Also keep in mind non-traditional avenues of “airplay” such as social media, streaming radio, or YouTube to expose your audience to the new album.

It is also worthwhile to stress the importance of staying current with what is happening in the industry as well as being open to learning on a continual basis. One way that Steve and Laura did this was by attending youbloom@LA in November of last year. They shared with us that a lot of their experience at youbloom@LA helped them in their process with their album.

“If you’re anything like us, you’re writing songs, rehearsing, doing the business stuff, but you’re pretty much working in your own everyday environment. youbloom helps create a good sense of the big industry picture. To us, it seemed more about focus, inspiration, and motivation, reminding us that everything we do is important, good or bad. We take something positive from the lessons learned and keep moving forward.”

We hope that you find the experience of CommonUnion59 beneficial in your own album recording/releasing. Remember, it is important to plan from the beginning and get all of your pieces in place. “But, be relaxed and have fun with it too so that you love what you did later on,” Steve said. Recording an album is serious business, but let’s not forget that in order for the album to be a success, you must love the finished project. Steve adds, “It’s also important to play live as much as possible, it helps you remember why you’re doing it in the first place, and good things always happen along the way.”

“So get out there! Work hard, but have fun! We’d love to hear about your experiences as well!

If you want to learn more about the youbloom community follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and check out our new youbloomTV channel on YouTube.

CommonUnion59:
Steve McKenzie and Laura Malasig make up the singing/songwriting duo of CommonUnion59, blending blues, folk, and alternative country to create music that many say is reminiscent of the 60s. They weave introspective lyrics of love and life through powerful melodies, creating an emotional experience that gives the illusion that the music and the voice are one fluid sound. Listen to some of their music.

Why is there so much copying in music?

02-Mar-2015 By Leave a Comment

Sam-Smith

“That song sounds familiar” – why is there so much copying in music?

When I put a song together there often comes a point where I think, “Wait a minute, haven’t I heard this tune before?”
For any musician with integrity this is a tough moment. No one wants to be accused of ripping off someone else’s work, and yet music fans will go gaga for a song that reminds them of something else they once loved. It’s a fine line between aping someone else’s work and yet delivering something that is both original and comfortably familiar.

This phenomenon is not unique among the arts but there is something special about music. Let’s explore further.

Musicians routinely get away with mimicry. Painters who copy are strongly criticised for their imitation, or even accused of the crime of forgery. Novelists who plagiarise are shunned and pilloried for bringing disgrace upon their profession.

The world of music has not been without its scandals. The Sam Smith smash hit ‘Stay with Me’ bears such a strong resemblance to the 1980’s Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers smash hit ‘Won’t Back Down’ that he was very publicly called upon to explain himself. And yet, with a gentlemen’s agreement (and some royalty credits), Sam and his pleasant little song have gone on to win a Grammy. Lance Armstrong must be feeling very sorry for himself.

Even the loftiest legends of the music world have had their controversies. Bob Dylan quite clearly built his career by pinching lyrics from earlier artists, and rock gods Led Zeppelin have been called out on the similarity of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ to a tune sung by a band that they toured with in the 1960s.

Most of these accusations have substance. Yet, after a little bit of legal jockeying and some minor bad publicity, they all seem to wriggle free with their reputations untarnished.

So why should musicians be treated more leniently than visual artists or writers?
Perhaps it’s just math. Given the fact that the chromatic scale has only 12 notes, and a few basic rhythms, there is a natural limit to the number of ways you can cut the cake.

Lyrics offer more opportunity for variation, and yet songwriters seem naturally drawn to a familiar bag of words. Love, baby, girl, boy, night and day crop up again and again in popular music.

It seems that novelty is not what your average music lover is after. Consider the chorus – it’s all about repetition. Most people like music in a limited range of flavours and will proudly tell you which genre they are (and are not) in to.

And then there are the musicians. Unlike the solitude-seeking painter or writer, locked in their atelier, musicians are much more social creatures. They love to share and collaborate. Early blues artists notoriously borrowed each-others riffs and lyrics without giving it a second thought. Popular musicians do much the same today with remixes, sampling and guest appearances on each others songs (keeping copyright lawyers in business).

So that’s all great, yet I still get a bit nervous when I realise my own newly created song contains a riff or lyrics that reminds me vaguely of a tune that I have heard before. Once the similarity dawns on me, I find myself trying to modify it to make it sound much less like the original – often diluting the character of my song.
Luckily, at this stage of my nascent music career I only get a few thousand hits at most for my songs, so I doubt I’ll be appearing on the radar of any major record labels legal team any time soon. If I start getting snotty letters from those pesky copyright lawyers I’ll take that as a sign that I’ve finally made it big.

Bring it on!

Save the right to perform: #saveirishbusking

15-Feb-2015 By 1 Comment

Keywest busking on Grafton Street

Dublin is famous for it’s busking tradition. Tourists love it, locals appreciate it .

Busking provides a free platform for bands and artists carving their craft of performance.

The list of famous buskers on Grafton Street includes names like Bono, Kodaline, Passenger, Sinead O’ Connor, Paddy Casey, Damien Rice, Rodrigo y Gabriela, The Riptide Movement, Keywest and Mundy. Aside from just singers, Dublin city streets and open spaces are populated by dancers, jugglers, acrobats, poets and comedians. From St. Stephen’s Green through Temple Bar to Henry Street, numerous artists and groups perform daily enhancing the artistic ambience of the city.

However, there is a dark cloud looming over the expression of art within the city. The dark cloud consists of protest from residents of Temple Bar who don’t want anyone playing after 11pm, (even at the weekends) anywhere near their homes. Apparently business owners have complained about buskers being too loud outside their shops, which to be fair might be the case if it’s one guy with a crappy accordion squeezing out the same dirges all day. And several councillors who seem to think that busking is still back in the 60’s with one guitar, one voice and a golden plec.

As streetscapes become more populated, busier and noisier so the humble busker has had to compete by using amplifiers. Amps however are the devils hearing aid, according to the mysterious minority protesters. The anti-amp brigade wanted a complete ban on amps throughout the city. Especially residents of Temple Bar who don’t want them within three metres of their homes. It’s ok by the way for the sirens, traffic, disco bars and general city centre noise, but not for two guys singing Wonderwall at 1am on a Saturday night.

Keywest are a Dublin based band who have built a massive fan base, due to years of successful busking on Dublin’s streets. They have mounted their own campaign to draw attention to the ridiculous nature of the new by-laws. Here’s the letter they submitted to Dublin City Council.

Dear Councillors,
My name is Andy Kavanagh & I’m a member of Keywest. Lets talk about Street Performing. It is no longer just busking. No longer just a Banjo and a rebel song. It’s a varied and vibrant artistic community.

Before I start I want to be clear as I think we’ve begun on the wrong foot. I believe in control on street performance. On more than one occasion I’ve met with assistant city manager Brendan Kenny and the Lord mayor Christy Burke and discussed my position. I even had a part to play in bringing these regulations to the table. Now it’s time to make them reasonable and workable.

Seems rational right? Well according to Councillor Mannix Flynn, “the amplifier in street performance and busking is like a virus. It kills creativity and wards off other artistic individuals.”

WOW It’s this attitude in people that had Galileo in fear of his life.

If I’m interpreting this correctly, banging an acoustic guitar loudly and wailing Oasis songs out at the top of ones voice is real talent and therefore preferable to an acoustic guitar plucked expertly in the stylings of the incredibly talented and now world famous Dublin buskers Rodrigo y Gabriela! Surely not.

A old banjo player wailing rebel songs is more desirable to the public majority over the soft sweet voices and plucked guitars of buskers turned superstars Ed Sheeran and Passenger.You’d have bagpipe over a Violin that is beautifully enhanced by backing music. No longer can the people of Dublin or the Tourists that visit us enjoy a magician that performs a captivating show, a circus act that delights with its mastery of acrobatics or a Dance act demonstrating perfect synchronicity and skill.

And the expert Street Performers that travel the world every year can no longer consider Ireland a place to show off their skills.
All of the above mentioned acts require amps. Amps allow talented people to reach out to audiences. You may have a problem with Keywest but what did all of those talented people do. You have insinuated we don’t respect business’s. That’s simply not true.
We leave business cards in every store so they can text if they feel our volume control or crowd control is not up to scratch. We pop in after the first set to check if everything is ok.
We have never ignored a request to lower the volume or move on. Never!
We ask our crowds to stand at the halfway point on the street and we finish sets after 4 songs to disperse the crowd. We do 4- 5 sets lasting two hours in total. We don’t repeat songs even once in a day and we don’t play in the same place more than twice a week or ever at night. What more do you want ? We have written statements from managers in over 30 stores on Grafton Street supporting Keywest in particular.
No Mannix the real enemy here is a lack of talent and lack of respect, not amplifiers.
You’ve referenced going back to the days of Bono and Glen Hansard busking without amps. That is a day gone by I’m afraid just like Morse code and telegrams. The reality is very different. With no amps you will have a swarm of oasis songs, accordions, brass instruments, bongos and bagpipes.
There was a time people travelled in horse and carts until the birth of the car and upon it’s groundbreaking arrival it presented a whole new set of problems but in the interest of human progress we adapt and create new systems to integrate the newer more modern ideas. We don’t just abandon what we don’t yet understand and go backwards.
You may not like Keywest but many Irish people do.

We are now 52,000 people strong on Facebook because of busking. Ireland’s new arrivals on Aer Lingus and Arab Emirates flights are pointed in our direction through a landing tourist information video. Youtube views of Keywest performing on Grafton street amount to over 10 million views. Most importantly the voting Dublin public decided we were “Dublins Best Street Performers 2014” with 60% of the vote.
Like many buskers we’ve done our fair share to promote Irish tourism.

I’ve performed all over the world. The rules vary but by and large they are aiming at the same thing. Dublin is Ireland’s capital city and I believe we should be trying to come in line and break new ground on the international standard. I’m addressing you as a very proud Dubliner. I live on Ormond Quay opposite Temple Bar and I enjoy all the city has to offer. I am not at all hesitant when I say, to me, Dublin is the perfect blend of everything and one of the greatest cities in the world to call home.

I am organising this campaign to bring light onto a topic that has been shrouded in darkness when it comes to the Irish public. Keywest are no longer a regular sight on Dublin streets but as busking has now given me a voice I intend to use it to save the free spirit that makes Dublin so great. This campaign is not in the interest of self preservation it is on principle.
I believe in respecting everyone. I believe we can implement controls that improve the quality of buskers and the quality of life for business and residents. I believe in compromise. A ban on amps is not a compromise. A decibel level of 80 decibels is exceeded by just talking on Grafton St so I don’t believe that is fair either.

I’d rather not expend my efforts in a campaign against councillors but on a campaign with councillors that enhances living in or visiting this fair city.

Andy Kavanagh,
Proud Dubliner and Street Performer

In spite of Andy’s spirited and impressive campaign against the impending bye laws, earlier this week Dublin City Council voted to ban all busking after 11pm. A complete ban on busking outside the GPO and in O’Connell Street (wonder if that counts for choirs raising money for charities at Christmas?), no busking on Temple Bar Square, a limit of 80 decibels (street noise level) and a lower level of 75 decibels in Temple Bar. Buskers have to pay for a permit of €30 to busk or €90 extra if you have an amp. The Keywest campaigners haven’t given up yet. They’re determined to #SaveIrishBusking:

Glen Hansard, legendary Dublin busker and Oscar winner said: “As a busker, one thing that does not work is self-consciousness. A busker needs to be working. A busker needs to shed all ego and get down to work. Play your songs, play them well, earn your money, and don’t get in people’s way.”

Surely we as a community cannot let the interests of a few over sensitive ears in a prime city centre location undermine the very fabric of our artistic society. Watch, post, retweet and contribute to #saveirishbusking.