Subject: Expanding Your Musical Frontiers
You are getting this e-mail because you subscribed to it on www.learn-to-play-rock-guitar.com. If you don't want to receive these e-mails any longer, go to the bottom of this message and click on "unsubscribe." Hey there Friend, As most of you know, I was traveling last week. I left Tuesday to drive to Orlando (one thousand miles in the car one-way) for a couple job interviews and to scope out houses. Friday I headed back to Ohio.For all intents and purposes, that was basically three full work days driving. Lots of time to listen to music... While most of my compact disks (CDs) were packed already, I decided to rely on MP3s and the remaining CDs I hadn't packed for my listening pleasure. It's amazing how things have changed with music media. When I first got my driver's license (back in 1981), if I wanted to go on a trip like this and carry music with me, I needed to lug a suitcase-sized box of cassette tapes. CDs hadn't even made it to the mainstream market by then, but the size of their cases were just as bulky. Today we carry 100 times more music on devices half the size of a cassette tape. I've loaded up my phone with enough music to get me there and back without ever repeating a song. But I did something a bit different for this trip. Instead of loading up all my favorite music, I decided to deviate a bit outside my comfort zone. I've been visiting Noisetrade.com for a couple years now and downloading free music from new artists promoting themselves on the website. I decided for this trip to listen to the music of these artists that haven't hit the mainstream scene in search of some new favorites. I had a couple of reasons for doing this. One, I wanted to expand my sonic experience. There is tons of incredible music recorded every year. Sadly, most of it never gets heard outside of a regional area, if at all. I figure if I can do my small part in helping this music hit the air waves, it has furthered the artist's goal. Two, I wanted to nurture inspiration. We don't make music in a vacuum. Every sound has likely been heard before, but not every combination of sound. I might hear something in your song that inspires me to write something new. One little sound can spark an entire catalog of music, so I want to sample every little bit of music I can find. You never know what might spark creativity. These artists cover many different styles and sounds, from folk and pop to country and rock. When it comes to hunting down new music, I try not to discriminate. As long as something catches my ear that I like, I'll give it a place on my play list to see how it grows on me. So you see, this wasn't a complete leap outside my cozy musical box. I did sample some of each artist's music before downloading it to get the general vibe. I made a point long ago not to grab something just because it was free - I at least wanted the music to be audibly pleasing to me. No sense playing musical roulette, although that could be an interesting exercise, too... Inspiration In Diversity On that note (audibly pleasing, not roulette), there have been artists I downloaded based on a song sample that I thought I might enjoy. I did so because diversity is something musicians should embrace. We can draw inspiration from any sound, so listening to genres you wouldn't typically enjoy can spark many ideas. That's not to say that you'll grow to love (or even like) some of the music you find. But it's worth giving them a shot to win your attention. For example, there was one particular artist that had a rock and hip-hop vibe going on. You know I'm a rocker, but I usually bypass hip-hop and rap. I listened through a couple of the songs, but in the end they just didn't do much for me. I found myself skipping past songs by this artist when they came on. It's not so much that I didn't 'like' what I was hearing - it may be that my mood wasn't right for the style at the time, or that my tastes haven't evolved to include this sound. The heart wants what it wants, right? Musical Roots You see, we all listen to music differently. Our ears tune in to sounds that we find pleasing based on our history, personality and prejudices. We're always going to like music we were exposed to when we were children, and that affects our tastes to an extent as we get older. I grew up hearing some music on the radio, but mostly my parents vinyl 45s from when they were teens. Those sounds set my musical foundation. It wasn't until I got a transistor radio from my dad that I really started forming my own tastes in music. This was back when AM radio was still popular (FM stations were around, but I didn't have an FM receiver). It was on AM radio that America's Top 40 was broadcast every Sunday and I could hear the hit music of the day. The song formula called for feel-good melodies and upbeat tempos, which probably explains my inclination towards songs in this format. However, we humans are complex beasts, so we're allowed to have darker sides of our personalities that prefer something grittier or more substantial. As I started playing in a band, I was introduced to genres I hadn't heard before. I began stretching to include these new sounds into my sonic creative space. Try It Out... What Could It Hurt? And that's why I continue to try new music out. My tastes change all the time and I'll find that something I didn't like a year ago now sounds interesting. Daily living and life with its ups and downs change us. We are not the same person we were yesterday despite not seeing any evidence to the contrary. And while you'll still have your preferences, there's a lot of music to explore. I encourage you to try some new stuff out. You can listen online for free with services like Rdio, Pandora and Spotify, no risk. Stretch out a bit and you'll find yourself inspired and appreciating your favorites all the more. I did take some classic standbys with me, though. The Eagles, Frank Sinatra, Bryan Adams, Duran Duran, The Cars, The Pretenders. I can listen to the Eagles' "Long Run" or "Hotel California" albums for days straight and not get tired of them. While staying grounded in the classic rock of my youth is comfortable and soothing, it's also good to give new music a shot to become a favorite. It keeps us fresh and interested - good for the heart, good for the brain, good for the soul. Peace~ Dave P.S. There were a few artists that stood out and I will watch for new music from them in the future. A few notables are Union, Cimorelli, We Shot The Moon, Sun & Heir and The Damnwells. Dave "Eddie" Vance is a rock guitar enthusiast and gear nut. He has been playing guitar for over 30 years and enjoys tormenting the neighbors every chance he gets. When he's not slaving for the man, you can find him rocking out with his B.C. Rich Bich guitar, a cold beer and some sweet tunes. He also runs Learn-To-Play-Rock-Guitar.com, but you knew that already! Follow Learn To Play Rock Guitar:I welcome your feedback! Did you like today's message? What other topics would you like to see covered in my e-mails? Please let me know at: dave@learn-to-play-rock-guitar.com As always, please feel free to forward this email to a friend! I review products before recommending them. If you buy a product based on my recommendation, I will receive a commission. However, my emails also contain links that don’t require any investment on your part and are jam-packed with "juicy, guitar learnin' tastiness". We don't rent or share your name with anybody. Feel free to forward this issue to any friends you think would enjoy its contents. They will thank you. So will I.
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