john

Cut back to the root of the chords, then try using notes from the appropriate scale in the gaps between melodic segments and during held melodic notes. If melody is on 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & , try chord root on 1 and on 3, and place other bass notes on the other available notes: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & Obviously you don’t need to use them all, and you can also use 16th notes.In general, you should be able to pick notes from within the major or minor triads from your chord structures. You can also ask for ideas from other members

How are you involved with Lindsay Eli?

Remarkably "Old School" can still work, just as long as you rename it "retro" lol

Hey DC, welcome to the family We’ve been making a few changes so things are a bit quieter than usual, but it will soon pick right up. As ever with forums, the more you put in, the more you get out of the experience. When you say about maybe getting help with what to do with the stuff you write, do you mean musically, or in terms of marketing and promotion, release strategies, fan building etc? Luckily we can help with both.

Hi Tim Oh I know I can download it for free, and review it... but by contacting them I can see what their support is like, get help resolving any issues (and give them useful feedback), get access to artwork and images, and get quotes from their staff to be used in the article. If I just download and comment I don't get any of that. With smaller companies, sometimes you get to deal with the head of the company. Even with Gibson/Cakewalk I got to deal with their VP of marketing and their development director. It helps you gain an insight into the company and sometimes their development direction. Additionally, it really gives you an ability to influence development and get key, annoying bugs addressed, by not letting them off the hook. One more thing. When you build a working relationship with them, you can get products ahead of time, and when you post your review... assuming it is not damning, they will share it on social media and their websites. If it is damning, depending on the company, they work to resolve the issues you highlight allowing me the ability to help drive change. Songstuff may not be massive, but it is big enough that they listen, especially if your observations and suggestions are on the money. It's good to know Meng is cordial. Fingers crossed we get to deal with him. When reviewing Studio One I found several bugs and made some suggestions that they took on board. Some issues they immediately addressed, others they have added to longer term development because of the amount of effort involved. Mostly developers are glad of such feedback. It should be fun. I'll be sure to contact you to discuss any observations and get your input if that is ok? Cheers John

I sent them a message with a view to reviewing the new release. I’ll be asking them questions about plans as part of that.

BandLab Technologies today announced the relaunch of Cakewalk SONAR as “Cakewalk by BandLab”. Cakewalk by BandLab is free-to-download, for all BandLab users. Cakewalk has been a top developer of innovative music products for more than 30 years. Cakewalk users include Grammy®-winning and Emmy®-winning producers, sound designers, composers, and recording engineers. Cakewalk products have been used to create professional audio for the music industry, television and film productions, broadcast, and video games. https://cakewalk.bandlab.com/ Bandlab BandLab Technologies is a collective of global music brands. Their flagship product, BandLab, is used to create and share music. Musicians and producers, to find out more, you can read the full announcement from Bandlab here.

Awesome! I wonder who took on their synths?

Awesome.

Hee hee. Great news it is too. I hope you got a screen shot!

Bands often flood people with non-news in an effort to engage fans. It’s not straight forward. They are told they must engage with fans, but too many get it wrong. Are you? Bands, Give Your Fans Real News, Not Spam

Hi Gang We ask new members to come here and tell us what they really want Songstuff to help them with. I mean real, tangible stuff. Often introduction answers are "To get help with my music" or something else fairly vague. I am hoping that you will use this space to tell us how you would like Songstuff and the Songstuff Community to help you. Solid, concrete things. For example: "I would love Songstuff to be able to help me to market and promote my next song release. Not just by doing things, but by helping me understand what is needed and how it all works so I can do it." or "My songs are stuck in a rut and i am having problems with writing them. I am hoping SOngstuff can help me identify what is going wrong and help me get writing again, but also get out the rut." or "I would love to do something with my songs. I write lyrics but my guitar playing and singing is a form of torture. I want to get someone playing my songs. If I can hear finished recordings that would be awesome... but then what? What do I do with them?" The more detail the better. Ask... and we can see what we can do to help you move forward. Cheers John

How is are you getting on Roberto? Can I be of any help?

I used to play this sing at parties a long time ago. Awesome. Ok.... Snow Patrol - Open Your Eyes

Hey Rizo! Welcome to the Songstuff family! Great to have you aboard.

Hey Chekov, a big welcome to Songstuff! I’ll subscribe as Songstuff if you return the favour and subscribe to Songstuff’s Channel? Awesome!

Hi and welcome to the Songstuff family Taylor! Music is a journey that never ends, and what a journey it is!

Hi Gang Well, the topic title says it all. What do you do to market your new releases? What works for you / has given you the most success? Cheers John

Hi Gang Studios evolve and change. Even if you have posted before.... please tell us about your set up, and why not post images and even add a vid to YouTube and post it here. As ever, give as much detail as you can on Gear, Apps etc Cheers John

I think you will find that is implemented using a stereo slap back delay, with some additional low levels of reverb on the side chain. The sense of space is more profound, but no muddy element, no distance.

Here You Go:

Breaking Your Dependence At some point you need to reach beyond your friends and family. Both friends and family can be very unreliable supporters... no matter their initial desire to help, they are unlikely to be naturally motivated. They are also unlikely to want to devote time to learning skills that might allow them to help you better. Just because someone is a friend or family member does not mean they are automatically fans of your music. It is too easy to rely too much upon them, to prevail upon the relationship. Make no mistake, a time will come when they will feel used and abused if you call upon them too much, if you ask them for support too often. This is all the more true when they are not actually fans of your music. It is perfectly okay for them not to be fans of your music. How many bands out there do you not follow? It’s not usually because their music is dreadful, just that it does grab your attention and hold on to it. After all, what are the chances that your grandfather is a fan of speed metal? Even if they are, that does not mean they like all speed metal bands. They would have bands they click with and bands they don’t. Have You Been Abusing Friendship And Family Ties? The symptoms are easy to spot. Poor response. If you find that when you tell them about gigs, you get loads of “I’ll be there”, but on the night you get a load of “no shows”... then you are trying to play to the wrong audience. If you don’t even get the “I’ll be there” responses then your friends and family are actively not interested in your music. Sure, they maybe don’t wish you ill, but they would far rather you just got on with your music and didn’t involve them. Family and friends want to pat you on the back and give you a cheer for special occasions. There is always the possibility of exceptions. A friend or family member who just happens to be a fan, or no matter what you do they will support you. Treasure them, but don’t build your strategy around such friends and family members. Don’t waste time and energy trying convert friends and family into fans. Don’t try to force them into a fan role, it can be resented. Don’t treat them as fans, because almost certainly if they are a fan of you, they are fans of you the person, not your music. Moving Beyond Family And Friends A far more productive approach is to focus on finding fans. Finding people who gravitate towards the music you make... and the build on them. A gigging musician might encounter them, but by far the majority of artists suck at engaging and retaining prospects and turning them into fans. Even online you will encounter potential fans, but unless you engage them in the right way, at the right time, you will lose them. You need to find a potential audience. People willing to give your music, you, a chance. Listeners need to be courted. They are wooed into becoming fans. They are encountered as little more than having a neutral attitude towards you. They generally need to be engaged in the right way and encouraged along a path towards being a devoted fan. Building A Fanbase - Relationship Marketing Relationship Marketing is a common, modern marketing approach. I say modern, but the music industry has at least divided people into types for years. As a result, Modern Music Marketing has taken Relationship Marketing to a whole new level. In essence, Relationship Marketing acknowledges the different types of fans, and it assesses them in terms of how close they are to you, as if you are building a personal relationship. Steps towards levels of intimacy. It understands that one message does not fit all. It seeks to give the right message, to the right person, at the right time. It’s goal is to draw people in and build a relationship with them. I think of people in these categories: People (General Population) Actively Not interested Disinterested Potential Listeners Unknown Quantities Listeners Disinterested Listeners Passive Interested Listeners Impressed Listeners Repeat Listeners Exposed or Seeded Listeners Followers Actively Interested Listeners Fans Paying Customers Active Fans Repeat Customers Super Fans Advocates There will also be a path for fans who are disengaging, fans who have become inactive. Natural Fans Natural fans also exist, but they are far, far fewer. Such fans skip many steps along the journey. Such fans are hungry. They will automatically seek out your music and get to know you all on their own. Natural fans are pretty rare. By all means engage and support them, however when you are looking where to spend your time and your marketing budget... there are more productive ways to spend both. Next Up...Building A Fanbase - Your First Steps

Awesome Lisa I think it is a better approach. When you need to, or it beneficial to, you can always still tell friends and family about your music... after all you control both. Friends and family are not necessarily fans of your music (though they may be fans of you, your grandma isn’t likely to be naturally a death metal or gangsta rap fan! ). Bands can also be a bit spammy. Some are fine others are a nightmare. More to the point, artists NEED to move beyond friends and family, to stop relying on those ties and relationships. Better to focus on the relationships between you and the fans of your music! True fans will go soooo much further than most friends and family. I am planning a blog post on this topic. I will post up some info on a few core strategies for discussion in the next few days. Meanwhile any suggestions or questions are very welcome.

An excellent album.