Music

37 Open Mic

How to Talk to Musicians at Open Mic

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I stopped by my favourite pub a few weeks ago for an after-work pint or two.  Halfway through a glass of Downland’s I noticed all the new arrivals turning up with guitars.  Some customers had ukuleles and one had a banjo.  Halfway through my third pint I had my first go on a cajon.  I loved it.  Now I want a cajon*.

I’ve been to a few open mic nights since, chipping in on a borrowed cajon and sometimes on full drum kit.  It’s good fun; you get to meet like-minded people and see some proper talent.  But there are some rules to stick to if you fancy giving open mic a go.  Here’s a useful guide on…

 

How to Talk to Musicians at an Open Mic Night (more…)

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29 Anatomy of a Drum Kit- A Tour of My Drums

Anatomy of a Drum Kit: A Tour of My Drums

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In between writing stories and blog posts I like to drum.  It’s a smashing hobby; cathartic as well as creative.  I think I started when I was sixteen, but I’ve improved a fair bit since my first off-beat battering of Smells Like Teen Spirit.  I bought my own drum set, a Mapex Tornado Rock Fusion, back in 2013 after finishing university, but it’s evolved and spread a bit since then, and received a DIY tattoo on the bass drum.  I pulled it out of its usual corner today and gave the whole thing a polish and spruce up, since I’m toying with the idea of recording some covers for YouTube.  Let me show you around… (more…)

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21 Bands on the Run- Great Jogging Music

Bands on the Run: Great Jogging Music

liamsmith 4 Comments

Anyone following me on Twitter will know I’m into my running – it’s my favourite way of exercising, and I like challenging myself to hit faster speeds and longer distances.  One of the main reasons I run, though, is for the opportunity to listen to a bit of music.  On a run, it’s just you, your thoughts and your iPod.  It’s a great chance to meditate over an album whilst getting a bit fitter.  Here are five of my favourite bands to listen to whilst on the run. (more…)

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11 The G Word(s)- The Gothic Genre

The G Word(s): The Gothic Genre

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Two confessions. One: I’m one of those people who like to pigeonhole everything. Always have been. There are boxes all over my house, each one with its own specific contents. My books are sectioned into fiction (ordered alphabetically) and reference (subdivided by subject). My iTunes library is organised fastidiously, using all the sort fields that my friends ignore. My second confession: I’m not a goth. But then if I was I wouldn’t admit to it.
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02 The Vinyl Fling

The Vinyl Fling

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I’m big on my music. I think I treat my music library more as an art collection – with myself as the curator – than I do as an assortment of potential listening pleasures. All my albums are there, right now, alphabetically ordered on their shelves. I’ll buy an album even if it’s not my favourite, just to fill a hole in my collection. In my world, I don’t own an album till I own the CD – MP3 downloads are a bonus, but I treat them differently. They’re… musical ghosts. Not really there. Maybe that’s why I’m now getting into records.

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