A Whole New Decade!

So it’s a new year. 2010. After a while, you realise time flies. And the best thing that you can do, is take whatever comes to you. Or is that just what the proggers say?! At the start of each year I think we all have some personal reflection. What have I achieved this past year? How have I grown? Have I grown at all?! As a muso it’s probably a period of self-questioning we take more seriously than most regular peeps would I guess.

But this time it’s not just a new year, it’s a whole new decade! So it’s a whole decade of personal reflection to enjoy!

Whilst getting slightly personal I should mention that for me the past decade has been where I have simply tinkered with music and guitar, having given it up at the end of the 90s to pursue more “grown up” activities. However, it was impossible to let it all go and I found myself delving into all sorts of areas of music; production, record and mix engineering and a totally un-natural addiction to music technology and new gear. I still play guitar but I’m a far cry from my ability when I was younger and had more spirit.

Never Ever Ever Do This!

I’ll tell you right now; my advice is NEVER put your instrument down and give in! Being a muso is a momentum thing and trust me once you’ve stopped such a big juggernaut from rolling it takes one hell of a push to get it to budge an inch in the future should you regret stopping. Don’t ever make my mistake. If you find yourself in a rut or being negatively influenced by it, find out how to resolve that but never stop the engine, get out, slam the door, say a few choice words and walk away. It’s not pleasant to try again after a break. No-one likes a quitter.

But Do Do This!

So, here’s my next bit of advice. In this extremely rich period we can do almost anything we want musically from our own bedrooms. It seems almost ridiculous that so many invest so much time looking for new plug-ins on the internet, voicing opinions on computers instead of recording music and simply not recording anything. Like me. Don’t do that. Of course, come to Guitar Noize!! Just don’t get bogged down with it all. There’s only one person that needs to understand how to use a compressor, YOU. There’s no logical reason for investing your precious time in researching other peoples opinions of how to use said compressor.

I recorded so much in the past decade and yet I don’t have a recording of my own to say “here I was, this is how I felt, this is what I had to say… I did ok, I can learn and improve from here over the next 10 years”. I regret that more than I can possibly put in text. I have just bought this computer keyboard and I love it; I won’t express my feelings through it! It would be stupid. And expensive.

And This Too!

And here’s another piece of advice… don’t get trapped in your bedroom on your own making music! If you truly enjoy making music only for yourself maybe it can work for you. It can be hard to remember that no matter how personal we try to be about our music it has to be a gift to others. So get out there, indulge yourself in working with other musos and don’t stop giving the gift of your music to others. And, should you get negative feedback, don’t go back there, don’t fight a fight that doesn’t need to be fought. That person wasn’t receptive to your gift of music, big deal, so find others. Should you get any respectful criticism and advice you can take that in and learn from it but make sure you divide the good from the crap and simply throw away what you can’t use. Another mistake I’ve made and I’ve wasted so much time trying to please people that weren’t for pleasing.

Temper Temper

This year I will be 37. I gave up music at 21, 26 and I’ve been considering it again this past year. And the only reason I can honestly give for giving up at any point is that I haven’t done what I wanted to or achieved what I wanted to. It’s like a child’s temper tantrum. And if I’m truthful the only reason I haven’t done what I wanted is because I kept getting in the way and blocking my own progression. That’s right, me. It was no-one else. Pathetic really. I listened to everyone. I took advice from everyone. I tried to please everyone. Big mistake. I didn’t need to do that. I always knew what I wanted and what I thought was right. So why I felt the need to get everyone’s approval about it I will never ever know. And now I’m going to be 37. It’s a little too late to go back and put things right that I have got wrong. Had I got things right I would be looking at retiring about now in my life!!

Goooooooooooooooooooooooooal!

Please yourself, set your own goals and learn and grow as much as you can. In this Information Age we are constantly seeking answers to tell us how to do what we want. “How do I record a guitar amp? Oh I’ll look on the internet. I tried that sound and didn’t like it so I’ll look again”. It’s ridiculous. Peeps are so happy to help and it’s heart warming but the truth is you’ll find better answers yourself. Learn to weed out the crap that doesn’t help you progress and develop yourself as much as you can.

Could This Be Magic?

It’s you that the good stuff is gonna come from, the magic is inside you. It’s so cheesy but so true. Anyone can buy a piece of gear, or learn the right way to mix a record and so on. It’s you and your magical inner qualities that people want to buy into. Develop yourself. And if you spend too much time listening to negative criticism, which maybe your own, remember; only the stuff you don’t want will grow out of these negatives. You don’t develop the stuff you don’t want, so don’t invest time and practice being bad! Set your goals and be a stubborn SOB to achieve them.

And in the words of the Joker in The Dark Knight; “if you’re good at something, never do it for free!”.

Personal reflection over!

Happy New Year! May this next decade bring you enormous success! Be happy!

Paul.