Pedalboards – Why All Guitarists Should Care

I’m sure I’m not the only one who goes to see a band or hears a song and obsesses over how on Earth the guitarist managed to create that insane tone, or with just one chord sent my mind flying into a whole other dimension. As a guitar player, pedalboards are beautiful things. That colourful collection of little metal boxes at your feet can be a gateway to a new sound that is synonymous with you and only you… If you do it right.

Guide to Touring for DIY Musicians and Bands – Part 2

Being a small and emerging artist often necessitates doing things ‘on a budget’, so make sure you have at least a rough plan on how you will allocate your money. But when doing so, it’s important to make realistic assessments; there’s nothing worse than running out of money and having to busk your way out of the poverty line. Setting a budget for touring can be invariably difficult, with many unanticipated expenses cropping up along the way…

The Art of Improvisation

Improvisation can be a brilliant idea which frees the mind and, in the case of music, allows you to hear and enjoy the sounds for the very first time – just like the audience. To me it feels like a more instant and raw expression, the kind of organic process my hippie wanker soul craves. It’s the way a lot of songs are written too. It crunches the rigid boundaries set by square killjoys who love a rule book of verse, chorus, verse…

ALBUM REVIEW: The 1975 – I Like It When You Sleep…

The 1975 have at last dropped their new album with a name so long it would just about qualify as a Fall Out Boy song title.

I congratulate anyone who can name it word for word without checking.

The synth pop rockers’ frontman Matt Healy welcomes you into a deep deconstruction of his faults, issues and longing just to be loved by that person who really matters most.

Tracks in the Field: NAO – Fool To Love

Annie Mac’s new Hottest Record in the World is the only compliment that can befit NAO’s glitch hop inspired pop nugget, Fool To Love.

The would be darling of pop music has struck again in this follow up to last year’s EP, ‘February 15’.

That sweet lullaby voice has taken a fierce turn in NAO’s newest single, as she reflects on all the mistakes she made in a relationship she is proudly walking out on.