Improving Musicianship | Inspiring Talent
Return From The Wasteland Needtobreathe
Product Review
Product Review
Apollo Twin by Universal Audio
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US $5.95 Can $6.95
Veritas’ Portlander Electric Guitar
Selective Hearing Crowder The Choir Brent Bourgeois Ceili Rain Greg and Rebecca Sparks Solveig Leithaug David White Tyler Jen Haugland
Product Review
Gibson Memory Cable
Vocal Warm-Ups: A New Thought by Roger Beale
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TESTIFY BROTHER by Bryan Dunacn
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Sweetwater-exclusive interview: The Digital Age
Former David Crowder Band members talk with us about their new sound, their approach to recording and performing, and the gear they use to share their musical message.
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THE
DIGITAL AGE
In January of 2012, the David Crowder Band ended their 12-year run as one of the Christian music industry’s most successful groups. Former DCB guitarists Mark Waldrop and Jack Parker, drummer B-Wack, and bassist Mike D went on to start a new musical venture called The Digital Age. Their debut album, Evening : Morning, was released to rave reviews in 2013. Recently, Sweetwater’s Jeff Barnett caught up with Mark Waldrop.
Can you give us a little history and recap what has happened since the last David Crowder Band show? For those who don’t know what the David Crowder Band was, we started as a little worship team from University Baptist Church (UBC) in Waco, TX, a church that David Crowder founded with Chris Seay in the mid-’90s. We toured for about 12 years. Then in 2010, David transitioned from Waco to Atlanta, and the rest of us really wanted to stay in Waco and stay involved with UBC. So The Digital Age is essentially that. We’re still involved with UBC, and we’re still writing the same genre of music: upbeat, programming-heavy “fun worship,” as we call it. The Digital Age has been a band for a little over two years, which is crazy to say because it still seems so new. We released a live EP called Rehearsals in 2012. We were just rehearsing for church, tracked it, and released it as an EP. And in 2013, we put out a record called Evening : Morning and followed that with a fall tour. Evening : Morning doesn’t sound like just another DCB album, though. Can you describe the sound of The Digital Age? When you’re in a band and have an established sound and way of doing things, then you start a new band, you get to pick and choose what you liked about what you’ve been doing. But you also have a really natural moment to question what you want to do differently. With The Digital Age, we’re still writing songs for the same congregation. UBC is about 70% college students, so we tend to sound like what college kids are listening to. We keep a close pulse on that.
The Digital Age’s latest album, Evening : Morning,, is available now. To find out more, go to thedigitalagemusic.com!
David led from an acoustic guitar, and he would be a hard person to replace. One of the very first things we all agreed on was that we shouldn’t attempt to replace him. I usually play an electric, so now I’m leading on electric, and that fundamentally changes the sound of things.
You mentioned your studio in Waco. What made you decide to open a studio? When David moved to Atlanta, we effectively lost our recording and rehearsal space. We found this place in downtown Waco that was an old dirty boxing gym, and we built a studio in it. We spent three months renovating it. The boxing ring was where our control room is now. It was designed by B-Wack, and it’s been really great for us.
We’re very programming-heavy, and we use a lot of synths onstage. We’re multitasking a lot more, too. As for what we sound like, that changes from one song to the next. All of us listen to different genres of music, so, “What do we want this to sound like?” is a conversation we have with every song. We don’t like to be the same on every song and on every album, so the sound of The Digital Age from album 1 to album 2 could be completely different.
We practice and rehearse there, and we also have bands come in and we record them. It’s an extension of our ministry. It’s been great for us to be able to help new worship bands.
Walk me through your creative process in the studio. We all have our own mini Pro Tools studios at home, and we track these ideas as they come. Sometimes they’re full songs, sometimes just pieces. When we each have a handful of ideas, we all get together in our studio. All of these ideas start coming together, and we start to figure out how we are playing things as a band. We’ll either sit around the computer and start programming it out or head into the tracking room and start recording live parts. We all write, but we realize not all of us have the same strengths. I think one of our collective strengths is that we keep a really loose attachment to our ideas, and we see that they are all just pieces to a larger puzzle.
You still lead worship at UBC? We’re still very involved at UBC. When we were in the construction phase on our studio, we took a break from leading and just went to church without leading worship for the first time in a decade. Those three months were amazing; it was something we took for granted, and we didn’t realize how important it was. Now, we’re one of several worship bands at UBC. Our goal is to play there around once a month, depending on our tour schedule. What gear do you use in your studio? We are running Pro Tools HDX in our main control room. We use a lot of API preamps and the PreSonus ADL600. We use an LA2A compressor and a lot of gear that B-Wack made himself. Our main vocal mic is the Blue Bottle — so much character and so easy to change sound. For guitars, we use a mix of Shure SM57, Sennheiser e906, and Royer R121 mics. For bass, we use the Shure SM7B microphone. On drums, we mostly use the same Sennheiser Evolution series dynamic mics that we use live. We use a Yamaha SubKick on kick drum, and a Sennheiser MD421 on snare. We’re really into soft synths. We use Native Instruments Komplete. We also use Native Instruments Maschine heavily for programming. We lean a lot on Spectrasonics’ Omnisphere for pads. We use Reason a lot for piano sounds and sequencing. We also have a lot of vintage synths. How do you translate an album like Evening : Morning to something that works live? A lot of it is decisions made in production. We use a lot of loops live, but one of our rules is that we never put anything in the loops that can be played live — no vocals or guitar parts. That makes it more challenging in a live setting. So when we record, we have to be very intentional with things like guitar parts and not put anything on the record that we can’t re-create live. What software do you use onstage? Ableton Live. On Mike D’s keyboard rig, he runs Live and Reason. He has a slew of Korg Nanokeys in addition to an M-Audio MIDI controller, and some of the keys are assigned to things such as mutes and changing different values instead of triggering notes. We also run some vocals through Live for effects. What kinds of technical challenges do you see worship leaders facing today? For us, the coolest thing you can do is create your own loops. I think when a lot of people see something that is loop heavy, they think that it doesn’t fit into the way they do music. Or they think they can’t do the songs because they don’t have the technical know-how to pull it off. It’s possible to do it. You can get a copy of Ableton Live and a MIDI controller for next to nothing and make incredible sounds with it. It’s been really cool for us to travel around and see these churches start to learn and incorporate the technical stuff into the church services. We love it when churches take one of our songs, create their own loops for it, and make it their own.
blisskatherine.com
You guys have had a very long relationship with Sweetwater. Why is that? Relationship says it all. We love that if we have questions about gear, we can call and ask. We love that if there is something that piques your interest, we’ll get a phone call to tell us about it. The prices are always competitive, and as far as customer service goes, it’s always great. If anything is ever wrong, it’s always taken care of quickly. We travel a lot. If something isn’t working, getting a replacement quickly and easily is really important. It’s great to be able to get things fixed or questions answered without hassle. We really love the personalized nature of what Sweetwater does. You’re always great about asking what we need the gear to do. Even with a band like us, it’s so good to have somebody showing us how the gear we use can help us be better at doing what we do.
Photos by: Bliss Katherine
You can find out more about The Digital Age at thedigitalagemusic.com.
!
Freelance live sound engineer
Daniel Ellis
FOH engineer for The Digital Age How long have you been working with The Digital Age? The first tour I did with them was as the David Crowder Band, during the Remedy Club tour in 2007. I was with DCB for five years. Then, when they started The Digital Age, I mixed their very first show and I did their first tour, as well. What gear do you use with them onstage? We use mostly Sennheiser mics, on just about everything. Mostly the Evolution series. One thing I don’t think I’ve seen anybody else do is that we use a Sennheiser MD441 on B-Wack’s snare. It works great and gives us a fatter sound than other mics I’ve tried. On vocals, Mark and Jack both use a TC-Helicon VoiceLive Touch to add reverb and delay to their voices before they ever get to me. That’s cool; it makes my job easier. At front of house, I run a Behringer X32. We use the S16 digital snake system, as well. That console is amazing. It’s so small and light — I can set it up by myself if I need to. When we started the tour, I was thinking, “There has got to be a reason this thing is so inexpensive, and I’m going to find out why.” I still don’t know why. It’s a great console. I love it. The guys use Sennheiser 300 series in-ear monitors, and they mix them themselves using Behringer’s X32-Q app for iPhone. That’s been amazing. It’s so much easier to not have to worry about doing FOH and monitors at the same time, and we don’t have to have a monitor engineer.
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Are there any unique challenges working with The Digital Age? Since they run all those effects on the stage, what I get is a wet vocal. When we started out, sometimes it was way too wet, and we didn’t really have enough clarity in the FOH mix in the vocals. So we had to work on getting those reverb levels down and make sure that they trusted me to add more reverb at the console if it was needed. You and The Digital Age have been very loyal Sweetwater customers for years. Why is that? Because of the relationship. Because of you! Seriously, it’s because of you. We don’t just call a 1-800 number and get some random guy; we get the same guy. And the candy. You send candy with everything we buy. I never share it.
From left to right: BWack, Mike D, Mark Waldrop, and Jack Parker
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Features You Never Know What You Are Helping to Bring About I always tell my oldest son Drew (a folksy singer/songwriter/guitarist type guy) if I help him find a guitar or a place to print a CD run for his latest record that (in a joking manner), “We have to support the arts”. Well, my biggest “supporter of the arts” that I produce in my life has always been my mother. When I was a young teenager and I just started writing short stories and song lyrics my mother always encouraged me and told me that I could be a writer for a living. My confidence was built up by her affirmations and my interest in writing and reading grew. She bought me a Thesaurus and a Dictionary. All my life, no matter what I was pursuing vocationally, my mother was supportive and told me I could do it. If I got in a bind and needed a swing loan she would be there to assist me. She was a terrific mother-in-law to Judy and grandmother to our collective kids (Drew, Mike and Jesse). On May 1 she passed away. She was 88 years old and had several health challenges her last few months of life. My mother was a late bloomer and started painting with oils and watercolors in her 40’s. She had an entrepreneurial side to her and she sold her paintings at art shows and at her own co-op gallery at the Redondo Beach Pier in California for several years. Even as an accomplished painter she would still take more classes to keep learning and she loved to hang out with other artists. She was the one that told me that we have to “support the arts”. st
My mother enjoyed getting each issue of our magazines and would read my editor’s piece first before looking at anything else in the publication. I loved hearing from her when she would call me and tell me the latest issue showed up in her mailbox (she usually added a sarcastic comment about how fast her local post office delivery was J. When driving around town doing errands I loved calling my mom to just chat small talk. The weather, TV shows she liked… whatever. I would always try to find a way to crack some spontaneous joke to make her laugh. She had a beautiful laugh, even in her later years. Now, when I am driving, my habit is to pick up the cell phone and give her a call… that part is sad for me but I trust the Lord that He is holding her close. Gloria Mae Smith was a remarkable person. She had to overcome several obstacles in her life and always had a good sense of humor about it. I love my mother very much and I trust that she is reading this editor’s piece first in this issue from on high and that it gives her much joy. We love you Mom! Support the arts my friends… you never know what you are helping to bring about. Bruce & Judy Photo of Bruce, Gloria & Judy circa 2004
8 Guitar Review by Bruce Adolph Veritas’ Portlander Electric Guitar 10 The MTD Norm Stockton Artist Edition Bass by Bruce Adolph An Interview with Norm Stockton 12 Guitar Workshop by John Standefer Leading Tones & Chords (Part 5) 14 Drumming Dynamics by David Owens The “Two Beat” Groove 16 Vocal Coach’s Corner by Roger Beale Vocal Warm-Ups: A New Thought 18 Show Us Your Groove by Rick Cua The Double Knot 24 Selective Hearing by Shawn McLaughlin Crowder The Choir Brent Bourgeois Ceili Rain Greg and Rebecca Sparks Solveig Leithaug David White Tyler Jen Haugland 28 Product Review by Eric Dahl Gibson Memory Cable
CONTENTS 30 Multi-Functional: Short-Cut Capo by Mitch Bohannon 32 Message Through “Moments” by Tom Jackson 34 The Musician’s Doc by Timothy Jameson Hydration and Musician’s Wellness 36 The Indie Mechanics by Keith Mohr & Sue Ross-Mohr “Going Glocal”- Building an Audience from Home to the Ends of the Earth 38 Product Review by Michael Hodge Apollo Twin by Universal Audio 41 Guitar From A 2 Z by Roger Zimish 3, 4, and 5’s for Summer 42 Testify Brother by Bryan Duncan 44 Coda by Brad Blyth Conflict Resolution and Transformation in the Church
photo by Sarah Barlow
Interview
20 Return From The Wasteland: Needtobreathe by Shawn McLaughlin
4227 S. Meridian, Suite C PMB #275, Puyallup Washington 98373 Phone: 253.445.1973 Fax: 253.655.5001 Email: bruce@christianmusician.com Website: www.christianmusician.com Editor & President: Bruce Adolph VP/Office Manager: Judy Adolph, judy@christianmusician.com Customer Service: Brian Felix, brian@christianmusician.com Street Team: Mike Adolph, Jesse Hill & Winston Design & Layout: Matt Kees Director of Advertising: Steve Sattler, steve@creativesalesresource.com 626-836-3106 Published by the Adolph Agency Inc.
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PRODUCT REVIEW
Veritas’ Portlander Electric Guitar By Bruce Adolph
At my recent Seatac Spring Guitar Show in Bellevue, Washington a younger man came walking up to me carrying an electric guitar case. He introduced himself as Casey Marvin of Veritas Guitars. I shook his hand and asked what could I do for him. He told me he makes custom guitars in Vancouver, WA. I said, “That’s great, can I see your guitar?” He set the case down and then pulled out a very sharp looking solid body electric guitar. The body shape is unique and is Casey’s own design. It is similar to a Tele style but not really as it has the contoured shoulder of a strat for comfort and also a different cutaway than a Tele. It is pretty cool actually. The headstock is very different too even though it has a little of the
Fender shape on top half of it, the bottom half is very different. I asked him what is behind the name Veritas and he told me it is Latin for “truth”. We both figured our pretty quickly that we were also both Christians. I played the guitar for a minute and you could feel the quality build in this instrument. I was busy producing the guitar show but we set a time for him to drive up and bring his Portlander model guitar to my office for an in depth test drive. I told him I thought the name “Portlander” was classic. Especially since a lot of his clients are local folks from nearby Portland.
and for good reason. For the more Fender-ish models he uses a 1.2 degree neck angle for rolling Tunomatic bridges. Those bridges sit up higher than a traditional bridge because they have to have room for the bridge. If you don’t have a strong enough neck angle or break angle the high E string tends to want to slip out of the slot. The roller action helps with your tuning. The wood for the body on this one is alder but he can make a custom guitar out of several different tone woods (again options galore) and they spray their own mix of nitro and poly finishes. The fretboard is rosewood on this one (but you can select a maple or ebony fretboard option). The nut width is 1 & 11/16 and the whole ensemble from body to neck, fretboard to set up was impeccable. All the necks are hand shaped even. The Portander feels good in your hands. The pick-ups on this guitar were Lollars (they sounded rich) but you can again opt for what you want brand wise.
Casey began taking apart guitars at the age of 12. When he turned 16, he decided to build his first hand-crafted guitar with nothing more than a chisel and drill. It was then that he discovered what he wanted to do. Later as an adult he trained with world-renowned luthier Charles Fox at the American School of Lutherie and ended up teaching at the school he was studying at for two years with Charles as his mentor. Casey started Veritas Guitars in Casey is serious about guitar building. As a 2010. His purpose for the guitars is obviously boutique builder he is “hands-on” the whole build process and this Portlander guitar a vintage look blended with a modern feel. The day he showed up at my office I was model is proof of that commitment. The looking forward to playing the guitar. The model I played had a Bigsby tremolo on it and neck is solid feeling and it played effortlessly. it still wasn’t too heavy or unbalanced in your Good set-up! The scale length is Fender- hands. Well done. esque. Casey makes the bodies and necks of his Veritas guitars. That is pretty cool. He does the fretwork as well using traditional nickel frets and he has a special 12 degree angle and slightly rounds off the frets which gives you a smoother and more comfortable surface and more playing room (it feels like the neck is a bit wider that way). I liked them a lot actually.
Another attribute to his character is that Casey also likes to teach guitar building and repair classes. They call it Veritas University (non-credited but informative nonetheless) and he offers three courses… Guitar Building Class, Guitar Set-up Class and Fretwork Class. This Portlander basic model starts at $2,800.
For more info: He does his neck angles a bit differently too www.veritascustomguitars.com
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CHRISTIANMUSICIAN.COM
The MTD Norm Stockton Artist Edition Bass An Interview with Norm Stockton by Bruce Adolph
the industry. It occurred to me that what I really wanted was one bass that could bridge the gap between the 535 and J5; something that had great playability and could cover the tonal spectrum from modern slap to aggressive fingerstyle to the bridge pickup Jaco-esque tone. color and wood combination as such, based upon an early Plus I'm always looking for a way to take just magazine ad. I can't say enough a single bass when I travel! about that instrument; huge tone, After 3 prototypes and 2 years of hard work amazing playability, and absolutely beautiful exploring and experimenting, I'm absolutely craftsmanship. Since first acquiring it in 1997, elated that we were able to accomplish the I haven't found a bass I prefer over it. I can goal! It is definitely the most versatile MTD The annual Winter NAMM show held actually play things on it that I can't play on I've ever played. It's not a prescribed in Anaheim, California, this past January other basses. combination of existing available features; marked the launch of bassist Norm Stockton's During my time touring and recording with this bass involved innovation and rethinking. signature model bass. In addition to his long Lincoln though, we discovered that a smaller What are the features of this instrument? tenure as bass player with worship artist sonic footprint seemed to work better in the Lincoln Brewster (and even longer tenure context of his music (dense mixes with layers There are a lot of things that went into this as CM columnist!), Norm is equally known bass, and just about every feature (with of guitars, loops, vocals, big drums, etc.). as a bassist and educator in the mainstream the possible exception of the color!) had music world. The new instrument, built by I approached Michael Tobias about the a direct impact on achieving the objective renowned luthier Michael Tobias Design possibility of building something for me I mentioned. This combination of features is (MTD), has been generating lots of buzz in that would be a little closer to a Fender unique and exclusive to this model. the global bass community. We caught up jazz bass. That resulted in my red/orange with Norm recently to get some insight into MTD J5 that I used for most of my time Here's a list: the process that resulted in this very special with Linc, and which became the prototype • Quilted maple top on alder body for MTD's Saratoga series of basses. It's bass. • Maple neck with bird's eye maple a fantastic rock bass and has a really fingerboard Congratulations on the new bass! aggressive tone. Playability-wise, though, Thanks! I'm honored and hugely grateful. my J5 is set up with higher action for the rock • 35" scale So what were you looking for in your thing and was always lots of work when it • 21 frets came time for some of the more finesse parts signature bass? • Titanium inlays in neck of the nightly bass solo! My main bass for years has been an MTD • Glowing side position dot markers 535 (#252). It's the blue bass that has been So when Michael approached me about unofficially known as the Norm Stockton doing an official signature bass several years • Rounder arm contour than standard Saratoga signature model ever since the folks at Bass ago, I spent time exploring possibilities Central in Orlando started referring to that and getting input from some friends in • Strap button position moved up like on 10
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ballpark cost? coil and humbucker. Between that feature, the powerful EQ that includes push/pull mid It's an instrument that is handbuilt by one frequency selector, the pickup blend knob of the world's most respected luthiers, with and the player's technique, the availability features, design and build quality that are the 535 absolutely world class...so it's not cheap. That palette of tones is absolutely huge. said, there are certainly many basses that cost • Splittable double J pickups from Bartolini So is this bass best suited for playing in considerably more, and it's a small fraction • Custom HRT32 Bartolini preamp with rock, jazz, funk, or... of what every player in your local symphony coil cut switches and push/pull mids at orchestra paid for their axe! :^) The street That's the thing: it really does work across 400/800 Hz price is around the high $5k range. the board. • Matching peg head, knobs and truss rod Thanks for taking the time, Norm; where cover with wenge slap ramp (ramp can be Rock-wise, I knew we were on the right track can folks get more info and hear the bass? when I sent five unmarked audio files to Lincoln removed if desired - uses truss rod cover for his unbiased perspective. Aside from Thank you - I appreciate getting a chance screw holes for attachment) obviously being an extraordinary guitarist, to share my excitement about this incredible • Clear to blue burst finish Linc is also a really gifted producer and has instrument! some of the best ears of anyone I've ever • Signature on headstock worked with. The unmarked tracks were of There's a YouTube clip that includes an • Custom Norm Stockton edition Fretwrap different basses playing the same bass line interview with Michael Tobias, playing from Gruv Gear over a bashy drum groove with some crunchy examples, and more behind-the-scenes Not intending to sound like an ad, but it really guitars. In the blind listening test, he picked insight into its development. It's probably has a stunning look, effortless playability, and my new bass as his favorite out of a handful of easier to search for it (the title is "Introducing incredible versatility in tone while keeping other very respectable basses. It had a warm the MTD Norm Stockton Artist Edition bass the controls player-friendly. low end without being boomy...very tight and w/ Michael Tobias & Daniel Tobias"), but here's the link, as well: You've had a long history with Michael sat in the mix well without necessitating a lot of tweaking. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrB Tobias... qjivWtAk&list=UUavBdjNiuC4o-Mn9_ Yes, aside from being one of the top luthiers In terms of the tones I need for my solo iQLd7g in the world, he's just a great guy. He's been stuff (contemporary jazz, fusion, funk, etc.), I extremely supportive ever since I phoned already knew this bass excelled. The slap tone The MTD website is www.MTDGuitars. com. him about my first MTD almost 18 years ago. is absolutely off the chart. The bonus was the barky, J-bass tone. Turning Otherwise, please visit me at www. the blend to the bridge pickup, switching it to NormStockton.com and my instructional single-coil mode and pulling the mid selector website, www.ArtOfGroove.com. God I've been a fan and enthusiastic user of out and full up (800 Hz) results in a fantastic bless you! Bartolini electronics since 1997, and it's been Jaco tone. ***** an incredible privilege getting a chance to work with Bill Bartolini over the years. He At the past NAMM show, lots of players Note: the bass in the photos shows chrome prescribed the initial version of the electronics across a broad range of styles played this switches, but all hardware is black. for this bass and was involved in several bass. I can't count how many times I heard Editor’s comments... It is heartwarming to see tweaks before he sold the company about a players express their surprise with the a guy like Norm who has given of himself and year ago. Fortunately, Clyde Clark (the new tonal range and playability. taught so many information packed clinincs owner) had been integrally involved with the Plus it's really gorgeous! at not only our CMS Conferences but also Bartolini operation for years, so we didn't lose YES, I agree! :^) That's one of the things I love in many music stores across the country get too much momentum. I made several visits about Michael Tobias' work; while everything honored with a Signature bass. Norm deserves to the Bartolini factory last year as we were plays and sounds fantastic, everything he it and I can’t wait to pick up his bass the next refining and finalizing the electronics, and builds is also functional artwork. They're time we meet and play the three bass songs I Clyde really went above and beyond. beautiful just hanging on the wall. know on it :) In short, each of the J-style pickups can be Without getting too specific, what's the independently switched between singleTell me about the electronics; understand it was quite a process.
I
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Leading Tones & Chords (Part 5) In Part 4 of this study we examined the ‘harmonized scale’. We discovered that when you build a chord triad on every degree of a major scale, you end up with the I, IV and V chords being major, the II, III and VI chords being minor, and the VII chord being diminished. If you go back through the chord progressions used in Parts 1-3, you’ll see that they all follow this exact pattern of which chords are major and which ones are minor in their given keys. This time we’ll take the process one step further by adding one more note to each chord.
adds 25% more to the sound in general, but it’s even a bigger deal than that. That fourth voice takes us away from simple triads and into the realm of extended and altered chords. Let’s look at how this looks in terms of the expanded 4-note harmonized scale: (EX.1)
EX. 1
EX. 2
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These richer, more beautiful 4-note harmonies can add a lot to your music. Open up a book of simple choruses or hymns (especially the slower tempo pieces) and rewrite the chord progressions to substitute these fuller chords from the 4-note harmonized scale. Give the tunes a try. Not every single chord will work out to sound right, but the vast majority of them will. This is the first big step to understanding and using chord substitutions (or ‘alternate chords’).
By stacking up four notes and keeping all of the scale degrees within the key signature (no sharps or flats in this case), we end up with a whole new set of chords – and they are much richer sounding than triads. These 4-note chords make great substitutions for their simpler triads in basic songs. Try this by pulling out a simple song in the key of C and substitute 4 note chords for the triads. Here is Check out John’s 5-DVD set ‘Praise a set of chord positions to help you work your Guitar Lessons’ at the ‘store’ page at www.johnstandefer.com. You get way up the 4-note harmonized scale: (EX.2)
As you have no doubt discovered, there are thousands of simple songs that stay within this predictable pattern of common triads. There are some good songs in there no doubt, but the harmony itself is too ordinary to be very interesting. Have you ever compared the Instead of following the typical I, IV, V sound between a vocal trio and a quartet? progression of C, F and G, many songs actually The sound of four voices is so much more lush. just walk up and down the harmonized scale. Of course you’ve added a new voice which Listen to the first four chords of ‘Here, There,
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And Everywhere’ by the Beatles. In the key of C, it would go: CM7, Dm7, Em7, FM7.
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52 video lessons similar to these CM articles, but you can see and hear the lessons! Includes charts. Also consider private lessons with John via Skype!
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The “Two Beat” Groove one and three.
I was asked a question from a student the other day that I had never been asked before. He wanted to know different ways to play a “two beat” groove. This groove is used a lot in show tunes, country, polka and bluegrass music. As a kid I spent many years working in amusement parks so I have played my fair share of these grooves. What I will show you today are a few different ways to play this traditional beat.
with the bass drum on quarter notes and the The third example is a more traditional two high hat off beats. beat groove. This works great for medium Enjoy your practice time and ‘boom chick’ to tempo tunes but on occasion you might be tour hearts content. asked to play this groove very fast. That is Blessings, David where example four comes in handy. This ‘cheating’ way to play fast two beat has saved David freelances in and me countless times. Lets say you have a tempo around Los Angeles and is of 320bpm. Sustaining that tempo for a long currently playing for Franklin period of time can be torturous. In a situation Graham events worldwide. The first example (Fig. 1) is what is often like that using groove four makes life much He has played with Fernando Ortega, Sara Groves, Bebo called a train groove. It is very straight forward. easier Norman, Tommy Walker, The ‘train’ pattern is played on the snare and a The last example (fig. 2) is a snare drum Lincoln Brewster, Thomas ‘boom chick’ pattern played with the feet. The exercise that will help you develop Dolby, The Righteous Brothers and Peter White accents can vary depending on the song. The coordination when playing the fourth as well as spending 2 plus years playing The Lion second example is a simple variation on the example at a breakneck speed. When you get King at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. He same train groove but all you do is move the it under your hands start tapping your feet is also an adjunct professor at Biola and Hope International Universities. His home church is right hand over to the ride cymbal on beats Plymouth Congregational in Whittier, CA. Feel free to contact him at DavidOwensDrums.com.
Fig. 1
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Vocal Warm-Ups: A New Thought I would like to present some ideas about vocal warm-ups, both solo and choral. From a vocal teaching perspective, these so called vocal warm-ups are a very individual thing. While observing many choral warm-ups sessions, I have noticed that they are sung in a haphazard manner. Effective vocal warm-up takes into account how the voice responds at different times of the day, different stages of vocal skill and development, and the vocal health of the singer. Vocal warm-up can be compared to a symphony orchestra warming up with no discernable organization as they mentally and musically shut out the other players in this process. They tune their own instruments and make adjustments for their individual conditions. When the concert pitch is sounded, their attention is then focused on group and ensemble matters.
solo work can be sung somewhere else. They develop their vocal technique in the teaching studio. But most singers when they warm up seem to have an automatic default setting to do choral warm-ups instead of physiological exercises that develop their singing technique.
voices, the more effective they can be in developing a top quality sound in the vocal ensembles that they work with. But it goes without saying, and many of you readers have noticed, that there is a very large number of people working in the music ministry field Balance, tone control, vibrato control, who have little or no vocal training in dealing rhythmic articulation, and group dynamics with singers. This is distressing and maybe a are all part of this process. In a choral setting, little frightening. a trained singer is always a motivation to a less The whole point of this discussion of choral trained singer. On the other hand, a singer versus solo vocal exercises is to develop a with an out of control, arrogant, diva-ish thought process that leads to efficient vocal attitude is very destructive to a choir or any warm-ups for your individual voice and group singing effort. In many cases the singer style. I do not believe that a classical singer that has this type of unnecessary attitude is would warm up like a singer preparing to go the first to complain if warm-ups are not done on stage in a Broadway musical. I also would at all. not think it would be wise for a contemporary Let us agree that individual and group commercial singer to warm up with the same warm-ups are needed and can be sung to the exercises as a singer preparing to perform As an active vocal coach, I am an obvious betterment of both soloists and choral singers. their senior recital at the local university. It advocate for the individual voice in any type Getting the voice ready to sing soft, high notes wouldn’t be prudent. of choral setting. By choral setting I mean any with an additional ability to crescendo and Find what works within your style and your group of singers singing vocal harmony in decrescendo requires specialized and specific personal vocal condition. Just please do not any style of music. The characteristic of each exercises. This is very hard to do while sitting sing your favorite choral warm-up that your individual voice adds a certain vitality, and lets or standing next to another singer who is also high school director taught you. It may not each voice sing in a free manner. This individual cranking out a different vocal sound. make sense for you and your performance. freedom allows for a variety of vocal color Now go sing well! Vocal exercises need to be different for changes that lead to a high level of musical each of the four parts in a choir. The tenors expression in any type of choral ensemble. Roger Beale has been writing At this point consider the wonderful multi- and mezzo sopranos need work on bridging the Vocal Coach’s Corner for their registers. The basses and the sopranos Grammy award winning Brooklyn Tabernacle fifteen years. He is one of Choir. They are multi everything and this often stay within one register in a choral the nation’s foremost vocal contributes strongly to their distinctive choral arrangement and have no need to change coaches. He presently works tone. Congratulations to Carol Cymbala for registers. But an agreement must be attained with professional singers in all and a group dynamic mindset makes this areas of musical performance. developing this wonderful group. happen. Unfortunately, the choral warmHis teaching and coaching Here is a big distinction. Choral warm-ups ups that I frequently hear do not focus on facility, The Voice House, is are not intended to warm up the individual balance, tone-color matching, vibrato control, involved in the management voice. Most choral directors would like for and group articulation. These choral warm- and care of the professional voice. Many of his each member to come to the rehearsal ups are a thinly veiled, diluted version of students have won prestigious vocal competitions already in a vocally warmed up condition. But individual vocal exercises. They can be easily and scholarships. In addition, he has worked with that is not going to happen. In all my years recognized as scale arpeggios, and tongue Grammy and Dove award winners and nominees. performing with and being around all types and jaw loosening exercises. Sometimes you He also offers vocal clinics and seminars, as well as of choral ensembles, I cannot remember one can ask yourself the question, is this a choral assistance in recording sessions. Roger is an adjunct professor in the Fine Arts department at Point time that I was aware of any singer warming rehearsal or a really bad voice lesson. University (formerly Atlanta Christian College), up before a rehearsal. Not one time. The more worship leaders know about the website: www.point.edu. Roger can be contacted The choral warm-up is designed to help human voice, other voices, and their own at: The Voice House, 1029 Peachtree Parkway, Suite 276, Peachtree City, GA 30269, (404) 822-5097, singers focus on singing as an ensemble. Their e-mail: voicehouse@mindspring.com.
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The Double Knot by Rick Cua
For as long as I can remember, every time I tie my shoes I tie a double knot. As I’m doing it I sometimes think to myself, “Good, they won’t come untied and I won’t trip.” I never gave it much thought until recently when I remembered my mom teaching me how to do that and why I should. It’s funny how old memories after many decades just pop up now and then and say hello. Teaching others takes time and purpose and if you’re like most you may wonder if your effort is doing any good. I would say that it is, but even if your tutelage goes unheeded do it anyway.
thoughts. If there is care and love in your words you will have a good listener and a good learner. 1 Peter 3:15 also emphasizes, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,”
So why is this so important? Why can’t we just live our lives, do our own thing and let others do the same? Not feel the responsibility and not have to take the risk of wondering if what we’ve got is valuable and worth sharing. The exact moment a lesson is being learned Depending on your student teaching can take is sometimes never recalled but the result a lot out of you. of that thoughtful exchange lasts a lifetime One reason this is so important is because and is often passed down to others. Some it’s modeled throughout the Bible and of the things you do are instinct but most emphasized in 2 Timothy 2:1-2 “You then, are learned behaviors. We are the recipients my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ of years of wisdom, successful methodology Jesus. And the things you have heard me say perfected by trial and error, and all of it from in the presence of many witnesses entrust to the love of others. “Don’t do that, you might reliable people who will also be qualified to get hurt; be careful or you’ll poke your eye teach others.” That’s foundational knowledge out; bend your legs when you lift; don’t run, for all of us as we go through life learning take your time; hurry up or you’ll be late; AND teaching. For most there comes a time think next time”...Yikes! Sometimes it feels like where teaching just comes out of us...our gifts, a litany of commands but every one salutes a talents and experience makes room for us in happy ending. this life as God’s word says in Proverbs 18:16a. Here’s something to remember as you pass along value to others...delivery is everything. If you want your words to stick wrap them in kindness and deliver them with love. Proverbs 15:1 says that “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Some instruction is given without being asked, the way a parent raises a child and teaches instinctively; or, the way you mentor someone by observation and modeling. Throughout life you will also be asked a lot of questions about the every day ways of life and faith. Regarding your answer, the level of reception and understanding from your listener will most likely be based on how you deliver your
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Not a lot at the front of our lives but increased incrementally as we move forward in years.
Another reason this is such a valuable part of our journey, is because we are commanded to love one another. When we love and care about each other - the second greatest commandment - we are eager to share all kinds of wisdom. From practical life lessons to philosophy we are not only recipients of the experience of others but deliverers of the same. To be effective teachers, and we ALL can be, we need to know who we are in Christ. Who He says we are. Nothing builds our
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confidence more than knowing how God feels about us. This is where it starts. What God says to us in so many ways is...we are loved, we are accepted and in Him we possess all that’s needed to not only complete our mission on this planet but help others do the same. There is joy of course in doing things yourself but many times even more joy in teaching someone else how to do it and then celebrating their success of which you truly have a part. The wish of most great teachers is that their students surpass their own accomplishments. How wonderful to know that when you merge the talent and gifting of your student with your own library of knowledge you get someone who’s ability to soar is exponentially greater than either of you on your own. Lastly, what God has filled us with is always worth sharing. It’s nugget after nugget of hope, purpose and passion. It’s your recipe for life, made up of everything from step by step instructions for navigating the practical, to the contemplative stuff that dreams are made of. Learn and pass it on, grow and share your growth, dream and let someone in. It’s your life always richer with company. Not just a musical artist, Rick knows the business of music as well. Besides being a music publisher, artist manager and booking agent, he founded and ran his own record label, UCA Records, in the 1990s which led to a position for five and 1⁄2 years as Vice President, Creative/Copyright Development at EMI CMG in Nashville. There he managed a large songwriter roster and exponentially grew revenue through film and TV licensing, song promotion and print music development. He is currently on staff as the minister of Pastoral Care and Visitation at Grace Chapel in Franklin, TN.
Return From The Wasteland Needtobreathe by Shawn McLaughlin
South Carolina band Needtobreathe, which consists of brothers Bear and Bo Rhinehart along with friend Seth Bolt, have recently released their latest album, Rivers In The Wasteland. The album was written over the past year amidst sporadic touring, and reflects a renewal, of sorts, after a period in which the band lost sight, somewhat, of why they do what
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they do. With the stated goal of keeping the new record simple, rediscovering the “fun� of making Needtobreathe music and staying true to themselves Rivers In the Wasteland may sound a little more stripped-down than fans have heard recently and this effort to peel away production was a deliberate one. Taking a break from their recent
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headlining tour, lead vocalist/guitarist/ songwriter Bear sat down with Christian Musician to reflect on the beginnings of the band, to get honest about the struggles that led to the creation of Rivers In the Wasteland and relate the hope that allows them to keep functioning as a family operation and increasingly popular recording and live act.
CM. What is it that made you realize that music is what you wanted to do with your life? Bear: I think a lot of things. When I grew up both my parents were into music and had music around the house. I loved music from the time I was a kid. I couldn’t get enough. I grew up with a dad as a pastor but they were very strict about what type of music we could listen to. So me and my brother ended up being the kids that had to go to the Christian Bookstore and listen to the demo tapes and try to find something we liked. I went there pretty much every day after school. Listened to every tape they had and you know, I kinda pushed my mom knowing there was better music out there than what Christian music had to offer at the time and she said, “If you want to do that, you need to make some of your own music, write some of your own.” It sort of challenged us. Even though I didn’t play music at the time, the thought was at the back of my mind. And immediately when I started playing guitar. I never even learned covers. I never really…I might’ve just for the first 2-3 months of playing guitar try to play other people’s songs but I immediately became a songwriter first. And within a span of 3 months after playing guitar I had my own songs. I figured it was something that was ingrained and then as soon as music started to become a career choice there really wasn’t an option in my mind. I knew I was going to go try to do it, to try to make a living out of it some way. I didn’t know how that was going to be and I didn’t really care, to be honest. At the time I didn’t know if I was going to be a guitar player or a songwriter or worship leader or what. I didn’t know, you know? I had no idea but I knew music was involved in it some way.
what he does special. And I think that was a little bit frustrating to me at first. But every song he played me, I was blown away by it. He was a really good songwriter right away. The first couple songs he showed me I thought were great. So I knew I had to have him in the band. He’s always been a good performer in everything. Early in life, he was in musical reviews and a couple of movies and things like that. We got along great in that way and immediately we connected on that artistic level, which was, “What was the image of the band? What are we trying say? What are we lyrically, visually? What are we trying to do?” And I think that’s really been the backbone of the band. Where did you see the band fitting at that time in the marketplace? Did you see music as a calling or a vocation? We certainly saw it as a calling. I mean we didn’t know what the vocation part meant and we had no aspirations really to make any money out of it. I don’t think we even put any pressure on ourselves, I mean we were small town kids. We bought some land from our granddad for a dollar. The only dream we had was to have our band and our own sound system that we can put in a trailer. We wanted to be self-sufficent, in terms of we didn’t want anybody telling us when and where we could tour. We just wanted to be on the road. That was as far as we thought. We literally set out trying to figure out the math. After we were signed for a year or two we said, “Look, if we can make a teacher’s salary and be able to do this, we’ll be happy.” So I think it was certainly a calling for us. It is something we love so much that we didn’t think about the business part of it until much, much later.
Talk a bit about how Needtobreathe came to be: How you got together with Bo to form that band.
As far as Rivers in Wasteland, your newest record which it just came out last month, I know that it debuted #1 on iTunes but I’m wondering how you feel it’s being received on a critical level?
I started it, basically, my freshmen year in college and Bo didn’t even play guitar at the time. I started with some guys I went to school with. But when Bo first started playing guitar he was incredibly great from the get go, and in the same way as I, started writing songs before he knew how to play. Which was frustrating to me a little bit at first. He’s always been a little backwards in that way, you know... learning how to play guitar in slightly different ways. And he picks backwards; he picks up instead of down. He does some interesting things. It really makes
We had really talked ourselves into not worrying about that at all on this record. It was one in which we felt like this whole record’s theme was to not really be concerned about the outcome of things. We had gotten caught up, we felt, in the wrong ways and in light of some little things that happened in the last couple years, it had really affected the fabric of the band you know? So, going into this record we had finally gotten the chance to stop everything and realize how messed up things had gotten and back up from that. It really
changed everything. So our expectations for the record really didn’t have anything to do with how well it felt or how it was going to be received. We really are proud of the record that we made, because we really made the record that was given to us to make. We didn’t compromise making it. Saying that, our fans have responded to the record, I think, better than any record we’ve made. It’s been a really cool thing. On this tour we’re playing most of the songs on the new record. As a band that’s made 5 albums and has been around for 15 years, the fact that we could play 10 new songs from a record coming out in three weeks, and our fans did not get angry with us...well, you know, that says a lot. It’s an incredible blessing to be in that position as a band. We say every night to each other, “Man, we’re going to enjoy this moment.” It means that our fans really do dig the record, and they really appreciate where we are as a band right now. It’s a really cool thing. Most bands I know put out 5 albums for fans and only play the old songs. I think that says a lot about the way people receive this record. So it’s funny that you’re anticipating all my questions before I even ask them. You have already delved into the next one. There’s this lyric on Wasteland that made me take notice: “There was a greatness I thought for awhile, But somewhat it changed. Some kind of blindness I used to protect me from all of my stains.” From this lyric and from some interviews I’ve read in the past in which you said the business got to you a little bit, the perception arose that, perhaps the band was prone to a little bit of arrogance? Yeah, I think our situation really was our priorities getting switched. I don’t think arrogance was what was on top of that list. It certainly was a result of switching our priorities. But when we first started out our purpose was at the top of our priority list and when we played in front of people we didn’t care if everybody liked us or not. We really had that attitude. It was very much in our minds that, “Look if half this audience doesn’t get our band and they don’t cheer at the end of the song, we don’t care.” Because we have something to say that’s specific. And if only some of these people came that needed to hear that, that’s okay with us. We’re okay not selling a bunch of records to this audience if the audience doesn’t get what we’re trying to say. But it’s really about a specific audience that needs
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to hear what we are trying to say. I mean, Outsiders had a lyric like that, you know? We’ve come to terms with Outsiders. That was something we were really confident in. And you can even say we were arrogant in that way. We had to have a tough skin in order to be that way. Over the last couple years, I think, we gradually lost that and started feeling like we needed success. We felt like we wanted the audience to appreciate what we were doing so we were going to do the things that make them appreciate us. And I feel like that leads to things like arrogance. It leads to things like taking for granted the guys that are around you in the band. You start to say, “Well, I’m the one who’s going to get us to success.” And we made that mistake that kept us from getting that success… it trickles down in a lot of different ways. It’s hard to see all those different ways until you get that priority fixed. Until you back up for a minute and say, “Man, this is messed up.” I think when we made that change while we were making this record - coming back out and really saying, “Look we don’t own this process, we don’t own these gifts that we have, we don’t own this band and the fans... this is the process we get to be a part of, we’re thankful for it.” That is when we started looking at it more like that. We started appreciating the other people around us. And the art got better. We took our hands off of it. All of a sudden it could change. Our eyes were opened a little bit more and we were, “Man, maybe I’m not so special. Maybe I don’t have all the answers, maybe I need all the people around me.” To me it made the music way better. ‘Rise Again’ was a song that really interested me, I saw the recent band documentary “Prove the Poets Wrong” and I know there was a lot of stuff going on in the band when this was being filmed. Was that song possibly written about relationships within the band? Yeah, in part it was about our drummer leaving, in part it was about the ending of this era. We felt like were putting a stake in it. We were closing a door in that time period and... dark as it was, we were learning a lot from it. You know, we made 22
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decisions in that time and you just can’t go back and make those decisions over again. We look back at them now and say, “Man, wouldn’t that have been nice if we didn’t have to change this.” But saying that, those decisions wouldn’t have taught us the lessons that made us the band we are now or made it possible to make the record we had made. Even that documentary we made a couple of years ago… by the time it came out, we were scared in some ways or almost embarrassed to put it out because we had changed so much by then. So we almost didn’t put the documentary out because of that. We thought, “Man, I don’t recognize the guy that’s in that video anymore.” Bo and I had really made up in a way that our relationship has changed so much. We are over that fighting thing. More than we have been since we were probably 12 years old. We get along better than most brothers can hope to. Shawn: That’s good. So when I watch the documentary, I go, “That’s not us anymore.” But it gave a context I think for this record. And that’s the reason we decided to go ahead and put it out. People need to know where we were coming from in order for there to be this change and for it to make sense in what were talking about on “River In the Wasteland”. I’m glad that we did. Was the gospel message of “Rivers” a calculated move or was it more a function of what was going on in your lives or maybe a combination of both? I think it’s a combination of both. I really do. I can’t say that much of the album was a calculated move because it really wasn’t. When we started making the record we were in a wasteland. Even though I was writing and Bo had written some songs...
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even ‘Wasteland’ the song is a good example. In this wasteland, as much as I had written there was a crack in a door filled with light, I didn’t necessarily see the crack in the door filled with light at the time. It made sense after all this has happened. I feel like God gave me all those songs. And in some ways you feel incredibly humbled. Me and Bo both talked about this as much as we felt like we knew what we were doing when we were writing the songs, they really didn’t make sense until this whole process had happened - which took well over a year. That just shows you how much God gave us this process on this project. We couldn’t have known what was going to happen. If you were there you’d know we didn’t know what was going to happen. So I can’t say it was some sort of master plan me and Bo had. We really thought we were going to name the record, “Wasteland.” And then, by the time the process of making the record was over, naming it “Wasteland” would’ve been crazy. Something new and fresh had happened. And what God had done just made it very clear there’s no way you could name it that. That’s not where we were anymore. God had done something new in us and it was really fresh and I think that’s how it ended. ‘Multiplied’ and ‘Brother’ both were written after our big change and breakthrough, our time off. So I think that decidedly changed the spirit of the record. Both those songs happened in the last two to three weeks of making the record. It certainly wasn’t calculated. It seems like the stripped back sound is a kind of mirroring of, maybe, what God was doing in your lives, breaking down and humbling you. Is that an intentional move or natural progression? That was an intentional move. In part it was a response to Reckoning. We had intentionally made a big record and we were ready to make a more vulnerable record. We felt like honesty and sincerity was always something we did well and that was our thing. But we hadn’t done a record that was that vulnerable and especially Reckoning was not like what we Continued on page 33.
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Escape the expected. Experience graphite.
selective hearing by Shawn McLaughlin
Neon Steeple Crowder Sixstep Records On Neon Steeple, the first release without The David Crowder Band, David Crowder displays his particular ability to cross genre boundaries with a unique blend of folk/bluegrass/ country merged with electronic dance beats. Fiddles, banjo, acoustic guitar, hand claps and foot stomps are the instruments of choice throughout the record as these elements make up the bulk of the musical palette, fueled by the insistent thump of sampled loops, bright keyboard patches and a standard drum kit. Crowder executes the concept flawlessly, for the most part, as terrific songs like “Lift Your Head Weary Sinner (Chains),” “Jesus Is Calling,” “Come Alive” and “My Sweet Lord” comprise the best of these experiments. Musically, the album far outstrips the lyrical impact as most of the standout musical efforts are in service of fairly ordinary worship sentiment. Yet, Crowder sequences the songs in a way that tells a very simple but specific story – about the life of a sinner who has been saved and redeemed - from neon to steeple. Artistically, Neon Steeple is closer to the impact of Remedy or Can You Hear Us, rather than the ultra-challenging work displayed in A Collision or Church Music. Still, the work is sure to appeal to a large demographic and displays Crowder’s unique ability to take disparate musical elements and fuse them into a satisfying whole. Shadow Weaver The Choir Galaxy 21 Music Careful readers of Selective Hearing will know that pioneering Christian alternative band, The Choir, is a particular favorite of mine. They have just released their 14th album, Shadow Weaver and, despite a career that has lasted more than 30 years, continues to put out music that is as vital, challenging and purposefully artful as anything else out there, today. Shadow Weaver trades in many of the concepts that lyricist/drummer, Steve Hindalong has touched on in the past, particularly the themes of mercy, grace 24
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and perseverance, and the idea that God is shrouded in a certain amount of mystery, that he is unknowable to us, in our human state. In some ways, this album draws a lot of parallels to the Choir’s 1990 masterpiece, Circle Slide, an album that explored the joys of parenthood, family and often the wonder of seeing that world through the eyes of a child. On Shadow Weaver, the family has been raised and the kids have left the roost. Those who follow the band’s music know that so many songs have been written about Hindalong’s kids (as well as Guitarist/sonic sculpter, Derri Daugherty’s) that they somehow feel like they have been a part of the process, having watched their kids grow up via their songs. Now, some 20+ years later, Shadow Weaver deals with the idea of letting go. The poignant, “It Hurts to Say Goodbye” is specifically about sending one’s kids out into the world and is filled with the melancholy and ambivalence that act engenders. Other songs also explore the theme of letting go, whether it be directed at our own self-reliance on “White Knuckles” or the human tendency to either idolize or demonize each other, essayed with wit and vigor on the downright rocking “What You Think I Am” a song that affects a truly menacing groove and explores some unique sonic territory for the band which allows Daugherty and fellow guitarist, Marc Byrd to really cut loose. All this to suggest that we are all burdened with the curse of uncertainty in this life and that often causes us to weave in and out of the light, sometimes losing bits of our soul in the process. Other highlights on Shadow Weaver include the sublime “We All Know”, a poignant look at the way our depravity allows us all to tread common ground in the need for grace and mercy, while the absolutely stunning ”The Soul of Every Creature Cries Out” expands on the theme – “Into our lungs we drew sweet breath, and the first thing we all knew we were choking, sometimes we laugh in the face of death, but when we cry for mercy, nobody’s joking…” – as Hindalong again echoes the human soul’s explicit need for divine mercy, opining “The soul of every creature cries out, the heart of humanity moans, somebody out there won’t leave us alone…” and thank God for that! 33 years into their career and all approaching their mid 50’s, the Choir seemingly are just
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starting to reach their creative apex, In fact, they have been particularly fruitful in the past 5 years, apparently catching a twilight of their career “second wind”. One can only hope that Shadow Weaver is just part of a long run in this late career renaissance. Don’t Look Back Brent Bourgeois Independent, www.brentbourgeois.com On his first record in 20 years (since the 1994 release of Come Join the Living World) Bourgeois puts on glorious display the finest characteristics of all facets of his long career, from his early work with Bourgeois Tagg, through his subsequent solo career. Always a sonic alchemist, Don’t Look Back comprises a myriad of genres, all held together by Bourgeois formidable ability as a tunesmith. Whether trading in riff based workouts like the title track, a funky, Sly Stone meets New Orleans style workout featuring guest work from the likes of Rachel Lampa, Chris Rodriguez, Michelle Tumes; the Bourgeois Tagg reunion cut, “Psycho”, another groove based rocker with psychedelic overtones; or more structured song-craft like the Charlie Peacock produced “All She Ever Wanted”, or the Beatlesque “The High Road” featuring a duet vocal with Julian Lennon - Bourgeois never fails to tickle the ear with creative arrangements, ear pleasing hooks and “Mariana trench” deep groove. Virtually every song on Don’t Look Back utilizes a who’s who of guest appearances, mostly from folks Bourgeois has worked with before. That he is particularly adept at finding exactly the right song that fits the specific gifts his guests have to offer, speaks to the many years Bourgeois spent as head of A&R for Word Records as well as a frequent producer for his stable of artists. After a 20 year lay-off from record making, it is a wonder that there seems to be no drop off in quality when this music is compared to his finest work during the apex of his popularity. The deeply musical and wonderfully varied Don’t Look Back makes a strong case for such a vacation but also is so good, most fans are not going to want to wait
another 2 decades for Bourgeois’ next record. their previous band’s new-wave dance pop. Purchasing this project would be a positive Showing a strong affinity for the heartland step in preventing that from happening. rock of a Petty or a Mellencamp, laced with a liberal amount of Stax and Motown rhythmic intensity, the couple proceeded to make two Hymns and Hers of the VERY finest albums of the 90’s, with the Ceili Rain stunning sophomore effort Through Flood Independent, www.ceilirain.com and Fire and the equally accomplished Field Ceili Rain’s new long-player, Hymns and Hers of Your Soul. Utilizing both direct lyrics of is a unique project praise and more metaphoric prose that spoke that, in response to the to the heart of human need, the band was a band’s ever deepening creative lighthouse in the often moribund spiritual awareness, landscape of mainstream Christian music. attempts to bridge After spending the past 20 years occasionally the gap between offering independent recordings of worship, expressions of human Christmas and hymns projects, the couple has and divine love, with come up with a new work that, like the new roughly half the songs comprising ‘hymns’ Ceili Rain project, explores the dichotomous directed to God and the other half being “hers” which are directed to Halligan’s wife. The idea is to draw a parallel to the depth of commitment that we need to have in our dual relationships, both human and divine. To this end, the band employs its signature blend of organic, Celtic infused pop-rock, replete with fiddle, tin whistle, Uillean pipes, mandolin, and more conventional rock instruments like electric guitar, keys and drums. The songs run the gamut of styles from the upbeat, poppy gait of “She-ro” to the more cinematic style of “Fling ‘em At Your Feet” which, surprisingly melds a traditional jig melody with an almost Carlos Santana-esque, latin rock middle section. Such surprises abound on any Ceili Rain disc but the fairly focused thematic thrust and typically melodic Halligan tunes contained on Hymns and Hers comprise the band’s most unique AND listenable collection, yet.
nature of love, both earthly and divine. With 20 years of married life, raising a family, and becoming entrenched in a faith community to draw from, Love is a rousing artistic success, again mining the depths of roots based musical forms, with a deeper nod to folk and even country but with enough of Rebecca and Greg’s latent soulfulness to give the songs earthbound wings. Greg’s multi-instrumental ability and Rebecca’s inherently soulful vocals give human gravitas to the sentiments of explicitly divine love, while the contributions of their wonderful backing musicians help bring a heavenly lift to the more earthbound expressions of romantic, familial and phileo love. In a neat twist, a few songs that Rebecca wrote as odes to marital bliss (“All is Joy I See” with its U2-ish guitar patterns and “Your
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Love Greg and Rebecca Sparks Independent, www.thesparks.com/ My greatest sorrow in the Christian music field was the lack of music made by this incredible married couple since their last full-fledged rock project, Field of Your Soul over twenty years ago. Hey…do you readers notice a theme in the artists I am reviewing this cycle? Not sure there has been one under 50 years old other than Crowder. Anywho……. For the un-initiated, Greg and Rebecca Sparks started out in the party-dance band, Bash ‘n the Code in the late 80’s. By 1989, they stepped out from that group and, made a surprisingly gritty debut record that had little to do, musically, with
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Heart is Now My Home”), carry a strong spiritual authenticity as well, showing the universal often found in the personal. Please, do yourselves a favor and peruse the Sparks’ website. Look up their Reverbnation site and listen to the samples available and see if they don’t move you as much as they have me for 25 years. Then, buy this record. You’ll thank me later. Finding Home Solveig Leithaug Independent, www.solveigmusic.com Talk about an off the board find! Those familiar with Solveig Leithaug through her past affiliation with the Gaithers as well as her Swedish language releases, will be surprised at the sonic sophistication and the authentic heart with which she imbues the real life inspired compositions on her wonderful new album, Finding Home. Personal tales of
life, love, family and the joys and sorrows associated with each are interspersed with genuinely affecting songs of devotion to the savior who delivered her time and time again from the vagaries of the human condition. Highlights of the album include the elegiac “Faraway Lullaby”, which laments the distance a life on the road sometimes engenders between a parent and their children, “A Million Miles” a harmonica fueled (thanks to veteran harp blower, Buddy Greene) ode to the unexpected joy of finding life a little bit later in life, and the deeply moving “When She Plays” a song written for Leithaug’s mother in law, a former church pianist for 40 years who, afflicted with late stage Alzheimers, manages to find moments of lucidity when she plays the piano. With production from Steve Hindalong (with assistance from Steven Leiweke), the project is both drenched in atmosphere, yet full of instrumental definition and sonic sophistication, a hallmark of Hindalong productions. A project that should hold rewards for most any listener, Finding Home reveals an artist who communicates encouraging universal truths by daring to be
vulnerable. Long Roots David White Footpath Records www.davidwhitemusic.com While David White has a history in the Christian industry as a staff writer for the Universal label and has written songs that have been hits for some well known Christian artists (Avalon for instance), this is his very first foray into solo record making, as he has spent his time in Nashville practicing medicine as a pediatrician for over 20 years. Hearing Long Roots, an epic example of bluegrass influenced folk-pop, one can’t help but ask the question “what the heck took you so long?!” A shining example of storytelling at its best, David White’s debut full length album is great because of the very personal way he tells stories, even those not drawn from real life circumstance, so that they Continued on page 40.
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PRODUCT REVIEW
Gibson Memory Cable
Don’t forget that new Praise Song! By Eric Dahl
Just because we are worship musicians or leaders doesn’t mean we have any more time to practice and learn the signature licks and correct rhythm patterns that we must have rehearsed and ready for the congregation this weekend. So what if you were able to just plug in your guitar cable and record your practice sessions or rehearsals? Instrument cables in general have seen very few major advancements in the last 60 years except for: circuit breaker end jacks (providing noise free instrument changes), volume controls built on cables, oxygen free copper cores (colors your tone less) and solder free cables (for easier repairs at gigs). Cables are a necessity for all musicians but they typically aren’t the center of fun inspiration and not wasting recording time. musician discussions like a new guitar, bass or The cable measures 16ft and has straight ¼ keyboards – until now. inch jacks on both ends and it doesn’t even Drum roll please for the new “Gibson need to be plugged into an amp to record! Memory Cable” with a marketing slogan Your recorded music is saved to a 4GB Micro that states “Inspiration Insurance” and as a SD Card (that is included in the package) so praise musician I can always use a little more you can pop it out of the recording device inspiration. Gibson, utilizing the recording and insert it into your computer for playback expertise of one of it’s recently acquired or save the track into a multitrack recording. companies, Tascam, has innovated an The cables capabilities aren’t limited to the instrument cable that not only transmits your guitarists playing in your service, it can also sound to the intended amplifier or PA System, be used with bass guitar, keyboards, drum but also records what you play at CD quality machines and synthesizers. I haven’t tested for up to 13 hours! Gibson was kind enough this theory but I think the GMC could be to let me demo a prototype of their new GMC used with any instrument as long as it is has here in Nashville and what impressed me a pickup and a ¼ inch output jack including: most was how simple it was record my guitar ukulele, fiddle, mandolin, standup bass and just by installing the batteries and plugging in! lap steel. I found the best way to use the Gibson Memory Cable was to plug in the end with the recording device on it closest to the instrument you will be recording, then just select manual or my favorite automatic. The automatic feature starts recording as soon as it senses the sound from your instrument and stops when you stop – capturing your
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So whether you’re creating original praise music or practicing the latest hit song by Casting Crowns - the Gibson Memory Cable allows you to record, capture and save those musical moments (that we have all forgotten at some point after a good nights sleep). After testing it out I can see myself using this at church just to remember the latest
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key change (due to singers or horns), chord progressions or opening lick that my praise team leader wants to intro a new song. At a street price $99.99 you could easily spend that on a high quality instrument cable, but only Gibson offers a cable with a portable recorder/preamp built in! This may be the greatest innovation in instrument cables since the invention of the vintage coil cable in the 1960s? But more importantly as a praise musician how much time could this save and how many creative ideas won’t get lost now? Gibson Brands Inc. released the Gibson Memory Cable in May although it may take a while to find its way into your local music store – you can also find them at most major online music stores. Eric Dahl resides in Nashville TN with his wife and daughter. He is the author of “B.B. King’s Lucille and the Loves Before Her” and he does a weekly TV gear review show called the FOX 17 Rock and Review.
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Multi-Functional: Short-Cut Capo by Mitch Bohannon
Anybody remember the commercial for the ShopSmith Mark V? The all-in-one power tool? I used to watch that commercial and just dream of having all those tools at my disposal and oh, what I could build with that! As creative multi-taskers, I think we’re wired to be drawn to things that have multi-uses. Thing is, many multi-use items are only limited by our creativity… (Like the flat-square bread bag clips that I used to use for strap-locks). Well, back in 2001 when I developed the Kyser Short-Cut Capo, I had no idea how many ways it could be used! It makes me chuckle at myself when I read my first set of instructions. I actually used the word “only” when stating that it was to be placed on the 2nd fret. Fact stands now, I still have not tapped out all the theoretical functions of the Short-Cut Capo! Multi-(ability level)… The Short-Cut is used by professionals in the studio and on the platform. Also, it can be used to teach a total beginner how to play a song with only one finger. It is super-simple to get started with!!
the only player with one so it helps me find my own space when there are other guitar players, sits well in a mix. Go get one! --Tom Lane Guitarist (Blues Counsel) Multi-genre… From rock to country…From a Celtic groove to Latin and finger-style… I have seen and heard musicians from all walks and ages make incredible music using this little capo. “The cut-capo consistently keeps my creativity sparked! The perfect musical brain teaser!”—Dave Cleveland Recording Artist Multi-tuning… This is where the rubber meets the road and the creativity meets the skies! The Short-Cut Capo, in it’s first position on the 2nd fret, essentially creates DADGAD – but in the key of “E.” The notes in front of the capo are EBEABE. So, in this position, chords take their shapes from modified fingerings of the key of “D” (D, A, G, Em, Bm). In the second position, the Short-Cut would be placed on the 4th fret and you would use modified fingerings of the key of “C” (C, F, G, Dm, Am). In these examples, by “modified” fingerings, I mean (in most cases) NOT fingering the 1st and 2nd strings. Multi-tuning beyond that... there are some more positions and then, once we change the standard/natural tuning of the strings and apply the capo, the “sky is the limit.”
The Cut Capo is like an American Express card, never leave home without it!! I hardly ever play anywhere without using it at some point, it’s one of the best tools I own and I keep one in every gig bag. It’s a real pain to de-tune onstage and even harder to fly multiple guitars, so it makes open tuning much easier. I use it alone and with a regular “What I love about (the Short-Cut) is how capo, moving all over the neck. Normally I’m easy it is to get a DADGAD tuning (up a whole
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D
step) with just one quick capo move. I’ve seen so many songwriters here in Nashville go through the onstage struggle of lowering E, A and E down a half-step each and battle to get that in tune, only to capo up a whole step and have another tuning struggle. With this capo, you just slap it on your standard tuning and viola, you’re there. It’s a great inspirational tool for songwriting and recording, so I use it a lot! It takes almost no time for my cowriters to see how cool it is and want one themselves....” –Jeff Dayton Guitarist (Kenny Chesney, Glen Campbell, Lee Greenwood) Platinum songwriter (George Strait) Multi-use… in the song development process… Some artists use the Short-Cut mainly in the writing process because of the open-chord sound. It can provide a fresh approach to finding new melodies. Some will use it on platform, and some find it useful in the recording studio. Even if you can’t wrap your brain around it (like even I did not at the beginning), it just may answer the question, “what should I play next?” Like Tom Lane said, “go get one” and give it a try. Mitch is one of the pioneers in the development of the Kyser Short Cut Capo – an alternate tuning device used by many guitarists today. He is a regular contributor to our sister publications. Mitch and his wife Noelle have 3 awesome kids!
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MESSAGE THROUGH “MOMENTS”
by Tom Jackson
into a different experience than a radio song allows. At a nice restaurant you don’t want to be served fast food. Nothing wrong with fast food ( just like there’s nothing wrong with radio!) — there’s awesome fast food out there. But your customers’ expectations are different in a restaurant.
As Christians, we know all our decisions should be spiritual decisions. When you decided to “do” music, it was certainly a spiritual decision — you felt a leading from the Lord. But it was also a career or business one (we need to make a living, after all). And whether you went into the Christian music industry or another genre, there are similar aspects to all of them. For instance, the focus is generally on songwriting: the importance of lyrics, song length, melody, etc. If you’ve read my book, you recognize the importance put on songwriting as well. But that’s not what I want to discuss in this article. Because my main gig is the live show. By God’s grace, I’ve been given the gift to help artists take what they want to communicate and put it in a language their live show audience can understand. Lyrics are important. And as a Christian songwriter, you know the message in your songs is extremely important. For some of you, the impact your lyrics can have in people’s lives may be the biggest reason you’re in music. Because of this, it can be hard to see the importance of other themes and moments we can bring to our audiences. We’re so focused on the lyrics and the message, we forget our audience does not come to a show to only hear songs. When I go to a restaurant known for its great steaks, I fully expect to have more than steak! If all I get is a slab of meat, I get tired of it after half a dozen bites. I also want a fresh salad, a baked potato, a refreshing drink, and a tasty dessert at the end of the meal. It’s the same thing with our songs. If we don’t create anything other than lyrical moments (moments that are fun, touching, musical, and more), we’ll lose a portion of our audience pretty quickly. Our songs may draw them to our concert — but we also need to give them moments to experience.
to their audiences over and over, because they’re thinking it’s all about the message, message, message. The problem with that is the pressure never changes. After 3 or 4 songs, because the focus never changes, it becomes like Chinese water torture.
That’s why it’s so valuable to understand By correctly developing themes and the need to rearrange your songs for the live rearranging songs, artists can pour their Godgiven talent and personality into their show. show — to create those other moments! Some artists are more gifted musically, some A pretty typical concert event is this: artist more gifted as ministers, some more gifted and band learn the songs as they were vocally… and in a live show we would arrange recorded, then go out on stage and play them the songs so those things become a part of just like that. That’s not how it should be — IF what we do. This is the “theme” and “character” you want to capture and engage people, bring development that goes hand in hand with the them memorable moments, and change their rearrangement of songs. lives in some small way. I’m often asked, “what’s the biggest mistake Follow this analogy: a radio song (if compared artists make onstage?” To be honest, there are to a TV show) is like a sit com. There are rules a lot of mistakes — but one huge one is letting to get on radio, just like rules for getting your the song be in control, not the artist. Usually, show on TV as a sit com. Length, structure, when a song is played exactly as recorded, it theme, and so on… handcuffs the artist’s performance options. A Those rules and limitations for radio airplay short intro. Short solo for the guitar player. are a huge part of the mental makeup of an No time to develop relationships onstage. artist, their management, record label, and Beautiful harmony that goes by too quickly. everyone involved. And those rules and Lack of movement. No room for spontaneity. limitations are widely accepted in the industry. I’m not saying every song should be But, to continue the analogy, I equate the live developed into an epic “movie.” But if you and show to making a movie. In your show ( just like your team can make this paradigm shift and making a movie out of a sit com), you want to start creating moments in your show, you’ll not develop two things: themes and characters. only see your ministry grow and more lives The themes come from your songs, whether changed — you’ll also experience what one it’s a tone, a rhythm, a riff, a vocal line, a lyric, major artist I worked for did… merch sales a background vocal, awesome harmonies… all going up over 600%. those themes are in your songs, waiting to be Now that’s epic! developed into a richer experience for your audience. So much goes into a 3½ minute song for radio that your audience doesn’t get to plumb the depths of all that’s going on. And when it’s a radio song, with people listening in their car driving down the road, it’s not the atmosphere to plumb the depths!
But at a live show, the atmosphere is different. Christian artists tend to bring the same thing This is the perfect place to bring your audience
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In the live concert setting, people come to see the artist, not just to hear songs. I know we’re not supposed to think that, as Christian artists. It’s not about us — it’s about God. And that’s true. It’s about the talent God has given to you, to relate to people through your music, and to turn their hearts and minds to Him and what He has to say through you.
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Tom Jackson, world renowned Live Music Producer, author of the book Tom Jackson’s Live Music Method and the All Roads Lead to the Stage DVD series, is a master at transforming an artist’s live show into a life-changing experience for the audience! Tom has worked with 100’s of artists in every genre, including major artists like Taylor Swift, Francesca Battistelli, Jars of Clay, The Band Perry, and more. He also shares his expertise as a highly demanded speaker at colleges, conferences & events worldwide.
Needtobreathe - Cont. from page 22 had intended to do when we made that record. But we wanted to come back and try to strip it down and see how vulnerable we can get. I wanted to sing differently on this record. I wanted to take angst out of it. Not seem so heavy or hard; try to invite the audience into it a little bit. Well you mentioned singing, and I have to tell you and give you props, I absolutely love your voice. It’s very unique. It’s got that “yargh” I call it (kind of a Van Morrison, instinctive thing). Foy Vance has it too. Man, listening to you guys Friday in concert was like listening to a master class in soulful singing. It was terrific. On a less serious note, what are you, Seth and Bo currently listening to? Do you listen to stuff on tour? The most recent thing I was really into right before I left was the John Mark McMillan album ‘Borderland’. It was his newest record and I think people who’ve heard of him would be surprised by it because it’s a very different record for him. I think it’s his best. He’s doing an acoustic version of that record and I sang on a track with him. I think that record is brilliant lyrically and he does a lot of good stuff musically... really, really challenging to the genre for him. I’m all over the board as far as what I listen to. Obviously, I’m a soul guy so I’m looking for things that can fuse the gospel thing and the rock and roll thing together. I’m very into those things, the Joe Cocker classic thing. I want to put the soulful waves and passionate feeling over rhythm... that’s what I’m always chasing after. I really like
Jim James’s (singer from My Morning Jacket) solo record. He’s one of those kind of guys, just a different type of voice but always doing the soul thing in a new way. There was almost a Prince-like thing going on there. I love some of the rhythms on that record. I love the way he tracks vocals. He did that record himself. I think the chances that he takes and the way he records the vocals is incredible. We’re a musician based magazine so I think some of our readers would be interested in some of the gear you’re using, both live and in the studio. I’m a Tyler Amp kind of guy. Tyler makes the most road-worthy, ridiculous stuff. It’s a great little amp. I use the 20/20 model. I’ve actually been flying with it. I’ve got a pelican case and it goes everywhere I go. I love that thing. I’ve just grown up a Fender guy. I’m a real simple tone guitar player. I don’t like a bunch of pedals in front of me. I use a Super Comp as a squeal pedal and I use a Morning Glory from JHS. The Morning Glory is my overdrive pedal and I’m a big Strymon pedal fan as well. I have the Flint and the El Capistan on my board right now. When I’m playing slide stuff, I like to play my old Stratotone. We did some of this record at Sound City in California, where they recorded some of the Tom Petty records. I stole the idea from Mike Campbell and it sounds pretty ridiculous! Editor’s Note: Be sure to check out Needtobreathe during their current fall tour. Info online: www.needtobreathe.com
Hydration and Musician’s Wellness By The Musician’s Doc, Timothy Jameson, D.C., M.Div. © 2014 When it came time to write this article on musician’s wellness, being the educated and wise worship pastor/chiropractor that I am, (ha,ha), I actually made a smart decision. I asked my wife what I should write about. It was a warm summer day and her immediate response was “You should write about proper hydration for musician and singers.” Ouch. She got me. I am terrible at regularly drinking water. (I prefer excellent grades of coffee over water – yeah, I know – practice what you preach.) So, as I teach you everything you need to know about proper hydration, I will be following suit and improving my own habits in the process. Your body is primarily water –every tissue of your body has water as a component, even bone. Overall the human body is right around 60% water. Some tissues have more than others; muscles are about 70% water, blood is 80% water, and the brain is 70% water. For the human body to function in wellness, these percentages must stay right where they are supposed to be. If those numbers drop you are going to head into trouble.
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How much water should you drink? This is different for everyone depending upon your body size. Typically, 6 – 8 glasses of water per day are needed. Here is a simple formula. Take your body weight and divide it by 2. That is a good estimate of how many ounces per day of water you should drink. Now, keep in mind, your food is also comprised primarily of water, especially if you’re eating lots of fruits and veggies, which are 80 to 90% water. You may be ingesting 15 – 20 ounces or more of water from fruits and veggies each day. So adjust your overall water intake after considering your food selections each day.
Why is hydration important for the musician? Here is what I find as a chiropractor. Musicians who are chronically dehydrated typically have numerous musculoskeletal problems. Chronic joint pains, muscle aches and pains, chronic spinal pain, sluggishness, foggy brain, and chronic blood pressure issues are common in these individuals. Dehydration leads to “sticky” muscle tissue that lead to adhesions and myofascial pain syndromes. The muscle is prone to tear more, and you are prone to strain muscles while performing music. And to think – changing these symptoms is as simple as drinking more water and ingesting more fruits and vegetables. (filtered spring water and organic fruits and veggies are best.) Unfortunately, most people run to their doctors when symptoms like these develop and are put on a regiment of medications – often making the problem worse because many medications dehydrate you.
A great way to determine if you’re getting enough water is to simply take a look at your urine. If it’s clear or near clear, you’re in good shape. Now keep in mind if you’re taking vitamins, your urine may change color (usually yellowish), particularly from the B vitamins. But even so, if you’re drinking lots of water, your urine should be relatively clear. If it’s Singers – do you ever get a dry throat during not clear and is darker in color, then you are singing? Outside of general nervousness most likely dehydrated. (More serious organ Continued on page 46. problems can change urine color too).
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“Going Glocal”- Building an Audience from Home to the Ends of the Earth by Keith Mohr & Sue Ross-Mohr
When the internet came into play, Acts 1:8 went live. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” There has been no previous time in human history that man could minister in living rooms around the earth without leaving his own living room. The power of digital media has enabled us to reach vast amounts of individuals, in different times zones and across the seas all at the same time. You would be hard pressed to find someone today that doesn’t have access to a computer, tablet or smartphone. All across the universe, there are avenues in which one can connect. We truly are living in the midst of an ever-changing, digital culture. We utilize FaceTime to talk with loved ones in the armed forces miles away, create new memories with children and grand babies who live on the other side of the planet, play a concert to thousands through streaming services, and co-write using tools such as Skype, Google Hangouts and Jitsi, just to name a few. New resources are popping up daily. How effectively are you utilizing digital media to get your music to every corner of the earth? From the creation process to promoting/ marketing the final product, the digital world provides ways to work smarter, instead of harder. Although the world is at your fingertips, building a solid, loyal audience still takes thought and planning. Use the bible as your guide to create a framework. The disciples started in Jerusalem. Right there in the city where they lived. Think of Judea as the next county. Samaria as the bordering state. Pull up a map. Draw a circle around your city, then draw another circle around that with a 50 mile radius. One more circle around that at the 100 mile mark. Once you have those drawn, put together a database that has all of the communities within those circles on the list. Yes, they will be a lot. Having these to research and build on gives you a starting point. There is nothing you can’t find on the internet. You can dig layers deep. Most people use the internet to share their lives, promote their events, and talk about their interests. It’s your job to find them, figure out what is in their pockets, where they are hanging out, what they are hungry for and then go and feed them!
of these avenues. As you read above, you need to know who they are and where they are. If you are a musician reaching the 35 to 55 year olds, then you probably won’t find them on Vine and Instagram. You are more likely to see them on Facebook and Pinterest. Once you pinpoint where they are, you can reach them and their friends around the world with a plan of order and action. Again, that word plan is essential. Your social and online campaign should be well thought out and pointed at the right target audience.
next to their name have connections through social networking that is world wide. Making a connection and cultivating a relationship with them takes them from a casual acquaintance to an engaged and loyal follower. Unsolicited, meaning you have zero relationship, takes a much longer time and you get lost in the sauce of so many others trying to win their attention. Working smart with social networks by developing a true, solid audience will get you to the ends of the earth with an all access pass in hand. Keep in mind, this does not happen over night and is a long term strategy to win friends and influence people. Its like a dimmer knob, not an on/off switch. The more you turn it, the brighter the room. How are you promoting your music? Scheduling a show and not marketing it, makes as much sense as preparing for a party and not inviting anyone. Social networking is more than just sharing what you had for dinner or that cute picture of your cat. You need to have a plan of action in place. When you look at the artists that are successful using social media, there are two things you will see; consistency and content of value. You engage, wanting to see what is next. It has value to you. You become emotionally involved, and this is the key. People who are emotionally engaged read what you write, listen to the music you create, and buy what you are selling. However, discovery is a two way street.
Knowing who your audience is and then knowing where they are, enables you to reach them socially around the world. The two biggest, of course, are Facebook and Twitter. There are more sites like Pinterest, About Me, LinkedIn, YouTube, God Tube, Vine, Tumblr and many Now, you are asking, how about the global more. (go to www.mohrcreativegroup.com/ part of glocal? Well, each of those individuals socialnetworks.pdf for a 2014 social network who you are making an effort to pen in ‘loyal’ infographic) We don’t advise everyone to use all
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We’ve all seen the ‘viral’ explosions. They amaze us. Most times they are unique, albeit simple. It’s not about being perfect these days, it’s all about being relevant. Everyone is looking for a way to ‘go viral’. We are asked this question so many times, how can this happen for me? Let’s go back to that loyal audience. Think of a set of dominos, set up side by side. When you have them all in place and you push one over, they all touch each other and go down one by one. The same happens when there is a viral explosion. Having that loyal base in place makes this possible. Each one of those connections touch others, their friends, their fans, their followers and then complete strangers begin to join in. The viral message begins to spread like wildfire. The way to touch the entire globe is to put this into action. The way to reach an audience has been reinvented. It’s time to take the “digital leap of faith”, dive in and invest time in this process. You can touch the ends of the earth with your music. With the power of digital media at your fingertips, your influence has no limits! Creatively His, Keith and Sue Mohr MOHR CREATIVE GROUP www.mohrcreativegroup.com Keith Mohr and Sue Ross-Mohr of “The Mohr Creative Group” have years of experience serving independent Christian artists, musicians and songwriters. Keith founded www.indieheaven.com in 2002, the leading portal for Christian independent music. Sue Ross-Mohr founded www.theinnervizion.com in 2003, a creative promotions /marketing/ consulting service to individuals and companies worldwide. Also check out www. indiemechanics.com for more helpful info!
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PRODUCT REVIEW
Apollo Twin
out there that kind of simulate this but not with the high end Mic Pre modeling of Universal Audio, and not without Latency issues.
By Michael Hodge
This year at winter NAMM 2014 Universal Audio released the Apollo Twin Desktop Audio interface. It’s a little brother companion to the Apollo, and Apollo 16 rack mount interfaces. I have been a fan and user of UA Plug-ins since the very first Mackie UAD-1 SOLO PCI card was introduced. When the Apollo came out a couple years ago the recording industry recognized it as a game changer. With the Apollo Twin, UA has reached out to the home studio market with a product that revolutionizes recording on a budget. Of course it comes with UAD Solo or Duo DSP chip inside which at this time sets it apart from anything else out there. OUT OF THE BOX:
IN USE:
with an optional eight more Inputs via ADAT Light Pipe. UA just happens to also make an 8 channel Lightpipe out preamp model 4-710d, that would be a perfect add on. FWIW, vents line the top rear of the unit for heat dissipation. THE SOFTWARE: The Twin comes with the Apollo Software consisting of the CONSOLE mixer that integrates with your DAW, and enables tracking and monitoring with Realtime UAD processing. This is where you can digitally control the Twin and add your plug-ins for the Input chains. The Console can save your session parameters and is completely recall friendly. Also included is the UAD meter and Control Panel application, showing all the stuff you need to know that’s going on inside the Twin. You can measure the load on your DSP chips, access the manual, and see what Plug-ins you own and try out any new ones you want free for two weeks. Speaking of Plug-ins, the UAD plugs are state of the art and are found in most professional studios. It’s amazing to have them there at your fingertips.
The Apollo’s are all manufactured with impressive quality control. Universal Audio, like Apple has got the packaging down to an art form. The box and presentation are both utilitarian and elegant. The unit is suspended in solid a foam rubber cocoon keeping it protected from shipping shock. Inside you will find a card with software download instructions, and a small box with the power supply. The power supply comes with adaptors for most every country’s AC outlets. The Power cable has a nice twist lock connector. This unit is travel ready no excuses. The Twin’s At this time the Twin comes bundled with a box 8”X8”X5” will fit comfortably in a carry-on number of great plug-ins. The Realtime Analog suitcase. Classics Bundle featuring the UA 610-B Tube Preamp and EQ, Softube Guitar and Bass THE HARDWARE: The Twin is a Sturdy brushed Aluminum Amps, The 1176 SE/LN Legacy Compressors, desktop wedge weighing in at about 2 ½ Pultec Pro EQ, LA-2A Compressor, the CS-1 pounds. It matches my Mac. On top is a Precision Channel strip, and the Realverb Pro.
large rotary knob surrounded by LEDs that correspond with the knob’s position. A button on the left assigns it to preamp gain, and one on the right assigns it to either monitor or headphone level. Pushing down on the large knob mutes the monitor out for recording. On the left side are Input level meters and on the right Output level meters. Below these are a row of six small preamp option buttons controlling, Input Select, Low Cut Filter, +48V, Pad, Polarity, And Channel Link for linking stereo inputs. In Front is a ¼ inch input jack on the left and a ¼ inch headphone out jack on the right. In Back are 2 Mic/Line Inputs, Stereo Monitor, and Line Outputs, ADAT Optical In, Thunderbolt port, Power Supply Input, and Power switch. This adds up to Two Analog Inputs and Six Analog Outputs
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LEAVING OTHERS BEHIND:
I’ve been using UAD plugs for years, and the Apollo for almost two years. The hardware has been rock solid. Downloading the Twin software is straight forward, and doesn’t require the dreaded ILOK! Setting up an account is pretty simple and downloading the software is a breeze. After installing, you can go online via the control panel or directly to uaudio.com and download an authorization file. I dragged the file on top of the Control Panel and a box said I was ready to go. I had the Twin up and running in 20 minutes. Console: I was a little confused by the Console at first, and how it integrated with Nuendo and PT11. It just works. Inserting a Preamp, Compressor or Amp simulator into the Input Chain is just like you would in a typical DAW insert. Watching the videos on the site are helpful and the manual walks you through all you need to know step by step. The recording quality with this interface is equal to the big Apollo. They have the same AD/DA converters and support up to 24-bit/192kHz. I don’t claim to be a golden ear, but I can’t hear any difference at all, they are both killer. I love using the Neve Mic Pre on Guitars and Vocals. I have some great hardware available but the UA plugs are fantastic. Another thing I use a lot is to try different pre combination. This would take some time with hardware and only takes a couple clicks with the Console recall feature. After using the unit for recording you still have use of the DSP inside to run plug-ins for mixing or whatever.
Here is where UA has an edge over anyone The Apollo works on Mac and Windows, while the Twin with its Thunderbolt only else that I know of. connection is Mac only. Also note that Mac Realtime UAD Processing is the term they Laptops with a Mini Display Port that looks use to describe the ability to have “no latency” exactly like Thunderbolt Port will not work. plug-ins in your recording chain. This is really The Twin supports OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion cool. UA’s Unison mic preamp technology or 10.9 Mavericks operating systems. I’ve been allows the Apollo Twin’s mic preamp to match running it successfully on PT10 & 11, Logic the impedance and gain staging of various Pro, and Cubase. It supports VST, AU, RTAS, Unison-enabled UAD Powered Plug-Ins and AAX64. You can use a Twin Solo or Duo (currently these are the new API Vision Console, with up to two additional UAD-2 PCIe cards 610 Tube Preamp, and Neve 1073 Plug-In in a qualified Thunderbolt PCIe chassis. The collections). With a Twin you can record with Twin requires a whopping 3 gigabytes of disc any UAD plug-in —like a Neve, Trident, or space. No Thunderbolt Cable is provided, so 610 — and add Compressor without latency. make sure you get one ahead of time or you Guitar & Bass players can plug in direct with are stuck! Fortunately they have them at Radio an added amp and cabinet. There are things Continued on page 46.
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Selective Hearing - Continued from page 26
resonate with anyone who has traveled the pathway of human experience. With songs that relate the faithfulness of a prayer warrior (“Midnight Shift at the Maplewood Methodist Church”), take the perspective of the divine, offering covering and comfort (“If You Ever Need a Friend”), extol the importance of drawing from past experience for strength (“My Mississippi”) and even more frivolous subjects like the murder ballad, “Smoking Gun” or the ode to a delusional Romeo in a singles bar, “I Get the Hint”, White has the gift of showing truth and value, even in mundane circumstance. What propels this album into instant classic status is the improbably great band that White put together on his first try at making a record. How does this lineup sound? Bryan Sutton on Guitar and stringed instruments, Stuart Duncan on Fiddle, The immortal Jerry Douglas on Dobro, Nashville stalwart, Greg garrison on bass, Paul Franklin on pedal steel, session legend, Eric Darken on percussion. Oh…..and a couple of fellas named Chris Thile on mandolin and Dan Tyminski on backing vocals. As if stellar songs weren’t enough, a world class country/pop/ bluegrass band only pushes the project into overdrive. Musically, while the players would suggest that this is a strictly country/bluegrass effort, White actually folds a healthy dose of James Taylor inspired pop flavor into his melodies, giving Long Roots a universal appeal. He even possesses a Taylor-esque vocal presence to match. White closes the album with a stunning elegy to life lived with eternity in mind called “End of the Road” which I could hear being sung at memorial services generations from now. No matter what your musical taste is, it is virtually impossible not to be impressed with how musically audacious and lyrically extraordinary David White’s debut entry into the world of modern music is.
debut album from Arizona singer/songwriter Heather Tyler, who with her co-writer/ percussionist husband, Jamison, comprise the family act. Tyler combines these four elements in a wonderfully effective manner, as the pair join with noted singer/writer/bassist/producer Patrick Andrew (ex PFR) and feature guitar contributions from the other former PFR singer, Joel Hanson to create a solid, musically arresting and lyrically authentic debut album. Trading in a very appealing 60’s inspired guitar pop (think the jangle of groups like The Byrds & Beatles and naturally PFR, mixed with the rootsy, heartland sound of Kim Hill, Tom Petty or The Gin Blossoms) with Heather Tyler’s appealing vocals in the forefront. The Waiting Room brims with ear pleasing tunes like the sparking, album opener, “Fun” (with an obvious nod to The Fab Four) the riffheavy worship styled “Always Strong” and the insistent, “Start Again” with its “Rain On the Scarecrow” inspired riff and lyrics celebrating the freedom of being liberated from selftyranny. The shimmering, restrained pop vibe of “Dive” features some creative guitar accents and an affecting, vulnerable vocal from Heather, bringing to mind the hushed intensity of Leigh Nash. The album highlight is the title track, a cut drawn from the real life experience of a family health emergency and the questioning that arises while waiting for ANYTHING to happen. The lyric provides comfort as it refuses to give pat, easy answers: “ It’s the wait that makes us who we are, it’s the trust that leads us in the dark, It’s the quiet that shows us how to hear, It’s the faith that drives away the fear.” Along with a monster opening guitar riff from Hanson, the chorus is insanely catchy and relentlessly cheery, contrasting the cautious questioning of the lyric. The Waiting Room is refreshingly free from a lyrical agenda, instead just ruminating on the whole of life – the good, the bad and the ugly – all from a clearly faith based perspective. If that sort of thing appeals to you…you know….good pop music, excellent musicianship and strong, thoughtful songwriting…. You just might want to click on the link above and pick up The Waiting Room.
The Waiting Room Tyler Independent https://squareup.com/market/tyler-projectllc/tyler-the-waiting-room Recipe for a truly notable debut record: Where I Am one part strong, Jen Haugland melodic tunes; one part Creative Soul Records relatable, honest lyrics... www.creativesoulrecords.com one part able, varied Yet another debut from an musicianship; one part, independent artist, Where I Am perceptive, talented is the work of singer/songwriter, producer. Well, the Jen Haugland. For a debut project, the 40
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songwriting is very strong as a clear lyrical voice is established. Haugland displays a good sense of melody and does not necessarily default to obvious chord voicing and progressions. I really like the aggressive guitar work on “Deep Into You” and the sense of gradual building to a climactic moment. The band that Haugland and producer, Eric Copeland pull together, featuring some of Nashville’s premiere session musicians, is pretty great and Copeland sensitively brings out the best in the arrangements, which are subtle where they need to be and appropriately atmospheric or moody when the moment calls for it. “The Storm”, “Where I Am” and “So Hard to Find” (especially) employ some sophisticated musical backdrops (some nice jazzy bits) that really dress the songs appropriately in melancholy finery. The 60’s pastiche of “Little Bit Crazy” draws inspiration from The Beatles and even recalls female artists like Sara Bareilles and Francesca Battistelli. The project really sounds warm (thanks to engineer, Ronnie Brookshire) as if it was mostly recorded with analog equipment. Part of that may be that there is precious little electronic influence on the album. There are occasional loops and such but it meshes pretty seamlessly with the acoustic elements. This record has a real human sound that matches well with the lyrics, too. Lyrically, Where I Am is clearly made for a “churched” audience so it should garner significant radio play. From a purely artistic point of view, putting aside the considerations of sales/audience/radio play, I would like to see a little more tension between the spirit and the flesh…….maybe see the process of struggle a little more, as Haugland does quite effectively with the song “Loved You Well.” Lyrics of encouragement and hope are that much more effective contrasted with the pathos of pain. I really do appreciate the fact that Haugland doesn’t avoid the deeper, darker subjects that are a part of the life of us all, Christian or not.
Shawn McLaughlin is a hard-working, dedicated, tireless worshipper of Christ.
3, 4, and 5’s for Summer Welcome to the summer installment of Guitar from A2Z, since the beginning of this year we have looked at the 5 note Pentatonic and the 6 note Blues scales with the focus of the patterns and exercises starting from the root and ascending up the scale, you should have a good grasp of this by now. If not take some time to review the last three lessons (or send me an email if you have any questions). So let’s change it up and look at three descending patterns in 3’s, 4’s and 5’s that make great warm ups and exercises along with monster licks that can energize your solos. For the following sets of examples it is best to start out slow to get the fingering, once you have
it, pick up the tempo. These patterns sound etc. Work on the note grouping then increase best when played using at least 16th notes at a your tempo while in 4/4 time it will sound tempo of 135 ppm or more. cool. Exp. #1 This pattern is set in groups of “3” Coda: Be sure to work your 3’s 4’s and 5’s descending in the A minor pentatonic. This 3 in other keys and positions around the neck, note grouping follow’s a down 3 up 1, down next time we will look at utilizing this in other 3 up 1, down 3 up 1 etc. scale modes and solo phrasing. This should Exp. #2 Here we are in groups of “4” down help get through the summer time blues. 4 then skip back up 2 notes, down 4 up back Roger Zimish is a freelance up 2, etc. guitarist / indie artist Exp. #3 This one can get tricky, start with the and clinician based in group of the “5” notes first to see where you Hendersonville Tn. Contact land on the neck. The pattern is down 5 then Roger: Email rogerzimish@ skips back up to the 4th note, down 5 up 4 yahoo.com, like Roger Zimish Guitarist on facebook.
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Testify Brother by Bryan Duncan
I was asked to give my “testimony” at a men’s breakfast a while back. I wasn’t sure where to start and I certainly didn’t know how to end it. When I think of what a “testimony” sounds like to me, I have this mental perception of “I once was lost and now I’m found” story lines. When we hear the Bible stories of Abraham, and David, and Samson, their stories are great. But they are also finished.
is processing to be done. But as I testify to others, it helps me remember to see God in my life. We should live our lives as if it will be the next story in the Bible. And absolutely, the plot will thicken. And I can only wait for how the twist might work out. I have to remind myself that it is a “road” to redemption and not a parking lot.
your principals” Psalm 119:71. I laughed when someone told me; “we should listen to old people, not because they are right but because they’ve had more experience being wrong”. The one thing I can testify to, about knowing Jesus, is that he walks me through everything that I can and cannot imagine. I can speak to his character. But it helps to have a “for instance” as my starting place. I testify in answer to a particular question. It helps to hear it as someone cross examining me on the witness stand, “What did you expect in knowing God?” or better yet, “Where were you on the night in question?”
A testimony need not be a finished story. To testify is to validate the reality of God in my life. So the truth is I can only take facets of my story as I am living it. In a lot of ways my story is still “I’m lost, I’m found, I’m lost, I’m found” because, with God’s help, I’m still writing it. The most encouraging part of my testimony is not the sorted details of my daily grind, Now, even my regrets and mistakes are but rather the insights I’ve been given thru a all valid parts of my testimony. I keep in particular confusion. mind that my take is merely one of the What I have found to share recently came corroborations’. Even finished it is not the after watching an old movie called “The Sixth whole picture. The great thing here is I am just Sense”. Right at the end of the movie they a witness to the truth. I don’t have to force a give you a piece of information that changes conviction. The truth will play out. And the Granted there are times where part of the whole story. Everything you thought you Judge will make his decision. your story cannot be told as of yet. There knew, about what was going on, had to be So I have testified on the question, “What rethought. can I expect from God?” I like what Oswald ‘During their lifetimes however, what would it be like, to hear them talk through their confusion. For instance, when Abraham wanted his wife to tell the Egyptians she was his sister so they wouldn’t kill him, cause Sarah was a babe. Or how about a testimony from David where he made the decision to put Bathsheba’s husband on the front lines to eliminate his own big mistake? And then there’s Samson during his days as a “player” and then he lost all his hair because of a woman. These men all knew God and still their lives were not all “fixed”.
Now that movie was not spectacular to me. But in thinking later about my testimony, it occurred to me that maybe I only think I know what my story is. “We see through the glass darkly” the Bible says, “but in that day it will be clear to us”. Wouldn’t it be just like God to show us a part of our story that changes everything including our own perception of it? Well, now that thought brings an enormous optimism to how I live through the valleys of the shadows. And so I start my testimony with my favorite scripture, “The sufferings you sent were good for me… they caused me to consider
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Chambers said, “to be certain of God, is to be uncertain in all our ways”. And that is the place in his testimony where I concur. And my greatest expectation of God is, to one day, know the part of my story that I do not know now.
As for how I live every day without knowing, I’d like to leave you with a scene from a T.V. series called HOUSE. Where Amber comes out of a coma, to hear her boyfriend, Dr. Wilson, give her the news that she only has hours to live. “Why aren’t you angry?”, he asks her (incredulous at her acceptance of the truth). And her answer was my epiphany, “Because that is not the last feeling I want to experience in this life”.
Bryan Duncan/ Singer / Songwriter/ author / Publisher. Radio Show host for RadioRehab.com Inducted into the Christian music Hall of Fame in 2007. 40 years, 22 albums, Dove and Grammy awarded. www.bryanduncan.com
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Conflict Resolution and Transformation in the Church by Brad Blyth
It is beyond profound the volume of lead pastors, worship teams, student pastors and churches asking for help in dealing with conflict. This is telling of the state of the church today. In all the church situations I have been a part of I have witnessed one major similarity: the helplessness of many churches where conflict has rotted their beautiful house of worship to a painful reminder of what was.
In light of this, if you have ‘false-self’ oriented people with those who are truly and proactively dying to self, and force them to cohabitate in church, you will have major spiritual conflict issues. When dealing with people one must ascertain the spiritual makeup of the group and constantly have mid-course spiritual corrections to realign the events with the Kingdom of God. The self/ flesh connection HAS to be the starting point My calling from God in the last number of all conflict-based discussions. of years has been to bring about sensible discussion and to resolve church conflict 2. SURRENDER right away. issues in a healthy way. What I have watched all along the way was that it did not matter I have found that if I lay down the sword in if the conflict was about a kids program, the very beginning of a conflict, very little worship, preaching or parking, the fight was bloodshed happens. Once I have publically on and sides were taken. So, in just a few acknowledged that I am not interested in simple points, meaningful Conflict Resolution winning or participating in any sort of fight, and Transformation is what I would like to the spiritual temperature in the room, and the relationships involved are instantly altered. I chat with you about in this article. always think of one weighty moment in the 1. The very essence of conflict is the life of Jesus when imagining this scenario when Peter cuts off the ear of the guard in the FALSE SELF or FLESH. garden. The FALSE SELF is invested in what IT wants. Paul and Jesus consistently refer to this as the Matthew 26:52-53 “Put your sword back in flesh. The false self is either in agreement its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw or disagreement with a certain situation the sword will die by the sword. Do you think based solely on it’s self-preservation and I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once gratification. Yet, the very essence of Jesus’ put at my disposal more than twelve legions of entire message is death to self. The old (false) angels? self dies and the new (true) self lives. This is why, as part of my teaching on baptism, I talk The principle is this: put your sword back about it as a drowning ceremony. It is to be in it’s place and if the plan is really God’s will then the Father and the angels will assure it. the death of the false self. 44
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This leads to number three.
3. Don’t defend yourself – EVER - let the Holy Spirit do it. As cheesy as this example is, you won’t forget it. I think of that Taylor Swift song, “We are never, ever, ever, getting back together – like ever!” Well, you should never, ever, ever, get baited into a place of defensiveness – like EVER! The minute you engage the other side with a defensive stance, you have set a massive trap that at some point will slam shut on you. Jesus rarely defended his actions while on earth and I believe that is also the example of the apostles in Acts. Let God defend you – you simply pray for wisdom and discernment throughout the issues at hand. This is NOT to say that you relinquish from explaining your position thoroughly – you simply do not get into a debate as to the quality or validity of your ideas.
4. Prepare to be slaughtered on social media. This is just the age we live in. Since Twitter and Facebook came on the scene, and in every church conflict situation I have been involved in, I was decimated with abundant comments and pages dedicated to what a loser I was. One string on Facebook even talked about putting me in the truck of a car and getting rid of me, and that wasn’t even
SEATTLE / TACOMA
FALL GUITAR SHOW 2014 Guitars Amps Mandolins Lap Steels Ukes Banjos Pedals
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Kent Commons, Kent, WA
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VINTAGE BUY USED SWAP NEW SELL Show Venue:
Kent Commons 525 4th Ave N, Kent, WA 98032
Exhibit/Vendor Tables $60.00 For information or booth reservations 253-445-1973 bruceadolph@mac.com The Seattle-Tacoma Guitar Show mailing address 4227 S. Meridian #C-275 Puyallup, WA 98373
Be sure to check out the brand new Tacoma Guitar Festival, Sun, May 17, 2015 photo: Joe Riggio courtesy of Rick King
www.seatacguitarshow.com
the NY church! Get used to it – this is TMZ kids, I would remind them of the unbelievably for ministry. Just let it go. good pizza we were going to devour in the West Village, as well as visits to the Apple 5. Conflict transformation in the Store, FAO Schwarz and Central Park. If I church comes in episodes rather than a reminded them of the good that was ahead, single sit down movie. the pain of the trip seemed to convert into anticipation of something great. Just like a major drama like NCIS has 24 episodes, there are storylines and various Provide a beautiful picture of what great characters that come in and out of the things God is up to in your church! movement of what God is doing in a church. We may get too much big picture thinking when really the playing out of these moments are much more day to day, Brad Blyth is Lead Pastor at Westside Community Church in Orlando, Florida. He lives there with his and week to week. In other words, we will wife Melissa, son Jack and daughter Natalie. They faithfully work through the conflict story in also have a huge 120 lb. Chocolate Lab named episodes versus one big meeting that will fix Charlie and a cat named Wilson (after Seattle everything. Each experience is connected Seahawk quarterback Russell Wilson). Brad can be but separate within the layers of what God reached at brad@westsidecc.org is doing in a particular church.
6. Always provide a hope, an end and a future to the present trouble. Part of our role as a Pastor is to dispense the hope that our God is in control and has a plan through all this struggling. Somewhat like a car ride to somewhere with your kids. When we would drive into the city with our
Apollo Twin review - Cont. from page 38
Musician’s Doc - Cont. from page 34
Shack & of course the Mac store.
and/or stage fright, you are most likely dehydrated. And here’s the problem – drinking some water just before you sing is not going to immediately rehydrate you. It takes 30 to 60 minutes for that water to enter your digestive system, be absorbed into your blood stream, and then supply the water to the tissues in your throat. If you know you are singing – you should begin hydrating the DAY BEFORE. And if you’re really taking care of yourself, you will be drinking water every day – so you will already be hydrated. Proactive wellness is so important for the musician and vocalist.
FINAL THOUGHTS: The UA Twin is bringing professional grade gear to the little guy. Lots of producers and engineers will be snatching these up to do overdubs, and vocals etc. It’s rare for a product to do so much for an affordable price. With The Twin I can confidently record Guitars and Vocals with my Laptop, knowing that all things being equal they will be professional sounding. The UA Twin would be a great choice for anyone starting out, or for someone like me who records in different places and needs a laptop rig. No ILOK required is a big plus. Being able to access and try out any of the UA plug-ins for two weeks painlessly is cool too. Once you register your hardware you will get discounts and promotion emails too. Two big thumbs up! The Street price for a Twin Duo is $899.00, and the Twin Solo is $699.00. For more info: www.uaudio.com. Michael Hodge is the music director and guitarist for Lakewood Church in Houston, TX
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Ok, here is where the rubber meets the road. Coffee, alcohol, soft drinks (diet and regular), and sugary teas, do not count towards your daily water intake numbers. In fact, they take away from them. Coffee and alcohol will dehydrate you. Water is the best source – although some teas are ok, such as unsweetened green tea. Unless you enjoy dry throat and feeling the need to constantly clear your throat – don’t drink
CHRISTIANMUSICIAN.COM
coffee (especially with creamer) before you sing. Finally, be aware of your environment. If you’re performing outside in the sun, especially during the summer months, increase the water consumption. Now that I’ve written all this great info, I will let my wife know that I am making positive changes in my water intake. But I need to finish my cup of yummy Ugandan Peaberry coffee first. Dr. Tim Jameson’s purpose is healing through music and through his hands. He is in his 25th year as a chiropractor, and is in his eighth year leading worship at Christ’s Community Church in Hayward, CA. He is the author of two books, Repetitive Strain Injuries, and Reach For the Top: The Musician’s Guide to Health, Wealth, and Success. His chiropractic office is located in Castro Valley, CA. You can find him at www.jamesonchiro.com and musicianshealth.com. email: drtimjameson@gmail.com.
Break the Silence
Yamaha Silent Violins have served musicians admirably
for years. Never complacent, Yamaha has improved the tone,
feel and form to meet the specific needs of performing artists.
Introducing the Yamaha SV-250 and SV-255 professional
violins. Designed to thrive in the spotlight of live events, these
4- and 5-string instruments feature spruce and maple bodies, direct PA connections and a pickup system enhanced for premium sound quality. For details, visit the website below,
scan the QR code, or play the SV-250/255 out loud at
a Yamaha Strings dealer today. www.4wrd.it/SV250CM
Upcoming Events for Norm Stockton July 17-19, 2014 Summer NAMM Show, Nashville, TN (MTD booth) September 6, 2014 Bobby Kimball (TOTO), Orange County, CA September 11, 2014 Bobby Kimball (TOTO), Midland, TX September 12, 2014 Bobby Kimball (TOTO), Portland, OR September 26, 2014 Bill Champlin (CHICAGO), Houston, TX Norm will also be resuming work on Lincoln Brewster’s much-anticipated debut instrumental project this fall. Stay tuned! Additional dates pending. See NormStockton.com for further info.