Tools and Tips

A collection of 42 posts

Direct.app

Elevating Your Merch Game: Strategies for Creating Meaningful Band Merchandise

Selling merchandise can lead to a more engaged audience, turn fans into ambassadors, generate revenue, foster collaborations with others, and attract new followers.

Drums

Drummers in 2023: Do you need them?

The role of the modern drummer has changed a lot over the years – and that’s putting it lightly. To examine the purpose of drummers, the question needs to be “What do people want from the drums?”

songwriting

How To Stay Inspired During Songwriting

Inspiration comes and goes, but in a line of work such as songwriting, it may not come when we need it most. Here’s 5 tips to help you find that inspiration.

Drums

Drum Beats – How To Go From Beginner To Advanced

It’s not about what you play on the drums, but how you play it. Today, I’ll be breaking down different aspects of grooves which often separate the best from the rest.

Tools and Tips

The Best Headphones for Mixing and Recording

We’ve put together a list of great headphones for recording and mixing that don’t surpass the £150 threshold, based on tests from leading audio & gear outlets.

Tools and Tips

5 Marketing Tips for Small and Independent Musicians

It can be tough to gain an audience, market yourself, and grow as a small musician all while creating music you love. We've compiled some tips and tricks all musicians can utilise. Here is a list of five tips to ease the stresses of marketing.

Tools and Tips

MIDI beats 2: Seven rhythms songwriters use for the perfect beat

Still searching for the perfect beat to your song? Let's examine some popular drumbeats that have been used to great success. No matter what genre you’re after, there tends to be a “go-to” pattern.

Tools and Tips

MIDI beats: A Songwriter's Guide to Beat-Making in Logic Pro X

Want to create your own beats but can’t afford to record them? I’ve got you covered. Today we’ll explore how you can use MIDI to record and compose your own music, and the tools you’ll need to do so.

Tools and Tips

Four questions to ask before you release new music in December (as an independent artist)

Timing is everything when it comes to releasing new music. When an artist is signed to a record label, chances are their release dates have already been set, with the backing of various label-funded marketing plans and strategies.

Tools and Tips

Why and How TikTok is Transforming the Music Industry As We Know It Today

Since its launch back in 2016, TikTok has experienced tremendous growth in popularity, with approximately 1.5 billion daily users globally by early 2022. The app’s booming success has led to an increase in the usage of the platform by musicians as a fresh means of promoting new songs.

songwriting

4 Ways To Make Your Music Sound Spooky

With spooky season just around the corner, we thought it was only bright to dive into the world of horror/Halloween music. This is a very established sound, which we can easily identify since we've heard it so many times before, and is quite easy to achieve.

Drums

Essential Drumming Guide Part 3: Becoming a Successful Drummer

This article will cover the different ways you can make money as a drummer, and the skills required to do so. Remember, you don’t have to limit yourself to one option, nor do you have to do them all. Focus on what you enjoy the most and think about the workload.

Tools and Tips

The Limitations of Intellectual Property in the Music Industry

At its core, I can’t think of anything wrong with the idea of intellectual property or copyright. But unfortunately, the realm of music is more abstract than the realm of glass and copper wires. Grey areas are the daily agenda.

Tools and Tips

4 Ways to Make Your Melodies More Interesting

Writing a melody is pretty straightforward. Just stick to the white keys on the piano and make sure it's four bars long, right? True, that will give you a nice and coherent melody, but it won't give you a very interesting one.

Tools and Tips

Essential Drumming Guide Part 2: Practising 101

Like any hobby or profession, becoming a great drummer comes from hours of practice. The more you practise, the better you’ll get – but it’s not quite that simple.

Recommendations

Budget Audio Interfaces: The 5 Best Audio Interfaces that You Can Actually Afford

In 2022, you don’t need to spend a lot of money to start making music. This article will show you that there are options for audio interfaces that really are affordable.

songwriting

5 Common Chord Progressions (with song examples)

In this article, we'll show you 5 of the most popular chord progressions and some well-known songs that use them. We'll also explain the music theory behind each one so that you can use them in your music!

Tools and Tips

Mix A Track With Me: Part 2 - Creative Mix Techniques

in this article I will go in-depth into some creative mix techniques that are sure to make your mixes stand out from the crowd, Such as Serial Compression and Side-Chaining - which you can then implement into your mixing sessions.

Tools and Tips

Essential Drumming Guide - Part 1: Everything you need to kickstart your drumming

This is part of a series for beginners, covering all the main talking points on drumming. Today, I’ll explain everything you should consider when starting out, and how to make choices that will benefit you.

Tools and Tips

4 Arrangement Tips and Tricks to Help Bring Your Tracks to Life

While it’s true that chords, melodies, and lyrics are hugely important when it comes to creating great songs, one equally vital aspect that tends to get overlooked is the way you arrange your tracks.

Tools and Tips

How to discover new music

Finding new music can seem like an overwhelming task, but there are many ways to dive into the world of music and expand your taste without feeling entirely lost.

Music Creation

Self-releasing music? Here’s how to choose the right distributor for you.

In 2022, there are more options available to the self-releasing artist than ever before. However, it can be difficult to know which distributor is the best choice for you. Thankfully, this post should provide you with a little more clarity depending on your situation.

Audio Effects

Mixing Vocals at Home: How to Create a Professional Vocal Chain Using Free Plug-Ins

You’ve written a hit, recorded each instrument part and compiled your best vocal takes - now it’s time to glue it all together with a great mix.

Careers

Music as a 9-5: How many streams per month do you need to pay the bills?

How many streams should you bag every month to pay your rent and utility bills? Let's take a look and see if it's possible to live off income from streaming services.

Careers

Helpful Tips for Starting Out as a Session Musician

If the goal is to carve a sustainable career from playing music, then the path of a session musician might be for you.