This is a guest post by Levente

For one, devoting your life to any kind of art is not only honourable and good, but it is also very natural

Like the more time I spend creating and playing music, the more that’s all I want to do

Sometimes I get annoyed when Soso or  or Lablah the bandees want to smoke weed for like 45 minutes when my brain is wanting to be submerged in playing music

And that’s a voluntary activity

But it takes away from what’s pulling my very existence

On the other, life is here for the living and though there are so many facets of songwriting that you could indeed spend every waking moment on it and never run out of things to improve and create.

...

If you don’t take the time to live life, and enjoy some of it, take in art whether it be in games, TV, film, books, or anything else, you deny yourself the possibility of any of those things expanding your creative mind and leading you to places you wouldn’t have gone otherwise


Not to mention receiving art into your mind is a way of connecting with all the humans who made it, and therefor gives you practice at connecting with humans, seeing how other artists do it, and draw your own conclusions there.

I’d argue that a great portion of art creation is sharing existence with other humans. You think the composers of yore didn’t have hobbies on the side?

Tune in to Loosechange604 on twitch. Streams Most nights at Midnight PST

​It's a question in search of an answer over here at Gene Media. I know its possible to map a drum kit to a GM sound font with different samples based on note and velocity, but how do you do it?

​step one - ask questions... What am I trying to do? well I just answered that above. Moving on

I need to find out a couple of things, 

• What software to use 
• What is the General Midi standard for Drum Kits (GM DRUMKIT)? 
• What are the standard formats to use with plugins?
• How do I work the software? 

​I'll get back to you on this one.

Behaviour is akin to your day to day actions. Why is this important? It affects everything you touch. It's the main driver of cause and effect. Actions are the movers of reality, driven by our feelings, beliefs and conditioning (internal or external) Behaviour is affected by everything you are and affects everything you will become. 

​There's no right or wrong answer. It's not even a question that needs to be answered; however, it does help to look within, or to consider your past to ask yourself this question. Pay attention to what your inner voice says about this. 

​For several months now, I've been making a conscious effort to make NO complaints, to avoid phrases like "I want to" "I should" or "I need to"

As a result, any depression I may have had in the past has all but vanished. I wake up feeling ready for the day that lies ahead. Now, I'm not a perfect Specimin here, I'm a human being with human vices. Sometimes I slip back into the old patterns, but paying conscious attention to my behaviour, both internally via my thoughts and externally via my actions/habits/routines/processes, has given me a certain level of awareness that I wouldn't otherwise have noticed.

​Short answer yes, but why? Nobody's perfect as I may have mentioned, but the behavioural awareness factor provides a good indicator of whether or not I'm on track towards the larger vision that I have for my life.

​This is the challenge isn't it? What is the best way to tell if one is conscious of ones behaviour? Perhaps it's a matter of taste, considering human personality archetypes, and each individuals own experiences/patterns/etc, there's no one-sized-fits-all approach to this. Some people meditate, others journal, others have conversations with people they trust, while the less-aware most likely avoid it entirely in favour of escapism and instant gratification.

​This is the action of reflecting on the past as a way to improve. One might look back on a past mistake and see it as either a failure or an opportunity to learn. It's the concept of duality, which I won't get into too deeply right here, it's simply a matter of perspective and which perspective you choose to embrace.

​An affirmation is a Statement like "I'm Grateful For __" or "I am ___." Be aware of the power of the words you choose for this. In keeping with the principle of beginning with the end in mind, an affirmation is made as if you have already achieved the outcome. It's powerful because it helps you train your mind to begin to believe it through repetition, but be aware that the shift in action does not necessarily happen right away. It takes a certain level of commitment to it. Affirmations are a technique that can be used to effectively Re-wire the mind for a better result in the day-to-day. 

​An affirmation is a Statement like "I'm Grateful For __" or "I am ___." Be aware of the power of the words you choose for this. In keeping with the principle of beginning with the end in mind, an affirmation is made as if you have already achieved the outcome. It's powerful because it helps you train your mind to begin to believe it through repetition, but be aware that the shift in action does not necessarily happen right away. It takes a certain level of commitment to it. Affirmations are a technique that can be used to effectively Re-wire the mind for a better result in the day-to-day. 

​Goals are akin to wants. They're the outcomes you want to achieve, and steadfast mindfulness and articulation of said goals can help one create the desire that is necessary to drive the behaviour necessary to achieve them.

​With the goal in mind, a checklist can provide a step-by-step playbook on how to get moving. Checklists are great for repeatable daily tasks since they remove mental energy from a new routine that is being cultivated so that you can focus on more important things (like creativity.) From there it's a matter of taking the time to go through the motions. It can also provide an easy reference for when you're contemplating your day by simply asking yourself 'Did I spend time on the things, or not?'

​I was reading a book called What to Say When You Talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter. He explained the concept of personal development in a very practical way - at 5 levels. It really struck a chord with me. I'm still reflecting on it, but I wanted to share it. 

 Basically, each level was described as being directly influenced by the next one. 

1- Behaviour
2- Feelings
3- Attitudes
4- Beliefs
5- Conditioning

It's interesting to conceptualize this as a way to maintain a decent mindset, Imagine yourself doing a quick self-check with these categories in mind. What do you notice?

To me, it makes more sense to present yourself in a genuine way like, if you're just being genuine, that's as original as it gets. It's not as easy as 'just do it' and learn from the experience' is it?

The whole finding your voice and presentation of it

to me its a little bit scary and I just want to do it right the first time. I'll be honest, I tend to overthink it.

Maybe it's easier for a guitarist to sing a few covers the first time they go on stage to get over the fear of doing it in the first place.
That doesn't necessarily mean the artist is unoriginal.
From that perspective, maybe imitation can act as a tool to help overcome a certain obstacle.

​I'm not sure. 

Hey, what's up everyone, Cody Gene here with a quick Graphic Design Tutorial using GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) This Technique can be adapted for Adobe Photoshop as well. I don't often make these types of tutorials, but I found a way to make Interesting Coloured text so I thought I'd share.


Song - LC Dub - Viral Dub 2020. 
You can download the latest Release free (LC Dub - the ever setting sun)  by joining the mailing list here

I'm Here to try.
To try and to fail
Repeatedly, Unapologetically.
To push boundaries, To open doors, To expand horizons
Face fears, and to seek perfection...
But not to expect it.

I'm Here to have compassion
to listen with empathy
To stay humble
To always strive for the best path
​Moving forward

Making failure your main objective - 

What happens when you're afraid you're going to be wrong? Speaking from experience with this one here because it's something I struggle with regularly. Constantly seeking perfection instead of jumping to it and figuring out the minutae later, one can end up seeking what may never come ending up in an endless spiral of preparation with no activity to back it up...

The cure for imposter syndrome

So what do you do? well, do something! Do anything! It's not like those people out there waiting to hear your music or hear your message are out to judge you, Sure some might be, but who spends their life worrying about trolls on the internet? If they do it should be like water rolling off a wax surface. Thick skin. Having such skin, you know, those nay-sayers were not the right people for your art anyways, so who cares what they say. If your message resonates, you WILL recieve confirmation that what you're doing is on the right track. 

Such is the nature of perfection

It doesn't have to be all perfect all the time, Welcome to the realization of being human. We're here to experience, to grow, to try, to fail, to learn, and eventually achieve  mastery over our pursuits.  

afraid to lose

So do the costs outweigh the rewards? You've heard people say that you have to spend money to make money right? Well this is partly true for musicians also. Every step of the way from songwriting, to recording, to production, to launch. The same can be said for energy. How you spend it, the value it brings to other, and the return on the investment of it...

 Want to write a guitar song but don't own a guitar? would getting your hands on one help you achieve the goal?

Want to record an album but don't have gear? would getting some help you achieve the goal? or would it be a more productive use of your time to go find someone to help you who is already set up? 

want to release that album to more people than friends and family? There are people who love your music,  Would it be worth reaching out? would the effort be worth it to you? Or would you try learn the tools of E-commerce to try to do it yourself?

worried about what others think of you

If you're scared, why? If the fear is holding you back, face it head on. Many times you'll realize 'hey if this experiment goes absolutely sideways, I'll still be able to make ends meet. It won't be the end of the world if I do fail, and I'll have gained some valuable experience from the whole process.'

Action is the catalyst for opportunities. Take action, screw fear. Sit down for a moment and ask yourself, what is the worst thing that could happen if I attempt this thing I want to do? count backwards

5-4-3-2-1 go... 

Please don't complain that your gear isn't good enough, or that you're not good enough. Seriously, Stop complaining. Recording is one part artform and one part physics. You as an artist should be learning to trust yourself. That's right, not every project is going to be perfect. Get over it, It doesn't actually matter as much as you might think. 

1: quality on the input

This comes down to your performance, and your overall sound. It's like this, if you practice your song. You will get better results.

It also ties into the quality of your gear. Is your guitar set up properly? does it stay in tune? do you need fresh strings? do you have clean pre-amps for your microphones?

2: Put things in balance

When you have your tracks, lets say you took 3 guitar takes, put them together in a way that blends smoothly. Lets say you've added some soft-synths? and some midi drums. Do they blend? did you put on your engineering hat and use your mixing tricks to make space so that everything sounds good? 

3 Finishing touches.

Adding embelleshments, automation, Final adjustments for dynamics, keeping the song interesting from start to finish. 

​Here at Gene Media, we don't care how you get there. We recognize that everyone is unique in their own approach, or as a smart author once said, "we each have our own game." The whole point is putting trust in yourself, trust in your ears, trust in your process, and trust your ability.