So you're having a C.D. Launch.. good onya... here's some things to think about..... Tips and tricks from A# Recording Studios own, Jeff Cripps.

HOW TO TUNE A DRUM KIT, courtesy Jeff Cripps, A# Sharp Studio. Yes, how to “tune” a drum kit … Most folk aren’t aware, that drums do have a “note”, and can be tuned.

Give yourself the best chance in a band comp 18/01/2009 2:32:00 PM I’ve had the pleasure for the last two weeks of stage managing a band competition. It has been a great experience...there was some great young talent on display playing some really good original music. From my point of view there were a few simple things that some of the bands could have done to make it easier on themselves.

KANG lures unsuspecting patrons to many a gig using many and varied techniques, but leaving out streaking through campuses with venues and dates painted on our bare bits, or scorching dates onto school ovals then calling in bomb threats.

Over time it has been well documented that occasionally record labels will direct artists into a style of music not so familiar with the artist’s usual style. Why? In most, if not all of the cases the record company wants to target a specific market, a market that has a larger slice of purchasing power & is more accessible with the product or a marketplace more acceptable to the artist’s image.

Every now and then we get to see a GREAT example of someone communicating personally to their fan base. It doesn't take a fancy email system (though we have some great services to help). It doesn't take perfect grammar. It doesn't take much time.

Live performance is arguably the most important aspect of a music artist's career. Because it is potentially a very glamorous and exciting experience, it is not uncommon for performers to forget that for the clubs and other live venues who book and showcase live music, it is a business, a very serious business, fraught with risk and considerable competition.

A classic Sydney summer morning in a trendy little cafe in Glebe, Im sitting back sipping coffee with two Country Music stars that are a generation apart and a country music radio icon, 2SER broadcaster Barbara Morrison. Talking anything from Holden cars to Jerry Lee Louis setting fire to a piano so Chuck Berry wouldnt up stage him, the somewhat unique Glebe locals stroll past to their favourite coffee joint, totally unaware that these two blokes are holding one of the biggest prizes in Australian Country music, a Golden Guitar.

How to Grab the Attention of a Music Director... I am not having a shot at radio music directors, but the fact remains that [more] artists' music ends up unheard and on the floor in the MD's office than is selected for airplay.

As industry insiders, we sometimes forget that when discussing the recording process, the rest of the world really has no idea what we are talking about. Hopefully this will provide an explanation of the song formation process in layman’s terms so that there may be less disconnect between the professional and the consumer. As with any creative process, there is no absolute hard and fast procedure that must be followed stringently, but there is a logical development that all recordings must go through.