I’ve been saying for a long while now that local music in the Capital Region and liberal politics have been a pretty big problem. I’ve been noticing that for a while and I’m not afraid to be realistic about it. Why is most of this area’s music scene being a bunch of liberal loudmouths and SJW’s? Lets make some observations shall we?

Well, a lot lately, I’ve been noticing some online websites that promotes local music, but at the same time they promote liberal propaganda. I believe that all started with the now defunct Metroland newspaper. When the Metroland used to be around, they would use the paper to promote the local arts. That’s what the paper used to be about really, but mostly I see them using the newspaper to promote liberal politics and local music both at the same time. Now that the Metroland is out of business due to not paying their taxes of their office building, they have now transformed into The Alt which is an online only kind of paper thing.

The Alt is kind of similar to Metroland. They promote the local arts, local music and they promote liberal propaganda as well. This week, I started looking at the The Alt website… check it out here: http://thealt.com/

As you can see, the Alt website has gotten much worse with their liberal bias. The Alt is a lot more further left than the Metroland was, in my opinion. The Alt is ultra-left as you can see in their political blogs on their site.

A few articles on there that got my attention were David King’s articles on the NRA. He’s just another anti-NRA nutjob. His two articles that he wrote on the NRA that I read are worthy of a blog response and I’ll respond to his opinion articles in another blog post some other time, but I must say those David King’s hateful ranting toward the NRA and law-abiding citizens were comical to read. You can betcha I’ll have a lot to say about his opinion pieces. I’ll respond to his NRA articles soon so stay tuned, y’all. It’s gonna be good and I’m gonna be honest and brutal. David King just doesn’t realize that the more he bashes the NRA, the more it’s gonna get people interested in joining. He’s just being an NRA salesman and that is all.

Anyway, back to the Capital Region and liberal politics, what is going on here, ya know? It’s very sad to see all this and disgusting too. Why can’t we all just shut up and play the music? If there is one thing that I can think of that is hurting this area’s music scene, this is it. I wish the local music press would stop talking about liberal politics ’cause that is not a good way to promote local music. If you think being political loudmouths is gonna bring people out to the gigs then you’re delusional.

That’s probably why I’ll never gig again. I don’t think I will and me gigging out in the scene won’t happen anytime soon ’cause I’m tired of the liberal SJW’s that are out in the scene. It’s not just online websites that are the problem, the local news like WNYT, The Post Star, The Times Union, etc. They all can be just as bad with the liberal bias. Liberal bias is everywhere in Upstate NY and quite frankly, I’m pretty sick of it. All the local news and local music press that promote liberal politics, they always go by what the mainstream media does.

The local music scene in the Capital Region is full of liberals. The reason is that the local press seems to ram the liberal propaganda down our throats. The mainstream media is responsible for that too.

I used to support the local music scene ’cause I love live music and I love performing live myself, but I can’t support the local music scene anymore with the way it’s going. I’ll always make music, though ’cause that’s what I do. I wish all musicians and promoters around here would just shut up and play the music. Instead, they’re all being political activists which really saddens me.

Kev

Whenever I criticize the Capital Region music scene, it’s always looked at as “controversial”. Why? It’s because not many wants to be honest about the music scene. Not a lot of people wants to be real about it. It’s just that the local press and local music blogs on the internet always want to promote the music scene as positive and lovable. No one out there wants to be real about it. The thing is that the local press and local internet blogs that are out there wants to make the Capital Region music scene look like a big music scene when it isn’t really. The reality is the music scene is pretty much a “shithole”. There is nothing here and that’s the truth that no one wants to talk about.

There is a lot of talent out there around this area but there are not much venues to play at anymore. Venues come and go around this area for sure. It’s gotten much harder to book gigs in this area as well.

I can sit here and talk about all day why this music scene is so bad. One reason is that this scene can be pretty cliquey. There’s always heated arguments of “professionals vs. amateurs” and “originals vs. covers”.

The bigger problem with this area is that if they feel that if you’re not a professional enough musician then your reputation could get destroyed just like that. If they feel you’re not a real musician then they will feel you do not belong. If they see you as a hobbyist kind of musician, they’ll start to feel more superior. If you’re not professional enough then it’ll be harder for you to get gigs around here ’cause of the huge egos and stuff. Yes, there are a lot of huge egos around here. Not just musicians… promoters and venue owners can be huge egos too. There are too many around with a rock star attitude and acting all pretentious. It’s crazy.

When I first started playing out in the past, I’ll admit I had some ups and downs playing gigs myself. I had to go through a lot of negativity, drama and crazy stuff just to get myself playing. That’s all I want to do is get myself out there and play music like everyone else. Of course, you’re going to have to deal with huge egos and haters who want to see you fail. That’s the name of the game, I guess.

People around here will never admit that this scene is so bad ’cause they can’t handle the truth. I think they all know, they just don’t want to say it publicly.

Another thing I hate about this music scene is that this music scene is pretty liberal with their politics. Yeah, Hollywood has a  liberal problem but the Capital Region music scene is much worse. Local musicians and bands can too be a bunch of liberal loudmouths. This is another reason I refuse to play around this area again. Whatever happened to keeping politics and music separate? I also feel like I’ve been totally blacklisted from the music scene ’cause of my conservative politics and support for Donald Trump. I don’t give a shit, though. If they can talk politics then I can too.

One thing for sure though, it’s amazing to me the Capital Region music scene are so tolerant with others views in politics (note the sarcasm). When I talk my right-wing politics,  I’ve had musicians around the area refusing to support me ’cause of it and maybe this is why the local blogs refuses to write about me ’cause of my political views. Oh absolutely I’ve been attacked by many in the Capital Region music scene ’cause of my right-wing stuff. It does sickens me that most in the Capital Region are pretty liberal… even some of the most established musicians and promoters are pretty liberal. There are conservative musicians around here but not many. I’m sure they’ve been blacklisted from the scene too.

Would I ever get back out to play music live again? I’d like to but it’s pretty unlikely. This scene sucks. It always did. It’s not always fun being a musician, there’s always going to be ups and downs like I said. I might hit a few open mics but that’s about all. I’m not sure if I’ll play an actual gig around here, though. This scene is too much for me.

However, though… I do love playing music live for the internet and I’ll always do that. When I start writing songs again and learning new covers, I would video tape myself performing them. I still have plans in doing a home show for the live internet and I’ll probably do that on FB Live sometime. Sounds like fun.

Kev

Yeah, Greenwich is no doubt a pretty musical town but as the title says… there are no venues at all here. I myself have been a part of the so-called Greenwich music scene for many years.

Greenwich used to have an actual music venue which is a place that used to be called the Old Station Inn. The Old Station Inn is no longer around. It went out of business finally after all these years that has been around.

Yes, I have played Greenwich locally for a long time. Back when I was starting out playing guitar, I used to sneak into the Old Station Inn better known as the “O.S.I.” in which the town used to call it… “The OSI” which is a bar. I used to sneak into OSI on their open mic jam nights which used to be held every Thursday nights back in the day. Back then, I did whatever I could to play my music out.. Play original songs and covers…. whatever. I didn’t care if I sucked or not, I just wanted to get out there and do something. That was back when I was in my late teens… when I was 18 or 19. I was sneaking into bars to play open mic nights, haha. Those were the days,  though. I’ll never forget them.

I’ve also played open mics all over this town too over the years like at diners and restaurants. I remember once that I put myself together a gig at a Greenwich Diner years ago. It was an acoustic gig that featured acoustic artists… I’ll never forget that Livery Café gig. I’ve also played another gig at the Greenwich High School which was Songwriters Night and it was hosted by Bob Warren, I remember.

Yeah, I have been a part of the Greenwich music scene for a long time myself, but I still continue to get overlooked and seem to get underappreciated still but that’s okay. I don’t do this to become a big name anyways. I just play ’cause it’s what I do and I just do my thang, ya know?

While this article did a great job naming some well-known musicians in my hometown… they are missing out plenty of others that I can name especially Jimmy Cristaldi (who taught me how to play guitar a little bit), Green (can’t believe they get left out), Howard Gardephe, Moon Rob McGeoch, Tom Keller, Wendy Nolan and the list can go on and on.

And don’t forget, me… yours truly.

https://dailygazette.com/article/2018/02/04/musical-talent-puts-greenwich-in-spotlight

Yeah, Greenwich is full of talent but once again, no places to play here. So I can’t blame some of these guys for playing gigs else where. I did the same. When I used to play gigs, I played all over the Capital District myself.

Admittedly, I haven’t played out in a long while but that’s because I don’t really need to play out all the time. I only play out when I got something to show for it like new songs and stuff. I’ll get myself back out there at some point. I do miss performing on the stage.

The article is a great read, though.

Kev

Both of these quotes by these two artists are real. They really said them during media interviews, they said them on TV and all it takes is an easy google research to find ’em. It’s easy to figure out which one of these guys is the egomaniac and the humble musician. You can betcha Kanye is the ego one and Jimi is the humble one.

Jimi never really liked to be called a guitar god or a virtuoso. When people tell him that he is, he’ll just laugh ’em off and Jimi will just say things like, “I do what I do. Just play the guitar”. Kanye however will refer to himself as a music god or a genius or whatever.

If you want an example of how musicians and music artists are different then this meme explains it nicely.

Being an ego-maniac isn’t healthy for your music life. When you have that attitude, other musicians and even music fans will look at you with pure disdain. You’ll lose a lot of respect when people see that you can be full of yourself. Musicians with an egomaniacal attitude can be a real turn-off for some. Acting like you’re a music god, thinking that you’re better than others, etc. You get the deal.

When you have a humble attitude like Hendrix by not taking yourself so serious and just play… people will treat you with more respect and will take you more seriously as a musician. The humble musician is someone who doesn’t brag about their musicianship constantly and doesn’t brag about their success in music. The humble musician doesn’t call him/herself a genius and just allows the music to speak on its own.

I wish there are more musicians like Hendrix than there are of Kanye. There are too many Kanye-like musicians around here nowadays. Not just in the major label industry… there are ego-maniacs in local music scenes all over. Can’t stand it. I know an ego-maniac and a humble musician when I see one. Of course, I give more respect to the humble musicians than the huge egos. lol….

I know I talk about this stuff a lot, but I’m just trying to give people a reality check of how the music world really is. A lot of people think I’m dumb and don’t believe me most of the time but that’s okay. I’m not afraid to tell things how they really are and I don’t make stuff up. I’ve been at the local gigs and I’ve seen how musicians are online too. It’s crazy out there, trust me.

Kev

Many don’t want to believe me, but there really are musicians out there that are huge narcissists. Musicians who obsess with their own self-importance… these are the guys who love themselves a bit too much. A narcissist and egomaniac both mean pretty much the same thing. I think I may have done a post like this once before a long time ago, but I don’t mind doing it again.

There really are musicians out there that are full of themselves most of the time… you just gotta watch out for them. I have been a part of the musicians community for like a decade or a little over. I have observed the way musicians behaved over the years. Some musicians are good people and humble, but there are gonna be some bad apples out there.

Yes, there are plenty of musicians and solo artists out there that has a Kanye West-esque attitude. Get over it.

Here’s how to spot musicians who are narcissists in 10 easy steps:

• Musicians are always talking about themselves all the time: I’ve seen this a lot. This is when you see musicians talking about themselves all the time whether in social media, interviews with the press/radio, at the gigs, or just a regular conversation with them, etc. When they don’t care to talk about you or the fans who like their music then chances are they are a big time narcissist.
• They have strong averse to criticism: There are many musicians out there who can’t take criticism of any kind. When you give them criticism, it doesn’t matter if it’s brutal criticism or constructive… you can expect this musician to become all defensive. I’ve seen this all the time. A lot of them just refuse to accept reality which is sad.
• They have short tempers: This is true. I’ve noticed over the years musicians are really sensitive people. They get upset over small things. This is a sign of narcissism. I’ve seen some pretty heated feuds with musicians over the years and I myself have had plenty of feuds with other musicians as well. Why do musicians get angry a lot? I think they just want to be tough guys ’cause they’re a musician and all, ya know? It’s because they think they’re better than you is what it is. They want to feel more superior ’cause they’ve done things with their music.
• They go on and on about their successes with their music: I understand that some musicians and bands have had some pretty incredible accolades with their music and had some successes. These are the guys who go around jerking themselves off about their successes. They think they are “stars” because of it. Whatever happened to being humble? Nobody believes in that anymore.
• They promote themselves in social media like they are rock stars: This has always been a problem since the old myspace days. Musicians and bands promoting themselves in social media like they are in a major label or something. Things like crowdfunding for albums, releasing “singles”, making people pay for their music in order to listen to it, etc. I miss the days when bands used to let people listen to music for free on sites like ReverbNation or Soundcloud. Those days are dead and gone. Everyone wants to play rock star now.
• They refer to themselves as “professional” musicians: I’ve seen this pretty often in social networking and the old local music message boards over the years. A lot of musicians like to refer to themselves as “professional”, but it bothers me. Yeah, a lot of musicians around here are technically talented and they have the skill but how about letting the music speak on its own? When you see musicians saying they can play “professionally” then it’s a sign of narcissism. There are also many musicians who think they are “professionally” skilled when they are not really. There are too many around here with delusions of grandeur.
• They want to feel more superior than you: Maybe the better word I’m looking for is “supercilious”. Yes, there are many musicians with this attitude. These are the guys who act like know it alls. Thinking they know everything about music when they don’t. They think you’re full of shit simply because you are not at their level of success. They’ll treat you like you’re below them all the time. Musicians feeling more superior is a definite sign of narcissism, absolutely. Trust me, I’ve had too many musicians who thought they were more superior than me over the years. I’ve had many musicians who thought I was nothing musically.
• They want to think they’re a “good” musician all the time: This is pretty much the big one. I’ve seen plenty of musicians over the years with big shot attitudes just because they think they can play well. They go around acting like a music god or something. Here’s a perfect example of a Kanye West-esque I’m talking about and you can betcha there are plenty of musicians like this. I’ve seen it.
• They want to be at the center of your attention most of the time: They want to promote themselves to death. They’re everywhere you look. This musician wants to hog up a lot of stage time at the gigs. They want to headline shows only and refusing to be the opening act. They want to hog the spotlight most of the time. I can go on all day with this one but you get the idea.
• They’re not into it for the love of music or the fans, they’re just into it for the money alone???: Hey, nothing wrong with making money for playing music but if that’s what you want to do then that’s your prerogative. Whether you want to admit it or not, it’s a big sign of narcissism. I’ve seen musicians and bands who charge ridiculous prices in order to play music. I for one was never into it for the money at all. I like money sure but to me it’s not important. I was always about the music. I never cared whether I got paid or not.

There you go. Enjoy!

Kev

Another big problem I’m seeing in local music scenes is that most bands around the area wants to drink and get hammered on their shows. I’ve been seeing that with bands more nowadays. You have to ask yourself… are bands drinking alcohol on stage and getting smashed cool or stupid? Some believe that it’s cool for musicians to party hard but lets be realistic here, folks. Bands drinking during their live performances isn’t cool. It’s time to grow up and get real.

Nowadays, all musicians want to do is drink alcohol.  Many musicians out there are alcoholics, unfortunately. There are too many of ’em out there. Not me. I’m done with the drinking and hard partying. I was never an alcoholic per se, but I did used to drink alcohol and get myself wasted occasionally. I’m done with that.

It’s sad that there are many alcoholics out there nowadays. There are bars all over the place. That’s why the local music scene is pretty hot in the bar rooms ’cause they make a lot of money when they have bands play in them. That’s how bars stay open and thrive. That’s how you get gigs at bars ’cause the only reason they’ll book you is if you could only pull in a crowd… they don’t give a shit whether your music is good or not. They’re only happy if you could pull in people to buy drinks.

Nowadays, bands just want to act like narcissistic jackasses and showoff how cool they are ’cause like to party hard in front of their fans.

Ya know, playing in a rock band doesn’t always have to involve drinking and hard-partying. If I ever get a band, that’s not what my band is gonna be about. It’s gonna be strictly about the music.

Some people make the mistake that if you’re musician, it helps make you play better when you’re really intoxicated. Not always. Most of the time, I’ve seen musicians that play really sloppy and awful when drunk. When I see bands that are totally smashed on stage, it makes me want to leave the show. It used to be a bad thing for bands to get drunk on stage during live gigs but nowadays it has become more accepted which is sad.

Local music doesn’t always have to revolve around alcohol. You don’t always have to play in bars. You can play in places like cafes, diners, restaurants and family friendly events/festivals and most of those don’t involve alcohol.

To me drinking is stupid but if you want to do it, that’s your choice and your decision. Drinking alcohol is not for me anymore. Too many full grown adults out there that are nothing but drunks. It’s just sad. Beer and alcohol is overrated nowadays. I don’t need to get myself wasted to have a fun time. Alcohol has become big and mainstream… I blame that on beer commercials you see on TV, of course. I don’t like the alcohol anymore. I can’t drink anymore anyways ’cause I get sick each time I do. I’m okay with that. Alcohol is dumb.

Kev

One of the biggest problems in the local music scene of the Capital Region is that there are too many bands & artists around here that obsess with fame. Many of them want it pretty badly… most around here are pretty desperate to make it in the major label industry. I just don’t know why. Yeah, it is possible that bands & artists can actually make it, but it rarely happens. Yeah, some bands and musicians around here had some pretty close brushes with fame like opening for some national acts and appearing on national TV like Fallon/Kimmel but that’s about all.

My question is, why would bands & musicians around here wanna get signed in the major label in this day & age? Not for me. I wouldn’t want to get controlled by the record labels. When you get signed, that’s what’s gonna happen. Record execs are gonna control you and your music. You won’t be able to make music how you want to make it anymore and record execs will tell you what songs you can and can’t release on an album. That’s the way it is these days. That’s why many famous bands & artists dropped off of major labels to release records under their own labels so they can have their own control.

Sure, some local bands and solo artists may have had close brushes with fame like opening for national acts and performing on national TV, but that still doesn’t mean you have made it. You’re still a local musician, but they still live under the delusion that they’ve “made it”. I can tell that most musicians around here obsess with fame and they all want it pretty badly. You can tell by the way they promote themselves on social media. Promoting themselves as if they’re famous when they’re not. Promoting themselves as if they’re so important.

When bands get the opportunity to open for a national act, they get all excited like it’s the best thing that ever happened. They all celebrate as if they just “made it” and I’m like, “really”? This happens all the time with local musicians. I see it a lot in social networking. If I ever get the opportunity to open for a national act, I won’t celebrate it as if I’ve made it. I’ll just see it as another gig for me.

I don’t want to be a rock star. That’s not what I do this for. I play music ’cause it’s what I love to do. I play music ’cause I want to write songs and share them. I hope people enjoy my music like everyone else and if they don’t like my music, that’s fine too. Fame is nothing to me. I don’t care about it.

Truth is, you’re not gonna get fame being stuck in the Capital Region. Only very few artists around here actually have made it but it rarely happens. Too many bands around here living in rock star fantasy land nowadays. It’s crazy.

Kev

I’ve been doing research on bands and musicians in the local/independent scene of music and stumbled upon this interesting blog. While I agree with most of this blog, no. 6 is what got my attention:

6. Arrogant fellow musicians

Anyone who’s constantly implying – or even stating outright – how much better they are than you is probably a supercilious jerk. They might even be jealous. Who knows what these people are thinking? All they seem to want is to put other people down, and themselves on the highest pedestal. That isn’t helping anybody, and if you listen long enough, you might start to believe them.

http://blog.sonicbids.com/6-types-of-people-musicians-simply-dont-need-in-their-lives

Yep. When I interact with other musicians online in the local/independent community, I’ve always had musicians acting like they’re better than me and always trying to put me down. Why would you get into feuds and hold negative grudges with other musicians in the community? Like always, it’s usually “ego” and “jealousy”.

Think about this, if they weren’t jealous of you then they wouldn’t be treating you in a negative direction all the time. What would other musicians be jealous of you about? Is it because you play guitar and sing better than them? That could be it! Is it because they know you are a talented musician and they will never admit it? That could be another reason. Are they jealous that they know that you can be something special musically?

I’m not trying to say that I’m more talented than other musicians, but there are gonna be many who will never admit that I’m pretty good.

Other musicians not liking you, that’s not your problem… it’s their problem. It’s them. It’s sad, though. You try your best to show your utmost respect and admiration to certain musicians that you like, but they don’t care to show you love and support in return. That happens to me all the time. They’re always trash talking ya and always having negative feelings about you. Those aren’t the type of musicians you need in your life anyways.

Yeah, when you want to be a musician and get yourself out there, you’re definitely gonna get musicians as haters — that’s actually a good thing. You know your music is getting some attention. Not all musicians are gonna hate you, though, there will be some kind and wonderful musicians who will show you the utmost respect and admiration to you back. You’ll know who your true supporters are. The true supporters in the musicians community are the ones who will never trash talk you, always proud of you and these are the people who really thinks you’re talented and actually likes your music. When I give musicians a lot of support, some of them do give back by giving me free CD’s or a shoutout on their social media pages, and I’ve gotten both of those which is cool! When musicians aren’t doing that when you try to show them support then there’s a problem right there.

Yeah, it seems that supporting musicians is a one-way street nowadays, so don’t let it bother you. I like what I do musically, and it’s definitely gonna make others jealous. No doubt that some musicians are gonna be huge egomaniacs and none of them will admit it.

Some musicians not liking me out there, many want to say that I brought it upon myself and think it’s my fault but not really. Some musicians are just assholes and egomaniacs… that’s all there is to it. Don’t let other musicians think they’re more superior than you are ’cause they’re not. Like I said before, they’re just a musician just like you and me. Some say I have “delusions of grandeur” as a musician, but there are plenty of musicians out there who have just that. There are plenty of whack jobs in the music community, trust me.

Kev

It is interesting how musicians responds to honest criticism. I’ve been interacting with musicians in the local music community for more than ten years or so. I can tell you right now that most of them have a problem with being arrogant and egotistical most of the time. Whenever I talk about this stuff, some usually don’t believe me and they think I’m full of shit most of the time but that’s okay. I’ve seen how musicians are online and offline… I just go by what I see. I don’t make these things up, why would I?

I think it’s safe to say that most musicians don’t like criticism of any kind. They really don’t. If you say anything negative — whether it’s about their music, their image, their stage presence, the way they promote themselves, the way they handle their live gigs, their attitudes, etc. — if you say anything negative about any of that stuff, you can expect some kind of retaliation by them in return. They usually throw a nasty temper tantrum when you do. I’ve dealt with that many times over the years, trust me.

Why is it that some musicians get pissed over criticism? Like the title of the topic says, I think it’s merely arrogance and egotism. You see, the thing is there are too many musicians who love themselves… they love themselves a bit too much. They think they’re important and they think they’re better than others just because they had some successes with their music. Like I said before, some musicians just want to feel like that they’re more superior than you just because they’re more established than you. They just try to put you below their level. So because they’ve had some successes with their music, they think they know everything and think they know what they’re doing. They feel that you don’t deserve to give them criticism or advice. The more success they get with their music, the bigger their ego becomes. That’s how they are.

Yeah, I understand that some musicians and bands are proud of all the success they achieved and making their dreams come true, but is responding to criticism is the best attitude to have? No. Absolutely not! As some of you know, I get a lot of bad publicity and I have nasty critics too, but I just learned to ignore them over the years. I don’t respond to anything negative anymore like I used to.

There are musicians out there that can’t take criticism at all. I’ve seen musicians respond to every criticism and attack aimed at them and they try to defend themselves each time. Not really a good thing to do. It’s an unprofessional thing to do is to react toward the critics especially responding in an angry manner.

That’s the name of the game in music, ya know? When you want to play music and get yourself out there, you’re gonna get criticized. I wish some bands would understand that but they don’t get it yet. Many of them live under the delusion that they are great and thinking that everybody likes them. Well not everybody is gonna like you and not everybody is gonna agree with you. You’re just going to learn how to deal with it.

I’ve said this before and will say it again that I find it funny that people think it’s okay to criticize me but when I do the same, they don’t like it. They get all pissy. Many of these musicians acting like keyboard warriors… attacking me through blogs, social networking, anonymous pages and message boards… yet when I do the same to them they’re like: “Oh no, Brock is the big bad internet troll”. They play innocent victim almost all the time. Funny how that works. Musicians having negative thoughts about me for years but I can’t criticize other bands. You get the point of where I’m getting at? This is messed up.

I’ve been dealing with musicians for many years. Trust me, the local music community is crazy. It’s not all that great and wonderful like some say it is. They’ve been brainwashed by the local music websites and blogs that are out there (not naming who they are but you’ll figure them out).

Don’t get me wrong. Not all musicians in the scene are arrogant and a bunch of assholes… there are some that are actually wonderful people, humble and down to Earth. Wish we had more musicians like that ’cause being humble is important. I never thought I was better than others, and I never thought I was a rock star either. I play music ’cause I love it. I was never into it for the money or popularity. Just want to play and rock out. That’s all I want to do.

Kev

As some of you may figured out by now, I have been criticizing the Albany/Capital Region music scene for many years. I have no regrets for any of it, and will not apologize for it either. I think it’s good to be honest and real about it. Yes, admittedly my criticism to it has gotten me in trouble a lot over the years, but I don’t give a shit. If I’m going to be the only one talking about how musicians really are and the way the music scene is in this area so be it.

No doubt that there are loads of problems in this music scene. Not only that the negative attitudes, the egos, the drama and the attention whoring of musicians have become a problem… I can name tons more.

First of all, it’s pretty hard to get gigs around here. This area is making it tougher for musicians to get gigs around venues in this area. It used to be that if the owner of the venue likes your music then you get a gig, but those days are dead and gone. Nowadays, if you want a gig at a small concert hall or a bar or a coffeehouse, you must have a pretty big following. If you don’t have a decent enough following to pull people into your shows then you don’t get a gig. It’s just as simple as that.

A lot of venues around here makes you want to prove your worth which is to me is pretty sad. There are many talented musicians around here struggling to get gigs for that reason. A lot of venues around here wants to make you have a press kit and all that stuff which to me is pretty silly. What’s wrong with just giving them your demo and if you’re good, you get a live gig? That’s not how it’s done anymore.

Secondly, it is hard to get noticed in this area. Ya know, become recognized for your music or even become established & well-known. Yeah, it’s pretty hard to get people to like your music… I know it is. That’s the challenging part is getting people to listen to your original songs. What’s even harder is to get people to come to your live shows when you have some booked. I speak all this with experience too.

This isn’t directed at any band in particular, but have you noticed that some of the bands around here getting bigger and becoming more established pretty quickly? Ya know, playing the bigger stages, playing all the local festivals, opening for national acts, etc. All the good stuff. Well the answer to that is that many of these established bands have good mangers, booking agents, etc. These bands hire those people to help them get where they are. Now, I’m not necessarily saying that’s a bad thing, but I have seen established bands that didn’t have managers/booking agents at all. They did all the work themselves to get to the next level. It can be done.

These days the only way to move forward to your music and go to the next level is to play music that people love dancing to. Why? It’s because bands that makes people fill the dance floors is what’s selling. If you play rock n’ roll and metal, and if you don’t get people moving then you probably won’t go anywhere with your music. Play music that people can dance to then you’ll be big around here… that’s why country music is pretty popular around the Capital Region. It is why pop music is getting popular around here. Nobody pretty much appreciates bands for the art anymore. All this area wants to do is party, drink and dance. As long as people are buying the drinks then the bars & clubs are happy.

When I look at the music scene today, I’ve noticed it’s gotten much harder to play out ’cause venues come and go. Unfortunately, not many places to play out anymore. I can’t find venues to play at myself nowadays ’cause I’m thinking about getting back out there to play some open mics and maybe an actual gig. This area isn’t much of a scene to be honest with ya. I can see why some bands around here are starting to tour the states and even other countries ’cause there is nothing here.

Don’t get me wrong, I love live music, and I do enjoy going to local shows to cheer on the band in front of the stage… I’m just not afraid to real about this stuff. I’ve always been that way for years and still haven’t changed now.

This scene never gets better and still remains the same. When I write songs, I don’t care to write songs that get people dancing and moving. I Just write songs however I want to; just write whatever comes out of me. I just wish people would appreciate the art and not worry about the partying aspect of music. When I play out, I mostly like to play the diners & coffeehouses instead of the bars. I hate playing bars ’cause they’re too loud. I like to play diners & coffeehouses where people actually sit and listen. That’s how I’ve always preferred my music to be heard. I try not to make music that people would party to. I just want to make songs and that’s it.

While it’s admittedly tough being a musician around the area, I’ll always continue to do my thing. Yeah, there are going to be bands & music venues that are gonna make you feel like that you’re nothing musically but fuck those negative people, ya know? We work hard as musicians, and they have no right to look down on us. We all deserve to play out and get heard. This area claims to support “all music”, but the reality is they’re really picky and choosy. They just won’t admit it publicly.

Just keep doing your thing and keep playing no matter what. That’s what I’m gonna do.

Kev