Over the years of local music, I have been wrongfully and unfairly criticized of how I am as a person and musician by other musicians around the music scene. I still get criticized by some even to this day, but I learn to ignore it and move along. When you see something like this, it just goes to show, that I’m not the badguy here. Now let me explain…

You see, musicians have really weird communication skills online. That’s a fact that we can’t deny. Musicians are absolutely crazy, out of their minds when they post in music forums and in social networking sites. A lot of them have mixed emotions. I know these guys want to have a public forum where they can talk about music in a positive way, but like always there will be a couple of bad guys coming around that will start ruining their shit. Then all this drama will start online with other musicians, and then the next thing you know, most everyone act like assholes, and then they’ll think you’re dumb or something. Whenever somebody wants to be honest about something and has a different opinion or view than everyone else, that’s when they’ll start hating on you. This stuff has been going on in local music forums for many years, which is partly responsible for shutting down the old GlensFallsRock and the old CRUMBS board down. I have been wrongfully blamed for creating so much wrath online. It’s nothing new. I’m used to it. It is not me that causes so much drama online, it’s the way musicians are posting on them.

Musicians claim they talk music in a positive attitude but a lot of them still think it’s alright to bash other musicians like myself and maybe a few others. This is why a lot of these guys have their own forums in Facebook ’cause anybody can be an administrator. They don’t have to get controlled by an administrator by a message board in a forum that has nothing to do with facebook. So they can get away with anything when you can be a self admin in Facebook.

People don’t like musician bashing around here? Well, when you guys go out of your way to hate musicians like myself, Frank Palangi or who ever. That is still “musician” bashing, no matter what you think of it. If you don’t like musician bashing, then you shouldn’t be doing it to other people, and that includes us.

So why is it that musicians are so weird? Where do the egos come from? Where does the attention whoring start? Why do musicians have such horrible attitudes at times? After thinking about all of this a while, it finally hit me. The craziness of musicians online, happens for a lot of reasons: 1. Stress 2. Alcohol could be a big part of it (too many musicians are alcoholics, trust me) 3. They get too overwhelmed with their work load in their own music careers (working too much will get to them) 4. They have bad things going on in their personal lives. The list goes on.

Things like this is why I try not to post in forums too much anymore. I try to stay out of things the best I can to worry about my own life and my own music, ya know? Musicians are not always lovable and wonderful like so many mistakenly believe. I’m not the badguy like some make me out to be. If you actually met me in person, you would find me approachable and easy to get along with . I won’t bite, people. I do treat others with respect if you treat people how you like to be treated.

Kev

This musician named, Frank Palangi, is getting so much hate online lately. I may have already seen him perform once before in Glens Falls, but he was performing with a couple of other people as a special guest. I might of already met Frank Palangi, once in person as well.

The reason some of the Glens Falls musicians don’t like him is because, they don’t like how he promotes himself as a “mainstream” artist, but in his defense, he doesn’t see himself as a “mainstream” artist, it’s just his dream to get there. He’s just doing whatever it takes to get there. He wants to break into the major label industry, as you can clearly see. He knows he’s not a “rock star” yet, but that’s his goal. That’s why he’s being wrongfully accused of being a rock star ego-maniac, but I don’t see it.

Listen to his tunes. And check out his videos in youtube. You would see that he’s a great songwriter and a good live performer.

In my opinion, Frank, is doing the right things to get himself out there. I think he’s a good musician. I would like to open a show for him sometime. I’m sure he’ll be down for it. When your goal is to break into the big time, you have to look like a rock star, if you want to make it. End of story.

Kev

There are plenty of musicians out there who mistakenly believe that you need to be a part of a local musicians community. You know, a whole group of musicians getting together to hang out, become friends, and play music together out in their local scene. You see the same group of musician friends online talking to each other everyday publicly. Why do musicians do this? I understand they do it to try and network with other musicians, so they can get themselves out there, but the reality is, a lot of them just want to feel accepted as a musician. They just want to feel part of the crowd, ya know? I am noticing that a lot of these musicians don’t have much going on in their lives so they try to become a part of a music “community”, so they can feel alive.

When you want to become a musician, you don’t really need to be a part of anything. That’s right, you don’t need to be a part of any so called, “music community”. I try my best to not be a part of the music community anymore, why? Because there’s so much drama going around. I’ve been stabbed in the back by so many musicians in the past, it’s crazy.

You see, the local music, “scene” is a public place. A public area, which gives you the freedom to do what you want to do and be who you want to be. You don’t need to make friends with other musicians. You must concentrate on you, and your music, that’s it. You shouldn’t be wasting so much time chatting with your musician buddies, when the important thing you should be doing the most, is spending hours on your instrument, honing your craft and getting your own music out there.

The whole “music community”, is a bit childish to begin with. Way too much, “I think this guy’s a jerk”, “I don’t like this (musician)” bullshit going around. Plus, all musicians seem to want to do is drink and party which is what I don’t do either. Too many people called me a “troll” over the years and I’m sure some still think of me of that way, but I don’t care. Like I said, “local music”, is a public place, and the internet is the real world. So people have no right to control who I am as a person. I can’t please every single person around here, that’s for sure. That’s not what I’m here for. That’s one of the biggest problems of the “music community” right there. They expect me to be like everyone else. There are tons of musicians out there that can be way more negative than me.

I’ll admit that I can be an asshole sometimes, but if I was all nice and friendly, then people wouldn’t pay attention. This is why I go on these rants and raves. I enjoy getting support from other musicians, don’t get me wrong. Music is the only thing you should be worrying about. Not worrying about who likes you or who hates you.

I haven’t posted much the last couple of days, ’cause having computer problems again, things seem to be working alright now.

Kev

Everyone wants to see their favorite local band or solo artist succeed in their careers and move forward. Thing is, people can get really weird when it comes to a local band or solo artist wanting to get more recognition. All bands and solo artists, start off from the bottom and make their way to the top. When you start to see bands and artists becoming local media darlings, (being obsessed with radio and website interviews, being on the covers of newspapers a lot, getting reviews by local critics, etc.), that often gets a mixed response by the public. Some will be happy with their success and some will not be. Some of the haters & doubters will accuse them of being sellouts, fakes, and egomaniacs wanting to be at the center of everyone’s attention. It usually sparks some controversy when a band or artist becomes successful and well known in your area.

Look, I do know, that it can be frustrating and annoying, that the local media can keep shoving the same bands & artists in our faces on a regular basis, but I understand why they do it. The only way to get recognition like that these days, is that you must have a very large following, and fanbase. It doesn’t matter how good or bad their music is. As long as that band or artist has a lot of people supporting them, the local media outlets will support them because it can help draw people to buy their newspapers, get more radio listeners or get more website hits. Popularity is key to getting that recognition.

When you start to get a mix of supporters, haters & doubters, that’s a clear sign that you’re going places with your music. That’s the thing that younger bands need to understand a little better. The younger bands seem to be becoming defensive of the mixed reactions when they become established musicians. It seems that more younger bands & artists are getting more recognition in local music than ever. Why? That’s probably because the power of the internet, makes that happen. Back in the early days when there were no internet in the 80’s or early 90’s, it was hard for young musicians to get success.

On top of all this, I never really believed in being a “local superstar”. If that’s what you guys out there want to see yourself as, that’s fine. I never believed in being the local rock star. I play music, ’cause I enjoy it, that’s it. Just a human being, enjoying life, and playing music for fun. I would not want to become a local media darling or don’t really care to. I don’t take myself seriously as a musician. I just do my thing. I’m happy for other musicians wanting to succeed, but music should be for the love and enjoyment of it. Just go out and play. There’s no such thing as a superstar or a legend around here.

Kev

There is too much bashing and hating going on, even to this day. It never ends. I know musicians wants to get respect for themselves as a person and as a musician. One way to get more respect, is to stop the hating and bashing of other musicians completely. Support them, even the successful and more established musicians. I understand you may not like other musicians but keeping your opinions to yourself is the best thing to do, on a professional level.

If you support other musicians, you will get support from them in return, trust me. I’ve supported too many musicians over the years. If you support other musicians, they will reward you stuff in return. Some will just simply give you respect in return. Some musicians will be willing to even become your friend. Some will offer you free CD’s. They will ask you to play on their gigs. They will also give you shout outs on their websites or social networking pages. Things like that, ya know. Some of you have seen me support a lot of musicians over the years, and I got some of the stuff I listed above, back from them. It does make you feel good.

Sure, there will be some bands & musicians that won’t even give you support in return no matter how much you try to support them. Some bands & musicians don’t even play music for the people, they do it for themselves. If you don’t get support from bands & musicians back, then never mind them and move along. Even if they ignored you, at least you did good for the music scene. Believe me, I’ve tried to support some bands and solo artists, the best I could, and they didn’t even care.

Supporting other musicians is key to getting respect around here, and a good way to get your own music out there. Treating other musicians how you like to be treated, is a good way for a positive music scene. It would be nice if this could be a more positive music scene though. There are too many negative musicians that want to rant and rave about everything. People blame it on the old crumbs board, but it’s not the internet. This is how people are.

Kev

Bands & musicians just love interviews. They just love ’em. Especially the unsigned musicians. Why do musicians love doing interviews for local media so much? Whether doing radio interviews, TV, or on other websites. Musicians love doing them ’cause they think it’s a good opportunity to get more exposure with their music. Plus, they love giving more insight on their careers and music. Personally, I never really liked doing interviews. I don’t mind interviewing other bands for this website, but with my own music, I hate interviews, admittedly.

I did one radio interview back in 2006, and felt kind of weird doing it. I don’t really care for that kind of attention. I think the reason is, that the interviewer will treat you as if you’re some kind of celebrity, when you’re not really. That’s the thing about local media. They like to treat local “musicians” as celebrities. Us local musician aren’t celebrities, we’re human beings. I don’t need to have that, “me, me, me”, kind of attention, know what I mean? It feels kind of weird talking about yourself for like 20 minutes or to an hour, know what I mean? Interviews makes a musician kind of self centered. The interviewer asks a question about you, then you do your best to explain it.

You don’t have to get exposure and do marketing through interviews. You can see if you can be successful and make it without them. So if you get asked for an interview, don’t be afraid to turn them down. I could do an interview if I wanted to, I’m just not a big fan of them. This is why I never did much interviews over the years. I don’t really like talking about what my songs are about and all that stuff. On top of that, I don’t like how my own speaking voice sounds over them (as I admit, I don’t speak too well and could do a little better).

If I wanted to give insight on my music, I can just write all about it here or do it on a videoblog. Maybe I will do an interview for a newspaper if an opportunity ever came up, but a radio interview, I don’t think I’ll do those too much. Interviews are just silly, in my opinion. I do listen to other band interviews, don’t get me wrong. I only listen to interviews if there’s a band that I like.

There are even national bands and solo artists out there that don’t do interviews too much. You don’t have to do interviews if you don’t want to. It’s all up to you.

Kev

There’s a lot of musicians around here that like to call themselves, “musicians”. Are they really? With my own playing, I never considered myself an actual musician. I just play for the love of it, a hobby kind of a thing. I never considered myself a professional, but that is the goal that I want. I someday, want to be considered an actual professional, if I keep practicing and learning. How can you tell if someone is not an actual musician that they say they are? I’ll go down with the list here…

• They don’t understand music theory –If you talk to other musicians about music theory, like what notes are there in a chord or a scale, key changes, etc. They don’t understand what you’re talking about and they get lost in things.
• They don’t have a good ear, in other words, not good at improvisation – You jam with the musician and they don’t know what the hell they are doing or what you are doing, they just stand there watching you, trying to figure things out.
• They don’t have a good sense of timing and rhythm – There are too many that don’t play in time.
• They don’t have professional enough music gear – I’m not talking about piece of shit instruments you get from a trading store or yard sale. I’m talking about expensive gear you get from the music store or catalogs. If you want to be a respected musician, having the best sounding gear is important.
• They don’t have enough musical influences – A professional musician would know a lot about their favorite band or artist they look after. They would learn as much as possible about music. You must know your shit. Not just liking the bands in the mainstream, you also must know a lot of underrated bands/artists that not many people know about.
• They don’t know more scales than just the minor pentatonic scale – Professionals would know a wide variety of scales. From modes to unique scales nobody’s ever heard of.
• They don’t jam with as much musicians as possible – A professional musician would have LOTS of experience jamming with a variety of musicians all over.

I could keep going with the list but you get the idea. I’m trying to work on all these above, so I can hopefully one day be considered an actual musician.

Kev

People suck at supporting bands & musicians around here, and no, this is NOT me being jealous that they support other bands more than my music. I don’t care if other people don’t support me or not. I’m just going by how fans support local music in facebook. The way they do it is horrible, in my opinion. Again, this is not a jealousy kind of thing, just me being real.

The trouble is, that fans would almost be positive and happy at almost everything that the band does in their career. Whether you disagree with what the band does in their career, fans would support them no matter what they do. It doesn’t matter if the band is about to play some shit hole venue you don’t like or they’re about to do another stupid radio contest, fans would go along with everything they do. I understand fans want to see their favorite local band move forward and succeed, but how is being positive and happy happy joy joy all the time going to help make them succeed? Where is the honesty? We need more people being real about things.

Music fans can also be pretty childish and crazy, at times too. We need more fans supporting all local music more and not just them supporting the music that they like. There is also too much drama and soap opera with them. If regular music fans would understand how to support local music better, we could have a better music scene. It’s just that a lot of them don’t understand how music works. They’re not really musicians, that’s why they are what they are.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing fans, I’m just bashing their terrible communicating skills of how they’re supporting them.

Some of them can support music the smart and intelligent way, we just need more people like that. That’s what I’m trying to say in this post.

Kev

It seems that people who dislike me (or the haters), read my site to this day, even if they want nothing to do with me. I can tell that they are, ’cause they still talk about me in facebook and other places on the internet. It seems that haters read my site more than actual fans and supporters of mine. I’m alright with that. If they want to continue to be assholes, while reading my site, that’s okay with me. I think the reason these guys still read my site, ’cause deep down inside, they actually like me still in some way, they still respect me even if they don’t want to admit it.

When you get into music you’ll get this a lot. When you don’t get along with people anymore, they’ll continue to pay attention to what you’re up to. Jealousy is also a little part of it. They continue to pay attention to you ’cause they know that you are doing the things that they aren’t doing. I’ve gotten into fitness and trying to move forward to a higher level in guitar playing, and people get mad at that when you move forward.

Don’t worry about it if this happens to you. Part of being a successful person as a musician or fitness person, you want to make people jealous. People can get very jealous of you. It’s crazy. The more jealous people get, the more successful you are at doing things. When people stop supporting you for no reason, chances are they are jealous of you. Just don’t let jealousy of other people bother ya, and be proud of it.

Kev