The Music Talk section is for discussing instruments, equipment, collaborations, and other questions/discussions related to your music.

June 17

Got videos? Post 'em.

Any videos of you guys live? Here's ours. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 6:53 PM - 7 comments

June 10

Bowie Summer Challenge - submit tracks by Sept 1

Wham bam, thank you ma'am/sir [more inside]
posted by dubold at 2:31 AM - 9 comments

June 5

Revamp the challenge?

Recent challenges haven't been attracting much interest, and I've been doing it for long enough that I feel a bit burned out. So I suggest that we have a blue sky discussion about what the challenge is/should be, what works and what doesn't, and maybe someone else feels like picking up the torch and running with it? [more inside]
posted by unSane at 7:11 PM - 48 comments

May 25

Finding a Classical Guitar

What do I need to know to properly search for a classical guitar? I need to get rid of one of my electrics and get a decent classical guitar. [more inside]
posted by snsranch at 6:16 PM - 4 comments

May 21

Sound options via Control Panel

Sound options via Control Panel [more inside]
posted by Ardiril at 9:12 PM - 3 comments

May 19

It's about that time....

A couple of years back we had us a time with "The Velvet Underground & Nico". Last year it was "OK Computer". This year, and as a challenge say for "summer" or "fall" (more properly "autumn" but we have to make allowances for the verbal idiosyncracies of our colonial friends) rather than a single month, may I suggest.... [more inside]
posted by Hoops McCann at 1:05 PM - 69 comments

May 12

Organ donation

Oops, I did it again. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 3:37 PM - 7 comments

May 10

Interesting article...

Reinventing The Album: Keeping Releases Relevant in The 21st Century
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:54 AM - 5 comments

May 6

Looking for a Collab

Looking for the new sincerity; A super positive collaboration. [more inside]
posted by dobie at 7:45 PM - 2 comments

May 5

May Challenge - the music of tomorrow, today!

May's challenge is a mindbender. Cover a song (possibly your own) from one era in the style of an earlier one. Tag your entires 'futurecovers' and 'mefimusicchallenge'. Explanation within. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 7:52 AM - 15 comments

May 3

Possible May challenge idea - you scratch my backing track, I'll...

....have my wicked way with yours. The idea here is very simple. Upload the backing track of something you've previously posted to MeFiMu (that's not strictly necessary I guess but it sort of closes the loop) and the challenge is for anyone who fancies it to have a go at writing and recording a new top line/melody and, if you want to go the whole hog, lyric. You could of course try to use the existing lyric but with a new melody - that's even more difficult and may cause the masochists in the community to become moist. Go right ahead and swap stems if you so desire, but that's not essential for this bit of fun. Stating the bleedin' obvious: upload the result when you're done. 'andsome! [more inside]
posted by Hoops McCann at 9:49 AM - 6 comments

April 17

interfaces...

I'm gradually trying to wean myself off of a hardware DAW (Yamaha AW2400) and onto a software one (Reaper). With a lot of great help from the estimable unSane I'm now sort of halfway there but am still relying on the (increasingly unstable...gulp) Yam if I need to use microphones. So......what sort of interface should I be using to be able to record mics on Reaper via on my laptop? [more inside]
posted by Hoops McCann at 1:13 PM - 15 comments

April 14

Builder: an interview series I've been doing over the last few months

Builder is a series with people who build pedals and synths and other musical appliances that I thought y'all might enjoy. [more inside]
posted by sleepy pete at 11:48 AM - 3 comments

April 3

Whispery vocals? Brushes on snares?

Another future challenge idea: ASMR trigger song [more inside]
posted by umbĂș at 7:29 PM - 12 comments

March 29

APRIL CHALLENGE - BACKWARDS

April's challenge is to play something backwards. It could be a backwards guitar solo, or a song based off the chords of another song played backwards, or a melody played backwards, or ANYTHING. YOU GET IT, RIGHT? Feel free to tease us by not revealing what the source material, if there is any, is. Tags 'backwards' and 'mefimusicchalenge' please.
posted by unSane at 6:59 PM - 4 comments

March 19

stay on the fucking bus....

interesting insight into the creative process [more inside]
posted by Hoops McCann at 12:38 PM - 5 comments

March 15

Stu-stu-studio

Hey Mefi musicians, here's an interview with the guy who engineered the new David Bowie Record. Now all of you run out and buy a Neve board, OK?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:36 PM - 3 comments

March 2

March challenge - Odd Time

Thanks to Hoots Hoops McCann for this one. March challenge is to record something In a time that is odd to you. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 6:03 PM - 13 comments

March 1

Future challenge ideas

Not sure whether this has been done before, but how about songs that aren't in 4/4? Or not in 4/4 from top to tail (this leaping immediately to mind). Additional kudos to whoever can handle the weirdest time signature. I was in a prog band millions of years ago that did a track - I kid you not - in 13/8. I still have nightmares. Another idea is to cover a track by a non-Western artist, maybe from a particular continent (Africa gets my vote). Something that might well have a rock and/or roll influence but which has a very distinctive non-Western flavour.
posted by Hoops McCann at 12:31 PM - 13 comments

February 21

How can we make it easier to make sure everyone gets some feedback?

With this call to arms in mind regarding commenting on music posts, I wonder if we can make it harder for posts to slip through the net? [more inside]
posted by greenish at 7:45 AM - 15 comments

February 17

My first rig

Now that I've had a taste of what can be done in a home studio, I'm ready to dive in and get my own setup. Help me build My First Studio. [more inside]
posted by rouftop at 9:26 PM - 4 comments

February 8

Instrumental Podcast Music

Looking for upbeat Instrumental music for podcasts. [more inside]
posted by leahpeah at 9:49 AM - 3 comments

January 30

iPad live!

Anyone using an iPad in their live setup? [more inside]
posted by sleepy pete at 7:13 PM - 5 comments

February Challenge - Major to Minor

Apropos of this recent FPP, February's challenge is to record a version of a song, changing it from a major key to a minor one, or vice versa, turning (say) a murder ballad into a jolly polka, or a sunny pop song into a grinding death metal dirge. And hopefully improve it in the process. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 1:08 PM - 15 comments

January 29

Help me find an amp and learn the electric guitar!

Someone gave me an electric guitar. I only know how to play acoustic. Anyone have amplifier recommendations and/or advice? [more inside]
posted by topoisomerase at 1:49 PM - 10 comments

Find me an acoustic guitar

We've done it before (more than once), but maybe we can talk acoustic guitars again. [more inside]
posted by uncleozzy at 7:46 AM - 13 comments

January 21

Jimmy Page playing the Velvet Underground.

The Yardbirds: I'm Waiting For My Man [more inside]
posted by Sailormom at 7:05 PM - 7 comments

January 16

I'm flattered that our music is valuable enough to "steal" like this...

Looks like someone did some random raiding of our content back in Fall 2010 for a (now seemingly abandoned) free radio site... [more inside]
posted by frecklefaerie at 4:52 PM - 1 comment

January 11

Who is reading Music?

Would a thread of introductions be useful? I was thinking about unSane's soundcloud-pony and the Balkan kingdom of Music (or MeFiMu), and realized that I don't have a very good idea of who all is reading/listening here, whether regularly or not, except for a few posters, and even then I don't know much about them apart from a few tunes. [more inside]
posted by dubold at 1:31 AM - 23 comments

January 7

What is the maximum number of musicians who could realistically jam together?

Aside from the basic physics of the speed of sound would there be practical upper limits to the number of musicians, assuming an infinite supply with the necessary talent and disposition, who could jam spontaneously to produce a united song without generating discord? [more inside]
posted by Blasdelb at 9:06 AM - 26 comments

January 4

softLOUD

here's a mixing question ... [more inside]
posted by Rube R. Nekker at 6:39 PM - 8 comments

We are the champions....

A sort of call to arms. I well remember posting stuff here and getting zip response. A pretty disheartening experience for a newbie and one, I guess, shared by many toe-in-the-water freshers to MeFiMu (or as unSane apty describes it the kitchen*). So - let's all make the effort to listen to at least two or three new posts per week and give some feedback to all our colleagues earnestly entreating thier muses..... Waddyasay?? * I'm well up for renaming this part of MeFi the "Utility Muffin Research Kitchen" in honour of the late Frank Zappa. I never liked his music much, but his attitude - particularly in terms of his resounding "f*ck you" to the music biz establishment - was inspiring.
posted by MajorDundee at 4:21 PM - 16 comments

January 1

January Challenge -- Happy Birthday / New Year

January is a split challenge - do either or both or none. Option A: Write a simple, catchy, singable ditty to replace Happy Birthday. Option B: Record a piece of music on the theme of the year turning. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 6:55 AM - 3 comments

December 30

Proper humidity for my cello

Humidifier for my cello? [more inside]
posted by DMelanogaster at 11:03 AM - 1 comment

December 24

Loot/Challenges

Xmas loot thread / What makes a good challenge? [more inside]
posted by unSane at 4:35 PM - 31 comments

December 23

MeFiGigs?

Would people be interested in organising meetup/gigs with line-ups of musicians who are MeFites? (I'm in London, but it's also a general question, isn't it?) [more inside]
posted by Grangousier at 3:17 PM - 7 comments

December 14

A dark room covered in foam, a microphone, and a couple hours

In search of a Seattle MeFite to help me record a secret quonsar thank you song. [more inside]
posted by rouftop at 9:32 AM - 3 comments

December 10

What do you think?

Seeking constructive criticism of my current work in progress, "One Past Midinight". I can supply stems if anyone wants to take over mixing it or mastering it.
posted by Ardiril at 6:16 PM - 0 comments

Fix my mandolin?

How do you get a mandolin's lower strings to sound less buzzy? [more inside]
posted by topoisomerase at 5:00 PM - 9 comments

December 9

Seeking Upbeat Mefite Music

Looking for a Mefite Music track to put under a metafilter-related, not-for-profit montage of people talking, ideally upbeat/funny and instrumental. To keep it simple, only suggest your own tracks (or tracks of people you know who can get back to me quickly to ask permission).
posted by The Whelk at 9:24 PM - 9 comments

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