Hi, I have created a forum for my many students to share experiences and it would be great if you could come and have a look : http://soar.forumotion.com
Thank you!
Allen Robot Van Wert
Some people have no idea what guitar tone they want. Some know exactly what it is they hear in their head. Most don’t know how to get it either way. I am known for using a very unique guitar tone that many people thought was a keyboard, midi file or somehow just fake. I developed the tone by playing around with some ideas that would lead me to my goal, to sound like a Nintendo basically. The tone sounds odd to some people and some really enjoy it. The main point is that it is very unique and immediately distinguishable.
When you hear Eric Johnson, you know it is Eric Johnson. It isn’t just the playing alone. The gain stage and every little element in the chain changes the outcome.
A good way to start your exploration for YOUR tone is Read the rest of this entry »
I just added a purchase page for my new book “Modern Songwriting Secrets”. I will be adding more details about the book soon but I put this up for the people who have been emailing me about getting the book asap.
Please let other musicians know about this book. Also please let me know how it works out in helping you with songwriting. Thank you for all the help and support!
Allen
My new book entitled “Modern Songwriting Secrets” Is complete and about to go on sale. It deals with becoming a better songwriter with real world examples and secrets about modern songwriting. This isn’t about classical music, 70s pop hits, or any pointless songwriting banter like most of the songwriting books out there. This is the real deal about modern music and how to craft hits. I slaved over it and made sure to include every singe tip and secret I could. There is a song analysis at the end of the book that is severely detailed and organized to help you out. The song is a current alternative metal song on national radio. It is from the band “Ra”. Sahaj Ticotin (Their lead singer) Gave me permission to use it for the book and I use it to prove how my examples and secrets are used in the current music on the radio.
If you want to get better at songwriting and have tried other books like me and just never gained anything of substance from them except for theory terms and coined phrases then this is the book for you!
I keep away from music theory as much as I can while providing a real world way to look at things and explain it all in a common sense and logical way. I provide the secrets and tools for you to get better immediately after reading it through. However, I feel that there are so many good tips and examples that most people will find themselves going back to it time and time again when they need a quick fix for a song they are working on. Or when they just need to sharpen their craft. It deals with all aspects of songwriting. There are no pointless examples and no old school mentality where you end up learning about how diana ross songs were written about love because love is a good topic. Nothing lame like that. It is the real deal!
So let me know if you are interested and I will hook you up!
Talk soon!
Allen
The band Breakin Benjamin started out local to me, I even shared the same practice space as a few of their members years ago. I talked with some of them at one point but I forget which members.
I like to study music and I am able to find formulas in the music of most bands. I thought it would be interesting to share my studies with you guys and let you see how I see things from a compositional analysis standpoint.
Firstly I will take a few songs that are big radio hits and within a few passes of the songs I discover and plot out the bands “formula”. This is a good way to learn about composition and how things fit together in a song. I would not suggest directly ripping off the formula of a band because you will end up sounding a lot like them in most cases. No one likes a copycat. (Ex: How Saving Abel is 100% copying Three Doors Down’s formula…listen to “18 days” from saving abel and then just about any recent Three Doors Down song.)
Here is how I do it:
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