In my last post, about “Becoming the Troubadour”,  I wrote about my rediscovery of solo, acoustic music and of the great singer-songwriters – and my desire to go more down this route myself as a performer.  Essentially, I was addressing the “Troubadour” half of this Online Troubadour adventure that I signaled my intent to embark upon.

So, what about the “online” part … what is that all about?

Well, I’m fascinated by the potential of social media and the Internet to totally redefine the relationship an artist has with their audience. The potential is there to reach a very large number people, of course. However, far more likely as a self-promoting solo artist, you get to reach a relatively small audience (still possibly much larger than the one you reach on the gigging circuit) – but you can start to build a dialogue and relationship with them.

For a while now digital recording technology has made it possible to record and publish music at much lower costs than previously. The ready availability of recording software and hardware has made it possible to produce good quality recordings in home studios.  Even professional studio recording has become available at a cost many can afford. You don’t have to have a recording contract anymore to get in a studio.  Social media (including specialist music sites) provide a low-cost way of getting your music out there and noticed.  The days of being dependent on radio airplay for exposure are long gone.  Also, you are able to  reach a much more geographically dispersed audience.  For example, I notice that I have Facebook followers in the Far East.  Now, on the strength of that, I may not go and gig there (just yet) – but I can record my live performances and post them on YouTube for my followers in other countries to view!

The flip side of all this is that the Internet is teeming with artists vying to get your attention, from big names through to folks who are just throwing something out the for the hell of it. Getting noticed big time means either having the big battalions of the record labels and media companies behind you with their big promotional budgets and expertise  – or being very adept (and/or lucky) at social media marketing.

However, if (like me) you think you are unlikely to ever have a platinum selling album or to be playing to sold-out stadiums, the news is still good.  I just want to be able to make my music and share it with an appreciative audience.  I would love to be able to make a living out of it – but as a man in his middle years with responsibilities and bills to pay – I realise that may never happen.  Social media means I can reach out to engage with an audience much more geographically and culturally diverse than I ever could gigging around my little corner of the world. I can find a niche audience who are interested in what I am doing. It doesn’t have to be huge.

I’m really interested in how far this engagement with an online audience can be taken. Up until now, I have been pretty conservative in this respect.  Bands I have been in have had an online presence dating back to SkyHunter having a MySpace page. Remember MySpace folks?  However, we didn’t really do any more than post a few pictures, make a few songs available to listen to and publicise our upcoming gigs.  There was no real engagement or conversation with our fans.  I know there are artists out there who are much more advanced in how they are using social media. I’m keen to explore and experiment with what can be done.

The fact I am simultaneously taking a different musical direction (going solo acoustic) undoubtedly adds to the risks of things going seriously pear-shaped. However, it also offers an opportunity for me to share that journey with an audience. You can share in my ups and downs, cheer and encourage from the sidelines, jeer and throw brick-bats etc. as the fancy takes you.   That does mean me taking a different attitude to what and how I share – being braver and more open. It probably means me sharing rough recordings of songs,  partial song ideas with you and so on. It’s a risk – but I like the idea of being very honest and open and getting your feedback.

Here are some of the ideas I have for how I can be sharing and engaging with you:

• I can post rough recordings of new material I have written.  You could provide feedback letting me know which new songs you like and which you don’t
• I could post and ask for feedback on parts of songs that are in progress e.g. I could present some options for lyrics and ask you to say which you prefer
• I could ask those of you who have musical skills to collaborate with me your own performance or composition skills to a song.  For example, I could post an audio file with just my guitar and vocals and ask for people to add percussion or a harmony vocal. They could provide a sound file which I would then add to the mix.  Of course, folks would be credited for contribution.
• I could list songs that I am planning to perform in my live set – both covers and originals.  I could also post recordings of me performing them.  You could comment and vote –  or suggest alternative songs for me to cover
• I could perform live online.  Google Hangouts, for example, provide a medium for this.  You can attend live and provide feedback. I could also post recordings (e.g. on YouTube) for those who can’t make the event – or just want to watch and listen again.
• I could ask you to suggest and vote on venues for me to perform live at.  If enough people want to come and see me in a particular town, I can go and gig there.

Those are the main possibilities that occur to me as I write this.  You may have some other ideas or comments and ideas regarding the above. If so, I would love to hear from you.

There are some interesting challenges that come with the above. I need to:

• Become more adept at managing social media. However, that can evolve and improve as this progresses and I learn.
• Get my head around the technology for live performance over the Internet.  It’s not just the basic mechanics of getting Google Hangouts to work. It’s also about getting the right sound mix into the “Hangout” so that people are hearing what want them to – the right balance of guitar and vocal, reverb, equalisation  etc.    It’s also getting the video right – so that people don’t get a video feed of just my feet, or me in silhouette because I am totally back-lit!

The biggest challenge for me will be one of attitude. To share with you as I am suggesting above means that I will need to “let go” more than I usually would.  If I really am going to share “ideas” and “work-in-progress”,  relatively frequently,  I don’t have the luxury of being able to spend hours and hours in the home studio recording and re-recording , editing and mixing everything that I post.  Totally solo performing, just me, my voice and an acoustic is a departure for me.  I know I can sing and play well – but I am not the performer yet that I would aspire to be.  That means a “rough” recording might be a bit rough – a slightly muffled note here, a slight buzz off the frets there.  Like I say, I will just need to “let go” and get it out there!

I hope you like the sound of what I’m proposing to do here.  I think we could have some fun together.  Please do let me know what you think.

All the best,

Martin

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