Violin as a Lead Instrument

Rock music typically has guitar as a lead instrument.  The concept of taking the violin and making it a central instrument brings forth an interesting trend in playing and listening.  Though Lindsey Stirling and Brian King Joseph perform in a different genre, they bring violin to the forefront of mainstream music, which is truly groundbreaking.  Lindsey Stirling, who came out of America’s Got Talent does an act involving dance, singing, and violin.  Though I don’t really listen to this type of violin music, the entire spectacle involving various art mediums thrown together is captivating.  Her music goes from rock to dance to pop.  Brian King Joseph from America’s Got Talent does an electric violin hip hop/pop mashup.  His layering of violin over popular pop/rap songs and his virtuosity makes him unique.

As a violinist in Love Lyzardz, I like doing slow melodic passages in the country/folk/rock/psychedelic vein.  I don’t necessarily play at high speeds or lay down technically challenging notes like Brian or Lindsey, though I have had classical training in the past from being in school orchestra for many years, but I shape a distinctive mood or story in my playing.  My partner Johnny Saffire keeps a steady intricate rhythm on guitar, which frames the violin’s sound and texture.  As a duo, we marry guitar and violin, weaving rock and classical music, which creates Classical Rock.  Yngwie Malmsteen, an influence of mine, had done something similar, taking classical music and applying it to guitar.  Johnny Saffire’s background in blues, rock, and punk gives his guitar playing an individual finesse merged with a classical instrument like violin.

Stay tuned for more posts!

Love Lyzardz

Arise Music Festival Contest

Hey everyone!  I am happy  to announce that Johnny and I have entered into the Arise Music Festival contest.  The festival will be held in early August in Loveland, CO.  The voting ends on June 1st and three lucky winners will be chosen on June 7th.   Select our name, scroll down and enter your e-mail, and click “VOTE”.  Thanks again for your support!  I am very supportive of other musicians/artists, so feel free to follow, like, and/or comment and I will return the favor.  I always like to know about new music on the scene!

Arise Music Festival Contest

 

Love Lyzardz Pics

Reign Diamonds in Joshua Tree

Johnny Saffire at the Gypsy Men store in the Haight-Ashbury SF

The Modern Musician’s Path

If only it was a record company standing on our doorstep after I’ve spent all this time pumping out a demo with my boyfriend Dez, but the past has shrunken down to nothing.  It is all just a fantastic mirage of what used to be, the novelty of a record company taking full charge of the musician’s path.  Nowadays, it’s the DIY approach that holds true.  It has to do with the self-promotion thing on social media in addition, and the following the artist hopefully gains from posting content day after day and possibly catching people’s interest in a cyber world that is over-saturated with entertainment options.

The demo came about from two friends turned lovers bonding over a common interest in playing music and from enough time passing, agreeing to put together a cool and unique music project to further advance the conversation 60s/70s rock legends like Janis and Jimi and Jim ignited, which saw the counter cultural flame die out too soon.  Dez had amassed quite a recording equipment setup over years of collecting, from playing in past rock bands.  We decided to turn our efforts toward putting down a real live demo, a modern twist on earlier rock, folk, psychedelic and pop music traditions.  Somehow, through what felt like pulling eyes and teeth out of our own heads, recordings were made and a website was created to showcase our hard work.

It seems another issue in the modern age of music production is getting the right sponsorship.  Our recording equipment is not up to the times and should be replaced at some point in the near future, once we decide to put the hammer to the anvil in terms of recording new material.  We took the concept of crowdfunding into our hands and co-created a video with comedic elements, in the attempt to attain such sponsorship, but it has not quite come along yet.  I believe with proper financial backing, we can invest in more technologically advanced recording mics, software, etc.  Upgrades in equipment are what the big players in music achieve.

Of course, presentation and image are everything, and having some working knowledge of how to build a killer music website to showcase to the world helps.  The Wix.com site builder is quite user friendly and is easy to navigate.  I recommend it to artists who want to have more freedom to customize their website more to their liking vs. a site like Bandzoogle or Bandcamp where you get boxed into using their particular templates.

Once the following comes, the calls to that entertainment lawyer you happen to know begin.  Until then, it’s important to take the old fashioned approach, which is to continually play out at venues and gather subscribers who can actively share your art.  The rest of the process is just keeping up with the daily hustle, staying focused and persisting in the face of challenges, calling again to remind people you’re in their corner, and getting that stroke of dumb luck to launch you through the industry’s door.

Stay tuned for more articles! ❤