Are You Weak Down the Middle? The Loss of Power in a Power Age.

Bands...here's a perpetual problem that can wreck havoc with your sound and effectiveness. Being weak down the middle. Meaning...your drummer and bassist are either not in sync, are inexperienced, or are just average players. What can you do? Like it or not, music is becoming more and more dependent on a strong, and I mean strong beat. If you are missing that critical element you may risk falling behind your peers. 

Without that strong low end you lose your ability to hit your audience with the power that they desire. Back to how to fix this problem. How about the band U2? No one would deny that they have been extremely successful. However, they are a bit weak down the middle right? Nothing against Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen personally, they just don't have the punch that's needed to make u2 a powerhouse. But alas, along comes The Edge and Bono and bam! Problem solved. 

The Edge's unique and creative guitar style creates a tidal wave of sound and takes up a lot of space, which tends to mask the lack of punch from the foundation of the band. Throw in Bono's powerful vocals and soaring melodic lines and you have the solution. However, not everyone can call upon that kind of talent to fix a weak backbeat. 

Most, if not all of you are familiar with Van Halen. That's a very curious but understandable situation. Rarely if ever, does anyone talk about Michael Anthony's bass playing. Why? Because you can't hear it! His bass is obscured by Eddie's "Brown Sound" Guitar and brother Alex's wall of drums...not to mention the vocals of either David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar. In their situation the bass was basically neutered! If it were not for Michael's incredible vocal harmonies I swear they could have played without him. 

Okay, so then what? Can your drummer and bassist practice more, take lessons, or hit harder? Sure, but what if they just don't have the potential? Well, like it or not you better think about lightening up your music a bit. Trying to play music with a thunderous attack is not going to work and will if anything, make your band look bad. 

The worst-case scenario is to remove them and find stronger players. It's done all the time. And sometimes these players move on to a situation where they flourish! 

In the end, it's your decision. Do you want a kick a.. band or one that is just average or worse? If you are in this position think of the time you put into your music. Is it worth the risk?

-Mark Jeffery Campayno has worked in, with, and around bands for more than 30 years. Mark has a both a Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Music Education. He has won numerous teaching awards and has taught upwards of 2,500  young students in his 11 years in Northern Virginia. Mark also directs and coordinates bands for Loudoun County's Annual YouthFest Music Festival. He currently owns and operates Musicians-Inc in Sterling, Virginia. Mark also directs the guitar program at Broad Run High School in Ashburn, Virginia. Broad Run is in the Loudoun County Public School System. 

Review of "All the Shades of Darkened Light"

via All the Shades of Darkened Light by Free Spirit on iTunes.

-Review by Mark Jeffery Campayno

Just when you thought that technological innovations in music had eliminated the need, or even the will to look back at the past, a band from Seinäjoki, Finland, Free Spirit releases it's sophomore effort, "All the Shades of Darkened Light". This 11 song collection opens up with blazing guitar riffs that evoke everything that serious rock fans have been missing for decades.

Can it be that eighties melodic hard rock is still relevant? I must admit, even I had doubts. With clarity, precision, and eighties bravado, "All the Shades of Darkened Light" serves notice that high energy and good old hair metal swag can still rock hard.

Melodic Hard Rock is a tough taskmaster. With so many musical elements to produce not to mention the risk involved, it's refreshing to see a band pull it off with such ease. The first track, "Through the Night" will have you fully engaged as the band has set the course. There's no turning back now. With blazing anthems and refurbished vocal hooks filling each track from beginning to end there's hardly a place to catch your breath. But, if you yearn for the days of big hair, perfectly processed guitars, and fist in the air rock bravado, prepare yourself to be transformed. Yes, the decade of decadence and excess lives on!

Guitar solos? Yes, and they are imaginative and impeccably played. Marko Haapamäki and Vesa Yli-Mäenpää churn out riffs that cut through the already-dense musical landscape with arpeggiated melodies and harmonized flights-of-fancy that strike to the soul of what guitar used to be. Used to be that is, before the Seattle revolution all but muted such perceived excess. Here excess is not on display. The solo sections are measured, balanced, and exquisite.

Vocalist, Sami Alho possesses all the nuance and flair of a hard rock leading man. Passionate, controlled, and soulful, he easily soars over the layered harmonies, guitar accents, and big drums. But of course that is part and partial of what the eighties were all about. The foundational blueprint of what Free Spirit is as a unit gives a bigness to this recording that is often missed when attempting to recreate the past. The band's rhythm section is tough and ready with Sami Hämäläinen on bass, Pasi Koivumäki on drums, and Timo Alho on keyboards. They are on point with a groove that infuses the music with a harmonic pallet that is unique and tight.

 Want proof? Try "Silence", a heartbreaking tune reminiscent of the great hard rock ballads of the past.  Using all their powers, the boys come through big on this one with a moving performance full of arpeggiated passages, gorgeous guitar breaks, and pleading vocals.

 "Storyline" wraps up the release as the 11th track. This summation in hard rock gets to the heart of what Free Spirit is all about. A hint of Def Leppard appears in the main riff, the vocals harmonize perfectly, and everything is just perfect.

Thankfully, Free Spirit is no one trick pony. There's plenty of variation in their material and one can easily make the necessary connection between the past and the present.  Hmmm...guys? Why not an even twelve next time?

Sami Alho - VocalsVesa Yli-Mäenpää - guitars & backing vocalsMarko Haapamäki - guitars & backing vocalsSami Hämäläinen - bassPasi Koivumäki - drumsTimo Alho - keyboards

Free Spirit Music and Website:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/free-spirit/id79913251

http://freespiritrock.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MaLw5NBiEU

How to Play "Let Her Go"  Passenger (Official Acoustic Guitar Tutorial)
Performed, Produced, and Instructed by Mark Jeffery Campayno
All production done on site at Musicians-inc/SRNOVA Sterling, Virginia USA
www.musicians-inc.com

http://passengermusic.com/

So it's a typical Wednesday afternoon late in the school day. The students are insisting on learning "Let Her Go" by Passenger. A little tinge of fear grips me. Oh s..., if I remember correctly that song is harder than most in the genre. It will be a nightmare trying to teach it to a group of freshman guitar players.

So, what shall I do? Well, I sat down in front of the music, which was lit up before me on a large white promethean board. I took a deep breath and I ...stopped. Wait, this song is based, unfortunately tight in first position. Not only that, it's capoed on fret 7 of all places. Double not only that, it's got the dreaded F chord throughout!! Triple not only that, there's a G chord riff that is a major pain in the...well...you know.

Suddenly a flash of guitar experience flowed into my brain as I blurted out "Tune the 6th string up to F!" Well, the rest is history...that is after you watch the video!

Thank you for your patience with the longer teaching session. This is surely not an easy song, but it is a forward-mover for intermediate to advanced players. It will push you and it will refine your technique. Accept the challenge. Come on. Do it.

As for me, I'm not incredibly fond of the song itself but I must give credit to Mike Rosenberg for the great guitar part, which is as clever as all get out! Actually, fine, I'm sure the song would grow on my if I gave it a chance. Sorry Mike. It's actually quite good.

Thank you as always!
Mark


Hometown - Brighton and Hove
Genres - Alternative Pop, Rock, folk
"Let Her Go"
Released 24 July 2012
(see release history)
Format Digital download
Recorded Linear Recording, Sydney, March 2011
Genre Folk rock, indie pop, acoustic
Length 4:13 (Album Version)
3:37 (Radio Edit)
Label Embassy of Music, Black Crow, Sony (distribution), Nettwerk, Warner Bros. Records (US)
Writer(s) Mike Rosenberg
Producer(s) Mike Rosenberg, Chris Vallejo

"Latina Exotica" - An Original Composition.

Written and Produced by Mark Jeffery Campayno
using Reaper and Garageband Software, a 1995
American Fender Stratocaster, and a Fender Mustang III
Amplifier.

This work is descriptive of the beauty of far away lands that entice all of us at one time or another. Basic GarageBand track with two solo guitar tracks that I mixed together.

 I used my 1996 Fender American Stratocaster with a Fender Mustang III Amplifier into a MacBook Pro using Reaper Software.

Obviously, there is some harmonic minor action here of course along with a carefully placed multi-modal approach that I've developed by listening and absorbing many musical influences.

I hope you take a couple minutes and let the music take you to another land far away from the stress of your everyday life.

Markhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0Ul2Q8l9IQ