Blog Archives

Jill Jack is such an amazing person and has helped guide me through a lot of my music career whether she knows it or not. I met her at 20 front street in Lake Orion when I opened for her the first time. She treats everybody like they are her closest friends and that was really comforting to my nerves before I went on. This show was her 12th annual birthday bash and i really couldn't believe that she asked me to open for her because this event is so significant. It was also really cool to meet her daughter, Emma. They are so similar its crazy. Along with meeting Emma, I also met her band members and they are all so awesome and nice. It was such an honor to open for her on her birthday bash and I couldn't have asked for a better night. Her new album is amazing, everyone should check it out.

This show was a show for realization for me. I proved to myself that I can do this music thing on my own. Going to college next year, I am not going to have my dad there for me all the time so I need to learn how to play on my own and this gig was a big step toward doing that. Not having my dad around is gonna SUCK. Sad face :(.

The first time I played at the ark was at a open mic when I was just starting out music. I literally used to play songs like riptide here.... and the beginnings of my first original songs. Their open mics are weird though. To get a guaranteed spot you have to bring five people with you. Now that I am more established and think about it, it makes more sense to me, but back then it was hard for me to round up 5 people to come watch me play. But it was still crazy to go back and play songs that I once played there but in a different and more developed way. Theres actually this really embarrassing video of me singing "don't stop believing" and having a terrible voice crack. ANYWAYS... The venue really inspires you to be the best version of yourself. (That also may be because there are 400 people watching you) I can't wait to go back to play or even just simply watch a show.

Gigs can either be the best time of your life or the worst. The best gigs are why most musicians are musicians and make all the hard work worth it. Though most gigs are 3 to 4 hours long in some dingy bar where no one is there for music. Being so young, most people don't treat me with too much respect but I have also had some great hosts.

Three hour gigs are some of the hardest work I've ever had to do. Sometimes the venue can be quite awful and consist of dark rooms and drunk people but then they can also be amazing. If you are looking to start giging, email you local brewery. Michigan breweries are the best place to gig. (and they pay great) Make sure you know at least 45 songs to cover the three hours AND do some songs that people will know. Its also very important to have a P.A. system because a lot of places wont provide one. My tip for that is to get light speakers because lugging around 50 pound speakers sucks ass.

In my opinion, the best gigs are music festivals. I know I talk about them a lot but the energies and vibes from the people around you are the best you will ever find. No matter the stage you are on, you will always have people there to love and support you and that reminds you what you do it all for.

Recording music can be very fun but is also one of the hardest parts of being a musician. Every musician wants to make sure the music they put out is the music that they want their fans to hear and it may not seem like it would be but, it's very hard to record the kind of music you want to portray. I say this mainly because if your a great live band, it's nearly impossible to record the sound that you have on stage in the studio. I’ve found that the best way to record is to do it in a place where you're comfortable. I'm my case, my comfort zones are my basement and Red Herring’s bassist, Max’s studio.
If you can learn how to record on your own I fully recommend it because you can always work on a song and you can change whatever you want when you want. That being said, the experience of going to a recording studio can be very inspiring. Red Herring Visited Pearl Sound studios and recorded our new single (out February 10th) with Chuck Alkazian. The boys and I had a blast there and Chuck is such a great dude.
One thing that is also really important in recording is to have a producer and listen to the producer. It's very important to find a producer that you trust. A producer will make a song album and radio-ready AND they give another opinion to the song that you may not have.
I love recording music and it is such a great feeling when you are finally able to release your songs. Both the Syd Burnham band and Red Herring plan to have new music out this summer so keep an eye out for that!

PSA: This is MY opinion on songwriting and I know a lot of people will disagree or have a different idea of these topics and I’m so cool with that. This is just what I have noticed that has worked and worked for me. If you have different opinions on any of the topics discussed I would LOVE to hear them.

The best output for strong emotions: Writing. Whether that is poetry, music, or other various types of stories… writing can be a great way to release feelings that you otherwise wouldn’t. Personally, I find that inspiration comes at random times and if I am not feeling inspired, I can’t write anything. Inspiration can range from random bursts of love for your dog to anger building up inside of you that you have no idea what to do with.
Writing music is much different than writing poetry or stories. No matter the genre of music, when you write a song it has to include poetry or a story which is a big part of its beauty. A lot of musicians think that when you write a song it needs to be and complex and have the more difficult riffs or the guitar solo has to be the best guitar solo ever made but that is so far from the truth. Unless you are composing an orchestra or something, songwriting shouldn’t be difficult. I have come to notice that my best songs are the ones that I have written in under an hour. When you write a song, you should feel the music flowing through your life a caffeine rush and when you spend too much time on some song, that feeling can become so small and the song doesn’t have as much passion as it should.
Songs ALWAYS need to have structure. Many songwriters have songs where the melody is non-existent or the beat doesn’t flow and expect people to enjoy it. If you are writing a song in hopes that it will go viral, you need to have the following: a verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus and an insane melody for each of those parts. Of course, there are songs that don’t contain that or maybe you don’t write a song in that order and that is okay but I’m telling you, nearly every famous song has at least that much included into the song. Melody’s are much more important then people realize, if you don’t have a good melody then you don’t have a good song. (one way to know you have a good melody is if it gets stuck in your head or better yet… someone else's)
One thing to always keep in mind when your working on a song with someone else is to always keep an open mind. You don’t know everything and just because you think you have the best song in the world, doesn’t mean everyone else will agree. Even if you are not writing with other another person or people, it is important to share your music so it can improve. You can always improve a song and take other people’s opinions into consideration is CRUCIAL. When you write a song and put it out for the public to hear it is no longer only yours, it becomes everybody’s so you have to expect different opinions about to come to the surface. Sometimes those opinions are awful and mean absolutely nothing but it's important to listen to the ones that can help you. This is especially important when recording. Producers will work a song until they think is perfect and if you really want your song to be a hit, you have to listen to what they say. Though if you really disagree with someone just ignore it and stand your ground. That being said, my most favorite songs are imperfect and I think that what I like the best about them. Art is meant to be critiqued and imperfect!
Over the past 5 years, I have written over nearly 300 songs and I have only played maybe 20 of them in public. Most songs I write are absolute shit but its ok but the next song is an empty canvas. A tool that myself and nearly every musician finds handy is the voice memos app on a phone. (I put some down below.. sorry they are so awful) I have nearly 180 unlabeled recordings or me humming a random melody or playing a guitar riff. I think I find this app so important because when I get a melody or lyrics in my head I have to record them immediately or it will leave my brain forever. A lot of my memos are recorded in a classroom or at a concert or in a car or even some on the toilet… you never know when a song will come into your mind. Though technology can be super helpful in writing songs, I find it the most inspiring when its just me, my guitar, and a notebook (or paper) and a pen. That allows me to be completely focused on the song rather than possibly being distracted by something that may pop up on a phone or computer screen.
Music is art and art is yours if you make it. Writing can be so powerful and can give the most powerful messages in a civil way. You never have to strive to be anything with music or writing except for yourself.

Here are some songs that show qualities that I just talked about….

These are listed because the production is so amazing:

Fire in the hole- Steely Dan
The lion the beast and the beat- Grace Potter and the Nocturnals

These are listed because the melodies are INSANE-

ABC- the Jackson five
I wanna hold your hand- the Beatles
Billy Jean- Micheal Jackson
Cecilia- Simon and Garfunkel

These are listed because they have amazing lyrics tell a story or show emotion-

Hey Jude- The Beatles
Rhiannon- Fleetwood Mac
Sunshine on my shoulders- John Denver

These are listed because the groove is crazy-

If you want me to stay - Sly and the Family Stone
Lazy Nina- Gregg Phillinganes
Take me to the River- Al Green

I'm sure you know most of these songs but you know them because of how incredible they are. You should never say you hate a song because it's popular, of course, you can dislike it but it got popular for a reason and to know and appreciate that is important.

If you want to hear all my favorite tunes you can follow my Spotify- @sdnybrnhm

Below are my song writing books. I have a lot of other songs on random papers and such but here or a good majority.

A really bad riff new_recording_60.m4a
File Size:	25 kb
File Type:	m4a

Download File

The beginnings of a new Red Herring song's chorus new_recording_56.m4a
File Size:	161 kb
File Type:	m4a

Download File

this was literalyl in the middle of some random dues performance at a music festival new_recording_49.m4a
File Size:	148 kb
File Type:	m4a

Download File

alright this one isn't awful but still pretty bad new_recording_40.m4a
File Size:	61 kb
File Type:	m4a

Download File

0 Comments

The Ark

Gigs

Recording Music!

Writing music

Below are my song writing books. I have a lot of other songs on random papers and such but here or a good majority.

Sydney Burnham

Archives

Categories