Just Keep Writing…

Elvis Presley once said, “I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to.” Well Elvis, that may have worked for a Fool Like You but it was only a Matter of Time until musicians had to start learning a thing or two about the biz.

It would be superfluous to say that music is difficult to break into and damn near impossible to become known and successful in according to today’s harsh and judgmental consumers, since we’re all already aware of the minute percentage of so-called “stars” and “profitable artists” that emerge from the throngs of aspiring musicians.  But the fact remains that against all odds, determined artists will continually work through the motions of following their goals to succeed at music.

That is, assuming they know the motions at all. It’s a long and difficult process that faces adversity from its very first step: just finding a style. Factor in collaborations, clips, recordings, and building a fan base, and you may be wondering how musicians aren’t throwing in the towel right now. Today’s unsigned bands are working harder than ever before and are navigating through new hurdles that no other generation has ever been faced with before. Technology is more complex, money is tighter than ever, and no matter how convoluted the process may look on the surface, trust that it’s 10 times more intricate in the details.

MTV may trick you into thinking you’re the next big producer if you’ve watched every episode of Making the Band, but the reality of the music business is far from the adaptations spewed out by reality television. And regardless of how much small-screen entertainment claims to give an “inside look” into the wonderful world of music, the only real way to learn it is to see it first hand. No gimmicks, no glitz and glamour, no inflation. Just cold, hard facts from first hand accounts.

And that’s what I’ll give you.

I’ll be following a small-time unsigned band and they fight the good fight and try to “make it” in the music world. From long hours in the studio to playing as a cover band just to pay the bills, we’ll get the nitty-gritty details on the hardest aspects of the business. And while the process might seem like just another proverbial job-hunt, it’s the intricacies and little-known austerities that make forming a band a yearning for this career beguiling.

Our journey starts at what one would think is an aphoristic breeding ground for musical talent and surefire success: the prestigious Berklee School of Music. Enter in students such as John Mayer and Joe Satriani and you’d think campus would be hustling and bustling, filled with kids eager light a serious fire under the ass of their looming careers. But the reality of the Berklee student body begs to differ. Hone in on one student: guitar player and writing & production major Steve Ornest, who came to the east coast music school specifically to make connections and find people to work with. He says just starting out at a place like Berklee is what actually makes it harder to form cohesive musical relationships.

“Berklee is similar to any other serious niche school where you go for one thing, everyone comes in feeling like they’re the shit and with that comes a lot of ego and insecurity,” he says. For the first time in their lives, young, talented music students are suddenly confronted with other musicians who play just as well, if not better than they themselves do, and finding yourself as a small fish in a big sea can be more than a bit intimidating. “In the beginning you’re just swimming with everyone else in your department… So what winds up happening is everyone wants to get together to jam but no one ever does because no one wants to show their insecurities,” Steve says.

So how is anyone supposed to kick off their careers in a sea full of petrified performers? Steve says it’s all about guts, and sticking it out. “I never really cared to be honest. Better or worse, you can take something from everybody. It really takes until the end of the education at Berklee for everyone to be really confident in what they can do, and only then can you meet people you can work with.”

And by the end, he really does mean the very end. Steve met his best friend and band co-founder Will Parry late in both their Berklee careers, and made the executive decision to leave the music school in his final semester to travel to Los Angeles and take a chance on that glorious music business. When the dynamic duo first began collaborating they found themselves skipping out on classes and homework to elaborate on what they both loved: purely making music. After creating a small library of demos and half-written songs they began consistently sending their tracks to friends and family, specifically Steve’s step father, who is a well-known producer in the South Bay, California. His advice to the boys was to “keep writing.” Constantly, consistently, keep on writing. Write as many songs as you possibly can. As many lyrics. As many melodies. Just keep on writing and eventually you’ll have a body of work that not only has substance, it also has one or two tracks that pose real potential.

It was only after months of writing and working at different songs that the boys decided it was time to seek something that would finally kick off their careers. So, without fear, without a full band, and without much notice at all, Steve and Will packed what little they had, said goodbye to Berklee one semester early, and headed off to Los Angeles to try to make something of themselves.  Enter in a bassist, and drummer, and a year on the west coast, and their band Fallen Riviera is just starting to make waves.

Check back next time as we take an in-depth look at what looking for band mates can really entail, as well as the hardships of gigging, and finally getting to a point when recording an EP is no longer a dream.

For more info about Fallen Rivieria, visit them at www.myspace.com/fallenriviera