As the foundation for any and all music, bass is the backbone of every song. But bass guitars are also one of the most exhilarating instruments to start off a song with. Guest-blogger Marlies is a bass aficionado and she’s kindly curated a top 10 of songs that have smashing bass intros.

Covering a song that has moved or touched you in some way can be a challenging endeavor. For starters, recording a cover or remake entails much more than just copying or repeating what you’ve heard. As with any musical performance, a song cover should be uniquely yours. Whether you want to cover a popular Beatles song or something that’s more obscure, doing your own version entails creativity, originality, and a certain level of boldness.

If you’re still getting familiar with playing your acoustic guitar, then changing the strings can seem a little bit daunting. But don’t be scared! You don’t need to pay a qualified technician to do it for you! Once you get the hang of it, it’s fairly easy and can be pretty satisfying. Simply follow our step-by-step string-changing guide and watch your self-confidence grow string-by-string. In this blog, we’re focussing on changing the strings of a standard steel-string acoustic guitar. If you play a classical or Spanish guitar and want to change your strings, you can find some helpful tips on how to do it here.

When you decide to upgrade your lighting set-up with a DMX controller, you’re going to need the right cables. And as a quick Google search will tell you, it’s all about two cables: DMX, and XLR cables. Here, we’ll explain the difference between both, and help you decide which one you need when, and where.

Whether you’re browsing the internet for a vocal microphone for the stage or a condenser for your studio, it won’t be long before you’ll run into the term ‘pickup pattern’, also referred to as ‘polar pattern’. You’re also likely to bump into terms like ‘cardioid’ or ‘omnidirectional’. In this blog, I’ll present you with the pickup pattern basics, include a few field examples, and tell you what you need to know when you’re looking to, ahem, pick up a new microphone.

If you’ve just set up your electronic drum kit and you’re just missing a set of sticks, then you’ve probably noticed that there’s an overwhelming amount to choose from. Different lengths, diameters, tapers, tips, material … If you’re just starting your epic drumming journey, it can be tough to pick through what’s out there. And, while some or all of these questions can be answered by our other blog: How Do I Choose the Right Drum Sticks?, we’ve put together this blog to help explain the kind of sticks you’ll need to play an electronic kit.

You don’t have to be a fully certified folk-fanatic to wrap your hands around one of these guitar-like string-instruments, but which one is for you? Here, we lay out the differences between the ukulele, mandolin, and banjo.

Finding the right tracks is one of the most fun challenges that come with being a DJ. But where do you even begin your search? As you know, buying a lot of singles or multiple versions of the same song will start to add up sooner or later. Today, guest blogger Amar Amlani (DiceDJ) is here to tell you all the tricks of the trade, so you can continue, or start, to astound your audience with fresh beats.

The most iconic guitars of all time are still made by guitar giants, Fender and Gibson. When a guitarist is asked to think of a well-known single-cut model, they’re probably going to be thinking of the Gibson Les Paul and the Fender Telecaster. When you ask them to name the first double-cut they can think of, it’s probably going to be a Fender Stratocaster or a Gibson SG. Gibson’s daughter company, Epiphone, also make versions of legendary Gibson models while Fender’s daughter company, Squier, does the same with their iconic models.

Practice may make perfect but when it comes to drumming, practice also makes a lot of noise. As such, not every neighbour, house mate or family member is going to be equally appreciative and understanding. To meet those that are slightly annoyed with your new hobby in the middle, we’ll give you 5 tips you can use to turn down the volume a little.

“When do I need to change my guitar strings?” While this question comes up a lot, there’s no clear-cut answer that will suit every guitarist. Many famous guitarists actually change their strings completely after every gig, but for most … less-famous guitarists, this might be a bit much. So, how regularly should you be changing your strings? Every month? Every year? Only when one of them breaks?

So, you’ve finally decided to take a hammer to your piggy bank and got yourself a brand new trumpet, trombone or other brass wind instrument. It only makes sense that you want it to last you a decade or two so, in this blog, we’ll provide you with a little maintenance manual that includes five tips to keep your instrument as fresh as the day you bought it.