There is no guidebook to success in the music business, but everyone has to start somewhere and it’s always through a colourful combination of achievements and mistakes that take an artist to where they want to go.
We’ve asked some of our favourites about their beginnings.
Daniel Modica // Tiber
Where did you record your first single?
My first single was recorded entirely on my laptop in my room using Ableton.
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
I started playing drums around 2006 and am still playing today.
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
Some advice to people who are just starting to create music is not to get too caught up in what everyone else is doing, just hone your skills until you start making music you would actually listen to. Breaking down songs into their different sections really helps when you’re trying to create listenable music as well, the flow of a song is really important.
Tim Hulsman
Where did you record your first single?
Allanvale TAFE College, Launceston Tasmania, in 1993. I was in a band called Doctor Schmeg and the single was “Alice in the Groove”
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
Guitar
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
Honour your influences…but find your own original voice/sound…and never stop learning.
Izzy Losi
Where did you record your first single?
The first song I recorded properly was called ‘A Legacy’ which was recorded at Salt Studios in Melbourne for a compilation CD called ‘Naked in the Woods 2’ and went out on Triple J Magazine as part of the Push Mentoring Program.
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
The first instrument I learnt was the violin when I was 5, but I hated it and didn’t like holding the bow so moved to piano.
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
Play with different people who push you to be a better musician and inspire you and learn from them. Get good at your instrument first then start jamming with people as soon as you can
Shaun Kirk
Where did you record your first single?
My first single was a track called ‘Thank You for Giving Me the Blues’ which was actually recorded in a friends bedroom back in 2010. Arunachula Satgunasingam (who produced the track) is the ex percussionist from a great Western Australian band called Blue Shaddy and was living in Melbourne at the time playing with guitar freak Lloyd Spiegel. At that point in my career I was doing a heap of gigs with Lloyd and ‘Arun’ and was looking to record my first full length album. Arun put his hand up to help out and we set about recording in the confines of his Brunswick share house. The rest is history.
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
First instrument I learnt was guitar. When I was 16 years old I had already show an interest in art at school but wasn’t exactly an A grade student. Often wagging and getting expelled my wonderful mother must have seen that I was in need of an outlet. She put an old nylon string guitar in my room one day that I seem to recall only had 5 strings. I sat there for a while collecting dust and eventually picked it up and a friend of mine taught me how to play the famous Deep Purple riff from ‘Smoke on the Water’ in single notes. Life made a whole lot more sense from that point onwards.
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
When you’re first starting out in something as gargantuan as music it can feel really intimidating. The beauty of any art is that the only rule is that there’s no rules and you can never stop learning. My best piece of advise would be not to look too far ahead and embrace where you are NOW. Learn how to play one note at a time as set yourself small, realistic and achievable goals to start off with. Play from the heart!
Alice Skye
Where did you record your first single?
I recorded my first single at CAAMA music studios in Alice Springs
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
I started learning piano when I was five.
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
I’m not sure how qualified I am to give advice but I think just remembering that there’s no set way to do things, you’ve just got to find what works for you – and don’t be afraid to throw yourself in the deep end sometimes.
Joshua Patrick // City At Midnight
Where did you record your first single?
The guys and I recorded our first single with Alan Kelly at Almach Studios in Newtown, he is a legend to work with and we have used the studio and rehearsal space there ever since.
What was the first musical instrument you learnt?
It was the guitar, I was five and my grandfather took me into A and B music, Bill pointed us towards a fender stratocaster and I’ve been bending strings ever since.
What advice do you have to musicians starting out?
The best advice I could give, is to network, getting out to see live music and being around the scene has such a positive impact on your own music.
