Human Memory

memòria s. f. [from lat. memoria, der. of memor -ŏris "to remember"]. - 1. a. In general, the ability, familiar to many organisms, to retain more or less complete and lasting records of external stimuli experienced and their responses.
Mainly bestowed on humans, it is one of the main qualities of living beings, just think of dogs remembering certain commands, parrots learning certain words, and...the musician.
Many pianists and teachers, such as Gieseking or Leimar, have explained that a musician can follow three different paths to memorize a piece:
- Auditory Memory: to be able to imagine the sounds of a certain memory;
- Visual Memory: to be able to imagine what we need to remember;
- Kinesthetic Memory: to be able to perform different motor sequences automatically.

But then, how do short- and long-term memory work?

The first, the short-term one, is for retaining a limited amount of information for a short time. An example is memorizing a series of ten numbers; most people can usually remember between five and nine digits. And how long does this type of memory last? Generally up to thirty seconds but we are able to enhance it and be able to recall information longer. Unfortunately, short-term memory can be impaired by diseases such as Alzheimer's disease impairs it in its moderate stages. However, we also find shorter short-term memory in dyslexic people and marijuana users. In addition, of course, a stroke can also cause serious damage to our short-term memory.

Long-term memory acts as a kind of "warehouse" where we store all the information we need. There are different types of LTM, we have declarative memory, which is all the explicit knowledge we have about the world such as where to store the coffee can. This declarative memory can be divided into two other categories: semantic, then our knowledge about the outside world, and episodic which concerns as the name suggests, various episodes and their circumstances.  Then there is procedural memory, which concerns knowledge that is very little verbalizable, such as riding a bicycle.

Speaking of music, how can it evoke memories and feelings?

It will have happened to anyone to listen to a piece of music they tended to listen to years ago and go back in time with memory and emotions.
We have already seen that long-term memory can be divided into two categories, namely declarative and procedural memory. They could also be called implicit and explicit where the former is about unconscious and automatic memories such as playing an instrument or remembering the first words of a song, and the latter is about things like learning a text or some more technical concepts, such as things you learn in school in textbooks.

The phenomenon of when a song totally takes us back in time is called "autobiographical memory," and it is obviously a very common and usually unintentional phenomenon. This happens especially because music is present in so many events that involve us emotionally, whether it be a party, a funeral, any ceremony, or even simply listening to a song during the home-school commute.
English-speaking researchers call them "self-defining moments," that is, moments that deeply mark one's life. Of course, it is not just about music, thus the sense of hearing, but all of our five senses can take us back to times past, from taste to touch.

One curious thing about our memory is its ability to create false memories. This is a topic that is still being studied quite a bit, and memories of some past events can be reconstructed even after a long time has passed, however, it has been proven that it is possible to install false memories in people's minds. This is discussed by Dr. Elizabeth Loftus in her Ted Talk "How reliable is your memory?"

Loftus begins her lecture by talking about a case she has been asked to work on, the case of Steve Titus. One evening, after having dinner with his girlfriend, Titus was stopped by the police because his car resembled that of a man who had raped a hitchhiker also during that evening; moreover, Titus himself vaguely resembled the rapist, and because of this, a picture was taken of him, which was then shown to the victim, who, pointing to Steve's picture said, "That one looks most like us." And so the man ended up having a trial during which the victim stood up and shouted, "I'm absolutely sure it's him!" And so the unfortunate man was arrested. Fortunately, Steve Titus would not give up knowing full well that he was innocent, and he contacted a local newspaper, catching the attention of an investigative reporter, who found the man who had actually raped the woman, and this man was suspected of fifty other rapes done in that area alone. Although finally free, Titus had lost everything (partner, job, partly even reputation), and so he had decided to sue all those people who had caused him so much pain. On the day he was to go to trial, he died of a stress-related heart attack.
This is not the only case of arrest caused by false memories; in the United States alone, there have been at least three hundred cases of people who ended up behind bars because of victims who had somewhat polluted memories.

In a study also conducted by Elizabeth Loftus, false memories were implanted in patients. In one such experiment, the suggestion was used to make them believe that when they were five or six years old they had gotten lost in a shopping mall and an older person had helped them reunite with their family. They were able to plant these memories in the minds of a quarter of the people who had participated in the study. In other studies of the same kind, particularly one conducted in Italy, the researchers were able to plant the memory in their studied subjects that when they were children, they had witnessed demonic possession.
The study done by Dr. Loftus obviously had a purpose. She had become aware of people who were going to psychotherapy for various kinds of problems (from bulimia to depression), and they were coming out with other kinds of problems and memories, such as precisely, being raped, being abducted by aliens, and even more bizarre things. When Elizabeth Loftus told the world about her studies specifically to go against that particular kind of psychotherapy, so many people insulted her by saying that her research was not ethical at all, even though it had been examined before it was approved. Even there was a case where Loftus had studied a public case of a daughter accusing her mother of abuse, when in fact that was not the case. After the doctor's research was published, the alleged victim sued her for defamation and invasion of privacy, a process that lasted five years and finally ended, leaving Elizabeth Loftus free.

One very important thing said at the conference was that false memories implanted in people could also be used for positive purposes, such as convincing them to eat healthier foods or to exercise more, and so on. This is where the ethical dilemma comes up and that is when you should and could actually use them, the point is that a psychologist cannot legally create false memories in his patients, but a parent could do it for the sake of their children, as mentioned earlier so that they could eat healthier foods or otherwise have a better lifestyle.
This kind of research could have saved innocent people like Steve Titus.

Our memories are part of our identity as people, and it is absolutely extraordinary when you know individuals with infallible memories, even that they remember every second of their lives, among them actress Mary Lou Henner, who said in an interview that although some memories come to her slower than others, she still manages to remember every single second of her life, this phenomenon is called superior autobiographical memory, and only ten people in the whole world are endowed with this extraordinary ability.

But, these phenomena aside, humans are totally imperfect animals, which is also what makes us unique and fortunately not machines, but, that is precisely why it is best not to rely solely on our memory because it can be extremely fragile.

Venezia Metal

Non troppi giorni fa stavo cercando alcuni libri riguardanti la musica metal su Amazon, essendo io un'accanita lettrice ed anche un'appassionata di questo genere musicale.
Mentre scorrevo per la prima pagina, mi è capitato di leggere un titolo in italiano che mi ha subito lasciata sorpresa: "Venezia Metal" di Marco Crescizz.
Essendo io veneziana, non potevo non prenderlo, ed è stato proprio così che ho avuto l'opportunità di leggere uno dei migliori libri io abbia mai letto negli ultimi anni.

Per iniziare, vi riporto direttamente la trama:

In un futuro distopico dove il politicamente corretto ha vinto, la musica metal e il punk sono stati banditi. Ma non a Venezia. L'isola è un immenso centro sociale in cui le migliori band si esibiscono dal vivo e competono per affermarsi sul mercato, grazie anche alla misteriosa "Bava di Satana", una muffa viola che cresce sugli edifici della città e che pare doni capacità musicali superiori a chi se ne ricopre. Qui si trova Gianni, fratello del frontman dei Box of Suffering, una delle migliori band emergenti. Mentre lotta per farsi un nome nella scena metal affrontando un livello competitivo a dir poco infernale, riti occulti avvengono presso la maledetta Ca' Dario per risvegliare un orrore lovecraftiano sopito nelle sue profondità...

IL METAL HORROR E' ARRIVATO: L'INFERNO E' A UN RIFF DI DISTANZA!

Sto cercando di non rivelare niente di troppo per non rovinare il libro ai futuri lettori, posso però dirvi ciò che ho preferito:
- Leggere una Venezia futura raccontata in modo parecchio diverso da come è ora;
- La trama e le distinte personalità di ognuno dei personaggi;
- I vari elementi fantastici, come la bava di satana e moltissimi altri;

- I nomi assurdi dei generi musicali e di alcune band;

- Il fatto che non sia una cosa solo per metallari ma per un pubblico ben più vasto.

Una cosa che non mi è piaciuta è che dopo pochi giorni lo ho finito, e, come già accennato, davvero in pochissimo tempo, non avessi avuto da fare con l'università ci avrei messo ancora meno.

Posso solo dirvi che, se siete amanti del fantasy e dell'horror, se siete veneziani od appassionati di venezia e se siete (o non siete) metallari, questo libro è per voi! La scorrevolezza del linguaggio e gli elementi fantastici vi terranno sicuramente incollati alle pagine e vedrete che anche voi lo finirete in pochissimo tempo.

Vi lascio qui il profilo instagram dell'autore, Marco Crescizz, ecco il link.

Per comprare il libro c'è Amazon ed Acheron Books, la casa editrice che ha pubblicato questo capolavoro.

Stay Metal! \m/

 

Music, Identity and Subcultures, an in-more-depth study

Music unites, it is a well-known and much-discussed thing, but it only takes a few examples to realize how much it can be considered a social glue: Woodstock, raves, and heavy metal music festivals.

Starting from more ancient times, music has always been used to name something of one's identity, in the pre-Cristopher Columbus Native American peoples, it distinguished one civilization from another, and in older Europe, it characterized the bourgeoisie from the people, how? Just think of the masses in Latin. But the same, national anthems, and protest songs are all things that lead us to an association with something and therefore to a belonging, an identity.
In short, it tends to be the case that listening, dancing, playing a certain genre of music, what clothes one wears, what readings one prefers, and even what means of transportation one tends to use, are all things that affirm an identity of ours and usually make us part of a certain collectivity and a certain group of people.
Music can influence our values and beliefs, and also, the kind of music we prefer is related to our cognitive functions.

A 2015 study from the University of Chicago highlighted several traits typical of those who listen to a certain genre, listed below:

- Pop: Those who prefer this music tend to be more outgoing, honest, and conventional. Although lovers of this genre are hard workers with high self-esteem, pop-heads tend to be more anxious and apprehensive, in addition to the fact that they tend to be less creative.

- Rap/Hip Hop: The myth that rap fans would tend to be more violent has been debunked with this very research. In fact, they tend to have higher self-esteem and be more outgoing.

- Country: they tend to be hard-working, conventional, extroverted people and tend to be more conservative. Although very often country lyrics tend to be about heartbreak, fans tend to be more emotionally stable. They ranked lower in the "openness to new experiences" item.

- Rock/Heavy Metal: another genre that carries the cross having aggressive followers, who pull shenanigans, and tend to be angry people. This research debunked this myth as well and showed that "metalheads" tend to be sweet, creative, and introverted. They tend to have lower self-esteem.

- Indie: fans of indie music have been classified as introverted, intellectual, and creative, but less hardworking and sweet than people who favor other genres. They tend to be passive, anxious and have lower self-esteem.

- Dance: listeners of this genre are typically extroverted, self-confident, and more open to new experiences, however, they also classified themselves as much less sweet people than listeners of other genres.

- Classical: classical music listeners tend to be more introverted but comfortable with themselves, creative, and with healthy self-esteem. 

- Jazz, blues, and soul: tend to be extroverts, and with high self-esteem. Often very creative, intelligent, and comfortable outside their comfort zone.

In addition, researchers have suggested that people can see and experience the world in two ways: based on social cues (thus empathizing) and based on preset conceptions of how people should respond (thus analyzing).

More empathetic people tend to prefer more emotionally rich genres such as indie rock, country, and folk. Most of them have careers in the arts, or at least in professions born to help others. They, therefore, prefer lighter music that provokes stronger emotions.
In contrast, analyzers, unlike empaths, gravitate toward math and science and are precisely attracted to structurally complex genres such as jazz or classical music; world music is also often to their liking.

However, not all research supports the idea that personality traits play a role in determining music preferences. A 2017 meta-analysis found that personality traits play very little role in determining individual differences.
In this very regard, musicologist and sociologist Marcello Sorce Keller states that: "The activity of making music, our tastes in producing it, in listening to it, our choices to participate with others in the rituals to which it gives substance, constitute yet another way of clarifying ourselves and those who observe us who we are (or at least who we think we are or wish to be), with whom we identify and with whom we do not wish to be confused."
He also adds that: "Music, music-making therefore, is an activity that, at the same time, unites us with someone and separates us from someone else, always and everywhere."

But how about nowadays?
I don't want to say that technology killed subcultures or self-identity, because it is not like this. As a society, we've had social networks since the 2000s with MySpace and Facebook, and honestly, people were still parts of subcultures and similar. Even during the early 2010s we could still see some glimpses and attempts at creating short-lived subcultures on platforms such as Tumblr. 
So what happened? Well, I feel like it all started happening with the rise of Musical.ly, a very short-lived platform (2014-2017), which is now known as TikTok. To be honest, I have always hated it because everyone was doing the trends and everyone was starting to act braindead. We all know the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and the 2000s for certain looks, certain music, and how things were developing and evolving but each decade had a characterizing and prominent trend, whether we're talking about fashion, music, or art. 

But what about the times where we are living now?

Tell me something that you find characterizing about these times. 

The answer is highly probably nothing apart from constantly changing trends and short-form content.

I'm not here writing all of these things to complain, but I want to talk about it and show that as much as certain social media are good because we get to connect with long-lost relatives, and people from all around the World, all of these platforms are extremely fast-paced, leaving little to no space for deeper thoughts or for differentiation.

No one here is saying to delete all of your accounts and disappear, but at least, be more cynical about the content that you expose yourself to, and, don't homologate to others and live your truth. If you enjoy wearing plain clothes and not "alternative" ones then go with whatever makes you more comfortable and happy. 

Subcultures still exist, even though now the majority of people call them "something-core", but they are still there, the problem is that the Internet now makes it look like they do not exist anymore and we are all the same.

What can you do about it? Simply be yourself and go on with whatever music you prefer, and maybe, spend less time on TikTok, that shit really sucks.

Intervista ai Necrodeath!

Ciao a tutti ragazzi! Per la prima volta sul mio piccolo blog ho deciso di inserire un articolo in italiano (che verrà anche tradotto in inglese). Ho avuto una grandissima fortuna, e cioè quella di intervistare una leggendaria band italiana: i Necrodeath!
Formati nell'84, la band ha avuto un'incredibile influenza sul metal estremo italiano, esibendosi in alcuni dei luoghi più importanti per l'estremo metal e portando il loro nome oltre i confini della Penisola!
Con moltissimo onore, ed ancora moltissima emozione, vi lascio all'intervista:

credits to: Chriss Brasse

- Come avete conosciuto il metal? Vi ricordate il primo brano/album che avete ascoltato?

GL: ho iniziato ad ascoltare metal circa verso i 14 anni, all'epoca dell'uscita di Master of Puppets dei Metallica, uno dei miei album preferiti di sempre che ascolto ancora oggi. Da lì mi sono sempre di più appassionato alla musica metal in particolare a quella estrema, fino ad ascoltare gruppi brutal e death metal. Al metal mi sono approcciato tramite i compagni di scuola....prima alle scuole medie e poi alle superiori, era la fine degli anni 80 e io da adolescente curioso mi sono da subito appassionato a questo tipo di sonorità crude e pesanti, da lì in poi le mie ricerche e ascolti sono diventati sempre più di nicchia, fino ad ascoltare i Necrodeath eheheh :)

- Come avete deciso di formare la band?

FLEGIAS: All'epoca non ero ancora in formazione nella band ma incominciavo a frequentare i ragazzi. Quello che posso dirti è che la passione era l'unico motore che muoveva tutto il movimento metal del periodo. Diciamo che il concerto dei Venom (con spalla i Metallica) dell'84 fu la vera miccia che fece esplodere il fenomeno Necrodeath.

- Vi ricordate il vostro primo concerto come band?

FLEGIAS: Posso dirti quello in cui ho suonato per la prima volta con i Necrodeath: era il 1998, in quel di Ponderano (BI) al Babilonya. Eravamo di spalla agli Immortal. Non ricordo neanche come siamo finiti lì a suonare... forse perché conoscevo bene quell'ambiente vicino a casa mia o forse era giunta notizia della reunion, fatto sta che fu un concerto bello carico di adrenalina. I Necrodeath mancavano dalle scene da dieci anni e il calore del pubblico si è fatto sentire tutto.

credits to: Enrico Auxilia

- Tra tutti gli album che avete registrato quale ha avuto un impatto più grande su ognuno di voi? Come mai?

GL: Con i Necrodeath ho registrato 6 album e 2 Ep, per cui ho dei bei ricordi di ognuno di loro e tutti hanno contribuito alla mia crescita da musicista. Se dovessi sceglierne uno che in qualche modo ha impattato sul mio modo di registrare, direi "The Age of Dead Christ" perchè l'ho registrato buona alla prima e tutto in una serata!

- Come mai vi siete concentrati proprio su Vlad Țepeș per il vostro concept album del 2007 "Draculea"? Cosa vi ha affascinati di questo personaggio in particolare oltre che alla sua storia?

PIER: Peso e Flegias sono sempre stati gli autori dei testi e per quanto da una band estrema come la nostra ci si aspetti dei testi senza particolari tematiche in realtà sono sempre alla ricerca di argomentazioni culturali o storiche che diano la giusta ispirazione coi testi. Così se Draculea possa sembrare in apparenza un concept sui vampiri in realtà si è cercato di raccontare la storia reale di Vlad Tepes, compresa di tanti dettagli che non sono sempre raccontati.

- Cosa vi piace di più del sound del metal? Perchè proprio questo genere?

GL: come dicevo prima il metal sin da giovane mi è entrato nelle vene, per il sound crudo e diretto, oltre che per l'energia che trasmette. Sono passato quindi dall’essere ascoltatore e appassionato sino a suonarlo direttamente con le mie band, sia dal vivo che con nuove produzioni, quindi direi che ho potuto sperimentare tutte le sue sfaccettature.

- Come vi siete sentiti quando Phil Anselmo vi ha citati e vi ha elogiato nella sua intervista del 2004? 

GL: Con stupore ho appreso che Phil Anselmo ci conosceva, un big come lui che conosce una band  underground come la nostra è una grande soddisfazione, inoltre questo fa capire come la musica non abbia confini e può arrivare a chiunque. Personalmente ho potuto assistere ad un elogio nei nostri confronti da parte di Mr.Anselmo anche durante il Rock the Castle del 2019, quando abbiamo condiviso insieme lo stesso palco. E' stato poi un enorme piacere poterlo salutare nel backstage e farsi abbracciare (anzi stritolare) con rispetto reciproco.

- Che piani avete per i prossimi anni? Qualche collaborazione con qualche altro artista?

PIER: Al momento ci stiamo godendo gli ottimi feedback dell’ultimo album “Singin’ in the Pain”, abbiamo qualche concerto in vista e poi ci concentreremo di materiale nuovo, non sappiamo ancora se qualcosa di limitato tipo un singolo su 45 giri vinile o un album vero e proprio.

- Che speranze avete per il futuro della musica metal?

GL: Penso che il metal non morirà mai! Potrà avere alti e bassi, evolversi in altri sottogeneri o contaminazioni, ma ci sarà sempre qualcuno che vorrà sfogarsi suonando musica estrema e ci sarà sempre qualcuno che apprezzerà questo tipo di sonorità, quindi supportiamo sempre la musica, qualunque genere sia, perchè ci rende liberi.

Vi ringrazio infinitamente di nuovo! Grazie!!

GL: grazie a te per il supporto! 

Seguiteci sui nostri siti per i prossimi appuntamenti live. www.necrodeath.net  

Anche i social dei Necrodeath! Instagram Twitter Facebook YouTube

Interview to Necrodeath!

Hello everyone!!! For the first time on my little blog, I decided to include an article in Italian (this is the English translation). I had great luck, and that was to interview a legendary Italian band: Necrodeath! Formed in '84, the band has had an incredible influence on Italian extreme metal, performing in some of the most important venues for extreme metal and taking their name beyond the borders of the Peninsula!
With much honor, and still much excitement, I leave you with the interview:

image credits to: Chriss Brasse

- How did you become acquainted with metal? Do you remember the first song/album you listened to?

GL: I started listening to metal around the age of 14, around the time of the release of Metallica's Master of Puppets, one of my all-time favorite albums that I still listen to today. From there I got increasingly into metal music especially extreme metal music until I started listening to brutal and death metal bands. I was approached to metal by schoolmates....prima in middle school and then in high school, it was the late 80s, and I as a curious teenager immediately got into this kind of raw and heavy sounds, from there on my research and listening became more and more niche, until I listened to Necrodeath hehe :)

- How did you decide to form the band?

FLEGIAS: At that time I was not yet forming the band but I was starting to hang out with the guys. I can tell you that passion was the only engine that moved the whole metal movement at the time. Let's say that the Venom concert (with Metallica as the backing band) in '84 was the real fuse that exploded the Necrodeath phenomenon.

- Do you remember your first concert as a band?

FLEGIAS: I can tell you the one where I played for the first time with Necrodeath: it was 1998, in Ponderano (BI) at Babilonya. We were backing Immortal. I don't even remember how we ended up playing there... maybe because I was familiar with that environment near my home or maybe news of the reunion had arrived, the fact is that it was a nice concert full of adrenaline. Necrodeath had been missing from the scene for ten years and the warmth of the audience was all there.

photo credits: Enrico Auxilia

- Of all the albums you have recorded which one has had the greatest impact on each of you? How come?

GL: With Necrodeath I recorded 6 albums and 2 Ep's, so I have fond memories of each of them and they all contributed to my growth as a musician. If I had to pick one that somehow impacted the way I record, I would say "The Age of Dead Christ" because I recorded it well in one session and all in one night!

- Why did you focus specifically on Vlad Țepeș for your 2007 concept album "Draculea"? What fascinated you about this character in particular besides his story?

PIER: Peso and Flegias have always been the authors of the lyrics and as much as from an extreme band like ours one expects lyrics without any particular themes actually they are always looking for cultural or historical arguments that give the right inspiration with the lyrics. So if Draculea may seem on the surface to be a concept about vampires in reality they tried to tell the real story of Vlad Tepes, including many details that are not always told.

- What do you like most about the sound of metal? Why this genre in particular?

GL: As I said before, metal since I was young has entered my veins, because of the raw and direct sound, as well as the energy it conveys. So I went from being a listener and fan to playing it directly with my bands, both live and with new productions, so I would say that I was able to experience all its facets.

- How did you feel when Phil Anselmo mentioned and praised you in his interview in 2004? 

GL: It was with amazement that I learned that Phil Anselmo knew us, a big guy like him knowing an underground band like ours is a great satisfaction, moreover this makes one realize how music has no boundaries and can reach anyone. I personally was able to witness Mr.Anselmo praising us also during Rock the Castle in 2019, when we shared the same stage together. It was then a huge pleasure to be able to greet him backstage and get a hug (nay, crush) with mutual respect.

- What are your plans for the next few years? Any collaborations with any other artists?

PIER: At the moment we are enjoying the great feedback from the last album "Singin' in the Pain," we have a few concerts coming up and then we will focus of new material, we don't know yet whether something limited like a single on 45 rpm vinyl or a proper album.

- What hopes do you have for the future of metal music?

GL: I think metal will never die! It may have ups and downs, evolve into other sub-genres or contaminations, but there will always be someone who wants to let off steam by playing extreme music and there will always be someone who appreciates this kind of sound, so we always support music, whatever genre it is, because it sets us free.

Follow us on our sites for upcoming live dates. www.necrodeath.net  

Necrodeath's social media accounts as well!

 

Instagram                 Twitter             Facebook            YouTube

Heavy metal concerts in the Metaverse?

Something all music fans love is live concerts. You can ask anyone, Taylor Swift fans, Dying Fetus fans, don't even bother asking jazz musicians because they live for lives. 
Still, in the years post covid-19, concerts are going back to normal, people have lost their jobs so they have less money and they are restarting their lives.

So what is the news? Even though it's not really news because they already started happening in a video game? Metaverse concerts!
Plus, many virtual concerts already happened on Fortnite with artists such as Travis Scott, Ariana Grande, and Charlie Puth, just to name a few. 

You can also attend a concert in an actual Metaverse venue, just like the Ozzfest 2022.

You probably already knew thanks to Loudwire, but yes, between November 10, 2022, and November 13, 2022, the Ozzfest was hosted in Decentraland and Ozzy was the only confirmed performer, and it was free to attend, plus no VR or headset was required.

There was even a Motörhead performance that looked something like this:

Ozzfest 2022

I sadly couldn't make it because I had some problems with my PC at the time, but I would really like to reflect on the Metaverse and its future impact on live music performances, and, in this case, especially talking about heavy metal music.

As much as I personally enjoy technology and things that can help me out reaching other people to have a talk, and get a comment about whether my articles are all right and everything, I don't think that it should substitute in-person interactions.

Of course, it's super cool that the Ozzfest 2022 was free to attend and that they even got Motörhead in there, but, if anyone reading this article attended, how did you feel about it? 

I mean, of course, I hope that there are going to be some other Metaverse concerts, maybe of some artists that sadly, are not on Planet Earth anymore, such as Ronnie James Dio, that would be super cool and one of the only ways to get to see those artists, apart from the hologram tours, that are cool too but I don't know how much a ticket to those concerts can cost.

But still, even though sometimes they can be a little bit expensive, there are many cool festivals where you can get to see great artists for a relatively cheap price, and they are live events, so you get to interact with other people with your same interests. I remember when I went to my first festival in 2018 it seemed impossible to me that there were that many people with the same music taste as me, and I was so excited to get to know some of them! 

Also, as soon as live concerts restarted, people from all over the world went out of their way to go to the events, people go to the disco more than ever, and other types of live events organized by young people are being created every day. 

Speaking only about the heavy metal subculture, we have the mosh pit, the horns, and all of our symbols that are a part of the concerts. It's something absolutely irreplaceable by technology.

So, do I think that metaverse concerts are the future of live events?
No.

Technology such as A.I., ChatGPT, or even the Metaverse, can be helpful since they can be useful when it comes to school, for example, using ChatGPT to get an idea of what you should write on your thesis, or the Metaverse can be cool to create some interactive lessons as well.

But nothing is ever going to replace the feeling of seeing your favorite musicians in front of you playing live, being able to bond and talk with people who love the same music as you, and spending time enjoying life.

As much as technology has made our lives way better than before, it shouldn't replace the humanity of what we do, we should use it to make our lives more practical, but never to replace real-life experiences.

How to promote your music in 2023 | Artists Tips

You have some cool music, maybe even an EP or an album ready, and of course, you want it to get heard.

Nowadays you can either choose to promote your music without social media (which is a little bit more difficult but I have already written an article about it here), or you can choose to use them to reach more people.
In this article I am going to focus on the contemporary ways to promote your music, so, using and involving social apps in the process: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook (yeah I know but it can still be very useful), Snapchat, even BeReal can be useful in the process of promoting music.

1 - Instagram

Even though many people are saying that Instagram is dead, this is absolutely NOT true. Instagram is one of the best social media to visually represent who you are, your music, and your personal style, both musically and fashion-wise speaking, plus, young people are still using it a lot to document their day-to-day life. 

On Instagram what counts the most and boosts your account on the Explore page is your engagement with fans, so, sadly, you'll have to spend a little bit more time creating content for your Instagram stories, and also you'll have to spend more time thinking about how you want to be portrayed online, taking the right pictures and so on. 

What can get you more engagement?
Starting with stories, show how you're working in the studio, maybe some spoilers on who you're working with, this is so important because it raises curiosity, and you know, with social media people got more and more nosey.

Also, use reels. Maybe you might not like them a lot because they remind you of TikTok, an app that I am not a fan of either, but, they are great to get some engagement. You can post covers, short videos of your live concerts, post some visual content using your music as the sound of the reel. For example, if you've made a song about ghosts (?), make some content that is related to that specific subject, film yourself at night, and add some effects and filters. You can also use A.I. to create the effects, but be careful, this is how A.I. added corpse paint on one of my pictures:

2 - Make music you actually like

This might sound obvious but in many cases, it is not. There are a lot of people that are making music they "kinda like" because they think that by following a certain trend, they are going to get signed faster. Actually, following trends you don't like is going to lead you to major burn out and that's when you are not going to keep up with your music anymore. Do something that you like, even if it is something as niche-specific as medieval music. If you really like that, then there is a higher chance that people are going to follow you for your music and buy and stream it. Of course not following the trends can result in a smaller audience, but do you really care if the audience is smaller but more affectionate? Trust me on this one, do something you really love, whatever it is, get to know other musicians in your niche, collaborate with them and everything is going to be alright, it might take a little bit longer but still, I feel like it's good for your soul to do music that makes you effectively happy.

3 - TikTok

As much as I absolutely hate that app, it's one of the easiest platforms where you can actually grow an audience very fast. Sadly. People find themselves lost in the rabbit hole of the ByteDance app, and so they spend a lot of time consuming content there and mindlessly scrolling through millions of videos. As much as I don't think that TikTok can give you a lasting and meaningful music career, I have to admit that, unless it gets banned worldwide, it's a great place where to give a kickstart to your career. So, here are some tips:

- Make sure that the music distribution service you're using also distributes to TikTok and makes your song a sound for the app;

- Try posting consistently content to promote your music, whether it is a funny video or just some visuals to showcase what you are doing, maybe even posting a "day in the life" as a musician, people usually go crazy for those types of videos;

- Interact with other musicians on the app, try stitching videos and commenting on other people's music, duet with other people (there are tons of musical duets on TikTok) and maybe even just send a nice private message to the musicians you like the most, that's a great way to find someone to collaborate with.

So, as much as this app can seem very bad, and we all know that many musicians out there get forced by their managers to publish content daily, still, it can be great for you as a Kickstarter now, and as a way to promote your music once you've reached a certain amount of followers and views.

4 - Playlists

Getting playlisted on Spotify is absolutely NOT easy, I know this for a fact, some independent artists wait years before getting on an editorial playlist on any music platform, while some others get lucky with their first release. 
So here I am with some tips for you:

- Create a playlist yourself, and give it a catchy name such as "[insert something] vibes", put your music in there as well if it matches the title of your playlist and promote it on your social media, trust me, this is going to help you a lot;

- Take a look around and see some playlists that accept artists' submissions and send your music around, there is a good chance that people are going to put it in there if the song is good for the playlist and your monthly listeners are absolutely going to go up!.

As you can see, you can still get playlisted in different ways while waiting for Spotify's editorial team to notice you, and remember, Spotify is NOT the only distribution service so there is a good chance that your music might get playlisted on other music stream services. 

5 - Send your music to music blogs

Please, if you have some good music send it to me as well!! It would be so cool to write some kind of review!
Also, send your music to blogs, when someone tells you that blogs are going to die and so on, I really feel like it is not true. If you look closely, it was actually social media platforms that died, while people still use the Internet to look up how to do everything. But, before sending your music to blogs I have some things to say:

- Present your music, if you are submitting it you should explain what it is about, why you decided to record it that way, who inspired you, what the artwork represents, how many instruments, how long did it take to record and to decide whether it was worth it releasing it, all these things.

- Have some patience, sometimes blogs have to deal with hundreds if not thousands of daily music submissions, so, if your first tries do not succeed, don't get discouraged and keep on trying, remember that blogs such as Pitchfork and Stereogum have helped many artists succeed.

6 - Don't forget that the quality of your music matters

If you are an independent artist I am not expecting that you are willing to spend a lot of money on something that you don't know if it is going to work out or not. But still, remember that the quality of your music matters, I'm talking about the mix, the sound, but also about the lyrics, the music, the bases, the production, everything. It has to be well done and you need to be focused while you are making it. If you don't want to go to a studio, buy a good microphone and find a very good DAW, for example, Cakewalk is a great free one that you can use to record yourself,  and make sure that everything comes out as good as possible.

This is all that I have to say about promoting your music in the "contemporary traditional" way, there are offline ways that I have already suggested, and these are the best ones if you are also using social media.

In my humble opinion, content creation has ruined the way that we look at music, and it has also ruined the quality of music since it's the first thing that artists have to focus on. Still, if you want to make a living out of music and if you want to make it in the music industry, it's better to be reachable to not miss any opportunity. 

My personal and final tip is, make content to reach as many people as possible, but remember to not focus just on that. Focus on music that you actually love, on making good quality music, using good equipment, and so on. At the end of the day, things are worth it if you actually enjoy the process.