How did you get into music?

“I come from a musical family, so I started off on classical piano and violin when I was seven years old and saw those instruments through the grades during my teens. I got really interested in the guitar aged about 13 and taught myself, learning mainly blues licks. From the age of 15 I played in bands, through to relatively recently. It was only a few years ago that I began focusing on my own singing and songwriting.”

How did you get your big break?

“There never has been a single big break – the breaks came as a result of me getting some good material together, recording it on a computer and sending it out there myself. I think there is a big misconception among young bands and artists that you need to be discovered – that a label will turn up at your gig and sign you up. That just doesn’t happen in the same way as it used to.

“My advice to any upcoming band or artist is to make it happen yourself. Produce songs in your bedroom, put together promo packs and send them off to radio and press. That’s what I did, and I was lucky that some people at BBC 6 Music picked it up. From there it was passed up to Radio 2, which led to a session for Dermot O’Leary’s show and then on to management/publishing deals.”

What are your ambitions?

“Some of my ambitions are being fulfilled right now – to be able to play in big concert halls in front of thousands of people is amazing. From here I just want to raise my profile further, sell more records and play bigger venues.”

What’s the best way to build a fanbase?

“Make sure you’re on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Bebo, iLike and so on. You need your own blog/website to enable you to connect with people after a gig – I use WordPress so I can upload videos, photos and updates from the road.

“Then you need to make sure that your material is up to scratch, that you have an image – don’t just rock up to gigs in your jeans and a T-shirt – and do as many gigs as you can. You can even put on your own tours and make some money from them.”

Is it difficult to gain an audience for original material?

“Yes, it is. It’s harder for people to connect with it, as they have never heard it before, but if you write good songs, things will happen.”

How often do you sit down to write a new song? Is it a habit, or a massive effort?

“I constantly have song ideas going round in my head and use every opportunity to lay something down. I use Logic to record my music, but if I am in a rush and want to make sure I don’t forget an idea I will just turn on my laptop, get GarageBand going and use the mic built into the laptop to record the guitar, vocal or piano line.

“Writing is definitely habitual, but one of my main problems is not having enough time to see ideas through as they come. For me, the important thing is to make sure all the little ideas are effectively jotted down on my laptop so that when I do have time to work on them I can develop them into songs.”

read the full article on musicradar.com

Sleek Design

Featuring a lightweight body and 37 keys, the Lucina AX-09 is a great family keyboard that can be easily handled by small children. It can be played in either a standing position using a shoulder strap or in a traditional horizontal tabletop orientation. There are many high-quality sounds onboard, organised by category for quick and easy sound selection.

USB Integration

A USB host port allows users to play WAV and MP3 music files directly from a USB flash drive, making it easy for them to jam along with their favourite songs. Audio from an external MP3 or CD player can be played by connecting the device to the EXTERNAL IN jack.

Ultimate Portability

Designed for mobile operation, the Lucina AX-09 runs for up to four hours on eight NiMH batteries. To get up and running, a tutorial DVD and quick guide is included, along with a handy panel sticker that helps users become acquainted with the keyboard’s various functions.

The Babyface combines excellent analog circuit design with AD/DA converter chips of the latest generation. On top RME’s famous SteadyClock ensures an AD- and DA-conversion of the highest reference quality. Both digitally controlled preamps provide individually switchable 48V phantom power. The extremely low THD+N values let these preamps surpass those of other devices that cost several times the price of the Babyface.

The incredible feature set includes an optical I/O, usable as ADAT port with SMUX support or SPDIF for sessions at up to 192 kHz. In combination with an ADAT converter the Babyface provides an incredible amount of 10 analog input and 12 output channels. The additional headphone output, driven from an extra DA converter, provides full 192 kHz sound experience, and is available not only directly at the unit but also on the breakout cable. Directly plug in your guitar or other instruments by switching one input to Hi-Z input mode.

The next generation of TotalMix delivers hardware mixing/routing with lots of new features and a highly improved usability. The unbeaten DSP mixer now not only matches features of high-end digital consoles but even adds effects like a 3-band parametric equalizer, reverb and echo to the mix.

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