Gergely Kalapis Music

So I have explored the first steps leading up to a first demo of a song being recorded, ready to be filled with actual "meaning". And then "wooords... don't come eeeasyyyyy to meee", well in some cases, anyway. I have had times when I saw or encountered something that was "meant to" become lyrics for a song; if I manage to capture them, they become what I call "honest" lyrics, that just come flooding out of you almost word after word, sometimes even rhyming, but sadly, this is only the minority of cases. I guess certain events in your life or strong impulses you occur are commonly what trigger this inspiration on the back of your emotional response to them, but again, this is not exact science. Some events in your life may be so overpowering, good or bad, that you are just too busy processing them and and your emotional mechanisms dictate discipline limiting your creative self. And that is ultimately what you need; unleashing your creativity,...

So in a previous post I - sort of - answered the question on whether it is the lyrics or the chords that comes first to me, but I thought I share my songwriting experiences in a bit more detail, as I haven't previously given much of a thought to what is undeniably a complex process. So there I am, walking in a park, taking a shower, or typing away on my laptop at work after lunch...and the magic happens. It mostly comes in the form of a melody of only a few notes. From where, that is a true mystery. As much as I would love to call it talent or something inside me that I could take credit for, it certainly feels more like as if someone just dropped these in my lap. One minute you are watching a dog catch a ball in the park, reaching for your shower gel or autofilling a column in Excel, and boom. Out of the blue, there is the seed. And it sounds so catchy in your head, resonates with your soul and makes you reach for your phone instantly (or, in the case of me in the shower, keep h...

How did you start writing music? What comes first - lyrics or the melody? I have been asked a couple of times... In all honesty I never really wondered about the above questions or even gave much of a thought to the process of how a song is actually created. Of course, when studying music production, I did have a module discussing the ins and outs of how hits - classic and contemporary - were written and produced, even had top producers lecturing us, but for me writing always remained sort of an organic process. Thinking about it, none of the above questions is very easy to answer. I started playing the guitar when I was 13 - I learned classical for two years before my teacher left the music school I went to and I rather not had the teacher taking over teaching me, so I left after year 2. It was around the time I discovered and started listening to rock heavier than Queen; the likes of Nirvana, The Offspring, Carzy Town, Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. Although it was the early 2000's...

Just a couple of years ago, my friend, Peter has already embarked on his mission of creating instruments, and his projects have since been some of our most talked about topics. You will find out why soon, but believe me when I say do check him out ,  I have a very good reason to say so. His informal mission statement was “affordable guitars, made for you.” The idea behind it all was the fact that although many musicians have a good idea of what they would like their dream guitar or bass to look, feel and sound like, they are restricted by their budgets and simply can’t afford buying them even from the second hand market. But truth be told, I think the main reason he dived into it all was quite simple: because he loves to craft. His first work was another Strat, followed by a Tele featuring a painting of his on the body and I must admit, even those two were easily above the league of standard entry-level guitars (think of Squier bundles) despite the relatively cheap components. Bo...

Sadly, in today's world to get your music heard it is insufficient to just create music that you believe has a market, as with digitalisation and tools and knowledge to produce music now being widely available, the sheer amount of new music and artists resulted in overwhelming supply versus  nearly unchanged levels of demand. Most importantly, it has become ever so difficult to outroar a pool of screaming musicians. I have always been too submissive to be a good salesperson. I always use the excuse that the only thing I can do acceptably well is producing, I am not particularly good at writing or performing, let alone promotion. On one hand, this is a good thing, as I can focus on what I enjoy doing the most, challenge myself in what I want to improve in while retaining the joy of creating something out of nothing, without the weight of expectations on my shoulders. On the other hand, you might start wondering what is music without an audience, let alone the fact that it is an expe...

This was around the time when the Starcaster came out, and I have to admit I really wanted one. However my collection of guitars already started growing beyond the extent of justifiable, plus sadly it cost more than what I could afford with a good conscience. My friend, Peter of EP Guitars was somewhat of a collector himself before he started making instruments, and at some point had to make the painful decision which I am incapable of to this day - selling some of his rarely used instruments. As we have been close friends since childhood, we played together more and for longer than we have in any other formation, I knew all his instruments and also had the honour of trying out most of them. Hence I was rather puzzled when he told me he was going to sell his Ibanez guitar . “What Ibanez guitar?” - I asked. Turns out he did have one, and even more surprisingly he would have bought it around the time when we still lived in the same area and saw each other often. “It’s a jazz guitar, bu...

After I sat down with myself and agreed “NO MORE GUITARS!” Yes, I was asking for trouble. There is this app called Nextdoor, where you can keep up to date with what’s happening in your neighbourhood (stray cat, dumped rubbish and nail technicians - Wembley top 3), but also buy/sell stuff. I have been looking for bargain buys, but really bargain ones only. This 2006 guitar was advertised for £90 by a chap who bought it to learn how to play, but after a few weeks of self-teaching gave up and went on to play piano instead, consequently it had barely been used. Although I am aware this model has been produced in vast quantities (it’s likely still in production) and is an entry level guitar, it really is more than convincing with solid, round lows and mids, and is quite a versatile instrument and a nice addition to any home studio on my level. There is a bit of Slash's soul in it :) Long story short, you can’t beat a good double humbucker :) Oh, and still can’t find another one under £...