Joaquin Cotler (@ShinyIslands) is a musician based in Brooklyn, NY. In the ten years since finishing his degree in music, Joaquin has discovered the many strange sides of being a working musician, from recording and gigging with bands, to writing and performing solo, to teaching and conducting workshops.
This conversation covers the music industry, the struggle of working musicians, how YouTube is changing the game, and how musicians across the spectrum learn, perform, and produce music.
Catch up with Joaquin via his website, JoaquinCotler.com Check out our episode below, as well as some of his tracks embedded after the jump.
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Show Notes & Links
- The Busy Creator is recorded at a standing desk
- BBC Radio mounts their microphones in the ceiling
- Shure SM7B mic
- Blake Stratton, [now retired] singer-songwriter, appeared previously on The Busy Creator Podcast
- “Musician” is an all-encompassing trade, according to Joaquin
- Joaquin and The Hot Knives on Facebook
- “Creative-class Hustler” who is part of “The Portfolio Generation”
- Squarespace can be frustrating
- Disney used to have working musicians, so did Warner Bros. Not so much anymore.
- Carl Stalling, composer for Warner Brothers
- The Red Hot Chili Peppers needed a guitar player for their tour
- Mark Wahlberg, played the lead in the film Rock Star
- Sir George Martin CBE, legendary producer for The Beatles
- Ringo got sick, and was briefly replaced by Jimmie Nicol
- “Ringo isn’t the best drummer in the world. He isn’t even the best drummer in the Beatles.” —Jasper Carrott
- “Baby Blue” by Badfinger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C53QAuOoSgc - Cher
- Steely Dan
- Michael McDonald, legendary studio musician
- Sound City, documentary by Dave Grohl
- 20 Feet From Stardom, documentary about backup singers
- WTF with Marc Maron Podcast
- The Beach Boys
- The Laurel Canyon Sound
- Bob Marley
- Burning Spear
- Stax Records
- Motown Records
- Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
- Gold Records & Platinum Records
- Spotify
- Pharrell not happy with his $3000 check from Spotify
- Gain
- Slapback
- Demo Tapes
- Casio Keyboard
- Sly Stone
- Rhythm Ace or Rhythm King drum machine
- Charles Penn’s previous appearances on The Busy Creator Podcast — episodes 1 and 17
- Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull
- Auto-Tune
- Anthony Kiedis
- Ke$ha
- Dr. Luke
- Max Martin, Swedish songwriter who dominates the pop charts
“If it's annoying enough, it'll be a huge hit.”
—Joaquin Cotler
Tweet This
- Performance Art
- All the songs from 70s sound alike
- Girl Talk
- Pitch Perfect
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmSbXsFE3l8' format='16-9' width='16' height='9']
* [Anna Kendrick](http://AnnaKendrick.com "Anna Kendrick"), my crush
* Taylor Swift, "Shake It Off"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfWlot6h_JM - Toni Basil, “Hey Mickey”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6Qoi-b5NWI BulldogPitbull, a singer, apparently- Accounts Payable
- Dribbble, and how designers just flood it with junk
- Vine, not just for twerking videos
- “toiling away in obscurity”
“Wake up early and work hard all day.”
—Philip Glass
Tweet This
- Benjamin Franklin
- Amelia Earhart
- Johnny & June Carter Cash
- Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, forthcoming Spike Lee Joint, out Feb. 10 (Soundtrack on Epic Records)
- “Space Patrol” by Illegalize : song on iTunes
- “Doggies Don’t Ride The Train” by Chickentown : album on iTunes
- Joaquin and the Hot Knives on SoundCloud
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/166212408″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” iframe=”true” /] - Ratfink on SoundCloud
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/748639″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” iframe=”true” /] - Chickentown on SoundCloud
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/85494316″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” iframe=”true” /] - Illegalize on SoundCloud
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/5222344″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” iframe=”true” /] - Joaquin plays at The Manhattan Inn, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Tools
- Pro Tools
- YouTube
- iPhone, or handheld recording device
Techniques
- Diversify as much as possible; don’t rely on one source of income or type of practice (gigging vs. recording)
- Learn to speak “Pro Toolsese” with the studio engineers; acquire as much technical prowess as possible
- Best way to record drums is in a natural room sound. Create a room-within-a-room, and them mic that
- Connect your social media accounts
- DON’T conduct your job interviews by asking candidates to record themselves on YouTube
- Change your routine and creative
Habits
- Be reliable. Deliver the goods, consistently.
- Practice on your own. All the time.
- Wake up early. Drink coffee.
- Backup your phone; download your recordings and whatnot
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Join the Discussion
Add your experiences in the Comments section below.
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Prescott Perez-Fox is a graphic designer, brand developer, and educator with 18+ years experience in branding, packaging, graphic design, and web design. He runs The Busy Creator.
