"The johnny's"

I have decided by my own accord, to recognize some musicians, bands and people in our scene. I have tons of praise for the jammers in our area. Here are my own categories and who I have chosen. No order or anything.

Coolest CD cover: This one goes to Artemia. I believe their singer Blaine is the one who painted it. It's very cool and original. They also win for coolest fliers too. Look at the one picture from them on Artemia's Spotlight Lick. Pure awesomeness.

Musician to look out for in 2012: This is a tie for me. Both people I have choose are brilliant at several instruments. One is Evan Miller. I met him a while ago. I heard him playing drums and was FLOORED. Heard him play bass, my jaw dropped. Heard him play guitar and was FLOORED again. I was so impressed I hooked him up with Rob Boggs to work with us at Quest Sound. The second person is Greg Warnier. The same goes for him as went for evan. Amazing drummer, bassist and guitar player. The kid has the chops and the passion. Expect great things from these two in 2012.

Band your going to have the most fun seeing: This band is False Flag. You will always have fun going to see them. They gave me the pleasure of sitting in with them once. They released a cool cd this year too.

Coolest "New" Band: She and She. If you have been in the scene you have known Brandy Dougless from her solo work. This is what she is doing now. Greg Warnier on drums, a Kate Anderson on bass and the biggest singing secret in Augusta, Drea Suarez. The band plays with a love for what they do, have great harmonies and have a great sound.

Best Sounding CD: Aretmia. Bar none Eric Rinker has the best ear for recording in our area. If you like their music or not there is NO DENYING how well that cd sounds. He has a gift. He would corner the market for a studio in our area if he wanted too. I have listened to a bunch of tracks coming from our area. There are some good things coming from other people, Eric just takes it to a new level.

Band Whos Time Has Come: Radar Cinema. I have watched these guys for years work their asses off to get a solid line up and sound. They achieved that in 2011. They released a killer and ambitious cd , Bird meets Worm, and really hit their stride this year. Congrats guys. Your hard work paid off.

Band who I am glad did a re-union: JJ Maj. Although I missed it due to being sick, they are a local band that did a re-union that actually should have did one. One of the best local bands ever.

Favorite Place to Play and Hear a Band: The Cork and Bull in Aiken SC. Check it out and you will see why. People pack the place out and LOVE live music.

Best promoter of local music or their own band: Michael "Dork" Dinkins. He promotes, promotes , promotes and does it without over hyping or annoying the hell out of you. He puts his money where his mouth is too. He will go to shows just as much as he asks you to go to his. his bands always kick ass too. he never makes a false promise about "how badass his show is gonna be" or load up your facebook with crap. He does promotion well and actually makes you want to come out to a show.

Best Writers of Augusta Music: Tie between Stoney Cannon and Brian "stak" Allen. Stoney knows the local scene better than anyone and just plain writes good. he keeps you interested in his piece, even if you dont know about local bands. Brian writes well too. His best writing quality to me is his honesty. Most local music writers write only good things about local bands ( i can see why, its a small town and everyone is friends or wants to be) but Brian is honest. If he tells you something it's because he is really thinking it. He doesnt go out of his way to write crap on someone just to fling it. Good or bad he tells you his opinion. I like that. Not everything is good.


Band i Like to See: Electric Voodoo. Riley williams is a great guitar player and his band plays some killer tunes. Big props to them. Go see them. Do it. I tell you, Do It NOW!


Most Original Sound: Sibling String. They are made up of guitar/vocals Jacob Beltz, Bass Deveron Roof, Guitar Mike Baidime, drums Dave Mercer and multi instrumentalist Henry Wynn. They play alot downtown and go see why. No other band plays the instruments that they do and make them cool. Killer band with some of the best players in our area.

These are what I think was the tops for 2011. At least at the moment I was writing this. There is SO MUCH good music in our area. These bands and people are just what tickled my fancy for the past year. I am excited to see what comes out in 2012. Cheers!

Spotlight Licks: Artemia

This edition of "Spotlight Licks" is brought to you by the band "Artemia" by way of their super musician drummer Michael "Dork" Dinkins. Gonna let Dork take it from here.


Greetings from Artemia-land. When we were recording our song "Ghost of the Avalanche," we decided to add an impromptu keyboard lead to the latter half of the instrumental bridge. It was written and recorded in about an hour--- however, because I played drums on the song and there were two guitar parts, we never incorporated into our live set until recently. Because the members of Artemia all play multiple instruments, we decided to play some musical chairs where we would do acoustic/clean/piano versions of our songs to open ourselves up to playing different venues... with our guitarist Eric playing drums and myself on keys. So because the lead was written and recorded on the fly and then never revisited, I had to sit down and learn what I had played. Once that was done, I decided to tab out the lead for guitar so that we could add it to our live set on guitar.

If you listen to the song, you'll hear the main theme which is a melody based off the D minor 7 chord. For the instrumental bridge, we thought it would be cool to modify the main theme and play it in various keys and modes first soft and clean and then repeat it hard and heavy. So the lead actually follows each of these key/mode changes every four bars and eventually works back around to the D minor 7 theme for the final chorus.


For the music nerds, the lead begins at time 4:09 and follows this progression: D minor 7... A minor 7... B minor 7... C dominant 7... F dominant 7... E flat major... F# minor 7... C# minor 7... and then the chorus comes in with the D minor 7 again.



As I am not a guitarist and the lead was initially written on keyboard, I have no practical knowledge of how this will actually translate to guitar--- parts of it may be very easy, but other sections may be extremely difficult. Couple that with the fact that, while the song is actually in 4/4, there is a poly-rhythm occurring to give the impression that there's a loop of 5/4 - 5/4 - 6/4. So if you're looking for a challenge or an experiment or are simply interested in jamming what some of the locals have come up with--- here it is.

First half: http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c324/HeirToRuin/Avalanchelead1.jpg

Second half: http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c324/HeirToRuin/Avalanchelead2.jpg

The song: http://artemia.bandcamp.com/track/ghost-of-the-avalanche

SIDE NOTE: The guitars are tuned to standard pitch with a "drop d" tuning.

On a side note Dork's band L.I.E. is retiring for now and are playing a farewell show at Sky City on 11-11-11 (national metal day). If you are 21 and up you should go check it out. Artemia is Dork's baby now. Check out their new cd.

The Importance Of: " The Drive"

This edition of the "Importance Of" is on "the drive." What is "the drive" you ask? It is that inner feeling of pushing yourself to get better. The feeling of wanting more for yourself as a musician. Every player is going to come across this. It's almost like an addiction. You wake up every day and all you can think about is playing. This is a great thing. Its a healthy release. Every day you will wake up and want to do better and you go for it. I see it in alot of my students and in alot of musicians I encounter. One of which is former columnist Michael "Dork" Dinkins. When you get to practice with him you see it. He gets up early on a Sunday, ready to jam, ready to create something new and ready to improve on something that he has been playing for a while. This drive has made him a hell of a musician. i have watched him over the years go from an ok drummer to a musician with the abilities to hang with the big boys. He could very easily be a professional musician. Another person with the kind of drive is Rob Boggs from Quest Sound and Productions. He has a love for music and mixing like no other. I have watched Rob over the years go from an ok mixer and a weekend warrior soundman to a full blown sound company that mixes for tons of national bands that come to Augusta and around the south east. He is always working to improve his mixes and make a band sound like heaven from a speaker. He does this sometimes with no sleep and nothing but "The Drive" to kick some ass and make a show spectacular. I have watched my students do the same. One example as of late is Blake Sloan. He came with not a song he could play. Through his hard work he is tackling Randy Rhoades solos and improving every time I see him. "The Drive" is something every person must harness and use to make them the best they can be as a player or in any musical endeavor they choose to take on. There might not be a single thing more important than "The Drive" you have. It will make you learn songs, scales, do finger exercises and anything else it takes to be a champion player. The best get to be the best because they put in the time and effort. I have given you a few examples of people with the drive. Its your turn to get it and roll with it.

Double Your Pleasure: Learn Another Instrument

This little tid bit is going to be called "Double Your Pleasure" because i believe once you get comfortable with playing your instrument you should start learning a second one. It will benefit you in way too many ways. If you play guitar, learn how to play bass. Really learn how to play it. Just don't play guitar on your bass. When you actually start learning bass it will improve your guitar playing. If you are a bass player learn some drums. As a bass player you get locked into the drums anyway so you might as well learn some drum patterns to help you learn how to lock into it better. Every school that you go to for music has you learn another instrument. It makes you more "well rounded." Learning a second instrument is not something I recommend if you are a beginner. It's hard enough learning in the beginning with one, let alone two things. All the theory you learn on your primary instrument applies to every other instrument you learn. I have a ton of students who have been with me a year or more who now play multiple things. Student spotlight Alex Cooke plays guitar, bass, ukulele, harmonica and sings! It is actually easier to learn your secondinstrument than it is your first. Why? Because you already have an idea of what it takes and everything you have to do. Singing counts as another instrument too. It is harder than you think and takes the same time to get good at as anything you can use your hands to play. Lots of Augusta's local musicians are multi instrumental. Take Micheal "Dork" Dinkins who writes for this blog and plays in Artemia and L.I.E., he is a drummer, singer and keyboard player. Eric Rinker, who also writes here, plays guitar, bass and drums and is good at all of them. So is Dork! Expand your musical horizons and "Double Your Pleasure" and learn another instrument!!

Spotlight Licks: L.I.E.

This edition of "Spotlight Licks" is brought to you by the local favorites, L.I.E., and in particular Micheal "Dr. Dork" Dinkins musician extraordinaire. His band L.I.E. has a new album out and it is neato good. I will let Dr. Dork take it from here......

Greetings. With several licks and tabs being shared from various individuals, I thought it would be neato to share the 'lead guitar' section from my band L.i.E.'s song "Cross Your Arms and Go Outside." The challenge here is not necessarily in the difficulty of any particular passage but in execution of the multiple time signature changes throughout, which makes for a great exercise is rhythm. Below are a two JPG files of guitar tabs that follow the section of the song from 4:02 to 5:56.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c324/HeirToRuin/CrossYourArms1.jpg



http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c324/HeirToRuin/CrossYourArms2.jpg




You can stream or download the song from our bandcamp site where you can also access anything else that we have released to date. http://liemusic.bandcamp.com/track/cross-your-arms-and-go-outside



Take note the song is in "Drop D" from standard pitch. Enjoy!!!

Micheal "Dr. Dork" Dinkins

End of the Year

It's the end of the year 2010. So many things have changed, for the good and for the bad. I would like to do a little year end wrap up and thank everyone who has made this blog a success. This blog is something I started for my students as a place where they could get a little extra something with their lessons and learn about things that go with being a fresh musician.The blog has done very well and has readers well beyond the 40-50 students I have. We regularly get 300-400 hits per week and on lots of occasions we will have 400+ hits a day and in the case were T.C. Electronics picked up on the product review of the Polytune 1000+ a day. We have regular readers all over the globe. I would like to thank the guys who write here. Stoney Cannon, he has wrote about how to get your butt in gear with promotions and press packs, something I would have never even thought of doing and its a VERY IMPORTANT part of being a musician. Micheal "Dork" Dinkins has brought on incite into being original and how bands work and how the people interact with each other, again something I would have never thought of writing about that has benefited my students and many others. Mr. Eric Rinker who has given an insight into how things sound and come up with an awesome multi Media "Spotlight Lick." Thanks to all the guitar players who have contributed to "spotlight Licks" so far. There are people and press who have helped spread the word of the blog Jordon Zeh, Coco Rubio, Verge , Metro Spirit and everyone who "shared" on facebook. Look forward to many new things in the coming year, more guest writers, product reviews, more rock star interviews and many many new things. I would also like to thank Rock Bottom Music and Jonathon Karow for being ultra supportive of students and their musical education. As a student you should also make some New Years Resolutions to become better players and reach for your goals. You students have achieved alot this year and 2011 will be even better! Most important I would like to thank my students. All of you have been very loyal and hardworking. You guys make doing all this fun and exciting. I look forward to working with you all in the coming year. Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Passing the Torch: Brint Lollar

In this first edition of "Passing the Torch" I am focusing on a former student of mine named Brint Lollar. Brint is 21 years old and plays guitar in the band L.I.E. He was 16 years old when he started playing guitar. Boredom and a compulsion to do something is why he started playing. Hearing his moms Van Halen records is what got him inspired and its also what he pulled his first riffs from. I remember the meeting that got Brint started taking lessons from me. I was walking down 8th street in downtown Augusta and this kid with wide eyes and kind of nervous came up to me and said "Hey John John, you givin guitar lessons?", I told him yes and gave him my number. He said he had been at 95 Rock when Zakk Wylde had came through and was there when I was jammin with Zakk. The first lesson I gaveBrint I noticed he was extremely smart. He knew alot of theory and tons about the guitar, we needed to work on the execution. Any of my students wondering by now, yes he is the one I tell you about that knew tons about theory, tons about everything, the one that impressed me with that, we just had to get him playing it! The love of prog music and finding new, obscure bands to learn from , is what keeps him playing. He hasbeen in the band L.I.E. for 3 years now. I remember putting Brint on stage for the first time. He played a student concert at the Barnes and Noble bookstore at the Augusta Mall. I also brought him to the open mic nights i use to do at the mission.(yes he was too young but his mother brought him!!!) I remember helping him out with video auditions trying to get in Chairleg, lending him guitars and amps when he go tin L.I.E.back when LIE had Davis as a drummer.He played his first gig with L.I.E. after just one week of practice. He loves the challenge of learning the parts that fellow LIE band mate ( and contributing writer on this blog) Micheal "Dork" Dinkins writes on the keyboard that he then has to play on the guitar. He says it can take weeks to learn them. He has had the pleasure of opening up for national acts like OTEP, MOTOGRADER and Metallica tribute band BATTERY. This year L.I.E. will be on the 12 Bands of Christmas cd and concert.The concert will be in December this year and once again at the Imperial Theatre. The band is doing "Granda Ma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" for the cd. A couple shows they have coming up is October 2 at the all ages venue Sector 7 G and a halloween show October 30 at the Hard Knox in Columbia South Carolina. I askedhim what his dream guitar would be,get this, he told me it is my red 1980 Gibson Explorer that was my main guitar for many years. He would of course do his own modifications to it. He is currently playing his dream amp, the Bogner Line 6.I also asked him what he got out of taking lessons with me. His response was " A card catalog of applications of use. I came into lessons with pieces of the puzzle and came out with all the pieces and how to use them.I learned application of knowledge and a routine practice schedule." Some advice Brint has to pass on to new players and up and comers: Buy a mp3 player, fill it with music, listen to it religiously and change the music out every week. Also find as many ways as possible to transcribe music. Learn how to read standard notation. Brint would one day like to score a movie and in 5 years sees himself still playing but expanding to other instruments. I am extremely proud to have worked with him. Here's to Brint......Me Passing The Torch........

here is a video of live L.I.E.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijn-pF41N_Y

Music 101 with Dr. Dork

Here is Mr. Micheal "Dork" Dinkins latest blog enetry:

When I was first approached about contributing to this blog, I was asked to think of something that could be useful to music students that either want to pursue music as a career or at the very least as a serious hobby. Barring any unforeseen anomalies in the universe, I am one of the latter. I play in two different local bands because it is simply something that I enjoy doing... not because I am well compensated. Nothing compares to the feeling of creating something that you think is exciting, and especially if you have the chance to share it with other people who find it exciting too and are willing to share the experience. There's that... and then there is the escape from reality. For a few hours a week, I can refocus my attention on something over which I and my fellow bandmates have control. I get to be in the company of friends and have a hand in shaping a small segment of the 'art' being produced in town. And ultimately, there is the human desire to have something to leave behind, however few people may carry it along with them into the future.

So, here are some of the things that I have experienced and learned as the weeks turned into years... as I have played for more and more people and gotten to know 'the system' of it all. The short of it -- be a jack of all trades and learn how to deal with people, even if that is one of your weaknesses. Much of what I say will apply to working in a band setting as that is simply all I have done.

First and foremost, learn your craft. If you're a guitar player, know all that you can about the guitar from the notes on the fretboard to how the electronics are wired and work. If you're writing music, be highly critical of what you write. Be critical of your execution. I've been in situations before at a gig where one person had to tune another's instrument because that person didn't know how and wouldn't commit to even learning this most fundamental aspect of playing. Be highly critical of yourself and push to improve and try new things as often as possible. I've played with guitarists who thought they were a gift to music but in reality could barely fret a chord properly. Be willing to listen to advice other people give you especially when you know you could benefit from it.

If you're in a band and can't necessarily learn everyone else's craft, at least know what they should be doing. If you don't know what the final 'product' should sound like from all angles, it is only to your detriment. Be willing to be the person to stand up and tell your bandmates that they're not doing something correctly if they aren't. I'm not talking about artistic differences. If you're bass player and drummer can't sync up and your band is not Meshuggah, chances are you sound less than desirable. Be willing to push those around you and encourage them. Take the time to work out the simple things if they need working out. In short, never try to find excuses to suck. Practice, and practice the right thing. Ask questions if necessary.

Try your hardest to be original. Try your hardest to make your music memorable. Give people something to latch onto. Try to rise above the lowest common denominator. You won't always succeed, but with every new song or piece of music comes a new chance to create something special. Learn to balance what people expect to hear and then try to give them things they aren't expecting to hear, and it's ok to occasionally completely give them something that will challenge themselves as an audience. A lot of people, especially certain cliques, will talk a good game about liking crazy, unique music but when presented with something that doesn't fit their preconceived notions, they put up a wall. I overheard one kid talking about my band at a show we did a while back-- "I don't really like that band. They don't play enough breakdowns." Art and originality must go out the window for some. But as the ever-illuminous John Berret once told me, "All it takes is for one person to step up and be a leader and once enough people show interest, a lot of others will follow.... if you're good haha."

Pick and surround yourself with the right people. Realize that all people have their own ideas, but if you have a band, each of those people need to see the common theme. If you're doing the serious hobby thing, you may have to deal with more of life getting in the way. In one of my bands, there are 3 guys who are married. Two guys have children. Most of us have full-time jobs. If you're thinking of music as a full-time career and are very serious about this, finding people who are equally as serious as you can not be an item of compromise, however, but it is imperative no matter what your goals are to work with people who will encourage you and build you up rather than try to drag you down. Bands tend to have a fair amount of drama associated with it. Personalities are going to clash and heads will butt, but if you ever find yourself with someone who is obviously a train wreck waiting to happen, it's best to get cut ties as soon as possible. Music can't be any fun if the people you play with aren't any fun to be around.

Be aware of what is going on around you. In the music world, there will be people looking to cut your metaphorical throat. In the last two years alone, I've known of bands that have paid to play bigger shows, cutting others probably more deserving out of a spot... bands that have weaseled and whined their way onto shows, only to show up and be complete jerks and run people out of the venue... bands that have tried to have others kicked off shows...bands that have lied about how many people they can draw to a show when trying to set up gig swaps... bands that demand a bunch of money even though they have no fan base in an area... and bands that are willing to break an agreement made in good faith because they think there is a greener pasture... and that's before personalities get involved. There will people who will admire you, who genuinely like you and want to support you, and there will be people who will dislike you, and even people who wish you would get hit by a bus. I've found that it's best not to engage in any negativity back and forth with people trying to spread rumors and talk trash... especially on the Internet. Nothing makes someone look more foolish than an Internet flame war. And even in the real world, most times people will dig their own holes if you just disengage.

Be genuinely friendly to everyone that you can. If you're not a people person, do your best to become a people person. You can take the cynical view that anything nice done by someone else is all done for their personal gain, but that will ultimately lead you to apathy. Take interest in what other people are doing. Go out to see other people perform and support them even if you're not on the bill. In turn, they are much more likely to support you. Talk to people about your project.

Be confident and competent but modest. Never boast that you are the best band in town, even if you objectively know this to be true, and especially if you're not even close. I've literally seen a brand new band come out and proclaim themselves the best before ever playing a gig. Most people are put off by rock-star attitudes. I was once introduced to a guy in a visiting band, who turned and walked away once he realized that I was just a guy in a local band rather than someone who would stroke his ego. Likewise, I've also seen people around here look down their nose at myself and others because they knew the 'right' people and had the 'cool' friends. However, you can't be everyone's buddy. There just isn't enough time in the day and not enough days in a month to be everywhere and support everyone at all times... and eventually, if your band is good and works hard enough, people may begin to see you in a different light after some time passes. One of my friends has often remarked, when his band was at their peak, that people would seem to get offended that he didn't give them enough attention... and because of that, he must now feel superior.

When you put yourself in the public's eye... no matter how big or how small that eye may be, there will always be some negative things associated with it. BUT... and a big but... a lot of that is diminished if you are good at your craft and you treat people with respect and can show that you are genuinely out to have fun.

New Columnist: Micheal "DORK" Dinkins

I have asked several regional musicians to contribute to this site. Because it is based on helping aspiring up and comer musicians, learning from seasoned,extraordinary and experienced musicians is of great benefit. I strongly believe learning from as many different musicians as possible and hearing as many different points of view as possible will allow them to bloom into something great. The first of the new columnist is multi instrumental, musician extraordinaire,Micheal "DORK" Dinkins. In each of the new columnist first column I asked them to tell of their accomplishments and doings. Here is what Micheal had to say:

Greetings. I was invited by the fantabulous Mr. John Berret to contribute to his blog and asked to first make an introductory post and say a little about what I’m involved in and enjoy. My name is Michael Dinkins, one of the many resident musicians in Augusta. I am primarily a drummer and currently play drums for two bands- L.i.E. and Artemia, but also play some keys/synth and am willing to lend my voice.

I began playing drums at age 13 … on a whim really … just from watching bands on MTV. For all intents and purposes, I am self-taught but did receive a couple of years of vocal performance training at Davidson Fine Arts (class of 1994 to show my age). For some reason, they put me in mixed chorus and would not let me drop. So I learned to read music and sing and do choreography and how to put on a show. I played drums for about 2 years before playing in a band that went out to perform for other people, which was with my cousin who had been basically teaching himself to play guitar (and who I still play with today, oddly enough). My main original project in high school was a metal band called ‘Heir To Ruin’ that was pretty much relegated to playing the Augusta all-ages venues and hangouts around the time and even a handful out of town gigs while it lasted. I played with a couple of other bands in college- and only did one gig with each band. I was never really serious about either one of them as far as trying to get out in public. Jamming was more for personal satisfaction. After college and marriage, I pretty much gave up playing drums for a few years and eventually got back into playing again but only sporadically at home for my own pleasure.

It wasn’t until 2007 that my cousin and I decided to start jamming together again. We started an 80s cover band called The Haeighties that played everything from Madonna to Bobby Brown to Def Leppard to Slayer in the same show. It was during the time we were doing The Haeighties that I realized how much I really missed playing music. After that project ran its course, I joined a band called L.i.E. with a group of musicians that had played in several other popular local bands in past years. I have been with them for the last two years. I also continue to play with my cousin in a band called Artemia, which has recently collaborated with Mr. JohnJohn Berret for a few covers. It has been quite a personally rewarding experience playing with both bands in these last few years, and I was honored to have been voted “favorite lokal drummer” in the Lokal Loudness online poll for 2009 with L.i.E. receiving the “favorite lokal band” award and more recently, invitations to play a big show at Riverwalk with the band Otep and to be the first metal band to appear on one of the 12 Bands of Christmas shows in 2010.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
As you can see Micheal is a lover to music. He will have loads of good advice and information for ANYONE who wants to learn. Here are some website where you can check out Micheal's bands. For L.I.E. go to

www.discoverthelie.com .. For his band Artemia go to:www.reverbnation.com/artemiamusic
.... you can also find L.I.E. on myspace music and on facebook. You can also find Artemis on myspace music and on facebook. Find out when their shows are ( i will post them on here when i can) at ALL AGES venues and in 21+ clubs. L.I.E. has the honor of opening up for the monster metal band OTEP on JULY 9th at the Jesse Norman Amphitheatre in downtown Augusta GA. It is an ALL AGES show that will serve alcohol.You can purchase tickets at www.etix.com ..
Hope you enjoy his columns in the future.