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Articles by Eli Duxson
Review: Kawai VPC1 Virtual Piano Controller
Music is a vast and seemingly endless landscape, though makers from opposite ends of the spectrum experience music differently through the spaces they create in. Most of these differences are environmental and educational. For example, a classical composer can easily do their thing on the fly with a little 25 key MIDI keyboard, but for the most part other electronic music gear is completely alien to them.
Gear Rundown: John Butler
One of Australia’s most talented guitarists and well-loved musicians, there’s really only one word to describe John Butler: incomparable. Since his humble beginnings as a dreadlocked skater busking on the streets of Fremantle, Butler has gone on to release a myriad of studio and live albums with the John Butler Trio and by himself, achieving worldwide success as an independent artist and cementing himself as one of the finest guitarists of the modern age.
Gear Rundown: Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Kenny Wayne Shepherd is an award winning guitar player, as well as being married to Hannah Gibson, the oldest daughter of actor Mel Gibson. The more you know! With a penchant for the Fender Stratocaster, Shepherd’s style is bluesy and rocky, also pulling himself from Americana, country and bluegrass.
Phase, Flanger and Chorus Effects
Modulation effects can sometimes get a bad rap as overtly effected sounds, psychedelic sounds that are super forward-sounding. But more subtle sounds can be heard across decades of music, often used to add depth and dimension to mixing, as well as a little movement to guitars and vocals. The difference between them can be subtle as well, the way you achieve the sounds making or breaking the effect that the modulation has on the source.
Gear Rundown: Stephen Carpenter of Deftones
Having co-founded Deftones, Stephen Carpenter has been extending the range of modern guitar for decades, using a slew of 7 and 8 string guitars. With multiple signature model guitars from ESP, Steph was also an early proponent of Axe Fx, Kempers and Line 6 Helix, using their unparalleled access to effects to craft ambience and otherworldly tones from his guitars. Tying together deep, sub bass notes and sparkling highs, Steph uses a huge collection of gear to make noise.
The eight worst original band names of popular bands & musicians
Bad band names might be a fast track to oblivion whereas a good band name can convey the style, origin, genre, and intention of the members and musicians. It may be the most crucial decision a band makes as a good name will likely help to propel them along the road to stardom and success. Here are some of the early stinkers. Read up on all the latest features and columns here.
Gear Rundown: Zakk Wylde
Splitting time with Ozzy Osbourne, his own band The Black Label Society and now Pantera, Zakk Wylde is a genuine metal legend. With a partiality to hard riffs, fiery solos, and some of the wildest pinch harmonics you’ve ever heaed, the dude could shred glass. Most recently, Zakk has also been performing with Pantera, filling in for the late Dimebag Darrell, as well as Charlie Benante filling in for Vinnie Paul, hitting Australia for Knotfest in early 2024.
The essential ingredients of a modern sound engineer & music producer
Studio staff included a sound engineer, fledgling assistants, tape operators, interning studio runners and a producer overseeing it all. Studio workflow was a chain of cause and effect, headed by the producer, appointed by a label, and sometimes the band. The music producer served as an extension of the band’s creative vision, while the engineer worked the equipment and conducted the sessions. Read up on all the latest features and columns here.
Gear Rundown: Flea
The Chili Peppers have 13 albums under their belts, and Flea and lead singer Anthony Kiedis are the only people who have appeared in every one, dating way back to 1984. Flea has also enjoyed stints with Janes Addiction, Fear and more recently with supergroup Atoms For Peace.
The 10 craziest electric guitar designs of the 2010s
Perhaps one of the most influential electric guitar designs of the past decade, the Boden was by all means a massive success for Strandberg. From its distinctive headless design to the multi-scale fanned frets and all the way down to the forboding (yet surprsingly ergonomic body), the Boden was destined to attract the attention of the masses, and the fact that it sounded and played like nothing before made it all the more exciting – especially in the hands of a player like Plini.
Are you comping correctly? Learning jazz guitar
Comping is an important skill for jazz guitar players, and refers to players who ac(comp)any a singer or lead instrument. Depending on the arrangement this can refer to simply playing chords, or it can involve syncopation to combine rhythm and chords to fill out a space a bit more. It can also be used to offset what the rhythm section might be doing. Having good time is everything. Even the most amazing facility and technical playing doesn’t mean much if it doesn’t feel good.
Where to start with the bass guitar
So you’ve decided to play the bass guitar, great! You’re filled to the brim with inspiration, motivation and excitement. Now what? It won’t be as easy as it looks in the movies, you know that, but how best to get yourself off on the right foot? When learning a musical instrument, it can be really important to start strong, and set yourself up with good technique, as undoing the muscle memory later is really difficult. But first, you’ll need a bass guitar.
Mixdown's Top 10 key changes
Key changes are a songwriting tool. They can be either the perfect way to lift a song back on its feet, or unfortunately they can be used as a trope and an easy way out of a song. Key changes can be overused, but their use has stuck for good reason, when they work, they work! Read up on all the latest features and columns here.
Musicology: Why the vinyl resurgence is here to stay
The vinyl record revival is no secret. These days, you’d be hard pressed to find a household without a record collection gathering dust in the corner or taking pride of place beside a cherished turntable or two. Past generations have passed on the baton, encouraging a love for a technology that will never say die.
10 movies about Australian music
Australian music has a long and storied history, much of which has been told in film format, and we’ve compiled a handful of them into a list for you all to chip away at! From The Sapphires in the 60s, through INXS in the 80s, here’s a handful of films stylised as both documentaries or dramas depending on your preference! Everybody knows and loves this 2012 classic, but we reckon it’s time for a re-watch.
Gear Rundown: The Avalanches
Music fans all over the world have been waiting for years for the follow up to Since I Left You, and were finally rewarded with Wildflowers in 2016. After over a decade of speculation, the group launched themselves back into the spotlight when they were announced as a headline for Splendour in the Grass 2016, and subsequently released the first single off their new album, the reggae infused ‘Frankie Sinatra’ featuring Danny Brown and the late MF Doom.
Sound Advice: Choosing electric guitar strings
Your guitar tone really is the sum of its parts, the wood of your guitar influencing how much the guitar strings vibrate that are struck by a pick made of specific, unique materials, the strings themselves vibrating in their own way depending on gauge, tuning, material and player’s technique. When it comes to selecting guitar strings, gauge is the most obvious measure used to differentiate between sets.
Direct guitar amp techniques
When you are trying to achieve a more consistent result with your guitar amp sound, it is best to eliminate any variables right away. The first thing that comes to mind is microphone placement. This is critical when recording your guitar amplifier and an adjustment of half an inch in any direction or a slight variation in the angle of the microphone and you will hear different results.
Gear Rundown: Tash Sultana
Tash Sultana moved from busking on the streets to festival stages across the world, their own unique voice coming through in their music and expression. Using loops and other tech to make music all by themself, it’s only somewhat recently that Tash has been performing with a band. Also honoured with a signature a Fender Stratocaster, today we’re diving into the world according to Tash.
The essential items for every bass guitar player's gig bag
Obviously, as a bass guitar player, you’ll need to take at least one instrument. One of the (many) great things about bass is that we don’t typically break as many strings as guitarists, so we can often get away with just one bass guitar. Having said that, there is an extra feeling of comfort knowing you’ve got another bass on hand for tonal variety or as a backup if needed.
Mixdown's Guide To: Tonewood
The tonewood that your guitar or bass is constructed from plays a huge role in the sound of your instrument, this is amplified in an acoustic guitar as the sound resonates and bounces around the body before bellowing back out the sound hole.
Sound Advice: choosing a guitar pick
The type of guitar pick you use is obviously important for both, but acoustic players should pay particular attention to their choice as the actual sound of the material hitting the strings will be amplified, impact the overall sound greatly. For most people this will change from song to song; do you require a lighter pick that will bend easily on the stings, thus blending the notes together for strumming? Or a heavier pick to accentuate each string easily and give definition for lead playing?
Sound Advice: Powering your pedalboard and guitar pedals
The search for good, clean power can be as much of a wormhole as choosing guitar pedals themselves for your tone. As a utility purchase, you want something that can provide enough power to safely provide power to all your pedals. Aesthetically, it can be a good move to have a power supply that can easily be hidden away beneath your pedal. This also serves to as a safety feature, reducing the risk of cables being kicked, stomped and tripped on.
The Divje Babe flute is regarded by some as the world’s oldest, though it’s a point of contention amongst archaeologists. Discovered near Cerkno, Slovenia, many have pointed out that the four holes in the 67,000 year old piece of bear bone is just as likely to have been caused by a carnivore’s teeth rather than a Neanderthal’s musical ingenuity.
Gear Rundown: Bloc Party
Bloc Party have been a staple of rock since their debut album Silent Alarm, this year celebrating 20 years. Blending mathy rock and pop with a generous helping of indie, Bloc Party’s sound is instantly identifiable by drums teetering on the verge of chaos, shimmering and detailed guitar parts with frontman Kele Okereke’s vocals, Bloc Party use a few unique pieces of gear to perform, write and record their sounds.
Gear Rundown: Joe Satriani
Joe Satriani is a guitarist’s guitarist. He’s worked extensively as a solo musician, as well as a guitar instructor, his former students including Steve Vai, Kirk Hammett, Andy Timmons, Charlie Hunter, and Alex Skolnick. Having sold over 10 million albums, he’s the best-selling bestselling instrumental rock guitarist of all time, with 15-time Grammy Award nominations to his name. His range of JS series have been revitalised consistently since 1988 in various finishes, pickup additions and more.
Sound Advice: The all-important studio headphones
Standard headphones from department stores will often have an inaccurate frequency response, but market it like it’s a good thing, e.g. “Huge bass!” or “Hyped top end!” If you’re making music, you don’t want this. You want your sound to be as accurate as possible because you want to use them to monitor your mix. Basically, for making music, you want studio headphones.
Creating spooky Halloween music
But for the horror genre enthusiasts, of which there are plenty about, the name John Carpenter needs no introduction. With films like the Halloween series, Assault on Precinct 13, Big Trouble in Little China and Escape From New York, Carpenter not only defined a cinematic genre, but also sculpted a soundtrack for that genre quite unlike anything else before it, spawning decades of Halloween music with it.
80 Years of Ringo Starr: Looking back at The Beatles’ drummer’s finest moments
While seemingly a simple drummer, Ringo displays plenty of examples in The Beatles’ discography that prove Ringo Starr and his ability to not only hold time, but throw in some pretty expressive fills and unique breaks as well. Starr’s unorthodox approach to drumming might be the butt of many a great joke, but it’s also quite hard to replicate properly, and if anything, it’s a style that can only be pinned down to Ringo. Read more features, columns and interviews here.
Guitar Advice: To use a guitar amp or an emulation?
While there’s a huge range of guitar amp options available, the a big three of modelling could probably be thought of as the big guns of the modelling world (with a proven track record and countless worldwide users), many other companies have entered the arena. Mooer, Roland, HeadRush and Atomic are just a few, and these additional manufacturers have contributed towards a bigger range of price points and making modelling technology more prevalent and affordable.
Mixing tools: dynamic EQ explained
You can find them in some form on everything from consumer level TVs to high-end studio mixing consoles. In mixing, they’re generally used to carve out unwanted frequencies so the recording of your instrument only takes up the desired frequency band. For example, you’d likely cut stray low bass frequencies out of a guitar track to leave room in the mix for a bass guitar to occupy. Read more features, columns and interviews here.
Mixdown's best music videos of the '90s
Music videos are still a hugely important parting of marketing an album or musical release, but in the 90s they were essential. MTV controlled the airwaves, and financially the industry was in a different place. Budgets for videos were massive as their reach, going viral as we’d call it today, was massive. The right video in front of the right audience would have new fans and old fans alike discussing, sharing and watching the videos, often coupled with buying an album.
Continuing the legacy with Dweezil Zappa
We were lucky enough to speak to Dweezil Zappa back in 2017. With a diverse body of recorded work spanning over 60 albums, Zappa describes selecting a setlist that best reflects his father’s discography as a challenge; however, it’s unlikely that you’d ever see him and backing band The Others of Intention play the same set at any two shows.
A celebration of Paul Simon's 1986 classic
Paul Simon was in a really tough spot before he started making Graceland. However, all this changed when Simon became obsessed with a bootleg cassette titled Accordion Jive Vol II, a collection of jangly, upbeat mbaqanga songs by a South African group named the Boyoyo Boys. After contacting various industry and label executives, Simon soon decided to record an entire album of South African inspired music; however, there was a catch.
Mixdown's Guide to: using a capo
The capo (pronounced “kay-po” or sometimes “cappo” depending where you’re from) is a device that allows you to change where the nut is on your guitar. This enables you to play open or first position chords in different keys. It’s important to remember that a traditional major barre chord on the low E string is an E Major, but moves your first, barred finger around like a capo! The addition of a capo means playing with open position fingerings and chord formations in the key of your choice.
finding the right guitar plectrum
A guitar plectrum is a deeply personal thing. Players who don’t have a preferred plectrum, or pick, are like people who don’t have a “side” of the bed, a favourite pillow or any other bed related examples you can think of! I’ve actively tried to deviate, excited by some new aesthetic or physical design of a pick, and thought I was happy, until someone handed me a green (0.88) Tortex pick and it just felt like home. While we might have a number one, different picks can be used for different uses.
Gear Rundown: Tony Iommi
At the age of 17, Tony Iommi suffered a freak accident whilst working in a sheet metal factory, severing the tips of his fingers on his right. Iommi recovered and a few years later Black Sabbath was born, a band designed upon Iommi’s incredible mastery of guitar. Read up on all the latest features and columns here. He would often detune the instrument, something unique at the time that has become a mainstay of many heavy metal bands to this day.
A beginner's guide to home studio recording
Home recording is more accessible than ever, which is great, but our first foray into home studio recording doesn’t always yield the results we’d hoped for, expected or imagined! There are, however, a few tips to ensure you set yourself up on the right foot! COMPUTER When building a digital-based home recording studio your computer is the foundational piece – the platform from which everything else will connect and function.
Home studio tips: Big guitar in a small room
Recording in a home studio isn’t always easy. Yes, it may be comfortable and accessible, but the advantages of isolated control and live rooms, tie lines between spaces as well as soundproofed rooms to handle the volume aren’t available to everyone.
Closed back vs Open back headphones
Let me start by saying this: there’s no right or wrong answer here. This can serve as two things: one being the thought that “Great! Whatever I buy will be the right choice!”, and the other meaning to some of us, myself included, that “Maybe I’ll just get both.” Open and closed back headphones definitely service different purposes, and have different pros and cons, depending on your needs. All jokes aside, they’re also both handy to have around for different jobs.
Gear Rundown: Tom Araya
Words by Mixdown staff King of the low end, Tom Araya has been thundering and rumbling for decades now. Tom Araya and Kerry King are the only remaining original members of the pioneering thrash metal band Slayer. Along with their ‘Big Four’ counterparts Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeth, Slayer pushed the boundaries of speed, heaviness and extremity throughout the 80s and 90s.
Sound advice: how to arrange your pedalboard
The sound you are after is personal choice and may not conform to traditional wisdom. Rule number one, as they say, is that there are no rules. One of the most important components of the pedalboard is the humble tuner. Having your tuner at the start of your pedalboard chain means that you will receive the cleanest signal, which is important for better tuning accuracy. A true-bypass tuner is a great choice as the additional circuitry within the tuner gets removed when the tuner is not in use.
Is less really more? Let's talk pedalboards
However, there is a school of thought that says that fewer pedals on a pedalboard will lead to a more pure sound and better playing. But do you really want to rock up to your experimental noise rock band rehearsal with one fuzz pedal? Probably not. Obviously different situations will require different setups, and below we’ve looked at some of the advantages of both small and large pedalboards. Small Pedalboards For many the main advantage of a small board is that it is easy to transport.
Gear Rundown: Muse Absolution
Muse released Absolution in 2003, their third full-length and part of what helped skyrocket them to international fame. Produced with Rich Costey, Absolution featured “Time Is Running Out” and “Hysteria”, so we’re diving into a list of the gear they used to make it! Iconoclastic singer-guitarist Matt Bellamy’s custom commissioned Manson guitars were the hefty tools of tone for Muse Absolution — most prominently used was the Manson 007, affectionately known as the ‘Black Manson’ or ‘Black Ed’.
An obitube-ary to the tube amplifier
The main knock on modelling and profiling is that “it’s digital, and not the same as a tube amplifier”. This statement is true and I get the fact that some players still prefer the sound and feel of a tube amp. No problems at all here! It’s then interesting to delve a little deeper… yes, it isn’t the same as a cranked AC30/Marshall/Deluxe Reverb/5150, but how many players out there get to play their amps seriously cranked though? Probably not a lot.
Five great tracks from famous Australian singers and session artists
Learning the multitude of music they need to know is one thing, but being ready to be coached for feel, vibe, performance and more is another conversation. It’s no wonder then, that some of these in-demand session musicians are also stellar Australian singers and songwriters, making music in their own right. Clio Renner – “Sleep For Years” Clio Renner is one of Australia’s most in demand session musicians.
Phase: What is it and why is it so important?
Every sound you hear, whether that be recorded music, birds singing, the low hum of traffic, or the jarring hammer of an oblivious neighbour at 7am on a Sunday, it is a complex concoction of what we call frequencies. ‘Frequencies’ refer to how frequently a sound completes the full cycle of a sound wave within a second.
Gear Rundown: Michael League of Snarky Puppy
1959 FENDER PRECISION BASS Michael League of Snarky Puppy is by all means a connoisseur of beautiful vintage instruments, and utilises his tools to full extent both in the studio and while performing onstage – it’s actually insane how much work he puts into his vintage gear. As discussed earlier this year in Snarky Puppy’s Rig Rundown with Premier Guitar, League recently acquired a heavily worn 1959 Fender Precision Bass, which miraculously still contains the bass’ original pickups.
Learn the Lingo: Studio Monitors
Powered means the studio monitors boxes contains their own amplifier (or two if it’s bi-amplified), whereas unpowered means you need an external amplifier to power your speakers. Most monitors in the bedroom-producer market are powered these days, but unpowered models are still around, particularly on the vintage market. Read up on all the latest interviews, features and columns here. This is the range of frequencies the studio monitors are capable of reproducing.
In Memory of Jim Dunlop
Memories and messages of support spread following first reports of the loss of Jim Dunlop in 2019, with fans, colleagues and musicians alike extending their sympathies. The legacy of Jim Dunlop Guitar Products dates back to 1965, when Dunlop identified a gap in the market for a product that could be sold to millions of musicians.
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