Hi, this is Russell. I’m the one who writes all these blog posts and the one who started Incubator. I get the sense some people are curious about why I’m doing all of this. Here are my motivations…
In this post, I argue the songwriting process starts the moment you start thinking about writing a song. And that the expectation setting before the actual writing plays a pivotal role in the final product.
Are we disordered or do we just not want to be a drone? Should we let capitalists diagnose us when their definition of an ordered mind just so happens to align with the qualities of a good laborer? There’s nothing wrong with you – there’s something wrong with society.
There’s a strange comfort that comes with believing in something but also knowing in your heart that it doesn’t matter on a universal scale.
You’re a musician who just got discovered. Now you get to make a choice: which billionaire-funded conglomerate would you like to work for? Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment or Warner Music Group?
One of the big decisions bands should make early on is who’s the artistic visionary? Will everybody have an equal say or one will one person be the creative force driving the music?
How an organization makes decisions is everything. Top down management is to be avoided at all costs but going off vibes and hoping things work out is just as foolish. So how does Incubator make decisions?
Playing from the heart means playing what you want to hear because you want to hear it. Playing from the ego is playing so that you’ll be perceived in a certain way.
If you look at the state of the world, you might wonder why all this is happening, who to blame and how we can fix it. But first we need to accept a simple fact.
You know, when the a band really locks in the whole room is locked in with them? Turns out it’s a repeatable event, but 4 conditions have to be met.
Competing with AI on song quality or quantity is a fool’s errand in the long term. In a world of AI, the human experience behind the music is where the value is.
You don’t need to practice more. You need to play more. You don’t need to get better at an instrument. You need to develop trust in your own ear so you know when you like something or not.
What’s the difference between a local band and a professional band? And how can a local band become professional? The answer won’t surprise you.
Before you play your first show, there are five important questions you should ask your bandmates.
The first time you play something is a moment in time that never happens again. As a songwriter, you’re best served by preserving the nature of that moment in the final product.
There’s so much that goes into making a band work: posting, videography, album artwork, booking spaces. It’s grueling work to do it all on your own. Does it have to be that way?
As a community entering the music industry, we have two advantages: 1) We actively share the story of how our music is created cooperatively and 2) Our touring model
A community where everyone feels ownership is more powerful than a business where a few order everyone else around.
Playing at a house show can be intimidating. No one knows how it’s going to go. But when you do the thing, you may learn something about yourself and grow in the process.
Now that we’re becoming a collectivist organization and moving away from capitalist structures, some of the most outspoken anti-capitalists are having hesitations.
Music incubator where D.C. musicians write, record and perform original music.
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