Anybody for starting a low key virtual band?

Hello to all you AudioJungle authors (or anybody else who is musically inclined…),

I’m looking for collaborators to start a virtual folk/rock/alternative/whatever band with, and since I’ve seen so much talent in this community I figured this would be a good place to start. The goal I have in mind is simply to produce recordings of a lot of really good original music and to find ways to distribute it to people. In the short (and possibly long) term, it’s a not-for-profit venture , although potentially the band entity could create an exclusive AJ account to try to help offset various costs of web hosting, distribution, etc. Ideally, I’d like to find:

- Most importantly, a good lyricist (there are plenty of bad ones out there). I can write decent lyrics, but I get writer’s block a lot and sometimes end up on the same themes. I would love to find somebody who is a better wordsmith for collaborating, filling in the holes where the lyrics are incomplete, or even writing an entire song’s worth. Since I am a typical American , the only language I am fluent in is English, so unfortunately there is a constraint there.

- Two other vocalists, at least one of them female. I love real harmonies (as opposed to just overlaying my own voice), and also I think it’s cool when bands have more than one lead singer.

- Someone who is skilled at one or more instruments. I feel like I have a good grip on acoustic guitar, but anything else is fair game.

- A drummer with a recording setup, or even someone who is more skilled than I at programming convincing drum tracks.

- Somebody with skills in graphic/web design for cool album art.

Obviously if there is a good lyricist who can sing really well and also is skilled in graphic design, so much the better. Also it goes without saying that musicians would need a decent recording setup (doesn’t have to be super pro quality, but not entry level either).

A couple of things:

- I would imagine commitment would be just a couple of hours per week. This would be just for the joy of producing original songs, not a full time job.

- I’d like to work with people who have the same musicial tastes that I do. My more famous influences include (listing old stuff here because everybody knows them) Beatles, Stones, Cat Stevens, Paul Simon, Grateful Dead, Velvet Underground, Tom Waits. Newer influences include Avett Brothers, Mirah, Shins, Submarines, Beck, etc. That might give you some idea – sort of a mish mash that falls under folk/rock/alternative but could really include whatever sounds good.

Anyway, sorry for the long post, and I hope I’m not breaking AJ forum posting protocol with what could be viewed as a classified ad. Let me know if you might be interested either via a response or through my den page, and we’ll talk.

—Joel

No problem at all about throwing the request out there, Joel. What a great collaborative idea/project! Good luck, and please keep us posted with how everything develops!

I think I could contribute. I play piano, guitars, bass and sing. Here are a few of my songs:

www.myspace.com/sergeystern

Hey Joel, I’ve scheduled a tweet to go out later today to help with your virtual band formation. Hope you get some positive responses!

Hey Scott,

Thanks for doing that!

—Joel

Hi Sergei,

Thanks for responding! I’ll check out your myspace page tonight (it’s early AM my time) and also post a couple of my tunes somewhere as well for you to get at.

BTW I did listen to a couple of your profile songs the other day and I like what I hear – very strong stuff.

—Joel

Hello Joel.

My name is John Columbo and I am interested in contributing. I play keyboards and am an IT guy by trade; I wish I could make a living from music, but who doesn’t right?

Here are some of the things I’ve done over the years. My Podcast with several original songs http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=323853932

My AudioJungle Profile http://audiojungle.net/user/unseenbattle/portfolio

And my blog http://www.unseenbattle.net/

My music doesn’t exactly fit your musical tastes, but I definitely like a number of those bands you mentioned. I have a piano album from back in 2001, but it is not on any of the sites above. If you like I can send you those songs so you get an idea of the “other (more classical and acoustic) side” of this strange person writing this reply.

And by the way, there is a reason why none of my songs have lyrics. I am a terrible lyricist.

Hi John,

Thanks for posting!

Yeah, I’m in IT as well. You know, it’s entirely because I don’t make a living with music that I want so badly to create music in the little bits of free time. If I did it for a living, maybe it would become tiresome (how’s that for a rationalization for never becoming a rock star? :))

I’ll check out your links and send you an email in a bit.

—Joel