Dan McAvinchey

I still discover a lot of music by word of mouth, seeing what my friends are listening to. I have always bought music and still do.

I am very fortunate to know and have worked with an amazing variety of musicians, so I can write a piece of music with someone in mind.

What works for me is a real life approach mixed with the internet stuff. The Internet by itself is just digital overkill for all of us suffering from ADHD. Everyone has 47 social media profiles, a web page, and ends up sitting in front of the computer all day.

If you have gathered some musical experience by actively making music, you listen to music in another way. You are able to hear everything and not only the lead instrument or vocals.

I personally love to hear melody and hooks in solos as well as lyrically slow/wide vibrato and story-telling phrasing capped off with shredding licks that make you want to fall to pieces.

I`m very fortunate in that I get to tour and play live quite a bit. I`m also happy to say that my fan base continues to grow, so considering the state of the music biz these days I`ve got no complaints.

Music is a language, it comes from your soul and your body. I`m not hung up on technique or theory; that`s why I love Santana as much as Vai. What they play just comes from the heart.

When you hear generic music, you can bet the composer wasn`t inspired, rather they were stringing riffs together and trying to impress.

One I stopped procrastinating and making excuses and decided that I really wanted to make an album that I would be the first in line to buy - an album that really excited my heart.

A great solo works like a powerful and moving speech. Something that grabs your attention, keeps you interested, tells a story, and wraps up leaving you feeling like you got something from it.

Where did they all go? Quality conscious, savvy collectors are grabbing up the last of `em.

Regardless of the economic slowdown, people tend to want to download a lot of their music for free, thus leaving artists without income that would be generated through royalties from CD sales.