I'm a French lyricist who writes in both English and French. With two CD's out so far (both can be listened to for free via Deezer): - MSA Project "Istree" (metal/prog concept album, wrote all lyrics) - Skeem "Just suggesting" (neo prog, wrote 8 out of 15 tracks) Also wrote a musical (based on Norse mythology) which is being developped in the U.S. and have a number of other projects in the works. Always open to new collaborations. I'm also a fiction writer, a translator and the editor of mvdbase.com (a music video database).
Music has power, just as words do. It can calm, it can soothe, it can heal, it can teach... and of course it can also entertain ;-)
To earn a living writing concept albums and cool progressive rock epics!
I'm gonna sound like a beauty pageant contestant, but... world peace? Get rid of racism and hatred, I guess, would solve most problems.
Hmm. I think I'd have to say Duran Duran's "Is there something I should know?" First because it's the song that pushed me to buy my very first album (Duran's "Seven and the ragged tiger"). Second because its video was one of the first that left a lasting mark on me, leading to my love for music videos. And third, though I can't be 100% sure that the two were directly connected, I started writing lyrics shortly after that.
Dear Lord. There are so many. Duran Duran was an early favorite. Then I got into prog through a friend who made me listen to Kansas' "Point of know return". They've remained my favorite prog band ever since, though it got me into a lot of others (Marillion, Rush, Shadow Gallery, Dream Theater...) Though I already knew and loved some more famous prog acts without knowing they were prog (Pink Floyd, Queen...) Other all-time favorites include Led Zeppelin, Toto, Foreigner, Peter Hammill and some French artists (Thiéfaine, Noir Désir...) I'm still a big fan of 80s pop/rock/new wave (Nik Kershaw, Howard Jones...) and I also listen to some metal (of the prog or melodic/symphonic vein, nothing extreme) and blues (love Peter Green!)
Since I'm more of a lyricist, I'll rather answer "what inspires to write lyrics?" ... thought that's a bit of a loaded questions ;-) A lot of things, really. At heart, I'm a fiction writer, and my writing in general tends to be influenced by the topics I love, so essentially Science-Fiction and Fantasy. As for specific stories, they can be totally made up or inspired from everyday events, news, etc. I can write on pretty much any topic, though, so long as it's "different". Basically, I try to steer away from cliches as much as possible. So you won't see me write a love song, for instance... unless I find some unusual way to tell it.
Well that can vary a lot from one song to another. Some lyrics well just tell a fun story, others will carry a message (political, environmental, etc.) ... and sometimes there's no message at all, and I'll write a surreal piece just for the beauty of the words.
N/A
I think things have gotten simultaneously better or worse. Better because musicians can now have more control over their careers and get more exposure through the internet -- it's never been easier to be independent from a major label. But, at the same time, it's gotten worse because that freedom also means that anyone else can do it too, so there is a huge amount of artists to wade through making it more difficult for new artists to stand out. What could be improved? Honestly, I don't know. The internet is still a fairly young medium, relatively speaking, so I think it's just a matter of finding ways to "tame the beast". I think tools like Drooble can probably help in the long run.
Too early to tell. Just signed up. But if it's anything like what I'm hoping for it to be, than it could be great.
Well, as a lyricist, it can be difficult to hook up with established musicians, and the path to success can be long and twisted.
N/A
That's a tough one to answer, because everyone likes different things and you really can't please everyone. But I do think there are some universal elements that have always worked and that always will: an original sound and/or a stand-out look. For the latter I'm thinking of artists like David Bowie, Alice Cooper or Marilyn Manson. There is so much competition that you sometimes have to resort to such tricks for people to notice you.
- Sortilège (short-lived French metal band, released two amazing albums in the 80s) - Motion Device (great new Canadian metal band, their popularity is on the rise, if you don't know them yet, check them out on YouTube! They're *very* young but amazing!) - MSA Project (shameless self-plug -- check out "Istree", the concept album I wrote a few years ago) - Phideaux (I'm a big fan of this guy, some of the best prog rock I've heard in a long time)