The first instrument I bought was some cheap knockoff of an electric bass guitar. You know the one. That one guilty pleasure of yours that you think you’ll slap, but eventually only strum and weep as you can’t even play the pink panther theme properly.

It was fun while it lasted, it got into some punk bands and pretended I liked it. The truth was, I only wanted to play some songs. The bass was calling and I just wanted to let it all out.

The years passed and the small garage sessions were replaced with a concert or two, but that was around the time the D&B scene was hitting Lisbon hard. I always had a sweet spot for Jungle, so I caved in… We were becoming ravers and DJs. The 20th century had ended.

It’s funny because when the raves died down, and the electronic scene mellowed out, I got into world music and started hanging out with all the bands in the “biz”. And what’s the funny part? Calling it a buisness.

When a band here wants to play for, say, 500 bucks… there’s always someone infinitly more “famous” for 100 more. The labels sell artists like this.

“Oh I’ll get you THE ONE for just a bit more, don’t you worry!”

Who would turn that shill down? No one. And no one is exactly how many fans you get out of it, how much money you get. And it wasn’t about the money, it was never about the money. But it is now. No money, all the problems.

So here’s the thing, I’m trying out different ways now. Selling some merch, doing music for games and trying out Tradiio.

Selling merch is hard work and usually only pays off a week at most. And even that’s a stretch. Doing music for games is fun, but sometimes even the games themselves don’t sell… Let alone the soundtrack.

So that leaves me with Tradiio. They seem to be sending some bands off to festivals, giving some instruments, signing off some label deals and recording some songs. For free. These are the kinds of incentives the music industry needs right now. Institutions and companies looking out for the little guy. They’re how the music calls me right now.

So that’s where I’m now. Adapted. Connected. Broke. Still, and always, heeding the call.