Composer Quest: A Songwriting And Music Composition Podcast

Luke Friedrich was too young to carry a musket when he joined his Civil War reenacting unit, so he picked up the fife and drum instead. Now, he plays in more bands than would seem possible, including Crimes, Strange, Rupert Angeleyes, Flowerstalks, Secrets, ThoughtTalk, and his primary songwriting endeavor, Squares. We talk about performing, the music business, and his fascination with horrific lyrical topics.

When does sound become music? That's a line blurred by Kevin Springer's sound art. He designs sound and music for plays, including Tenesse Williams' Summer and Smoke. He has also found a niche for his brand of experimental electronic composing online, and we talk about how he works in this strange musical language.

I talked with my cousin, Nathan Graves, who fronts the band With a Gun for a Face and writes solo music under the name Kurtz. Nate's music is usually pretty dark and dissonant, but strangely catchy. We talk about why avant garde art is important.

Kazyak's Peter Frey shares his new, more personal album See the Forest, See the Trees. He also shares his philosophy on soloing, the pros and cons of touring, and his advice on promoting your music.

Ryan Ruff Smith and I talk about a bunch of lyric-writing techniques, including seeing the big picture, using subtext, writing as a character, and focusing your song ideas.

Mitchell Johnson from Spencer McGillicutty talks about pop music theory, Beatles songwriting techniques, and his “Douchiest Song Challenge.“