The other day, I got to the Central Square bus stop just in time to the CT-1 pull away.  It was sunny and warm for a November day in Boston, so I decided to walk to school. I passed by the Middle East and got a noseful of fresh hummus and pita bread. Then came the rack of dainty dress shirt and clay pots for sale at the Salvation Army. And of course, All Asia’s corner window full of posters of local bands, most of whom I know personally. As I neared MIT, another bus passed that I would have caught had I waited back at Central; but I knew where I was heading, and I got there just the same.

Maybe the Do-It-Yourself approach to being a musician is similar to strategizing how to get around Boston on the T. Maybe you don’t need a record label or major distributor if you find a way to do it all yourself. You’d save money, and you would get to relish the details of the journey—that is—if you have an idea of where you’re heading. And you get to experience whatever the music industry equivalent is of the walk across the Harvard Bridge over the Charles River, and see the rugby shirt-clad sailors fight the wind in their catamarans.

We’re at a time when the industry has such ebb and flow to it that you don’t know if catching a bus to where you’re going is a good idea. Maybe stepping on it means you’re a sell-out, and you’ve just surrendered all your control to the bus driver, who answers to the MBTA. But maybe trying to walk somewhere with your own two feet lugging your own bags will leave your body tired, and your spirit fatigued. There’s no way of knowing. But I guess if you have an idea of where you’re going—either way will suffice.

If you have any shows coming up or a new record you want to promote, please let us know. Then we can publish something like, for example, Zac Taylor and Johnny Nicholson are opening up for Nini & Ben’s CD Release show this Saturday at the Lily Pad. You see? It’s easy!

Have a great week.

Zac Taylor
Managing Editor