Jen de la Osa and Henry Beguiristain have been writing, singing, and playing guitar together since they were young. Today they are the core of Boston-based Aloud. The songs on their sophomore album Fan the Fury are an engaging collection of observations, each expressed with urgency and true emotion.

In part 2 of my interview with fusion guitarist Ed DeGenaro we discuss his country project, his new album, and his battle with music piracy:

AC: And Neck Bone is a nod to your country influences. Are you still playing with your country project?

ED: Yeah….I gotta eat. (Laughter.) I’ve only sold about 100 copies in the last two months of “Less is Seldom More”. But then again, you know, it’s readily available on your favorite download site for free.

AC: Do you have to deal with a lot of piracy?

ED: Of my stuff? Yeah! I’d say I spend a day a week chasing down blogs that host my album, like on Rapidshare and those kinds of sites, just to have that shit shut down - and a week later it’s up again.

The world is full of great guitarists. Spend just half an hour on Youtube and you will be convinced that every bedroom in the world now houses an unknown prodigy. Standing apart from this crowd has become no small feat, but Seattle based guitarist Ed DeGenaro has managed to do it by blending an unusual approach to the guitar with a bottomless musical imagination. The result is tasty jazz-fusion, seasoned with Latin, country, and rock, and topped with a dollop of humor. It is a musical flavor that is uniquely his own. Recently I got a chance to chat with Ed about his guitars, his music, and his new CD “Less is Seldom More”.

The art of producing songs in the studio involves a tremendous amount of patience and focus. Songwriters should strive to achieve a recording that will be appreciated for many years to come. Crafting and perfecting your production process is different for everyone. It’s important to be aware of what works and what doesn’t. Learn from past experience and always strive to make progress creatively, technically, and professionally.

Today, I want to discuss the importance of using scratch tracks. Scratch tracks are recorded parts of a song that have not been perfected yet. They are meant to be rough takes, not to be used in the final mix. In this article I’ll talk about how using scratch tracks are crucial part of a successful production process. I’ll also go over how to use playlists to easily record multiple takes in Pro Tools.

These days, it seems the length of music releases is getting shorter. Or is it getting longer? When is a song considered “rough” and when is it meant to represent a moment in history for your band? You might be able to give your project a creative name, or keep it self-titled, but that doesn’t tell us what the project IS. Is it a single, demo, an EP, a full-lenth album, or is it something else? Here’s a breakdown of the common names for music releases. This should help you figure out which format best fits your style and current situation.