Hack Music Theory

Wanting Fans Is Not Wanting Validation.

Music is social. No fans = No relationships.

My previous essay, titled “Making Music Is Bad for Mental Health”, was a kind of eulogy to the pre-smartphone fan. You know, that person who…

Making Music Is Bad for Your Mental Health.

Songs need listeners, but most people are too busy scrolling nowadays.

You’ve just finished a new song. You love it! You’re beyond thrilled. You can’t wait for people to hear it,…

Life in a ‘90s Grunge Band.

Comparing the music world of 1996 to 2026.

It’s 9pm. Friday night. December 20th, 1996. Cape Town, South Africa. I walk out on stage. The air is thick with smoke from the fog machine…

Creating Calm Through Song Structure.

How to make a sonic sanctuary, like Tamikrest.

My favourite Saharan rock band Tamikrest just released their new album “Assikel”, and I’ve had it on repeat this week. Why? Well firstly, this is a…

A Couplet a Day,

Keeps Insanity Away.

Daily creative habits for better mental health.

We’ve just moved. Again. For more than a decade now, Kate and I have been averaging about one move per year. Last year we…

Forget Meditation, Listen to Music.

Meditating isn’t effective enough anymore.

As people become more addicted to their phones, society’s obsession with mindfulness meditation grows. I think that’s because the collective unconscious knows that we desperately need to take back…

Writers & Readers Against AI.

If you’re pro-human, join Paul Kingsnorth’s campaign.

The brilliant English writer Paul Kingsnorth recently launched a campaign for everyone who loves humans and human creativity. So if you also miss the good ol’ days…

AI Human vs Human AI.

A brief history of transhuman music.

Most AI-generated songs now sound more human than most human-made songs.

How did music go so horribly wrong? It all happened so fast, too! If you’re a Gen…

Musical Heroes in the AI Age.

Nø Førmat! You need to know about this record label.

Nø Førmat! is an independent record label based in Paris. They’ve been around for over 20 years, and they’re one of my favourite…

We Are the Orchid Children.

A call to highly sensitive musicians.

“Dandelion” children are those resilient and healthy kids who can survive and thrive under most circumstances. “Orchid” children, on the other hand, are those sensitive and fragile kids…

The Music Theory of Fun.

These two things make songs feel good…

In my previous essay Who Killed the Fun, Fun, Fun? I told the story of how music was intentionally transformed from a fun and communal activity into…

Who Killed the Fun, Fun, Fun?

Music used to be our greatest joy, then this happened…

1964. Fun, Fun, Fun. That was a song on the album “Shut Down, Volume 2” by my childhood heroes, The Beach Boys. Go…