50k YouTube Subscribers & 'Electrical Storm'

Earlier this week, I reached the milestone of 50,000 subscribers on YouTube. As promised, I wrote, recorded, and filmed a new song (with an accompanying video) to thank all of you for helping me reach this point. The song is called 'Electrical Storm,' and you might be wondering: 'Was he influenced by that Hall & Oates video with the mirror images of G.E. Smith and Mickey Curry?' or 'Is that one of Robert Palmer's suit jackets?' Honestly, I don’t have the answers to either of those questions, but I do hope you enjoy it:

While I’ve been going full force into creating videos that focus on performance and guitar-related learning over the past five years, those of you who have been following me for some time may recall that my first foray into delivering YouTube content goes all the way back to 2013. Although I’ve since developed and refined my video editing skills (as well as my playing, I hope…), I’d like to take you on a journey back to my first on-camera experience for a project that would bear my name.

 

 

The first video I ever uploaded to YouTube was a live-in-the-studio performance of an original composition entitled 'Awakening,' featuring several of my favorite musicians from the Boston scene at the time: Carlos Averhoff Jr. on tenor saxophone, Zwelakhe-Duma Bell Le Pere on bass, and Charles Burchell on drums. With the assistance of filmmaker Mariona Lloreta and audio engineers Jeremy Sarna and Alex Hug, we recorded at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 14, 2013, capturing the definitive take of 'Awakening' in under an hour at the St. Botolph Street studio in Boston.

In case you’re wondering—the evocative title 'Awakening' may seem as though it is intended to conjure up a sense of deep introspection for the listener. While that is partly true, 'Awakening' was really just the name of a sandwich I ordered a couple of times at the local Pavement cafe in Boston. I recall it being a great sandwich!

Did this video signify my debut as a bandleader? Maybe. I had been leading trios in the Melbourne music scene since I was 16, but at that time, I found it to be a mysterious—if not nearly impossible—task to gain further recognition as an aspiring guitarist and bandleader. After several years of trying, I made the difficult but ultimately positive decision to relocate to Boston at 21 (made possible thanks to New England Conservatory).

Subsequently, what you’re watching in the 'Awakening' video is 23-year-old me sweating it out, hoping to capture a decent take on camera after seven years of attempted band leadership. Not even Terence Donovan and his masterful eye could have helped me out of this one (or could he?); the playing simply had to speak for itself. Fortunately, we managed to get a decent take, finally documenting one of my groups for public viewing (beyond our occasional performances in Boston and NYC). Several months later, the group was no more, and life inevitably took each of us on our own respective journeys.

From L-R: Zwelakhe-Duma Bell Le Pere on bass, Carlos Averhoff, Jr. on tenor saxophone, Charles Burchell on drums and me with my trusty Ibanez AS-50 guitar — live in NYC, 2013.

 

 

After 'Awakening,' I continued trying to document my musical journey, following it up several months later with 'The Silence,' recorded at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, NY (on September 13, 2013). At the time, I intended to include both tracks on some sort of album release, but that concept never materialized. After those two videos, I put my guitar-saxophone quartet ideas on hold and shifted my focus to my then-burgeoning sideman career, as well as the recording of my first release, Autumn—a project that came into existence at the suggestion of Sean Wayland.

From L-R: Charles Burchell, me, Tamir Shmerling and Carlos Averhoff, Jr. at The Bunker Studio — recording session for 'The Silence', September 2013.

 

 

With the exception of producing videos for my compositions 'Snakes and Ladders' and 'Anthem’ in 2016 (both of which featured saxophonist Troy Roberts), I wasn’t very active on YouTube until I started releasing videos for my ACE album in 2019. Ultimately, I’ve been very fortunate to have an audience on YouTube consisting of many people worldwide—from devoted listeners who’ve been following me since the release of ‘Awakening’ in 2013, all the way up to new listeners discovering my work as I continue uploading new videos each week.

To some, 50k subscribers might seem like a modest milestone, and I acknowledge that my channel is quite niche, unsensational, and esoterically guitar-specific. However—to me, reaching 50k signifies that at least 50,000 people from around the world support my approach to guitar, ultimately enabling me to continue on this musical journey, and share my discoveries with you along the way. I am deeply grateful for your support and look forward to sharing more music, lessons, and discussions with you as we continue building towards 100k subscribers and beyond!

Oh...and in case you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to my channel!

Keep on shredding,

Ben.