About half way through my Discovery Challenge, and I struggled to do Discovery on a few of my Splurges - until I realised the mistake I'm making...

We got exactly this question over on the YouTube channel... So here's a conversation between two lazy and untalented musicians about being lazy and untalented!

Now I've processed all my Splurges....time for the next stage: DISCOVERY! But this time, I've learnt from the problems I hit on the last album at this stage and figured out a way of staying on track...

After the self-congratulatory hubris of the last couple of episodes, I discovered a huge error which has (thankfully) brought me down a peg or ten...

Now the dust has settled on my 108 Splurges in 1 day...what did I learn and what lessons can you take from my experience?

What happened on my 100 Splurges in 1-day attempt?

To kick off season 3 and the third album of this "The Album" podcast, my next crazy goal is to attempt 100 Splurges in a single day. To hit this, it'll require significant setup...

Why am I ending season 2 without completing my 2nd album of this podcast? Why am I starting season 3 without finishing the last album? For a few very good reasons...

The second episode in a mini-series about our objectivity while making music - including a simple way to cultivate and maintain it...

Jon won the AI Music competition in 2021. What approach did he take?

Something different but extremely relevant for finishing any music (including albums) - what's the difference between opinion and objective quality?

A shock realisation I had about this "The Album" project - and the (possibly crazy) goal that's emerging from it for next year...

I KNOW that at this point in time (literally today) I don't possess the skill to write or perform the kind of vocal that this track needs. So just take the easy route and lower the bar - right? If my deadline was this week, then probably yes. But as it's in 3 weeks time this is a golden opportunity...

Working on a track I've been resisting until now. But what is this so-called "RESISTANCE"?

How do you create an Arc in a track with a seemingly static purpose?

I have a massive instrumental track. Given I'm a beginner singer/songwriter - can I turn it into a song that lives up to the music?

A review of why I missed the deadline and what I'm doing to make this the best failure that could have happened...

This is THE moment I finally discovered what "Mike Monday Music" is (and could be). It only took me 25 years. 🤓

No problem is permanent. Especially in a song about the impermanence of problems.

This is a song about repetitive obsession where I'm obsessing about repetition.

A HIGHLY unusual episode because I talk about a plugin I love!

I'm gradually zeroing in on what the music is telling me...

I had a "jumping up and down pumping fist" session! But this comes with pitfalls...

Something that isn't talked about enough in making music is the effect of cognitive biases on our process. There's a few that are particularly relevant - and today I attempt to navigate Sunk Cost Fallacy...

It's inevitable in any process that you sometimes feel like it's not working out, that you can't do it, that it's not possible. Success is NOT about what you do when it's going well. Your progress is dependent on your response in these moments of despair...

Sometimes a track just wants to break out of it's box and you've got to let it. Although there are pitfalls to watch out for...

What's the crucial difference between FUNCTION and PURPOSE?

If you want to make your tracks BIG - then add LESS. Strange but true...

It might not always be the best policy to attempt to make EVERY track the best song ever. I'm always thinking about my progress more broadly, and trying to force tracks that are never going to be hits has an opportunity cost...particularly when you're on deadline...

No I haven't magically ulled my album out the bag - but something much more important ended...

End of the day and I reached the end of my tether...

I HAVE NOT hit the deadline. But out of this miss has come a breakthrough. So there's no space for beating myself up - because without the deadline I wouldn't have realised something vital about me, Mike Monday, Mike Monday music and my relationship to the music...

We've got a few days out of sync since I've been sharing the pre/post session review episodes...so I thought it was worth giving you a realtime update of where I'm at right now... The short version is it's (at last) GOOD NEWS! :)

Either you love them or you hate them. But (unlike Marmite) you don't know which!

It's all about the Song Arc!

That familiar problem when you go to use a plugin and it needs updating...

Something different today - follow along as I make a session plan before then review after a session on a song called "DO"...it'll clarify how I use cycling to avoid wasting time repeating pointless actions I'll just have to repeat later...

Why ON EARTH would I make THREE albums in one year?

In the last 24 hours I've had revelations and made momentous decisions about this album...

Many musicians have an extremely strong reaction when they listen to something they've done on a track and it's not worked. This reaction can be so strong that it causes you to give up on the track (or in some cases on music entirely!) But this is a mistake...

Procrastinating on a song or on making music in general is common - and NORMAL. It doesn't mean you need to give up on the track OR your music in general. I've discovered it's cause...

What is the difference between using an AI as a coach and using an AI as a teacher? How could we use these insights to think about how AI music might develop?

Since I've done the daily videos I feel like I've not spoken to you. So here's a "traditional" album episode where I catch you up on my album's progress.

If you're making solo music, maintaining some measure of objectivity needs to be your number 1 goal. Because without it you're flying blind. Here's three and a half ways to avoid the dreaded Music Production Rabbit Hole...

I know this title sounds like BS - sorry I couldn't resist it. Because it's what happens when you deploy this ridiculously simple 2 step protocol for ANY difficult problem you're stuck on.

It's 100% normal to procrastinate on a song - PARTICULARLY when it's good! But there's no need to worry when you understand the very simple reason why and the even simpler method to overcome resistance to working on any track...

An overwhelming number of options is common when you're finishing music,, ESPECIALLY when you're excited about the song. Here's the counter-intuitive solution...

AI music researcher Jon Gillick and music coach Mike Monday's first conversation of many about the opportunities and dangers of AI in music...and how they're using AI in their music.

What's the inevitable result of believing EVERY idea you have MUST be brilliant?

Not all musical problems are created equal...or must be solved RIGHT NOW. But how do you decide which to focus on first?

It's inevitable other people come into your head when you're finishing music...here's what I've done to avoid the obstacles this creates.

It's inevitable other people come into your head when you're finishing music...here's what I've done to avoid the obstacles this creates.

This season I'm podwalking about 3 Role Theory. This is a model I've developed to quickly diagnose where a client might have a problem in their creative process. Today I'll introduce you to "The Connector" who's got a bad rap that I don't believe is warranted...

The BLAH worm is persistent and can lead you down many IRRELEVANT musical paths...

How to avoid a very common problem when finishing music - particularly when you're on deadline...

As I'm doing daily videos in the countdown to my deadline, why on earth wouldn't I create audio podcasts for you too?

Oh yes. The purpose (and the impending deadline) has had it's effect...

This season I'm podwalking about 3 Role Theory. This is a model I've developed to quickly diagnose where a client might have a problem in their creative process. Today I'll introduce you to "The Constructor"...

I had a breakthrough this afternoon which has made a whole lot a whole lot more clear...

I've learnt some important lessons from listening back to my previous lessons this time last album...

This season I'm podwalking about 3 Role Theory. This is a model I've developed to quickly diagnose where a client might have a problem in their creative process. Today I'll introduce you to "The Conjuror. Get your wands out...

Ho hum. I'm doing it, but not really "doing it" if you know what I mean. Time to bring out the "big guns" and press go on a challenge idea I've been developing for a couple of years...

What's the hidden reason behind my use of Autotune on my last album, and what am I going to do about it on this one?

This season I'm podwalking about 3 Role Theory which is a model I've developed which allows me to quickly diagnose where a client might have a problem in their creative process. But to understand what the different roles are within this model, we need to understand how we make ideas real and where they come from...

Lyrics ARE hard when you think too much. They can be easy when you don't.

Can I do 47 Splurges in one day? And even if I can...WHY?

The more I splurge, the more I let go. The more I let go the more me I become.

As I suspected, what was a "brief" hiatus became an extended one. Find out why and what you can expect from my various podcasts moving forward...

It's proving to be a little sticky shifting from finishing album 5 to starting album 6...

In case you were wondering if I was making it all up...

Waiting feeds doubt. Deciding destroys it.

So...what IS an album in the modern world exactly?

I have made an album.

Work with what you have - not what you don't...

I just went for a drive to listen to this thing in the car. As expected the insights came thick and fast...

On Sunday and Monday I accidentally ran an A/B test on 2 approaches to finishing. Here are the enlightening results...

I'm making a slight change of plan... (Don't worry normal PodWalk service will resume very shortly.) To listen to my "Final Countdown Problems and Insights" series over on The Album podcast... Here's a playlist of all the episodes where I share the avalanche of problems and resulting insights I'm getting slapped with over the final week: ⏱️Final Countdown Problems and Insights

Quicker, easier, better AND more authentically unique?

This is the FASTEST way to acquire and build any musical skill..

Today was one of those days I thank my lucky stars I'm not making this album alone...

What's happening in this final week of The Album season 1? IT'S THE FINAL PUSH! Over the next 7 days I'm doing something different with this podcast...

Sometimes (in fact, quite often) the simplest and quickest solution is also the best one...

3 Role Theory is a model which helps you understand yourself within the creative process. As a model it's useful because it's much simpler than reality...

UH OH... That all too familiar trap at the end of the creative process ensnared me ONCE AGAIN! (Will I never learn?)

As the finish line fast approaches, the insights keep coming...

Because of album finishing things (😱) AND a secret project I'm working on (🤩), just a short little PodWalk today about the coming Season 5...

It's amazing how different the experience of making this album is from ALL the others I've made...

This is the final PodWalk of Season 4 where I've been talking about (supposedly) irrelevant subjects. So let's have a conversation about WHY I call siloing of information and expertise "one of the great evils of the world. Because "evil" is a strong word - but I do use it on purpose...

Here's something different for you today...

I had a revelation on Sunday when trying ChatGpt4 for the first time. I'd used ChatGPT3 for a while, but this was a whole other level. If you're worried about AI and what it will do to music (which I certainly am!) then here's an application which points to a huge opportunity. It's certaintly helping me solve a big problem with my album... Here's the PodWalk episode I reference: I Had My "AI Moment" Yesterday 🤖😱 Listen to that next to get more background and context on the use of large language models (what ChatGPT is) in various ways.

Yesterday I had an experience which changed my entire world. I've been using ChatGPT3 for a while for various (fairly menial) tasks, but decided to try out ChatGPT4 to see how much it had improved... IT BLEW MY MIND. That doesn't mean it's all good news of course. There's a lot that's problematic and downright scary about what AI could mean for creators and our culture. But with the massive improvement of GPT4 - I've already found a couple of creative ways to use it to make a much better business, much better music and a much better creator... And here's The Album podcast where I go much deeper into specifically how ChatGPT4 helped me uncover a big problem with my album: The Album podcast: My Jarvis for Music 🦾

I've got 17 songs into DONE! (So now the real work begins.) 🤓 Thing is, I didn't get that many into Done by working my finger to the bone day and night. I did it because "Done" in the Music Machine represents a particular "state" of a piece which helps you finish better music in many different ways...

On the latest "Make an Album With Mike" (MAWM) program session, as we're all getting to the "sharp end" of our albums, the thorny question of feedback came up. Because of course while feedback can be valuable, it's also dangerous and potentially damaging. And I've always struggled to put my finger on the difference between useful feedback and the other kind. What I realised on this MAWM session is that this is less to do with what the feedback giver says, and more about what YOU are looking to get from the feedback, and why you're getting it.

Continuing our "Destroy the Silo" season let's talk about how stories permeate everything we do. And how the structure of many stories is a reflection of a fundamental pattern you can notice EVERYWHERE... Here's the specific "The Album" episode I mention: How could a single note MEAN something?

Another singing lesson with Laura, another MIND EXPLOSION! But this time, it opened up a whole new world for me and this album... Here's Laura's Instagram... And her Spotify...

The hiatus created by moving the songs into Luna has created some SCARY BEARS for me...

Continuing our journey through (supposedly) irrelevant subjects to the creative process we're going to talk about an area which is either ignored or desperately held onto by creators of all kinds.

It's a been a boring "music production admin" filled week for me and this album. Which feels like a step backwards. But then again doing this now will allow me to leap forwards...

Today we're talking about a book which has changed my perspective on almost everything (probably) more than any other. The change has been startling, and for the better. It's responsible for much of the Music Machine, how Make Music Your Life works, how I make music, how I parent and much more...

I've had a week of MANY 💡💡💡💡💡s - particularly in the area of singing. The reason is I had my first singing lesson since I decided to start singing again with one of the amazing Make Music Your Life coaches Laura. Just that one hour has given me a clearer understanding of why I'm singing, what it's for and crucially an extremely simple (not easy) way of improving fast and (literally) with less effort... Here's Laura's Instagram... And her Spotify...