Nik Hamby

June started off very quickly and was busy all the way through.  I started busking in Queen Street Mall (Brisbane), after I acquired my busking licence. I decided to do one day a week, though the actual day is flexible.   There are lots of open spaces where the music would be just washed away with the wind and other noise.  I found a space that has good aucostics in between the buildings.  It's a small area where the people just walk through, at the most just 10-12 metres from me.   My guitar is quite loud and I'm pretty loud, too.  I got a new guitar - a Taylor Koa GS Mini and it really suits for busking in a smaller area - plus it's much easier ergonomically, when playing for a period of time.   I found my limit as far as singing and how long I can play guitar before the nerves on my fingers get a bit funny (and suddenly I can't hit some notes).  And that's when I think that's it for me. I can do about 40 songs, maybe a few more -...

May started up with a lot of time playing on my newish guitar. Put 13’s on and the Taylor mini came to life. I used it for the Booval Fair Community Art Gallery reopening with wonderful comments and lots of encouragement.  I applied for a Brisbane Busking License and I was successful in the audition. I'll be busking in the Queen Street Mall for the first time tomorrow (Tuesday, 2 June). I was terminated from my employment and I feel like I am semi-retired. My health has been awesome (praps cos I'm no longer working). I had cancer removed. I was discharged from the local Diabetic Clinic due to my stellar results. I don’t need eye injections anymore. How good is that?! We went to a few shows in May and I did a few Open Mics at Banshees. What else happened? I went to an APRA/AMCOS seminar and reconnected to the organisation and some local songwriters. Made some new friends too.  Its felt like a wild whirlwind and June is looking to be full also. All the best for you all.

April.  There was a bit more skin cancer stuff - as you can see from all my bandaids!  Everything's healed nicely ... I made a hanging board for my "upstairs guitar".  The "upstairs guitar" is actually becoming a favourite for playing downstairs, also. What else?  I applied for a Brisbane busking licence and have been preparing for that audition. I've been re-establishing a connection to my older songs in preparation for busking.   I put in an application for the Maleny Music Festival, which takes place in November.  I was invited to participate again in the Lord Mayor's Seniors Cabaret.  Something else to look forward to. "Till It's Gone" is still being played on online radio.  I've had a few songs included in Martina Dörner playlists on Spotify.  "Walk My Way" was an inclusion at the start of April and "Going Home" will be played this weekend.   (I stopped playing "Walk My Way" about three years ago due t...

There wasn't much marching in March. There were lots of medical appointments as the Doc is taking some time off.  Six months of my stuff has been crammed into two months. I also had some skin cancer issues and more work trauma. Music creation dropped off but I have focused on revisiting some favourites from the 70s and 80s. Playing these older songs is refreshing and I even played one at Banshees. During the past couple of months I’ve dropped a few of my songs with some online radio stations. My latest songs “In Your Arms",  "Till It’s Gone and "You Always Said I Love You” have been regulars over that time and seemed to be regulars in a couple of their shows.  I'm looking at doing some production through April ...

Back in January I had an idea for a project.  I wanted to create a video of me actually writing a song - showing my writing process.  (An example of one process for one song, because I use lots of different processes when writing). I started recording on 16 January.  At that stage I had two chords and not much else.  A few days later, when walking my dog, I flipped those two chords.  The chord change was a key pivot point.  A totally different song started to emerge. A few more days passed.  I was sitting in a carpark, waiting for my wife to have her chiro appointment, and a line came to me. That line was "fall in fantasy" even though there's nothing special about the carpark! Nearly a week later, I played the song during an online critique session.  I received great feedback.  There were suggestions of the bridge needing work though, which was a feeling I'd also had. I continued writing. The song was finished on 2 Februar...

I attended the Ipswich Art Awards in November and was inspired by the musical band playing. The music downstairs and the art displayed upstairs were so separated though - and felt at odds to each other.  After that night, I suggested that I could do some music for the opening of ArtsConnect's "Off the Wall" exhibition in the Ipswich Community Gallery.  "Off the Wall" ran from 12 to 21 December.  Over 40 local Ipswich-based artists and craftspeople showcased their work. The exhibition included paintings, woodwork, glass artworks, photography, mixed-media and craft works. Almost all artworks were for sale, including work by award winning artists. I put together some music that I thought would be in sync with the art. I chose some easy jazz/blues/funk backing tracks that I could improvise around, using my guitar playing to change the dynamics of the music during the opening event. The attendees were very encouraging and the project was a great afternoon.  I subsequ...