Firstly i would like to begin by wishing you all a very Happy New Year. It seems hard to believe that its been ten years since the millennium. I guess the calendar isn’t lying so it must be true. I am very excited about 2010. It’s rare for me to go into a new year with a project already in motion but i am pleased that the Haliwards made an unexpected comeback in December. The public response to the Haliwards has been overwhelming and talks still continue between me and HRM. It also gives me great pleasure to launch the Pride of Central Somerset 2010 in the next few days. I hope that it will be as successful as last year which really took the project to a new level. It will be a first for me to have two similar projects running with one on either side of the Atlantic.

2010 is not only a year for recurring annual projects it’s also a year to spread by wings and to develop some new ideas. Over the past few months several projects have begun to take shape and are in there very early stages, so early that i have made no public announcements about them.

It’s not only a year for my projects either. I am very much looking forward to working with the Blue Nose Marathon this year. In 2009 i helped co-organize a pre-mixer at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and this year i hope to do the same as well as sit on the Board of Chairs for the Special Events Committee
Between all of this i hope to continue my work with local artists. 2009 introduced some very talented people, including Joe Buck, Adam Sterling and Brittany Wesley. It has been a pleasure listening to their music and i hope to receive more tracks from Haligonian hopefuls throughout the year.

Many of you know through 2009 i participated as a volunteer for many events in the HRM and while i have every intention of doing the same this year i hope that some of your projects may find me. If you have a project in mind and you’re looking for that extra boost in the right direction i would be more than happy to look over your project plan or hear your ideas and offer any ‘injection’ i can.

Best Wishes for 2010,

Alex Maine

Firstly i am going to start with Stacie Lynn Hatt. Stacie is 18 years old and lives in HRM she is a singer/songwriter who is been making progress in country music. Stacie began writing her own songs when she was 14 and since then her parents have supported her financially and emotionally. On Stacie’s SonicBid’s profile it states that from her bad experiences at school she found a way to take the unfortunate experiences and turn it into a strength by putting into words and music. Its clear that Stacie has taken negative things in life and tried to make something good come of them.

Stacie’s music screams potential. Her music is brightening and bouncy some would say uplifting. Her singing ability is not something that can easily be argued, though her music at times lacks individuality. I think that for an outsider of Canada it is easy to distinguish tracks in the country genre and i find it hard to single her out from the rest. I think that if i could offer Stacie a few words of wisdom it would be do try and single yourself out from the crowd. Consider reading up a little about wordplay in lyrics. Sometimes i feel her songs are too easy to follow and they need to have deeper meaning. Overall she has potential that most singers in this world don’t have so don’t let go of it. I think that with a little tweaking there could be no boundaries on where she could go. My only other advice would be not to let it go to her head. Success comes with a price and egotism comes with a large debt. I think that in the near future if myself and Stacie work close together we could really see things kicking off for her in 2010. Read this update

http://alexmaine.net/media1/stacie01.mp3
The track above is a 30 second sample of  ”I’ve Got Something to Say” by Stacie Lynn Hatt

Now i move onto Joe Buck. Joe is a 23 year old HipHop/Rap artist once again from HRM. Joe is also the owner of his own record label B.A.L.L.H.A.R.D Entertainment. According to Joe’s Bio he has played countless shows and has been chosen to open for stars such as T-Pain, Necro and Joe Budden, as well performing with hip hop legends including Special Ed, Raekwon and Gza of The Wu-Tang Clan and KRS-One.

Now i have to admit that rap is not really my area but what i must admit out of all the auditions and tracks i have heard over the past few years this is one of my favourites. The tracks that were sent to me were fresh and i like them a lot. It is obvious that Joe and his backing singers like Nicole featured in this track have serious potential. One point i would make is that most of this kind of music is what i like to call “phase music” its something that you grow into and most people grow out of, but by keeping your tracks new and introducing different types of genres into the sequences you open you music up to a larger spectrum or audiences. Like i said this is not really my area but still the music business is the music business and any support i could offer to these artists i would. One note i would make is that when owning your own record label its good, but can be confusing for the hirer. I found myself getting confused at first. Keep things simple. If things get complicated and people don’t know if they are talking to the company or the artist you will find that someone else will come in & take your spot and next thing you know the hirer went with another contract.

http://alexmaine.net/media1/ball.mp3
The track above is a 30 second sample track of  ”The Exit (Where Do We Go)” by Joe Buck

The last artist i am going to talk about today is Adam Sterling. Adam is a 19 year old from Halifax. He is studying psychology at Dalhousie University while doing some prep work for law school admission. Adam presented me with practically a complete album of tracks. I picked one of his latest tracks that he presented to me. Adam’s style of music is very different to the two that i have reviewed so far but he is lucky enough to have a fantastic voice for this kind of music.  As far as i am aware this has not been performed in a studio and the static does spoil the track a little but i think with a bit of time and a great mixer this track and others like it would come out on top. One thing that this track does do for you is it shows that you have the ability to do live acoustic sets because this track is what you would call ‘as is‘ no editing or fancy stuff just basic sampling.

My only tip would be to try and add a little edge to your tracks as they tend to get tedious as the level does not change much but obviously this will differ from song to song. Like i say to most people you need to make yourself stand out. Hopefully if i get the chance i will be able to help Adam work on these things. I think that its probably wise for the time being to keep music as a side line but don’t loose faith there is talent there and you are doing great so far. You just need to find your ‘edge’ .

http://alexmaine.net/media1/adam.mp3
The track above is a 30 second sample track of  ”Shoot Out the Stars” by Adam Sterling

So now you have heard the tracks, take a second and share your thoughts on my review and what you think. I am sure they will all appreciate your feedback. If you have not sent me your tracks.. Well what are you waiting for!