Thoughts on KVR....

[elwoodblues1969]

The more time I've spent on KVR,the more I think that the lackluster environment of KVR's forum was probably Kara's main motivation for creating K-M.
There are some nice folks on KVR,but quite of few members seem to be there only to receive feedback,rather than also return it.A compounding problem factor to KVR's forum,is that there are no categories,so the floods of posts just get lost in the chaos.

I know I've expressed my grievances with regard to the absence of on-site music hosting over there in he past,but I've run into yet another problem,which is that I have no where left to store my music.
That is to say,that I have run out of options for finding online music hosting that I feel comfortable with.My SoundCloud account is full and I don't bother with my SoundClick account any longer,because it's limited to only 128kbps uploading.

Using YouTube is a viable option,but that requires me having to create a video,along with my songs,which is a bit much,at times.

Since KVR is primarily a software-driven website,a lot of genres of music that is present there is to be expected and I am generally a very eclectic person musically,but some of the content over there is pure rubbish and it's not a matter of indifference in terms of  tastes musically-but rather,I am speaking of certain individuals posting(& this is no exaggeration),30 minute "songs" of noisy fluff,which wouldn't even be suitable as a film score.
If it's not that,it's some guy posting 30 seconds of a 2 track song idea(consisting only of drums & some noisy effects)-because for one,he was too impatient in his desire for feedback and secondly,he was seeking comments for inspiration.
It's really not in my nature to bash genres of no interest to me personally and perhaps I'm turning into a rigid old man,but some of the content over there just doesn't even qualify as music,period.
I mean,I've heard plenty of rap music that was far more musical than what I find over there,at times.We've lost some really wonderful folk here over the years,that had left for their preference for KVR,of which I will never comprehend.
I really can't fathom why some people aren't willing to divide their time between both forums,as if they have some sort of aversion to K-M....I guess some people don't like attachments in their lives,as they don't seem to want any emotional ties to such a forum as this.

I'm always glad to offer help to someone who needs inspiration for a musical idea,but if all that person can come up with is a little basic drum snippet & some noise to go along with,I think that person ought to reconsider going with another hobby altogether.

There's also a lot of off-topic postings,or people just posting links to promote their bands,which is one of the main reasons I dumped my MySpace account.

I also don't care for the people who visit this site,only to gain feedback for their KVR contest entries and have no regard for anything else that is going on here.

One of the reasons I decided to give KVR another go,is that K-M is sort of empty & lonely....like a house with all of the children moved out and I thought KVR might be a good supplement to what is missing here.

Even though K-M will never be like it was a couple of years ago,I would still rather spend all of my forum time here,than anywhere else on the internet.

I really miss Wyatt & Kara something fierce,as losing musician friends leaves a hole in you that's impossible to fill.I sometimes feel a bit depressed to be here & I feel like I sometimes need a break from K-M....but I know leaving this forum for a while wouldn't makes things any easier.

Trying to invite others over to this forum has always been a wasted effort on my part and I'm starting to think all of the members left here now,are all we will ever have,but that's enough for me.

Once this forum has reached it's end,I fear that it will all be over,because there will never be a forum like this ever again.



-Thom

[offthewall]

Thom,

I understand everything you are saying, my friend.
And, I agree with most of it. 

Your observations of KVR are spot on. Personally I only stay with them for the monthly contest. I often feel very lacking of inspiration for composing and find (usually) that the challenge of the theme helps a lot with that.
There is no place, however, like kara-moon.
I am as sad as you are about our departed members who provided so much help and inspiration over the years.
When you talk about music hosting problems I can never understand why you do not just upload here and give your link. I sometimes hope that the more other people see links to K-M the more they may realise that there is more here than meets the eye.

I constantly try to promote K-M whenever I can in the hopes of new members. I cannot envisage a time without it. This place has certainly been MY saviour, many times.

 
James

[Marc JX8P]

+1!

This forum is really special, but part of that is because it's become this family of people who are mainly interested in music making - not endless discussions about which synth is better. We may just have this situation precisely because this forum has not been overwhelmed with lots of users more like the standard KvR users you are describing.

Having said that, a forum exists because of the contributions of its members, however many or few there may be, and I apologize for being on here so little lately. I'll try and do my part by stepping up my posting rate!

On another note, Thom: why don't you use Soundcloud? It's a hosting system specially for musicians so they take quality serious and they have a great built-in feedback system.

[elwoodblues1969]

James,

If I choose to continue being apart of the Music Cafe,I may just do the K-M link thing.As for encouraging new K-M recruits,I've been doing it for years & haven't got a single person to stay in all that time,much less even having any success getting someone to set foot on this forum at all.


-Thom

[offthewall]

 

I've been doing it for years & haven't got a single person to stay in all that time

Hey ...

back in July 2007 I persuaded a young man called Folderol to mooch over here .... and that was the start of another story 

 
James

[elwoodblues1969]

Marc,

Since I've maxed out SoundCloud's storage capacity and since I do not wish to fuss over what I want to delete to make way for a new song,I decided that I will just utilize SoundCloud to store what music I have there,as a fail-safe(in the event I have a catastrophic PC incident).
I find it really curious that wherever gear discussions are popular,it never seems to leave any room for music making.Not too long ago,I invited a KVR member to collaborate with me and to peruse this forum and he pretty much just crawled under his rock & eluded the whole subject altogether.
When I first joined K-M,I was pretty much set in my ways being comfortable arranging all of my own music,as well as remaining in my hardware synth world.
Thanks to the people & environment of K-M,I branched out in all sorts of ways and it has been the best thing that has ever happened to me.
Whenever I try to encourage this kind of growth with others-well...I just can't break through their force field.


-Thom

[Oren]

... one strategy to get more folks involved... http://www.kara-moon.com/forum/index.php?topic=6339.msg39390#msg39390
...and... http://www.looperman.com/profile.php?mod=reviews_loops_out&mid=532071

Every little bit helps!

[MarioD]

I was encouraged to join Kara-Moon by a short-haired guitarist named Oren:-}  So after a fashion I gave it a try.  I’m extremely glad I did!

When I posted my first song I wrote that I was very intimidated by the quality of the musicianship here. It was Kara that encouraged me and after a couple of collaborations I felt at home here. Unlike other sites I have been on here we had disagreements but not arguments. We all respect each other’s views and that says a lot about the people on this forum and that’s why I love it here. I would like to see more people here BUT only if they are like the people on the forums now.

On a side note I know I haven’t contributed much this summer.  I have about 99 percent of my landscaping done; I’m waiting for fall to plan the last of the grass seed them I done!  I’m on a tight schedule to finish remodeling our living room and hallway as we have new carpets coming in two weeks.  This coupled with the fact that I’m installing all of my music programs onto a new music computer has put a large dent in my “fun” time. HOWEVER I will be back in full swing, I hope, mid September.

Later my friends - MarioD

[folderol]

KVR is a white water rapids
K-M is a sparkling brook

The excitement and stress of the rapids can quickly become very tiring. I never tire of watching and listening to the brook.

[offthewall]

KVR is a white water rapids
K-M is a sparkling brook

 
Sounds like the idea for another song, Mr G. 

 
James

[folderol]

KVR is a white water rapids
K-M is a sparkling brook

 
Sounds like the idea for another song, Mr G. 

 
James

Hmmmm

[offthewall]

 
Strange and spooky things sometimes float about this place, young man 


Just last week I picked up a bargain buy of a fully functioning Autoharp, which has a quite strange selection of chords.
I been trying to get to grips with it and wondering how to incorporate it into my music so created a 'test piece' which has just started to come together today.
Still at the 'sketch' stage ...

... when I saw your post I thought ... hmm  something here sounds like a sparkling brook 

Think we can do anything with it, Will? (referring to your sig, of course)

 
James

[folderol]

I would say it has possibilities

[Moon]

The more time I've spent on KVR,the more I think that the lackluster environment of KVR's forum was probably Kara's main motivation for creating K-M.

In fact, that was the main reason how KM was created. Kara was a member on KVR before KM was created. He often regretted the way people were posting and couldn't settle with the spirit found on many sites. So was KM created and every effort was put in by him to create a constructive musical spirit. And the spirit lives on and on... !!!

By the way: I noticed we gained a few members over the latest month, so some people are still joining in and from time to time we getting members that realy dig in 

Moon