He accepts music as an escape, he always feels like music is a friend…. it answers when you call and vice versa, it releases a lot of bad tension and gives a way that you can express yourself without judgement. Please, e-meet Jim Curtis:

Hello, Jim! Introduce yourself and your musical projects and tell us what makes each one special for you.

Ok… So my name is Jim (obviously). lol. and my music projects are nothing that stands out. I don’t have a lot of experience in producing tracks. So my songs are nothing but amateur work. I think of an idea that may or may not work, and I record it straight away. I then go on to TRY and make the idea sound like a ‘song’ by adding layers to it… i.e. if I have done a ‘clean’ melodic guitar riff, I will add a distortion riff to ‘fill’ the sound up. I am probably doing everything wrong, but as I say… I’m not anything close to ‘professional’ yet.

You grew up during the ’80s! Has the colorful music from this decade rubbed off on your musical taste and compositions?

I would say almost certainly… most of my childhood consisted of listening to music. I remember listening to TOTP (Top Of The Pops) every Sunday on the radio with my father… he would play the first line of each song and then mute the music and let me guess what song it was… (good times).

What are the things stopping you from achieving your musical dreams?

Ah!!!!…. well… I would have to say, there are a couple of factors that prevent me from doing the things I’ dream’ of doing… firstly, I would have to say that money plays a big part of it. Without the best equipment, it’s difficult getting the right quality of sound. 90% of my ‘gear’ is second hand and very old, so quality is suffering. Secondly, I would have to say… Location, We all start in the same place, (bedroom/basement player), unfortunately, I have a child’s bedroom right next to my recording room. So everything I record has to be turned down, and recorded before 8 pm because the neighbors’ children are in bed at that time and I cant record anything after that. 3rd on the list would be Company, I record 99.9% of everything I do by myself for myself… and as we all know, we are our own worst critics, So many of the things I try, either end up in the bin, or deleted. I used to practice with a couple of friends, but unfortunately, they are no longer friends, so I now don’t have an ‘outlet’ for my music except for Drooble and a couple of groups on facebook. But having some practice time with friends (IMO) is a MUST for anyone getting into music.

How has being on Drooble helped you as a musician?

I would say that since I found out about Drooble, my attitude towards music has changed. There are some truly inspiring people on there, it does open your self up to the endless possibilities around music. I have spoken to a number of people on Drooble and discussed my troubles and feelings towards my own music, and I have to say…. there are some really wonderful souls on there. I have had nothing but positivity from Drooble, and I will continue my musical journey with them.

What is your biggest musical goal?

I would guess my biggest goal would be to get confident and quicker in what I do. I have seen a couple of peoples videos on Drooble, and I watch them with awe… I’ve seen guys ‘shredding’ and it really does push me to want to get that good.

What are your favorite software and hardware tools for music production?

Hmmmm….. now there’s a question… ‘Hardware’??? not a clue… Software? Erm… I only know what I’ve used myself. I have used the following…

Cuebase.
Audacity.
Fruity Loops.
Acid.

I have to admit, I am no editing guru… I don’t have a solid conception of how to fully ‘edit’ a track… but I do have a little knowledge. I studied Music Engineering/Sound Science at college for 2 years. so I have a ‘rough’ idea. But out of the ones I have mentioned… I would have to say that Acid is the best suite I used… I use it now, simply because it’s easy to use and a very simple setup. ‘click + record’.