And that's just a tease, I know. There are some things to look forward to. Interchange went to the duplicators last Friday and should be out on the net within a few weeks. Check out some early mixes of these tracks in the MUSIC section.

Is physical media now obsolete? I may now simply load up new material via the site and My Space/Facebook/Reverb Nation/ Sound Cloud and enable listeners to download direct. I asked some of my students the other day what they would be prepared to pay for music downloads. The answers ranged from "nothing " to 2 pence. In fact the highest amount they were prepared to pay was 20pence - and that was for an album. And we used to claim that "home-taping" was killing music. Who gets paid along this food-chain, then?

So we'll swim with the flow and put it out for nothing- help yourselves everybody...

We'll make it back on the merchandise. In fact this is just the business model pre-Beatles. Music released at a loss to promote the tour. Jagger recently claimed that the period 1970-1997 will be seen as a golden age of the recording artist when they had commercial control and were able to make money from recording and writing. Now they just look like the early 19th Century handloom weavers or some other group frozen in time and condemned to the "condescension of history".

Oh how we  muse on music ...

This is a beautiful electric guitar which certainly lives up to the EB hype of being a "players' instrument". I met a guitar player some years ago with an EB Albert Lee- he also concurred that these instruments are up there with the best. It's just a shame that this seems to be one of those best kept secrets in the duopoly of the world of electric guitars since it would seem that no one wants these secondhand. In other words it's not quite a Fender neither is it a Gibson. In fact it has parallels with the car I drive- an Alfa Romeo- a "drivers' car", beautifully styled, a fine lineage and no one wants it as a used sale.

Of course, all of the above might suit a potential secondhand buyer much to the seller's dismay. Neither of whom will be me however- this is a keeper.

This story starts with an under-performing OVATION CSE44SE Celebrity purchased brand new with a delightful hard case in November 2009 and though it had an action lower than my American Standard Strat ( and that is lower than a bottom feeding ocean going squid) also buzzed like an un-oiled buzz-saw and had to be traded in. Those things have a Marmite factor and I woke up one day and in a moment of clarity decided today was the day to trade. I chose "Rock Around the Clock" in Crouch End, N8 who are very reliable and a good local shop serving musicians big and small for 20 odd years and they gave me a decent trade in on the Ovation in return for this new Martin DCX1RE. 

A lot has been written about these plastic Martins. Yes, they might lack the cachet of the all wood sub £1000 models such as the D15 (which I also own) but the ringing tone and balance of this instrument is excellent. Action a little high but I'll get a local luthier to fix that when I've become used to the feel of the neck. True this guitar does not have much wood on board save the spruce top but one still gets that "joy of ownership" sensation that playing a high end instrument delivers too. Plugged in with the Lewis trademark (SIC) "more delay than the London Overground sound" it sounds fantastic too.

It is a beauty and unlike the unfortunate OVATION will be a keeper too. This is my fourth Martin (D15, D12X1, LX1) and comes highly recommended. Now Martin that's got to be worth a free tour around your factory, eh?

I bought this little gem as a "traveller" to accompany me on various jaunts westwards to South Wales thinking it would be convenient to travel and relatively light on my middle-aged shoulders. It certainly lives up to its name there, being billed as a "travel" guitar. The body is HPL composite "wood" with a spruce top and gives a light and relatively full tone considering its 3/4 size. It is particularly good sounding with a Capo on the second fret , tuned to DADGAD or even (wince...) DADAAD to replicate the tuning of a tenor style guitar. Martin recommend their medium range of strings which tends towards raising the action a tad but this allows for a fuller sounding tone without compromising the playability of the instrument. It comes supplied with a Martin-branded soft gig-bag which enhances the joy of ownership too.

This is the second "plastic" Martin I've purchased- the D12X1 also reviewed elsewhere on this site and I'm not disappointed either. Bear in mind these are still entry-level Martins and not cheap either but in terms of "bang for buck" or "pound for pound" they pass muster. I've recorded with it and with some EQ combing in Logic Pro it produced a highly satisfactory sound- it's no D45 or even a D15/16 but that's not what you've got here. If you are in the market for a £300 pound "traveller" that carries a great name and need a guitar that packs a low luggage footprint then this could be just the (train/plane) ticket to ride. There is also an electro acoustic version of same guitar available called the LXE- this might also be worth checking out.

Anyway, I like it...

dave lewis

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This music is expected to be released in material form by early summer 2010. Though you will also be able to listen to tracks here and on MySpace (www.myspace.com/lewisdave).

dave Lewis

Oh and it's a free one too. Help yourself...

Keep accessing the page for recent updates on my music.