BARON ZERO (Home)

 

14/01/2015: DOWNLOAD BARON ZERO'S NEW SINGLE "NEVERAFTER" (FAN'S EXCLUSIVE)

Hey, BIG thanks to all of you for liking BARON ZERO's new single "Neverafter" on Facebook.

Since you guys obviously have outstanding tastes in music, here is an exclusive link to the track which has come out this January. 

And just because it's you, I also added in a remix of the previous single 'No Easy Way' by producer Stuart Epps of Robbie Williams and Led Zeppelin's fame. Is this still Christmas or what ?

Just press "download", sit back and jiiiiiiiiiiingle all the way !

07/01/2014: BARON ZERO NEW EP 'NO EASY WAY' IS NOW AVAILABLE TO BUY

Finally, every track has been recorded, edited, mixed, EQ'ed, re-mixed, pre-mastered, re-recorded, re-re-mixed, compressed, maximised and mastered (re-re-remixes will have to wait for another day).

Finally, it is available on all your favorite online platforms, including iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and Deezer amongst others. If you can resist the urge to get your hands on it, you can get all the details here.   

And in the meantime, you are invited to a party ! A listening party I'm afraid so no free buffet, and no good looking waitresses but you can always make yourself another coffee, press play and leave your comments after the jump.

28/05/2013: NEW BARON ZERO SONG VISUAL "NO EASY WAY"

Thanks for everyone who took the time to press play, I hope you guys liked what you heard.

As a (small) token of my everlasting gratitude here is the visual for NO EASY WAY.

17/04/2013: THERE IS NO BETTER TIME THAN RECORDING IN STUDIO

Finally back in in studio tomorrow to record vocals for a few songs I have been working on.

And totally psyched up !

18/01/2013: FINALLY BACK IN STUDIO TO RECORD ... A TV ADVERTISING

 

Yesterday I spent most of the afternoon in studio with some musicians to record the music of the new TV ad.

 

Not quite a recording session for the Best of BARON ZERO but I did enjoy my bout as producer. Probably one of my dreams jobs !

26/07/2012: BARON ZERO COVER U2'S "ONE" AT THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN

Here is an acoustic cover of One, recorded a few weeks ago somewhere up in the mountains of Austria.

See this as a crossover between Heidi and Bono Vox. Or what we would call in French "acoustique & bucolique" !

22/04/2012: ONE MINUTE REVIEW "BARON ZERO LIVE AT HUT AB"

 
Just about 2 weeks since the Easter solo sessions at Hut Ab and it is time to look back at what happened before and during the night.

On the whole things went a lot better than a few months ago, with the help of more practice and experience. Playing was definitely better but more than anything I could feel (and hear through the monitors) that all this singing under the shower really paied off !

But as you would expect there are still lessons to be learned for next time:

1. SOUNDCHECK: fact is people make up their mind in the first 30" of the first song and sound quality is at least half of these impressions. So learning from past experience, I spent time chosing the right FX for each song. And I also made sure there was ample time to do a proper soundcheck a few hours before the gig itself. From all account, it made a huge difference but I'm thinking now of going all acoustic as it will work better for a solo set . 
2. SETLIST: again this is something I laboured on for some time, looking at varying styles, mood and pace throughout the set. Eventually I did not get to play as many new songs as initially planned (still 4 in total including one of my very owns) but I made the choice to focus on songs I could play well enough with the right vibe.
3. RECORDING: clearly one of the areas where things could have gone better. I used my new Zoom H4N to record the gig but was quite disappointed afterwards when listening to it. Which is when I realized that recording directly from the FX boards into the mixing board meant I missed all the "live" feel of the concert. Not sure yet how I will tackle this in the future.
4. PROMOTION: as a good marketeer I know very well that there is no point pushing a product with consumers unless you are 100% sure they will be convinced by the experience. Which is why this was not really a big focus (yet). Although I got some positive feedback on the use of QR codes on the flyers (with a link to my SoundCloud cage). But there is definitely (a lot) more work to do on this in the near future, starting by posting some of the live tracks to promote the next event.

It's a long way to the top, especially when you take one step after the other as I do. But I'm sure next time will again be a notch better.

Can't wait to be there ...

04/10/2011: BARON ZERO COMING TO A WEDDING NEAR YOU (3)

"How did the whole Grillapalooza thing go in the end ?" you might be asking yourself (or "what should I eat tonight?" which is probably more likely but not really the point of this post).

Well, I guess it would be a question of perspective.

On the one hand I got a lot of praise after the set, but I'm at least realistic enough to know that the feedback of friends and relatives is not always the most objective. Although the father of the groom, a musician himself, warmly encouraged me to continue making music and complimented me on my voice.

On the other hand I was again left with too much frustrations.

Let's see: the sound was crap (and I'm being polite), I made too many mistakes to count and for some reason I had the feeling my guitar was out of tune for a good part of the gig (even though I kept checking and it was not).

But of course I'm also realistic enough to know that I'm often too hard on myself; STREET SPIRIT was intense and emotional as it should be and my rendition of PAPARAZZI got great reactions.

But in the end, what really matters is what I learned in the process and how I can use this to get one step closer to putting together the performance I can hear in my head. So here are a few (painstakingly) lessons for the future:

1. GET READY IN ADVANCE. Unfortunately I was out of power for a while (the only electrical plug available was taken up by the beer dispenser - trust me, you don't want to argue on this kind of topics with Germans) so there was little time to get the settings right. As a result my voice was not very clear and audible on the first 2 songs. Not the best way to start.
2. INVEST IN THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT. I spent some time finding the right sound in the weeks before the gig but it did not seem to help on the  night itself. After thinking it through, it probably has to do with the fact I'm using an acoustic amp for my Gibson and a pretty old ZOOM FX box. I have already invested in a new POD PRO HD floor board, I'm seriously eyeing on a BOSS VE-20 for the voice (any feedback welcome) and I will have to break the bank for a new amp soon.
3. DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Making mistakes does not bother me as long as there are plenty of vibes. But having to furiously concentrate on the playing tends to get in the way. So I have now a new benchmark: playing with my eyes closed. Which in any case is a good idea when you play by the fire: you either can see f... all or you get blinded by the smoke (talk about stage effects).
4. PICK THE RIGHT SONGS:  I was unsure about a few songs before the gig (USE SOMEBODY is a great song but I'm no Paramore obviously) so I will make some changes to the setlist. Amongst others I'm thinking about covering "Moves like Jagger" if I can nail its nasty little funky riff.

Finally one positive point is that my (future ex ) manager did not quit after hearing me play (does it make him my ex future ex manager ?) and we are already talking about another gig in December.

J-J-J-J-J-J-Jingle all the way !

22/09/2011: BARON ZERO COMING TO A WEDDING NEAR YOU (2)

We are now less than 24 hours away from the "acoustic cover/grilled saussage" sessions (maybe I should rename this whole thing "Grillapalooza" ?) tomorrow evening.

Would anyone be surprised anyone if I said that I'm ready ? 

Yeah, right, me too.

Well, as usual I always tend to focus on the areas which would still be more work, but let's face it I think we should be able to avoid a complete nuclear meltdown (although I don't make any promises on the saussage front).

I have worked out what the live set should be, chosen the right voice/guitar FX (only one word: chorus is the way to go) and decided on which short to clean. And most importantly I have also settled on the final setlist of covers, as follows:

1. One (U2)
2. Umbrella (Rihanna)
3. Let me entertain you/Sympathy for the Devil (R.Williams/Stones)
4. Paparazzi (Lady Gaga)
5. Haven't met you yet (M.Buble)
6. Enjoy the Silence (Depeche Mode)
7. Street spirit (Radiohead)
8. Yellow (Coldplay)
9. I will survive (G.Gaynor/Cake)
10. Ne me quittes pas (J.Brel)
11. Wonderwall (Oasis)
12. Use Somebody (Kings of Leon)
13. It ain't over till it's over (L.Kravitz)
14. Long Train Running/Un peu de ton Amour (Doobie Brothers/Telephone)

I will attempt (first time lucky ?) to record the whole proceedings for immortality and future posting. And we have also been working on something else for the wedding night so there might be some bonus.

As always, keep rocking, I sure will do my best not to drop the SG into the BBQ.