Gig Gab - The Working Musician's Podcast

You get a front-row seat to how Michael Grande turned hard-won tech chops and late-night studio hacks into real music-business wins. From escaping NAMM chaos and leveraging smart PR and management, to transforming a throwaway “stupid idea” into Card Chords—an Amazon-topping guitar tool born from a Cricut, Guitar Center testing, and sheer persistence—you see how necessity, experimentation, and saying yes the first time landed him in Jimi Hendrix’s old bedroom at Electric Lady Studios, shredding in the lineage of Vai and Satriani, and inventing Tone Picks on the fly. Along the way, you’re reminded that when you know you’re right, you embrace it, protect your IP, and keep swinging big—whether that’s launching music schools, eyeing Shark Tank with a bold offer, or pivoting your career from Wall Street CTO and Certified Ethical Hacker to full-on guitar innovator.

Then you’re pushed to rethink how you teach, lead, and build your own music brand. You learn why great schools and studios run on clear mission statements, strong unique selling propositions, and a coaching mindset that focuses on the student, not the curriculum—getting them hooked on the songs they actually want to play, then turning them toward what they need. You see how asking potential customers for their own answers, treating every audience like they matter, and showing up like a coach instead of a teacher all point to one core operating principle: you’re never off-duty, because you Always Be Performing—ALWAYS.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 525 – Monday, March 16th, 2026

March 16th: Freedom of Information Day

Guest co-host: Michael Grande from Card Chords and more

00:02:14 Getting out of NAMM

00:03:10 Have a good PR guy!

Christopher Buttner

00:04:15 Hey, NAMM: How high can I go?

00:06:09 Can you afford NOT to hire a manager? Or a PR person?

Our Mistakes are Our Tuition – Business Brain

00:08:04 COVID Vaccines lead to Card Chords

Mike was a (very successful) ​Certified Ethical Hacker & CTO on Wall Street

00:11:09 Dad – come up with an idea to teach people how to play guitar

“That’s a stupid idea” – Ignore, and move on.

Bought a Cricut machine, built the prototype and tested it on hundreds of guitars at Guitar Center

Came out on December 21st, and became Amazon’s #1 Musical Accessories item within 30 days

Also includes an eBook to teach out Beatles, Bon Jovi, Guns and Roses songs WITH Card Chords

00:16:35 Born of Necessity!

00:18:39 The birth of Tone Picks

Story time: I didn’t bring a 12-string to Electric Lady Studios at 3am

Taped two picks together to simulate a 12-string sound.

00:21:41 How did you get on the list of Electric Lady Studios session players?

Mike was a shredder after Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, etc

00:22:27 Recording in Jimi Hendrix’s old bedroom at Electric Lady Studios!

Say yes the first time!

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00:27:22 SPONSOR: Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll when you start at https://gusto.com/giggab

00:28:51 Mike uses Gusto for his Music Schools!

00:30:33 Running music schools

Mike’s Book: From Teacher to Coach: (And why you would NEVER want to be a Teacher)

Taught private lessons, then students wanted more, so…

Mike started The Staten Island School of Rock

00:33:37 Mike’s coaching methods are different

Learning hands-on

Getting students hooked on the songs you want to play

THEN turn them around

00:34:42 You gotta be juiced about playing the songs

Gig Gab 500 with Skylar and the drum coaching story

00:37:16 You need to have a mission statement

Mike’s: “We build the confidence and self-esteem through music lessons”

You need a Unique Selling Proposition!

00:39:30 Mike’s Unique Selling Proposition

Never answer the question… ask the potential customer for the answer!

00:41:48 A teacher focuses on the curriculum, a coach focuses on the student

00:42:44 Mary Fanaro’s Rwanda Rocks

Rwanda’s Minister of Education: The children of Rwanda don’t need teachers, they need coaches.

00:48:08 When you know you’re right, embrace it.

00:49:45 Always Be Performing…ALWAYS!

00:53:18 An audience wants to be treated

00:55:23 We’re always wearing

00:57:54 The Chinese stole Mike’s IP for Card Chords

Mike’s got a new product that is in the running for Shark Tank

Mike’s offer to Shark Tank will be: 20% of his company for $1

01:03:23 Gig Gab 525 Outtro

Follow Michael Grande

CardChords.com

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[email protected]

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The post From Wall Street Hacker to Music Mogul: Michael Grande’s Journey – Gig Gab 525 appeared first on Gig Gab.

You’re invited into a legacy family audio business that refused to accept “good enough” on feedback control and instead chased the impossible: a truly zero‑latency, AI‑driven way to push your PA louder without squeals. You follow Devin Sheets from growing up on sound gigs to roaming European stages, then back home to build De‑Feedback plugin for working musicians, a live sound feedback plugin and on‑the‑fly impulse‑response generator that listens like a seasoned engineer: separating human voice, room reverb, background noise, and feedback in real time so you can grab at least 6 dB more gain before things start to howl. Along the way you see how NAMM sparked the idea, how inverse impulse responses and probability math beat old EQ and gate tricks, and how “homebrew AI” meant sneaking into every empty church at 3 a.m. just to teach the model what real rooms actually sound like.

You also learn how to think like a modern working musician: using social media to find the right AI programmers across the world, leaning on LLMs to translate, collaborate, and even rate contractor work so you can move faster without losing control. You come away knowing you can drop a dedicated De‑Feedback box or plugin into almost any rig, from churches to touring consoles to tiny clubs, take it with you even when someone else is behind the board, and quietly stack the deck in your favor. In the end, it’s a roadmap for how you run your own gigs and career: stay curious, embrace new tools, protect your sound, and Always Be Performing.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 524 – Monday, March 9th, 2026

March 9th: National Meatball Day

Guest co-host: Devin Sheets from Alpha Labs

00:02:12 Let’s Grow this Legacy Family Business

Grew up doing sound

Also a musician

Lived in Europe

Then came back and said, “let’s grow this family business!”

00:03:44 We haven’t “just solved” this feedback problem

Went to NAMM for the first time, and was inspired

There are automated EQ-based or gate-based systems

PSE plugin from Waves

5045 for feedback

00:04:57 Why isn’t there a “balanced audio”-type solution for Feedback

Balanced Audio fixes hums and it just works.

00:08:24 NAMM is a great inspiration…and it inspired Devin and his team to seek a feedback plugin solution

People get entrenched

Inverse Impulse Response methodology

00:12:35 Training the AI to listen for three things: human voice, reverb, and feedback

Created a de-reverb algorithm and went beyond that

A probability calculation does the math

00:16:05 Truly zero latency for the plugin

Workflow latency remains

00:19:32 I don’t have any coding or AI background, but I have a gut feeling AI will fix this feedback problem

Others: It’s harder than you think

Devin: I knew that it needed to happen

00:20:58 Finding an AI programmer who was interested in doing

Experimented with some programmers, failed, learned some things!

00:21:09 Social Media to the rescue!

Late 2023: Devin found a group of AI programmers who would be interested

Sending large amounts of money to China…it’s a risk!

00:26:30 At 3am, a text message: I think I’ve done it.

Devin immediately started testing it himself

“It seemed to work.”

00:27:17 Installing De-Feedback in Churches

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00:34:20 What is an impulse response?

Impulse Response: An audio picture of how the room sounds

Popping balloons in a room/environment and recording the sound is a common approach for creating impulse responses

00:38:33 De-Feedback is an on-the-fly IR generator

…and analyzer that’s trained on the human voice, room reverb, background noise…and feedback

00:41:55 Finding the right programmers was the key

…in addition to actually having the idea and the bullheaded persistence to make it happen.

00:44:46 Mind-melding was necessary

And LLMs helped with translation!

00:48:39 Using AI to make it possible to collaborate with other humans

00:50:03 Using an LLM to rate the work of your contractors and employees

00:51:54 How do we get De-Feedback into the hands of working musicians

US$499 for the De-Feedback plugin

VST3 or AU plugin

A higher-end Windows laptop can likely run it on its own

Apple’s Core Audio tech makes it difficult, but they’re working on it.

De-Feedback also sells a perfectly-tuned headless computer to do this

Alpha Labs tried tons of interfaces that the Focusrite Scarlett keeps glitches out of the mix

Waves SuperRack LiveBox

01:01:37 Where do we expand?

Allen & Heath mixers?

Midas/Behringer mixers?

Paul Falcone, mixing Mariah Carey, wanted to use it!

Robert Scovill talking Rock Hall on Gig Gab

01:05:18 Homebrew AI!

Training EVERY room he could find

“Can you let me into your empty church at 3am?” – To record IR to then train the data set for De-Feeback

01:07:25 Creating your own AI model

01:08:13 What’s the future look like?

Acquisition? Demands for security? – Planning for it all

01:09:26 You can get this and bring it with you to gigs where someone else is doing sound

De-Feedback Option 1

Allen & Heath Qu-5’s Feedback Eliminator

De-Feedback gets at least as 6dB more gain before feedback

01:17:46 Gig Gab 524 Outtro

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And Alpha Labs

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The post De-Feedback Plugin for Working Musicians: More Gain, Less Feedback – Gig Gab 524 with Devin Sheets appeared first on Gig Gab.

You get dropped into a two-show day where you’re juggling festival chaos, a paramedic emergency during set change, and a mysteriously mudded-out bass that turns out to be a rogue low‑pass filter at 90 Hz, all while keeping the gig on the rails because you Always Be Performing.

Then you pivot into first‑timer survival tactics for attending SXSW: locking in reservations weeks out, over‑planning so you can gleefully abandon those plans, and treating the whole thing as a marathon and a sprint while your calendar app becomes your best friend…and your worst enemy.

Throughout it all, you’re thinking like a pro: dialing in efficient monitor setups for festival stages, dealing with sketchy solder joints on a microphone (or is that a mic cable issue?), staying sane amid SXSW security, and never underestimating the power of great brisket, BBQ, and a solid spot to reset your brain. You’ll also get the practical stuff no one tells you: what to wear, why you always keep your badge on you, and how finding a seasoned SXSW Sherpa can save your week (and your feet) before you ever hit your first line.

​From Festival Gigs to SXSW: Essential Survival Tips for Musicians and Attendees

00:00:00 Gig Gab 523 – Monday, March 2nd, 2026

March 2nd: International Rescue Cat Day

Guest co-host: Lisa Hamilton

00:01:41 Two Show Day for Dave

First gig, Bitter Pill – Festival

And there was a paramedic

Bitter Pill: It’s Rock and Roll… It’s Rockabilly… It’s Blues… I don’t know!

00:10:43 Second gig – somehow the bass got a low-pass filter set at 90hZ!

Problem solved, gig a success!

00:18:23 SPONSOR: Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll when you start at https://gusto.com/giggab

00:20:00 Attending SXSW for the first time

00:25:45 Learning how to manage SXSW

00:27:30 SXXpress passes become Reservations

And now they’re 3-weeks out instead of 2 days!

00:33:21 Reserving things in advance

00:37:25 It’s all about planning in advance

And then throwing away your plans and making a series of Sophie’s Choices

00:39:24 It’s a marathon…and a sprint

00:39:42 Managing the Calendar

00:43:39 With the App

00:48:43 Managing your monitor needs with efficiency at festival gigs

00:52:51 Security at SXSW

00:58:15 Luke Warm Solder Joint on the Microphone

Heil PR-40

00:58:57 Eat good food!

Brisket and BBQ

Eastside Cafe in Austin

01:01:11 What should I wear?

01:06:36 Find a SXSW Sherpa!

01:07:58 Finding your badge?

01:08:59 Always have your badge with you

01:11:38 Gig Gab 523 Outtro

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The post From Festival Gigs to SXSW: Survival Tips for Musicians and Attendees — Gig Gab 523 with Lisa Hamilton appeared first on Gig Gab.

You’re riding along with Kaitlyn Raitz as she breaks down the real mechanics of touring at scale: staying human on a bus, finding tiny routines that keep you sane, and surviving the sleep math when you’re one of twelve buses on a massive run. Then it’s straight into the onstage reality of modern country arena production: 24 musicians, a full string quartet, choir, and horns, plus the challenge of making strings translate in a loud arena. You get the practical gear-and-tech layer too: DPA mics and pickups, dynamic EQ, managing cello loudness, and how tools like ToneDexter fit into keeping tone consistent when the room is working against you.

You also get the career side, unfiltered: how the Eric Church gig happened through the Nashville relationship web, why being excellent and easy to be around matters, and why “Nashville is a ten-year town” if you want longevity. Kaitlyn’s stories span arranging and learning charts mid-tour from iPads, to the whiplash of getting a Grammy call with barely any runway, to recording in LA and wondering how anyone actually functions there. The episode closes with the mindset and performance skills that keep pros durable: protecting your brain and nervous system, flipping a stage persona on and off, and the practical win of transitioning to IEMs for a cellist when monitors are run well. Bottom line: this is how you keep your craft sharp, your head steady, and your show consistent night after night. Always Be Performing.​

00:00:00 Gig Gab 522 – Monday, February 23rd, 2026

February 23rd: Curling Is Cool Day

Guest co-host: Kaitlyn Raitz

00:01:55 Protein and Joy on the bus

00:02:14 Passing the time productively on the bus…and on the tour

Swimming

Swimply OR PlacesToSwim.com

Thrifting

00:05:53 Sleeping on the bus!

Twelve tour busses on this tour

00:07:26 24 Musicians on stage

String Quartet

8-Person Choir

Horn/Woodwind Quartet

00:09:45 Micing a string quartet in an arena

DPA Mics AND pickups

Dynamic EQ

00:14:47 Cellos and Loudness

ToneDexter

00:18:50 Writing, arranging and learning charts mid-tour!

Reading from iPads

Eleanor Denning, String Lead and Arranger on the Eric Church Tour

Bitter Pill has a cellist, too!

00:21:33 Getting the Eric Church gig

Sub list for the Nashville Symphony

Everything in Nashville is relationship-based

Be good at what you do, and also be a pleasant person that people want to be around

Nashville is a ten-year town

00:25:07 SPONSOR: Squarespace. Check out https://www.squarespace.com/GIGGAB to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code GIGGAB.

00:26:55 You played on the Grammy’s?

Used to play with Brandy Clark, and occasionally gets a one-off gig call still.

AND, a week-and-a-half before the Grammy’s, the call came in

Do you want to play the Grammy’s with me?

Kaitlyn has questions for LA-denizens:

How do you live in LA?

Do you see people that you know?

Do you take public transportation?

Recorded at Sunset Sounds in LA

00:33:05 Protecting your brain and nervous system

Take on a persona

“You are Kaitlyn Motherfucking Raitz”

“We are bad bitches, we have earned this”

Gary Cherone is the master of turning the stage persona on AND OFF

Let the lights blind you

00:40:25 Transitioning to IEMs

It’s great for a cellist!

IEMs are better than having to use bone conduction

Kaitlyn’s IEM mix – she hears the band

It comes down to who’s running monitors

Ultimate Ears UE7 Pros IEMs

00:47:06 Kaitlyn Raitz’s Music

00:48:52 Gig Gab 522 Outtro

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The post From the Eric Church Tour to the Grammys: On the Bus with Cellist Kaitlyn Raitz – Gig Gab 522 appeared first on Gig Gab.

You kick off this week with Dan Ray by reframing failure as a tool, not a verdict. Instead of obsessing over the “vanity listen” after a gig or rehearsal, you do the check-in listen and extract the lesson. You learn to fail fast the right way by making small bets that generate real data quickly, including testing demand before you invest rehearsal time. That mindset carries into band direction changes and the leadership realities that come with them: different people want different levels of ownership, and the job is to be a benevolent dictator who listens widely but decides cleanly. You also get practical about managing public perception and egos, taking cues from bands that protected the brand by being intentional about roles and visibility.

Then you dig into Dan’s origin stories and the nuts-and-bolts that keep working musicians moving: starting a band young, landing monthly gigs, and learning obvious-in-hindsight lessons like not running a vocal mic through a guitar amp. You hear how scrappy tools like a Tascam 4-track can solve real problems, why running a PA from the stage demands discipline, and why the room you rehearse in changes what you think you’re hearing. From there it gets wonderfully nerdy with quick hits that matter in real life, like using low-pass filters aggressively and remembering that time alignment starts with where sound sources physically live. You close in the feels with theater life and the emotional punch of closing night, a reminder that the tech and the business serve the same goal: show up ready, stay present, and Always Be Performing.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 521 – Monday, February 16th, 2026

February 16th: National Rationalization Day

00:02:08 Guest co-host: Dan Ray

Last visit: July 19, 2020 for GG 265 and CBC 100

00:03:23 Having a productive relationship with failure

Failure can a lesson you lean into

After gigs or rehearsals: the check-in listen vs. the vanity listen

Fail fast the right way: “make a bet” by setting up something that you can quickly get data from

00:08:47 Transitioning a band’s direction

Dan’s Big in the 80s band

00:10:10 Test your market before committing too much

Book the gig before you rehearse the songs. Make sure there’s demand and interest. If not… move on! (You failed fast!)

Cover Band Confidential

00:12:52 AI solves the blank page problem – use it often!

00:14:28 Leading bands (and people)

Be ready for people who want to engage with different levels of ownership

Learning how to be a benevolent dictator… but also learn to be the leader, and the decision-maker, the ultimate arbiter. Don’t do it in a vacuum, but I’ll be the last word.

The Pork Tornadoes are a democracy-ish. But decision-makers are pre-decided by a healthy division of labor.

Learning to manage the public perception of your band (and your egos) like R.E.M. and RUSH did.

00:22:37 Do you name your band after yourself?

My Thanks to Our Sponsors

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00:28:38 First kid in high school to start a band

Grew out of the school-run rock band

Decided to play some originals and covers at home, and got a gig!

The school librarian booked them monthly!

Lesson: don’t put a vocal mic through the guitar amp

Tascam 4-Track cassette recorder to use as a mixer

00:33:27 Dan Manages the PA from the stage

We rehearse in a 15×20 indoor, climate-controlled storage unit

00:36:32 Quick Tip: Use Low Pass Filters on everything

00:37:35 Time Alignment: A reminder that sound source locations matter

Check out the 16-minute mark of this episode with Robert Scovill for more

00:40:36 Having theater kids

Stagelights in Greensboro, NC

00:43:05 The emotions during closing night in musical theater

00:50:12 Gig Gab 522 Outtro

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@DanRayMusician

@CoverBandConfidential

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