On Motivation
I wanted to post something about one aspect of being a musician - motivation. For the past year, I sort of felt like I’d hit a brick wall - both creatively and in terms of ability. I wasn’t motivated to get better, and part of me felt like I’d reached my peak. I happened to listen to a recording I did in college and had this thought - “Man! I was so much better back then!”
Early this year, the Josh Martin Band started practicing for our live DVD recording. It wasn’t until the night of the concert that I was sparked and motivated again. There was just something about that night - something special. We’d practiced more for that than anything and it all paid off. We didn’t play perfect that night, but we came fairly close. I felt comfortable. I felt like I was “on top of my game.”
Since then, I’ve been inspired and motivated again. The band didn’t play much over the summer, but I continued practicing and trying to stay sharp. Creatively, I started taking chances again, mostly on Sunday mornings at The Point. Part of the thrill of performing live is the ability to take risks from time to time and try to play something challenging. I’d felt like I had been playing “safe” for a long time and a friend confirmed it. Playing Christian music, I felt like I should keep things simple. By doing that, however, I also realized it had put me in a rut. Part of my style has always been trying to play interesting drum parts. I’m not the most creative or talented drummer in the world, but I do feel like I can lay down a solid part that has interesting touches here and there. Most of my style comes from years of listening and playing along with Carter Beauford of the Dave Matthews Band. So, I tried to get back to taking some chances and challenging myself.
Lately, the hybrid drum concept has kept me motivated. I feel like I can play comfortably in any situation now. I’m still tweaking sounds, which can be tedious, but it’s also been motivating to try something new. Adding the new drum machine has also helped. This Sunday, I will be playing over top of a loop I created for the song “We Fall Down.” I plan on programming more loops for other songs, including JMB songs.
Finally, new material from the Josh Martin Band is also helping. Up until now, it’s been fairly safe to say we’ve had a country sound to our music. A mix of bluegrass, folk, country, and southern gospel, all with a little edge. I can safely say our new material is different. We’ve already started playing the song “Good Enough” live. You can also catch “Clumsy Believer” and “Christ is Our Life” on the new DVD. Three other songs have been worked on in rehearsals and they both have a very different sound from our other material. It’s mainly resulted from the band writing songs together for the first time, as opposed to Josh coming up with everything on his own. I’ve enjoyed it very much.
So, where does motivation come from? For me, it seems it’s been reminders from the past, practicing with an intent to improve, a realization of why I’m not motivated, and trying new things. It would also be fairly self-serving to not mention that I’ve been given this ability by a God who expects me to use the ability to glorify Him. That can tend to be motivation enough by itself!
