Yea, on a serious note, if you do drink, do joints, I hear it's MUCH more easy to be creative (From lecturers and second and third year design students.) under the influence of just about anything, except coffee. We literally sit for 18 hours a week drawing and working on stuff so yea, get drunk, have fun with it. But be realistic ?

govendl3 wrote: Most creative when I am angry, irratated or annoyed with something
Thats almost all my songs/lyrics and riffs came about

Called Miff-riffs...

How many people have come up with an amazing sequence in their dreams to think, jeez I must remember this when I'm awake. Then woke up not remembe it?

Do, keep a book next to your bed and write down everything you remember every morning. I hear that helps with remembering dreams cause i remember 3-4 a year ? Never tried it tho.

DonovanB wrote:

How many people have come up with an amazing sequence in their dreams to think, jeez I must remember this when I'm awake. Then woke up not remembe it?

Always! But I've discovered that's what a cell phone's sound recorder is for...

A bit of herb never did no harm...

DonovanB wrote: How many people have come up with an amazing sequence in their dreams to think, jeez I must remember this when I'm awake. Then woke up not remembe it?

SRV dreamt that Hendrix taught him secret chord changes, but then he forgot them when he woke up... LOL ?

Called Miff-riffs...

Ha Ha. It's true for me too. If someone's made me realy angry I somehow work better.

My keyboard realy inspired me. First I started filling out my classical music with it and then it dawned on me, hey I can get out of this classical box.

It's quite scary how megalomania drives me. If I think that somehow my music is immortalised by recording it I go crazy. Evil laugh and everything.

Then of course I'm inspired by watching other musicians performing. Some classical pieces I've learnt make me want to take them apart and reassemble them differently.

I also have little rituals. Making sure my nails are right and getting everything in place and at hand. A little clip here and there of something that makes me tick doesn't hurt either.

I once dreamt i was playing this riff on stage.. And i woke up and remembered it!
I showed my band and they dug it, and it became one of our top songs, which we performed live!
That was amazing..

Just my 5c worth relating to these 2 specific questions:

Squonk wrote: Does your mood effect your creativety?

Absolutely......also I think your mood dictates what you come up with, or even what you like to play or listen to.......bluesy, moody, rock, hard rock, metal.......whatever.....

Squonk wrote: Or can you just switch it on? ???

That requires a really special skill........I think if you're a full-time muso, the "job" dictates that you switch on on demand........ the more/ longer you do it the easier it becomes.....maybe even a joint or two is sometimes required to get the creative juices flowing.....hahahaha. ? (the answer is no, I don't.......)

eg. (Having worked in Ad Agencies for many years), creative people get a brief, and a deadline to come up with a concept for an ad, or TV commercial, or a jingle for an ad, or whatever, there is no such thing as you can do it when the "mood" is right, so people get used to "performing" on demand, and especially under pressure (there are people who perform at their best under pressure, I know I do.).....

However, because most people here have a day job, and lots of other things to deal with, switching on and off on demand is not always that easy.

I also believe that lots of the BEST creative ideas, musically or otherwise, comes from two (or three) people working together (brainstorming an idea)...... Lennon/McCartney, etc......great tunes AND great lyrics. Very few individuals can do both successfully.....

Hey Aubs....nice one there....some food for thought...... :-\