Keyboard Player magazine, the UK's answer to Keyboard magazine

[Dave Horne]

While googling I came across a review offered by Keyboard Player (UK based magazine) and so I bought a one year subscription.

 

A few quick thoughts - Keyboard Player sometimes has the flavor of a small town publication. I have the feeling they have a much smaller staff than Keyboard magazine. The issues are typically 50 pages or so in size, not a really big magazine.

 

But I will give them high points for service. I bought the subscription this week (Monday, I believe) and you have the choice of two back issues. You also have the choice of which issue you want to start your subscription - a nice touch. Well, today is Thursday and three issues arrived at my home in an envelope on which my address was handwritten. That's service.

[soundscape]

I bought a few copies online because they had an article I was specifically interested in. They seem to focus review wise more on the high-end home keyboards and arrangers. IIRC they do have some articles on how to play stuff with some transcriptions and lead sheets of songs, which is welcome considering you could go years of reading the other UK-based magazines that have a lot of coverage of keyboards without knowing what a C major chord is.

 

(One of these publications featured a reader's demo on the cover disc, which they used to demonstate how a track can be improved using the right FX processing and mastering. The track's arrangement and playing was, er, far from perfect, so why didn't they talk about that?)

 

And yes, it's definitely a 'small time' publication.

[niacin]

I tried it for a year and am just about due to renew but wil skip on it. Most issues there's maybe one review or article that interests me then it's into the recycling bin. The reviews are not up to Keyboard standard let alone SOS. They did have an article on modulars last month though with a great list of current manufacturers, many of whom I've never heard of or come across in all my time on this forum.