I love punk, even though it seems that so many of the guitar community doesn't. I love it. I love the energy, the variety of topics, the shortness of most songs, the ferocity of the attack, I love it all. I especially love how punk - true punk - has only one oh so Shakespearean rule:
"To thine own self be true."
My problem with punk though, doesn't necessarily lie exclusively with the bands, but the guitar culture in general. I want albums tabbed out, even if it only takes a page or two to tab out a whole song. I'm not looking for girth or anything here, just accurate tabs, even if it's just power chords. I want to know which power chords are being played.
Unofrtunately few if any punk bands have music books that are of similar quality as the ones we see every time we go to the music shop from the fairly thick "... And Justic For All" from Metallica (or the REALLY thick Vol.3 from Slipknot) to compilations of great songs like the Rockabilly Bible. Not much punk.
My theories on this vary from bands either thinking themselves too underground to have tab books or that if they did give in they would lose their dignified "haven't sold out yet" status. If that's the case, it just isn't true. There's nothing wrong with having kids and players everywhere playing your songs. It makes you more accessible as a band to the fans and it may even foster a stronger connection between the two of you that leads to a repeat customer for any of your albums vs only the ones that are recommended to them. I know if a band or artist is willing to help me learn a song of theirs, I'm more than likely going to be a dedicated fan.
I also think that skilled guitarists are hesitant to publish something so deceptively simple. Perhaps they think it's below them. Again, not true. I think every genre should have books with skill levels that are REAL songs, songs we all know and sometimes even love that help guide you to becoming better and better and punk will surely fit into the skill ladder on multiple rungs from easy to play bands like MxPx to much more complicated bands like NOFX and Me First & The Gimme Gimmes.
There's a third option though: maybe people think it won't sell.
Cut and dry and to the point, but I think they will. I think they will sell just as good if not better than most other tab books because if you've ever looked inside at the fly paper-like intricacies of the last solo to "One" you know tab can be daunting and if you open up a punk tab books where the whole song is one two pages and most of it is power chords you're going to have more people buying it not only as an easy way to build up your repetoire, but because there's more people that are looking to branch out into different genres than I think are given credit for.
Some out there will point me to ultimateguitar.com or some other site and I say no. Hardly any online tabs are accurate and they are frustratingly easy to find. The same tab is offered on a dozen sites and each time it isn't right. Something about it, be it key or just plain transcription, but SOMETHING is almost always off and I've become so frustrated that I'm more inclined to ask my more experienced and far more talented guitar friends for help when I'm stuck since I have no ear for music.
So open up the flood gates! Tab out Coaster. I need to know the jazz chords and solos to "I Am An Alcoholic."
-Pappy
Tabs
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
It Might Get Loud Reviewed
I saw this a couple of weeks back. Unfortunately, it came out on a limited release here in Dublin at the Irish Film Institute for one week only. There was very little press about it and as a result, I didn't get to catch it first time around. I did, however, manage to see it online, in excellent quality. I enjoyed it but was left feeling somewhat empty. There is a saying that you should 'always leave a good meal feeling hungry.' I felt hungry after this but not because it was so damned good I wanted more. I was left hungry because there is an enormous absence at the centre of this movie...
Anyway, I decided to write a short review for you guys since I very rarely contribute anything to this forum but attempts at arid humour, petty cribbing and complaints.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jack White is odd. He occupies a strange space in the musical world. He is commercially successful despite recording wildly un-commercial music. He is a traditionalist yet an experimentalist. He at once appears simple, only to show a bafflingly complex side. Jack White is intentionally mysterious, and a fascinating character.
White, while promoting 'It Might Get Loud’, said that part of the film's appeal (to him at least) was its lack of direction. White liked the idea that the project was a type of point-and-shoot, guerrilla documentary; get three of the most successful guitarists of all time in the same room and just... see what happens.
This is not completely surprising; while Jack White is, as his musical output attests, grounded in a particular musical style - it is a style with which he appears at odds; it is a style that he almost defies.
Those familiar with the various flavours of the Blues can easily spot White's influences; Sun House, Robert Johnson, etc. The Blues of the early twentieth century is for the most part musically and sonically simple. It is this simplicity that Jack White celebrates, and rallies against. It is of course, a glaring contradiction; it makes no sense to deliberately restrict oneself for the purpose of having something to kick against.
Yet, this is exactly what White does; he wants to explore the possibilities of his chosen style; he wants to push the limits – to defy its simplicity yet embrace it at the same time. In this regard, it is understandable that the simplistic, yet somewhat genre-defying approach to cinema that ‘It Might Get Loud’ represents, appeals to White. It is, it would seem, in tune with his sensibilities.
But, as the film progresses, it becomes apparent that this is not the case. The lack of direction that White applauds is not a positive at all; it is not an attempt to create something that is different; it is simply that – a lack of direction – and results in a muddled, confused offering.
‘It Might Get Loud’ interweaves three lines of autobiography with fly-on-the-wall styled documentary. Three musicians tell their respective tales; they bring the viewer into their history; they recall their origins and progressions as artists sometimes in their own, individual settings, and sometimes as a group. They show off their guitars. They explain their style. They demonstrate their tone.
The Edge tells the story of U2's beginnings with a straightforwardness that is yet tinged with nostalgia; he smiles and jokes as he gives a tour of his old school in Dublin - clambering on top of the roof of a boiler room where U2 played their first ever 'gig.' He is laid back, quiet – almost shy but possesses a meditative intelligence and self-deprecating sense of humour that is extremely welcoming.
Jimmy Page is not dissimilar - he too is nostalgic when he discusses his formative years and is especially nostalgic when he revisits Headley Grange, where Led Zeppelin recorded ‘When the Levee Breaks.' He recounts with surprising ease the recording of the track and explains some of the happy accidents that occurred along the way. He too is straightforward, honest; indeed, Page is almost painfully humble and displays an awkward, childlike joy when he becomes enthused with something – be it the menacing guitars riffs of Link Wray or demonstrating his own trademark licks. He also shows an extremely subtle, yet varied artistic temperament - a wonderfully ironic two-fingered salute to the brain-dead, cock-rock cliché that he at one point personified. He describes his approach to music in terms associated with both the visual and musical artist: ‘dynamics, light and shade, whisper to the thunder.’
While Evans and Page are surprising and refreshing in their ordinariness, White is predictably theatrical. He chooses to tell his story not, like Evans from his home city of Dublin, or, like Page, from a location of personal musical importance, but from a broken-down farmhouse in Tennessee. He describes his upbringing and formative years in Darwinian terms – a struggle for existence – whether it is his own experience as the youngest of ten children or his parents’ decision to stay in their hometown despite the immense, alienating societal changes occurring around them. White describes his decisions to play guitar and to listen to Blues music in southwest Detroit, then dominated by hip hop and house music, along a similar scheme – as a struggle against the odds. ‘There was no record store, no guitar shop, nobody liked rock ‘n’ roll or blues music.’
White, then, as is his wont, stands out.
Unfortunately, the real Jack White, the man behind the mask John Anthony Gillis, does not and cannot appear in the film; he cannot undo the carefully constructed persona that is Jack White, to do so would not only demystify the man, but it would also demystify the music so intertwined as it is with the persona. Consequently, there is a discomfiting tension between the honest, straightforwardness of Evans and Page and the artificiality of White. It is a tension that carries through to the ‘summit meeting’ scenes; there is, at times, a subtle but noticeable awkwardness between White, and Evans and Page.
While White’s inability to drop character is a source of frustration throughout – it is not nearly as frustrating as Davis Guggenheim’s directorial approach. Guggenheim, in his interweaving of chronologically differing narratives denies the movie a natural forward momentum; the film staggers backwards and forwards across three different eras with a seemingly arbitrary interjection of cuts from the ‘summit meeting.’ Consequently, the film has no rhythm – an important ingredient for what is essentially a rockumentary.
‘It Might Get Loud’ is an amazing opportunity, badly missed. It is a terrible shame as there are some truly tantalizing moments that hint at what could have been; watching Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White playing and learning each other’s riffs is a wonderfully familiar, heart-warming experience and one to which any guitarist can relate. One of the film’s highlights, where Page demonstrates his signature riff from ‘Whole Lotta Love’ for White and Evans is unnaturally exhilarating; to see the childish smiles on their faces as Page rips through one of the most iconic riffs in rock history is intoxicating. One cannot help but nod one’s head in time, and smile, and understand how special that moment was; it is just a pity that Guggenheim did not do the same.
-Dangerous Man
Anyway, I decided to write a short review for you guys since I very rarely contribute anything to this forum but attempts at arid humour, petty cribbing and complaints.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jack White is odd. He occupies a strange space in the musical world. He is commercially successful despite recording wildly un-commercial music. He is a traditionalist yet an experimentalist. He at once appears simple, only to show a bafflingly complex side. Jack White is intentionally mysterious, and a fascinating character.
White, while promoting 'It Might Get Loud’, said that part of the film's appeal (to him at least) was its lack of direction. White liked the idea that the project was a type of point-and-shoot, guerrilla documentary; get three of the most successful guitarists of all time in the same room and just... see what happens.
This is not completely surprising; while Jack White is, as his musical output attests, grounded in a particular musical style - it is a style with which he appears at odds; it is a style that he almost defies.
Those familiar with the various flavours of the Blues can easily spot White's influences; Sun House, Robert Johnson, etc. The Blues of the early twentieth century is for the most part musically and sonically simple. It is this simplicity that Jack White celebrates, and rallies against. It is of course, a glaring contradiction; it makes no sense to deliberately restrict oneself for the purpose of having something to kick against.
Yet, this is exactly what White does; he wants to explore the possibilities of his chosen style; he wants to push the limits – to defy its simplicity yet embrace it at the same time. In this regard, it is understandable that the simplistic, yet somewhat genre-defying approach to cinema that ‘It Might Get Loud’ represents, appeals to White. It is, it would seem, in tune with his sensibilities.
But, as the film progresses, it becomes apparent that this is not the case. The lack of direction that White applauds is not a positive at all; it is not an attempt to create something that is different; it is simply that – a lack of direction – and results in a muddled, confused offering.
‘It Might Get Loud’ interweaves three lines of autobiography with fly-on-the-wall styled documentary. Three musicians tell their respective tales; they bring the viewer into their history; they recall their origins and progressions as artists sometimes in their own, individual settings, and sometimes as a group. They show off their guitars. They explain their style. They demonstrate their tone.
The Edge tells the story of U2's beginnings with a straightforwardness that is yet tinged with nostalgia; he smiles and jokes as he gives a tour of his old school in Dublin - clambering on top of the roof of a boiler room where U2 played their first ever 'gig.' He is laid back, quiet – almost shy but possesses a meditative intelligence and self-deprecating sense of humour that is extremely welcoming.
Jimmy Page is not dissimilar - he too is nostalgic when he discusses his formative years and is especially nostalgic when he revisits Headley Grange, where Led Zeppelin recorded ‘When the Levee Breaks.' He recounts with surprising ease the recording of the track and explains some of the happy accidents that occurred along the way. He too is straightforward, honest; indeed, Page is almost painfully humble and displays an awkward, childlike joy when he becomes enthused with something – be it the menacing guitars riffs of Link Wray or demonstrating his own trademark licks. He also shows an extremely subtle, yet varied artistic temperament - a wonderfully ironic two-fingered salute to the brain-dead, cock-rock cliché that he at one point personified. He describes his approach to music in terms associated with both the visual and musical artist: ‘dynamics, light and shade, whisper to the thunder.’
While Evans and Page are surprising and refreshing in their ordinariness, White is predictably theatrical. He chooses to tell his story not, like Evans from his home city of Dublin, or, like Page, from a location of personal musical importance, but from a broken-down farmhouse in Tennessee. He describes his upbringing and formative years in Darwinian terms – a struggle for existence – whether it is his own experience as the youngest of ten children or his parents’ decision to stay in their hometown despite the immense, alienating societal changes occurring around them. White describes his decisions to play guitar and to listen to Blues music in southwest Detroit, then dominated by hip hop and house music, along a similar scheme – as a struggle against the odds. ‘There was no record store, no guitar shop, nobody liked rock ‘n’ roll or blues music.’
White, then, as is his wont, stands out.
Unfortunately, the real Jack White, the man behind the mask John Anthony Gillis, does not and cannot appear in the film; he cannot undo the carefully constructed persona that is Jack White, to do so would not only demystify the man, but it would also demystify the music so intertwined as it is with the persona. Consequently, there is a discomfiting tension between the honest, straightforwardness of Evans and Page and the artificiality of White. It is a tension that carries through to the ‘summit meeting’ scenes; there is, at times, a subtle but noticeable awkwardness between White, and Evans and Page.
While White’s inability to drop character is a source of frustration throughout – it is not nearly as frustrating as Davis Guggenheim’s directorial approach. Guggenheim, in his interweaving of chronologically differing narratives denies the movie a natural forward momentum; the film staggers backwards and forwards across three different eras with a seemingly arbitrary interjection of cuts from the ‘summit meeting.’ Consequently, the film has no rhythm – an important ingredient for what is essentially a rockumentary.
‘It Might Get Loud’ is an amazing opportunity, badly missed. It is a terrible shame as there are some truly tantalizing moments that hint at what could have been; watching Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White playing and learning each other’s riffs is a wonderfully familiar, heart-warming experience and one to which any guitarist can relate. One of the film’s highlights, where Page demonstrates his signature riff from ‘Whole Lotta Love’ for White and Evans is unnaturally exhilarating; to see the childish smiles on their faces as Page rips through one of the most iconic riffs in rock history is intoxicating. One cannot help but nod one’s head in time, and smile, and understand how special that moment was; it is just a pity that Guggenheim did not do the same.
-Dangerous Man
Friday, February 19, 2010
NOFX's El Hefe Interview
As I mentioned in an earlier post about NOFX's Coaster, NOFX is an important band to me, not only opening up doors to other genres but also different styles of playing that makes someone stand out and aren't normally thought of. I emailed Fat Wreck about an interview and guitarist El Hefe was kind enough to give me the time and answer my questions.
Here's the interview. I hope you like it.
5th Fret: What was your first guitar?
El Hefe: It was some generic guitar I found in my older brother's closet. I don't know what brand, I think it was some kind of jazz guitar.
What made you want to start playing?
My best friend played drums, and one day I went to his house to hang out and my other friend was playing guitar, and I said I want to play too. And we started my first band called Jack Attack.
What kind of music did you play?
Classic rock, metal, jazz, blues, and hip hop.
What kind of gear do you mainly use in the studio?
Les Paul, and SG guitars, Boogie, Marshall, and Fender heads.
Is this different from your live rigs?
Yes
What does your live rig consist of?
Mesa Boogie head Mark 3, Boogie 4x12cab, Telecaster with standard EMG pickups.
What do you look for in guitars and amps?
Nice crisp clean sound for the clean stuff, and meaty thick sound for the dirty stuff.
The palming needs to be clear and distinct. You know...the chunk..chunk...lol
Are most NOFX songs the result of jamming or does everyone write solo and bring in their material?
Mike writes the songs, we just add a little extra flavor in the studio.
What about the leads? Are they more off the cuff or heavily practiced and written out beforehand?
I prefer to make the leads up as I go. I usually make the leads up right on the spot. I'll do a bunch of takes and use the best one.
You guys have amazing guitar chops anyway, but especially in the punk genre. Do you think this has helped with the band's popularity?
Yes, that and the chemistry of each character in the band.
Speaking of popularity, how does it feel being part of a band that so many look up to as an inspiration?
I'm very proud to be a part of a world famous punk rock band. I feel fortunate to have had such a long lasting career. I am now producing, and helping other bands that I feel are talented.
Are you working with anyone right now?
Yes, I'm doing the final mixes for the Expendables. I produced half the songs on the album, and Paul Leary of the butt hole surfers produced the other half. It's sounding awesome.
Did you have a good time recording Backstage Pass?
Yea, that was a lot of madness and chaos.
Would you be willing to let the cameras follow you around again?
Sure, they are following us right now.
Is there a tentative release date?
April
The leads almost always have an amazing tone that cuts through the mix and really stands out. How do you get that?
You start with a very expensive guitar, with the right head, with the right cab, and record in a great acoustical environment. The trick is, once it sounds right in the room, getting it on the hard drive with out loosing the quality of the sound. Put an SM57 and a Royer 121 together side by side about an inch from the grill, on axis. Now you have what they call a phase EQ. The 57 will be mostly upper mids, mostly around 3 to 5k, the Royer will be darker, lower mids. Now just adjust the level of each track till it sounds right in the song.
"I Am An Alcoholic" features some pretty great jazz licks. Is jazz a frequently visited genre of you guys'?
Well, I brought that to the plate when I joined the band. I played jazz, and blues, and funk before I joined NOFX. That song was not originally written as a jazz song. I was fucking around in the studio. I started changing the chords that Mike wrote, into jazz chords, just for shits and giggles, and our producer Bill Stevenson said, "hey, what if we let Hefe lay down those jazz chords for real? let's see how that would make the song sound." and it sounded cool. .
What were you using to get those tones?
I used a fender jazz master, just direct into the SSL board I believe.
Any particular crowd favorites from Coaster?
Hmm, I would say We Called It America, and Blasphemy, oh and Creeping Out Sara.
Any personal favorites?
My Orphan Year.
What is the most commonly requested NOFX song of all time and does it ever get tiring to play??
Bob, and it never gets old.
________________________________________________
Many thanks again to El Hefe for donating his time and answering my questions. I really appreciate it.
And thanks to everyone else for reading it!
-Pappy
Here's the interview. I hope you like it.
5th Fret: What was your first guitar?
El Hefe: It was some generic guitar I found in my older brother's closet. I don't know what brand, I think it was some kind of jazz guitar.
What made you want to start playing?
My best friend played drums, and one day I went to his house to hang out and my other friend was playing guitar, and I said I want to play too. And we started my first band called Jack Attack.
What kind of music did you play?
Classic rock, metal, jazz, blues, and hip hop.
What kind of gear do you mainly use in the studio?
Les Paul, and SG guitars, Boogie, Marshall, and Fender heads.
Is this different from your live rigs?
Yes
What does your live rig consist of?
Mesa Boogie head Mark 3, Boogie 4x12cab, Telecaster with standard EMG pickups.
What do you look for in guitars and amps?
Nice crisp clean sound for the clean stuff, and meaty thick sound for the dirty stuff.
The palming needs to be clear and distinct. You know...the chunk..chunk...lol
Are most NOFX songs the result of jamming or does everyone write solo and bring in their material?
Mike writes the songs, we just add a little extra flavor in the studio.
What about the leads? Are they more off the cuff or heavily practiced and written out beforehand?
I prefer to make the leads up as I go. I usually make the leads up right on the spot. I'll do a bunch of takes and use the best one.
You guys have amazing guitar chops anyway, but especially in the punk genre. Do you think this has helped with the band's popularity?
Yes, that and the chemistry of each character in the band.
Speaking of popularity, how does it feel being part of a band that so many look up to as an inspiration?
I'm very proud to be a part of a world famous punk rock band. I feel fortunate to have had such a long lasting career. I am now producing, and helping other bands that I feel are talented.
Are you working with anyone right now?
Yes, I'm doing the final mixes for the Expendables. I produced half the songs on the album, and Paul Leary of the butt hole surfers produced the other half. It's sounding awesome.
Did you have a good time recording Backstage Pass?
Yea, that was a lot of madness and chaos.
Would you be willing to let the cameras follow you around again?
Sure, they are following us right now.
Is there a tentative release date?
April
The leads almost always have an amazing tone that cuts through the mix and really stands out. How do you get that?
You start with a very expensive guitar, with the right head, with the right cab, and record in a great acoustical environment. The trick is, once it sounds right in the room, getting it on the hard drive with out loosing the quality of the sound. Put an SM57 and a Royer 121 together side by side about an inch from the grill, on axis. Now you have what they call a phase EQ. The 57 will be mostly upper mids, mostly around 3 to 5k, the Royer will be darker, lower mids. Now just adjust the level of each track till it sounds right in the song.
"I Am An Alcoholic" features some pretty great jazz licks. Is jazz a frequently visited genre of you guys'?
Well, I brought that to the plate when I joined the band. I played jazz, and blues, and funk before I joined NOFX. That song was not originally written as a jazz song. I was fucking around in the studio. I started changing the chords that Mike wrote, into jazz chords, just for shits and giggles, and our producer Bill Stevenson said, "hey, what if we let Hefe lay down those jazz chords for real? let's see how that would make the song sound." and it sounded cool. .
What were you using to get those tones?
I used a fender jazz master, just direct into the SSL board I believe.
Any particular crowd favorites from Coaster?
Hmm, I would say We Called It America, and Blasphemy, oh and Creeping Out Sara.
Any personal favorites?
My Orphan Year.
What is the most commonly requested NOFX song of all time and does it ever get tiring to play??
Bob, and it never gets old.
________________________________________________
Many thanks again to El Hefe for donating his time and answering my questions. I really appreciate it.
And thanks to everyone else for reading it!
-Pappy
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Pro Tone Pedals' Guide To Distortion
As a Public Service Announcement, Pro Tone Pedals recently wrote a guide to choosing the right distortion/overdrive/fuzz for you and your needs that anyone in the market should check out.
It's located here: http://blog.protonepedals.com/2010/02/08/a-beginners-guide-to-distortion.aspx
It's located here: http://blog.protonepedals.com/2010/02/08/a-beginners-guide-to-distortion.aspx
Monday, February 15, 2010
Guitar Hero On Stage
Aerosmith decided that, on a recent tour, their opening act would be a person or people that could play the game Guitar Hero very well. This decision was met with some… strong opinions.
Aersosmith aren’t the first ones to do this though, and they probably won’t be the last.
Why?
Because there’s a lot going for it. This is probably one of the few opportunities that an everyman will get to share a stage with a great band like Aerosmith. And while people will say the gamer should just get a a real guitar and dedicate the time to learning and maybe they’ll share the stage down the road, how accurate is that statement? How BANKABLE is that statement? When you’re playing a real guitar, what kind of feedback do you get? Do you get scores? Do you win battles? Is there any real way besides the clap-o-meter to gauge how good you are? Not really.
But you can practice Guitar Hero and see your score go up, see your inaccuracies go down. You get immediate feedback and unlike the real guitar where you will never be a true master and always have something new that you can learn, you CAN master it and be a pro. It’s attainable but the big thing is that it’s MEASURABLE.
And it’s fun, for the most part. Learning new songs and licks is hard work. Learning Guitar Hero is not (it’s not really a guitar after all).
So it’s good for the everyman. It can fulfill a dream that probably wouldn’t have happened had the gamer put all that time into playing the actual guitar.
It’s also good for the tour managers. Just like bar and club owners will hire a DJ because they’re cheaper than a band, a tour manager would have less of an issue with one guy on stage playing a plastic guitar than he would a small band that might look at this one shot as their one BIG shot (so they make it count by destroying the stage or going too long or what have you). A guy and a plastic guitar won’t cause too much damage and besides, he’ll be so stoked to be on stage that he won’t do anything. It’s not like he’s trying to use this opportunity as a means to a greater end.
I imagine it’s also good for the headlining band. Less people to worry about, less potential bad press if the opening band decides to get rowdy and imitate Led Zeppelin and the winning gamer will probably meet the band and they’ll gush about how they’re the best band in the world. A nightly stroking of the ego is not a bad thing.
Unfortunately, even if it is good for the guy on stage, the band and the tour manager, it’s not that great for everyone else.
Because who wants to sit/stand there and watch a guy play a plastic guitar pushing buttons, pretending to play a song? ESPECIALLY if the tickets cost a good amount. If I pay fifty bucks to see Metallica, I don’t care what crappy band I have to get through to see the headliner, it had better be a band, right? I have no interest in seeing a 4X multiplier used on a solo to “When You Were Young” when I could be watching a lesser-known band rock out and win more fans for future tours of their own.
Oh, unless the alternative is Tomahawk. I would rather see just about anything else than that band. I would rather watch grass grow for two hours then be forced to endure that torture again.
-Pappy
Aersosmith aren’t the first ones to do this though, and they probably won’t be the last.
Why?
Because there’s a lot going for it. This is probably one of the few opportunities that an everyman will get to share a stage with a great band like Aerosmith. And while people will say the gamer should just get a a real guitar and dedicate the time to learning and maybe they’ll share the stage down the road, how accurate is that statement? How BANKABLE is that statement? When you’re playing a real guitar, what kind of feedback do you get? Do you get scores? Do you win battles? Is there any real way besides the clap-o-meter to gauge how good you are? Not really.
But you can practice Guitar Hero and see your score go up, see your inaccuracies go down. You get immediate feedback and unlike the real guitar where you will never be a true master and always have something new that you can learn, you CAN master it and be a pro. It’s attainable but the big thing is that it’s MEASURABLE.
And it’s fun, for the most part. Learning new songs and licks is hard work. Learning Guitar Hero is not (it’s not really a guitar after all).
So it’s good for the everyman. It can fulfill a dream that probably wouldn’t have happened had the gamer put all that time into playing the actual guitar.
It’s also good for the tour managers. Just like bar and club owners will hire a DJ because they’re cheaper than a band, a tour manager would have less of an issue with one guy on stage playing a plastic guitar than he would a small band that might look at this one shot as their one BIG shot (so they make it count by destroying the stage or going too long or what have you). A guy and a plastic guitar won’t cause too much damage and besides, he’ll be so stoked to be on stage that he won’t do anything. It’s not like he’s trying to use this opportunity as a means to a greater end.
I imagine it’s also good for the headlining band. Less people to worry about, less potential bad press if the opening band decides to get rowdy and imitate Led Zeppelin and the winning gamer will probably meet the band and they’ll gush about how they’re the best band in the world. A nightly stroking of the ego is not a bad thing.
Unfortunately, even if it is good for the guy on stage, the band and the tour manager, it’s not that great for everyone else.
Because who wants to sit/stand there and watch a guy play a plastic guitar pushing buttons, pretending to play a song? ESPECIALLY if the tickets cost a good amount. If I pay fifty bucks to see Metallica, I don’t care what crappy band I have to get through to see the headliner, it had better be a band, right? I have no interest in seeing a 4X multiplier used on a solo to “When You Were Young” when I could be watching a lesser-known band rock out and win more fans for future tours of their own.
Oh, unless the alternative is Tomahawk. I would rather see just about anything else than that band. I would rather watch grass grow for two hours then be forced to endure that torture again.
-Pappy
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Oddball Or Overlooked Jem?
A few years ago I got to play a friend's guitar - a rather strange beast, the Yamaha SVG800. I immediately liked it's retro '60 Mosrite vibe and Samurai sword headstock. It had a unique ball bearing vibrato unit, dual Alnico V single coil pickups - like P90s but not, alder body, maple neck, 22 frets and a floating rosewood fingerboard. The neck is comfortable, even if it seemed a bit narrow at the nut. The fit and finish were excellent. Though I haven't played much surf and probably never will, I wanted one and I vowed when I could round up the cash, I would get one.
I guess I've said that about a bunch of guitars.
As it turned out, the guitar gods were not going to be kind to me in this case. First, I found out that Yamaha discontinued the guitar in the US. I then discovered I wasn't the only one who appreciated this guitar - they are apparently highly prized by players who play Surf music. On the rare occasion they appeared on EBay, I was quickly outbid by the more well heeled enthusiasts. I eventually gave up and I had almost forgotten about the guitar when I saw one pop up on Craigslist, a website I rarely even look at. I emailed my SVG owning friend, confirmed some details, and called up the seller. Well, it took a few weeks of price negotiations, missed appointments and checkbook shenanigans, but the deal got done. Was it worth it? As good as I remembered? Oh yes, indeed it is. As it turns out, it sounds great for Surf, but equally as good for Rock, Blues, even Country - even if the cowboy hat/big buckle crowd scratch their heads when they see it.
Some people say when you quit looking for love, it finds you. I don't know if thats true, but this guitar found me - and I'm pretty happy about it. It's an under-appreciated gem!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Static
Greetings, all!
This year has been a pretty good year for the 5th Fret as far as blog counts go. I tried to keep it on a fairly good schedule of Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (just like Penny Arcade if you're into Internet-based comic strips about video games), and hopefully that will continue but there's a good possibility that there may be a bit of delay between posts at times. I'm currently... unavailable to most people.
But no matter! I will try to keep on writing and posting and hopefully there will be days where I can write more than one blog to schedule for future publication so there will be as little turbulence on your end. I'll try my best, I just wanted to let you know that if there are delays (last time there was QUITE a delay) you know why and you can rest assured that I haven't quit and once I come back it will be business as usual!
Thanks for your time and your reading. Be sure to check back often to see any new updates. Have a great day!
-Pappy
This year has been a pretty good year for the 5th Fret as far as blog counts go. I tried to keep it on a fairly good schedule of Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (just like Penny Arcade if you're into Internet-based comic strips about video games), and hopefully that will continue but there's a good possibility that there may be a bit of delay between posts at times. I'm currently... unavailable to most people.
But no matter! I will try to keep on writing and posting and hopefully there will be days where I can write more than one blog to schedule for future publication so there will be as little turbulence on your end. I'll try my best, I just wanted to let you know that if there are delays (last time there was QUITE a delay) you know why and you can rest assured that I haven't quit and once I come back it will be business as usual!
Thanks for your time and your reading. Be sure to check back often to see any new updates. Have a great day!
-Pappy
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
NOFX's Coaster
Imagine if you will a greatest hits album that contained no previously heard material. Not so much a greatest hits in a "popular song" kind of way, but a greatest hits that nails styles and attitudes displayed throughout the years that the band has been around. The best of everything you've ever seen from them all rolled into an audio ball and flattened to an audible disc.
That is NOFX's Coaster.
What a great album. When I think NOFX I think of funny songs, songs about sex and drugs and punks and hippies and songs about radical change and dissatisfaction with the government but not in an overly hostile way, but more in a "if you could see yourself you would laugh and shake your head with shame at how stupid you're acting" kind of way. I think about songs with the oddest choice of instruments and some of the most amazing guitar work known to the punk world and if guitar players from other genres would give NOFX a proper chance they would be known as fantastic guitar players regardless of genre. I think of songs from left field, so weird they're awesome.
And every one of them, every style, point of view and topic are covered on this album in a way that feels like this is the best they've ever done and not in any way a re-hashing or brushed off B-side kind of way.
I was at first thrown off by rumors that this more of a call back to early punk rock, punk that I'm not such a huge fan of so it took me a while to buy it, but I'm so glad I did. I also think this guitar features more lead guitar work than any of their previous albums too. It's flipping amazing what they can do guitar-wise.
NOFX is an important band to me in general. As a young teen I was on a "metal only" musical diet and it wasn't a hatred of other genres that made me not pay attention, it was just that they didn't get my blood pumping like metal did. Then I heard NOFX and it opened up all sorts of doors. Crazy songs, amazing tone, there was metal in there somewhere, and enough spotlight on the guitarists that you wouldn't feel bad if you were in a similar punk band. No one can say these guys play three chords fast and that's all.
I understand that punk is not every one's passion or favorite music, or even something that they particularly enjoy at all BUT you should check this album out as soon as you can. It's not so much the punk that I want you to hear but the things that are IN the punk, the amazing guitar solos, the VERY jazz song "I am an alcoholic," the almost painfully honest "My Orphan Year," and for kicks "Eddie, Bruce and Paul," which is basically a history of Iron Maiden.
There are a couple of songs that aren't as strong as most of the album but so much of the album is strong - phenomenally strong - that it's more than worth it to buy the whole album. Almost every song has amazing structure with music that is great and not just in punk terms, in music terms in general.
-Pappy
That is NOFX's Coaster.
What a great album. When I think NOFX I think of funny songs, songs about sex and drugs and punks and hippies and songs about radical change and dissatisfaction with the government but not in an overly hostile way, but more in a "if you could see yourself you would laugh and shake your head with shame at how stupid you're acting" kind of way. I think about songs with the oddest choice of instruments and some of the most amazing guitar work known to the punk world and if guitar players from other genres would give NOFX a proper chance they would be known as fantastic guitar players regardless of genre. I think of songs from left field, so weird they're awesome.
And every one of them, every style, point of view and topic are covered on this album in a way that feels like this is the best they've ever done and not in any way a re-hashing or brushed off B-side kind of way.
I was at first thrown off by rumors that this more of a call back to early punk rock, punk that I'm not such a huge fan of so it took me a while to buy it, but I'm so glad I did. I also think this guitar features more lead guitar work than any of their previous albums too. It's flipping amazing what they can do guitar-wise.
NOFX is an important band to me in general. As a young teen I was on a "metal only" musical diet and it wasn't a hatred of other genres that made me not pay attention, it was just that they didn't get my blood pumping like metal did. Then I heard NOFX and it opened up all sorts of doors. Crazy songs, amazing tone, there was metal in there somewhere, and enough spotlight on the guitarists that you wouldn't feel bad if you were in a similar punk band. No one can say these guys play three chords fast and that's all.
I understand that punk is not every one's passion or favorite music, or even something that they particularly enjoy at all BUT you should check this album out as soon as you can. It's not so much the punk that I want you to hear but the things that are IN the punk, the amazing guitar solos, the VERY jazz song "I am an alcoholic," the almost painfully honest "My Orphan Year," and for kicks "Eddie, Bruce and Paul," which is basically a history of Iron Maiden.
There are a couple of songs that aren't as strong as most of the album but so much of the album is strong - phenomenally strong - that it's more than worth it to buy the whole album. Almost every song has amazing structure with music that is great and not just in punk terms, in music terms in general.
-Pappy
Monday, February 8, 2010
Top 5: Rock Singers
While not GUITAR related, rock singers deserved to be mentioned occasionally, even on sites like this. Some guitarists might say who needs them when you have wicked good chops like John 5, but singers (for the most part) are what keep the non-guitar playing masses paying attention. It’s hard to listen to instrumental music if you’re not into it and how many non-guitarists are going to seek out guitar music? But if a singer’s singing and breaks for a guitar solo, there’s a better chance that the listener will pay attention to it, and maybe even want to pick up the guitar themselves. I know it wasn’t instrumental music that made ME want to play. It was bands like The Living End, Metallica and Korn.
And so with that in mind I bring you my top five lists of rock singers. Enjoy.
1) Corey Taylor
Known for fronting the masked band Slipknot and churning out angry, hopeless, borderline psychotic and apocalyptic vocals, Corey Taylor actually has a great grip on melody and a much wider range to his voice than you would imagine. He can scream of course and he can growl, but he can also sing beautifully and he does it all with obvious emotion. He also sheds his mask and sings for the just as rocking but not nearly as threatening band Stone Sour.
If you’d like to check out Taylor’s range and conviction, check out the albums Come What(ever) May by Stone Sour and Vol 3: The Subliminal Verses by Slipknot. Both are great albums but the Slipknot one is quite a bit heavier.
2) Howard Jones
Much like Corey Taylor, Howard Jones has an incredible range and Killswitch Engage’s album As Daylight Dies showcases it well. It’s always great when a singer perfectly compliments a band and this is one of those times. Too often do you hear a really great band play and love the music only to have a singer come in and ruin the experience because for some reason, known or unknown, it just doesn’t jive with you.
Call it a novelty if you will, but what got me interested in Killswitch Engage was the fact that they covered “Holy Diver” on the album and, while I’m not the world’s biggest fan of classic metal, I really like that particular song and here it is, picked up, brushed off and spruced up in a more modern, more heavy, but not ridiculously so new outfit. It sounds great and the video is hilarious.
Every time I travel I always go to the libraries and see what music they have and check out new stuff. Sometimes there are big finds and sometimes not but this time I found Killswitch Engage and it’s a BIG find to me. I love it. I highly recommend checking out the album As Daylight Dies, especially the special edition one that includes videos because it’s a sweet album.
3) Maynard James Keenan
Let’s talk about Tool for a second. Tool is one of my favorite bands. They’ve always interested me and while I don’t agree with many of their philosophies, like setting up fake amps or not answering gear questions with any amount of honesty, you can’t argue with their tones or their songs. It’s like they have their own sub-genre and when any band tries to take even a little bit of it, it’s immediately obvious. And just as Adam Jones has a very unique tone and playing style, so too does Maynard James Keenan who sings for the band. Crafting vocal landscapes with whispers, screams, singing, interesting melodies, barely audible vocal tracks buried under music and only audible with media manipulation software, he owns the microphone and there’s no better singer in the world that fits so well with such a unique band as Tool.
It’s a pretty daunting task trying to describe Keenan so I’d really like to let his music do the explaining for me. If you haven’t heard Tool, check out the massively popular album Aenima. AND check out (if you can find it) the live tracks from the EP Salival. It’s fun to juxtapose studio work and live work and see that even in the live setting, away from the technical benefits of the studio, Keenan STILL owns the microphone.
4) Jacoby Shaddix
Back when nu-metal was really reaching its apex a LOT of bands were coming out that were shedding or omitting guitar solos, embracing their issues from their childhoods and moping and whining (hey, everyone needs to do it sometimes so it’s ok) and Papa Roach was one of those bands BUT Papa Roach drew just as much inspiration from punk bands as their did from seven string slinging detuned. Low tempo nu-metal brethren and it’s probably because of this that the band is still around, and still going strong. You can actually hear them change little by little in the first two albums, Infest and LoveHateTragedy but you can hear a radical difference on the album Getting Away With Murder when singer Jacoby Shaddix raps very little if at all instead focusing on a hard-edged attack that compliments the album’s material in a magical way common to this top five list. Some songs aren’t the best but for the most part the album is all killer and no filler.
He doesn’t SING that much, but with the very “rock” material that is neither heavy metal nor punk, but just distorted goodness, it doesn’t matter. It’s a great album and Jacoby’s a great singer.
5) Billy Idol
Look, right away I’m going to address the fact that I’m reaching further back in the past than the other four members of this list with Billy Idol and say “I know.”
But the important thing about Billy Idol is that you don’t even need to look at him – you can hear the sneer and the attitude through vocal tracks alone and so many of his songs make you feel genuinely excited. More than just fist pumping anthems, songs like Rebel Yell make you feel that spark that you felt the first time you listened to rock and it’s so hard for anyone else to pull off that same kind of audible energy that he’s practically in a class by himself.
For the record though, I was torn between Idol and Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden and while I love Maiden, most of their material doesn’t make me want to get up and do something like Idol’s does. That’s why Billy Idol rounds out this list.
_____________________________
Hope you enjoyed this installment everyone. It’s inevitable that more will be on the way and I hope they’re just as entertaining for you to read as they are for me to write!
-Pappy
And so with that in mind I bring you my top five lists of rock singers. Enjoy.
1) Corey Taylor
Known for fronting the masked band Slipknot and churning out angry, hopeless, borderline psychotic and apocalyptic vocals, Corey Taylor actually has a great grip on melody and a much wider range to his voice than you would imagine. He can scream of course and he can growl, but he can also sing beautifully and he does it all with obvious emotion. He also sheds his mask and sings for the just as rocking but not nearly as threatening band Stone Sour.
If you’d like to check out Taylor’s range and conviction, check out the albums Come What(ever) May by Stone Sour and Vol 3: The Subliminal Verses by Slipknot. Both are great albums but the Slipknot one is quite a bit heavier.
2) Howard Jones
Much like Corey Taylor, Howard Jones has an incredible range and Killswitch Engage’s album As Daylight Dies showcases it well. It’s always great when a singer perfectly compliments a band and this is one of those times. Too often do you hear a really great band play and love the music only to have a singer come in and ruin the experience because for some reason, known or unknown, it just doesn’t jive with you.
Call it a novelty if you will, but what got me interested in Killswitch Engage was the fact that they covered “Holy Diver” on the album and, while I’m not the world’s biggest fan of classic metal, I really like that particular song and here it is, picked up, brushed off and spruced up in a more modern, more heavy, but not ridiculously so new outfit. It sounds great and the video is hilarious.
Every time I travel I always go to the libraries and see what music they have and check out new stuff. Sometimes there are big finds and sometimes not but this time I found Killswitch Engage and it’s a BIG find to me. I love it. I highly recommend checking out the album As Daylight Dies, especially the special edition one that includes videos because it’s a sweet album.
3) Maynard James Keenan
Let’s talk about Tool for a second. Tool is one of my favorite bands. They’ve always interested me and while I don’t agree with many of their philosophies, like setting up fake amps or not answering gear questions with any amount of honesty, you can’t argue with their tones or their songs. It’s like they have their own sub-genre and when any band tries to take even a little bit of it, it’s immediately obvious. And just as Adam Jones has a very unique tone and playing style, so too does Maynard James Keenan who sings for the band. Crafting vocal landscapes with whispers, screams, singing, interesting melodies, barely audible vocal tracks buried under music and only audible with media manipulation software, he owns the microphone and there’s no better singer in the world that fits so well with such a unique band as Tool.
It’s a pretty daunting task trying to describe Keenan so I’d really like to let his music do the explaining for me. If you haven’t heard Tool, check out the massively popular album Aenima. AND check out (if you can find it) the live tracks from the EP Salival. It’s fun to juxtapose studio work and live work and see that even in the live setting, away from the technical benefits of the studio, Keenan STILL owns the microphone.
4) Jacoby Shaddix
Back when nu-metal was really reaching its apex a LOT of bands were coming out that were shedding or omitting guitar solos, embracing their issues from their childhoods and moping and whining (hey, everyone needs to do it sometimes so it’s ok) and Papa Roach was one of those bands BUT Papa Roach drew just as much inspiration from punk bands as their did from seven string slinging detuned. Low tempo nu-metal brethren and it’s probably because of this that the band is still around, and still going strong. You can actually hear them change little by little in the first two albums, Infest and LoveHateTragedy but you can hear a radical difference on the album Getting Away With Murder when singer Jacoby Shaddix raps very little if at all instead focusing on a hard-edged attack that compliments the album’s material in a magical way common to this top five list. Some songs aren’t the best but for the most part the album is all killer and no filler.
He doesn’t SING that much, but with the very “rock” material that is neither heavy metal nor punk, but just distorted goodness, it doesn’t matter. It’s a great album and Jacoby’s a great singer.
5) Billy Idol
Look, right away I’m going to address the fact that I’m reaching further back in the past than the other four members of this list with Billy Idol and say “I know.”
But the important thing about Billy Idol is that you don’t even need to look at him – you can hear the sneer and the attitude through vocal tracks alone and so many of his songs make you feel genuinely excited. More than just fist pumping anthems, songs like Rebel Yell make you feel that spark that you felt the first time you listened to rock and it’s so hard for anyone else to pull off that same kind of audible energy that he’s practically in a class by himself.
For the record though, I was torn between Idol and Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden and while I love Maiden, most of their material doesn’t make me want to get up and do something like Idol’s does. That’s why Billy Idol rounds out this list.
_____________________________
Hope you enjoyed this installment everyone. It’s inevitable that more will be on the way and I hope they’re just as entertaining for you to read as they are for me to write!
-Pappy
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