Contemplating guitar suicide

[Homebrew1709]

I know there's been a few similar posts about this lately but im gonna whine about my own problem now lol. I wouldn't say that im thinking about quitting guitar, but im really starting to question my abilities. I may just be in a guitar rut, but i feel like i can't play the stuff that i want to be able to play (getting into shredding i.e. shadows fall, ESPECIALLY Children of Bodom). I started playing when i was 12 or 13 and took lessons for the first 2 years i think. But when i was that age, i didn't really understand the importance of practicing and repetition. Now thats not to say that i didnt learn anything or that i suck now cuz that wouldnt be true. Now I'm 20 and in the thick of my college years trying to get that degree. And being in the engineering program at my school, my workload isn't getting any smaller (anyone here a physics stud?).

I still play guitar pretty much everyday, but not really "practicing", more just jamming along with my iTunes. Sometimes i wonder if my small/thin hands (i feel like my pinkie is damn near useless) are a physical limitation for what I wanna play, and i'm sure most of you will say "no" to that...maybe a smaller neck would help? Anyways, i REALLY dont want to stop playing. I've been thinking about getting lessons again to help get me back on track and force me to learn. Maybe i should just stop listening to metal lol. That Alexi Laiho gets me so frustrated...Whew, im done. Let the advice roll in...

[PonyOne]

well keep in mind that all the guys you hear shredding at 55,000bpm or whatever make a living out of playin gguitar and practice insane hours every day... literally every part of their day is centered around their guitars.

you're in school right now (my g/f is an architicture major, i know how little time you have!) and don't have that option. i'd love to be able to sweep/tap/shred/etc as well as all those guys but i also have a 60 hour work week, and a g/f, and numerous friends, and i also split my time between this and other forms of artwork (drawing, electronic music).

everyone is going to progress at their own rate, and if you kick yourself over not being able to do something it's not going to do you any good. when i could barely attatch a single note on the fretboard to the actual note that it was, i printed out a fretboard chart and made a dozen copies, and at work the next couple days, i filled in every one by memory, and then i filled up a bunch of notebook pages, and every night when i got home i'd play a lick by one of my favorite bands and then i'd write it out as the correct notes. if i'd just been like "okay dude, what is this? wrong. what'i this? WRONG. what's THIS?" i would never have learned and just felt stupid.

in terms of drawing i just got out of a nearly 2-year old creative block about a week ago. i know it sounds retarded, but, i live a few blocks from venice beach, and i just went there with a brand new sketchbook and just sat by the water for about three hours, thinking, writing down every thought i could. sometimes, even if it seems like it's stupid or unnecessary, it helps to just force yourself to confront what it is that you're doing wrong. i've been drawing again, and it feels great.

learn to play the riffs/solos at a comfortable speed and as you get confident playing them, gradually speed up. also, choose something that feels natural to you, and play it, gradually increasing speed. also, try economy picking, if you don't already use it... it can help on some of those really fast licks. and again, remember... there's more to life than being able to play as fast as ___________. like, expressing how you feel. if you're having a hard time expressing how you feel, figure out why, and take the steps necessary to get there.

[Homebrew1709]

Thanks for the advice. I mean, i realize that most of my favorite guitarist are way older than i am and it is their means of making a living. And i know HOW to practice i.e. gradually playing licks faster, playing with a metronome. But i feel like i don't have the patience with all these other things going on in my life right now. I don't really think I'd ever just stop playing all together because music is my passion and i've spent the past 8 years not only playing guitar, but learning about the mechanical aspects of guitars as well as amps and a bit of recording. I want to get lessons again or at least find someone that i can sit down with face to face and kinda mentor me in the styles I want to play. Whatever ends up happening, im not gonna dwell on it or beat myself up over it, but i'd like to find some kind of balance between playing, progressing, and the rest of my life.

[iamthe_eggman]

Wow... battle of the long-winded post champions!


Sorry I didn't contribute anything more significant to this discussion.

[Hootayah]

Be the ball Billy!
BE THE BALL!!!

[VintageReaper]

... they just had to bring balls into this discussion...

[Paul_20]

if you want to be really good you have to pratice. I read jimmy page's biography and it said that he practiced day and night then he took lessons on theroy so you really gotta practice alot , i thought i might take lessons again :)

[Leedogg]

Didn't Steve Vai publish a 20 hour practice schedule in a magazine one time?

[Cody_King]

It was a 30 hour workout, split into 2 days

[Leedogg]

I knew it was something like that. Hot damn! 30 hours? Do you happen to have a link to it?

[VintageReaper]

No sleeping or eating involved right? Haha, is it a diet too? :P

[Leedogg]

From what I've been able to gather it's a 30 hour workout over three days. I'm pretty sure it's from the April 2004 issue of Guitar World but I want to confirm this first before I order the back issue. Is it the one with Jimmy Page and Joe Perry on the cover? I have 10 hours a day to dedicate to guitar so I'd love to get that workout. I've found nothing by googling :(

[VintageReaper]

I'm pretty sure I spend about 4 to 6 hours on guitar a day as it is, but I'd still love to see the article if anybody comes up with anything...