GT Solo Assignment: October '07

[Julian Vickers]

Hi there

Here is the backing track for the solo assignment for October :) You can get it from my purevolume site here:

Julian's purevolume site (http://www.purevolume.com/julianvickers)

Here are the chords for the song:

Verse:

Em11 F#m11/E

Chorus:

Gmaj9#11 A7sus Bm11 A7sus

The scale that works over the whole song is the E dorian minor scale (from the D major scale)

I've also left it pretty open for you guys to add your own rhythm guitar track :) The chords I used in the piano are the quartal voicings found in 'So What' by Miles Davis.

[light487]

I immediately thought of that Joe Satriani song " Cryin' ".. I can easily imagine hearing a beach there with seagulls and stuff as additional ambience to the track. I found my left hand going for the F# Phrygian rather than the E Dorian.. may be I am still stuck in the B Phrygian mindset that I was in for the September Solo.. I did try the E Dorian and it works too. Anyway.. like the first time I listened to the September Solo, I have no actual idea what I am going to do yet. :)

[Julian Vickers]

I immediately thought of that Joe Satriani song " Cryin' ".. I can easily imagine hearing a beach there with seagulls and stuff as additional ambience to the track. I found my left hand going for the F# Phrygian rather than the E Dorian.. may be I am still stuck in the B Phrygian mindset that I was in for the September Solo.. I did try the E Dorian and it works too. Anyway.. like the first time I listened to the September Solo, I have no actual idea what I am going to do yet. :)

The F# Phrygian has the same notes as the E dorian. The difference is just a mindset (and what you percieve to be the root) :)

If you want to hear the tune that I basically ripped off to make the BT, just listen to 'Marching Out' by Yngwie Malmsteen. It should give you some solo ideas too (maybe)

[Julian Vickers]

Anyone interested this month? :rolleyes:

[light487]

I am! :) I'm just trying to work out what to do with it.. I think those exotic chords have thrown me.. Gmaj9#11.. eh? :P lol... F#m11/E... eh? :P Also trying to find some thing to spice up the backing track a little as well.. like those sound effects I was talking about.. I could use thunder/lightning effect to give the track a doom/gloom feel to it.. or I could have a nice ocean sound with birds and waves crashing on a beach to make it lighter..

Ok I've been analysing those chords.. that Gmaj9#11.. is that basically a GMaj triad combined with a F#m triad?

[seazer]

Hi guys,
As he dives in busting through the ice encrusted surface,he resurfaces, turns and screams come on the waters beautiful.

Good job Julian very cruisey piece this month, me likes.I've had this since Sunday and I aint gonna change it . Here she be_ :D

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=724014

[Superhuman]

In work at the moment but looking forward to listening to your piece!

[Julian Vickers]

I am! :) I'm just trying to work out what to do with it.. I think those exotic chords have thrown me.. Gmaj9#11.. eh? :P lol... F#m11/E... eh? :P Also trying to find some thing to spice up the backing track a little as well.. like those sound effects I was talking about.. I could use thunder/lightning effect to give the track a doom/gloom feel to it.. or I could have a nice ocean sound with birds and waves crashing on a beach to make it lighter..

Ok I've been analysing those chords.. that Gmaj9#11.. is that basically a GMaj triad combined with a F#m triad?

The complex chords shouldn't have to throw you. The Gmaj9#11 is essentially just an extention of the 4th chord in the key of D. Just treat it as a G in the key of D. The F#m11/E is still basically just part of the E dorian scale and the Em7 chord in general, just with emphasis on different notes. If you just play the E dorian over it, you'll sound just fine :)

[dethm3tal]

Okay guys, I got my track done;

I actually sat down and thought this one through; After playing it for about a week or so I recorded it at my grandpa's house in his home studio. I think that that helped my tone a lot more than my laptop mic would...

Seazer: I checked out your track just now; I liked it quite a bit, you layered the effects really nicely and you played it through pretty well. I thought it was an improvement over last month's track where you were sorta playing repetitively. Overall nice job Seazer.

The song can be found at these two places:

http://www.myspace.com/mkylmanmusic
http://mkylman.dmusic.com/

The song is called October, I hope you enjoy it!

MKylman

[z0s0_jp]

nice track Julian--- here is mine, flaw free :rolleyes: had a rough start..
trying my Prophesy out Octoberfest (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=663376)

[dethm3tal]

Zoso: I see what you meant about a rough start; You really fixed it though, I really liked your rhythm parts over the chorus, they were great! Your playing was really nice too...You really used a lot of the effects to your advantage, I haven't really got any effects though...Nice backwards guitar parts, those were sofa king sweet, I'm not going to lie. Some of your playing was rough in terms of bends but the outro was BEAUTIFUL; Overall I really loved how you built the whole track...*sigh* I've been outdone, crushed...and so soon -_-

MKylman

http://www.myspace.com/mkylmamusic
http://mkylman.dmusic.com

EDIT: What is your setup dude? how long have you played?

[z0s0_jp]

thank you Deth...may I call you Deth?? you had some very nice runs in your take...yea...I am sloppy as hell, bad timing and note bending flubs :o I just got this effects processor so I went nuts with it...I am getting lessons finally though :D ...
I am playing a 1976 Les Paul Deluxe through a Rocktron Prophesy I....my amp, not used here, is a Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier...I have been playing for 20 years but not seriously til the last 4 years..but just now taking lessons<<< they are important---time is not important, it is what you do with it that is...I learned that the hard way with a lotta wasted days and nights...and I mean wasted in more ways than one :(

[dethm3tal]

Wow 20 years ^_^

I just got an electric 2.5 years ago ^_^ I've got an Ibanez RG2E-X2 guitar, though in the recording I was using my grandfather's 1960/70 something Guild and a Roland Microcube; We used some sort of condenser mic on the amp and ran it through various compressors and whatnot -_- I just played and I watched him do all the stuff in Cubase. It was a new experience for me, I'm used to recording into my laptop mic through audacity, nothing fancy like his setup ^_^

But yeah I've played electric for two and a half years now, I'm self taught; I know like 3 scales and just play from the root note...I don't really know a whole lot of theory so whenever Julian starts talking about modes and stuff I just get lost ^_^

I didn't think that your playing was sloppy, I mean yeah you goofed up one bend and you had a rocky start, but so what? You had a frickin' wonderful recording, practically took a crap on mine ^_^

Mkylman

P.S. Yes you can call me Deth ^_^

[z0s0_jp]

Guilds are sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet! that is one cool Grandpa you got there :D
I play by ear as well...have no idea what I am doing...and it is getting old...thus the lessons :rolleyes: oh I used Tracktion software and a Stealth Plug from the Prophesy to the 'puter

[dethm3tal]

I know, he kicks ass! He has like 2 really nice Martins and a Larrivee which he just recently bought; He's like 53 or something; We go over to his house every week or so; did I mention I'm 16? ^_^ But yeah...I hope we get to see some more tracks this month! No one seems to really have looked at this month's that much; Light was talking about it but he's getting a little too sucked up in the theory I think :rolleyes:

His Guild initially had a sunburst finish; He repainted it black...he has regretted that since he ever showed me the guitar ^_^ He also switched the pickup and the tuner knob thingys; The pickup is "vintage" and the guitar is "classic" :confused:

MKylman

[seazer]

I have listened to tracks so far -deth that was pretty good I thought. I listened a few times only crit is the first note for chorus part it starts very off to my ear maybe thats what you wanted then cool.the other notes were memorable that is the chousus I could hum but first note keeps throwing me.overall playing seemed a lot tighter and in the groove this month. I can hear that you play an Ibanez from your tone in the song I used to play a ibanez 770 wizard neck I did'nt relize what a comfort they were till I been playing modern C strat neck I have really had to slow down and adapt different style with this axe.reminder to self.. must get another Rg.
zoso you got me drooling name dropping all that gear you must be having some fun with it.Your track was interesting enough to keep me wanting to hear more I love those effects your can hear the hardware coming through. I agree with deth The rhythm although was a 2 chord chug added something cool to the vibe and then in comes the rocktron it sounds massive.nice stuff overall for me.

[dethm3tal]

Yeah the Wizard neck is so comfortable; it seems to play like my grandpa's Guild, which was what I was recording with; A lot of the tone came from the Roland MicroCube I was using and the condenser mic; I was going to use the Ibanez, however I really do notice a lot of tonal similarities between the two...

I'm sort of anxious to hear what you have to bring to the table seazer.

And I second the drooling over z0s0's gear ^_^

MKylman

[seazer]

sorry deth :o I feel like a total Tone idiot (dont quot me) its there plainly in second line what you used on the track .I googled the ibanez rg2ex2 when I read it and proberbly miss understood you using your grand dads guild ,even though it does sound very rg ish .Yer you are lucky to have someone so close into the guitar scene with you,and the guitar is one thing that will bring down all age barriers.I always wondered if I'd be still into guitar when older for now its yes but I took to long away from the instrument and its good to be playing again though.

[light487]

Hey!

So I'd almost given up on this month's solo.. 14 days in and I have only just got a groove going.. I've got 2 main themes happening at the moment but everything could easily change by the end.. I'm just happy to have finally found my own groove amongst the song. I even tried getting out my acoustic to play a completely different rhythm section over the top that is in the key of A Major. It works great but I am just using that as a way to hear the groove for myself..

Now I can jam.. and in 2 weeks, hopefully I will have something worthy of uploading.

[equator]

Hi guys,
Here is my entry for this month. The whole thing is one take, not equalized yet, and contains some minor mistakes; but I don’t think I’m gonna have the time this month to revisited it. :(


equator (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=444393)


EDIT: I had some time to revisit my take today. I actually re-recorded the entire guitar track, and I am happy with the results so far.
What do you guys think of it?


.

[dethm3tal]

Equator, I am listening to your track right now; I felt that the first note was a bit rough but then it picked up pretty nice. The only complaint I have is that you seemed to be playing a little too fast for this track

I can't really explain, your part was good but it just didn't seem to fit for me. I hope you don't misunderstand me. I think you could try eq'ing it a little more, or you could try to do a more melodic take, but I don't really know; Overall I liked your track, solid playing, good licks, but it just doesn't fit for me ^_^

MKylman

[equator]

Thanks for listening and commenting man.
I don’t understand what you mean when you say… the first note was a bit rough…I just played a slide from D to E, and both notes are part of E dorian.
I don’t think I was playing too fast for that track, many players do just that, sometimes when the backing is a little slow, you can contrast it with a few moderately fast lines. That is what I went for.
Don’t worry, I didn’t misunderstand you, I appreciate your input and I take it as a constructive criticism. :)
Regarding the EQ: I did apply equalization to my take and I can assure you that the wave form registers a balanced mix of frequencies ranging from 70 Hz - 14K.
Anyway, I am not trying to defend my playing, I participate in the monthly assignments just for the fun of it and to gain experience and a little of practice.
Thanks again bro. :)

[light487]

A much more improved solo there, equator.. it still sounds a little dissonant/off-key though.. not sure why.. what scale are you using?

[equator]

I played the E dorian throughout the whole thing.

Edit: Sorry about the short post. (it was supper time, you know)
Now I am sitting here, enjoying a glass of Irish Cream and about to listen to all the solos submitted so far and I’ll be commenting on your takes tomorrow.
Cheers.

Hey light487. How is your solo coming along?

[light487]

I still have over a week!! :) lol.. looks like I need the rest of the week to finish this.. it's in its very early sketching-out point.. so I am starting to think that the solo I will be submitting this month is going to suck compared to last month.. although I have just completely changed my angle of attack.. Taking on board criticisms from last month about my tone etc.. So now I have the following setup:

- My strat with the active EMG pickups, playing using mainly the middle pickup with my guitar expander unit on full and the presence control on about 75%..
- ..plugged into my Jim Dunlop Cry Baby wah pedal..
- ..plugged into my PC via StealPlug..
- ..modelling and effects handled by Amplitube 2.0
- ..recording/sequencing with Tracktion.

So yeh.. completely different tone now.. going for more of a bluesy feel with, hopefully, some wrong notes that I can make sound right.. hehe.. playing with fire.. :)

[seazer]

Listened to your take today Equator,I liked your track good use of the wawa the fast Trilling sounded ok was fast but I think in context it did fit.With deths comment on the first note it sounds weird I think because the tune starts on a different beat you obviously shortened it to a 1min which is cool.but the begginng sounds a little off due to beat difference in beginning.The overall mix sounds a bit over done,just not enough air in there compared to your other mixes .Good job if you are happy with it,good for you. ;) and for Light good to hear you had a break through with your tapping last month,there far and few between enjoy .

[Superhuman]

No chance to do a track this month, got a bout of tinnitus from mixing with headphones so I've been advised to ease off listening to music for a while. That said, I'm checking out the tracks to date - at low volume :(

Hope no one minds if I critique the tracks so far (especially as I am not submitting this month)...

Equator: I see you have another new girlfriend this month ;)
Nice take, it started out with a big change in tone due to the wah - sounds nice, pretty extreme tone shaping but then again , I sense you are going for a Vai influence here. I don't think you played out of key at all, right note selection throughout and I liked the pace. However, I do think you may have a tuning problem with one of your strings, I've noticed this before on your tracks, I'm sure you tune up before takes so it could be an intonation problem (in tune off an open string or 5th harmonic but out on higher frets). Re the solo, my favourite part is the second section, it had a nice flow and direction. The dissonant sound others refered to could be the intonation of one (or more) strings - sounded slightly sharp on some notes but perfect on others that's why aI'm thinking perhaps just one string.

Seazer: great take, had a touch of Gambale meets Gilmore to it in terms of structure. You definitely put some thought into this track - nice mix of tones and melodies. Great hook sections too. This track is leagues ahead of your previous months submission - good to see you planning the piece out as opposed to jamming a load of scales. Works very well, good job!

Deathmetal: Nice runs at the opening section and a good transityion to the more simple mid section. Slight tuning issue on either the low A or E string - either slightly sharp or you put a bit too much pressure on the fretted note pulling it slightly out of tune. Very minor complaint though - my only crit. Again, this track bears no resemblance to last months, a great improvement - another track with some nice thought put ino the structure. Tone works well as dry as it is, good job man.

ZoSo: Hope you like the Prophesy - I use mine now exclusively - my Mesa rig is gathering dust at the moment (will come back to her again some day no doubt!). Some nice experimental tones in there, in particular the volume swell section, also loved the Van Halen style rhythm chops you introduced - very nice! As you said the opening section had a few bum nots but the second section was really great - everything moves up a notch once you introduce the rhythm section and start experimenting with tones. Nice one ;)

[Spedzar]

Well seeing as though it's my birthday on Monday I thought I'd lose my virginity with a post for the October track. Hmmmm this could become addictive... With the exception of the clean tone (1st take) I wiped a few solos before I found something that was OK in the distorted section - I tend not to structure things and rather just hear and play. OK it's a bit sloppy but I'm kinda happy with it and it's growing on me. That was a great backing track. Took me back to the vibe of Jeff Beck's track (not sure of the name - something like "Because we've ended as lovers"). Anyway this part of the forum is really cool - I'll get around to listening to everyone's stuff and commenting soon. Until then, here's my 1st October and my 1st contribution to this thread:


October 07 (http://www.myspace.com/riffvanwinkel)





Ahh it seems I found myself sitting at this desk a while longer than originally anticipated (curiosity got the better of me) so here are my comments... Apologies for the lack of technical - I wouldn't know Dorian from Phrygian from your aunty Mavis's steak and kidney pie but here's my "two bob's worth" (by the way that's 20c in Australia)...

Seazer:
Yeah cool, nice with different sections and different styles. Very tasteful indeed. My favourite so far with emphasis on your compositional skills...

Dethm3tal
Not bad playing, but a change of tone on occasion would help. You sound like you might prefer more chugging type stuff to me with that tone but hey that’s cool man. Keep cranking it out!

ZOsO:
Nice! Inventive rhythm section and harmonizer solos in this track. Very creative with this one. Well done!!!

Equator:
Well you are obviously a riffologist - let’s make no mistake about that. But you might benefit from taking a more “dynamic” approach. Nevertheless I was hooked from start to finish - when I listened to your October it seemed to be over before it had began - not sure if I was waiting for something to happen or if you are a genius. Great playing and nice wah control.

[jgpeeples]

Hey guy's. This is my first submission, so go easy. I started learning hoe to play lead only three weeks ago. Anyhow, let me know what you think. I just through this together in about 10 minutes. I know there are some missed notes. However, I just wanted to go ahead and post it!

http://www.purevolume.com/jgpeeples

Joe-Gray Peeples

[equator]

I remember Superhuman saying that it would be cool if we'd give comments, constructive criticism and even have a scoring system to “judge” the entries submitted by the participating members, so I’ll be giving some feedback taking into consideration the following criteria:
- Composition. (arrangement, harmonization, phrasing, direction, etc.)
- Performance.
- Technique.
- Tone.
- Recording and Mixing.
The idea is to give specific and constructive criticism; so we can benefit from it and improve as guitarists and musicians.

Seazer.
- Composition. (Good). Great phrasing, timing and excellent structure of the solo.
- Performance. (Good). You played with conviction and expressiveness.
- Technique. (Good). Just the right touch of Articulations.
- Tone. (Good). The changes of tone kept the solo interesting and was pleasant to the ear.
- Recording and Mixing. (Good) A very well balanced mix and good sound quality.

Deathm3tal.
- Composition. (Good) The solo has musical direction, melodies and good phrases.
- Performance. (Good) You managed to do a good take in spite of the tuning problem.
- Technique. (Good) The picking was accurate and clean. Good use of Vibrato and Legato.
- Tone. (Fair) The guitar tone didn’t stand out in the mix.
- Recording and Mixing. (Good) Good levels and balance.

Z0s0.
-Composition. (Fair) The solo sounded ok overall but I didn’t find a solid theme, hook, riff or motif. And a few notes sounded off key.
- Performance. (Good) You played with feeling throughout the whole piece.
-Technique. (Good) You used to your advantage techniques such as slides, hammer ons and bends.
-Tone. (Good) Interesting change of tones, and each one suited the backing well.
-Recording and Mixing. (Fair) The sections with the rhythm and lead guitar, needed some more panning, because they are fighting for the same spot in the mix.

Spedzar.
- Composition. (Good) Your solo had direction and melodic phrases.
- Performance. (Good) You have good Improvisation skills.
- Technique. (Good) The solo has all the ingredients to make a good solo.
-Tone. (Fair) The tone at the beginning was better than the second one. The distorted tone needed a Noise Gate and had a little too much echo.
- Recording and Mixing. (Fair) There seemed to be a buzzing noise, maybe from a bad cable or connector.
And the track is clipping due to the volume levels. You have an excess of (+0.5 dB to the Left) and (+0.6 dB to the Right

[equator]

Hey guy's. This is my first submission, so go easy. I started learning hoe to play lead only three weeks ago. Anyhow, let me know what you think. I just through this together in about 10 minutes. I know there are some missed notes. However, I just wanted to go ahead and post it!

http://www.purevolume.com/jgpeeples

Joe-Gray Peeples
Hey jgpeeples
Welcome aboard. Sorry I didn’t catch your post before.
I’m downloading your MP3 right now, and I’ll be giving you some feedback later.

[drf46]

Hi JG,
Man....If you've only been playing lead for 3 weeks then that was an awesome solo. Keep on practicing JG.
Doug

[equator]

Hey guy's. This is my first submission, so go easy. I started learning hoe to play lead only three weeks ago. Anyhow, let me know what you think. I just through this together in about 10 minutes. I know there are some missed notes. However, I just wanted to go ahead and post it!

http://www.purevolume.com/jgpeeples

Joe-Gray Peeples
So, you started playing lead three weeks ago and you threw that solo together in 10 minutes. Then you are on the right path, man.
Ok Here is my review on your take.
- Composition. (Good) Some nice melodies and Pentatonic Sequences. The timing was good too. The only noticeable mistake occurred at the 1:34 mark, but you resolved it quick.
- Performance. (Good) You presented good control of the instrument.
- Technique. (Good) A rather nice and mellow vibrato technique. But you have lots to improve in the techniques area. Work on trills, tapping, tremolo, etc.
-Tone. (Good) A very crisp sound that makes one able to hear the picking attack.
- Recording and Mixing. (Fair) The sound quality is not bad, but you have an excess of (+0.7 dB) on the left channel.

[jgpeeples]

I'm still learning how to record. Using Reaper. Hopefully, I'll get better at recording and my playing should get better as well. I like to play just by feel and not get to caught up on the technical side of things. However, learning some music theory would not hurt. Thanks for all your comments and look forward to conversing with you guy's in the future.

JGP

[light487]

I'll listen to the ones I haven't listened to shortly because I think I now have all the pieces to my own solo puzzle.. and I have almost got them all together in the right places.. now I just need to record it.. hehe.. the hard bit :) I don't know why but as soon as I hit the record button my mood changes... I try not to think about it and just put it on loop-record so I can record multiple takes without stopping but I end up messing up every take.. lol :D

[light487]

Ok so I have to go to bed now but I have a rough edit of what I have recorded so far. It has the basic structure there and the melody is happening.. it's just a bit of a mess at the moment.. and I'm still trying to chain it all together.. It's looking like I might actually make the deadline after all..

light487 (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=737179)

hrmm it sounds much better if you download the mp3.. even the hi-fi feeds on SoundClick aren't that great..

[WrigglerUk]

Better late than never I guess... this is a cool BT, and I felt that the less done to this the better. So I added some keyboards... :D

WrigglerUk (http://www.webng.com/wriggleruk/octobermoon.mp3)

Truthfully, there's not much to crit here, the guitar playing's virtually non-existent... Just a few chords in the background and tried to get a theme running through. Not much cop though.

About to listen to the other takes now... after I make my ever-loving a cup of tea!

[equator]

I'm listening to your takes guys right now.
I'll be commenting later.
Cheers.

[WrigglerUk]

No technical criticism here ( kettles and pots would spring to mind if I did! )
- just what I liked & heard!

seazer: that was VERY good. I liked the way you mixed tones and styles and it's different to your previous work - enjoyed listening.

Dethmetal: Some very good runs and phrases - I particularly liked what you had running through the 'chorus'. All I'd say is that the tone and attack didn't suit this particular piece, but you did it in your own style.

Zoso: Started out a bit 'off' and then worked up a head of steam! I didn't really like the 2nd part - it seemed to lack a 'focus'. I did like the 'chaka' chords you threw in over the first chorus, really set it off. Felt you drowned the BT out a bit though...

Equator: As usual I liked your playing, this time I just felt it was 'samey' all through - it lacked your usual sense of dynamics. Neat picture again though! A question for you - what tool are you using to look at peoples equalisations?

Spedzar: Nice tone and I liked the opening section a lot. It seemed very noisy to me though. And the outro was very cool indeed!

jgpeeples: 3 months? 10 minutes? Thats an impressive start! There were a couple of mistakes, I liked that it didn't faze you & you kept on playing. Keep 'em coming!

Light487: You seem to have spent a long time agonising over this one! I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was good! Really nice tone & sustain, some very inventive passages and smooth playing style. A little noisy at the start & end, but overall fine!

Thats all folks.

[light487]

Light487: You seem to have spent a long time agonising over this one! I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was good! Really nice tone & sustain, some very inventive passages and smooth playing style. A little noisy at the start & end, but overall fine!


Hehe.. I am STILL agonising over it.. :D lol.. It's basically going to end up as a tidier version of what is now on SoundClick.. I've listened to the track as an MP3 all day today.. probably about 20 or more times.. I burnt it on a CD with similar artists so I could switch back and forth.. I'm just getting ready to start playing guitar again for today.. hopefully I will get the final mix done tonight.

I find it interesting that I went through about 4 or 5 different grooves before I came to this one.. I'm still using the E Dorian scale for the first bit, the climbing melody bit is B Aeolian (relative/harmonic minor) and then the bluesy/jazzy section is in B pentatonic minor.. and that odd sounding blue note is an F... The reason this is all interesting is that I have ended up right back where I first started from.. In my original post I mention it makes me think of "Cryin" by Joe Satriani.. or at least that style.. and that is exactly the style I ended up playing.. but having said that.. I would not have been able to play what I am playing now back then.. it just wasn't in my soul at that point.. the idea was there.. and the emotion partially.. but it was a listener's emotive reaction rather than a player's emotive reaction like it is now.. Hard to explain really.. lol

Almost there now! Woooo! :p lol

[light487]

Ok.. I've finally put together my final cut.. It's still not perfect.. many mistakes and tonal problems throughout.. but it's the end of October so now I must settle with what I have.. Don't get me wrong.. I am happy with the result.. just that it can be so much more. I may actually take a break from it and come back to later.. make the song go for a bit longer etc..

So here it is:

GT Solo October - Final Edit (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=737179)

[mpaq]

Ok.. I've finally put together my final cut.. It's still not perfect.. many mistakes and tonal problems throughout.. but it's the end of October so now I must settle with what I have.. Don't get me wrong.. I am happy with the result.. just that it can be so much more. I may actually take a break from it and come back to later.. make the song go for a bit longer etc..

So here it is:

GT Solo October - Final Edit (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=737179)

wow Luke, that sounds wicked. I'm not experienced enough to understand what you mean by tonal problems but I just love the feel you put into it.

[seazer]

Just a quick note .Well done Light487 your best production so far eazy.I think your are getting somthing back for all your agonizing.The clean up on the beginning of this retake makes all the difference as it dosent detract from the listening experience straight away (you know like that note or tone was out or wrong) so you are holding the ear from the start.

You will definatley take another forward step when you get your hands on the Ibanez Prestige Rg wizard neck You wont regret it.

[light487]

It's great to get some objective confirmation that I have improved again. Regardless, I feel I have grown a lot since starting on these Guitar Solo Assignments.. A huge thank you to whoever started this, and also a big thank you to those who have supplied the backing tracks as well. Without those backing tracks, it just simply wouldn't have happend and I'd still be playing the same old "stuff" again and again. I played this month's track to some people including some people at work, and even my Dad said he thought it sounded like someone else he knew from the radio. I asked people to try and guess who it was but no one could put their fingers on who it was.. When I said it was me, they were all.. including my Dad.. genuinely shocked. Even the people at church who I play with every 2 weeks or so say how much I have improved.

I'd love to say that my subscription to GT made all of that possible but it's really the forums that have helped me the most. Having said that.. without the many videos of lessons I have simply watched through without actually using them to practise, I would never have been inspired to learn music theory.. never inspired to try something new.. never inspired.. period. The full access sections did have A LOT of knowledge.. and I think that was the problem for me. There was just SOOOOO much... it is overwhelming. Especially so when you had decided that you had reached the peak of your abilities.

Guitar is now just as exciting as it was 6 months ago but now I actually know what I am doing. Well sort of at least... a better idea of what I am doing, perhaps.. anyway, if you asked me to replay the entire solo, I could.. note for note. I'm not jamming any more.. I am actually "creating" stuff now.. and it's effortless compared to before. I can even discuss the solo in proper musical terms so as to relate the technical side of things to other people to share in the lessons I have learnt from it. I am even thinking of borrowing my parents' digital video camera and trying to make a audio AND visual experience.

Just wonderful.. :)

[dethm3tal]

Firstly, welcome aboard to JGPeeples and Spedzar;

Secondly, Equator, I really like that whole idea of ranking the song in that sorta method, it would definitely put some structure into the reviews.

However instead of saying "good" or "fair", I think we should do like a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best.

Thirdly, time to crit the new solos!

Light487:

Composition: (9) I can tell you put a LOT of thought into this track...IT. WAS. AWESOME. I loved the "verse" and "chorus" parts, it all flowed really well and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I haven't really got a suggestion in this area since composition is different for every person and every track...hell, even every guitar.
Performance: (9) Played practically perfect, there was one spot where it seemed like you stuttered, but other than that you played great. Overall this was a good performance. I can't really offer any real way for you to improve except keep playing, but you know that already ^_^
Technique: (7-8) Nothing too flashy, nothing dull; you had some nice bends in there and everything was played fairly clean, this track was done really well. My only suggestion to you is that you add some vibrato, some more bends. Your playing on this track was really well thought out but I think if you did some vibratos it would be that much more emotional, there were times when the notes were ringing out that I was hoping you'd do that; It really isn't anything major, just a style choice, something that I think improve your sound a bit more. Overall though your technique is really good, in many ways I wish I played more like you...
Tone + Recording and Mixing: (8) I don't know a whole lot in this area, but I do know what sounds I like and that sounded great, really heavy on the reverb, which is something I really detest, but that aside the mix was decent.
Overalll: (9) Great track all in all, it is 500% obvious that you are improving as the months go on, can't wait to see what you dish out next month ^_^

WrigglerUK:

Composition: (8) Overall it seemed as though you were improvising most of the track, but the beginning guitar and the light synth were put together pretty well, so kudos on that. No real tips on improvement here.
Performance: (9) It was all played really well, executed perfectly, no complaints on that.
Technique: (8) Your technique was good as well. The slides were executed well, your bends were nice, your playing was really clean. Overall nice job.
Tone + Recording and Mixing: (8) I didn't like how that first guitar was mixed in. Then it moved on and I heard synths and the guitars sounded nice, I liked how everything was panned out. I didn't care for the tone of the first guitar but I did like the tonal variation throughout the song. I had some reverb and compressors set on my mix but we had an issue with the mixer itself and we had to goof with the output cables and in the restart process those elements of the mix were lost and at 2am you just don't give a **** :-D But yeah good tone, enjoyed the synths.
Overall: (8) Nice synths, playing, all around good track. It wasn't like groundbreaking but it was by far an improvement over your other tracks...that's probably my favorite aspects about people sticking in forums like this, seeing how other guitar players develop...

JGPeeples, I actually thoroughly enjoyed your track. Sure it was a bit on the messy side but you have mad improv skills man. I don't really get how you can learn to play lead since it really isn't something you learn, but for having just dove into this realm of guitar, your track was really good...I'm getting sick of critting in the above format because it is taking forever, but you had a good tone, it wasn't horrible(as if I am really one to talk), I can see that your technique is developing and I am really interested in seeing what stuff you come up with in the following months. Basically just keep working at it; learn a few scales, play around with the track and get some ideas down; y'know, go through the motions, all that crap? Anyway good track man can't wait to see you in the coming months.

Spedzar. Your playing was awesome. I loved the outro, it had a jam feel to it...the whole track did ^_^ Your playing was actually fairly clean, it wasn't structured well nor was it structured poorly. I am assuming this was mostly an improv track and to be honest I really enjoyed it. Your technique is really good, you did a lot of legato stuff from what I could hear...You are another person who I can't wait to see how you develop in the coming months.

Fourthly, on the crit structure suggested by equator and superhuman I actually think that we should combine the "Tone" and "Recording and Mixing" parts, as well as the "Performance" and "Technique" parts, since each component of either respective pair ties in with one another; So yeah, the new sections should be "Tone + Recording and Mixing" and "Performance and Technique"

And on a final note, overall GREAT tracks this month everyone, I really didn't expect this much of a turnout, it's gonna be a tough vote this time around...

MKylman

[WrigglerUk]

Deth - thanks for the feedback. You're right - nothing groundbreaking there!

To be truthful, I'm not sure about critting in that level of detail myself. I just listen and have a go for fun, and if I learn a bit so much the better. But thanks for taking the time! :)

[dethm3tal]

Oh man that wasn't what I meant!!! I was just in my analytical mode! I was trying to say how I liked your track despite the fact that you weren't overdoing it ^_^ I wasn't like "Oh yeah well your song is STUPID! It's not groundbreaking at all! GET WITH THE PROGRAM!"

To be honest I really don't like analyzing songs like this but I was giving Equator and Superhuman's thoughts a go...The thing is that if I really like a submission, like z0s0's, I will vote that way regardless of any of that crap...I mean in a lot of ways we just like music without really thinking of why...Your track was the one I was debating with against seazer and z0s0's ----_____----

MKylman

[WrigglerUk]

Oh man that wasn't what I meant!!! I was just in my analytical mode! I was trying to say how I liked your track despite the fact that you weren't overdoing it ^_^ I wasn't like "Oh yeah well your song is STUPID! It's not groundbreaking at all! GET WITH THE PROGRAM!"

To be honest I really don't like analyzing songs like this but I was giving Equator and Superhuman's thoughts a go...The thing is that if I really like a submission, like z0s0's, I will vote that way regardless of any of that crap...I mean in a lot of ways we just like music without really thinking of why...Your track was the one I was debating with against seazer and z0s0's ----_____----

MKylman

It's cool mate, I understood exactly what you were saying & agreed with it, I wasn't upset at all. I was impressed you'd taken the time to review it in that depth! :)

[dethm3tal]

I know you know, I just felt like I was coming off like a condescending ass ^_^