Back in a band

You know, this is where things really start to get exciting! You guys have a name that seems to work for all band members, you have two gigs in the calendar, and have a proper rehearsal space. I'd be pretty surprised if this turns out to be a fiasco... I'm still looking forward to seeing the recordings :)

Until then, I'll be in my own music room, processing an unhealthy overdose of inspiration and motivation I got completely unexpectedly last night :)

The future sounds great Rich, all the more so because a few weeks ago you were despairing of getting this thing off the ground. Good luck with the gigs from one of Radio Gap's UK fans! Yours, Steve

No kidding it's exciting!! :-). It's going to be quite an exciting couple of weeks. Friday morning I'll probably be wondering what I've gotten myself into.

Kasperow - good luck with that wave of inspiration! Hope you make some productive use of it. It's always great to get inspired!!

Thanks Steve for your well wishes. When we start "marketing" ourselves, it will be a true statement if we say we have an "international fanbase"!! :-).

The encouragement and input I've received from so many people on this forum has in large part helped propel me to this point. It all traces back to SlipinLizard posting a recording he made, which gave me the idea to do the same...

Originally Posted by: Kasperow
Until then, I'll be in my own music room, processing an unhealthy overdose of inspiration and motivation I got completely unexpectedly last night :)

So, what was this new motivation? Sounds like something good happed.

Originally Posted by: haghj500So, what was this new motivation? Sounds like something good happed.

It's kind of a long story. Originally, I just went to a small festival, where my two biggest Danish guitar-heroes, Mika Vandborg and Soren Andersen, were headlining Thursday night. Nothing wrong with that. People go to festivals all the time. One thing that's kind of important to this is that I've been to two of their clinics in the past, but I've never seen them play live until this Thursday (I've watched a few clips on YouTube, but that's not quite the same). They started their show with style, playing the 4 best songs they've ever written (in my opinion, anyway), before starting to actually introduce every remaining song. After the fourth song, Mika greeted the audience with the usual "Thank you all for coming out here"-speech, then looked down to me, and said "You too" away from his mic, as if he actually recognized me.

Fast forward to after the gig. As they went off-stage, I made my way over to the merch-stand, to get those of their CDs that I didn't already have. That's where things escalated out of control. I went to get the CDs, and Mika and Soren stood there, selling their merch, and Mika just said "Hey, you were at our clinic on the other side of the water in February, weren't you?" I just stood there, paralyzed, not really sure if he recognized me or not, but I confirmed it anyway, and next thing I knew, my heroes were giving me guitar-theory-lessons and tone-improvement-advice... over the merch-stand! And to really drive the awesomeness straight home, I got a few of their picks for free "as a gift", got my copy of their debut-album signed and everything. For a guitarist, I doubt there's anything more awesome and motivating than getting advice from the people I admire!

Kasperow,

WOW !!!!! That is awesome !!

Yeah, no kidding that's awesome!!! Good for you!!

Yeah, it is pretty awesome. What's possibly even more awesome is that those picks I got are closer to perfect than any picks I've used in the past. I don't know anything about them, except that they are the perfect size, shape, thickness and hardness. They're great for strumming chords, yet also great for playing fast. Normally, I find that if picks are good for playing fast, they're bad for strumming chords and vice versa.

Also, as of last night, it seems that I'm back on track with playing with others. Just got a very enthusiastic Bassist (who also seems to have some experience with various percussion-instruments) lined up. Don't know when we're gonna meet and try playing yet. These days just keep getting better and better :)

Yes, you find inspiration from the simplest things, like guitar picks! Are they custom picks or can you tell what brand and thickness they are?

Good luck with your bass player. Hope things get off the ground for you.

I'm a bit anxious about our rehearsal tomorrow night to get ready for our gig on Friday. I'm hoping for a feeling of "OK, we got this, no problem" rather than "OMG, who are we kidding, we aren't ready for this!" :-).

Originally Posted by: maggiorYes, you find inspiration from the simplest things, like guitar picks! Are they custom picks or can you tell what brand and thickness they are?

Good luck with your bass player. Hope things get off the ground for you.

Well, the surface of the picks feels much like the surface of some Aerosmith Dunlop Tortex picks I have, and by comparing them to the Aerosmith ones, they're 0.6mm thick (I got a small pick-tin with 6 Aerosmith-logo picks in at the Aerosmith gig almost two months ago. Haven't used those picks because they're special). So I'd say they're just custom-designed Dunlop Tortex 0.6mm picks with the Electric Guitars-logo on one side and Mika's name and signature on the other. Still some very good picks, though.

Thanks. I'm hoping things work out with this guy. From talking to him, he seems like a cool guy, and he's interested in playing the same weird mixture of Classic Rock, Hair Metal and modern "Heavy Rock" as I am, so I'm pretty sure things might just work out. Apparently he was also at the Aerosmith concert, and rocked his rear end off during Pretty Maids' set, so if we have trouble finding something to play, those two bands should provide plenty of great options (and plenty of both Aerosmith's and Pretty Maids' songs are on my ever-growing list of songs to learn anyway)... :)

Originally Posted by: KasperowWell, the surface of the picks feels much like the surface of some Aerosmith Dunlop Tortex picks I have, and by comparing them to the Aerosmith ones, they're 0.6mm thick (I got a small pick-tin with 6 Aerosmith-logo picks in at the Aerosmith gig almost two months ago. Haven't used those picks because they're special). So I'd say they're just custom-designed Dunlop Tortex 0.6mm picks with the Electric Guitars-logo on one side and Mika's name and signature on the other. Still some very good picks, though.

Thanks. I'm hoping things work out with this guy. From talking to him, he seems like a cool guy, and he's interested in playing the same weird mixture of Classic Rock, Hair Metal and modern "Heavy Rock" as I am, so I'm pretty sure things might just work out. Apparently he was also at the Aerosmith concert, and rocked his rear end off during Pretty Maids' set, so if we have trouble finding something to play, those two bands should provide plenty of great options (and plenty of both Aerosmith's and Pretty Maids' songs are on my ever-growing list of songs to learn anyway)... :)

Any picks lighter than that are too flimsy for about anything. I used .73 (yellow) tortex picks for years and moved to the .88 (green) tortext picks within the last year. The stiffer picks give you more control, though can be more challenging to strum chords with. I swear by tortex picks - they are tough as nails and are smooth yet have a grippy surface.

Tortex picks are so tough, they were the tools I needed to pry apart my son's tablet and my daughter's iPod touch. I both cases, plastic "spudger" tools just fell apart and broke. I was shocked at the amount of force I could apply with the tortex pick and it didn't snap.

Keep us posted on your adventure!

Originally Posted by: maggiorAny picks lighter than that are too flimsy for about anything. I used .73 (yellow) tortex picks for years and moved to the .88 (green) tortext picks within the last year. The stiffer picks give you more control, though can be more challenging to strum chords with. I swear by tortex picks - they are tough as nails and are smooth yet have a grippy surface.

Tortex picks are so tough, they were the tools I needed to pry apart my son's tablet and my daughter's iPod touch. I both cases, plastic "spudger" tools just fell apart and broke. I was shocked at the amount of force I could apply with the tortex pick and it didn't snap.

Keep us posted on your adventure!

I don't really know that much about picks, to be honest. Since I started playing, I've been using the same 0.83mm pick pretty much all the time, but these 0.6mm Picks are pretty good. I only know what they feel like, I can't tell if they really are Tortex or not... One thing's sure, though... They are pretty damn stiff for their lack of thickness! I can easily use them for somewhat fast playing (not shredding, but as fast as it gets when I improvise).

Of course, I'll keep you posted on how things work out this time. Hopefully, I'll be embarking on an adventure like your own, only without help from a music store or mentor :)

So I'm starting to feel blindsided by our gig coming up on Friday. Hard to Handle has turned into the bane of my existence. We did this song over the winter and I never was 100% comfortable with the solo. There's something strange where I feel like it's too many notes. I went through it painstakenly at the time and I wasn't throwing in any extra notes. Since I'm taking all of the solos now, I had to learn the second solo. I have the pieces down and link them together with my own phrases, but it's still not something I can nail consistently. The speed is right at the point of where I can play cleanly. Of course Mike O. makes it all look so easy :-).

Then, as I'm packing up my gear for the night, I realized I need to get some solo ideas for Honky Tonk Women since I'll be doing that one too!! Crap!! There I figured out a framework to improvise in, so it should be OK. I did that for Long Train Running and it worked out OK.

Ugh, I wish I had another week!

To keep myself calm, the way I'm looking at it is like a figure skating competition (not a huge fan, but I've seen enough :-), you know, where they will have a triple jump in their routine, but they play it safe and make it a double or a single or skip it all together. I just need to come up with what a single or double jump would be for my solo.

I don't like feeling unprepared...

I still have time, but not as much as I'd like. I may surprise myself tonight at rehearsal...it could happen. I'm doubtful though because everything with this song has been a struggle for me.

i have NO doubt u will do fine. No-one in the audience will be as critical as you are - of yourself. If u look like u are having a good time so will ur listeners. Smile. Slay'em Rich !

Thanks fretsmith!! You aren't the only one to suggest that...no matter what, smile!!!

Turns out I was all nervous about nothing. We could go out tomorrow and play these songs - and I nailed the Hard to Handle solos, both of them :-). That is the FIRST time I've nailed either of them playing with the band.

And yet again, my improvising sounds like sh!t to me in the moment and sound really good on playback. I completely wung (is that even a word :-) a solo for Honky Tonk Women. Upon playback, I thought huh, that actually fit in nicely! Now at least I have enough experience to realize this and just go with it in the moment!

China Grove and Hard to Handle totally rock! Now I can't wait!!! :-).

Well tonight will be our last rehearsal before tomorrow night's performance. The weather is going to be sunny, cool, and low humidity - awesome for an outdoor concert!!

Last night, I ran through each song once and hit everything. Mike O figured out where my problem was with the Hard to Handle solo (Mike RULES!) and I confirmed it last night. I was coming in a beat too late, which is easy to do since the solo starts on the 4 rather than the 1. Once I heard it, I thought "duh!". My chops are barely up to the 16th notes as it is, so trying to squeeze them into a shorter amount of time really kills me! I got the outro solo down though it's a little sloppy. Way better than I thought I'd be so I'm going with it. It's a loose song so it's all good!

I even practiced Whole Lotta Love since our drummer said she is going to try and convince our singer to sing it though he seems reluctant. He does it REALLY well, but I think it takes him out of his comfort zone. Join the club I say!!! :-).

It was a rare occasion where my improvised solo sounded good to me in the moment. Hmmm, maybe I should have recorded it...perhaps it was really crap :-). Anyway, I normally use minor pentatonics to improvise, but the major pentatonic seems to suit Honky Tonk Woman better being a coutry-ish song. Even though it was outside my "norm", it sounded good. I just have to make sure I start on the root (G) so I don't fall into my usual minor pentatonic phrases.

Tonight I want to see if we can clear up the muddiness of our sound. I think it's a combo of the bass player being too loud and need to eq our guitar amps properly. This is totally new territory for me, though I understand the concepts. Hopefully during our soundcheck tomorrow, the sound guy (our drummer's husband!) can give us direction and advice.

So, unless something big happens tonight, my next update here will be after the gig, hopefully with great news to report.

Hey man, you must have nerves of steel - getting ready for the gig and writing how it all feels at the same time! I'm sure you guys will be brilliant but good luck for tomorrow anyhow. Knock 'em dead! Steve

I feel prepared at the moment, so the nerves are good. Before our soundcheck tomorrow I'll probably be nervous. But once I hear the sound of my guitar blasting out into the park and I realize my guitar plays the same way in front of 100+ people as it does in my basement, I'll be OK.

Making these posts helps me deal with any anxiety, even when nobody responds.

Thanks so much Steve for your encouragement and vote of confidence. We'll knock 'em dead!

Originally Posted by: maggior
Making these posts helps me deal with any anxiety, even when nobody responds.

!

I enjoy reading them, they bring back a lot of memories. Even when I don't respond.....

So jump on that Roller Coaster, hang on tight because there will be times that you will want to scream. Different screams for different emotions, just remember its all part of the ride. There is too much going on beyond your control, so do your best. It wouldn't be a bad thing if when people leave they remember the guitar player seemed the best out of that band.

This is an opportunity to introduce yourself to fellow players, SHINE this is show and tell time. Who knows what may happen afterward, you might get a job offer from another band that is more advanced that what your in now.


Listen to the drummer, connect with the song and play, be in the moment. What just happened and what will happen later in you life, at that moment does not matter. If you do that you can't help but enjoy it and that's the goal.

Worrying about what may go wrong is a waste of you're time, doing it or hanging on to it, will not help you. In fact it often causes the problem right?

So, if you go watch a band say at a local bar and stay there for 3 to 5 hours. Would you want to watch and listen to a band for 3 hours that all the guitar players just stand and play or would you think it is cooler or more enjoyable if they move around. Create movement on the stage, something to watch even if it's not choreographed. You're presenting more than how well you play your guitar.

Hope you find something in this response useable.

Hey Haghj500 -

Thanks for your post! Yeah, it's certainly a thrilling ride!!!

You make a good point about moving around - it's very important. I tend to do that naturally anyway. That's something that stuck with me from a presenation skills class I took a long time ago for work. At rehearsal last night I was getting into it with my China Grove solo - leaning forward and back, holding the guitar straight up and down at one point. I need to just go with it and let that happen!

Never thought about fellow players or other bands being in the audience. It will be interesting to see who comes up to chat with us afterwards. I would be beside myself if another band approached me asking if I could play with them, or just complemented me on my playing!!

The guys that run the studio we are using said they are coming to see us - they support all of the bands that use their studio. I thought that was very cool!!!

What makes this easier is I have my open mic experience to fall back on. The last one we did was FAR from perfect, yet it came off very well AND I still had fun. Even last night, I was feeling frazzled and my playing sounded like utter crap to me. Friggin' Hard to Handle...grrrrrr... I didn't let it get to me though. Listening to the playback, my playing was perfectly fine...and I couldn't hear where I thought I messed up. So, no matter what happens on stage, I'll be smiling away rockin' my a$$ off!!

I'm going to be introduced at the lead guitarist. Never ever in a *million years* did I think that would ever happen...I was always a rhythm guy who wished he could play lead.