Hey guys, I'm 18 and I just joined this website with the intent to spark some extra inspiration to practice guitar. I've been playing for over 5 years now, and lately I haven't been into as much as my younger self.
When I first started playing guitar, I was 12, and I found it so exciting to learn songs from bands that I like such as Metallica and Van Halen. I begged my mom to get me a guitar after playing my cousin's during an extended family visit, and once I got my first electric guitar I was completely hooked. I spent 3-4 hours a day learning and playing songs, trying to write my own, and ultimately I was just having a field day of fun. I kept playing this often for around 2-3 years which is the point where I started getting bored. My guitar teacher at the time (primarily a Flamenco guitarist, but an insane shredder as well) had been teaching me Paganini, Bach, Yngwie, Paul Gilbert, and basically any songs he could think of to challenge me, but I just sped right through learning them. At this point I more or less plateued due to a combination of diminishing returns for my efforts and my teacher running out of challenging material for me.
Around this same time, I had been researching the recording process, which opened what some would label the "can of worms" that is engineering, but I found it to be one of the most abstract and fascinating arts, and I was astounded that previously I was completely oblivious to it's entire existence. I was instantly hooked, watching Pensado's place for hours on end, and then experimenting with my new knowledge by mixing my own songs. This adventure (and the AP Music Theory course at my HS) was one of the most impactful things on my songwriting style. It gave me a newfound understanding of dynamics, timbres, and synergy between instruments.
Production and Composition are still my main focuses in music, but recently I've been picking up the axe more to polish up my chops. I'm hoping I can find a few new tricks here, and that I can share some tricks of my own with this community :)