Muso Snob Ramblings and Instrument Porn

I use the motorbike plugs (as a pedestrian) for defending against traffic noise and Xmas marketing, but preserving conversation. I see Auritech do a Music earplug too.

Not quite as much attenuation as the ear defenders, but much easier to carry on a keyring.

The Fender ear plugs were the same sort of design as the Auritech plugs. They worked, but felt like having a carrot shoved down each lug ā€˜ole. I found them too distracting.

If I try the same type again I’ll spend a bit more on something like Auritech plugs.

I used to use the standard Etymotic type earplugs - have done for about the last 20 years…
However, I’ve now got a pair of ACS Pro 17 on order -attenuation of min. 15dB @ 2kHz max 18dB @ 125 and 250Hz so pretty darn flat.
I reasoned that with at least one very loud rehearsal a week, plus gigs that might be even louder, spending Ā£139 might be worthwhile - review to come when they arrive…
https://www.acscustom.com/uk/products/hearing-protection/pro-series/pro-17

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I’m going to buy a set for the next time you post your bass noodling :slight_smile:

You’ll need the Pro 27s for that…

For all you lucky people, here’s the first viewing of 16 Choke Start - recorded in a garage near Wales using 2 SM58s dangling from the ceiling.
Hopefully we’ll be ready for our debut gig 25th November!

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This week I’ve been ruminating on my plans to annex the under-stairs cupboard and covert it to an isolation cabinet. There’s little chance I could get away with the sudden appearance of a really big box in the house - but I could easily soundproof the stairs cupboard and run a mic lead out of it without raising much attention.

Thinking on this. :thinking:

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Four, and six, strings are hard enough.

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His fretting hand is predominantly playing the four highest strings with the extra strings employed for occasional effect. I’m not sure it works, the big strums sound grating and muddled to me.

I like the harmonic contrast of the low bass notes from the lowest strings but could you do the same with a drop tuning on a regular six string classical? Maybe.

I’m not knocking his playing BTW, just not entirely convinced by the instrument.

^ Agree entirely. Just the instrument porn bit makes me go wow! at ten string.

He has an aggressive style of playing, but sounds better, not in a guitar show, but on a six string, ime.

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I posted this up on the youtube ramblings thread but as a non-guitar player I am utterly staggered by the sheer brilliance of his playing.

Sorry for double posting it but I think he’s worth it

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Me too. Some astonishing technique (and varieties of) in there.

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@B2T Yep, that’s way more impressive than the ten string showboating.

@spacehopper Classical shred :star_struck:

Serendipity is a great thing.

Someone had posted up a ā€˜THE BEST GUITARIST IN THE WORLD EVER !!!’ youtube vid which came up on my twitter feed featuring some precious American college student cunt playing a bit of flamenco type stuff.

I watched it and laughed - however that was at the top of the list of videos in the similar videos section - made me laugh even harder talk about getting your arse handed on a plate

Carlos Montoya was a mentor of Pepe Martinez. My dear old dad played Spanish Classical/Flamenco guitar. Pepe would often give him a lesson and play in our kitchen on his visits from Spain.

Pepe mentions Carlos Montoya in this…

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** warning muso

I usually steer clear of a chromatic approach to music because it’s where chaos be, where atonality and dissonance rule and where the crazy tribe of Jazzers live. It’s a scary place to go. I might occasionally play a chromatic note for contrast before returning to the relative safety of major, minor and pentatonic. Phew!

I know interesting music can be made by being angular and jarring and by rejecting convention. I know because I like some of it and I’ve been listening recently. Which meant today I tried something different with my guitar playing. I forgot about notes and patterns and shapes and intervals, all the things I usually think in, and played in an almost random fashion until something interesting happened; which to my surprise it did. Indeed there’s so much more outside of the box I wish I’d stepped out a little sooner.

So chromatic scales, it took me a while, but I’m beginning to like you. :guitar:

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Sound like you should give some of George Russell’s stuff a go.

th (20)

He manages to tread the line of being fairly ā€˜out there’ often with an innate smouldering funkiness!

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Being out there is a fair description for someone who has formulated music theory which is based on gravity! I had to read it twice just to make sure I hadn’t misread something.

I understand the parts about the Lydian mode and how it has a certain perfect musical quality - and how this can be extended chromatically. I expect the rest would take much longer to grasp. Different thinking on established subjects is welcome when it comes from someone who is demonstrably excellent in what they do.

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We had our debut gig last night, which went surprisingly well…

And talking of chromatics and weird out-there shit, a chap came up afterwards and said he enjoyed our ā€œmodal interplayā€ (lawks - we weren’t necessarily sure which modes we were playing in apart from knowing we weren’t playing ordinary major/minor stuff!). And he might be interested in developing our ā€œrhythmic precisionā€ in a rock project. I got a bit scared because it turned out to be this drummer:

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Quick low quality sound vid from gig, featuring fist pumping!