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freddiemercurydaily · 2 years ago

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9 August 1982, Queen performed @ Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey “Hot Space North American Tour”Roger's voice is uncharacteristically hoarse tonight, and he struggles on some of his backing vocals in ‘Somebody To Love.’Towards the end of his vocal exchange with the audience after ‘Save Me,’ Freddie tells them, "I'm gonna make you sing like Aretha Franklin", like he did during Now I'm Here in Milton Keynes a couple months back. But this time he doesn't succeed, as he gives up after only one line. "I knew you were from New Jersey. You had to be. I mean, I've been listening to Gilda Radner. She's right!" Brian starts ‘Get Down Make Love’ (which segues into his solo spot) with his John Birch copy.

A bit over three minutes into his solo spot he breaks a string, and soon turns off the analog delays, trying to make the best of the situation for a brief while (the other five strings go out of tune when you break a string on an electric guitar with floating tremolo, so one must hold the whammy bar down in a specific place for the guitar to remain in tune - not an easy task!). But he ultimately gives up, and takes the guitar off and hurls it over his stack of Vox cabinets (the one and only time he did this), snapping it in half. Some audience members watch in bewilderment as they have witnessed the normally gentle and soft-spoken May lash out in frustration. Others cheer the 'coolness' factor. A roadie, visible to the audience, picks up a piece of the Birch guitar and holds it up for a brief moment. The beleagured axeman then switches to his Flying V, and he and Roger (barely) finish the segment, not before that guitar, too, goes out of tune. Brian (who hasn't spoken much on stage on this tour since ‘Love Of My Life’ was his usual speaking spot) says a few words after Under Pressure. "People of New Jersey, we seem like good friends. I tell you, we've seen you a lot of times. We've been around quite a while and we've done some strange things here and there. And now and again we've done a song which actually means something, and I think this is one of them. This is a song Freddie wrote for the last album. This is called Life Is Real." Queen performed the ballad only a few times. After the song ends, Freddie asks, "How are we doing with the guitars?" He tells the audience, "I think tonight's the night we're gonna break as many guitars as we've got. If anybody in the audience has a spare guitar, bring it over here!" Someone in the audience replies, "I've got three!" He continues, "OK, we're gonna do a song that requires everybody on their feet, because I mean, you gotta... I know you guys are very cool and laid back, this is a really dirty song. You know, it comes from here." No doubt a crude gestitulation follows. "It's from the c*nt. It's called Fat Bottomed Girls!" Brian lets out a lot of aggression in the last couple minutes of the song, even playing some heavy syncopated lines before the final few bars. It takes a little while for the Red Special to be restrung, so Brian plays his Flying V for a few songs, according to a fan who attended the show (although Brian stated in a January 1983 interview that he acquired the Flying V *because* of this incident - These few songs sound different with this new guitar tone - particularly the ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ solo. He would return with his beloved home-made guitar for the hard rock section of Bohemian Rhapsody, but he wouldn't fully regain his composure for the rest of the evening. A fan wrote to Brian at his Soapbox about this night: "During the show you had problems with The Old Lady and came out with the Birch copy. Then the birch copy had some problems and you threw it and your roadie missed it I think because he held up something that looked like a broken Birch Guitar. You then played a good part of the concert on a Flying V. I remember wishing I had a camera to see you playing on the V. You played Life Is Real while repairs were being done. Freddie even joked if someone had an extra guitar to please bring it up. After the break in BORHAP you came back with the Old Lady." Brian's reply: "You evidently saw a special night ... the only night when I ever threw a guitar off stage in despair ! And, yes, I did hit the ground behind the stage - I'm pretty sure I thought I was throwing to someone, but evidently I misjudged it. And, yes, its neck snapped clean through. I kept it for a while, intending to get it fixed. But we decided it would probably never be good at staying in tune, because it wasn't a very rigid instrument. And not being able to get it in tune was what drove me to distraction that night, and this was what led to its demise! As I remember, this was on top of having problems with the Red Special in the beginning - in the heat of the moment, this was the final straw ! I imagine your bootleg of the show will reveal the problems I was having. These things usually make me feel ashamed, frustrated, angry, in the moment... I don't like giving people less than the best. So this picture really does tell a story ... a unique story. I wonder what happened to the Flying V ... As for the Birch guitar, well, we lent it to Guild, to compare, while they were making their Red specials under license in the 80's. Then we all forgot about it for many years. Then it turned up, and thanks to a friend (I think I told the story here) it now resides back with me. We have decided to keep it as it is, in pieces, just for historical interest, for the same reasons as before." Brian has since reunited with the guitar, apparently after it was purchased on eBay. Its story and a couple pictures of it can be seen at Brian's website. It was repaired by Andrew Guyton, although it wasn't a complete restoration as Brian wanted to see exactly where he broke it.

#gallery #tour #fansite #freddiemercury #queen

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natromanxoff · 3 years ago

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Queen live at Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, NJ, USA - August 9, 1982

(x)

This is an eventful US Hot Space show played to an arena that is far from full. In fact, a second night in East Rutherford was originally planned for August 10, but later moved to New Haven due to the low ticket sales.

Roger's voice is uncharacteristically hoarse tonight, and he struggles on some of his backing vocals in Somebody To Love.

Towards the end of his vocal exchange with the audience after Save Me, Freddie tells them, "I'm gonna make you sing like Aretha Franklin", like he did during Now I'm Here in Milton Keynes a couple months back. But this time he doesn't succeed, as he gives up after only one line. "I knew you were from New Jersey. You had to be. I mean, I've been listening to Gilda Radner. She's right!"

Brian starts Get Down Make Love (which segues into his solo spot) with his John Birch copy. A bit over three minutes into his solo spot he breaks a string, and soon turns off the analog delays, trying to make the best of the situation for a brief while (the other five strings go out of tune when you break a string on an electric guitar with floating tremolo, so one must hold the whammy bar down in a specific place for the guitar to remain in tune - not an easy task!). But he ultimately gives up, and takes the guitar off and hurls it over his stack of Vox cabinets (the one and only time he did this), snapping it in half. Some audience members watch in bewilderment as they have witnessed the normally gentle and soft-spoken May lash out in frustration. Others cheer the 'coolness' factor. A roadie, visible to the audience, picks up a piece of the Birch guitar and holds it up for a brief moment. The beleagured axeman then switches to his Flying V, and he and Roger (barely) finish the segment, not before that guitar, too, goes out of tune.

The next song is Body Language, and the front of house tech switches on Mercury's harmonizer a verse too early, giving "you got red lips" a bit too much redness.

Brian (who hasn't spoken much on stage on this tour since Love Of My Life was his usual speaking spot) says a few words after Under Pressure. "People of New Jersey, we seem like good friends. I tell you, we've seen you a lot of times. We've been around quite a while and we've done some strange things here and there. And now and again we've done a song which actually means something, and I think this is one of them. This is a song Freddie wrote for the last album. This is called Life Is Real." Queen performed the ballad only a few times.

After the song ends, Freddie asks, "How are we doing with the guitars?" He tells the audience, "I think tonight's the night we're gonna break as many guitars as we've got. If anybody in the audience has a spare guitar, bring it over here!" Someone in the audience replies, "I've got three!" He continues, "OK, we're gonna do a song that requires everybody on their feet, because I mean, you gotta... I know you guys are very cool and laid back, this is a really dirty song. You know, it comes from here." No doubt a crude gestitulation follows. "It's from the c*nt. It's called Fat Bottomed Girls!" Brian lets out a lot of aggression in the last couple minutes of the song, even playing some heavy syncopated lines before the final few bars.

Frustration abounds in Freddie as well, as he responds to a drone he (and everyone else) is hearing. "Before this next song, we'd like... what is that fucking noise? It's been driving me crazy all fucking night. I bet it's not doing you guys any good, either."

It takes a little while for the Red Special to be restrung, so Brian plays his Flying V for a few songs, according to a fan who attended the show (although Brian stated in a January 1983 interview that he acquired the Flying V *because* of this incident - but this claim is questionable, as pictures from last week's concert in Toronto reveal his Flying V on a guitar stand side stage). These few songs sound different with this new guitar tone - particularly the Bohemian Rhapsody solo. He would return with his beloved home-made guitar for the hard rock section of Bohemian Rhapsody, but he wouldn't fully regain his composure for the rest of the evening.

In the second verse of We Are The Champions, a flippant comment from Mercury sums up the evening: "It's been no bed of roses, I can tell you!"

A fan wrote to Brian at his Soapbox about this night:

"During the show you had problems with The Old Lady and came out with the Birch copy. Then the birch copy had some problems and you threw it and your roadie missed it I think because he held up something that looked like a broken Birch Guitar. You then played a good part of the concert on a Flying V. I remember wishing I had a camera to see you playing on the V. You played Life Is Real while repairs were being done. Freddie even joked if someone had an extra guitar to please bring it up. After the break in BORHAP you came back with the Old Lady."

Brian's reply:

"You evidently saw a special night ... the only night when I ever threw a guitar off stage in despair ! And, yes, I did hit the ground behind the stage - I'm pretty sure I thought I was throwing to someone, but evidently I misjudged it. And, yes, its neck snapped clean through. I kept it for a while, intending to get it fixed. But we decided it would probably never be good at staying in tune, because it wasn't a very rigid instrument. And not being able to get it in tune was what drove me to distraction that night, and this was what led to its demise! As I remember, this was on top of having problems with the Red Special in the beginning - in the heat of the moment, this was the final straw ! I imagine your bootleg of the show will reveal the problems I was having. These things usually make me feel ashamed, frustrated, angry, in the moment... I don't like giving people less than the best. So this picture really does tell a story ... a unique story. I wonder what happened to the Flying V ... As for the Birch guitar, well, we lent it to Guild, to compare, while they were making their Red specials under license in the 80's. Then we all forgot about it for many years. Then it turned up, and thanks to a friend (I think I told the story here) it now resides back with me. We have decided to keep it as it is, in pieces, just for historical interest, for the same reasons as before."

Brian has since reunited with the guitar, apparently after it was purchased on eBay. Its story and a couple pictures of it can be seen at Brian's website. It was repaired by Andrew Guyton, although it wasn't a complete restoration as Brian wanted to see exactly where he broke it.

The photo above was taken by Gary Gershoff. Here are a few pro photos from the show:

These photos were taken after the show, at a party in New York:

(x)

Fan Stories

“Queen played a great show, but when Brian started his Brighton Rock solo, he broke a string on "The Old Lady" and you could tell he was not happy. He actually threw that guitar at the stand and it fell over and me and my fellow RS/Brian/Queen fanatic buddy looked at each other in astonishment. He quickly was given the John Birch copy by his guitar tech and continued his solo. Well about two minutes go by and you could tell he was not happy with the Birch and then a string breaks on that guitar. He was on Deacons side of the stage and he runs over to his side towards his wall of Vox amps and hurls the guitar over the stack. His guitar tech brings out the Gibson Flying V and Brian finishes the solo. At the end of the solo the tech brings back "The Old Lady" restrung as Queen kicks back in. I believe at this point Brian was doing the solo in the middle of Now I'm Here. Some time between one of the next songs the Tech emerges from behind the stack to show Brian and the entire audience the result of Brians outrage as he holds up the two pieces of The John Birch. My friend and I looked at each other and knew we had just seen a bit of Queen history. From what I remember it was a case of the neck snapping off from the body. I remember a few months ago somehow the John Birch had turned up and Brian was curious about where and when it happened.” - Todd

#queen #queen band #roger taylor #freddie mercury #brian may #john deacon #queen concerts

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jokertrap-ran · 4 years ago

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[Stand My Heroes] 聖夜を奏でる♪ Symphonic numbers (Performing the Holy Night ♪ Symphonic numbers) Shindo Kiyoshi SR Event Drop Card Story 【The Trembling Heart is a Tremolo】 Translations

*Sutamai Master-list *MC name is retained as my usual. Requested by Anon! *Part 2′s Story title: [寒空の下で滲むもの Things that blur under the cold skies] and is voiced. *Scenario Writer: @Atomiatomi (Ａｔｏｍｉ)

Part 1 / Part 2

Ran: —Hm?

It was a couple of hours since I visited the Kujo Mansion, and I had just finished explaining the documents I had on hand when I looked outside—

Ran: Shindo-san, it’s snowing out. No, actually… It’s piling up!

The parts of the garden I could see were covered in a sheet of pure white.

Shindo: And what about it?

Shindo was absolutely calm about the matter, continuing with his organization of his documents without giving the garden even so much as a glance.

(This icyness is rather hard to swallow...) (Oh, right! Maybe he’ll become more excited about this if I build a cute snowman or something like that!)

In a flash, I immediately took action.

Ran: How about we go outside?

Shindo: No. I don’t have a reason to.

Ran: You do have a reason to, actually. Let’s make a snowman together!

Shindo: ……

He had on a face that spoke of the annoyance he felt from the bottom of his heart, but yet, he still followed after me as I took the first couple of steps ahead of him, walking off.

And this was how we ended up going out into the gardens to make a snowman.

─────────────────────────⋅…⋆⋅☆

MC: Um… How about you make a snowman too, Shindo-san?

Shindo: I’m perfectly fine with just watching you from here.

MC: You’re just going to look?

Shindo: Well, yes. I only followed you because you told me to, that’s all.

Despite his bluntness, he didn’t make a move to return back to the mansion.

In the end, I ended up continuing my work on the snowman under his watch. Observe; that was all he did.

─────────────────────────⋅…⋆⋅☆

MC: ...Achoo!!

(Mmf… It really is freezing now that I’ve been out here for a while.)

The longer I spent frolicking out in the snow, the better my body would adapt itself to the colder temperatures out… Or so, I could only wish.

Unable to do anything to combat the cold winter winds, I could only endure it as I snuffled.

Ran: Shindo-san, about the snowman’s face— Huh? He’s not here?

I could see neither hide nor hair of him from the spot I last saw him standing at.

(Well, it IS quite cold outside after all, so maybe he went back in.)

Shrugging it off since he was his own person after all, I turned back towards my snowman.

And then—

Shindo: You must have brought a muffler scarf with you, didn’t you? Why aren’t you using it?

Ran: !

Something fluffy came from behind me, wrapping itself around my neck.

(It’s my muffler?)

Ran: Did you go fetch it for me?

Shindo: If you catch a cold, then that’d mean a chance to extort a huge amount of money for you as your treatment fee… But, I’ll let it go just this once. Warm yourself up properly.

His hand carefully wrapped the scarf around me.

Ran: ...Thank you.

Shindo: Have you finished the snowman?

Ran: Yup, all that’s left now is to finish up the face.

Shindo: I see. You can use round pebbles for it’s rounded eyes, a tree branch for its nose and some dead leaves for its mouth. Oh, and it’ll be a nice finishing touch if we have a hat and a muffler scarf lying around somewhere that we could use.

Shindo mumbled on by himself, but after he had voiced it all out, he went off in search of said items.

(And he actually helps, in that regard. Maybe because he wants to make sure that it has a cute face?)

What I saw was his defenseless back facing me.

Ran: ……

(Ooo, yess!)

Thud!

Shindo: ——!

Aiming for his back, I flung a snowball at him, hitting bullseye as it met its target right smack in the center.

And just as I’d expected, he naturally turned to me with an inscrutable look on his face.

Shindo: Hey, what are you trying to pull?

Ran: I hereby declare a snowball fight!

Ran: Listen up! 3 hits by a snowball and you’re out!

Shindo: ...Do you really think that you can win against my strength and physique?

Ran: You wouldn’t know that until you try now, won’t you?

Ran: Here goes… There! ...Take this…!

Shindo: ……

He easily dodged the snowballs that I threw at him with all my might.

(Damn… I managed to land a hit on him like a piece of cake with his back to me, but I can’t score a single one when facing him head front!)

─────────────────────────⋅…⋆⋅☆

And then, finally, he retaliated—

Shindo: If you’ve prepared yourself, then this will be where you meet your end.

Ran: Ugh…

And then, taking on a brilliant form, he threw his snowball at me, which then flew towards me with startling speed—

(...Hmmmmmm?)

It didn’t reach.

Ran: Err, you don’t have to hold back at all, so just come at me like you really mean it.

Shindo: ……

However, no matter how many times Shindo flung snowballs at me after that, they were all amateur shots… With none of them ever reaching me.

Ran: What in the world...

Shindo: ...Nope.

Ran: Huh?

Shindo: What your existence means to me is something that has changed along with the flow of time itself. Although my brain registers the fact that this is just merely a game, I cannot do anything about it if my body refuses to listen to me.

Ran: Changed…? What do you mean by that?

Shindo: It means that the you inside of my head is someone that I wish to protect from both the cold and danger alike, and not as an opponent to pelt snowballs at.

Shindo: ...Think about the rest on your own.

Ran: Wha-

The hand that I was using to pelt him with snowballs halted at his sudden confession that quite literally came out of nowhere.

─────────────────────────⋅…⋆⋅☆

(It should be cold, but yet I’m suddenly feeling hot...)

Behind the muffler scarf I had wrapped around me, I felt the sweat beading at his sudden, unexpected words.

───⋅𝕿𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖓𝖊𝖝𝖙 𝖙𝖎𝖒𝖊…⋆⋅☆

#Stand My Heroes #スタン��マイヒーローズ #スタマイ #Sutamai #Translations #Otome #Shindo Kiyoshi #Masuda Toshiki #聖夜を奏でる♪ Symphonic numbers #聖夜を奏でるSymphonic numbers #Performing the Holy Night ♪ Symphonic numbers #Symphonic numbers

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shewhowillnotbenamed1 · 5 years ago

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Panoramic - Part 2

(Finally) @damnshipper I hope you enjoy!

Part 1

—————

Eve arrived. Night fell.

It was dimly lit on the highest balcony. This particular one was carved into the façade of a riad. The embroidered, balustered structure was stunningly furnished with its lush hanging plants and swaying pendant lamps. The rectangular frame wrapped around pillars. Giving way to the lancet arches that mirrored one another, from end to end. It replicated the shape of the enclosed courtyard it overlooked down below.

The glowing courtyard was filled with palm trees with fan-like fronds and potted plants. And wild roses, winding, as they grew around alabaster pillars. Scattered yet strategically arranged, the fanous provided warmth and light, resplendent. The decorative lanterns were placed around corners of a rectangular pool perfectly centered in the ground. Glazed-clay tiles of ivory, turquoise, and cobalt blue glistened along the bottom and sides. The lacquer lustrous in the light.

A dark hooded figure stood hunched over the wrought iron mashrabiya carved railing. A heavy-bottomed glass of scotch in hand. He shook it once, passively observing that the ice had melted. He paused to squint closely at the amber liquid. Through the glass he could see a blurry silhouette. As if it were a window.

The large hand slowly lowered.

The shadowed figure approached. Instantly he knew. The mysterious girl occupying his thoughts - she had appeared. She had come to him. Once more, she was covered from head to toe. Nothing was visible, save for the bright, glinting gems that were her eyes.

She placed an outstretched hand on his shoulder.

He clasped it for but a moment, before pulling her right to his chest. And he took no time to begin lowering the gauzy material from her face. Fully enjoying the process of unveiling such a striking visage. A coy quirk of her full lips, was all the encouragement necessary. His breath was on her neck. His hand on her hip, and dropping lower. To dip under the fabric at her feet.

The large hand skimmed her ankle.

Her legs were bare.

He arched a daring brow, as she reached up, her hands flush to his abdomen.

His mouth pressed harder into her neck, hearing a sharp inhale and feeling the rush of blood. A feminine gasp cut the air. The fabric on her legs had begun moving. He was gently unraveling her. Slowly… and surely, unwrapping.

“Rrraven…” he whispered into her neck over and over, her breathing became labored. At the sensations. The undulating rhythm of their bodies in motion together. And the hypnotic tremolo of his tongue.

Her hands loosened their hold on him. A tilt of the head, and she turned. The fabric slipped out of his hands, and her body out of his grasp. His hand beckoned her back, as she shirked back into the shadows.

Her eyelids fluttered.

“Please…”

Before they opened.

Indigo and purple grew wide. Raven Roth woke with a start. Stripping back the sheets. “Damian.” She whispered, searching the darkness.

—————-

For the next two days, Raven found herself walking back to the souk. Her intention was merely to stop by and see if she’d missed something. To check if there was anything else she wanted to buy. Maybe try her hand at some more haggling. Those were the only reasons. At least, the only ones she was willing to admit to herself. Really, Raven didn’t even know what she was doing back here. What she was hoping for - or expecting to find.

Just…

If there was a chance she might, Raven knew she had to see him.

The pale girl adjusted the indigo scarf around her neck. Tonight, she decided to try the spot where she’d initially rejected his gift. She had only visited during the day, so it was worth a try. She turned and touched the fabrics slowly. They were lovely, but nothing was really catching her eye. Had the highlight of her vacation already occurred? And this soon? It was ludicrous - insane for her to think that her trip had somehow peaked.

But… was it?

Because, for the last few days, her stay in this gorgeous city had suddenly seemed…lacking.

Uneventful. Dull.

Raven sighed.

No…

This was a trip she had taken by herself. For herself. She had hardly seen all the country had to offer. Even if now, she just wanted whatever Damian had to offer.

A light gust of wind blew. And the hair raised on the back of her neck. She sensed the presence of someone behind her. It was night time in an unfamiliar place, yet, she didn’t turn around. A hand slid over her eyes. In spite of her present vulnerability, the pale girl knew she was safe. Raven just… had a feeling. A hot inhale on elicited a frenzy of goosebumps on her nape. She shivered at the sensation on the surface of her skin…

“‘Ant… jamila…” She felt her breath catch. With long fingers, he turned her face to his.

It was him.

Raven flushed at the man’s words and peered down at her feet. She was having great difficulty staring directly into his piercing green eyes. The rough palm slid down her cheek. “Come…?” Damian asked.

He hesitated, until he saw her pink face move up and down in a nod. His head angling curiously. He offered a half smile.

“Yes.” She would go with him. There was hardly any question as to whether she would. Suddenly, Damian reached down for her hand, as he had done before. And he pulled her out of the tent. Leading her away somewhere.

Then, he was walking with her down a long line of stalls in the souk. Full of tea and textiles. Cups and cutlery. Scarfs and silks. They walked out and around, leaving the market in their wake. And she let him guide her. She didn’t know why exactly. Raven peered up at his towering form and loose djellaba billowing in front of her as he led her away.

But…

They walked through the medina. Under elaborate archways. Through alleyways. Along narrow streets.

Raven still couldn’t stop thinking about it. That holding his hand felt right. Almost…natural. She gazed down at their interlaced fingers. Admiring the contrast of her pale ones on his darker ones. Raven found herself enraptured with the sight and feel of her skin on his skin. They had this unspoken connection she couldn’t quite explain. Not even to her own mind. It was like he was someone she had known.

Or needed to know.

Desperately.

Like a kindred soul. Or a… soulmate? It was the only explanation, because she had never let someone just take her like this. She had never been taken with someone like this. Why was it that wherever he was leading her, she wanted to go?

Needed to go?

Was it the euphoria from being in a foreign land with a handsome stranger? Or was it somehow more? She could only ponder these thoughts briefly. As they were suddenly made not so pressing. Because at last.

They were here.

Another gorgeous refuge from the busy streets.

This one with a tudor arch that framed a teal and white porcelain tiled fountain. A couple of tall palm trees and a wall ensconced in vines. The thick water stream spouting as it rose and fell behind them - that was the only sound around. At least the only thing she heard before…

His palms were on her shoulders, as he pulled her to the ornate wall. He slipped off his hood. And gently asking with his eyes, before removing hers from her head. Her dark braid tumbled out. And he gazed in wonder into her eyes. Tirelessly, she stared back into lush green. She had escaped to another secret sanctuary just for her. Raven knew next to nothing about the man. Yet there was an instant need to share his space. To breathe his air.

A palm raised to hers.

His spicy, rich fragrance. The breath on her lips. The intensity of his jade-green gaze searching her own. The indigo irises moved back and forth. Right and left. She could see every brown and black fleck and aqua speck in his vibrant eyes. The colors in them - unfathomable. Boundless. They were so much more than just green. The hues in his eyes were as endless as the city around them. Goddess. All of it was starting to make her ache. For more contact. For more of him. She closed her eyes. The pounding of her heart echoing in her eardrums was unrelenting.

Raven was so swept up, she was subtly mouthing gibberish into the air, as if trying to wordlessly communicate that she wanted - no needed him to kiss her. If only she could project her thoughts to him for a moment. Would they even make sense to him with their language barrier?

She bit her lip, feeling his nose trailing along her cheek. His sweet breath nearing her. Damian must have picked up on what she was feeling. Finally. She arched her back off the wall in her effort to get close. Raven leaned as near to him as she could. She was getting closer. And closer. And closer…

By now, her lips should have met his mouth… Or his cheek… Or chin… Or skin…

But nothing…

Just air.

When she heard a deep, far-away chuckle, the deep violet-purple peeled open, with a furrowed brow.

“Tch…” His body propped on the opposite facing wall of the archway. Far away. She flushed. Raven’s head dipped down in her disappointment. He clicked his tongue a second time, as his long legs carried him back over to her.

There was something of a knowing smile carved onto his face. He didn’t appear to be oblivious. Though, she couldn’t say for certain. Of her advances, he had not rejected her. Or dissuaded her outright. She almost wished he would. Or say something to make her feel less foolish. Raven couldn't believe what she had done.

Tried to do…

Silence stretched heavily between them. Footsteps shuffled as Damian and Raven walked on into the night.

Oh…

Raven hadn’t meant to be so eager. So forward. What was the matter with her? She hardly knew him. And he hardly knew her.

They were strangers, after all - weren’t they?

Damian paused. His back facing her. Offering no explanation. Why had he stopped walking? He turned back to her with an unreadable expression.

Abruptly, he pressed her body against the tadelakt wall in the alley. Wide blue-violet eyes tilted upwards. Fingers slid down her face. A slow, steady trace on her lips with a fingertip. Circling the top and then the bottom. Memorizing a path in her pout. Every inch he explored tingled with such sweet sparks. He did know what she wanted.

Was he going to…?

Damian's lips parted. Maybe he shouldn’t. Or he wouldn’t. Was this right? She thought it was. She hoped it was. Were they right? When he saw her flushed stare - wide and surprised, he stopped. Releasing her for a moment. Then, a smile, and his hands slipped around her waist. He held her. And nuzzled her neck. Raven’s eyes shut. They were nose to nose, as she folded her arms around his neck in an impassioned embrace.

His terracotta pink lips, but inches from her own as he murmured,

“'Ant hlu…”

Her head was swimming. Another hit of the smell off his skin and she felt lighter than air. Damian thought… She was sweet. Beautiful and sweet. In an indescribable way, they were bound. Yes. She did want him to kiss her. Maybe… he was just playing hard to get with her. And that was alright.

It was working exceptionally well.

Because she thoroughly enjoyed these moments she had spent with him. And Gods how she wanted more. She didn't think twice about her previous plans for this trip. If everyday was like this one, her time in Morocco would have been well spent.

One could only hope.

—————-

A week.

They had somehow agreed to meet up in the same spot in the souk. For a week straight. Raven honestly didn’t know how, but somehow they had. With her limited Arabic knowledge. And his limited English. And nary a translator insight.

He would greet her the same way. She would find herself exploring a stall or two near what had become their spot. All of a sudden, she would feel the sensual rush of his teeth tracing her ear, the sensation of his breath. The spicy, sweet aroma this man brought everywhere with him. Something in Arabic was murmured sexily in her ear, “Rrrayie, Rrraven…” Her heart would race and her legs would shake.

And she knew it was Damian.

And off they would go.

Together.

They explored Fez. Her, for the first time. And him, for the first time with her. Every so often when they walked, she would feel compelled to place her head on his shoulder. She felt so safe with him.

Her troubles and doubts subsided and ebbed away. As she delighted in Damian and the gorgeous cityscape.

Although, the practical part of Raven was surprised by everything. That she had spent so much time with a person she could barely understand. And that was at the best of times. But whether she could verbally confer with this man or not, it wasn’t important. Not so much as him and his company. She could feel his emotions and his soul just by being in his presence. They matched Damian’s outsides, as they too were beautiful and kind. And mischievous.

It had to be something beyond her. That they were able to converse so richly, even though they didn’t fully understand each other. It hadn’t affected things at all. She enjoyed every breath with him. Maybe even more because of it.

Raven could see aspects - views she hadn’t truly considered. Until now. Because there was much more than words that one could use to communicate with another.

Raven and Damian did them all. They experienced the spectrum. Ranges of shades. All of the various ways.

Expressions. Gestures. Laughter. Body language.

A smile. A look. A whisper. A touch.

Drinking.

Dancing.

Tasting…

“Try…?” His forefinger and thumb proffered a piece of halva, a rich milk based dessert. It hovered right by her mouth. She opened and let him feed her. Raven nibbled it right from his fingers.

“Mmm…”

Damian was very pleased. Viridian eyes never left hers, once, as he licked the residual sweetness from his own hand. She blushed and felt other parts of her body were warming.

Raven licked her lips slowly, with an expression that didn’t often cross her face. One of appetite. Voraciousness. Greed. A desire to devour something decadent. But not food. No, a fodder of another kind.

She had never tasted anything so luscious or sweet.

As his sapor of his skin was the true confection underneath the syrupy treat.

So it was undeniable.

Despite the language barrier, they still managed to find common ground between their tongues.

So to speak.

Their days together felt vastly more intimate than any time she’d spent with anyone else. In spite of how dissimilar they appeared. Surely two people who lived practically worlds away could never come together in this way.

And yet they had.

Damian was showing her his world. And in his spheres of malachite, she saw yet another one waiting to be discovered.

#damirae #demonbirds #raven roth #damian wayne #robrae #me #writing #fanfiction #fanfic #oneshotturnedstory #raven #dc #Teen Titans #titans #dc comics #au #travel

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shogikappa · 5 years ago

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Rockin’ Pretty (Nintendo DS)

Rockin’ Pretty (Japan: Happy Star Band; Europe: Diva Girls: Making the Music) is a Nintendo DS band/music/rhythm game published in 2009 where you can choose between any of the 4 instruments the band members play and work your way through the different stages which offer new songs that can be unlocked.

I really love this game and there are several unique things about it. I’ve been looking for a game that lets you play as the various instruments in the band and this game delivers that, as well as music that’s instrumental (although the endings hint that the band isn’t actually an instrumental band, though throughout the game the music that’s played is all instrumental). Besides those, it also differs from conventional rhythm games that are in the style of say Guitar Hero, Synthesia (if you could call it a rhythm game), and Bang Dream where, instead of the music coming down as dots/bars down onto the horizontal line where you’re supposed to press buttons, the equivalent of “lines” in this game is spread out at various distances to mimic playing the actual instrument. The gameplay is played entirely using the stylus, and no buttons are used (though you can use the buttons to navigate menus and options, etc.).

The 4 members of the band are Mai (Japanese: Mahiru) on guitar, Kara (Jp: Kanami) on bass guitar, Mio on keyboard, and Reena (Jp: Riko) on drums. Although the US localization changed most of the names, at least their biography and looks remain intact, unlike the previous game, Princess on Ice, which, during localization, had the appearances of all characters completely redesigned for a “Western audience”. Anyway, onto the gameplay.

Just as a note, for each individual song, you can always choose between any of the 4 instruments to play (as well as the characters to dress up/equip instrument skins), so you aren’t stuck with 1 instrument throughout the game and can play the same song using all 4 before you move on to the next song, if you so wish. You get to choose between 3 difficulty levels for each song/instrument. Each song/instrument also has an autoplay mode where you could just watch the song being played.

The Instruments

Mai/Guitar

If you choose Mai, you get the guitar game. You’re allowed to choose your preferred hand so that the game reorientates. Anyway, there are 2 lanes which the music notes come diagonally down on. As you can probably already tell, depending on the colour of the blocks, when you actually pick will be different, so if the block is blue you need to pick when it reaches the blue zone on the lane, and so on. This creates a desirable (IMO) challenge that requires a little bit of calculation when a bunch of blocks of different colours come down in succession, which can happen more frequently when you get to higher stages. To pick, you place your stylus on the double-diamond-shaped thing between the lanes and slide it towards the side the block is on. Getting the precise angle can take minimal practice when you need to tremolo-pick (picking alternatively between the 2 lanes back and forth). The 6 possible zones reflect the 6 strings on an electric guitar, at least in my mind.

Kara/Bass

The bass is similar to the guitar game, except you have a single lane of 4 possible colour zones, reflecting the 4 strings on a bass guitar. Here, the main move, instead of sliding your stylus, is to simply tap the colour zone when the music block hits it, but there are also special blocks that require sliding, which the game calls strumming. Again, same calculation is needed when multiple colours come down.

Mio/Keyboard

Like Synthesia, but, a bit worse. I think this instrument can get quite unfair but good thing this is really just my main complaint of the game (otherwise I do quite love it). Lines come down and well, you tap the keys when the lines hit them. The unfair bit comes from how the lines often, in later levels, cover up lines that are below them (so you actually need to tap the key 2 times in a row but because the top line obscures the bottom line, you miss the 2nd tap). This becomes a game where you probably need some memorization to ace the song, although you don’t need to ace a song to complete it. Sometimes you’ll see multiple lines coming at the different keys simultaneously, which is when you need to slide your stylus across all the keys, similar to playing a glissando sweep on a keyboard.

Reena/Drums

Possibly my favourite to play and the one I do most well in, although I do prefer the guitar one for its creativity. The 4 circles essentially semi-simulate the crash cymbal, the bass drum, the snare drum, and well, that green one is rarely used so I don’t quite remember, might have been the high-hat/ride cymbal or so. Anyway, the notes slide in from the opposite side so that they always take the long way to get to the circles: the yellow and red notes always come from the right. Again, a similar calculation challenge presents itself when multiple notes of different colours come from both sides, although it’s easy (for me anyway) to get the hang of it when you focus more on the rhythm of the drumming than just looking at the notes. Some special notes require you to slide the stylus rather than just tapping.

Plot

Mai is a newcomer to this band Starlight that’s looking for a guitarist because their previous one dropped out. Mai and Kara are schoolmates, although they had never actually talked before. It looks like Mio and Reena are from the same school, but it’s not explicitly mentioned. Mio and Reena though don’t go to the same school Mai and Kara do.

Anyway, now a 4-member all-girls rock band, they start playing at different venues and enter the annual music contest Rockin’ Pretty (RP).

As you move one step closer to the finals, a new venue/stage is unlocked and 2 new songs become available, and you get a bit of progress on the little bit of story, if you wanna call it that (it’s pretty much dialogue presented in a visual novel style about them moving on but hey, it’s nice to see).

Music

The band plays a number of songs throughout the game. These are given by stage number below:

1. See You Again

2a. Heaven

2b. Prayer

3a. Good Morning

3b. Ambitious Ladies

4a. Your Eyes

4b. I Love You!

5a. Fluttering Heart

5b. Happy Sunday

6a. Fiery Glance

6b. Boyfriend

7a. Summer Fun

7b. Fight For Your Love

8. Rockin’ Nova

The music feels a bit mediocre. The tunes are not anything great, but I do enjoy this game enough to want to go back to listening to the music, but less so because the tunes are that great. The gameplay though, I think, makes up for it. The music ranges from softer pop-sounding music to something in the mid area. I wouldn’t say anything in this game falls under hard rock. Maybe a bit hard, but nothing too much.

Endings

There are 3 endings to the game. A good ending (which I unexpectedly got the first time round), as well as 2 normal endings. There’s no bad ending. There’s been various sources talking about how you get the good end. One page claims that you need to beat all songs on hard and do well in the finale which I can attest is not true cause I only played and beat 1 song on hard and yet I got the good end anyway. What is sure is that you need to ace the song in your finale (as any instrument), and just a normal performance would not do. And apparently the clothes/instruments that you bought also affect it, according to another source, but by that point I’ve really bought everything that you can buy so I couldn’t test it out. It’s a good idea to anyway, since your score caps at like 50000 or so. Your score is used to buy the girls new outfits, hairstyles, and instruments. Simply play a song and you’ll earn some points again, depending on your performance. The same source also mentions how you need to “get used to playing on Normal/Hard rather than just Easy”.

So I suppose the best bet is to warm yourself up on Easy, then move on to Normal (which is what I did), and buy outfits and instruments as you progress. After that, you can see all the endings depending on if you ace the finale or simply do average, and you’ll see the 3 endings. Maybe play one song on Hard like I did but I can’t say if it really changes anything.

If you only perform average, you’ll get 1 of the 2 normal endings at random. Good thing about this game is that you’ll see an ending each time you play the finale song, so you can check out all 3 endings at any point, but it does mean you’d have to sit through the credits every time you just wanna play the song.

Well of course the normal endings are well, you don’t win the contest. But as a character points out in one of the endings, making it all the way to the finals still means you put on a great show, even if you aren’t the best! After all, do you ever just listen to your favourite piece of music of all time and think your second favourite piece of music is not worthy? Another quote from the anime Sound Euphonium: music wasn’t originally intended for competition. And really, not to downplay the excitement of winning a music contest, but it’d have been lots of fun just to play music all around the city and make it to the finals, having your music be enjoyed by so many.

Anyway, even the normal ends aren’t too bad and they continue to play and keep on rockin pretty so hey, things are still good.

You unlock a photo studio where you can “take photos” of the band after you beat the game but the 3D models don’t exactly look that impressive. I’d rather have preferred a gallery for the endings I’ve unlocked but oh well.

Overall

Well I do very much love this game, especially since I came across it while on my music craze, hunting for band games and shows. And I got to live the fantasy of playing music with others a bit. My only complaints are that the keyboard game feels especially unfair and that the game’s a bit too short. If you enjoy a unique rhythm/band/music game, I’d say this one is worth checking out. Heck, I don’t really enjoy rhythm games but even I love this game because of the band atmosphere and the simulation (kinda) of playing different instruments. So maybe give it a go even if you don’t like rhythm games but want to play a game relevant to music bands.

#tangent essay #tangent essays #game reviews #game review #Nintendo DS #rockin pretty

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musicianintrous-blog · 5 years ago

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How to Restring A Fender Electric Guitar

There are a few reasons why you might want to change the strings on your guitar.The obvious reasons are that they might look dirty or sound dull or you may have broken a string, and now you feel it's a good time to change the entire set.

Hopefully, you will get a clear concept by this article about how to restring a fender electric guitar.

Processes

We want to give you one method to change the strings on your fender electric guitar. Before we get started, let's go over the materials that you'll need. You need to have wire Clippers, string winder and your choice of fender strings.

For restring your fender electric guitar, you need to know how to restring a fender electric guitar. Here we have given a clear process to help you to restring your fender electric guitar.

Removing Process for Previous String

Need to begin by loosening the tension or the strings.Then need to grab your string winder.

After that, you should lose the tension of all the strings so that when you clip them.You don't want them to bounce back and hurt you one by one.

When you can see you got some good play in these strings, you need to ready to clip them. You need to grab your string Clippers. Put these just and holding on some on your hand.

You need to make sure that you can grab all these at one time, unwind them from the pegs and go to wrap these up so they don't go all over the place.

And then get rid of those you will go to grab the rest of these strings that are still fed. Through the body, you need to flip the guitar over on its side.

You have already removed the backplate. So, you will see the bridge block, which is where the strings are fed through. You have to push these forward and pull them.

So, all the strings are out. You just need to go ahead and flip this back over. Now is a good time to take a look at your fretboard. If you need conditioning or cleaning this would be a good time to do.

Installing Process for New String

Now you are ready to install the new set of strings. You need to have fender nickel-plated steel strings and a set of 9s. Fender makes it easy for you to know which string goes where by adding this handy dandy string guide color-coded by ball ends. You need to be careful opening this up.

You should have to leave the guide part of the label clean, so you can refer to it if you need it okay. Then you will go to start with the lowest string which is the brass or gold ball end.

Now if you were stringing up a Telecaster does not have a tremolo it.You have a solid back with the six individual grommets and you would just be feeding the string through each grommet.

And then repeat the process all the strings are now running through the block and the bridge.Now you are ready to attach the strings with the machine heads.

Need to start with the lowest string and grabbing all Clippers. When You attach the string to the machine head to the peg, you don’t need too many windings on the machine head.

After that, you should go tofeed the string through the hole on the peg.Pull back and give it some tension and hold down on the string and you can see it's not slipping it's being held in place.

You should grab the string winder and then start turning so that the windings will not come from the right side of the tuner. The last winding will be on the bottom of the peg to give it proper alignment over the nut. No need to tune this to pitch, you should go to wind it enough.

Insert the string into the tuner until it hits bottom. Then go to pull it around to the right, wrap it around.

Apply some pressure, hold it down and start rewinding.And then, go for the last wrap to end on the bottom of the peg to ensure proper alignment over the nut.

Everything seems to be in the right place, and you are ready to tune it up to pitch and start playing.

Conclusion

This article is a complete process about how to restring a fender electric guitar. Now you can use themethod for restring your fender electric guitar easily.

See More Article: How to Restring an Electric Guitar with a Floating Bridge.

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thesunlounge · 6 years ago

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Reviews 234: ANF

The newest release on Pacific Rhythm comes from the duo of Dust-e-1 and Priori, otherwise known as ANF, and marks the second time the Vancouver label has collaborated with the Montreal-based NAFF crew (see last year’s incredible Urth Born by Ex-Terrestrial, especially the soaring DnB future jazz of “Everybody Dreams”). Following on from Visions (S.T.T.G), the Mauna Kea EP sees ANF serving up rolling breakbeat magic, loved up four-four stomps, acid bass percolations, ravey house burners, and oceanic downtempo nod outs, with atmospheres flowing from hands-in-the-air radiance to dark nightscape sensuality. And the sound design is incredible, with huge throbbing bass sonics working the mind and body into a state of throwback euphoria while cool cut-up vocal samples, LSD angel choirs, ecstasy melodies, psychedelic color modulations, ethnological hand-drum patterns, and glowing pad hazes surround jacked out trance rhythms and aquatic chill-out breaks.

ANF - Mauna Kea EP (Pacific Rhythm, 2019) The title track begins with balmy swells and euphoria melodies shrouded in haze, while subarmine pings move through outerspace feedback clusters. A skipping lo-fi breakbeat emerges, comprised of double-time tambourines, air-cracking snares, and haunted voices that weave between dub-delay drum rolls. Then we drop into the main rhythm, which sees hard-hitting four-to-the-floor house hypnotics meeting nostalgic breakdance energies and hissing hi-hat breaths moving through propulsive double-time patterns. The synth swells that begin the track develop into eternally looping chordscapes that sometimes quiver on the verge of orgasm, and at other times filter-morph and detune wildly. Deep flubbing basslines jack upwards as ecstasy atmospheres hover in place and ANF dazzle the mind with vibed out rhythmic switch ups, heady fills, and psychedelic delay. Percolating acid lines fade in from celestial depths…these electronic balls of vibrating energy that move through hypnotic modulations and bubble trance vocalisms in a way not unlike Bicep’s epic “Back 2 U.” Subaqueous feedback pings and slithering space fluids drop in and out until we return to the lo-fi breakbeat glide, with mirage synth melodies growing ever more hallucinogenic and powerful. Then, as the crushing rhythms and throbbing cosmic basslines drop back in, the effect is like trancing out in a neon futureworld or cruising on starbeams through pulsating clouds of galactic dust.

Fat bottomed b-boy breaks and panning sequences comprised of sea-spray diamond tones introduce us to “Chi-Motion,” while tremolo morphing waveforms and starshine acid trails dance together. Ethereal pads wash in then float through melancholic chord progressions and eventually, the rhythms grow deeply hypnotic as chest-caving bass pulsations and sensual sub-sonic slides enter. Psychedelic filter sequences push the mind towards bliss and clipped voice samples bring a kind of 90s ambient and chill out nostalgia evoking The Orb and especially Boards of Canada…a world of dayglo VHS haze with child-like voices and hushed breaths looping and slamming downbeat jams splashing through tropical island dreamrealms. Sometimes ANF back the track down into pure sections of rhythm, all loved up breakbeat magic, intensely physical drum pressure, and soft accompaniments of blue ocean crystals fluttering in the air. Elsewhere, we float freely on deep bass pulsations and machine tom percolations, before transitioning into an ambient driftscape where minimal hand drum pulses are submerged within a sea of synth pad hypnotism. And as we move towards the end, alien vibrato patterns soar across the sky and synthetic waves crash onto a paradise shores.

The introduction of “State/Function” revels in heatwave mirage synthesis, desert daydreams, and mystical atmospherics while liquid-soaked rimshots clatter across the spectrum. Towering sub-bass thumps bring shadow energies and sinister vibrations as a rolling four-four breakbeat enters, with linear jacking kicks and vibing off-time snare, hi-hat, and tambourine patterns. Ghostly pads continue their black haze whirlpool…like an alien orchestra locked into a swooning phaser fantasia while far-out raps and unintelligible scats are cut-up and looped into a propulsive vocal dream tapestry. Strange dial-tone melodies pulse wildly and move through descending progressions and as the sub-bass synths and kick drums fade out, we are left afloat in a haunted haze of deep blue and glowing purple, wherein skittering voice samples and psychoactive sound waves fade in from nothingness. Once the smashing rhythms return, they carry the body away to a chugging realm of dark rave magic, while industrial shaker patterns constructed from tranced out static sequences and cold expanses of synth pad melancholia wrap around the mind.

Perhaps my favorite cut here is “Mary Lynne,” which starts with swirling gemstone smears and polychromatic wave motions. Oceanic harps sit at the center of the universe and let forth plucked tones of eternal crystal that are eventual smeared out into a sort of whale song bassline. Ethno-drums and double-time cymbal taps roll as energetic “come on” samples hit at just the right moments, all before ANF drop one of the coolest breakbeats of the year, adorned by technoid futurisms, Kraftwerk-ian electronics, and gurgling bubbles of acid brass. Heavenly choirs flow out from mermaid kingdoms, LSD voices flash side-to-side, and classical cut-up vocal trance fx surf on tremolo waves while emotive synth melodies flutter softly…the track reveling in the same sort of sci-fi breakbeat hypnotism and alien rainforest spiritualism explored by Future Sound of London, with the comparison all the more appropriate as sprightly pan-pipes dance through a jungle weaving of dream threads and intertwining hallucinations. During a moment where the kick drums and acid bass gurgles recede, filter-blasted electro rhythms glide beneath a panorama of mutating voice vapors and radiant angel hypnotics. And as we drop again into the futuristic breakbeat storm, with sketchy kraut electronics merging with old skool chill-out rhythmics, the mellifluous voice layers begin ascending ever higher towards ethereal cloudlands and colorburst paradises.

(images from my personal copy)

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sinceileftyoublog · 6 years ago

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Live Picks: 5/8

Julia Jacklin

BY JORDAN MAINZER

Indie dad tries out syntheszier?

Stephen Malkmus, Art Institute of Chicago

In contrast to when we saw him at Metro with the Jicks earlier this year, tonight in the Art Institute, Stephen Malkmus will be performing a rare solo electronic set, presumably of songs from his new solo electronic album Groove Denied. Don’t worry, Pavement freaks--he might play a few beloved band classics.

Tim Midyett (of Silkworm and Mint Mile) opens.

Julia Jacklin, Schubas

On “Turn Me Down”, the penultimate track from Julia Jacklin’s incredible sophomore album Crushing, her significant other tells her that he sees a bright future, but one without her in it. “Please just turn me down,” she repeats, the word “turn” delivered with stunning, raw melisma. The line repeats as the guitars increase in volume, Jacklin eventually yelling, the song crashing to a distant tremolo. “Maybe I’ll see you in a supermarket sometime,” Jacklin whimpers. This exchange is taking place on a roadtrip from Sydney to Melbourne, one that Jacklin and her partner are cautiously taking two days to complete because of past car crashes. What you come to realize is that’s a metaphor for how Jacklin is going to deal with all future relationships: slowly, with tension and doubt.

This deliberation oozes all over Crushing, which isn’t a breakup album so much as it’s about insecurity and repression caused by dishonesty, gender double standards, the temporary nature of life, and the volatility of love. Throughout, Jacklin describes scenarios we’ve all been through. On “Pressure To Party”, she realizes that if she went out after a break up, she’d just get drunk and want her ex. “I don’t care if you lie...you’re still a good guy,” she reflects on “Good Guy”, lying in bed with her ex, illustrating the levels to which we delude ourselves in order to simply feel loved. On the gorgeous, slow, blues-tinged dirge “Don’t Know How To Keep Loving You,” she simply declares, “I want your mother to stay friends with mine,” attempting to retain a level of normalcy after a life-changing event.

But what’s powerful about Crushing isn’t Jacklin’s admittance of her emotions and thoughts but how she reclaims them. Ownership over one’s body--and one’s self--is a running theme throughout the record, starting immediately with opening track “Body”, a true story about her boyfriend getting the two of them kicked off a plane because he smoked in the bathroom. “I’m not a good woman when you’re around,” Jacklin realizes, planning action, “heading to the city to get my body back.” Slowly building around the simple statement, “It’s just my life / It’s just my body,” the song refuses to downplay the importance of Jacklin’s increasing sense of security. On “Head Alone”, she’s a step further: “I don’t want to be touched all the time / I raised by body up to be mine,” she sings confidently, pausing, and letting out a smirking, “hah,” fully knowing how ridiculous it is that she still has to say this in 2019. By this time on the record, she’s already spitting out mantras with ease: “Yeah, I’ll say it ‘til he understands / You can love somebody without using your hands.”

Jacklin’s empathetic, yet snappy confidence pervades Crushing. On “Convention”, named after the RNC where Trump was confirmed as the nominee, she quips to a mansplainer, “Oh, please say something, I’m dying for your advice / I can tell you won’t sleep well if you don’t teach me how to do it right,” flipping the sexist on his head to suggest that she’s letting him feel better about himself. On “You Were Right”, she tells of how she started experiencing her ex’s favorite things right after breaking up--but because she wants to. He was right that she would like his favorite bands and restaurants, but he was wrong about her not being devoted to him.

The two most devastating songs on Crushing are where Jacklin shows the most self-awareness. Her first recorded solo piano song, “When The Family Flies In”, details learning her late friend is in critical condition (the same friend to whom she dedicated her debut album Don’t Let The Kids Win). “You know it’s bad when the family flies in,” she states matter-of-fact. It’s not dark humor, though. Like elsewhere on the album, Jacklin accepts the end of a body, or the end of a relationship between bodies. On closer “Comfort”, she admirably sings, “Don’t know how he’s doing / But that’s what you get / You can’t be the one to hold him when you were the one who left.” It’s more than just a clever line--it’s the type of advice you wish you had at various stages of your life to help guide you through what at the time seems like the worst pain you’ve ever had, wise words from one of today’s best songwriters.

8.6/10

Crushing by Julia Jacklin

Black Belt Eagle Scout, the indie rock project of singer-songwriter Katherine Paul, opens.

Cursive & mewithoutyou, Bottom Lounge

We previewed Cursive’s show at Thalia Hall late last year:

“Vitriola is the first Cursive album since The Ugly Organ to feature a cellist (Megan Siebe). This isn’t that notable, but I’ll take any connection to what’s undoubtedly their best record. The more notable connection recalls a similar era–founding drummer Clint Schnase returns for the first time since Happy Hollow. So while the album’s dramatic, baroque instrumentation actually blends quite nicely with the band’s usual mixture of rough power chords, slinky post-rock guitar lines, meaty drumming, and shout-along choruses, it’s the themes that are in a little too over their head. No, Vitriola is not a concept record, but whereas previous Cursive albums were rooted in a topic or two, Vitriola is Tim Kasher’s midlife crisis record, considering anything and everything including the concept of free will on the opening track and not backing down for the rest of the record. 'You know it’s gonna hurt / There’s nothing left to lose,' Kasher sings over and over. Looking at the plight of so many in today’s political climate, you find his words a bit insincere. And 'Ouroboros' is chock full of lines that hit you over the head with their plodding delivery. ('The writer will obsess over success / Success is like the carrot on a stick / Once the writer finds it’s just a carrot / The writer takes a shit all over it.')

Instead, the best songs on Vitriola come when Kasher and company ask questions and show some self-awareness. 'Who will show remorse?' he wonders on the soft, piano-laden, melancholy ‘Remorse'. It’s the idea that in order to earn the right to be angry and nihilistic about the world, you not only have to validate what others are going through–you have to understand and own up to your part in it. Eventually, on 'Everending', he admits what you already know he’s going to come to: “The point of all of this eludes us.' You just wish he had gotten to the realization a little bit quicker.”

Aaaand same with mewithoutyou’s show at Lincoln Hall:

“The best part of Philadelphia’s mewithoutyou is that they’re impossible to describe, fitting in a unique place somewhere among indie rock, post rock, punk, and post hardcore. Their recent releases, an album and an EP both untitled, were recorded in the wake of frontman Aaron Weiss’s newfound family life and move to Idaho and additional musicians. The album is expansive, as evidenced by heartland emo track 'Winter Solstice' and frigid 'Wendy & Betsy', and urgent, as on chugging opener '9:27 a.m., 7/29'. Tonight, the band will play heavily from their new records as well as classics like Catch Us For The Foxes, Brother, Sister, and Ten Stories.”

Lawrence, KS rock band The Appleseed Cast open.

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merriammusicinc · 5 years ago

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Kawai ES8 Digital Piano Review & Demo - RHIII Action, Harmonic Imaging, USB Audio

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Introduction

The ES8 from Kawai, first introduced in 2016 and re-released in late 2019 with some minor engineering improvements, is one of the most well-liked digital pianos on the market today. It's popularity stems from the RHIII action with triple sensor and let-off simulation, the unique and highly efficient onboard speaker systems, its extremely attractive gloss black finish and available designer stand, the onboard accompaniment styles, and world-class piano tone generator onboard.

It's a digital piano that's extraordinarily well equipped for any musical occasion, whether on stage, in your home, or in studio.

We hope you enjoy this video review and accompanying article by Stu Harrison of Merriam Pianos.

Kawai ES8 Portable Digital Piano Review Video Transcription

Hi everybody and welcome to another digital piano review. My name is Stu Harrison, we're here at Merriam Pianos and today we are taking a look at the Kawai ES8 digital piano. We're gonna be covering everything on this instrument, talking about its action, talking about the sound, and all of this beautiful luscious tone that we get out of this instrument, and of course discussing and reviewing all the features that you get with the ES8. If it's the first time to the channel we'd really appreciate it if you subscribe. We love the support and of course, we like to keep you up to date with all things piano. So let's get started right away and dive into the Kawai ES8 portable digital piano.

Sounds and Tone Generator

Hey everybody, so let's get into the sound of the Kawai ES8 digital piano. This instrument is loaded up with Kawai's Harmonic Imaging XL technology. That sounds very fancy. What does it actually mean? Well, this is about the 5th or 6th generation of Harmonic Imaging chipsets or, you know, algorithmic updates or enhancements that Kawai has come out with since their Harmonic Imaging technology hit. And I think the mid-2000s is when this really first came about. So they've been working on this for a while. And the ES8 was one of the first instruments to receive that chipset as well as the updated Shigeru Kawai SK-EX concert grand sample set. So this was a big leap forward in terms of sound technology when the ES first came out and quite frankly the ES8 is still standing up to even the most stiff competition from Roland and Kawai - and that partially is owing to the fact that we have 88-note piano sampling, a rather unusual feature for a stage piano. We actually have also just done a Roland FP-90 versus a Kawai ES8. You can hear the direct comparison there. You'd be surprised even a few years after this ES8 has been out of the market how well it continues to stand up to the competition in terms of the realism of the sound, in terms of how complex that tone is. It's equipped with a 256-note polyphony capability or potential which for acoustic piano playing you're really never gonna run out or max out 256. Even with a basic accompaniment track that's running through sort of a MIDI triggered accompaniment track it's gonna be very difficult to run out 256. So you got plenty of polyphony and you've got this lovely SK-EX sample set.

It's a very dynamic sound, and that's one of the first things you notice when you're playing it, is when you're really down in the lower volume ranges it's this dark, very luscious sound. But the minute you start to build some volume... you start to get all of these upper partials out of it, it brightness the sound up. Now, this is something that happens to an extent with almost all really good high-quality digital pianos, but I notice it more on this than most. This dynamic nature of the tone. This has a few dozen sounds on it. It's not an instrument that comes with like these 300 or 400 sounds that you might be looking at or, you know, researching with something like the Roland FP-90. The number of tones is quite low but the quality of each of the tones is really quite exceptional. There's only a few patches on here where I would go, that's, you know, a bit of a poor effort. But for the most part, you're looking at sounds which are really lush, very, very believable. Wow, that's got such a nice broadness to it. That's the EX concert grand sample we were just listening to right there. Jazz piano, warm grand, pop grand, it's nice. SK5. Oh, that's gorgeous. Not quite the same overtone complexity that you get out of the full SK, but still quite lovely.

The other instrument sounds beside the acoustic piano options are well done and very believable. Specifically, the electric piano sounds on here I love. They're thick, they're very warm. The phaser, chorus and tremolo effect, accessible through the effects and amp simulator on here is quite believable, to be honest, and the reverb engine is also very well executed. It also includes rotary speaker for drawbar organ patches, and guitar/keyboard amp simulations

Then you've got harpsichords, and mallet strings, choirs, and a couple of bass tones on there as well. It's also very easy to match two sounds together in a layered blend. You just press and hold the two categories you want, you get there. It's also easy to split the keyboard into two so you get one sound down here and one sound up there, and the four hands mode which is great for teaching or duets.

Speaker System

Driving all of this is this beautiful onboard speaker system. Now, on paper, this is not that powerful. I think it's 30 watts in total, 15 watts aside. That used to be considered pretty beefy. These days when you've got like an FP-90 coming out with 60 watts you'd think, okay, the ES8 might now start to feel underpowered compared to what other companies are putting out there. This is really not the case. And I think it owes to the fact that Kawai has designed the speaker boxes in here to be really super efficient. And we've got like air inlets on the bottom of the machine. You can sort of see them, it almost looks like it's kind of a subwoofery looking air inlet. I don't know speakers that well, but I know that that looks fancy when you look at it from the bottom of the ES8. So the speaker boxes are designed sort of as self-contained units and it's got two two-way speakers in there and then these sort of air ports on the bottom. I don't know how that contributes to the sound, but what I can tell you is that for 30 watts this thing generates a ton of sound, enough that if you're in a small or even a medium room and you're playing for yourself you do not under any circumstance need an extra amplifier or to plug it in to a stereo to reinforce the tone. We've got plenty here. Yeah. Anyway, so that rounds out our discussion on sound for the ES8.

RHIII Hammer Action

The action on the ES8 is what they call their RH3 action or Responsive Hammer III keyboard action. It is fashioned after similar plastic counterweight actions that are graded heavier in the bass and lighter in the treble. This is an action which they have installed in a number of their digital pianos. Think you can also find now a modified version of the RH3 from Kawai in Nord's new grand model, which is really cool but not surprising because you are talking about a very satisfying and a very accurate piano action. So it's got all the basics covered. We've got a nice micro-texture on the white key, sort of similar to like a NEOTEX as well as the blacks thanks to Kawai's ivory touch key surface technology. So you've got good grip on there and it also helps to absorb a little bit of extra moisture. It has the escapement in there to add that extra little kind of flip about two-thirds of the way down, a little bit more realism. And it's got the triple sensor. This is a big deal for anybody who is using this for production or recording because when you look at the MIDI output from Kawai's triple sensor system and you compare it to other MIDI outputs it is really accurate. So you're gonna have to do less velocity editing if you're taking a MIDI feed off here for any sort of tracking or recording, which just is gonna save time but it's also more satisfying. It's just it does add to the sensitivity and the realism of the overall piano playing experience. So top points for the action, I would say that this action is designed or is going to feel a little better to people who already have some acoustic piano experience because there is a bit of an intentional sponginess to the bottom of the key bed that simulates what actually does happen on like a real grand piano, which you might not be used to if you're only coming at this with prior digital piano experience. You get used to it very quickly but it can initially give you the feel that it's kind of a heavier or a slightly slower action. It's really not the case, it's just your finger getting used to that extra little cushion at the bottom.

Other Features, Stands, Options

Now let's talk about the remaining features. We've already discussed the fact that it's got a nice selection of sort of fundamental piano patches or tones, your pianos, E-pianos, organ, yada yada. In terms of other functionality on here, Kawai's Virtual Technician allows you to go into the piano sounds and edit various parameters like how much the lid is being simulated open, string resonance, you know, hammer sound, damper resonance, let off sound, you know, key off sound, all those kinds of things. It's really quite interesting and it's fun to get in there and play around and edit them a little bit. Other functions, it's got a basic recorder, you can record USB audio straight into like an MP3 or WAV format with a USB key plugged in. That's handy. But it also has intelligent accompaniment. And what's nice is you can access that very easily without having to get into a menu or hook up like a peripheral device like a tablet or smartphone. So you just press rhythm section right there, it gives you the option of selecting your accompaniment mode. I personally find that one finger mode is actually the most useful if you're gonna be, you know, playing with some more complex harmony because it gives you the most amount of control. And then you've got the option to select through various rhythms and then there's sort of a AB rhythm mode. So I'm just gonna play this really quickly so you can hear it. And then you can flip into the next variation.

So you can have some fun with that as well. This has the USB port so that you can connect this to the computer, and you can also record to USB drive in either MP3 or WAV - high quality audio files straight to USB stick...it's actually pretty handy. It also has discrete audio line out so that you can run this into an amplifier or PA without defeating the local speakers. There's also a dedicated line in (mini stereo jack) that makes it easy to send audio from a portable device through the ES8's speaker system. That's separate from your headphone jacks, of course. And you've got two quarter-inch headphone jacks on either side at the front. That's kind of handy. And the ES8 also comes in two colors (black polish and snow white) and the option for a full furniture stand with a triple pedal system or just the slab as you're seeing now with the single pedal system.

And finally, it has all the basics as well: metronome, transpose, included high-quality sustain pedal (with available triple pedal system and designer stand), auto switching mono out to eliminate any weird phasing effect,

Conclusions

So there you have the Kawai ES8. It's been out for a few years, but an instrument that's still delivering tremendous value and a great musical experience to people out on the market. I recommend this to a wide variety of customers and a wide variety of settings. It's great for people who need an all-in-one portable piano, who are really focused on the piano experience and don't need a huge amount of power like to fill up a large room or they're gonna be tying into a PA. Works really, really well for that. I think this is perfect as well for small spaces, apartment, living condo, living townhouse, living where you have the occasional need to relocate it. Because, yes, you can get digital pianos out there that are, you know, in a similar price range and deliver similar specs or maybe even slightly better but they're in these big bulky cabinets, tough to move around. The ES8 stays portable, it makes it really easy to either change locations or just move it from one room to another. And of course, for people who are thinking about using this in some sort of a production setting even if it's, you know, semi-professional or professional, this action and the triple sensor, the MIDI output on this is good enough to be used in absolutely any pro setting. So lots to like here, hope you've enjoyed the review. Good luck with your shopping, and of course, try and get to a showroom and try one yourself.

Please let us know what you thought in the comments. We'll do our best to respond to every single one. We're here at Merriam Pianos. My name is Stu Harrison, and we'll see you back for more reviews shortly.

The post Kawai ES8 Digital Piano Review & Demo - RHIII Action, Harmonic Imaging, USB Audio first appeared on Merriam Pianos

2359 Bristol Cir #200, Oakville, ON L6H 6P8

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#kawai #kawai grand piano #kawai es8 #kawai piano review #kawai es8 demo

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scramtronic · 6 years ago

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2019 - Working on strat again

Finally Owen and I are working on the Strat again, after moving and hauling around the blank we rough-milled last spring 2018.

We went to Sam Lapp’s shop at Dock Woods in November 2018 and he helped us plane and cut it out on the bandsaw.

Owen cut out the body using relief cuts

He was very careful

Once we cut the rough shape, we used the sander to smooth it

The shop also had a drum sander

After we left Sam’s this is what the body looked like - I like the Ash grain - the gray color on the bottom is where the wood was exposed to the exterior of the log- it is almost the very edge of the tree.

So, bringing us to January - Owen and I marked out the routing areas using our paper pattern and drilled them out using the drill press and then our replacement router (another old Craftsman from Qmart flea market). Here it was after we worked on the neck pocket. It turns out we cut it 2 mm or so too deep, and so we might need a neck shim. We’ ll need to see how the neck works when we line things up.

We fiddled a bit with the pattern to get our Craiglist pickguard to fit, since it has a bridge humbucker instead of the single-coil, but we did get it to sit flush eventually

We’re using a fixed tailpiece so we don’t have to drill the body at all for a tremolo or even through-holes. The tailpiece has holes in the back.

Today Jan 8th we did some final shaping of the body to bring it down to final dimension using various sanders and an angle-grinder and sanding disc

Once we had it close enough, we decided to go for it and roundover the edges. I bought a 1/2 inch roundover bit from Lowes. I made Owen give it a try. We started at the back.

He worked his way around

It went pretty well - here’s a video

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It was pretty neat - once the roundover was done it looked like a guitar finally.

It’s starting to look like something

Next to do:

1. need to cut the scoop cutouts- on the top and the back .

2. need to drill a hole for the jack (and get a jack)

3. need to finally drill and alight the neck, pickguard and saddle (and locate the saddle in the right spot)

4. paint - Owen’s going to make it a ‘punk’ guitar, so it might be covered with stickers and random stuff. Oh well!

That’s the update

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chesterfieldstings · 8 years ago

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Full of Hell - Trumpeting Ecstasy - Review

Full of Hell Trumpeting Ecstasy

Full of Hell (or Heck, if you don’t like cursing) is a four-piece band that makes some heavy music, yet slapping any sort of genre label (insert X-core here) onto them would be doing their music a disservice. Since 2009, these east coast dudes have been doing serious heavy lifting in pretty much every extreme genre you can think of right now, from the excellent grindcore/powerviolence essentialism of their earliest two albums, to the avant, sludge-terror of their collaborations with The Body and Merzbow. Full of Hell has morphed from the new school champions of powerviolence to an unstable, toxic chameleon of noise, which isn’t just impressive, but also necessary given the typically-rigid confines of genre that a grindcore band faces.

Trumpeting Ecstasy finds the band gliding out of what’s easily the most esoteric point of their career. Last year, the boys were chilling in the studio with The Body for a record that plumbed the depths of noise and despair: One Day You Will Ache Like I Ache. They toured in support of the anniversary of Sepultura’s classic Roots album, inflicting their signature brand of pain onto the unsuspecting, old-head metal audiences. Now they’re back in their element for what’s easily the most cacophonous, ear-splitting, and completely unsettling listen of 2017.

As its album cover would suggest, Trumpeting Ecstasy is Full of Hell’s 23 minute takedown of religion, which sounds a bit pedestrian given that religion is a remarkably easy target for metal acts to take down. Thankfully, Full of Hell finds themselves on the cutting edge once again, despite the familiar subject matter. The lyrics, while mostly indecipherable through the frightening, shrill shrieks and low growls, are impressively poetic; they contain a level of esotericism uncommon in such a piss-and-vinegar genre of music. This, combined with the menacing clamor of the instrumentals, makes this record as riveting as a great, cosmic-horror novel.

“Deluminate” kicks open the album with its one minute, death-metal rush of hyperactive cymbal crashes and tremolo-picked guitar riffs before growling its way into “Branches of Yew.” This track displays Full of Hell’s intent for the record a little more clearly. “Branches” fantastically incorporates the ear-piercing, tortured shrieks of lead singer Dylan Walker, causing the bass riff to stop and start accordingly. The listener is constantly jerked around as if strapped to a faulty carnival ride with a grindcore band playing in the background. Dylan’s vocals are only getting more and more unique as Full of Hell matures. Following up is “Bound Sphinx,” bringing the band back to their hardcore-punk shit and hitting us with the album’s first moment of catharsis; at barely three minutes into the album, this release is much needed. The depraved, sickening blasts of noise do make their music quite enjoyable, however, the sludgy moments of abreaction are the truest cause of throwing fists through walls.

“The Cosmic Vein” keeps with the Lovecraft-ian horror theme, and somehow incorporates an awesome tapping solo. “Crawling Back to God” amps up the horrific feeling with its incredible guitar leads and unmatched drumming technicality, finding the band once again in headbanger mode. “Crawling Back to God” in many ways is the antithesis of the record. It’s not just an angry finger pointed at religious organizations, but a rapturous feeling of decimation. This album is the equivalent of fighting every boss in the Dark Souls universe at once with no shield and a broken dagger as a weapon.

“Gnawed Flesh” reignites the band’s sludge-metal spark while “Ashen Mesh” is a downright disgusting, guttural beatdown. “At the Cauldron’s Bottom” ends the album on a droning note before evaporating. Then, there’s one final standout. The second to last track is easily one of the most idiosyncratic track Full of Hell has ever released. The album’s title track is an industrial gothic churn that features sadcore singer Nicole Dollanganger throughout the majority of the track. Her angelic, yet childlike voice is eerie, cultish and evocative, enabling the band to ensnare the listener into an unsuspecting beatdown. I hope to hear more of this sound in the future because there’s little to nothing that sounds like this song.

Trumpeting Ecstasy succeeds in being the apocalyptic statement it wants to be without falling into any preset trappings of theme or genre. Full of Hell cleverly laces it’s album with head bangers that play out nicely with the moments of sheer-noise terror. Full of Hell’s niche might still be too bloody and ridiculous for some of the most ardent metal listeners. They possess the skill to experiment with the grindcore formula, a formula that has already been perfected. There may be times where the band causes too much cacophony and not quite enough reprise, but nonetheless, it’s a testament to their talent with how well they weave between hideous noise and head bashing breakdowns. Most impressively, they effortlessly pull it all together. Sometimes, there’s a dash of black-metal, a pinch of powerviolence, and perhaps a smidge of Jane Doe-era Converge to spice it up, but no part of this record sounds like Converge, Nails, Charles Bronson, Code Orange, The Body or any of those dudes. It sounds like these dudes, Full of Hell, and seeing their sound so fully realized is a pretty sick reason to blow that ecstasy trumpet and bring on the end times.

8.2/10

Ecstasy Tier: “Crawling Back to God”, “Bound Sphinx”, “Branches of Yew”, “The Cosmic Vein”, “Bound Sphinx”, “Trumpeting Ecstasy”, “Gnawed Flesh”, “Ashen Mesh”, “At the Cauldron’s Bottom”

Ashen Tier: “Deluminate”

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krispyweiss · 8 years ago

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Southern Culture on the Skids at Skully’s Music-Diner, Columbus, Ohio, May 9, 2017

If you go to a Southern Culture on the Skids concert, you might get invited on stage to sing and dance with the band.

If you’re up close at a Southern Culture on the Skids concert, you might get pelted with a flying piece of fried chicken.

And if you’re up close and paying attention at a Southern Culture on the Skids concert, maybe you’ll catch a fat drumstick (of the musical or the edible variety).

Regardless of what incidentals take place, one thing is always guaranteed at a Southern Culture on the Skids concert: you’re going to see the only band in the world that can engage in antics such as these and sing songs about abundance with “Too Much Pork for Just One Fork” and “8 Piece Box,” infatuation with “Liquored up and Lacquered Down” and highfalutin lifestyles on “House of Bamboo” and not sound stupid in doing so.

That’s because with more than three decades of its quirky career in its rearview, the North Carolina trio known colloquially as SCOTS combines this ribald tomfoolery with serious musicianship.

Guitarist/singer Rick Miller is about eight parts Link Wray and two parts Jimi Hendrix - a psychedelic, six-string surfer man who occasionally punctuates his fat, beachy riffs with feedback, lightning-fast runs up and down his neck and heaping helpings of tremolo bar.

To his right is drummer Dave Hartman, holding things together with big sounds from his tiny kit that’s emblazoned with iconography from the band’s 2016 LP, the Electric Pinecones.

And to Miller’s left is bassist and singer Mary Huff - a show unto herself. With a big yellow flower in her big red bouffant, Huff, with matching yellow, 45-rpm adaptors for earrings, clamored on stage carrying two bags, from which she occasionally pulled a compact and brush for preening. She sipped Diet Coke soda from a can with a straw, chugged a bottle or two of 5-hour ENERGY shots and placed a wad of gum on the pegboard of her bass as if it were a cigarette.

For nearly two hours on Tuesday night inside the sweaty and enthusiastic confines of Skully’s Music-Diner, SCOTS did what they do best, running through a career-spanning set and entertaining their fans as only this band does. Audience members did “The Camel Walk.” They sung the praises of “Banana Puddin’.” And they frolicked to the strains of “Put Your Teeth up on the Window Sill,” a song about Miller’s grandparents’ regular Sunday, after-church rendezvous, as the singer wished everyone a successful 2017 mating season.

These shenanigans would come off as gimmicky if Miller, Hartman and Huff weren’t such incredible players and songwriters.

Kicking off the proceedings with the instrumental “Skullbucket,” Southern Culture on the Skids established their musical bona fides early and did so often throughout the show. Miller abused his guitar - which, judging from the electrical tape holding the bridge and pick guard in place, has seen plenty of abuse over the years - while rifling off sterling riffs as his elastic body movements conveyed the joy he gets out of playing. Hartman smashed away at stage right, leaving just the right amount of silence between beats and driving the music with more cow bell than is normally heard at a cattle call. When she wasn’t singing lead, Huff held down the bottom end, accentuating songs with tuneful yells, trills and other celebratory vocal sounds that sent audience members into a tizzy.

Relatively serious numbers like “Grey Skies” and “Dirt Road” (both with Huff on lead vocals) served as a counterbalance to tracks such as “Pig Pickin’” and “Freak Flag” and proved Southern Culture on the Skids could be a “normal” band if they wanted to be.

But then they wouldn’t be Southern Culture on the Skids.

And that would be sad.

Miller’s prodigy, the Florida-based trio Woolly Bushmen, opened the show with an energetic, 45-minute set of garage-based, surfabilly music flecked with punk that was most effective when the musicians played in a guitar-bass-drums configuration. At other points, the Bushmen employed guitar, drums and keys/bass pedals and sounded like a 21st-century homage to ? and the Mysterians. They joined SCOTS on percussion and vocals during the headliner’s encore and proved themselves a young band with potential.

Grade card: Southern Culture on the Skids at Skully’s Music-Diner, 5/9/17 - A

#southern culture on the skids #rick miller #dave hartman #mary huff #link wray #jimi hendrix #woolly bushmen #? and the mysterians #SCOTS

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tuneintoneupuk · 5 years ago

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Video Guitar Lesson 18: Which pedals are most useful and what do they all do?

Thinking of starting out with guitar pedals and not sure where to begin?

What concepts might help you to maintain a big picture regarding guitar pedals?

How do you avoid buying things which may not have the most practical uses?

What is Dan’s thinking behind his pedalboard and how does he dial in tones?

What do some of the types (and brands) of guitar pedal do and how might they benefit you in a performance or practical scenario?

If these questions interest you then keep reading and be sure to check our video and audio out for this lesson.

We divided this lesson into two parts:

A quick rundown and overview of both our boards which will be 13mins and 31secs

The lesson proper for which there are timings and our standard lesson setup (1hour 29mins including start and end)

Rundown and overview of our pedalboards:

https://youtu.be/Y_Qa_kqtcTg

Our video on our YouTube channel (my lesson with Dan):

youtube

(see below for timings)

In this lesson, Dan talks pedals and pedalboards. We take a tour round his board and a small tour round mine too. Then we examine the question (from the perspective of a beginner) of what pedal someone could start out with. Dan also gives his wisdom on some ways which you can keep in mind the big picture (perhaps of a pedalboard) and get the pedals which are the most useful.

There’s a really big section in which Dan walks me through what the different uses of the Strymon Timeline are and also regularly demonstrates a wide range of pedals with examples.

Our audio podcast on SoundCloud (my lesson with Dan)

Rundown / overview

https://soundcloud.com/tunein-toneup/video-guitar-lesson-18a-rundown-and-overview-of-our-pedalboards

Lesson proper

https://soundcloud.com/tunein-toneup/video-guitar-lesson-18b-which-pedals-are-most-useful-and-what-do-they-all-do

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Some things which I am really going to take away from this lesson are that:

I will use my delay and reverb pedal more frequently

I may consider adding a phaser and a tremolo to the arsenal

I still may purchase a Timeline to replace my DSD3

Dan cemented the idea of keeping pedals categorised by their era

It is essential to have a good power supply and think about your cables for ease of setup

The importance of buffers and clean boosts

All the best, Gary and Dan

https://tunein-toneup.com/

https://soundcloud.com/tunein-toneup/

https://soundcloud.com/tunein-toneup/sets/video-guitar-lessons

https://soundcloud.com/tunein-toneup/sets/tune-in-tone-up

Timings for Video Guitar Lesson 18 – on pedals:

00:00:33 Start of main lesson 00:02:11 Using the Timeline – set to Pink Floyd Run Like Hell 00:03:19 Timeline setting – Reverse Delay 00:04:30 Timeline setting for Purple Rain 00:05:12 With a lighter chorus sound 00:05:29 Ducking delay 00:05:50 Clean boost 00:06:27 Different boosts 00:06:52 Wah wah pedal on 00:07:19 Sweep Filter 00:07:43 With compression 00:08:00 Octave pedal effect 00:08:28 Delay for Pink Floyd’s – Another Brick in the Wall 00:13:15 Dan playing through my pedalboard 00:13:30 Corona TC Electronic Chorus 00:14:11 Increasing the depth 00:14:26 Delay Boss DSD3 00:15:21 Sampler? 00:15:34 Boss compressor CS3 00:16:34 Using a compressor pedal as a clean boost 00:17:05 Boss Overdrive OD3 00:17:32 A little trick is to leave the drive down and use the level as a boost 00:18:11 Reverb HOF mini 00:18:47 Boss GE7 Equaliser 00:20:06 Stripping it back to beginner level 00:20:29 Running with the question – what pedal ought I buy? 00:20:40 The ‘ice’ delay setting – pitch shifted delay 00:24:09 Srtymon – Timeline 00:25:22 Timeline: The Wall 00:25:54 Timeline: Always 00:26:43 Timeline: Ice 00:26:49 Timeline: Duck 00:27:14 Timeline: Purple Rain 00:28:09 Timeline: Streets have no name 00:28:52 Timeline: Reverse delay 00:29:34 Timeline: Tape delay (slapback rock and roll) 00:30:10 Timeline: multi-tap (run like hell) 00:30:55 Dan’s tips on what pedals to buy 00:31:18 Tremolo – slapback delay (50s) 00:31:30 Less delay, wah wah and fuzz (60s) 00:31:56 Analog delays and chorus (70s) 00:32:52 Chorus and big delay (80s) 00:34:50 Into the Great Wide Open through the looper as a basis for a jam track 00:37:54 First pedal for Dan would be an overdrive 00:41:01 Explanation of overdrive 00:44:27 A good idea for a second pedal – a clean boost 00:44:49 On a clean channel – take into a solo 00:47:37 On a drive setting – a similar application shows the difference in lift 00:50:15 Buffered vs true bypass 00:55:37 Another great pedal is a wah wah 01:01:18 Next suggestion is a compressor 01:03:07 Good for Country music 01:03:46 Using a slight driven sound the compressor sustains the notes 01:06:11 Next type of pedal we discuss is a phaser 01:07:18 Using a phaser on Money (Pink Floyd) 01:08:05 You do something to me – Paul Weller 01:10:12 Another pedal to consider is a flanger 01:11:44 Next pedal is a chorus 01:13:02 Demo – chorus 01:14:18 Tremolo effect 01:17:27 Dan explains how he practically uses his board live 01:20:01 What is delay? Quick rundown 01:26:30 Tying your cables together and prepping your board for a quick setup

Pedals on our boards:

Dan’s Board (although his wah wah is a mini) Dan also has a long loop pedal (the QuarterMaster6 bottom right) for controlling his other pedals and he has the multiswitch for the Timeline too. He also has his purpose-built amp channel switch on there too.

Gary’s board:

HyperFocal: 0

Last nine lessons for new arrivals or those who want to brush up on this contentCurt Mangan Strings Website: https://www.curtmangan.com/

youtube

Keep watching listening and getting in touch. We really want to hear from you!

You may want to check Dan Davies out in action. You can find a video I made of Dan and his band Full House on this YouTube channel: Full House Brighton Band (more to come with improved video and some different approaches to the audio).

Enjoy your musical journey 🙂

Video #Guitar Lesson 18: Which #pedals are most useful and what do they all do? #boss #pedalboard #strymon #delay Video Guitar Lesson 18: Which pedals are most useful and what do they all do? Thinking of starting out with guitar pedals and not sure where to begin?

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alanjguitar · 5 years ago

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Best Electric Guitars for the Money in 2020- List, Reviews & Buyer’s Guide

In this review, we’ll explore five instruments that are the best electric guitars in their respective price ranges.

These electrics are all stage-ready and more than enough to get you gigging. This doesn’t mean that if you’re an absolute beginner you should move on though! My high range for an entry-level guitar is also the bottom range for perfomance-grade instruments, so for the most part we’ll be looking at guitars in this sweet spot.

I could write a list like this featuring only multi-thousand dollar guitars, knowing that their quality is practically unbeatable, but I and no one I know has that kind of money to drop on a new instrument. So, I’ve kept our options realistic and within a budget that the average player can afford.

Our Recommendation

It’s never easy choosing the best of the best, and I feel like I’m doing the #2 spot a bit of injustice when I say they’re any lesser than the #1 guitar in this type of review.

But, specs and everything aside, going solely on my own preference, I’m gonna say that the best electric guitar for the money is the Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR.

It has everything I want in an electric: a Floyd Rose whammy bar, 24 extra jumbo frets, powerful dual humbuckers with a push-pull coil splitting option, and killer looks. I’d say this beast is practical in just about any electric guitar application, and it’s right around the highest amount I’d be willing to pay for a new guitar.

The bottom end of the best goes to the Gretsch G5220 Electromatic Jet BT. It’s a great electric by many standards, but is a little short on features compared to the other guitars we’ll take a look at. For its price, you can’t do much better, but there are enough guitars I consider much cooler to push this model to last place on our list.

The 5 Best Electric Guitars for the Money – Overview

#5 Gretsch G5220 Electromatic Jet BT

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3.75/5 Star Rating

Specs

Body – Mahogany with laminated Maple top

Neck – Mahogany

Fingerboard – Black Walnut

Electronics – Dual Black Top BroadTron humbuckers

Pros

Chambered body for added tone depth and resonance

Mahogany + Maple body tonewood combo brings sparkle to the warm voice

BroadTron humbucking pickups have just enough juice to hit the stage with

Cons

Chambered body makes this more a semi-hollow than a solid body guitar

No tremolo bar, limited features

Review

I’ll never be one to badmouth Gretsch guitars. They manufacture some great instruments in a huge range of prices, and even their bottom-line beginner series are better than the average electric.

Whether you’re a fan of Gretsch or not is a matter of taste, and is probably largely based on aesthetics. Their guitars all look kind of old-fashioned, not that there’s anything inherently wrong with that.

With the Gretsch G5220 Electromatic Jet BT, classic looks combine with modern electronics to form an excellent performing guitar for under $500.

It uses their in-house model BroadTron pickups, which are pretty powerful lower cost humbuckers that sound just as good clean as they do distorted. Gretsch has this handy guide to all their pickup designs, so you can see if the BroadTrons are right for you.

These pickups set into the Electromatic’s chambered mahogany body give you a tone that’s heavy in the bass end, with booming lows, a sultry midrange, and highs are never shrill.

Individual volume controls for each pickup and a 3-way selector switch give you a decent amount of control over your sound, so you can dial into the best tone for whatever genre you’re playing.

Some players might feel deceived to find out this is a chambered guitar. What this means is that the mahogany in the body is cut out in some spots, which is hidden by the maple top.

This adds resonance to the tone and reduces the guitars weight, but gives you less articulation and precision of sound than you’ll find in a standard solid body electric.

You’ll have to see if the Electromatic sounds right for your purposes, but I think it works great for most genres. And if you really love the tone of this guitar, you should take a look at some of Gretsch’s higher-end models, like the G5420 that we reviewed here.

#4 Squier Classic Vibe 70s Jaguar

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4/5 Star Rating

Specs

Body – Poplar

Neck – Maple

Fingerboard – Indian Laurel

Electronics – Dual Fender-designed Alnico single coil pickups

Pros

Retro look and sound in an affordable throwback model

Versatile vintage tone and volume controls

Shorter-scale C-shape neck with comfortable 9.5″ radius

Cons

Squier often mocked as a trash brand — NOT TRUE

Funky Jaguar body shape not choice for all players

Review

If you’re a fan of vintage guitars, you’ll love Squier’s Classic Vibe series.

If you don’t already know, Squier is a branch of Fender that produces guitars that are generally much less expensive than their Fender-branded counterparts. They often use comparable materials, and the difference mostly lies in the electronics and hardware.

Unfortunately, Squier has an unjust stigma attached to them, often viewed as a brand for kids, or just as cheap and low quality. The truth is that they have some really decent guitars under their name, and if you know what you want in an electric, you can probably find a Squier model that you’ll love.

The Squier Classic Vibe 70s Jaguar is a modern take on Fender’s 1970s-era Jaguar models. It is kind of an odd-looking guitar, with an unusual body shape and even more unusual tone controls.

In this guitar, you alter the tone through a series of switches and knobs configured in a way that makes it look a bit like an old sci-fi prop — like a guitar they might play in Star Trek or “Invasion of the Pick Snatchers” type deal.

As far as tone and playability goes, this Jaguar model is great for softer rock, clean genres, and anywhere that you want the snap and shine of single-coil pickups.

It’s not a guitar I’d play a colosseum with, but for smaller shows and definitely for honing my skills at home, I think it’s a super fun, happy sounding electric. We featured another model from the Classic Vibe series that you can read about here.

#3 Fender Player Stratocaster

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4.75/5 Star Rating

Specs

Body – Alder with Flame Maple top

Neck – Maple

Fingerboard – Maple

Electronics – 3x Player series Alnico V single coil pickups

Pros

Lightweight alder body for all-night playing comfort

Quick playing satin finished maple neck

Classic Stratocaster sound

Cons

Stratocaster sound not for every player or every genre

Review

I started playing guitar with aspirations to be one of the greatest metal guitarists around. Because of this, I was at first pretty anti-Fender. They were softy guitars, more for country and pop than the heavy grindcore I was practicing.

However, the older I’ve grown the mellower I’ve become and the more I’ve come to appreciate this brand of electric. Now, I think it would be great to own a Fender, and I can see myself playing one every day for the rest of my life.

You’re probably already at least somewhat familiar with Stratocasters. They’re almost 60 years old, and are such iconic guitars that it’s hard to imagine you’ve never seen or heard of them before.

The Fender Player Strat is the up-to-date version of the guitar that has been famous in rock’n’roll for over half a century.

It has retained all the features that make Stratocasters so popular; the lightweight body, the bright happy tone, the three single-coil pickups, and the comfortable fingerboard great for both high-speed chops and chilled out chord progressions.

Its modernized features include redesigned Alnico V pickups, the ability to control the middle pickup’s tone, and a streamlined manufacturing process that allows it to be sold at a price that won’t make your hair stand on end.

Stratocasters have their pros and cons like any other model, but are functional in a large variety of genres and playing styles, from classic rock and country, to fingerpicked folk, to blues and jazz and much more.

I wouldn’t throw it in Dropped-C tuning and try to play some palm muted breakdowns, but I know what it’s capable of and will play all my favorite soft rock covers to my heart’s content on this beauty.

#2 Ibanez Iron Label S Series SIX6FDFM

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5/5 Star Rating

Specs

Body – Mahogany with Flamed Maple top

Neck – Maple and Bubinga

Fingerboard – Ebony

Electronics – Dual DiMarzio Fusion Edge humbuckers

Pros

Ibanez trademark Nitro Wizard neck for lightning fast playing

Coil tapping feature for single-coil sounds

Ultra-responsive ebony fretboard for powerful chords and precise licks

Cons

None

Review

It was a real close tie for first place between this guitar and the ultimate winner, and truthfully they’re both about equal depending on your needs and desires.

The Ibanez Iron Label from their renowned S series is a guitar specifically made for metal, and is the first guitar on this list really suited for that genre.

First and foremost, like most Ibanez guitars it is designed for super fast speed. If your ambition is to be one of the speediest solo guitarists in the world, this guitar will give you a good boost in that direction.

Wizard necks are the fastest playing in the industry, and the Nitro is the head of the pack in this line. In the Iron Label SIX6FDFM, the neck is topped with a bound ebony fretboard, giving you a responsive playing field that is great for arpeggios, riffs, bends, and tapping style leads. We talked about the JEMJR, another guitar equipped with a wizard neck, in this article.

Its body is primarily mahogany, giving you an overall dark, warm, bass heavy sound, but is capped with flamed maple to bring out the brightness and clarity of each note.

This is all brought to life by super powerful DiMarzio Fusion Edge humbuckers. These double coil pickups are packed with coils and deliver tons of boom in every range. There are no fizzly highs, no weak lows, and the midrange is as pronounced as can be.

If you need to go clean or get a lighter sound, the Iron Label has a coil tapping feature so that you can easily switch to single-coil mode.

As a huge metalhead, this is electric designed for the genre is one of my favorite guitars available today.

#1 Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR

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5/5 Star Rating

Specs

Body – Mahogany with Quilted Maple top

Neck – Mahogany

Fingerboard – Rosewood

Electronics – Neck: EMG 89R Bridge: EMG 81TW

Pros

Coil tapping mechanism for a huge variety of tones

Floyd Rose tremolo bridge for super high squeals and tremendous dive bombs

Extra deep cutaway for flawless upper fret access

Cons

None

Review

In our #1 spot is the Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR, another great metal guitar whose coil tapping feature lets you play in pretty much every genre you desire.

Schecter makes some mean looking guitars, and the C-1 FR is among the meanest. It’s a beaut, looks like the kind of electric the devil would give you in exchange for your soul, and plays like one too.

Looking at it, you could guess that this is a great guitar for playing metal, but you might be surprised at its other capabilities. The coil tapping feature, one of my favorite additions on higher end electrics, allows you to switch from double coil humbuckers to single coil configured pickups with the simple push or pull of a volume knob.

Since both pickups can be tapped individually, you have a plethora of configurations you can choose from. This enables you to play full humbucker for the heaviest music in existence, switch to full single for softer styles such as funk and jazz, or to mix it up for strange fusion tones or your own custom sound.

It’s powered by two beastly EMG humbuckers, commonly considered to be some of the best on the market. They’re built for power and crunch, but deliver clean tones with a clear sonic aesthetic that is without rival.

Top all this off with the Floyd Rose tremolo bridge, which you can find out about more here and lets you warp your riffs in unimaginable ways, and you’ve got one of the best value electric guitars money can buy.

Buyer’s Guide

What Makes the Best Electric Guitar?

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different electric guitars available today.

Some are totally substandard and won’t give you even a day’s worth of playing pleasure.

Some are good enough for practice at home, but I wouldn’t play them in front of any size crowd.

Others are show worthy, but have their limits.

I tried to present to you only guitars that I would play in at least an average sized show.

They’re solidly constructed, with no flaws that can’t be overlooked or otherwise remedied, and some are true powerhouses of electric guitar rockability.

To be considered one of the best, a guitar needs to be not only playable, but super fun to play and have features that reduce fatigue and add comfort to every performance.

Their pickups can not be substandard at all. This is the driving force of an electric guitar, and each one on this list has pickups that will do more than the basic job of transmitting your vibrations. They pick up on each frequency and transfer it with trueness to the amplifier, so you don’t have to worry about overwhelming the mix with wacky tones in any range.

Additionally, I think an electric guitar has to look pretty cool. There were some options I could have told you about, but they just look too weird to make the cut.

So the guitars on the list have the following features:

Their playability is not only functional, but of top-notch quality

Their tone is more than standard; it is outstanding

They’re made to last, so you can rock as hard as you want

They’re versatile, and can perform in a range of genres. No one trick ponies

They not only sound and play good; they look good and will make you look good playing them

You’re getting your money’s worth, and not spending more than you need to sound great

As you can see, there are no Gibsons on this list. Gibsons are great guitars, no doubt, but I think they’re usually overpriced and you will mostly be paying for the name and for the prestige that comes with owning this brand. For the money, there are many options that are much more worth it.

Who Should Buy One of These Guitars?

I strive to be inclusive in my recommendations and avoid reviewing guitars that are totally out of the league for most players.

In the bottom end of this list, numbers 4 and 5, you’ve got guitars that are great for beginners, but can also please a pro.

If you buy one of those guitars as your first instrument, you won’t need to buy another one for years. They’re versatile performers that you can master the craft on, and will take you from learning the basics at home to playing your first shows.

Higher up on the list, we start to get into guitars that I wouldn’t necessarily recommend for first-timers. If you’re just starting out, keep your costs low so if you decide that playing guitar isn’t for you, you haven’t sunk a fortune into equipment you’re not going to use. We’ve reviewed lots of less expensive guitars here.

Starting with the Fender, the guitars become professional grade. They’re capable of playing public, from dive bar open mics to relatively large official venues.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4-7mCCycvw

It’s not until we get to the last two that I would really consider them good enough to play for huge crowds, but this is a matter of opinion. But, if you’re a touring musician who plays for large crowds, you can be sure that #2 and #1 are top-quality axes that are ready to melt your fans’ faces.

Can These Guitars Be Upgraded?

I’m of the belief that most electric guitars can be upgraded, at least to a point.

For the first two guitars in this list, they could definitely benefit from a pickup upgrade. This small change can bring you so much tone you’d be surprised.

This can be done either by a guitar tech or by you if you’re feeling handy and adventurous. The Gretsch and the Squier are both great project guitars if you’re looking to learn the craft of wiring or other basic guitar tech skills.

For the higher end guitars, that not much that you need to change, but there’s always something you can change. I’ve had multiple friends remove their Floyd Rose bridges in exchange for Ibanez locking systems, and you might not be a fan of either DiMarzio or EMG pickups and may want to switch out for your preferred electronic system.

The basic fact is: yes, these guitars can be upgraded depending on how much extra time, money, and effort you’re willing and able to spend.

What Are These Electric Guitars Good For?

A quick rundown of what these guitars are best for:

Gretsch G5220 Electromatic Jet BT – blues, jazz, country, soft rock, classic rock, funk, rockabilly

Squier Classic Vibe 70s Mustang – blues, jazz, country, soft rock, punk, funk, classic rock, alt rock, rockabilly, pop, soul

Fender Players Stratocaster – blues, jazz, country, all rock genres, punk, funk, rockabilly, pop, soul

Ibanez Iron Label SIX6FDFM – all rock genres, all metal genres, punk, funk, jazz, fusion

Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR – all rock genres, all metal genres, punk, funk, jazz, fusion

The Final Word

You’ll see that in this review, the lowest priced guitars are just under $500 and the price range extends to right under $1000.

I think this is the perfect price range for finding the best guitars for the money, and if you spend any less or any more, you’re not going to do any better.

This is the sweet spot for electric guitars. They run from beginner level to professional quality, but are all playable outside of your bedroom.

You and you alone know what makes a guitar best for you, so do your research, meditate on your options, and go where the music leads you.

More electric guitar recomendations by Alan:

Under $500

For people with tiny hands (like me)

How to learn electric guitar for beginners

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