Phoenix Arizona based Surf-Punk band The Rebel Set invaded Southern California this July to infect us with their completely unique music. There are very few bands quite as unique as they are, and they get better every time I see them.
Here is a recording of their live show at the Redwood Bar in downtown Los Angeles.
As well there are photos up from this performance on Flickr.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Jackson Browne covers Warren Zevon
Jackson Browne covers Warren Zevon's song Play It All Night Long with backing band Dawes.
La Dolly Vita
Billy Corgan giving it the ole' College try on his acoustic performance of the Smashing Pumpkins song La Dolly Vita
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Thomas the Bear - Nothing Could Be Better
This is a song about being deluded. It means whatever it means to you.
This is the last Thomas the Bear song, probably.
I played did everything on this song
Nothing Could Be Better by Noise about Noise
Thursday, April 8, 2010
My Evolution of Tone
Guitarist Mark Mason of the band Seven Car Pileup explains how he developed his current guitar rig. Hopefully this will be insightful of the process of being a guitarist for those who perform, or who simply enjoy it.
Guitarist spend retarded amounts of time in a feeble attempt to develop a sound all their own. Some stop once they reach something passable, and others keep at it in a quest to archetype a sound which exists in their wildest dreams. I fall into the last group. Some may think it insanity, but I feel that the tone of my instrument is almost as important than the way I perform it.We'll start with my first "complete" Seven Car Pileup rig.
Epiphone LesPaul Deluxe with 57 Classic Pick-ups -> EHX Big Muff -> Boss TU-2 (tuner) -> Boss Volume Pedal -> Digitech Whammy -> Boss CS-3 -> DOD FX-25 -> MXR Phaser -> Morley Bad Horsie Wah -> Line 6 Delay -> Ibanez TS-9 -> Marshall JCM900 -> LopoLine 4x12 slant cab (with Eminence Red White & Blue & Man O Wars in XY)
It's amazing think about it, but this rig was from 2007. Quite a few of the pedals were used very sparingly and served little purpose. This was back in the day when I would do what I like to call pedal dancing. In fact, the rig was so large that my pedal board case was keyboard case size. It was first rig after Lucky and I believe I was trying very hard to do a better job at lead guitar than the lead guitarist for Lucky. This also back in the day when I would do a "pedal board" solo. I would use the guitar's feedback as oscillator and control it's pitch with the Whammy pedal and use the other pedals to modify the tone. I do miss it at moments, and it had a very unique vibe. However, it was a monstrous beast to deal with and the sound would often vear into 90s rock.
The first thought I had when I went to change my rig was that I needed a new amp first. Something very clean and pure, to go along with a new simple and small feel. I bought a Vox AC30, and it was right away a much nicer clean amp than anything I've ever owned. I alos bought a guitar to replace my Epiphone Les Paul, a 70s Ibanez Les Paul which I love. However, all the gear shuffling I did was really not that necessary as when we went into the studio we used Flying Blanket's gear and so my next live rig was based upon the gear we used on the EP as well as the ability to emulate tones on previous recordings with my previous rig.
Eventually I came to the following rig.
I used this rig for about a year. It served me well, and I probably wouldn't have changed anything until the rectifier tube blew out on the AC30 right before a show. I was forced to use a little Silvertone amp I had with an old Gibson amp Jess (bassist) was borrowing from a friend. I have never had more compliments on my gear than I did after that show. I have made a few adjustments to it since then, tweaking the tone a bit and removing some of the pedals here and there, but the rig I'm at now does some very cool things. I might change some things out here and there, and I'm also considering putting together a B-Rig. However, at this moment this is my sound.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
My Top 10 Guitarists of the 1990s
How I judged:
Technical Ability - Their ability to move around on the instrument.
includes: versatility(10) control (10) and quality of tone (10). - 30 points
includes: versatility(10) control (10) and quality of tone (10). - 30 points
Unique-ness - How different their view of the instrument was than others at the time.
includes: rhythm voicing (10) lead voicing (10) and tonal uniqueness (10) - 30 points
includes: rhythm voicing (10) lead voicing (10) and tonal uniqueness (10) - 30 points
Influence - How many current guitarists are/were influenced
includes: shortly after (10) currently (10) - 20 points
How well they work/ed with others - Did they make their band better
includes: previously (10) currently or towards the end (10) - 20 point
1. Tom Morello - 93 - Without a doubt one of the geekiest men to ever wield a guitar, Tom played less like a guitarist and more like a DJ. Morello with Rage Against the Machine was able to successfully invent and popularize a whole new way of approaching the guitar. Using the whammy pedal, normal guitar controls, and thoughts about the instrument Morello forever changed the way people will think of the guitar and the guitar solo.
2. Josh Homme - 92 - Today, Homme is best known know as the guitarist vocalist for Queens of the Stoneage, but he's been a Stoner rock pioneer since 1985 when he formed the cult favorite Kyuss. He also did session work with Screaming Trees, and started Queens of the Stoneage in 1997. He has single handedly developed an iconic complex form of hard rock guitar style, as well as popularizing a super rare ovation electric guitar.
3. Ian MacKaye - 91 - MacKaye was the front man for Bad Brains influenced Minor Threat, and in 1987 created the seminal post-hardcore Fugazi. Fugazi wasn't just a band they were a movement. They actually made the world a better place, and along the way gave a lot of upcoming bands their big break. Before alternative rock was called alternative rock it was called post-hard-core. Music would probably be pretty boring today without the contribution of MacKaye and Fugazi did. If you're scratching your head listen to Fugazi's Waiting Room. MacKaye revolutionized guitar and he did it all, with one Gibson SG and a JCM 800.
4. Kurt Cobain - 90 - Whether he was a really lucky a great plagiarizer or supremely gifted is completely irrelevant, Cobain forever changed the guitar, and rock music, with 4 chords. I'd love to see you try and do that.
5. Billy Corgan - 90 - Corgan wanted to play rock music in an era in Chicago music history when rock was very unpopular. Well, he not only played rock music, but in the course of 4 years created two of the best albums the city has ever birthed. But that wasn't enough in order to be the best he had to create a double disc manifesto on what Corgan thought guitar could and should be. Every song brought in new approaches to rock guitar, from the sweeping epic Tonight Tonight to the ballsy brooder Bodies to the sparse heart breaking acoustic ballad 33. No guitarist has ever done anything quite as ornate and gotten away with since.
6. John Frusciante - 89 - Once Frusciante realized who he was on Blood Sugar Sex Magic, the Red Hot Chili Peppers finally moved past cult funk-punk rockers to the alt-rock superstars they are today. He had his flip-out where he couldn't deal with being a super star, but he eventually accepted it and has gone on to help create enough hits to keep RHCP on the radio for decades to follow. No guitarist will ever sound as good with Flea, or vice-versa as John Frusciante. If you're a bass player you better hope your guitarist likes him.
7. Dean DeLeo - 88 - The originality of Stone Temple Pilots aside, Dan DeLeo is a brilliant guitarist. If he wasn't the lead guitarist of STP he would have been the guitarist for the most popular cover band in San Diego history. DeLeo should have his picture next to versatility in the guitar dictionary. His sounds covered the complete spectrum of what Rock guitar was in the 1990s, and he pulled off every bit with style and poise.
8. Mike McCready - 88 - Without McCready Pearl Jam wouldn't have been quite the band they were. McCready was the flashy blues guitar soloist which gave Vedder's vocals a musical equivalent. Few people have been able to rise up from the Stevie Ray Vaughn/Jimi Hendrix School of guitar playing and develop their own voice. McCready is one of them.
9. Kim Thayil - 87 - Thayil helped form the hard-rock variant of the Seattle sound in 1984, with Soundgarden. Thayil's guitar playing is the perfect synthesis of Iommi style heavy riffs and Gilmour style psychedelic atmospherics.
10. Rivers Cuomo - 87 - Cuomo formed Weezer in 1992. Weezer is the most important post-grunge band that has ever existed, and Cuomo along with guitarist Brian Bell have created some of the most enduring and imaginative guitar riffs of the 1990s, and they were able to do it with just 2 albums. With their first self title album (the Blue one from 1994), Weezer mixed Cars style pop anthems with 70's style hard-rock guitar. On their second album Pinkerton (1996) they unveiled a raw honest sound that rivals many guitar rock albums to this day.
includes: shortly after (10) currently (10) - 20 points
How well they work/ed with others - Did they make their band better
includes: previously (10) currently or towards the end (10) - 20 point
1. Tom Morello - 93 - Without a doubt one of the geekiest men to ever wield a guitar, Tom played less like a guitarist and more like a DJ. Morello with Rage Against the Machine was able to successfully invent and popularize a whole new way of approaching the guitar. Using the whammy pedal, normal guitar controls, and thoughts about the instrument Morello forever changed the way people will think of the guitar and the guitar solo.
2. Josh Homme - 92 - Today, Homme is best known know as the guitarist vocalist for Queens of the Stoneage, but he's been a Stoner rock pioneer since 1985 when he formed the cult favorite Kyuss. He also did session work with Screaming Trees, and started Queens of the Stoneage in 1997. He has single handedly developed an iconic complex form of hard rock guitar style, as well as popularizing a super rare ovation electric guitar.
3. Ian MacKaye - 91 - MacKaye was the front man for Bad Brains influenced Minor Threat, and in 1987 created the seminal post-hardcore Fugazi. Fugazi wasn't just a band they were a movement. They actually made the world a better place, and along the way gave a lot of upcoming bands their big break. Before alternative rock was called alternative rock it was called post-hard-core. Music would probably be pretty boring today without the contribution of MacKaye and Fugazi did. If you're scratching your head listen to Fugazi's Waiting Room. MacKaye revolutionized guitar and he did it all, with one Gibson SG and a JCM 800.
4. Kurt Cobain - 90 - Whether he was a really lucky a great plagiarizer or supremely gifted is completely irrelevant, Cobain forever changed the guitar, and rock music, with 4 chords. I'd love to see you try and do that.
5. Billy Corgan - 90 - Corgan wanted to play rock music in an era in Chicago music history when rock was very unpopular. Well, he not only played rock music, but in the course of 4 years created two of the best albums the city has ever birthed. But that wasn't enough in order to be the best he had to create a double disc manifesto on what Corgan thought guitar could and should be. Every song brought in new approaches to rock guitar, from the sweeping epic Tonight Tonight to the ballsy brooder Bodies to the sparse heart breaking acoustic ballad 33. No guitarist has ever done anything quite as ornate and gotten away with since.
6. John Frusciante - 89 - Once Frusciante realized who he was on Blood Sugar Sex Magic, the Red Hot Chili Peppers finally moved past cult funk-punk rockers to the alt-rock superstars they are today. He had his flip-out where he couldn't deal with being a super star, but he eventually accepted it and has gone on to help create enough hits to keep RHCP on the radio for decades to follow. No guitarist will ever sound as good with Flea, or vice-versa as John Frusciante. If you're a bass player you better hope your guitarist likes him.
7. Dean DeLeo - 88 - The originality of Stone Temple Pilots aside, Dan DeLeo is a brilliant guitarist. If he wasn't the lead guitarist of STP he would have been the guitarist for the most popular cover band in San Diego history. DeLeo should have his picture next to versatility in the guitar dictionary. His sounds covered the complete spectrum of what Rock guitar was in the 1990s, and he pulled off every bit with style and poise.
8. Mike McCready - 88 - Without McCready Pearl Jam wouldn't have been quite the band they were. McCready was the flashy blues guitar soloist which gave Vedder's vocals a musical equivalent. Few people have been able to rise up from the Stevie Ray Vaughn/Jimi Hendrix School of guitar playing and develop their own voice. McCready is one of them.
9. Kim Thayil - 87 - Thayil helped form the hard-rock variant of the Seattle sound in 1984, with Soundgarden. Thayil's guitar playing is the perfect synthesis of Iommi style heavy riffs and Gilmour style psychedelic atmospherics.
10. Rivers Cuomo - 87 - Cuomo formed Weezer in 1992. Weezer is the most important post-grunge band that has ever existed, and Cuomo along with guitarist Brian Bell have created some of the most enduring and imaginative guitar riffs of the 1990s, and they were able to do it with just 2 albums. With their first self title album (the Blue one from 1994), Weezer mixed Cars style pop anthems with 70's style hard-rock guitar. On their second album Pinkerton (1996) they unveiled a raw honest sound that rivals many guitar rock albums to this day.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
It comes from the blues.
Every time I listen to a song in the genre called "the blues" I remember why I play music.
Past all the spotless production sheen, fancy image tricks, and sex appeal, there is an energy that us musician get to channel. A restless spirit which is contained inside each inspirational note. You see it really doesn't matters when you played, where you played, how much you were payed to play, or why you played. It's all about the restless cry that exists in the way Miles Davis made his trumpet cry, Muddy Waters made his harmonica scream, and Jimi Hendrix made his guitar scream. The sound is intoxicating and it pulls me into it like a siren. I want to be a part of it. I want to conect to that open channel, and I know I'm not alone.
It's odd, but when you're up on stage and the audience is full of people. It doesn't matter how much you practiced or how fancy your musical tools are there is an energy that connects everybody. Sometimes it's hard to dial into it, but when you can there is very little on this earth that is better than that. But it's really quite a wonderful thing. The music which really makes a difference gets past silly things which divide us like genre or language or politics. Rage Against the Machine was a powerful protest band not because the lyrics were incredibly insightful, but because their music had that "blues" spirit in it. Next thing you know the children of very same white republicans they were raging against we're chanting along to Bulls on Parade.
It means something. Even without words. And when you combine powerful words with that super powerful music...
it changed this kids life
Past all the spotless production sheen, fancy image tricks, and sex appeal, there is an energy that us musician get to channel. A restless spirit which is contained inside each inspirational note. You see it really doesn't matters when you played, where you played, how much you were payed to play, or why you played. It's all about the restless cry that exists in the way Miles Davis made his trumpet cry, Muddy Waters made his harmonica scream, and Jimi Hendrix made his guitar scream. The sound is intoxicating and it pulls me into it like a siren. I want to be a part of it. I want to conect to that open channel, and I know I'm not alone.
It's odd, but when you're up on stage and the audience is full of people. It doesn't matter how much you practiced or how fancy your musical tools are there is an energy that connects everybody. Sometimes it's hard to dial into it, but when you can there is very little on this earth that is better than that. But it's really quite a wonderful thing. The music which really makes a difference gets past silly things which divide us like genre or language or politics. Rage Against the Machine was a powerful protest band not because the lyrics were incredibly insightful, but because their music had that "blues" spirit in it. Next thing you know the children of very same white republicans they were raging against we're chanting along to Bulls on Parade.
It means something. Even without words. And when you combine powerful words with that super powerful music...
it changed this kids life
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