Revelation
Today was band practice, and it was great. Not one of best practices sound-wise, defenitly not, but I had a revalation.
Ealier in my music-making I used to believe the more faster and complicated, the better. That theory brought me very far, but an incorrect theory can only go so far before it is proven wrong. I realize that today, because my playing was nothing short of just plain crap: I couldn't think of anything that really was..any good, at all. Guitar is not meant to be the only thing people hear and the only thing that makes the song sound great.
Ofcourse, faced with a problem, I listened to Muse's Absolution. With it's instruments, it really stays in a very basic note transition, while being great because of the vocal line on top of it; that never stays very similar at all. It is always unique, because with collaberating instruments playing different things, and a vocal line that doesn't follow any of it, it's impossible to immitate anybody else. All bands do this in some way. This is not a rule-of-thumb, it's more a large generalization, because all songs are different and break this idea in a million ways, but follow it on SOME kind of level. Great music comes from the heart, and that'll never be the same thing someone else pulled from the heart. Backround instruments, like rhythm guitar and bass, generally stick to an area of notes in a mini-scale or chord and complex the rhythm of the notes, and the speed, and the timing, and lack of notes [or change] within each measure. ALSO, they work TOGETHER to make the great sound, and their combination is complex, but not each one individually. The vocal lines are usually the complicated ones, staying within key of the simplistic guitar but running across the scale of possible notes it can make. Also, after a few stanzas, there is always some sort of large change, whereas inbetween stanzas changed are small.
It may seem like I'm doing the opposite, but it's also bad to over-think it. I know this, and am guilty of it, but will hopefully cease to do it.
The only way a singer will sound his best is if he opens his throat large enough, and shoots his voice out, unchanged by curving your mouth to make it sound like somebody else, and letting your unique, lone standing voice reign. Lots of bands immitate a kind of singing because they want to be good like them, but then they never sound any different. They can't let fear of judgement make prevent them from being the best they can be. I do this (not the immitating), and it's time to stop. Hitting high notes, your throat tenses up, and it's painful; which is why it's so hard. The more relaxed you try to keep it, and the more you practice, the better and true you sound. Every voice is great in it's own right..but it takes alot of practice before it really sounds like it.
Simplicity is the key..is what I'm trying to say. I always knew it..and even said it to myself..but I never really saw it for what it really is like I do now.
I've been trying so hard and I think I've finally gotten the hang of being a good student, academically wise. Always doing my homework and studying for tests and paying attention in class. It's working out, too, my grades are great. Hopefully I can get my GPA where I want to. It's really important to me.
Everything has been good? I guess?
Ealier in my music-making I used to believe the more faster and complicated, the better. That theory brought me very far, but an incorrect theory can only go so far before it is proven wrong. I realize that today, because my playing was nothing short of just plain crap: I couldn't think of anything that really was..any good, at all. Guitar is not meant to be the only thing people hear and the only thing that makes the song sound great.
Ofcourse, faced with a problem, I listened to Muse's Absolution. With it's instruments, it really stays in a very basic note transition, while being great because of the vocal line on top of it; that never stays very similar at all. It is always unique, because with collaberating instruments playing different things, and a vocal line that doesn't follow any of it, it's impossible to immitate anybody else. All bands do this in some way. This is not a rule-of-thumb, it's more a large generalization, because all songs are different and break this idea in a million ways, but follow it on SOME kind of level. Great music comes from the heart, and that'll never be the same thing someone else pulled from the heart. Backround instruments, like rhythm guitar and bass, generally stick to an area of notes in a mini-scale or chord and complex the rhythm of the notes, and the speed, and the timing, and lack of notes [or change] within each measure. ALSO, they work TOGETHER to make the great sound, and their combination is complex, but not each one individually. The vocal lines are usually the complicated ones, staying within key of the simplistic guitar but running across the scale of possible notes it can make. Also, after a few stanzas, there is always some sort of large change, whereas inbetween stanzas changed are small.
It may seem like I'm doing the opposite, but it's also bad to over-think it. I know this, and am guilty of it, but will hopefully cease to do it.
The only way a singer will sound his best is if he opens his throat large enough, and shoots his voice out, unchanged by curving your mouth to make it sound like somebody else, and letting your unique, lone standing voice reign. Lots of bands immitate a kind of singing because they want to be good like them, but then they never sound any different. They can't let fear of judgement make prevent them from being the best they can be. I do this (not the immitating), and it's time to stop. Hitting high notes, your throat tenses up, and it's painful; which is why it's so hard. The more relaxed you try to keep it, and the more you practice, the better and true you sound. Every voice is great in it's own right..but it takes alot of practice before it really sounds like it.
Simplicity is the key..is what I'm trying to say. I always knew it..and even said it to myself..but I never really saw it for what it really is like I do now.
I've been trying so hard and I think I've finally gotten the hang of being a good student, academically wise. Always doing my homework and studying for tests and paying attention in class. It's working out, too, my grades are great. Hopefully I can get my GPA where I want to. It's really important to me.
Everything has been good? I guess?