Welcome ladies and gents. I feel like we need somewhere to just shoot the shit on music that isn't dedicated to pimping our shit for feedback or promotion a la the Art forum. It's like the general chat thread but for music!

I am very interested to hear other people on how and what they do what they do. Equipment, routines, methods; all the good stuff. I know we have at least a couple people that do chiptunes and stuff. I'm not limiting this to one type of music or instrument!

I am not very good but I have tonnes of fun playing guitar. Been playing for about half a year now. It's funny, for years I kept saying I wanted to learn an instrument and a friend (Well, ex-friend now) kept telling me to get a bass as they were a guitarist. That sounded fine to me 'cause, let's face it, bass sounds sexy as hell.

Well, the years progressed and I found myself last year really wanting to do it but I work best with motivation. So I asked some friends to buy and learn/jam with me so we'd all feel motivated to actually play. The only friend that was really gung-ho was interested in bass. Well, you can't really have two bassists and no drummers or guitarists (We are not SMV!) so I decided to pick up guitar instead.

I bought my first guitar as one of those cheap acoustic starter packs, which are generally dodgy as hell (I know now). But it's a Yamaha who have never really made a bad instrument and I really lucked out. It's really nice to play and listen to. Highly recommended.

So I started learning. But I always wanted an electric to jam with friends. So I bought a Schecter SGR 006. I went in expecting to get a Strat of some kind because that's what all my favourite guitarists use and because I really liked the look. I thought I'd want a beefy neck and single coils. I got the opposite after playing a bunch of guitars! It came down to the SGR 006 and the SGR C-1. Same woods, same hardware, same electronics. So I picked the cooler looking one!

Anyway, I've been playing a lot. I'm up to mastering barre chords now that the basic ones are pretty easy to me. Then it's scales and soloing. There's always something more to learn! My main genres are alt-rock and folky sort of stuff.

That's my story and equipment! I'll try and borrow my friend's mic and recorder some time and record some quick demos of stuff I've written if someone wants. Protip: It's not very good

What's your story? I wanna hear it all!

PS: Sorry for the wall of text.

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"Worst case scenario I'll get arrested for public nudity.
Best case scenerio I'll get arrested for public nudity with a boner. It's win win." ~ Dave
"Also Yoshi is the most important person in all of Australia." ~ Zepherin

In ages past (high school) I played the trumpet, and could do the trumpet part in The Final Countdown. But I haven't touched it since I graduated. I want to learn how to play guitar, but I doubt I will ever find the time while trying to get into Nursing School.

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Snafu's Mercypostle.

the thing i've been listening to most over the past couple months is "good kid m.A.A.d city" by kendrick lamar

this is legitimately one of the most masterfully crafted rap albums i have heard in fucking years

i read a review that summed it up perfectly in that it combines "straight-forward rap thrills" with amazingly poignant lyricism and beautiful artistry.

i hardly ever listen to a track from this album, i typically just listen to the whole album from start to finish.

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I'm NORML and I VOTE
Soul Silver Friend Code: 0260-2900-0828

I play both guitar and bass, but I haven't been playing much lately. Given the choice, I'd prefer to play bass in a band or jam section. Recently my brother bought an electric keyboard, so I've started on that a bit , but I'm not that great at it.
I own a Fender Squier electric guitar, an acoustic guitar, and a 5-string Dean bass.

I've been on and off the piano for years. Like, when I was twelve my parents enrolled me with a private instructor to give me an artistic hobby. Dropped out after a year because I decided I was way too busy with all the vidja games. Years later, I decided I needed more artistic hobbies (...) and started again. Then I moved out, and away from our grand piano. Then my mom gave me a Keyrig. It's pretty cool, but it's big and cumbersome and doesn't have a good place in my tiny dorm room. Further, I have to go through a small ritual everytime I want to connect it to the computer and play. No pick-up and play means I can't be bothered to play much.

I also suck. I don't as much play the piano as read notes slowly and meticulously memorize them until I can play them at a decent pace without too many errors. Takes me about half a year to learn a song. Mostly play vidja game music (full circle!).

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I used to play a little piano back then (I hope to get back to it), and I've played a guitar very recently because I found it in the attic. I've kind of deferred it in recent times, though. Being a sciencey major is suffering.

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One time when I was high, I thought I was in an ambulance dying. Turns out I was just eating sherbert.
-stufflikehearts-

Well this is perfect. Grey, as someone who has not really found rap he likes apart from stupid things like "Because I Got High" or BoB's "Magic" what are good starter albums? I don't care for "thug lyfe" styled stuff. I am going to look into the album you are talking about because you've piqued my interest.

Also, lots of piano players here. It's on my list to learn after I become semi-competent at guitar. Well, keyboard anyway. Not much room for a real piano here.

In guitar news, does anyone have any experience with the G&L Ascari GTS or Fiorano GTS? On paper they seem to be perfect fits for me. Set neck, humbucker, push/pull, Gibson scale (Ascari), and so on. Unfortunately the nearest place that stocks them is a state away Also, no money for ages (Damn uni!) so it's a long term goal this year and I intend to play EVERYTHING I can.

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"Worst case scenario I'll get arrested for public nudity.
Best case scenerio I'll get arrested for public nudity with a boner. It's win win." ~ Dave
"Also Yoshi is the most important person in all of Australia." ~ Zepherin

You're thinking about it, eh? I heard that guitar ends up being a bit easier than piano. At first I didn't believe 'em because it was harder to actually play notes, but then once I figured it out, it seems as though the things you do on guitar are a bit simpler, as far as I know. Could be wrong, though.

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One time when I was high, I thought I was in an ambulance dying. Turns out I was just eating sherbert.
-stufflikehearts-

I'm sure Grey's going to give you a more complete list of recommendations but mine would be stuff like Del tha Funkee Homosapien(Deltron 3030, Both Sides of the Brain), De La Soul(3 Feet High and Rising, De La Soul Is Dead), OutKast(Stankonia), MF Doom(MM Food, The Mouse and the Mask), Jay Dilla(Donuts, Champion Sound), Madlib(Madvillainy, Quasimoto), Kool Keith(Dr. Octagon), The Roots(Phrenology), Public Enemy(It Takes a Nation).

*Artist(Recommended Albums)

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CAUTION: Would anyone tell me if I was getting stupider?

as someone who doesn't like thug stylings, i couldn't honestly recommend the album i was just hyping. it uses a lot of hard-hitting, angry sounds and utilises a lot of typical gangsta rap motifs sort of in an homage to the compton heritage of the rapper himself. the lyrics of the songs tell a story but it might be a little dense for someone just getting in to rap. he plays multiple characters and switches the perspective and focus of the story in a very disjointed manner.

if you'd like to listen to rap that proves that it's not all dumb, then i would recommend two major albums. a classic example would be nas' illmatic, which i still believe to be the best rap album ever. nothing nas did after this album touched it, and this was his first album. he always had great lyricism, but once he got famous he worked with producers who didn't give him the right sound. a more modern example would be Madvillainy by Madvillain which is the combination of the producer Madlib and the rapper MF Doom (or currently DOOM). Madlib has released albums under an alter-ego Quasimoto, where he shifts his voice to be comically high pitched, and the first Quasimoto album was produced during a week long shroom binge. DOOM wears a Dr. Doom mask and is one of the most brilliantly gifted rappers to ever live: with astounding intelligence, poetry and a masterful control over his unusual and unique flow.

so in short, listen to the albums where you can find this and this.

and fuck it, listen to this, because this is an indisputable work of art

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I'm NORML and I VOTE
Soul Silver Friend Code: 0260-2900-0828

I haven't had any experiences with that specific brand, I'm sorry to say. If you're looking to try one out, I know Guitar Center has them online. I don't know if they have them in a store near you, or even if there's a guitar center near you. But I thought I'd let you know. You could also try a few local pawn shops, who know you might just find one there.

By the way, what kind of amp(s) do you have, if any? I have a Fender Frontman 15G for my guitar, and a Peavey Max126 for my bass guitar.



So do you have a drummer and/or singer yet? The drummer can sometimes be the hardest one to find, trust me I know.
Also, alt. rock is a good way to go. However, a lot of people I know prefer to play pop-punk and hardcore pop-punk.

Well, I'm a music education major, I play mellophone, percussion, set, guitar and vocals. Uhm... Yeah.

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Escape will make me God.

Hardcore pop-punk, my brain just exploded from that oxymoron.

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CAUTION: Would anyone tell me if I was getting stupider?

I was gonna say "So you mean...punk?"

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Awesome, I'll definitely check stuff out. I have heard of DOOM at least before!


Unfortunately I live in Australia. There are about three guitar places in the entirety of Brisbane. It's cheaper to order from an online place in Aus than Musician's Friend (Guitar Center won't deal with us). But then there's the whole "not being able to play it before buying it" thing. Like I said, the nearest place that sells them is a state away.

As for pawn shops, ha. I always hear stories of people in America finding great, crazy-cheap deals in pawn shops and the like. The only real pawn shops around here are Cash Converters and they either carry junk (No name Chinese ripoff Strats and the like) or price stuff within $20 of a new one. Or both.


I'm running a Vox Pathfinder 10. I picked it for it's cleans. It has the nicest cleans of any practice (10W-ish) amp I tried. Unfortunately trying to play with anything above 1 degree of gain or overdrive sounds terrible. So I'm looking to do two things. First, buy a fuzz (Probably a Big Muff) cause, hey it's a fuzz and I play a lot of 90s stuff. Second is replace my amp when I have money. I'm eying either a Vox AC15 or Blackstar HT Club 40 or something along those lines. Then I'll probably grab a better guitar. But my guitars are pretty fine right now.


I have a friend who sings and my bassist friend wants to sing some songs. I have a bunch of songs I want to sing (Pumpkins, SSPU, etc) but I know I'm a terrible singer so I tend to avoid it.

I'm not worried too much about finding reliable, great bandmates because I'm still at the point where I'm learning and just wanting to jam with people.

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"Worst case scenario I'll get arrested for public nudity.
Best case scenerio I'll get arrested for public nudity with a boner. It's win win." ~ Dave
"Also Yoshi is the most important person in all of Australia." ~ Zepherin

Actually, I think it might be called Hardcore Punk, I'm not 100% on that, I just know it simply a hardcore. It's what the Straight Edge community listens to. It's in my opinion, okay, but I prefer pop-punk, and metalcore, the heavier version of hardcore.



As far as an amp goes, I would recommend a Fender Frontman like I have. It's relativity cheap, but you get a lot for your money, at least as a good starter amp. But I've never tried using it at high volume, because I have neighbors. I've also tried a few Line 6 amps before, and they're pretty good.

90s stuff is the best way to start, just because it's all power cords, and also very simply. The first song I learned to play was Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana. You should try learning Holaday by Green Day, and All The Small Thing by Blink182.

Ugh, metalcore.

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Thanks for the suggestion but I played a Frontman when I was shopping for an amp and I preferred the cleans on my Vox. My preference was (And is) cleans because I can use pedals to augment the dirt. My next amp will be an upgrade to the tune of about AU$1000 or so, +- a few hundred, so above the Frontman range.

I deliberately avoided songs with power chords and all the songs everyone seems to know. I know a few songs with power chords (Today for one) but I generally prefer full chords and barre chords. So yeah, never even attempted to learn Teen Spirit. I can play Zombie, or Disarm or whatever else though. Some Dandy Warhols. That sort of thing.

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"Worst case scenario I'll get arrested for public nudity.
Best case scenerio I'll get arrested for public nudity with a boner. It's win win." ~ Dave
"Also Yoshi is the most important person in all of Australia." ~ Zepherin