WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Are you into free jazz?

If so, does a modern free prog-jazz-fusion quartet (drums, bass, 2 guitars) sound appealing?

Actually, if you are talking about Coltrane, yes. If you are talking about modern free jazz, no. What I heard is twisted Coltrane and Miles licks, and hipster doofuses saying to themselves 'I would explain this to you all, but you can't possibly understand it'. Expression is transparent. And the audience knows if you are lying.

I am more into a quartet like tablas/violin/cello/guitar. I can do bass pedals and low frequency sounds, so I don't need a bass player if I don't have one available.

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Hey Mincer,

What are your two most embarrasing moments?

Do you have any regrets?

What are the best moments where you've said to yourself "I am so glad I did/said that?"

Do you have an X-factor in your rig? A constant feature that gives you that certain tonal character...

Embarrasing? I was playing a festival with my fusion-y band, and I was wearing these Thai fisherman pants...they tie in the back, the sides of the legs are open and the legs are really wide. Kinda looks like you are wearing a skirt, I guess, out of really nice fabric. Well, they looked awesome, in a martial arts kinda way. While I was playing, the ties (in the back, mind you) came undone. They started slipping off. If the ties come undone, nothing is keeping them on. Except my guitar pressed *really hard* against my pelvis (owww!)...and I had to call my gf out of the crowd, on the stage, while we were playing to run behind me and tie them again. All caught on the jumbotron on the side of the stage. Yeah, I'm cool.

Regrets? Not musically. I am sure in life, yeah. When I was younger I could have been more 'there' for my relationships in my life. I could have stayed in college. I could have been more responsible when I was younger. But now, I don't think I would change a thing. My office has guitars and amps in it...how cool is that?

The 2nd group I put together in Florida was really a duo. Me, and a female singer/flute/celtic harp/recorder player who improvised with vocal loops and chanting and really adventurous stuff. We were told by lots of people we should just do covers and why don't we do this or that. To this day I am happy the stubborness of 2 20-somethings with their committment to an aim produced several CDs of music I can be proud of today.

I started with just a guitar and an amp. I use tone controls a lot. I use pickup selectors, and the volume knob a lot. I also think 'linearly' if that means anything. In other words, the melodies and lines I create have a continuity across scales- and, I still am learning. I mean, every day I have a list of stuff to work on. It might be a song I am writing, a picking exercise I read, or sound design. Also, I really don't like to listen to what I have recorded in the past- it is like looking at pictures of myself. So, I am always trying to build on what I do.

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

You are one of the members i got inspired...And i respect your work alot!

How do you begin to "let your toughts" flow to your fingers?
do you just warm-up and let it flow ,or do you have basic patterns to begin and just build over those patterns..Like some 8/8 rythm track with an easy bass-line...
Better said ,are you jamming first and vreating ,or have an idea in your head and make it bigger?

I wonder that ,since i sometime just write stuff for a particular tone..Whacky ,crazy ,stupid tones with synths and lot's of delay...That's lot's of fun ,burt only happens when i experiment...

I heard that you have the same thing going ,but i don't know why you do that and how you do that!

Nice well BTW.Thanx alot!

No problem! Happy you enjoy it!

Improvisation is a lot of work. I have to practice it. One way, is start a recording and play. Play for an hour. Listen the next day. Be honest- is this something you want to listen to? Is it noodling? Is playing over static chord progressions fulfilling? Most guitarists run out of ideas in 10 minutes. Including me. So, we then say 'OK, my licks are over, now what'. And we have to think. It is work- no more relying on muscle memory, no more patterns. That tape is running, and you gotta listen to it. You don't play anything you don't want perserved, so what is left? This is where the art is, and this is what we work on.
I generally won't work with static chord progressions- the ear gets tired from hearing 3 chords over and over. I am much more interested in maybe a 1 note bass line, either repeating, or in a drone. I am not locked into specific harmony then, and I am free to overdub chords from many keys overtop. Similar to the way one of my bands work- we pick a note, usually a bass note (played by me w/bass pedals). The rule is, no repeating chords. I practice this stuff. A lot. When I am ready to 'play' with people, I have something to say.
I say, use those wacky tones in the band! If the band doesn't like it, find another outlet, maybe some other musicians willing to take the leap with you. I have found, that, if you really believe in what you are doing, other people will jump aboard that train.

[daemon barbeque]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

great response!!!Thanx alot!!!

Yeah i do the same thing ,mostly let the ideas grow in me some weeks ,and than try to evolve from there and let it get complexer ,more fulfilling!!!
My main problem is Equipment...I need better equipment..I have many good musicians around me..Lack of time and money is a bigger problem

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

no problem! equipment isn't such a huge problem- even a dealy or reverb pedal is a great place to start...hell, i started with a chorus pedal and the volume knob on the guitar. some pretty cool textures there.

[Tor]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Thanks for an interesting response on my questions. I know you have been a great fan of King Crimson, and I'll need to check those out soon.

As for the second part of your response, it's interesting to see that both you and Geoff (WahWah) have brought out the social aspect of musicianship and emphasized it so clearly, especially keeping in mind both of you are in the business for a living. I can absolutely see why it is important for those that are on your levels, but it's also a great point for us that keep the guitar as a hobby; we may not be so aware of the importance of this that we'd like to think..

Yeah, before I forget, do put out a clip in the Tips and Clips section when you've done some looping work with your DD-20. I have been toying a bit with it now, and I really like the abilities it has. Putting a reverb in front of it also makes it alot easier to create something more interesting through the SOS function.

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

OK! I will have to work on a clip. I don't use the DD-20s SOS function much, although it is a good basic looper. I tend to like setting a long delay with 95% feedback and build an improvisation over that. Static loops are good for other things, but the lack of pedal control over the volume of the loop makes me choose the DL-4 for static loops.

[Tor]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Ah, I see.. I'll have to try out the DL-4 someday too..

[Hot _Grits]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

-Ever worked with a Chapman stick player or played one?

-Ever hurt yourself going after a Holdsworth chord?

-Does the Blue Angel still get use? can't remember if yours is the head or not. If so, what speakers do you like for it?

-give us your top five 70's fusion records...

-do you scallop all your necks?

-As a Sabbath fan, what do you reckon is the silliest Sabbath lyric?, and what era/albums do you prefer regarding Tony's tone?

-What is the strangest bill you've ever played on?

-As a teacher, are there any specific approaches you work on with your students? do you try and guide players towards certain ways of approaching the instrument, or do you just supply them with what they are after? both maybe?

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

-Ever worked with a Chapman stick player or played one?

-Ever hurt yourself going after a Holdsworth chord?

-Does the Blue Angel still get use? can't remember if yours is the head or not. If so, what speakers do you like for it?

-give us your top five 70's fusion records...

-do you scallop all your necks?

-As a Sabbath fan, what do you reckon is the silliest Sabbath lyric?, and what era/albums do you prefer regarding Tony's tone?

-What is the strangest bill you've ever played on?

-As a teacher, are there any specific approaches you work on with your students? do you try and guide players towards certain ways of approaching the instrument, or do you just supply them with what they are after? both maybe?

- As far as a Stick player, no, not yet, but I have tried to play a 12 string Grand Midi Stick. Made of Purpleheart. I sucked at it, although it sounded beautiful, just not when I played it.

-Playing Holdsworth's 'Three Sheets to the Wind' will hurt anyone's hand. My old band used to play Bruford's Hells Bells, but there aren't crazy chords in that one.

- I use the Blue Angel 1x12 with the jazzy blues band I play with. Usually on the 6v6 setting. I love that amp. I use the stock Mesa Black Shadow in it.

-Favorite Fusion records..(in no order)
1. Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame
2. Jeff Beck: Blow by Blow
3. Dixie Dregs: Dregs of the Earth
4. Jean Luc Ponty: Enigmatic Ocean
5. Shakti

- I don't scallop all the necks, just the Ernie Ball/Music Man. For me, it works well with that guitar but it isn't something I need to have on every guitar.

- silly Sabbath lyric? Just read the lyrics to 'Iron Man'. Some of the later Sabbath albums like TYR or Forbidden have absolutely hysterical lyrics.
Tony's tone hit its peak with Heaven and Hell and the Live Evil albums. He started getting this weird midrange thing going on with later albums. Although I love his sound on Born Again, the production is so awful it covers a lot of what he does up. The Ozzy era is all over the map tonally. I have to go with the live album 'Live at Last' from 74-75 as his best tone. Again, the weird production on a lot of the mid-70s Sabbath albums really obscured his sound then.

- strange bill? Oh my...one happened this year. I played a solo acoustic show (all instrumental, with looping) for a Scientology-sponsored Holiday toy drive. Before me was a local dance school who did these stripper routines. Personally, I wouldn't have a problem with it, except the girls were 12-14 years old. Funny, the parents were beaming from the audience. It was really uncomfortable. Strange, when the front of the stage consisted of 40+ year old guys watching them very closely. I heard a parent say 'oh look, they really like my daughter...she trained so hard for this!'. Part of my pay was a hardcover copy of Battlefield Earth. No lie.

-As far as teaching, I try to have each student as their own entity. I don't give them one path- everyone has different goals. Not everyone wants to be a pro guitarist. They do learn what they like, but I make them work. We learn technique excercises, reading music, songs they like, creativity and improvisation. It is really important to me to let them be creative. You don't have to be a certain level to write songs, or improvise. The hardest part is allowing yourself to play something badly, and be ok with it. Our first improvisations are not the best. But they get better. But you have to go through them sucking to get better. For adults mostly, this is hard to overcome.

[JustWendell]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

If you could have one super power what would it be?

Favorite hero, villain, or character?

most useless effect/stomp box you have come across (in terms of tone)?

You sound like the type of instructor I'd like to have someday as I'd rather learn how to maximize my creativity than learn songs by somebody else. Do you have any tips that make you think in a more creative manner?

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

If you could have one super power what would it be?

Favorite hero, villain, or character?

most useless effect/stomp box you have come across (in terms of tone)?

You sound like the type of instructor I'd like to have someday as I'd rather learn how to maximize my creativity than learn songs by somebody else. Do you have any tips that make you think in a more creative manner?

Wow, a superhero one!
Most people with superpowers use them to gain advantage over other people- that kinda sucks. Right about now, I'd love the power to get the right amount of sleep every night.

Favorite hero? Bond. James Bond. The toys. The girls. My god, the girls.

The most useless effect had to be the Sitar Swami- sounded more like a Swami caught in a dryer than a Sitar. That has to win some kind of bad effect award. The Zoom 505 series wins the 'bees in a jar' award, and shame on them for teaching kids that this is what multi-fx sound like.

As far as thinking creatively...well, one thing that helps is get away from the guitar. Go to a museum. Meet visual artists, writers and actors. They are as wacky as we are, but in a different way. Creativity is contagious. Listen to music other than what you would normally listen to. Go see live music, and again, something different than what you play. Meet other musicians who don't play guitar and have no idea what a Les Paul is. Creativity is hard work.
An example: I have done lots of long-form improvisations, so as an exercise, I tried to compose some new music. Not just any music, but really short compositions. This presents a problem- how to come up with a cohesive musical idea that is just 10 seconds long? And then what do you do with such a thing?
Ringtones. Useful, and a fun creative exercise. So over a month, I recorded 20 of them, mostly in stlyes of music I really have no knowledge about. It was fun, I learned what worked over a tiny cell phone speaker, how to use my DAW better, and now, when my phone rings, I know for certain it is mine.
There are lots of small challenges we can present to ourselves, which can help us grow as an artist. Unless you have a teacher or someone is demanding something for a specific musical project, we have to be motivated to push ourselves. If not, we keep repeating. That is fine for a lot of people, but it isn't something I want to listen to.

[JustWendell]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Wow, a superhero one!
Most people with superpowers use them to gain advantage over other people- that kinda sucks. Right about now, I'd love the power to get the right amount of sleep every night.

Favorite hero? Bond. James Bond. The toys. The girls. My god, the girls.

The most useless effect had to be the Sitar Swami- sounded more like a Swami caught in a dryer than a Sitar. That has to win some kind of bad effect award. The Zoom 505 series wins the 'bees in a jar' award, and shame on them for teaching kids that this is what multi-fx sound like.

As far as thinking creatively...well, one thing that helps is get away from the guitar. Go to a museum. Meet visual artists, writers and actors. They are as wacky as we are, but in a different way. Creativity is contagious. Listen to music other than what you would normally listen to. Go see live music, and again, something different than what you play. Meet other musicians who don't play guitar and have no idea what a Les Paul is. Creativity is hard work.
An example: I have done lots of long-form improvisations, so as an exercise, I tried to compose some new music. Not just any music, but really short compositions. This presents a problem- how to come up with a cohesive musical idea that is just 10 seconds long? And then what do you do with such a thing?
Ringtones. Useful, and a fun creative exercise. So over a month, I recorded 20 of them, mostly in stlyes of music I really have no knowledge about. It was fun, I learned what worked over a tiny cell phone speaker, how to use my DAW better, and now, when my phone rings, I know for certain it is mine.
There are lots of small challenges we can present to ourselves, which can help us grow as an artist. Unless you have a teacher or someone is demanding something for a specific musical project, we have to be motivated to push ourselves. If not, we keep repeating. That is fine for a lot of people, but it isn't something I want to listen to.

What a great answer, but it does then require a follow up:

Rank the bond actors in order of greatness

Top 5 fav bond girls

[Mincer]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

As far as the Bond actoris, I am far from a purist. I have seen all movies many times- but honestly, I really like the new guy. #2 would be Dalton. #3 would be Pierce.

I like Connery, but even when he was in his 30s, he looked like he was 55- he always seemed too old to be doing all those stunts. Moore was even worse in that regard- I couldn't imagine how those women found him attractive. Moore was the Bond I grew up with in the late 70s/80s too. The movies got a lot better when they had a capable actor playing Bond.

As far as the girls?
For older Bond, I gotta go with the original, Honey Ryder from Dr No.
Melina Havelock from 'For Your Eyes Only' gets a mention too. Both Vesper Lynd and Solange from the recent 'Casino Royale' are serious contenders too.

[stevie_bees]

Re: WELLXV: Cat's foot, Iron Claw...Mincer's well is open for all

Dalton is a very underated Bond IMO....

Where and when did you have your greatest on stage moment?

Favourite note on the guitar, and in what position?