Re: Any opinions on the popularity of Schecter?
Off topic, but I would make the argument that due to the over abundance of complex and very progressive metal music, simpler music is almost a luxury. I'm not saying don't have chops, but not every song needs to be a 5 minute lesson in shredding or complex arrangements. You say it's much more competitive to stand out, but in an ocean of sweep picking, two hand tapping, and extended range guitars, it's sometimes more fun to hear some meat and potatoes rock and roll, because those guys are doing something that most people think is too easy or too commercial. I play guitar and I enjoy listening to people play well, but I don't always want to hear Yngwie tapping away either.
No worries about off topic. I let my threads go where they may.
I agree completely. Except we're totally inundated with every kind of music conceivable on a daily basis to the point that we've become desensitized even to things like free jazz. On top of that, we have to find ways to encourage consumers to purchase recorded music in an era where music is increasingly difficult to monetize at a profit because everything sounds the same to the listener. (That said, they also tend to buy and attend concerts with traditional tone, songwriting, and production--Nickelback and a lot of country artists that sound close to Nickelback come to mind, but we're also creatures of habit.)
All of those things considered, whenever I sit down to write a piece, both from a musical and production standpoint, the first thing I think is "How am I going to reinvent the wheel today?" It comes out in my gear as well in terms of having lots of options on a single axe and tons of plugins (I'm 34--seems guys my age are never very far from their laptops). I'm always looking for a new angle even though my inspirations are very conventional. Hard to get away from those descending E minor lines.
Some guys like meat and potatoes stuff, but many people can do that, and it has been done to death. 50s-70s music has been done to death. Pentatonics and blues have been done to death. If I were making bank doing cruise ship gigs, I might feel differently, though. But yes my viewpoint is cynical.
But technical doesn't have to always be shredding a million notes. Technique doesn't mean speed all the time. It just means having the theory knowledge (like counterpoint) and technical ability to write and perform without constraints. Eric Johnson's chords might be a good example.
As another example, in my world, people should be able to play on this level semi-casually in terms of technique, feel, and improvisation. I could never play like this, but it's a personal goal of mine to try to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZaB9urlkgA
This is very technical, but it's also musical and inspired. That said, it comes dangerously close to elevator music at times.
I feel like some musicians bash on technical players because they're intimidated and compensating for their own insecurity as players. "I can't play that many notes, but I make up for it with my tone." Great players make average players feel self conscious about their own ability, similar to regular people not liking body builders in a gym. And practicing chops all the time can take the fun and spontaneity out of what, for many people, is a hobby. It's understandable, but it shouldn't close the average player off to playing difficult things because they think technique lacks soul.
Practice is time consuming, but you end up investing an equal amount of time or more trying to write good music when you're technically inexperienced because you don't know what you're doing. Being able to translate what you hear in your head to your hands quickly saves you time instead of trying to figure out things by accident.
Unfortunately, so much time is spent perfecting one's technique. That is why I am a strong advocate for making sure artists are adequately monetized. All that time spent practicing could have been spent working at another profit making venture, and so the artist should be respected and compensated accordingly.
