Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Fuck Buttons - Ribs Out

Our heart belongs to Hua Hsu for this wonderful article that was printed yesterday online for Slate.com , in which he discusses the seminal vulgar-worded bands of the last two years, including Shit Robot , Holy Fuck and… (in post Slate talks bands with cuss word names from the culture of me. Download this at iTunes More by this artist at Amazont)

Just recently I was trawling through my own personal myspace page, which incidentally I don't use that often. I noticed that I had a few new friend requests. On inspection there where the few obvious spammers and a few actual people, but, there was one particular bands music profile which stuck out!

That band where called The Vouch. I thought at first, what a cool name, so I accepted the add.

A few weeks passed and I began using myspace page a little more, to stay in touch with friends. I then began noticing I was getting harassed with messages, constant bulletins and quite frankly it was bothering me. I made the decision that I was going to block them from my friends list. So I proceeded to click on there profile for the first time, a moment I wont, forget may I add. A huge sound passed through my small pc speakers and monitor. A soft broken melodic voice and piercing lead guitar followed. With nothing short of breath taking drumming!

I couldn't believe I had ignored this for so long! I was robbing myself of a brilliant experience! The tracks on the page where comparative to those of a certain Mr Lennon and McCartney and a Mr Davies. Very raw very British and very catchy.

Now I must say that I have removed myself from the current music scene, as quite frankly it is tripe! I spend my time listening to the Beatles, the Kinks, the Stones and any bands which have really stood the test of time! So I was quite taken a back by the ability of a small town unsigned band! So I did a little more digging, compared them to other local unsigned acts, nothing came close! This is why I urge you to listen to The Vouch.

They are a 5 piece from extremely humble beginnings. They originate from Cannock which believe me is a place best wiped off the map, voted 5th worst place to live in the country! Its a former mining town, and with no intention of offending people there, it has become a breeding ground for zombies born and breed to work underground. There music is often dreamy mixing facts with fiction to create a real experience, when listening!

After really getting into the bands recordings I decided to make the journey to one of there live shows. They appear regularly at the Rock Cafe Cannock but this was not really a venue I wanted to visit. So on closer inspection of their gig guide I found a gig at the dirty south club London, the band had arranged coach travel. So I decided to get in touch and get down there. They where due to support a dj set from former oasis guitarist 'Bonehead', so I thought it would be a good night.

The Day Of The Gig

The coach arrived at 4 o'clock on a Saturday to pick us up from the dreaded 'Cannock bus station'. I hoped on to find it full of drunken teenagers and thought what am I doing. I sat at the front alone for around an hour, before a chubby young lad introduced himself to me. He walked to the front of the coach, carling cans in hand one of which he passed to me, and said "Ort, I'm Beaver."

The trip on the coach took around 4 hours and was extremely wild, not for the faint hearted. I felt really sorry for the coach driver!

We arrived in London at around 8.30pm local time and went into the venue. I was very surprised to see the band just instantly mingle with there friends and fans and drinks where exchanged immediately. Time slid by as I spent most of the time with my new acquaintances ,'Beaver' , watching the other support acts. Several pints of Guiness later and toilet breaks, the band arrived on stage. With the front man and bass player tuning in to the dirty pretty things anthem 'Bang Bang You're Dead'. They immediately threw there instruments to the floor and jumped into the growing crowd to dance and....... well......... go metal really.

Was this a ploy to create mayhem I'm unsure, but it did work! They took to the stage in a venue, that you wouldn't imagine would have much of an atmosphere....... but they seemed to create there own. Track after track of exhilarating music, the crowd loving it, with some minor stage invasions.

All in all I sum up that The Vouch are a must see!

Josh Smithyman


If You Want People to Buy from You Stop Trying to Sell to Them

Have you ever had a person not listen to what you are saying because they have a sales script they want to follow?

They are trying to sell you something, you tell them you arent interested, yet they keep on going.

Pretty annoying isnt it?

I bet you never realized that you can have that same affect on people by the way in you present your sales materials. But its true. You can turn off potential customers and clients with your sales letters and emails.

Internet marketers especially fall prey to the annoying over selling syndrome.

If you are going to setup a website and build a list in hopes of eventually selling thousands of dollars worth of products then you might as well do it right.

This is the wrong way:

You find a niche or business angle.

Setup a website and autoresponder.

You find something to give away so that people will be enticed to subscribe.

*BAM* You have their email address so you send them sales letter after sales letter.....

Hi Friend,

Let me tell you about this new product that my friend Jane Doe has just announced.

The problem is that when people first subscribe to your list, chances are they don't know you. They don't know what you are about and they probably just subscribed to get some information- information sans a price tag.

Instead set your first few autoresponders to send targeted and useful information without any sales pitches.

Once you have gotten those few trust-building emails out of them then you can begin to offer sales specials...but not on a daily basis.

Provide value first and then you'll see results. You have to give before you can receive.

Donyell (DJ) Nelson is an Internet entrepreneur and talk radio show host who helps people start and run successful online businesses. Be sure to grab your internet business freebies when you visit http://www.Donyell.com


[NEWSFLASH] HAROLD HUNTER x ZOO YORK

On May 17th the 2nd Annual Harold Hunter Day brought together NYC’s skateboarding community for a positive day of shredding in honor of the late, great Harold Hunter.  More than five-hundred skaters and spectators swarmed the Manhattan Bridge Skatepark for a heated six-hour session with beats provided by New York’s finest, Pete Rock.  Afterward, the masses flocked to KCDC Skateshop where, in true Harold form, the party bumped late into the night.

In celebration of this noteworthy occasion and to keep Harold’s spirit strong, the non-profit Harold Hunter Foundation has teamed up with The Zoo York Institute to release a limited edition HH Day II commemorative deck and t-shirt featuring Harold pics by long-time friend and acclaimed photographer, Giovanni Reda. 


Both items are now available only at select New York shops including Rival, Autumn, Everything Must Go, Richmond Hood Company, Blades, DQM, and Homage.  Additionally, a special bundled kit including a deck, t-shirt and signed copy of Reda’s “Harold Hunter: The Book” is available exclusively at KCDC.  Proceeds from the sale of all HH Day II commemorative gear will be donated to the Harold Hunter Foundation which will use the funds to send six underprivileged NYC kids to Camp Woodward this summer.

A complete event wrap-up is available at hhday.blogspot.com, and a Harold Hunter Day II podcast shot and produced by RB Umali will release in late June.

Online acoustic guitar lessons give you the flexibility to work at your own pace. Make a folder and save all of these acoustic lessons together. Be organized and your acoustic guitar lessons will be more productive. Keep your songs together and your technical exercises together. Over the years I have found that for the most part, the more organized a student is, the more they learn.

Another great benefit of online acoustic guitar lessons is you get to work on what you want when you want. If you want to spend all your time working on your repertoire, you can. Be careful though to not let too many days pass without doing some technical studies. I would say no more than 3 days in a row only doing songs.

The first things you are going to want to do are getting your chords together and build your repertoire. Put together a little list of songs that are easy to play. There are thousands. Here are a couple of examples.

Wild Thing: A D E D

Knocking On Heaven's Door: G D A- G D C

Add these to your list and build on it. Memorize the songs so you can go to a jam and teach others. Then they teach you the songs they know. Before you know it, you have a huge repertoire going. Make your goal to learn 3 tunes a week. Do this each and every week. Imagine I year from now. Also every time you go to a jam session you will probably pick up more than 3 new tunes. Add that to the three tunes you learned on your own! You can even be the life of the party when you take out the guitar and show everyone what you have been doing. Again imagine I year from now.

Learn basic blues progressions as well. This will give you hours of jam material. Learn the shuffle rhythm too, as many guitar players will know how to do this and everyone can play off each other. It's a great addition to the jam!

Want to know even more about playing acoustic guitar and easy ways to speed up your learning? Visit my site below.

http://FreeAcousticGuitarLessons.wordpress.com


[ARTICLES] MELBOUNE LAUNCH FOR PUMA BLACK BEAST!

Come join us Friday the 27th of June at PROVIDER TRAINERS for the Melbourne launch of the BLACK BEAST Blaze of Glory! Only 12 pairs will be for sale, so get there nice and early! There'll be giveaways, free booze and maybe, a special appearance. See you then!


How can country love songs find perfect partners? Thats outrageous, I hear you cry.

Stick around, Ill show you.

First, another question: why are you reading this article?

Its a fair guess that your answer is either, because I like country music, or Im looking for a partner, or both.

Wouldnt you love to find a partner who shared your interest in country love songs. Knowing that you both shared a passion for great music would be a perfect prelude to a great relationship,. Youd be flying right from the start.

Imagine swimming in your partners eyes while John Denver croons you fill up my senses, like a night in the forest, like the mountains in springtime, like a walk in the rain, like a storm in the desert, like the sleepy blue ocean.! And thats just one of thousands of songs that could accompany your romance; think of I Cant Help Falling in Love with You, or Behind Closed Doors.

And thats only the beginning. The music is the backdrop to your relationship. With country music as a common interest, its more than likely that youll find you share a whole host of other country interests.

The bond of shared interests is a solid platform on which to build a long-lasting relationship. Youll always have plenty to talk about and things that you both enjoy doing together. A day out in the country beats a trip to a shopping mall any day. Well, it does in my book.

When youre at any type of social gathering look around and notice who livens up when country music is played. Browse around near the country music section in your music store. You never know who you might strike up a conversation with.

Its my belief that peoples likes in music tell you a lot about the type of person they are.

Can country love songs really find the perfect partner for you? All I can say is that they played in the background when I was courting, and weve been married one heck of a long time.

David Ferrers researches, writes and lives the country life. He is an expert on Country Music, Country Singers, Country Guitars, Country Clothing and all things country. He writes great articles everyday and publishes videos on his blog the Country Music Man about How to Live The Country Way for a Really Full and Rewarding Life.


[NEW RELEASE] PUMA X SNKR FRKR BLAZE OF GLORY (BLACK BEAST)

Following on from the initial ‘Great White’ colorway released in April 2008, we can now reveal the stunning second version of the Sneaker Freaker X PUMA ‘Jirozame’ project. This new colorway of the PUMA Blaze of Glory flips the shoe to inky black, with a slash of vivid color that sets it off in all the right places. Highlights include sensual nubuck with turqoise sateen, silky laces, red chunks and poppin’ pink bits, all hooked up with the legendary smoke-tinted Trinomic cell unit in the sole of the shoe.

There’s also a choice of several beautifully designed insoles and multiple laces to complement the highly distinctive sneaker. “This thing looks evil!” says the editor and founder of Sneaker Freaker, Simon “Woody” Wood. “ And I love evil! It’s seriously the most comfortable shoe PUMA has ever made. Once you put this thing on you’ll never want to take it off. The Trinomic system was so far ahead of its time, you won’t believe your feet!” Be wary of its apparently docile nature, this one is lethal. And very, very black.

Here's a list of retailers below so find the one in your local area and bug them because as always, numbers are limited and you won't wanna miss out.

READ MORE ABOUT THE SNEAKER FREAKER BLAZE OF GLORY SHOE HERE.

AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS Provider (Melbourne) // Apartment (Brisbane)

NORTH AMERICA Atmos (NYC) // ARC (NYC) // Bodega (Boston) // Premium Goods (Houston)
Livestock (Vancouver) // Ubiq (Philly) // Undefeated (US) // Classic Kicks (NYC)

EUROPE Colette (Paris) // The Gloss (Zurich) // Hanon (Aberdeen, Scotland) // Shinzo (Paris)
Solebox (Berlin) // Sole Service (Oslo) // Sneakersnstuff (Stockholm) // Size (Carnaby St) // 90 SQM (Amsterdam)

ASIA Beams (Tokyo) // DMOP (Hong Kong) // Limited Edt (Singapore) Mita (Tokyo) // Sole What (Malaysia)

 

 

To see pictures of the Great White version of this shoe, go here...

I'm having a Monday. Oh, not a commonplace Monday involving skipping your shower to make a early meeting, running over the trash can at the end of the driveway with the minivan, followed by 90 minutes in crawling traffic and highlighted by a double-double down your drawers just before you learn the meeting wasn't cancelled, didn't you get the memo?

My Monday is far more ominous.

My Monday feeds on my innermost fears for a full month, seeping to the surface of my subconscience after 28 days of terror. I'm like a human about to turn werewolf, counting with imminent doom the sunsets until I am made a ghastly monster to all who know me.

My Monday: Deadline for my music column.

As a self employed musician acting as freelance writer on the side (my grandparents are still waiting to hear the punchline) I fit in my work whenever I can, which translates into late nights and frantic attempts at forming a... cohesive... sentence between... interruptions from... my four-year-old son.

Between music, business and family life I keep a fast pace, cramming in relaxation like one forces a spoonful of a nasty liquid that is supposed to be good for the spleen or some other so-called necessary organ. As if I weren't busy enough, this pace is accented by my lurking mental calendar, knowing deadline is upon me.

Deadline usually manifests itself when I am at my busiest, or worse yet, when I am trying to relax. As I type this, I am visiting with family in Washington state, alone in a dark, moist room like a leper, pouring my heart into my laptop while my family enjoys some rare Seattle sunshine.

(Cue tragic violin music...)

I never intend to place myself in this wretched situation each month, it sneaks up on me and by then I don't have the foggiest idea what to write about. Apparently, I am not alone in my suffering. In a recent American poll, 95% of college students surveyed said they procrastinate frequently. 11% of procrastinators wasted time thinking of ways to get out of writing their paper, and 17% would rather watch paint dry than complete their paper.

Procrastination strikes writers of all types. Composers are notorious for procrastinating, which is usually a result of “creative block.” Ludwig van Beethoven spent 12 years composing his 9th “Choral” Symphony and was unable to write at other times, sometimes going months or years without having the inspiration to compose. Franz Schubert began writing 13 symphonies but only following through to complete 8, the final of which only has 2 movements and has been since dubbed “The Unfinished Symphony.”

The pressure to “produce” is so intense that people will try anything to make their deadline. For instance, Sergei Rachmaninoff, fed up with waiting for “the muse” to return, sought the help of a hypnotherapist, who apparently helped locate the missing muse (maybe it was behind the fridge?) and to whom Rachmaninoff's 2nd piano concerto was dedicated.

No fruity therapy for this skeptic. I'm content plodding along, banging my head on my laptop (*%@$#) until the column comes naturally, thank you very much. Ironically, my best work comes from being under a deadline. I concoct some swell stuff, like musical compositions, tax returns and the column I should be writing right now. Once the adrenaline and caffeine slam together somewhere in the middle of my frontal lobe, I chain myself to the computer and accept a late night of frantic writing as the last minutes of my Monday deadline swirl around me.

My favorite fiction writer, Douglas Adams of the “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” series and a notorious procrastinator once said, “I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”

Whoooooooosh!

Ok, time to get serious and write something before the full moon rises.

Rhiannon Schmitt (nee Nachbaur) is a professional violinist and music teacher who operates Fiddleheads Violin School & Shop. Fiddleheads has won several distinguished young entrepreneur business awards for her comittment to excellence. Her shop offers beginner to professional level instruments, accessories and supplies. http://www.fiddleheads.ca provides a rich resource of information on her school, products for sale and her many writings.


Dreamsploitation - Our Future Salad Days

myspace Today has been a debacle of a day. Not to sound like a throw away from the Matrix, but the thing about working a computer job is that there are some days where you basically feel like… (in post Quick hitters:: Dreamsploitation from HeroBlog. )

The use of backing tracks is not only for karaoke singers but for performing artists too. If you are in a band of any sort then this information is for you to help take your act to the next level. Especially if you're performing in some sort of tribute act or cover band.

For years I've been singing and playing in various rock bands and for the greater part have been very well received in front of audiences. Up until not too long ago I would be inclined to pick songs that we performed based on how accurately we could represent that song from a stage. That is, could we cover all the required parts that make a song a hit and do it justice. Every so often a song would come along that required keyboards that were so important in the song that the song was just not worth doing without it. We wouldn't be able to do it justice. So, rather than ruin the song we would put it on the shelf as a song we wished we could do. I didn't see the sense in hiring a full time keyboard player to play in 20% of the songs at best so it made more sense to not do the song.

As the time went on of course I joined a band that was using backing tracks to cover piano parts in songs and even complex backing vocals and instantly realized what those tracks are worth to a performer. That meant that the very difficult backing vocals could be spot on every time and the back up singers could sing easier lines when playing live, giving the back ups a lot of depth. It also meant of course that the music was greatly enhanced. The average audience member doesn't really pick up on a band using tracks. All they realize is this band sounds far better than the band last week but don't really know why. The answer is in the tracks. The lead singer can harmonizie to his own voice more easily than someone else can do it so he should be the one getting recorded. Be careful not to put in too much though or you risk the show becoming a karaoke act.

An important point to consider is what to do if you have technical problems. You need to have a way out. You have to know your show. I've been onstage and had the monitor system fail and not been able to hear the backing tracks and had to rely on the drummer keeping proper time. Using the tracks he has a click track in his left ear he should at least be able to keep time. He gets the click from a pre-recorded track that has a click track on one side and the song sample on the other side. Using a small mixer on stage he can send the music the main mixing console and nobody in the audience will hear the click track.

Using backing tracks are a great way to give your show a very competitive edge and set you apart form the rest of the bands in your circuit, area, etc. I will always use them now and am happy to because all the songs that I put on the shelf in the years gone by can now be done properly.

Ian Kurz is a singer/guitarist and the owner of the site http://www.discoveryoucansing.com
Visit his site here to learn more about using backing tracks on stage. They will give your act some serious edge.


Fender Electric Guitars - As Played By Stevie Ray Vaughan

Stevie Ray Vaughan hailed from Dallas Texas, and his name is synonymous with fender electric guitars. Stevie predominantly played a late fifties or early sixties version of the Strat (opinion is divided on its exact date), but there is no doubting that it was a Fender Stratocaster (Strat) guitar. Stevie seemed to favour this guitar over most others, and the sound is distinctly Fender, and Strat in particular, in quality.

The sound produced by Stevie Ray is almost classic Fender. The Strat is very distinctive, and adds a beautiful tone, especially to Stevie Ray's blues playing. There is a lot of recorded music by Stevie Ray, and all of it is great to hear. I certainly recommend that you seek some out and enjoy the Texas blues at its very best.

Stevie's background was steeped in the blues, so it is no surprise that his recordings feature many blues cuts. The video of Stevies' performance of Texas Flood is a great example of his feel for the blues. Stevie didn't stop with the blues though, and he used his Fender Guitar to great effect on many of his own compositions, as well as blues classics. He played a kind of shuffle exquisitely, as demonstrated on brilliant tunes such as 'Pride and Joy' and 'Cold Shot'. SRV also covered many rock classics, and could do anything song he turned his attention to justice.

I had the great privilege of seeing Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble at the Hammersmith Odeon (it's now called something else I think) in London, in the late 1980's. Apart from the pleasure of seeing SRV play, the event was doubly memorable for me because Eric Clapton came in, accompanied by Ringo Starr and other halves, and sat down in front of me! How cool was that.

Stevie wrapped his Fender around all his classic cuts, including some specialty rocks songs that he covered, in honour of his peers. I am thinking here of Jimi Hendrix, for whom SRV covered Little Wing and Voodoo Chile. And Stevie's renditions of these songs were spectacular. However, remembering Eric Clapton, reminded me of another SRV cover, which I recall EC getting very animated about, And that was a version of Stevie Wonder's classic song 'Superstition', played with all the panache you would expect from a super showman like Stevie Ray Vaughan. And if Eric Clapton loved it, who am I to argue?

I am very grateful to the likes of Google's You Tube that allows us to see late great artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan plying their trade. Seeing these great performers, many on stage where they were in their element. is a chance to see great workmen use their tools of trade, which in Stevie Ray's case, was a Fender Electric Guitar!

Fender electric guitars rock! Stevie Ray Vaughan played them, so could you! Great music, great guitars, great time!


The First Step and Most Important Thing in Learning Guitar

Most of the guitar lovers playing guitar for few years but still unsatisfied with their progress. They feel like still stand at the starting point and can't enjoy their playing. This mainly caused by most of them don't build up a strong foundation at the begining. I found that some of the guitar learners even just playing guitar for one to two years but are more better than so many that playing for over five years. This is the foundation problems. Me myself was an example when I started playing guitar long time ago.

The secrets of learning guitar are mostly base on the foundation.To have a good foundation for future success,we need three important factors :-

1.Listening:

Ear training is a MUST basic training that every guitar learner should have. But most of them avoid this as quite a boring and time-consuming job. Without a good listening, we are unable to move to higher level.
To overcome this problems, I suggest that guitar learners may choose one of the well known Ear Training software on internet. I found that there are few really good software that will improve your listening step by step and really FUN. You feel like playing game when you learn.

2.Daily practice: (Both fingers and ears)

Daily practice is another important thing we should do.(Ex.fingers exercises, practice for the basic scales)
I suggest that beginners practice PENTATONIC SCALES at the starting point because this scales are the most simple scales that only have 5 tones. Try to practice 20 to 30 minutes daily. Remember that even just 20 minutes of RELAX and CONCERNTRATION DAILY practice is more effective than few hours of unconstant practice.

3.Look for a teacher:

You may find either private guitar teacher or guitar lessons on internet. For my opinions,learn guitar from internet maybe better because of the convinience of time and cheaper. There is just one question of learning from internet that what lessons to choose, what lessons are really work.
Myself as a guitar lover have been playing guitar for 15 years.

I do the research on guitar lessons from internet over 5 years for myself and my groups. I've spent a lot of money for it. Recently I just built up my own little web page telling guitar lovers a few good guitar lessons that really work and would like to share with all of you.

If you are interested to learn guitar, please visit my website at
www.geocities.com/bestguitarlessons/bestguitarlessons.html and look at it yourself.

Regards,

Don Lee


How To Tune A Guitar By Ear In 7 Easy Steps

Learning how to tune a guitar by ear takes practice to perfect but once you have mastered this skill you'll be glad you did.

Guitar tuners are easier to use and a necessity when you are in loud environments where you cant hear very well such as bars. Tuning your guitar by ear will come in handy when you have a guitar but no electronic tuner around.

Besides, if you are playing songs around the campfire, your friends won't want to see you stop and pull out your guitar tuner every time it goes out of tune.

So this is how you can tune your guitar, in standard tuning, by ear!

e|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|--

B|-----|-----|-----|-----|--x--|-----|--

G|-----|-----|-----|--x--|-----|-----|--

D|-----|-----|-----|-----|--x--|-----|--

A|-----|-----|-----|-----|--x--|-----|--

E|-----|-----|-----|-----|--x--|-----|--

1 2 3 4 5 6

It's good to practice trying to tune the A string without any tools to help you. But until you can identify exactly how it is supposed to sound, you can use an A 440 tuning fork.

1. Gently tap the side of the tuning fork on your knee and place the stem of the fork on your guitar. You should now hear the tuning forks "A" tone resonating through the body of your guitar.

2. Now pluck your A (5th) string. Does it sound like your tuning fork? If it does, then perfect, you are ready for the next string. If not, turn the tuning peg down if the note is sharp and up if the note is flat. Once this string sounds like the tone from the tuning fork, you are ready to tune your other strings to this "in tune" A (5th) string.

3. Your next step is to press your finger on the 5th fret on the low E (6th) string and pick it. Now pick the open A (5th) string and compare the two tones. If they sound the same, then your string is in tune. If not, turn the E string tuning peg down if the note is sharp or up if the note is flat.

4. Repeat the last step but this time placing your finger on the 5th fret on the A (5th) string and picking the open D (4th) string. Tune the D string up or down until the two strings sound the same.

5. Now lets repeat these steps on the 5th fret on the D (4th) string and pick the open G (3rd) string. Tune the G string up or down until these strings sound the same.

For the next step you will have to do something a little different.

6. Press your finger on the 4th fret on the G (3rd) string and not the 5th fret this time. Now pick the G (3rd) string and then pick the open B (2nd) string. Tune the B string until they sound the same.

7. Next you will put your finger on the 5th fret of the B (2nd) string and pick this string and the high E (1st) string. Tune the high E string up or down until they sound the same.

Well, there you go. Now you know how to tune a guitar by ear!

"Teach Yourself Guitar The EASY Way" - grab your FREE report that Reveals "How to Avoid the Top 7 Mistakes That Most Beginners Make When Buying a Guitar Learning Product"

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The Easy Way To Bend Guitar Notes

What's the secret to bending strings?

If you watch any great guitarist play, they make it look easy. But that's only because they have put in the thousands of hours of practice that it takes.

Here's a few tips on string bending:

Always wrap your thumb around the neck when you bend strings. This is contrary to "classical technique" but string bending is a modern electric guitar technique so if you're stuck on following the rules, this is the time to bend them.

Your thumb will serve as an anchor and pivot point when you are bending. Have a look at some videos of the great guitarists and watch how they do it.

The most common mistake amateur guitarists make when they try to bend strings is that they push with their fingers. That is not the way to do it. Your fingers' job is to keep the string pressed to the fret. The bending motion comes entirely from rotating the wrist.

Here's how to get the hang of it:

Find a door with a knob. Open the door with your fretting hand. Guess what? The motion you just made is exactly the right motion for bending strings. Do it a few more times and pay attention to how it feels.

Now, go back to your guitar. Bring your hand up to the neck and remember to wrap your thumb around. Relax your arm. Practice making the doorknob motion using your thumb as a pivot point and anchor.

After you've gone through the motions, start trying to bend fretted notes. The easiest note to start with is the 12th fret on the B string. Don't go for anything over a half step to start. Practice slowly, and try to hold the bent notes as long as you can to build up stamina.

If you can get the hang of bending, you will be able to add some of the most expressive sounds to your guitar vocabulary.

Scott Anderson is a guitarist, teacher, and writer.

http://teammethodguitar.weebly.com


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