Original Piece- War Crimes

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ptate
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Original Piece- War Crimes

Post by ptate »

Hope you like it.

It's a rock piece in memory of all our troops who fought (and continue to) for freedom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXzyyEvB_Wg

ANOTHER VERSION AT THE FOOT OF THIS THREAD....!!!!!
Last edited by ptate on Thu Apr 01, 2010 8:26 am, edited 4 times in total.
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Ritchie
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Post by Ritchie »

I kinda like it .. or more to the point I like theideaof it .

A couple things to bare in mind in instrumental compositions like this is you need a theme or melody that the listener can lock onto ; drama can be built using sounds to imitate bombs falling and exploding , machine gun fire etc , use heavy reverb to add to the atmosphere of those . It's also not a good idea to try and use techiques that are'nt mastered yet in a recording that's public .. you will have far more impactby using something clever and quirky than a tacky swept arpeggio .

I really appreciate you posting your music on this forum , I find it refreshing to find someone sharing their original music . I would love to hear more original stuff from members here and not the same old Crazy train solo over and over again .. :wink:
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Cheers Ritchie.

It's the recording package/set up I've not really got to terms with yet (I'll confess, i'm not a technohead). Only been at the mixing thing for a couple of weeks properly, so when it comes together eventually it'll be fine.

I'm not too arsed about the whole technique thing as I'm not going anywhere with it (at 42, I think my time is relatively over in terms of public display); this just gives me a chance to play things that have been nestling in my noggin for a while.

The idea is not for me to have a strict melody (or sound FX), as I think it's a relatively textbook approach to things and I'm trying to avoid that. I prefer the offhand "classical" approach to composition, with unrelated sections within a tune that return to form a whole and conclude.

I'm going to post something my mate produced with me shortly. He's a professional recording engineer and has been employed by the BBC and Granada TV in that respect. The difference in my "cobbled" together recordings and his is noticeable to say the least.

Anyway, cheers for the comments and let's hear some more.
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Ritchie,

Just as an aside; if I need to bone up on my playing, which technique was painful for you?

Cheers.
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Ritchie
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Post by Ritchie »

ptate wrote:Ritchie,

Just as an aside; if I need to bone up on my playing, which technique was painful for you?

Cheers.
That's a bit of a tough question to answer , what one person finds easy another finds hard ....
I did'nt really find any one techique painful per se' , what i found painful was in the 80's with the whole competition mentality and the fastest player wins :roll:
I did find out that being honest with myself about my playing helped a lot ! , at one stage many years ago I decided to focus on what felt natural to me with my playing style and not focusing on what i'd "like" to play like ( and never really getting there ) , so I honed in on polishing what I have and furthering the style that felt natural to me .

I guess these days I get way more excited about tone and phrasing and choice of notes than i do about notes per second , swept arpeggios , two handed tapping etc ....

Some of the greatest things I found real useful to becoming a better player is : playing with better musicians than yourself .. learning to listen better .. practicing to a metronome or drum machine .. home recording .. learning to play solos through chord changes utilising the modes .. learning to become a great rhythm player and playing with the drummer and accenting drum fills .

always knowing it's a never ending musical journey with always something new to learn hepled too :wink:

Cheers ...
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Cheers Ritchie,

My "natural" style is not rock, metal or anything like. What comes easily to me is slow to very fast blues-based playing as my early heroes were that way inclined.

Sweep arpeggios are not my bag, but fun to do when you push your boundaries a bit. For me, I'm never going to spend hours pontificating over "Altitudes" or "Eugene's Trickbag", nor Yngwie for that, as they just don't appeal to my "sense" as a player (they do as a scientist...!!). I'm just constantly pushing (or punishing) myself to improve as I'm enjoying the journey as an instrumentalist and exploring what a Gibson Les Paul can do without FX (other than a splash of reverb every so often).

Interestingly MSG were the first band I seriously got into, so your "lights Out" rendition fired me up. I'll have to dig out Michaels early stuff again for a listen.

Take it easy. :D
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Ritchie
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Post by Ritchie »

Awesome ! , glad it got you fired up ...


Yeah , i am the same as far as the whacked out Vai stuff etc .. it's totally awesome stuff on a technical level , but for the most part it leaves me cold or more to the point I can sit through a couple songs and then i'm done with it , same with Malmsteen and Satriani etc etc ..

In fact this guy :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SMjL5u5D40

Is really doing it for me lately .. i love it !

Cheers
-R
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Excellent playing and I agree, he's in it for the long run. Cool guy aiming for what he enjoys and not some corporate garbage.

Joe has definitely got the chops, but I can't help thinking of Robert Johnson, Blind Blake, Rev Gary Davis, Sister Rosetta Tharpe; Albert, BB and Freddie King, Billy Gibbons, Greeny, EC, SRV, Moore (with his 80's stuff) and loads more players who defined the blues. Don't get me wrong, Joe is a superstar and the blues needed some fresh air to refocus it for the kids nowadays, so kudos to him.

For me, the first real blues superstar I ever saw live will always be the one for tone and brutal playing, that's Billy Gibbons in ZZ Top at their prime.....WOW.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c7d8BYJy8I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9pPgGAi ... re=related
Cpt Matt Sparrow
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Post by Cpt Matt Sparrow »

Yes it shows lots of promise! I hope you will donate a song next year to the rrcd project Plate.

I agree with Ritchie about the theme although there was lots of little touches that I liked a lot that made it very atmospheric. You seeem to have a good feel for layering and creating momentum.

By the way I think some dischordant and atonal melodies would be great in the break and maybe even a military drum style march.

Matt
Having a break from online activity for a while to concentrate on music. Please email if you need to get in touch. Matt
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Hi Matt,

I'd be honoured to provide a track. What is the premise, covers, original work etc?

I did think about filling the breaks a bit, but wanted to ensure that there was a distinct split between passages. However, I think I'll have a play and put in some extras (just for Ritchie and you... :lol: :lol: ) then post the updated version in this thread later.

Cheers,

Pete
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Well, I've remodelled it just for you Ritchie and Matt.......

It's actually come out quite well with theFX and subdued atonal background in the break.....See what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N58ldMIDp2o

:wink: :D
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Ritchie
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Post by Ritchie »

Yes .. much better Pete ! 8) that part around the middle where a plane comes flying in and drops a power chord .. brilliant ! and the overall mood and ambience has been dramatised with the use of bacckground sounds .. nice one dude .

- R
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ptate
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Post by ptate »

Thanks very much Ritchie, that truly is a compliment. :D

'Spose I'd better start working on a piece for the RRCD project to make sure it's up to it.....!!!! :shock:
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