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The Triumphant Return of Minor League Rocker

Thursday, February 9th, 2012
The Minor League Rocker’s unplanned hiatus is over! I got hit by a hacker. He eventually left, but took my login credentials with him. But I overcame.

Watch for a few changes here. You’ll see things I’ve learned from my other blog – most of it should be good. I hope you’ll pardon any dust along the way, and just continue rockin’ with me. My goal is to make MinorLeagueRocker.com own its place on the Web, just as WanderingJustin.com does.

Most of all, I will make this a better-than-ever place to chat about heavy metal (especially the power, symphonic and NWOHM versions), playing live music, tips, tricks and observations. So gather around this Serengeti watering hole of a heavy metal haven and talk it up!

Taking a Journey Toward Tone

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

A photo from a far better night of rockin'.

A few weekends ago, I put in one of my most shambolic performances in quite awhile. It was just one of those nights.

But I must’ve sounded OK enough for the dad of a young thrash metal guitar-in-the-making’s dad to seek some advice from me: What sort of gear should he get a 15-year-old who wants to do a few coffeehouse gigs to get comfortable in front of audiences, but wants to eventually progress to get into a thrash-style band?

Something tells me my lineup of Superstrat-style guitars and big ol’ VHT head convinced him I was the right guy.

We talked for awhile and came to some good conclusions:

Guitar

The young dude has a taste for Ibanez RG Series guitars. Not a bad choice – proven, economical, reliable. I prefer the S Series, both for the sleek body style and the awesome Zero Resistance tremolo bridge. Floyd Rose should consider itself lucky that the ZR isn’t taking a big bite out of its sales. Anyway, finding a decent deal on one of the many levels of RG’s isn’t a bad deal.

I’d also recommend he check out the Jackson DK-1 and whatever LTD guitars catch his eye. He might also catch a nice Carvin Bolt+C on eBay.

Amp

This is always the tricky part. We bandied many ideas back and forth, and I think the best to come out was a Marshall Microstack. Worst case, it’s $325. It’s very portable and not ultra loud, which should be good for our budding thrasher’s early gigs. The Micro won’t keep up with him when he makes the jump to playing in a band. But at $325, he can turn that Micro into a great practice amp.

So what should his next amp be? The safe choice is a used Peavey 6505 and an Avatar 212 cabinet. The 6505 is good enough for plenty of touring musicians, so our buddy can grow with it. One caveat: hundred-watt tube heads get loud in a hurry, and tube amps need to push the output section a bit to get their best tone. Local venues really get annoyed if guitarists crank their heads too loud. Seriously, a 20-watt tube amp will get you by (I gigged for years with Hung Dynasty using a THD Univalve set for 8 watts – including unmic’d gigs). The only X factor is that I haven’t seen a low-wattage high-gain tube amp that fully convinces. That’s how I wound up with my 60-watt head … which I’m considering pairing with an attenuator to push the power section without going absurdly loud.

Some other random advice for our young thrasher:
-Resist the modeler temptation. You’ll disappear in the mix onstage, and you’ll barely have any definition in your playing. Modelers sounds great at low volume or on certain recordings (studio magic!), but they are buzzy and poorly defined onstage.
-Don’t crank the pre-amp gain. That’s a good way to make your tone get flabby, buzzy and blurry. And it invites the bad kind of feedback.
-Use your EQ wisely. I know it sounds cool in the bedroom to crank the bottom end and scoop the middle frequencies for an evil metal tone. But if you’re playing with a bassist or another guitar, you’ll get tonal oatmeal as you step all over each other’s frequencies. The guitars need to cover different parts of the sonic spectrum, and they need to avoid interfering with the bassist’s sonic territory.

Eight Months with an ESP Mirage

Sunday, December 19th, 2010
ESP Mirage Hung Dynasty Justin IceHouse Tavern Phoenix

Sigmund the Sea Monster rockin' a local venue. (Photo by Black Susan of Dorks in Space)

You see how I am? I neglect this blog for months, then I give you two posts in one day. I’ll try to find a happy medium.

Anyway, I got myself a fourth guitar. Liberace will shift over to Luminatus duty, and the new guitar will be a co-main guitar for Hung Dynasty.

The new guitar, by the way, is an absolutely awesome mid-90s ESP Mirage with a green swamp-ash body, a Duncan JB bridge pickup and an Original Floyd Rose. It deviates from my preference slightly by having a 12-inch fretboard radius rather than my usual 14-inch radius.

It produces a lot more bass frequencies than my beloved Carvin, but Todd and I still sound quite different from each other. I occasionally move to volume knob with my picking hand, unlike with the Carvin. And I’ll still have tense moments on big changes of real estate on the fretboard because of the very dark fretboard inlays.

But it’s very playable. Terrific neck and fretboard. And the pinch harmonics absolutely scream. Wonderful guitar! It gives the Carvin a very good run for its money. And the ESP is, to me, a beautiful instrument. Very metal, but still pretty classy. We call it Sigmund the Sea Monster, by the way.

The guitar is also a freakin’ tank. One local venue has guitar holders built into the wall of the stage. I had Sigmund hanging on the wall, and something went wrong with the guitar holder. Sigmund fell straight onto the top of my Fryette Deliverance head and then fretboard first on the stage floor. I was pretty panicked over this – but I picked it up, strummed a few notes and discovered that it wasn’t even out of tune and didn’t have a mark on it. The head was fine, too. Talk about passing a torture test!

Now, THAT’S an Endorsement!

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

The Hammerfall show at U.B.’s was a blast, and the gift of Hammerfall keeps on giving: My bandmate, Todd, looked up the band’s Engl amps. He wound up perusing the list of high-profile bands using Engl amps, and he found an absolutely delightful gem of a testimonial from a member of the black metal band Immortal, which he gleefully forwarded to me:

“Engl Powerball miraculously fits my outrage, and shakes my great balls of frost!” – ABBATH / IMMORTAL

That has to be the greatest user testimonial I’ve ever seen, bar none. Still, I’m not sure if Abbath meant that the Powerball shakes the frost from his balls, or if his goolies are actually composed of frost.

I’ll bet Todd guffawed like a madman when he saw that. And I think “My Great Balls of Frost” will be my new catchphrase.

To be friends at Fryette Amplification: I will try very hard to come up with a testimonial for my Deliverance 60 that trumps Abbath’s praise for the Powerball.

Oh, and Abbath? Maybe you should put some shorts on if you want to keep praising Nordic deities today …

New Project for the Minor League Rocker!

Thursday, December 31st, 2009

So, Hung Dynasty is still going strong. But I met some great people, and we decided to take on a side project. The singer, Holly, shares my enthusiasm for female-fronted, symphonic Euro-metal. She’s also in another band. The drummer, Robert, plays for Psychedelic Mooj. Bassist Nicolas is in a band called Midlife Crisis.

Anyway, this project is called Luminatus. It’s a cover band honoring bands like Nightwish and The Gathering – you know, those that don’t get much attention here in the States. Anyway, here’s a video clip of a rehearsal.

We’re playing our first gig together at UB’s in Mesa Jan. 2 at 7:30. That’s at Dobson and Broadway. Should be a really good time!

4 Essential Movies for Rock Fans

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

I was just having a think about some great movies about rock music. I mean stuff that’s fun to watch repeatedly. I came up with a few and thought some of you should see them, if you have’t already.

They are, in no particular order:

Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey – This is my favorite metal movie ever. Even though it’s mostly about black metal, it’s a fascinating genre study. And some of the self-importance and posturing is hysterical. It’s also pretty odd to see Ronnie James Dio (NOT a black metal musician) with a collection of ceramic frogs.

Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years – This is a must. These 80s bands … were they confident or just merely delusional? And what makes someone wear leather pants with the buttocks cut out? And is there anything stranger than seeing Ozzy Osbourne carry on an intelligible conversation while cooking scrambled eggs?

This is Spinal Tap – I could write volumes about this story of a 70s megaband in its death throes (or would that be more metal as “deth throws” with an umlaut or two?). It makes people laugh at the ludicrous situations. It makes musicians cry because it’s too true to life. It also has an all-star cast. It only gets better with repeat viewing.

Anvil! The Movie – This is a thoroughly entertaining and even moving story about two guys and a rotating cast of band members. They had their moment in the early 80s, and watched their peers go on to bigger and better. And they want to get to those plateaus, too. And being in their 50s isn’t gonna stop them. I’ve heard rumors this was edited out-of-sequence for dramatic effect. That tarnishes it, if true, but it’s still fun.

Am I missing any good ones? Rock Star does so NOT count!

5 Reasons to Visit Smokey’s in Mesa

Monday, November 16th, 2009

Here in the big, bad Phoenix metro area, a lot of people are a-flutter about Modified Arts getting out of the live music game to focus on art. From the way people are acting, out-of-town folks might get the impression that Modified was some sort of influential, state-of-the-art epicenter of rockin’ awesomeness.

Sorry, folks, but I’m here to burst your bubble. It was nearly exclusively indie hipster music. It has it’s place, but it’s not my bag.

While Modified is basking in all this attention, there are plenty of great venues in this area where bands can really rock. But they consistently and constantly get overlooked. The one I’m thinking about right now is Smokey’s Bar & Grill in Mesa.

Now this isn’t the sort of place from which the second coming of The Strokes or The White Stripes will emerge. This is a place where people who love rockin’ it up will feel at home. If you love AC/DC, if you lost your virginity to Motley Crue (any way you care to interpret that), if you listen to Pantera while working on your Hog – then this is your place.  If you’re not hearing covers from bands like these, you’re hearing originals written by bands who love this sort of stuff … just like you do.

Here are 5 reasons you should visit Smokey’s Bar & Grill:

1. It’s all genuine – Nobody’s there to impress each other … unless they’re doing it on the pool table. It’s the antidote to all the funny-haircutted, Botoxed and pretentious places littering the Valley.

2. It’s friendly – Every time I’m here, at least one complete stranger strikes up a conversation with me. The staff is also as accommodating as can be.

3. There’s no cover – You know those guys at Yucca Tap Room? It’s the same there. They get good bands, and people come for the good bands.

4. One of the best promoters in town books the bands – Bill from Dirty Goat Productions handles the bands, and he picks bands he can count on to deliver good music.

5. You’re more likely to see Harleys in the parking lot than Scions or Cubes - And those Harleys will often be ridden by the very dudes who modified them.

In the quest to turn music into something grandiose and political, places like Smokey’s get overlooked. Let’s not forget: Music is supposed to be fun! The next time you have the urge to see some live bands that love what they do and exist to rock your world, go check Smokey’s out. Hung Dynasty has made a few visits there, and we hope to do even more in the future. We just had a great show there Saturday – all our originals, plus classic metal/rock tunes like “Breakin’ the Law,” “Seek and Destroy,” “TNT” and even “Comfortably Numb” to slow things down a notch. Next time, we’d love to see even more rock fans out there to help us bring the noise as much as possible.

One more thing: As a musician, I love playing here. It might not be the greatest sound system or best-lit stage. But there’s a a great vibe to the place, and the crew of regulars appreciates hard-hitting rock music. And that makes it fun for me to be there.

Help Rock Art Brewery Turn the Tables on Corporate Stormtroopers

Thursday, October 15th, 2009

Lovely. Hansen, the beverage giant, is trying to put the legal squeeze on Rock Art Brewery. The multi-million dollar behemoth wants Rock Art to cease production, marketing, yadda yadda in support of its Vermonster beer. And it wants RockArt to pay its attorneys fees!

The AP reports that Matt Nadeau, the brewer, has been advised by attorneys that he is on solid legal ground. But proving that could be lengthy and expensive. In essence, Monster/Hansen could win because of its deep pockets rather than the letter of the law. That’s unacceptable. You can read more here.

In the meantime, Matt, here’s a theme song for you compliments of Hung Dynasty. Feel free to use it, and Stick it to the Man!

What can the rest of you do? Get on Twitter, and let Monster know what you think. Follow Rock Art while you’re there.

Judas Priest Meets Elmer Fudd?

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

Oh, boy. I know this is gonna enrage a lot of Judas Priest fans. But I was just listening to an old live Priest disc. When it came to the track “Turbo Lover”, it occured to me that -at least on this song- Rob Halford sounds way too much like Elmer Fudd for my liking.

Don’t believe me? Then go find a copy of the rather blandly named Priest … Live! album. Give a listen to “Turbo Lover” and see if you can look me in the eye when you say “No, I honestly don’t think he’s about to sing ‘I’m yo’ turbo wov-ah, tell me dere’s no uddah … ha ha ha, wascally wabbit!”

The idea of Elmer in leather and Rob in a silly hunting hat and toting a double-barrel shotgun is also pretty amusing.

Les Paul – What He Meant

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

So my wife asked me about Les Paul today. Specifically, what I thought of him.

I explained that I’m not a big fan of the Les Paul guitars, but that’s a subject for another day.

Still, I liked him. He was a true gentleman and he loved music. He created an iconic instrument. He played all the time. Les did what he did because he loved it, not because he was a corporate suit.

I’d say the world was lucky to hold onto him for 94 years. That’s what I think of Les Paul.

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