The Challlenge 10/5/2010 Your Vote Please

Renesongs

Here are the entries for last weeks challenge

[quote author=MikeM link=action=profile;u=501 date=1273608346] DADF#AD Beginner: http://www.box.net/shared/yutxsqkrtf - Used my Epiphone LP into guitar rig. Tried to be quick with it cause I actually have to study. [/quote]

[quote author=X-rated Bob link=action=profile;u=411 date=1273679977] My entry is at http://www.box.net/shared/ju2xi3as5v I used "Palmer Tuning". This is EEEEBE low to high. 5th string goes down to E, 4th string goes up, 3rd string goes down. This actually gives you two pairs of strings tuned to the same note - 6 & 5, 4 & 3. And the pairs are an octave apart. Stephen Stills used this tuning for "Suite Judy Blue Eyes". [/quote]

[quote author=CDee link=action=profile;u=382 date=1273751895] Here's my entry into the comp. I used DADGAD tuning. Class: Beginner Guitar: Parker P-36 (both piezo + mags) http://www.box.net/shared/2pxnt3j9cu Enjoy! [/quote]

[quote author=Alan Ratcliffe link=action=profile;u=10 date=1273876805] Here's my open tuning entry. The tuning is DADAAD. Strat into Twin Reverb, miked with 2X SM57s and a Rode NT1A. Piezos into DI box and valve mic preamp. http://ratcliffe.co.za/music/a_alan_open_tuned.mp3 OR http://www.box.net/shared/19m26x6top [/quote]

[quote author=Squonk link=action=profile;u=298 date=1274045402] http://www.box.net/shared/xk56f8y25m DADGAD Takamine effected by ZOOM played with fingers, One Take. Padstow , one of the only towns in Cornwall where I never sampled a Pasty! [/quote]

[quote author=Warren link=action=profile;u=2258 date=1274086567] Thought I'd take a stab at the challenge this week. I used DADGAD for the acoustic and standard tuning for the electric bits. I originally wanted something more exotic sounding for the lead bits (tried out some different scale ideas), but in the end I settled for what 'felt' right. Please excuse the wobbly playing :D Working hard on improving!

PS: I messed up the duration completely - the piece is 2 minutes long, instead of 1 minute, sorry guys. I don't know if this disqualifies me or anything. :) I've sent it in anyway, and I hope for some good criticism. I'll keep a closer eye on my DAW's duration for the next one! The link is: http://www.box.net/shared/7eppcqglcz [/quote]

[quote author=ezietsman link=action=profile;u=1907 date=1274123863] Oops, my bad. Beginner's trouble. Here's the link http://www.box.net/shared/iqf8bx0rgu Hope that works. [/quote]

(old forum) Poll Results: Alternate Tuning

MikeM (B): 2
X-rated Bob (B): 5
CDee (B): 3
Alan Ratcliffe (A): 12
Squonk (A): 4
Warren (B): 9
ezietzman (B): 6

Bob-Dubery

Eeek! I meant to enter in category B and named my file accordingly. But forgot that Rene wouldn't pick that up from the URL.

May the force be with me

Bob-Dubery

Renesongs

@ Bob - unfortunately votes have been cast so I cant change the poll now without scrubbing those votes didn't you decide to go for the A team last time?

evolucian

but it is in B for bob

AlanRatcliffe

You can change the names without resetting the votes. I've done that and Bob is now in the "Beginner" category. Please vote accordingly.

guitarboy2828

Great job guys! ?

Alan, wow, very impressed at what you did! ?

evolucian

MikeM: chilled... very cool melody you have going over it... The End comes to mind

Bob: very cool tuning... this track, to me had that 60's folk vibe along with a csny vibe too... me likes

C-Dee: Bringing up the pop rock side... love how the hi hat really becomes a part of the song in the beginning groove... very cool... albeit the pop rock side it had a tinge of 70's to it that i really like... possibly cos of the repetition... all in all, a good solid jam bro

Alan: I love your use of the different signals... Jimmy Page meets Kaki King briefly... That bron yr aur vibe is great here... nice melody/harmony happening. Shangrila bells on the twin string thing... lovely

Squonk: Could easily find its way onto a windham hill comp... nice use of air in the composition... bluesy tinge... nice use of melody into chords... very cool... love the 0:50 lick very much

Warren: Nice backing to the ethereal type lead... Good jam session type of tune... nice dynamics too... I really love the chordal thing thats happening and felt the lead ruined it a little over at the end... it had very good dynamics and melody and voice leading and track two blew it a bit... but it was good, well done.

EZ: Now this I liked very very much... the 1/4 strumming adds to the sombreness in a big and very good way. The feel you have on this is superb... very well done bro... minimalism counts a lot... ?

Nicely done guys, you should be proud... no one chose the heavy route.. you should all be shot ?

MikeM

Thanks for the feedback Evo ?

I battled to pick amongst the advanced guys. Eventually I went with Squonk - not because it was better, just cause I liked it more.

Beginners, I see it as no contest, nice work CDee. You and Warren should head over to the advanced side of life ?

Bob-Dubery

Renesongs wrote: @ Bob - unfortunately votes have been cast so I cant change the poll now without scrubbing those votes didn't you decide to go for the A team last time?

Last time I entered it was in B, but a couple of kind folks suggested that I should be in A next time. "Next time" is this time, but I chickened out.

Bob-Dubery

Altered tunings often lead to altered tonality. That's the interesting thing about them. The one that I went with is a sort of extreme tuning because it leads you pretty much into one key (E, unless you start fooling with capos) and ensures that you have to have an E drone ringing just about all the time. But, hey, it worked for Stephen Stills....

So I enjoyed the way some entries really captured that slightly mysterious, un-occidental feel that an open tuning can convey. Especially, I thought, Alan (did I heard some Byrds in there?), Squonk and Ezietsman.

Bob-Dubery

evolucian wrote: EZ: Now this I liked very very much... the 1/4 strumming adds to the sombreness in a big and very good way. The feel you have on this is superb... very well done bro... minimalism counts a lot... ?

Yeah. I liked that one a lot too. The mood is very effectively conveyed, and, as you say, there was good judgement in not doing too much, not getting too fussy.

Nicely done guys, you should be proud... no one chose the heavy route.. you should all be shot ?

Well nobody went for overdrive and distortion. That doesn't mean nobody was trying to be heavy.

Bob-Dubery

evolucian wrote: Bob: very cool tuning... this track, to me had that 60's folk vibe along with a csny vibe too... me likes

Thanks ? I didn't think it felt very CSNY to me, though with that tuning and the very specific way it makes the guitar ring... I was trying to work in a bit of folk dance in towards the end. A lot of folk musics incorporate a drone.

ezietsman

Thanks for the good review Evo and Bob! ??

I liked everyone's entries, but in the end Warren's and Alan's did it most for me.

I need to do something about my recordings. I noticed everyone else's were much clearer. Maybe there is some post processing tricks?

Bob-Dubery

ezietsman wrote: Thanks for the good review Evo and Bob! ??

I liked everyone's entries, but in the end Warren's and Alan's did it most for me.

I need to do something about my recordings. I noticed everyone else's were much clearer. Maybe there is some post processing tricks?

You know I was thinking that you'd just rolled back the tone a bit. It seemed to suit the piece well.

Nothing wrong with looking to improve, but in this case there was no major problem IMO.

I used my Smoothtalker which has a Baggs pickup. I just plugged into the soundcard on my desktop PC and recorded using Audacity. I didn't add any FX, tweak EQ or anything like that.

ezietsman

I did roll the tone back. For some reason, (esp the thin strings), sounds really thin recorded, I tried to fatten the lead tone up a bit by rolling the tone back and adding a hair of overdrive and then some delay in audacity. It didn't change much. I plugged the HT-5's emulated output into the soundcard (onboard el-very-cheapo). Oh well, will try again next time.

Warren

evolucian wrote:
Warren: Nice backing to the ethereal type lead... Good jam session type of tune... nice dynamics too... I really love the chordal thing thats happening and felt the lead ruined it a little over at the end... it had very good dynamics and melody and voice leading and track two blew it a bit... but it was good, well done.

Cheers for the feedback Evo! I must be honest and say I also wasn't super happy with the lead, particularly over the strummed bits in the second half; I think I overshadowed some nice jangly chords with some pretty mediocre lick-type stuff. ? Glad you noticed some dynamics, which was one thing I was trying to achieve.

I really liked everyone else's entries too. Tough choice for me!

I love the exotic sounds on Alan's recording. Page always had that lush, strummy shimmery thing going on, and it reminded me of that quite a bit. Also very dynamic, held my interest well.

Bob's was nice and melodic, loved the switch to fingerpicked stuff later on.

CDee got my vote on the beginner section, just had such a fluid, listenable quality to it.

Also dug Squonk's, EZ's and MikeM's contributions a lot. I listened to them a few times each, very impressed.

Bob-Dubery

Warren wrote: eld my interest well.

Bob's was nice and melodic, loved the switch to fingerpicked stuff later on.

There was no fingerpicking in my entry. It was all done with a flat pick. I think the bit you're referring to is the little "jig" towards the end. I just picked that out like it was single pick runs (it's on the 1st and 2nd strings) but made sure that at least the top 3 strings rang all the time.

Warren

X-rated Bob wrote:
There was no fingerpicking in my entry. It was all done with a flat pick. I think the bit you're referring to is the little "jig" towards the end. I just picked that out like it was single pick runs (it's on the 1st and 2nd strings) but made sure that at least the top 3 strings rang all the time.

Ah ok, my mistake. The attack is nice and mellow, so I thought you'd removed the pick.

Bob-Dubery

Warren wrote:
X-rated Bob wrote:
There was no fingerpicking in my entry. It was all done with a flat pick. I think the bit you're referring to is the little "jig" towards the end. I just picked that out like it was single pick runs (it's on the 1st and 2nd strings) but made sure that at least the top 3 strings rang all the time.
Ah ok, my mistake. The attack is nice and mellow, so I thought you'd removed the pick.

Aha! That's a little technical trick. I played what experts call "tentative"