Tribute to Bob Sweet
Bob Sweet, the man behind Sweet Sound Electronics who gave us the Mojo Vibe and Ultra Vibe pedals which are my favourite vibe pedals ever, passed away last Friday 24th October after a battle with bone cancer. He was a great guy who made some of the best gear out there. Like many of us he was incredibly passionate about great guitar sound and dedicated a large part of his life to getting the most out of it he could.
Farewell Bob, you will be missed...
Friday 31 October 2008
Monday 20 October 2008
Stay ahead of the credit crunch - sound better than the other guy!
I have a dirty little 3 piece band that gets out and plays gigs most weekends. It's loads of fun, and as a professional musician it's something that I can't see myself ever not doing, I mean if it's in you, that's what you do, you get out there and play.
Now there are loads of gigs out there, but there are also loads of bands, loads of guitarists wanting their shot at the title. So how do you go about making sure that you give yourself the best chance of getting that gig? Over the years during feast and famine I have found 3 key things to making sure you're ahead of the game.
1. Sound better than the other guy
This isn't rocket science but make sure you're sounding as good as you can. It's not about buying stuff, it's about getting the most out of what you've got. How are your valves? Are your strings dead? Is your pedal chain sucking tone from your signal path? This is basic stuff but don't neglect it.
2. Learn to sing
Fact is if two guitarists audition for a band and one guy can sing, guess who they're gonna pic? I'm not the greatest guitarist in the world by my sound is Ben Hur and I can sing so I'm always a good option for someone that wants a fat sounding guitar and extra vocals in the line-up.
3. Don't be a twat!
No matter how good you are you need to get along with people. I've met some of the greatest guitarists in the world and almost without exception, they're all beautiful people. If you're going to be in a band with people you need to be someone that the other guys and gals look forward to hooking up with rehearsals and long old drives to the back and beyond. Fact is in a band you spend less than 10% of your time playing, and the rest is just hanging out. So getting along with people is extremely important.
Unless of course you're this guy!
Now there are loads of gigs out there, but there are also loads of bands, loads of guitarists wanting their shot at the title. So how do you go about making sure that you give yourself the best chance of getting that gig? Over the years during feast and famine I have found 3 key things to making sure you're ahead of the game.
1. Sound better than the other guy
This isn't rocket science but make sure you're sounding as good as you can. It's not about buying stuff, it's about getting the most out of what you've got. How are your valves? Are your strings dead? Is your pedal chain sucking tone from your signal path? This is basic stuff but don't neglect it.
2. Learn to sing
Fact is if two guitarists audition for a band and one guy can sing, guess who they're gonna pic? I'm not the greatest guitarist in the world by my sound is Ben Hur and I can sing so I'm always a good option for someone that wants a fat sounding guitar and extra vocals in the line-up.
3. Don't be a twat!
No matter how good you are you need to get along with people. I've met some of the greatest guitarists in the world and almost without exception, they're all beautiful people. If you're going to be in a band with people you need to be someone that the other guys and gals look forward to hooking up with rehearsals and long old drives to the back and beyond. Fact is in a band you spend less than 10% of your time playing, and the rest is just hanging out. So getting along with people is extremely important.
Unless of course you're this guy!
Saturday 4 October 2008
The shootout results are in!
Hi everyone
Thanks so much for checking out the amp shootout. We've had such fun getting it together for you. Every amp really has its own thing going on. I twisted Phil at Matchless's arm and I now own the very first C30 head with Reverb ever made. I use this with the Two-Rock Jet for one of the best guitar sounds ever. (well, I think so, but it's hard to go wrong with either of these amps) The Pro-Reverb ticked alot of boxes for alot of people as well, and the Vox, and the Chieftain, and the 65Amps London, oh man......
Thanks so much for checking out the amp shootout. We've had such fun getting it together for you. Every amp really has its own thing going on. I twisted Phil at Matchless's arm and I now own the very first C30 head with Reverb ever made. I use this with the Two-Rock Jet for one of the best guitar sounds ever. (well, I think so, but it's hard to go wrong with either of these amps) The Pro-Reverb ticked alot of boxes for alot of people as well, and the Vox, and the Chieftain, and the 65Amps London, oh man......
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