# What Is Your Biggest Guitarist Habit Pet Peeve?



## F0rte (Sep 23, 2011)

When people REFUSE to use their pinky.
I cringe....


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## USMarine75 (Sep 23, 2011)

When they have to rearrange their hair like Wayne from Wayne's World every 8 measures... or they sing the notes with their mouth as if that somehow makes any sense... yeah, Steve Vai I'm talking about you... you're ridiculous at guitar but you're such an egomaniacal douche in your videos...


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## F0rte (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> When they have to rearrange their hair like Wayne from Wayne's World every 8 measures... or they sing the notes with their mouth as if that somehow makes any sense... yeah, Steve Vai I'm talking about you... you're ridiculous at guitar but you're such an egomaniacal douche in your videos...



Hahahahahahaha. Absolutely agree.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> When they have to rearrange their hair like Wayne from Wayne's World every 8 measures... or they sing the notes with their mouth as if that somehow makes any sense... yeah, Steve Vai I'm talking about you... you're ridiculous at guitar but you're such an egomaniacal douche in your videos...


 
Vai would call that "stage presence" I'm sure... 

I'm not sure there's anything that really bothers me about a guitar player except maybe when they just don't seem to look like they're as in to their music as they want you to be.

For example... I thought John Petrucci on that G3 video just looked "boring" on stage and even though the songs he was playing were AWESOME, I just found it slightly less enjoyable with him looking so boring up on stage. I could see the gears turning in his head too much. The flashier people like Vai "seem" to just let it flow a little more than what I saw from Trooch on that particular video and that's the only reason I prefer watching Vai perform to Trooch.

That wasn't to argue your post in anyway... I was just using the two guitarists as an example since Vai had already been thrown out there.


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## BigPhi84 (Sep 23, 2011)

Being flaky. As a multi-instrumentalist, it always suck talking to another guitarist and they say, "Man, what's your number? We need to jam sometime." 

You never hear from them. The next time you see them, it's "Long time no see. We need to jam some time." It would make sense if I sucked at my instruments or sucked as a person, but I know that neither is true! LOL.


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## ElRay (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> ... or they sing the notes with their mouth as if that somehow makes any sense ...


Actually it does. A lot of instructors for a lot of non-wind instruments suggest this exact thing. It helps for ear training. It helps for phrasing. I'm sure one of the folks that teach for a living can chime-in with more details.

I felt kind of stupid self-singing do-de-re-ri, etc. when I first started, but it seems to help with the learning of pieces.

Ray


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## USMarine75 (Sep 23, 2011)

ElRay said:


> Actually it does. A lot of instructors for a lot of non-wind instruments suggest this exact thing. It helps for ear training. It helps for phrasing. I'm sure one of the folks that teach for a living can chime-in with more details.
> 
> I felt kind of stupid self-singing do-de-re-ri, etc. when I first started, but it seems to help with the learning of pieces.
> 
> Ray


 
No, not at all what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about self-singing... Have you never watched a Steve Vai video??? I'm talking about the douchey over the top my-mouth-is-a-wah pedal oral thing he does. 

Plus self-singing doesn't help you on stage.

I googled Vai... 1st 5 images:



























ad infininitum... 

(* PS I love Vai and own 2 JEMs and I'm a douche too...but, c'mon man)


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## celticelk (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> Plus self-singing doesn't help you on stage.



Vai aside for the moment, I have to disagree with this: just because you can't hear yourself doesn't mean that self-singing isn't helping you with phrasing. If nothing else, it's helping you feel where a wind player would have to take a breath, which forms a natural break between phrases.


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## Repner (Sep 23, 2011)

I don't see the problem. I'd rather have that than standing like a statue with a dead serious look. Vai just looks like he's having fun, even if it is, by his own admission, way over the top.

My pet peeve, guitarists that only seem to play the most horribly out of key solos during a song. Main reason I say this is there is one band I keep seeing supporting bands here. Every time they went into a solo, it wasn't so much bad notes, it was the WORST notes. Every time they played a solo I could feel my head shrinking into my chest.

To make it worse, the band they were supporting was Freak Kitchen, so I'm pretty sure the majority of the audience was made up of more advanced musicians. I don't mind if you're not a walking music theory dictionary, but at least have a decent enough ear


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## USMarine75 (Sep 23, 2011)

celticelk said:


> If nothing else, it's helping you feel where a wind player would have to take a breath, which forms a natural break between phrases.


 
I'll remember that the next time I'm playing "Bad Horsie"...


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## celticelk (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> I'll remember that the next time I'm playing "Bad Horsie"...



Yeah, okay, maybe not so helpful if you're playing extended shred phrases. I tend to think from a more jazz/funk/minimalist perspective. Different strokes, etc.


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## F0rte (Sep 23, 2011)

Konfyouzd said:


> Vai would call that "stage presence" I'm sure...
> 
> I'm not sure there's anything that really bothers me about a guitar player except maybe when they just don't seem to look like they're as in to their music as they want you to be.
> 
> ...



You are ABSOLUTELY correct.
Darren Reid, the 16 year old I constantly talk about who literally blew me away with his playing did not win a guitar contest because of major mentality issues. He just couldn't please the crowd with stage preformance even though he could play the most beautiful music I have ever heard to this day on the guitar.


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## USMarine75 (Sep 23, 2011)

celticelk said:


> Yeah, okay, maybe not so helpful if you're playing extended shred phrases. I tend to think from a more jazz/funk/minimalist perspective. Different strokes, etc.


 
yeah... that's a different story... but check out some of his videos... Building the Church comes to mind... dude pulls a lot of faces. I can't help but think douche every time I watch him.

I see Paul Gilbert do the same thing and I think he's just into it...

I guess it's all in the interpretation.

_Can I at least get an amen for fat old guys in open shirts & leather pants?_


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## celticelk (Sep 23, 2011)

^^^^^ Dear gods, put that Yngwie away! You're scaring the children! =)


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## rythmic_pulses (Sep 23, 2011)

Pentatonic solos, I have got myself in a hitch and a rut and can't get out of it thanks to that damn scale, I have tried to learn more Chromatic stuff and I just can't seem to get it right any more and thanks to too much down picking and chugging my alternate picking is screwed too so playing widdly solo's is off limits to me now, any suggestions on how to get better at this? (those are my bad guitar habits....)


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## Diggy (Sep 23, 2011)

I had to


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## F0rte (Sep 23, 2011)

rythmic_pulses said:


> Pentatonic solos, I have got myself in a hitch and a rut and can't get out of it thanks to that damn scale, I have tried to learn more Chromatic stuff and I just can't seem to get it right any more and thanks to too much down picking and chugging my alternate picking is screwed too so playing widdly solo's is off limits to me now, any suggestions on how to get better at this? (those are my bad guitar habits....)


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 23, 2011)

rythmic_pulses said:


> Pentatonic solos, I have got myself in a hitch and a rut and can't get out of it thanks to that damn scale, I have tried to learn more Chromatic stuff and I just can't seem to get it right any more and thanks to too much down picking and chugging my alternate picking is screwed too so playing widdly solo's is off limits to me now, any suggestions on how to get better at this? (those are my bad guitar habits....)



Don't hate on the pentatonic. A lot can be done with it.


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## The Reverend (Sep 23, 2011)

Not a lot annoyed me before I joined this damned board .

Probably the most annoying thing to me now is bad live tone. If you can't keep that icepick-sharp, trebly tone under control, get off the stage. It's killing your solos, because it's hard to hear what's going on.


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## Dayn (Sep 23, 2011)

I'm probably targeting most people in existence, but when people play right-handed with the guitar on their right leg.

I just... don't get how that can be done.  It's just so cumbersome to me.


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## The Reverend (Sep 23, 2011)

Dayn said:


> I'm probably targeting most people in existence, but when people play right-handed with the guitar on their right leg.
> 
> I just... don't get how that can be done.  It's just so cumbersome to me.



I'm afraid that when I see that, a little part of me gives a smug, dismissive smile, because *I* play in the classical position.


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## troyguitar (Sep 23, 2011)

Spending $10000+ on gear but refusing to spend a dime (or an hour) on lessons.


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## Trespass (Sep 23, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> No, not at all what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about self-singing... Have you never watched a Steve Vai video??? I'm talking about the douchey over the top my-mouth-is-a-wah pedal oral thing he does.
> 
> Plus self-singing doesn't help you on stage.



2:30 to 3:30 or so --



Beginning and guitar solo 




It's improvised music, and it all comes from the same place.


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## fwd0120 (Sep 23, 2011)

Gotta be honest. I do the vai mouth things. in the exact same way. I'll see a vid of me playing and I'll be like... "am I _really_ doing that?!?!". It's totally subconscious imo. But i do believe SSV has some fun with it.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 23, 2011)

fwd0120 said:


> Gotta be honest. I do the vai mouth things. in the exact same way. I'll see a vid of me playing and I'll be like... "am I _really_ doing that?!?!". It's totally subconscious imo. But i do believe SSV has some fun with it.



To an extent I do too. I won't lie. It kind of helps me get a feel for how long to hold bends and shit sometimes. I think it's because I hear a voice in my head rather than a guitar and I *try* to sing a lot of the time and when I describe what kind of tone I want to Zimbloth I always compare it to singers' voices. So I think it's almost natural [for me] to do it.


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## renzoip (Sep 23, 2011)

Smoking while playing live. Idk, to me it looks unprofessional and totally uncool; whether you are a rockstar or a wannabe on stage.

Just my opinion, of course.


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## BigPhi84 (Sep 24, 2011)

renzoip said:


> Smoking while playing live. Idk, to me it looks unprofessional and totally uncool; whether you are a rockstar or a wannabe on stage.





Sorry.  Guilty as charged. I've just been so bored at some of these blues jam sessions around my locale, that I'll light one up and sip on my beer in the 4-8 bars of E7. 




On a different note, how would you use this emoticon---> 

LOL. Wut.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 24, 2011)

BigPhi84 said:


> Sorry.  Guilty as charged. I've just been so bored at some of these blues jam sessions around my locale, that I'll light one up and sip on my beer in the 4-8 bars of E7.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



That's the face he makes when people smoke on stage.


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## broj15 (Sep 24, 2011)

metal guitarists who wear their guitar so lo they can't possibly solo. all they can du is chug and look "cool". 
P.S. I play in a deathcore band (go ahead, bring the hate comments) and I'm a chest rocker 
(for guitar and bass)


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## right_to_rage (Sep 24, 2011)

Bad vibrato, whammy bar overuse and reliance, crab core, slinging it wayyyyy too low, and finally a know it all attitude/ resistance learning from criticism, or resistance to learning new things all together.


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## Hollowway (Sep 24, 2011)

My biggest pet peeve is when a guitarist I don't consider very good tells me the guys I listen to (and try to play like) just play a bunch of fast notes and have no soul. Then thu tell me they're into the blues. And I'm like, "No, not being able to play fast does not make you a blues player. Playing the blues is damn hard. And you're not doing it. What you ARE doing is playing some Mel Bay."

TL;DR not being able to play fast does not mean you're a good blues player.


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## niffnoff (Sep 24, 2011)

guitar flips



I dun't get why people do it, funny as shit though when the straps come off, it's funny because every gig I've played or been to for a friends, it's always the one "HxC" bands that do it to try and impress the girlfriend, needless to say, a face full of their own guitar every song or so always gets me laughing at them, but annoys me cause they tried to show to much ego on stage then have the nerve to say to the crowd they aren't moving enough for them.


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## TRENCHLORD (Sep 24, 2011)

When I see/hear someone just beating the hell out of their strings.
I'm not talking about exagereted arm or hand movement. You can do that without bashbuzzing your strings. So many guys have to turn their amp halfway up just to drowned out the buzzing.
I think concentrating on what your hearing from the speakers instead of the imagination helps tame this.


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## USMarine75 (Sep 24, 2011)

Trespass said:


> 2:30 to 3:30 or so --
> 
> 
> 
> ...




So _not_ what I was talking about... maybe I should have clarified I meant rock music, thousands of watts, and no mic.


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## celticelk (Sep 24, 2011)

BigPhi84 said:


> Sorry.  Guilty as charged. I've just been so bored at some of these blues jam sessions around my locale, that I'll light one up and sip on my beer in the 4-8 bars of E7.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Somebody needs to use that emoticon over on the Thor-inlay Daemoness build thread. =)

Personal pet peeve: arbitrary criteria for "good" playing/players. Also the tendency to pass judgement on playing/players as though subjective aesthetic preferences were somehow objective.


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## Skanky (Sep 24, 2011)

Inability to hear that their guitar is horribly out of tune. That's the one thing that really bugs me.



The rest aren't really "pet peeves" but rather characteristics of some guitarists that I really dislike:

Guitarists who refuse to give any credit to any other music genre except the one that they play regularly (usually blues).

Guitarists who are generally flaky and miss practices on a regular basis.

Guitarists who don't practice _before _band practice.

Guitarists who don't know when or how to be quiet during some parts of the song and/or solo.


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## Dayn (Sep 24, 2011)

fwd0120 said:


> Gotta be honest. I do the vai mouth things. in the exact same way. I'll see a vid of me playing and I'll be like... "am I _really_ doing that?!?!". It's totally subconscious imo. But i do believe SSV has some fun with it.


I'd have to agree... I'm probably one of the most reserved and shy people on this board, and I still often 'mime scream' when my guitar does, and otherwise have my body flow with my hand movements. It's certainly not egotistical, but rather really getting into the music.


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## Iheartmidgetbooty (Sep 24, 2011)

My peeve is when guitarists focus on being uber-technical rather than having their music sound and feel like it has some feeling to it... Just can't stand that distortion of music.


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## jackfiltraition (Sep 25, 2011)

When guitarists dont cut the excess strings off of their guitars. Stickers all over guitars. When guitarists are breaking down a riff or lick and say "I can't play it slow, I can only play it fast" "makes me think they're hiding somthing and have cut a few corners) When guitarists try to play far beyond their level of ability. Guitarists that don't use tuners onstage and try to tune by ear in between every song. Guitarists that do shitty pinch harmonics. Guitar swings. I could go on all day... But I'm a cynical bastard. Almost everything peeves me off.


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## jackfiltraition (Sep 25, 2011)

Edit: double post. Sorry


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## Speculum Speculorum (Sep 25, 2011)

My biggest pet peeve is during jam sessions or when teaching guitarists start molesting their strings every time someone else starts talking/demonstrating. I hate... HATE having to yell over shred in order to explain to the drummer, bass player, etc. what we are trying to accomplish.

There was this cat in my college guitar ensemble who started playing "Sunshine of Your Love" once when the professor (a total hard-ass) was trying to get everyone's attention during a dress rehearsal in the performance center. The professor proceeded to scream and curse at him for oh... about 15 minutes. A little excessive, to say the least, but it somehow made me feel better about all the times I've put up with dudes doing the same exact thing. HAHA!


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## stuglue (Sep 25, 2011)

Pet peeve, without a doubt, internet tab and of course Youtube bedroom shredders, the noodle heads who've obviously spent ages on sweep and alternate picking but have forgotten that actual music involves playing over a chord progression and not just shredding away unaccompanied. You'll find that they know arpeggio sweeps yet if you ask them to play the chords that they derived those sweep patterns from they can't do it.


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## KingAenarion (Sep 25, 2011)

Speculum Speculorum said:


> My biggest pet peeve is during jam sessions or when teaching guitarists start molesting their strings every time someone else starts talking/demonstrating. I hate... HATE having to yell over shred in order to explain to the drummer, bass player, etc. what we are trying to accomplish.



This is my BIGGEST hate with ANY musician. I have played with a few different musicians over a period of time where we've been paying for rehearsal time (in some cases I'm paying for the rehearsal space myself and they just won't shut up. So in some cases I've taken drastic measures to get them to shut up.

To get the "Shut the fuck up" message across I have: 

- grabbed a drummers entire centrepiece, picked it up and carried it to the other side of the room
- taken a sax players mouthpiece
- broken a sax players reed
- taken a guitar players lead
- turned off a guitarists amp and taken the power cable
- taken a bassists speaker cable

They tend to learn to shut up when they're not supposed to be playing after that.

The second worst one for me:

Me: "What do you do?"
Them: "I'm a professional guitarist/musician/etc"
Me: "Oh cool, you should come play with us/do a session for this thing"
Them: "Oh yea that'd be great... 
*Nut out details of when and where, what they need to bring... get to discussion of tunes"
Them: "Can you send me a list of the songs to learn?"
Me: "Oh the guy organising picks the tunes and brings charts"
Them: "I don't read music, I play by ear"
Me: "Oh that's cool too, he usually calls out the chord changes for the cats who play by ear."
Them: "I don't know chord names, so I don't think I can do it"
Me: FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-




BigPhi84 said:


> Being flaky. As a multi-instrumentalist, it always suck talking to another guitarist and they say, "Man, what's your number? We need to jam sometime."
> 
> You never hear from them. The next time you see them, it's "Long time no see. We need to jam some time." It would make sense if I sucked at my instruments or sucked as a person, but I know that neither is true! LOL.



I personally believe that 90% of achieving success in the music industry is about being reliable. Doing what you say you'll do, turning up when you say you will, bring the amount of people to a venue you say you would (and doing the promotion so that it happens) etc etc. It's a big problem with so many musicians, and it's about having a professional attitude.

I personally have a rule with those kind of people. 3 strikes and they're out. 




troyguitar said:


> Spending $10000+ on gear but refusing to spend a dime (or an hour) on lessons.



This... so much this!




renzoip said:


> Smoking while playing live. Idk, to me it looks unprofessional and totally uncool; whether you are a rockstar or a wannabe on stage.
> 
> Just my opinion, of course.



SRV makes it look badass


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## Hemi-Powered Drone (Sep 25, 2011)

KingAenarion said:


> - *broken a sax players reed*



Not cool man, not cool. Those things are expensive and any serious player will spend ridiculous amounts of time to get it perfect. 

My pet peeves-
-Mid scooping
-Players that don't actually know what they're playing, ie. whether they're playing a pentatonic or major scale(you'd be surprised at how often that happens)
-Shredding over everyone else


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## KingAenarion (Sep 25, 2011)

dragonblade629 said:


> Not cool man, not cool. Those things are expensive and any serious player will spend ridiculous amounts of time to get it perfect.
> 
> My pet peeves-
> -Mid scooping
> ...



I'm a Clarinet/Sax player... I know... I spend $60 a month at least on reeds for my clarinet alone.

This guy just didn't shut the fuck up. Like I'm not even kidding, I would say "can you please be quiet for a moment?" and he would look at me and just keep playing. Like I was paying for the rehearsal space, and paying two of the other musicians by the hour for a rehearsal for a wedding (he was a friend of the bride, myself the groom), but he just wouldn't get over himself... so, I broke his reed and informed him that I would continue to do so every time he kept playing while I was trying to talk because the two minutes it took him to soak a new one in his mouth gave me some semblance of peace and quiet so I could work. Needless to say he shut up at that point...


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## skeels (Sep 25, 2011)

TRENCHLORD said:


> When I see/hear someone just beating the hell out of their strings.
> I'm not talking about exagereted arm or hand movement. You can do that without bashbuzzing your strings. So many guys have to turn their amp halfway up just to drowned out the buzzing.
> I think concentrating on what your hearing from the speakers instead of the imagination helps tame this.



Mea culpa! Actually I go back and forth between brushing them tenderly and smashing them like they owe me a bunch of money- which they kinda do string's ain't cheap!


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## Speculum Speculorum (Sep 25, 2011)

When I was teaching full time a bit back, certain students would just be making noises on their instruments when I was explaining technical aspects of playing to them. Sometimes I would just stop talking and stare until they realized I was just looking at them, head slightly turned... It usually only took once.

If it went to long I would either turn off their amp or I would (on low volume spyder amps) grab their cable and just pull it out of their guitar. That usually did the trick.


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## SirMyghin (Sep 25, 2011)

KingAenarion said:


> I'm a Clarinet/Sax player... I know... I spend $60 a month at least on reeds for my clarinet alone.
> 
> This guy just didn't shut the fuck up. Like I'm not even kidding, I would say "can you please be quiet for a moment?" and he would look at me and just keep playing. Like I was paying for the rehearsal space, and paying two of the other musicians by the hour for a rehearsal for a wedding (he was a friend of the bride, myself the groom), but he just wouldn't get over himself... so, I broke his reed and informed him that I would continue to do so every time he kept playing while I was trying to talk because the two minutes it took him to soak a new one in his mouth gave me some semblance of peace and quiet so I could work. Needless to say he shut up at that point...




I have only ever had that problem with drummers


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## KingAenarion (Sep 25, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> I have only ever had that problem with drummers



hence my response with a drummer of walking over to his drumkit and grabbing his whole kick and mounted tom unit and carrying it to the other side of the room.


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## SirMyghin (Sep 25, 2011)

Indeed, great move there, I usually shut them in the drum room, ideally, and turn off any monitorring.  I don't care where you practice, drums rooms are practically necessary equipment.


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## 7StringSloan (Sep 25, 2011)

When someone asks for my advice on setting up their equipment for a show because they sound like shit and then when suggest what they can do to sound better live, they ignore me and continue to sound like shit. i cant stand shit like that


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## Edika (Sep 25, 2011)

Ignorant sound engineers. One of the few lives I managed to do with our band one of the sound guys comes when we were doing sound check and starts saying that the kick drum is tuned at F (we played in standard tuning) so we should all tune in F because it is simpler that way. Mind you at that point me and the other guitarist didn't pay much attention to the guy because we were trying to fix our guitar sound. Then we see him doing something to the bass of our bassist and when we asked him he repeated the same thing. Then we very politely (no sarcasm) told him that this was the most absurd thing we have ever heard (it is true that drums are actually tuned to a note) and that even if that was the case then there was no way we would all tune to F (mind you one semitone up than standard tuning). Also that he should get the fuck of the scene and concentrate on making us sound good through the console.

A lot of things have been covered that really grinds my gears so I will say a couple more that haven't been mentioned:

-Guitarists wearing the guitar like a collar/necktie. I mean come on you can put the guitar a bit further down and still play.
-Guitarists wearing the guitar like a collar/necktie but still suck at playing. At least try not to look like a dork if it makes no difference.
-Guitarists playing shred solos with full on compressor, reverb, chorus and other effects. Usually covers up sloppy playing in live settings. If you listen to them playing with a dry signal they SUCK!
-Guitarists practicing poses in band rehearsal. There were some friends of mine that were playing power/prog (many years ago) and they had got a second guitarist. The guy was quite good but during the rehearsal he would look at his reflection on the glass all the time and adjust his pose accordingly.


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## in-pursuit (Sep 25, 2011)

Speculum Speculorum said:


> When I was teaching full time a bit back, certain students would just be making noises on their instruments when I was explaining technical aspects of playing to them. Sometimes I would just stop talking and stare until they realized I was just looking at them, head slightly turned... It usually only took once.
> 
> If it went to long I would either turn off their amp or I would (on low volume spyder amps) grab their cable and just pull it out of their guitar. That usually did the trick.



this always annoyed the hell out of me, so I bought a volume pedal and plugged it into the students amp so I could kill their volume everytime I was talking. 

Other musicians who don't stop playing when someone is trying to speak always annoys me too, it's just plain disrespectful and rude and a complete waste of everyones time. Also guys who never practice  I jammed with this one guy for about two years and I did everything I possibly could to help him to learn the songs I had written from writing up tabs to doing recordings, the amount of time we spent running through riffs was astounding. but he only ever managed to get down one song, the first song he learnt to get into the band in the first place. meanwhile together we managed to make an assortment of his half finished songs/riff ideas into full songs, and then he decides that it's not what he wants to do musically....


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## Trespass (Sep 26, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


> So _not_ what I was talking about... maybe I should have clarified I meant rock music, thousands of watts, and no mic.



Maybe I should've clarified, I was basically telling you that they are indeed the same thing. An assist to get what you hear in your head to the audience. It's all coming from the same place, I do what I can to get it out. 

For the record, I have a bad habit of (when sitting down) rocking like I'm autistic when I really get into a solo. Yes, there is a definable difference. I'm more comfortable letting that come out when I'm feeling the music than restraining it and taking away from my connection.


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## AdamWasilla (Sep 26, 2011)

Skanky said:


> Inability to hear that their guitar is horribly out of tune. That's the one thing that really bugs me.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Literally this. Verbatim. 

Especially the very first thing.


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## stuglue (Sep 26, 2011)

Speculum Speculorum said:


> My biggest pet peeve is during jam sessions or when teaching guitarists start molesting their strings every time someone else starts talking/demonstrating. I hate... HATE having to yell over shred in order to explain to the drummer, bass player, etc. what we are trying to accomplish.
> 
> There was this cat in my college guitar ensemble who started playing "Sunshine of Your Love" once when the professor (a total hard-ass) was trying to get everyone's attention during a dress rehearsal in the performance center. The professor proceeded to scream and curse at him for oh... about 15 minutes. A little excessive, to say the least, but it somehow made me feel better about all the times I've put up with dudes doing the same exact thing. HAHA!



If that is a problem just give him some sheet music and ask him to sight read it, he'll soon shut the fuck up


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## Cabinet (Sep 26, 2011)

Those guitarists who link all types of shredding with no emotion.
I don't get it I see someone playing Paganini on violin and there's plenty of praise for the player, but then it's Shawn Lane and some dude with a name like hendrix4ever starts talking down to one of the greatest guitarists to ever pick up the instrument.

There are times when it's a good idea to play fast and there are plenty of reasons for it but that doesn't mean you can't feel it.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 26, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> I have only ever had that problem with drummers


 
Ditto... Drummers tend to be some fidgety guys from time to time. I only knew one that could just sit and be quiet until asked to play. And he was the only one that I kinda wish played more!


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## SirMyghin (Sep 26, 2011)

Cabinet said:


> Those guitarists who link all types of shredding with no emotion.
> I don't get it I see someone playing Paganini on violin and there's plenty of praise for the player, but then it's Shawn Lane and some dude with a name like hendrix4ever starts talking down to one of the greatest guitarists to ever pick up the instrument.
> 
> There are times when it's a good idea to play fast and there are plenty of reasons for it but that doesn't mean you can't feel it.



Very true, but you know what is annoying, when people play technically, because they are obsessed with technicality, and think that ability is enough to make it into music. There is a lot more to music than technical ability (especially as it doesn't translate to composition well, apparently )

I am going to get grilled for this, but while Lane had it going on, I could not care less with anything Becker was playing, it just feels so lifeless to me it is insane. On the flip I can listen to Di Meola rip the living hell out of anything and get something out of it. It takes a great COMPOSER to get the most out of technical ability, lots of folks spend too much time on the latter side of the pond though. 

I don't have much patience for immature musicians, but fortunately I remember what it was like, what made me more mature was A joining a band of music I wasn't sure I was into and B expanding my playing to encompass all styles. All of which couldn't happen until I had stepped back for about 2 years. I didn't just expand my playing for extra genre application, I was interested deeply in the hows and whys. The interest shifted from chops, to composition rather quickly somewhere in there. 
There is also no substitute for maturity as a musician (and you only get that over time), albeit some never seem to get there. This probably has the biggest overall effect on your playing, along with confidence (I see confident players as being those that don't NEED to shred, but it comes out due to compositional requirements, aka it fits the tune as opposed to side swipes it).


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## Murmel (Sep 26, 2011)

broj15 said:


> metal guitarists who wear their guitar so lo they can't possibly solo. all they can du is chug and look "cool".
> P.S. I play in a deathcore band (go ahead, bring the hate comments) and I'm a chest rocker
> (for guitar and bass)


You don't need solos to make amazing music. Ask this guy.







Unfortunately you probably don't know who that is


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## SirMyghin (Sep 26, 2011)

^^^

I'm not even sure that is a dude


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## Ckackley (Sep 26, 2011)

Guitarists that don't use a stand on stage.. You can afford a $700 guitar and a $1000 amp but you can't spring for a $15 stand to keep shit from getting broke ??? Seeing a guitar propped up against an amp, or against a wall, or worse yet- laying flat on a drum riser drives me NUTS .. lol


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 27, 2011)

troyguitar said:


> Spending $10000+ on gear but refusing to spend a dime (or an hour) on lessons.


 


This.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 27, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> ^^^
> 
> I'm not even sure that is a dude


 
Yes... I'm going to need a thorough explanation of that picture...


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## Blake1970 (Sep 27, 2011)

Willie Adlers finger lol! But he kicks ass.


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## USMarine75 (Sep 27, 2011)

Trespass said:


> Maybe I should've clarified, I was basically telling you that they are indeed the same thing. An assist to get what you hear in your head to the audience. It's all coming from the same place, I do what I can to get it out.
> 
> For the record, I have a bad habit of (when sitting down) rocking like I'm autistic when I really get into a solo. Yes, there is a definable difference. I'm more comfortable letting that come out when I'm feeling the music than restraining it and taking away from my connection.


 
Oh well then we are talking about the same thing and I do find it extremely douchey. Just my opinion... I'm ok with the "in the moment" aspect, but the idea that I can only get what's in my head out to the audience is to mouth what I want my hands doing... ok... the next time I throw a football I'm going to mouth touchdown... yep... egotistical _and_ douchetastic.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Sep 28, 2011)

My guitarist habit pet peeve? It's guitarists limiting themselves in any way. 

This can vary at many levels, be it viewing themselves as only guitarists, and not with a musician mindset, or thinking that learning theory will only limit them (reading only tab etc). It gets me even more when they refuse to accept outside knowledge/criticism/sources that they fear will hinder their own musical growth. 

And I also agree with everything SirMyghin said. Guitarists often forget that they are supposed to be playing for the song. And at times they would miss the point by writing a song just to justify showcasing their technique rather than focusing on writing a good song, which really is what music is all about. 



Murmel said:


> You don't need solos to make amazing music. Ask this guy.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Um.. Die is actually a pretty accomplished soloist.


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## Cabinet (Sep 28, 2011)

God, I hope so.


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## Hemi-Powered Drone (Sep 28, 2011)

Edika said:


> -Guitarists wearing the guitar like a collar/necktie. I mean come on you can put the guitar a bit further down and still play.



We tend to have a reason to have our guitars up high. For me it's a combination of wrist health, control of the guitar, and keeping it out of the way. I personally think it looks moronic when I see guitarist that have their guitars at there knees, and get pissed when I see the walking and constantly hitting said guitar with their knees. Not to mention that they're ruining their wrists.


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## yingmin (Sep 28, 2011)

Something I don't think I've seen mentioned yet is a lack of relative pitch, which leads to erratic and inaccurate bends. I'd say this is most annoying from people trying to play the blues, because the blues is supposed to be all about phrasing and note choice. Really, the blues is all about playing the RIGHT wrong notes, so when you overshoot a bend (and it's almost always over instead of under), we're not hearing your soul and emotion; we're hearing how little control you have over your instrument.



USMarine75 said:


> Oh well then we are talking about the same thing and I do find it extremely douchey. Just my opinion... I'm ok with the "in the moment" aspect, but the idea that I can only get what's in my head out to the audience is to mouth what I want my hands doing... ok... the next time I throw a football I'm going to mouth touchdown... yep... egotistical _and_ douchetastic.


The difference being that "touchdown" is a word, and saying it has no bearing on where the football goes. For most of the people that do it, it's probably not even intentional. I find myself mouthing along whenever I use my wah pedal, and I never CHOOSE to do that; it just happens while I'm playing. Not only do I NOT think it makes me look cool, I'm pretty sure it looks silly, but I'd have to make a conscious effort to stop it. I don't understand why it's so offensive to you that sometimes musical ideas make a stop at the mouth before reaching the hands. I guess I could see why Vai doing it bugs you, because everything Vai does is ridiculous, but is it such a terrible thing for other people to do?

One other thing, that's more of a novice thing than something you see at shows, but a complete lack of rhythm drives me absolutely crazy. I can hardly step into a music store without hearing someone play with utter disregard for meter, like the bass riff for Taxman inexplicably gaining an extra beat, or the ending of Stairway to Heaven mysteriously losing one, or any number of infuriating manifestations of people not knowing how to count through music. It's something I have a lot of trouble with as a teacher, too; sometimes, I'll work with the same student several weeks in a row, trying every possible angle, breaking a certain riff, phrase or chord progression into the smallest possible parts and building them back up bit by bit, but there's always a point at which they suddenly lose the concept. I'm not entirely convinced it's possible to TEACH rhythm; to a certain extent, I think someone either has it or doesn't, and all the teacher can do is help them understand how to apply it.


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## Dead Undead (Sep 28, 2011)

LolWotGuitar said:


> When people REFUSE to use their pinky.
> I cringe....



I've never had a problem with this, and I honestly can't see how anyone else does.



yingmin said:


> I find myself mouthing along whenever I use my wah pedal, and I never CHOOSE to do that; it just happens while I'm playing.



Same here. And people ALWAYS comment on it. Don't like it? Fine, I just won't play for you anymore. 



yingmin said:


> I'm not entirely convinced it's possible to TEACH rhythm; to a certain extent, I think someone either has it or doesn't, and all the teacher can do is help them understand how to apply it.





My pet peeve is when people can't play to save their lives but think that they're the shit.
Also when people that can't play for shit decide to plug up at GC and turn the amps up ungodly loud.

Not a guitarist thing, but I also hate when people come up and specifically request something and after you play it they just go "meh, was all right" and walk off. Fucking assholes.


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## yingmin (Sep 28, 2011)

Dead Undead said:


> Also when people that can't play for shit decide to plug up at GC and turn the amps up ungodly loud.


I've noticed that, for the most part, there's an inverse relationship between how well someone plays and how loudly they play. People who suck can never turn it up loud enough for their liking, while the really good players usually keep it at a moderate level. Although I've occasionally been forced to wonder if the people who suck are necessarily turning up loud, or if they just SOUND loud because they're so bad.


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## aWoodenShip (Sep 29, 2011)

yingmin said:


> I've noticed that, for the most part, there's an inverse relationship between how well someone plays and how loudly they play. People who suck can never turn it up loud enough for their liking, while the really good players usually keep it at a moderate level. Although I've occasionally been forced to wonder if the people who suck are necessarily turning up loud, or if they just SOUND loud because they're so bad.



Yes. This. This has got to be one of my few pet peeves. My roommate, struggles with power chords. But his amp is loud enough to shake all the shit in my room still. I mostly play with headphones plugged into my amp when I practice.


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## fantom (Sep 29, 2011)

How about... people who play music to be "cool". I'm talking about people who never practice (or "practice" by hanging out and playing xbox with their equipment idle), but play shows and invite 100 of their friends to come hang out with them. They pretty much know they are sloppy and write terrible songs, but they are just trying to be cool or get laid. These bastards are why talented bands struggle to book shows and drive 100 miles to play a new venue and get dicked out of any money to cover basic costs like... gas. Venues only care about the former "musicians" because 50 of their friends will get hammered to avoid hearing terrible music and lack of talent.

Oh, and singers who sound god awful and ruin good bands. It's worse when they aren't really that bad, but just make the band sound mediocre. There's a reason I primarily prefer harsh vocals.


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## Dayn (Sep 29, 2011)

I probably missed it on the front page, but another one that seems exclusively restricted to guitarists... people who make it a point of pride to edify _fucking shit_.

Have a guitar that plays crap and think it makes you more awesome than those whose plays like butter? +1 rep, buddy. Use the thickest strings you can buy and barely play? _Nice_. Deride technicality and play something terrible and slow because one thinks it's the 'blues' because the 'blues' is the mark of such a tortured artist? Oh, so soulful. Don't know shit about theory? _You're the man now, dog_.


Anyone would swear I was annoyed. I don't know why or what for, though.

Tl;dr: UG.


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## yingmin (Sep 29, 2011)

Yeah, the glorification of ignorance is pretty annoying, and does seem to be exclusive to guitarists. It's okay not to know theory, if you can still make it work for you, but it's certainly nothing to be proud of. 

Another one, that's rampant on these forums, is an incredibly skewed perception of value. People who consider something like Les Paul Studios and American Strats overpriced because they don't have the same specs as their $500 imported Schecters, Agiles and LTDs, and think that a guitar should never cost more than about $1000. The idea that you should be able to get any feature you want in a guitar/amp that's affordable to everybody, and the completely baseless, arbitrary and ridiculous preconceptions of what things SHOULD cost, corresponding to nothing more than how much a given person wants to spend on them. Guitars are cheaper than they've ever been, and have a wider range of features and options specifically because of how popular they are. Compare prices of guitars to virtually any other instrument, and we've got it made. Any orchestra musician worth his salt is probably playing an instrument worth thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars, and the average guitarist seems to think you'd have to be retarded to spend that much on on a guitar. I understand that there are some diminishing returns on how much better a guitar will be in relation to price after a certain point, but that doesn't mean that you're better or smarter for playing something pumped out of a factory overseas. 

Edit: the more I think about it, I'm pretty sure the root of these two issues is the same. Rock, and its grandfather the blues, were always about glorifying the common man, so it's only natural that rock musicians would both desire to do everything their own way, rather than learn the imperialistic, oppressive "rules" of music, and play instruments that anyone can afford. Of course, this can lead to some pretty amusing ironies, like punk and hardcore bands railing against capitalism and commercialism while playing Les Paul Customs. Refused were probably the worst at this, though, because if you think Gibsons and Fenders are expensive here, try buying one in Sweden.


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## SirMyghin (Sep 29, 2011)

yingmin said:


> Another one, that's rampant on these forums, is an incredibly skewed perception of value. People who consider something like Les Paul Studios and American Strats overpriced because they don't have the same specs as their $500 imported Schecters, Agiles and LTDs, and think that a guitar should never cost more than about $1000. The idea that you should be able to get any feature you want in a guitar/amp that's affordable to everybody, and the completely baseless, arbitrary and ridiculous preconceptions of what things SHOULD cost, corresponding to nothing more than how much a given person wants to spend on them.



Specs look great on paper though, unfortunately quality isn't a spec


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## aWoodenShip (Sep 29, 2011)

Can I add another that I've just realized? People who don't have an ear, but tune by ear anyways. *plays 5 and 0 on two strings. The same note? No. = IN TUNE


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## fantom (Sep 29, 2011)

Dayn said:


> I probably missed it on the front page, but another one that seems exclusively restricted to guitarists... people who make it a point of pride to edify _fucking shit_.
> 
> Have a guitar that plays crap and think it makes you more awesome than those whose plays like butter?.



The sad part is these people buy a cheaper guitar (and usually a much worse amp) because they decide that they "can't afford" something nicer. Yet they can afford cigarettes, pot, and alcohol, not realizing they drop well over $100-200 a week on it. In a month or two, they could afford something nicer than their Squier and solidstate combo amp. Some of them finally buy a decent guitar, but chances of them spending more than $500 on an amp... *sigh*



yingmin said:


> Another one, that's rampant on these forums, is an incredibly skewed perception of value. People who consider something like Les Paul Studios and American Strats overpriced because they don't have the same specs as their $500 imported Schecters, Agiles and LTDs, and think that a guitar should never cost more than about $1000.... *snip* ....Compare prices of guitars to virtually any other instrument, and we've got it made. Any orchestra musician worth his salt is probably playing an instrument worth thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars, and the average guitarist seems to think you'd have to be retarded to spend that much on on a guitar.



Thank you for saying this! lol Yes... some concert instruments (new, not from the 19th century) easily cost 5 figures to buy new. The "cheap stuff" can still be more than a custom guitar.


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## guitareben (Sep 29, 2011)

For me it's: 

People playing when im talking

Scooped mids >.< (and general bad tone)


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## stevo1 (Sep 29, 2011)

My biggest pet peeves are the new jacks who walk into guitar center with their "band", they all make loud obnoxious noises, They beat on the merchandise, And then plug in a low tuned guitar into the usual line 6, And proceed to play the guitar like a percussion instrument.

Also, the person who started playing guitar like a month ago, but they carry themselves as bad asses for playing guitar. In my senior year in high school, I had a class where I helped a teacher with her class, like pass around papers, clean, etc. and there was this one kid who thought he could play. He was playing for the teacher when I walked in, on his low end epiphone sg, and he was playing For Whom the Bells Toll, and it sounded awful. He didnt fret properly, and he couldn't palm mute. It was just crappy playing. But he bragged about his skills a lot, and had that smug "I play Guitar, im so cool" attitude. And he did this with a lot of things, like bass, drums, and sadly, Football.


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## The Reverend (Sep 29, 2011)

stevo1 said:


> My biggest pet peeves are the new jacks who walk into guitar center with their "band", they all make loud obnoxious noises, They beat on the merchandise, And then plug in a low tuned guitar into the usual line 6, And proceed to play the guitar like a percussion instrument.
> 
> Also, the person who started playing guitar like a month ago, but they carry themselves as bad asses for playing guitar. In my senior year in high school, I had a class where I helped a teacher with her class, like pass around papers, clean, etc. and there was this one kid who thought he could play. He was playing for the teacher when I walked in, on his low end epiphone sg, and he was playing For Whom the Bells Toll, and it sounded awful. He didnt fret properly, and he couldn't palm mute. It was just crappy playing. But he bragged about his skills a lot, and had that smug "I play Guitar, im so cool" attitude. And he did this with a lot of things, like bass, drums, and sadly, Football.



This kind of reminds me of another pet peeve I have that's probably pretty specific.

I have a "project" with my brother. We only play songs I write, with the only input from him being solos using the same arpeggios over and over, and to be clearer, we only play one song that I've written, because that's all he's learned. Any time we hang out with people, he makes it a point to show off our song, for the sole reason of showing off his sloppy soloing technique. 

I get that he's proud of our songs, because I am too. But I view them as works of art, and very significant to me. It almost feels as if he's desecrating what I've spent so long to create, just because he feels as if it boosts his fucking ego.


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## broj15 (Sep 30, 2011)

musicians (including but not limited to guitarists) who leave their gear at home then, after realizing their mistake, commandeer your instrument without even asking. This happened to me once. 

My band got done playing and when the next band went on their bassist had forgotten his at home "because he thought his girlfriend loaded it but she actually didn't" so he grabbed my bass without asking. His band has a reputation for being roudy on stage so when i told him to be careful with it (when your a broke college student a $800 fender aerodyne jazz bass might as well be a one of kind custom shop conklin bass) he acted like i was the one being an asshole


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## welsh_7stinger (Sep 30, 2011)

people that think you HAVE to have a breakdown in everysong. and not even musically intresting breakdowns (they do exsist). modern guitar tone where they basicly boost treble and bass nd scoop out LOADS of the mids and then have the gain on 10. and also when people tune to G (one band coems to mind ¬¬) on a 24.75" scale. also when people wear theyre guitars down to theyre ankles. they are gonna have back problems. by the way these are a mix of just guitarist things and genrel musician things.


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## SirMyghin (Sep 30, 2011)

broj15 said:


> musicians (including but not limited to guitarists) who leave their gear at home then, after realizing their mistake, commandeer your instrument without even asking. This happened to me once.
> 
> My band got done playing and when the next band went on their bassist had forgotten his at home "because he thought his girlfriend loaded it but she actually didn't" so he grabbed my bass without asking. His band has a reputation for being roudy on stage so when i told him to be careful with it (when your a broke college student a $800 fender aerodyne jazz bass might as well be a one of kind custom shop conklin bass) he acted like i was the one being an asshole



I just wouldn't of let him. He is an idiot, his fault.


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## Edika (Sep 30, 2011)

dragonblade629 said:


> We tend to have a reason to have our guitars up high. For me it's a combination of wrist health, control of the guitar, and keeping it out of the way. I personally think it looks moronic when I see guitarist that have their guitars at there knees, and get pissed when I see the walking and constantly hitting said guitar with their knees. Not to mention that they're ruining their wrists.



Well I am not saying it is cool to have the guitar down to your knees. I was referring to people that have the guitar strapped almost chest high. Now that can't be good for your wrists or the guitar being out of the way (if not careful it can actually strangle you ).
When standing I have the strap set for the center of the guitar to be on my belly button. Like so, if the guitar has no dive, you have the guitar set kind of like the classical position when sitting down. So no wrist problems and no getting in the way.


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## yingmin (Sep 30, 2011)

Edika said:


> Well I am not saying it is cool to have the guitar down to your knees. I was referring to people that have the guitar strapped almost chest high. Now that can't be good for your wrists or the guitar being out of the way (if not careful it can actually strangle you ).
> When standing I have the strap set for the center of the guitar to be on my belly button. Like so, if the guitar has no dive, you have the guitar set kind of like the classical position when sitting down. So no wrist problems and no getting in the way.



The reason so many of us keep our guitars that high is that it essentially puts the guitar into classical position, which actually does reduce strain while playing, and has the added benefit of keeping the guitar in the same position whether sitting or standing.


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## BIG ND SWEATY (Sep 30, 2011)

welsh_7stinger said:


> and also when people tune to G (one band coems to mind ¬¬) on a 24.75" scale.


why is that a pet peeve?
OT- mine is when people dont have a specific reason for disliking X brand of pickups or Y brand of guitar


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## bce5150 (Oct 1, 2011)

Dayn said:


> I probably missed it on the front page, but another one that seems exclusively restricted to guitarists... people who make it a point of pride to edify _fucking shit_.



This is prevalent in nearly every facet of culture. Blind hubris dominates. "Professional" chefs will tell you your cooking sucks while they put salt and pepper on a fish and fry it in oil and say it's a fucking masterpiece. "Professional" musicians will tell you that your guitar playing is "alright" then turn around and DJ a party with Nicki Minaj songs. "Professional" mechanics will tell you that you are "alright" with cars because you obey the speed limit and don't buy upgrades. 

1st post hi everybody


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## Repner (Oct 2, 2011)

yingmin said:


> Yeah, the glorification of ignorance is pretty annoying, and does seem to be exclusive to guitarists. It's okay not to know theory, if you can still make it work for you, but it's certainly nothing to be proud of.
> 
> Another one, that's rampant on these forums, is an incredibly skewed perception of value. People who consider something like Les Paul Studios and American Strats overpriced because they don't have the same specs as their $500 imported Schecters, Agiles and LTDs, and think that a guitar should never cost more than about $1000. The idea that you should be able to get any feature you want in a guitar/amp that's affordable to everybody, and the completely baseless, arbitrary and ridiculous preconceptions of what things SHOULD cost, corresponding to nothing more than how much a given person wants to spend on them. Guitars are cheaper than they've ever been, and have a wider range of features and options specifically because of how popular they are. Compare prices of guitars to virtually any other instrument, and we've got it made. Any orchestra musician worth his salt is probably playing an instrument worth thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars, and the average guitarist seems to think you'd have to be retarded to spend that much on on a guitar. I understand that there are some diminishing returns on how much better a guitar will be in relation to price after a certain point, but that doesn't mean that you're better or smarter for playing something pumped out of a factory overseas.
> 
> Edit: the more I think about it, I'm pretty sure the root of these two issues is the same. Rock, and its grandfather the blues, were always about glorifying the common man, so it's only natural that rock musicians would both desire to do everything their own way, rather than learn the imperialistic, oppressive "rules" of music, and play instruments that anyone can afford. Of course, this can lead to some pretty amusing ironies, like punk and hardcore bands railing against capitalism and commercialism while playing Les Paul Customs. Refused were probably the worst at this, though, because if you think Gibsons and Fenders are expensive here, try buying one in Sweden.


You just described the majority of people I know locally


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## Sikthness (Oct 2, 2011)

aWoodenShip said:


> Yes. This. This has got to be one of my few pet peeves. My roommate, struggles with power chords. But his amp is loud enough to shake all the shit in my room still. I mostly play with headphones plugged into my amp when I practice.


 

Ive noticed this inverse releationship myself. When I first started playing, I played loud and fast 100% of the time. had feedback comin out the ass, and no technique whatsoever. Now that I'm gettin better I find I'm keepin my amp much quieter. Also, sdly when a first started playing my settings were: Gain:10, Bass:10, Mid:10, Treble:10, Volume:10. Looking back, I feel like an idiot.


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## Edika (Oct 2, 2011)

yingmin said:


> The reason so many of us keep our guitars that high is that it essentially puts the guitar into classical position, which actually does reduce strain while playing, and has the added benefit of keeping the guitar in the same position whether sitting or standing.



Putting the guitar chest high (and I mean chest high) is in no way putting the guitar in classical position unless you are quite short. And as I mentioned I don't put my guitar very low when playing standing. I can't find a picture to show what I mean. At least if the guy having the guitar that high is able to play I can get past the fact that it seems ridiculous. If they can't even play then it is overkill!


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## MABGuitar (Oct 2, 2011)

Sikthness said:


> Ive noticed this inverse releationship myself. When I first started playing, I played loud and fast 100% of the time. had feedback comin out the ass, and no technique whatsoever. Now that I'm gettin better I find I'm keepin my amp much quieter. Also, sdly when a first started playing my settings were: Gain:10, Bass:10, Mid:10, Treble:10, Volume:10. Looking back, I feel like an idiot.



Haha don't worry, we all go through the ''wtf is trebble mids and bass'' phase... well atleast I did. o.o


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## Hemi-Powered Drone (Oct 2, 2011)

MABGuitar said:


> Haha don't worry, we all go through the ''wtf is trebble mids and bass'' phase... well atleast I did. o.o



We all do. Then I went through a phase of all set to zero, which, for some reason, on my crappy Epiphone practice amp made a particularly fuzzy sound.


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## All_¥our_Bass (Oct 3, 2011)

Konfyouzd said:


> Vai would call that "stage presence" I'm sure...
> 
> I'm not sure there's anything that really bothers me about a guitar player except maybe when they just don't seem to look like they're as in to their music as they want you to be.
> 
> ...


I'm on the other side of the coin, I prefer it when people just PLAY MUSIC instead of spending the whole time just showing off.


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## cwhitey2 (Oct 3, 2011)

All_¥our_Bass;2688209 said:


> I'm on the other side of the coin, I prefer it when people just PLAY MUSIC instead of spending the whole time just showing off.





I hate people that are like 'yo, watch this riff' and proceed to do a shitty solo...for 5 min

i also hate it when people try to write the most technical music possible, dont have the chops to play it, and cant keep it together for the life of them live. 

There is a local band by me that sounds decent on cd, but then you see them live...and just laugh...they cant play any of their stuff (they had to restart a set one night because there were no monitors and they couldn't hear them selves, i didnt have a problem playing ) and it sounds like a wall of noise

I know my skills and use them to their fullest, but i dont try and play something live i know i cant play, thats what the bedroom is for.


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## Aevolve (Oct 6, 2011)

troyguitar said:


> Spending $10000+ on gear but refusing to spend a dime (or an hour) on lessons.



I don't take lessons because I would prefer to be self-taught. Plus any sort of resources on technique or playing can be found on the internet for free nowadays. 
But, then again I don't spend $10000+ on gear either.


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## yingmin (Oct 7, 2011)

PeachesMcKenzie said:


> I don't take lessons because I would prefer to be self-taught. Plus any sort of resources on technique or playing can be found on the internet for free nowadays.
> But, then again I don't spend $10000+ on gear either.



Watching YouTube videos can be a good supplement, but nothing beats an actual teacher. YouTube doesn't know you as a player, can't give you direction, and, most importantly, can't correct your mistakes. Why would you prefer to be self taught? What advantages do you perceive?


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## The Reverend (Oct 7, 2011)

yingmin said:


> Watching YouTube videos can be a good supplement, but nothing beats an actual teacher. YouTube doesn't know you as a player, can't give you direction, and, most importantly, can't correct your mistakes. Why would you prefer to be self taught? What advantages do you perceive?



That's the single biggest reason I want to take lessons. I'm all self-taught, but there's a lot of things I have questions on that the internet doesn't always discuss at length. Sometimes you can find the answer by looking for another resource, but that shit gets old really fast.


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## Aevolve (Oct 7, 2011)

yingmin said:


> Watching YouTube videos can be a good supplement, but nothing beats an actual teacher. YouTube doesn't know you as a player, can't give you direction, and, most importantly, can't correct your mistakes. Why would you prefer to be self taught? What advantages do you perceive?



I mean I'm not retarded, I can see the obvious benefits of having someone there with you to correct mistakes- But I suppose the benefit I see.. hm. I guess I've seen/heard a lot of guitarists that I like who were self-taught and developed a really unique sound on their own. It's almost like I want to prove to myself I can do it on my own as well and develop something unique.

But then again I'm extremely "I can do this on my own and better myself" in every aspect of my life  Not really out of ignorance but out of a lack of faith in anyone else. lol. 

EDIT: Plus I feel like if I study hard enough to the point of being able to recognize every mistake I make on my own, that the concept or technique I'm trying to play should sink in even more so.


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## The Reverend (Oct 7, 2011)

I don't think taking lessons is really going to cramp your style, man. You may not even like a lot of the stuff your teacher does, but as long as what you're learning is solid, applicable theory, you'll keep your sound unique and learn how to do more with it. Of course, you could also get a bum teacher, who only wants you to play like them. It happens, I guess. 

I'm generally very independent too, but when it comes to bettering myself, there are quite a few things that I have to admit I can't do without being taught. Don't let one particular part of your mindset hold you back.


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## Alimination (Oct 7, 2011)

yikes! so many hardcore pet peeves out there. 

I don't have much, but I guess the not using pinky bothers me as well.


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## yingmin (Oct 8, 2011)

PeachesMcKenzie said:


> I mean I'm not retarded, I can see the obvious benefits of having someone there with you to correct mistakes- But I suppose the benefit I see.. hm. I guess I've seen/heard a lot of guitarists that I like who were self-taught and developed a really unique sound on their own. It's almost like I want to prove to myself I can do it on my own as well and develop something unique.
> 
> But then again I'm extremely "I can do this on my own and better myself" in every aspect of my life  Not really out of ignorance but out of a lack of faith in anyone else. lol.
> 
> EDIT: Plus I feel like if I study hard enough to the point of being able to recognize every mistake I make on my own, that the concept or technique I'm trying to play should sink in even more so.


There are a lot of guitarists who are self taught that have developed unique styles and interesting techniques, but correlation is not causality; they didn't necessarily develop their style BECAUSE of being self taught, but DESPITE it. Lots of schooled and professionally educated guitarists have interesting styles as well. A teacher can get you to think about things in a way you might not have on your own. Also, I would argue that anything you learn, any style, genre, technique, etc. can only make you a better guitarist, and there's no easier way to learn something new than by having someone there to explain it, in multiple different ways if necessary.

Also, I think you're giving yourself a little too much credit to assume that you'll necessarily be able to recognize all your own mistakes on your own. Or, if you do figure them out for yourself, will it be early enough? By playing something incorrectly for any amount of time, you're effectively holding yourself back. The sooner you work through your mistakes, the faster you'll be able to improve.

Believe me, I completely understand where you're coming from. I never took lessons when I was younger, because I was incredibly stubborn and wanted to do everything my own way, no matter what. The result of that was that I made a lot of stupid mistakes that impeded my progress in gigantic ways. If I'd taken lessons starting out, I could be a much better guitarist than I am now. It's a huge part of why I got into teaching in the first place: so that I could help other people avoid the stupid things I did.


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## broj15 (Oct 8, 2011)

there are plenty of self taught guitarists i know that can play really well, yet they have no grasp of theory. I feel like that is a draw back that a lot of self taught players have. 
I took lessons for 2 1/2 years and i quit because i thought that i had plateaued as a player. Then i started to get deeper into writing my own material and realized that there is so much theory that i didn't know that could benefit me. 
I tried to start a band with my best friend (a self taught musician). He could play covers of songs that he learned from tabs but he had no knowledge of chord construction or theory, thus making him unable to write anything.


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## Waelstrum (Oct 8, 2011)

One pet peeve of mine is when stage presence is used as an excuse for sloppy playing. People that will reduce the quality of the musical aspect performance _noticeably_ in order to jump around. I'm by no means anti-stage presence, as I'm aware many people like to see people bounce about like Tigger. All I'm saying is that given the choice of concerts between a Petrucci style stand-still-but-play-flawlessly and a (I can't think of anyone at the moment) style jump-around-sloppy concert, I'll take the former. Basically, when I go to see a concert, the music is the primary attraction, all others are secondary at best.


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## Aevolve (Oct 8, 2011)

Maybe it is out of a sort-of stubbornness. I suppose if I found a teacher near me who I felt was competent enough, it would sway me. So I guess I'll be looking for a teacher.


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## nickgray (Oct 8, 2011)

TRENCHLORD said:


> When I see/hear someone just beating the hell out of their strings.
> I'm not talking about exagereted arm or hand movement. You can do that without bashbuzzing your strings. So many guys have to turn their amp halfway up just to drowned out the buzzing.



I'm a rather heavy handed picker and I can't imagine myself playing any other way. I mean I get the benefits of low action, but it probably works best at medium-high gain with light picking. That being said though, it is pretty silly to massacre the strings if you have low action.



USMarine75 said:


> No, not at all what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about self-singing... Have you never watched a Steve Vai video??? I'm talking about the douchey over the top my-mouth-is-a-wah pedal oral thing he does.



You *have* to watch this:


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## ZEBOV (Oct 17, 2011)

Crabcoring, tuning without muting the amp. And I have a one strike you're out rule for flaky musicians. It pisses me off that much because I've dealt with it that much. Flaky assholes are why I want to write and record everything by myself. 
And when it comes to musicians who can't stop playing when others are trying to talk, I tend to unplug the guitar from the amp. I've also made a drummer shutup by reaching under his arms from behind, around his shoulders, and to the back of his neck, lifted him up, and carried him across the room.
I started playing bass because of Korn, so with a 5 band EQ, bass and treble were maxed out, while low mids, mids, and high mids were set to 0 (because Fieldy scooped the mids too). My first band practice, my 500 watt amp was being drowned out by two 15 watt solid state guitar amps.


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## orakle (Oct 18, 2011)

only hate 1 thing : crabcore


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## ghostred7 (Oct 18, 2011)

My pet peeves:
People that think you need to know what scale/mode you're playing to sound good.
People that are so self-fucking-righteous that think because a guitarist doesn't know theory, they're bad and are shit players
Guitarists/Bassists that don't know when they're out of tune or just simply playing the wrong parts
Musicians that are uber-technical, but wouldn't know feeling when playing if it slapped them in the face
People that think I can't rock b/c I'm bald


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## AxeHappy (Oct 19, 2011)

Thinking that Theory will somehow limit you instead of setting you free.
Musician's with a great bend/vibrato/vibrato bend (since that seems to be the definition of Soul or Feeling in music) that can only play one damn thing because they never learned any technique. 
Shitty Guitar teachers(IE No Lesson plan, same exercises in the same order for every student, Teaching them random songs that the teacher knows...etc, etc). There are a lot of them, and they give all of us a bad name and devalue my profession. Fucking jerks.
Mocking bass players for, "Only having 4 strings."
Describing themselves as a, "Rhythm," or, "Lead," Guitarist. How about you just learn to play the damn instrument without needless pigeonholing holing yourself with stupid labels?
Thinking that Guitar is easy to play.


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## idshanks (Oct 20, 2011)

AxeHappy said:


> Thinking that Guitar is easy to play.



Honestly, I'd say guitar IS easy to play - easy to play, hard to master.

My peeves... these aren't really guitarist habit peeves so much as just about the attitudes of people towards music

Also, I apologise but this isn't going to be so much a small list of my peeves as a rant on each one - I need to get this out of my system! 

1. Those who dismiss technical or extreme music as having no emotive qualities when what they really mean is they just don't get it. People consistently fail to understand that there is a huge number of emotions and that all types of music have particular areas that they excel in getting across and others where perhaps they don't so much.

2. Those who make ignorance of theory a point of pride. This is a ridiculously stupid and immature attitude, and just strikes me as an attempt to cover up feelings of inferiority. I'm not particularly knowledgable of theory - I know the basics. If I'm playing something in an uncommon scale, I can communicate how it relates to the major scale (or another scale close to it) so we're on the same page. I can communicate time signature (an essential for me as I naturally come up with stuff in less common time sigs). The basics (I know more but that's beside the point) - this stuff isn't a massive effort to pick up, but is already such a great help in just bringing musicians in to the same wavelength. 

On the flipside, people who look down on anyone who isn't a vast wealth of theoretical know-how. My philosophy tends to be learn what you need as you need it, and what you want as you want it. If I hear about something that interests me, I'll look into it. If I am talking with a musician and they mention something I don't understand (happens from time to time with my guitarist - he gets lessons and has been playing for at least a decade, where-as I'm self-taught and have been playing only 5~ years), I'll ask him to explain and/or learn about it on my own later. I don't think there's any reason to look down on someone who is willing to learn as they need to.

3. These really weird attitudes that an instrument has its predefined role, and everything else is wrong. I experience this a lot as a bassist. For example, this piece played on bass is absolutely beautiful: 
Mauricio Nader "Asturias" Electric Bass arrangement. - YouTube

And yet you'll commonly hear things like (and I received this comment from one person after posting it on facebook): "6 strings, high notes, ringing out arpeggios? why don't they just get it over with and buy a guitar? clearly wanted a guitar and was given a bass". I hate when people do this with any instrument - every instrument has its own unique tonal qualities, and its limitations that force more creative interpretations of pieces. On solo bass this piece sounds so intense and beautiful. It would still be beautiful on guitar of course, but it would lose some qualities and gain others.

This is perhaps a more extreme example, but it applies to everything - merely having a 6 string bass for example will set some people against you (or a 7 or more string guitar). I'm sure on this site some people will know what I'm talking about.

I'm sure there's more, but I'm all ranted out for now. A bit much for my first post?


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## pearl_07 (Oct 20, 2011)

People who have really expensive rigs and don't even know how to properly eq at all. I've seen a Valve King with an OD and a noise gate sound better than an Invader 150 with a 4 knob Keeley, a 10 band MXR, and multiple noise gates all because the jackass with the Invader thinks the more expensive stuff he has the better his tone gets.


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## thedarkoceans (Oct 20, 2011)

ah,my bad habit is that for easy songs i behave like shit,for harder songs have a lot of determination.


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## yingmin (Oct 20, 2011)

idshanks said:


> 3. These really weird attitudes that an instrument has its predefined role, and everything else is wrong. I experience this a lot as a bassist. For example, this piece played on bass is absolutely beautiful:
> Mauricio Nader "Asturias" Electric Bass arrangement. - YouTube
> 
> And yet you'll commonly hear things like (and I received this comment from one person after posting it on facebook): "6 strings, high notes, ringing out arpeggios? why don't they just get it over with and buy a guitar? clearly wanted a guitar and was given a bass". I hate when people do this with any instrument - every instrument has its own unique tonal qualities, and its limitations that force more creative interpretations of pieces. On solo bass this piece sounds so intense and beautiful. It would still be beautiful on guitar of course, but it would lose some qualities and gain others.


In fairness, that piece was written for a guitar, both in terms of the range of notes and for standard tuning, and is much easier and more ergonomic to play on a guitar. He's working a lot harder to play that on a 6-string bass due to the difference in tuning, and he's using what is effectively classical guitar technique. While I'm certainly not saying his performance/arrangement is without musical worth, I'd have to say that they kind of have a point.


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## Waelstrum (Oct 20, 2011)

yingmin said:


> In fairness, that piece was written for a guitar, both in terms of the range of notes and for standard tuning, and is much easier and more ergonomic to play on a guitar. He's working a lot harder to play that on a 6-string bass due to the difference in tuning, and he's using what is effectively classical guitar technique. While I'm certainly not saying his performance/arrangement is without musical worth, I'd have to say that they kind of have a point.



I am pretty sure he's tuned it B E A D F# B, or some transposition of that.


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## yingmin (Oct 20, 2011)

Waelstrum said:


> I am pretty sure he's tuned it B E A D F# B, or some transposition of that.



Probably, but that doesn't change my argument. Compare that to how it's played on a guitar in standard tuning:



The piece was centered around using the open B string as a drone, an advantage that's lost trying to play the piece in its original key on a 6-string bass using even a tuning modified to emulate a guitar. Even tuning the bass B E A D F# B and transposing it down a fourth would have made a lot more sense than what he's doing. This is especially apparent when he's playing two Bs an octave apart; he's holding down a 7-fret stretch with his outer two fingers while having to add in melody notes with his other fingers, versus just adding a higher E on the 7th fret of the E string on top of the open B you're already playing on a guitar, where all the notes you're playing are in a mere three-fret span starting at the seventh fret.


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## idshanks (Oct 21, 2011)

yingmin said:


> In fairness, that piece was written for a guitar, both in terms of the range of notes and for standard tuning, and is much easier and more ergonomic to play on a guitar. He's working a lot harder to play that on a 6-string bass due to the difference in tuning, and he's using what is effectively classical guitar technique. While I'm certainly not saying his performance/arrangement is without musical worth, I'd have to say that they kind of have a point.



The point is, though, that they're not the same. Of course it's easier to play on guitar, but it has a different... feel (not quite the word I'm looking for, but I'm lost for a better one right now... I'm hungover >_>) on bass that the guitar cannot convey (as with the inverse, just in case someone assumes I'm raising one instrument above the other). If their point was that it's much more convenient to play on guitar, then that's perfectly valid (though certainly not a reason that it not to perform it on bass). But rather, the point with which I have a problem is that many believe the instrument should simply not be used to play such things because its role should never be anything more than relatively subdued basslines.


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## Adari (Oct 21, 2011)

idshanks said:


> The point is, though, that they're not the same. Of course it's easier to play on guitar, but it has a different... feel (not quite the word I'm looking for, but I'm lost for a better one right now... I'm hungover >_>) on bass that the guitar cannot convey (as with the inverse, just in case someone assumes I'm raising one instrument above the other). If their point was that it's much more convenient to play on guitar, then that's perfectly valid (though certainly not a reason that it not to perform it on bass). But rather, the point with which I have a problem is that many believe the instrument should simply not be used to play such things because its role should never be anything more than relatively subdued basslines.



Completely agree in every way. People post the same thing on this guy's channel all the time:

Bass has such a different and interesting timbre, in comparison to guitar; everything seem wide open an big. I don't play bass myself, but I do play a lot of jazz on a flamenco guitar, which people often treat the same way ("get an archtop").


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## ViolaceousVerdance (Nov 9, 2011)

SO,

There comes a time in many a metal guitar player's life when they discover the wondrous sonic-pummeling that is Meshuggah. Their reactions are generally either that of instant fanboy-dom or eternal hate. Let's talk about the first group for a second.

"Oh, man," they say. "How the heck are they playing? What's with all the fXcked up rhythms!?"

They then go on youtube and look up covers and links to the transcriber's .txt file tab ("please no guitarpro, i'm poor and don't know what tuxguitar is yet. yeah, my mom bought me that dual rec; so what?").

While reading and learning, they discover new time signatures like 21/16 and 11/6. They also discover that MESHUGGAH likes to write in a way where all these weird meters line up over a bunch of repetitions with x measures of 4/4. "DUDE. THAT'S SO... wait, i don't even know what that is. i need vocabulary like now."

BACK TO THE CLOUD THEY GO WHERE EVERY SINGLE MAL-INFORMED TW*TMOUTH DESCRIBES THIS PHENOMENON AS "POLYRHYTHM."

WITHOUT CONSIDERING THE POSSIBILITY THAT ABSO-FXCKING-LUTELY EVERYONE IS WRONG, UNCARING FANBOY ASSAULTS YOUTUBE LISTENERS EVERYWHERE WITH HIS MESHUGGAH COVERS RECORDED WITH A CAMERA MIC AND HIS SPOUTING OF MESHUGGAH'S AMAZING "POLYRHYTHMS." 

Seriously, though, there is this disease spreading through the internet among musicians: not knowing the difference between polymeter(or artificial groupings) and polyrhythm. 

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE, YOU MIGHT ASK [BECAUSE YOU ARE ALSO ONE OF THOSE!]!

POLYMETER AND ARTIFICIAL GROUPINGS EXTRAPOLATE, POLYRHYTHM SUBDIVIDES.

With A.G's of 5 16th notes in 4/4, guess what's happening in a quarter note. YEP. STILL 16th NOTES; The phrase is just dancing from sometimes starting on the pulse to sometimes not on the pulse in an implication that there might be some polymeter (5/16 and 4/4) occuring.

Polyrhythms DON'T WORK LIKE THAT. ^^^^^^^^THAT IS WHAT MESHUGGAH DOES. MESHUGGAH DOES DO POLYMETER/A.G., NOT POLYRHYTHM. 

POLYRHYTHM is kind of the EXACT OPPOSITE FXCKING THING. To directly contrast, 5:4 polyrhythm can be where 5 notes are squeezed into, for argument's sake, a quarter note, where only 4 usually go. YA WANT POLYRHYTHM? LISTEN TO SOME ZAPPA OR VAI OR *NOT FXKING MESHUGGAH!!!*

WHY, you ask, AM I SUCH A DICKBAG ABOUT THIS REALLY MINUTE THING? It's because they sound INCREDIBLY different; because there is NO comparing the sound of the 2nd beat of the 3rd measure of Zappa's "Peaches En Regalia"'s main melody to 7:36 into TOOL's "The Grudge." SEE WHAT I DID THERE?! I even tied music examples to polyrhythmic 5's and polymetric 5's /trollface

That is all.


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## SirMyghin (Nov 9, 2011)

While you may have a good argument, I doubt anyone will read it under the tone you present.


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## Pooluke41 (Nov 9, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> While you may have a good argument, I doubt anyone will read it under the tone you present.



I did.


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## hereticemir (Nov 9, 2011)

Hey I am guilty of the talking down to people with a lack of theoritical knowledge and i don't mean to do it on purpose. I mean I wright a song in a certain key like C major please don't proceede to wright a solo in lets say F# minor and expect mean not to say something. I know metal exspecially death metal is about musical freedom and sticken it to the man and their contrived thoughts of music but still when it sounds off its off. 

So what i'm saying is sorry to all those I might piss off both past and present


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## ViolaceousVerdance (Nov 9, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> While you may have a good argument, I doubt anyone will read it under the tone you present.



Touchè, good sir. This is, however, my most absolute and undying musician pet peeve and, while I tried to be relaxed about my exposition, I couldn't help but let my frustration do the writing for me. I'm new to the forum, so I hope to prove over time that I'm not THAT much of a condescending jerk. 


 be well, fellow 7 slinger


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## ViolaceousVerdance (Nov 9, 2011)

hereticemir said:


> I mean I wright a song in a certain key like C major please don't proceede to wright a solo in lets say F# minor and expect mean not to say something.



I dig what you're saying as I can be like that, too. At the same time, though, modulation is where it's at. If the guitar player writes a graceful key change back and forth between the keys, what's the hurt of trying? Sure, a tritone is a really distant modulation, so doing pivot chord modulations can be tricky. It's not farfetched to go from C to a-, then pitch axis into A. Voila, f# is a relative minor away.

Actually, I think I'm going to mess around with that right now


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## SirMyghin (Nov 9, 2011)

ViolaceousVerdance said:


> Touchè, good sir. This is, however, my most absolute and undying musician pet peeve and, while I tried to be relaxed about my exposition, I couldn't help but let my frustration do the writing for me. I'm new to the forum, so I hope to prove over time that I'm not THAT much of a condescending jerk.
> 
> 
> be well, fellow 7 slinger



Fair enough dude, I understand in many ways. No 7 here though. Soon! (had one, very briefly.... didn't work out and no fault of the guitars).


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## Waelstrum (Nov 10, 2011)

hereticemir said:


> Hey I am guilty of the talking down to people with a lack of theoritical knowledge and i don't mean to do it on purpose. I mean I wright a song in a certain key like C major please don't proceede to wright a solo in lets say F# minor and expect mean not to say something. I know metal exspecially death metal is about musical freedom and sticken it to the man and their contrived thoughts of music but still when it sounds off its off.
> 
> So what i'm saying is sorry to all those I might piss off both past and present



It worked for Stravinsky 

(I will admit that there is a big difference between the careful use of polytonality and not knowing which notes traditionally fit into which chords.)


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## The Reverend (Nov 11, 2011)

If only the world operated that way, and we could freely advertise our superiority, especially when coming across someone doing it wrong. That's the world I want to live in. Our genius would finally be recognized by the proletariat, without masterful displays to continually convince them of how right, in fact, we are, and how ignorant and pitiable they are.

I feel like using an Explorer-esque *laugh* but if I did that, it'd be like ripping him off, since he's the only one I've seen do that on this forum. More seriously, though, I can see where that annoys you guys, but I really hope that instead of condescending on some poor dude you give him some constructive criticism. After all, weren't we all that guy at some point?


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## Killer64 (Nov 12, 2011)

In the middle of a solo or fast complicated riff and my pick tries to fall out my hand. I hate when that happens and I have trouble finding the pick...


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## Captain_Awesome (Nov 12, 2011)

Guitarists who own expensive gear and can only chug/breakdown with a few sweeps every now again, because, y'know... That's impressive! *sarcasm*


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## Diggy (Nov 12, 2011)

sounding like some old ladies here.


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## All_¥our_Bass (Nov 12, 2011)

hereticemir said:


> Hey I am guilty of the talking down to people with a lack of theoritical knowledge and i don't mean to do it on purpose. I mean I wright a song in a certain key like C major please don't proceede to wright a solo in lets say F# minor and expect mean not to say something.


I do this/similar things on purpose

Because of this...


Waelstrum said:


> It worked for Stravinsky



but...


Waelstrum said:


> (I will admit that there is a big difference between the careful use of polytonality and not knowing which notes traditionally fit into which chords.)


Which I agree with.


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## Betterlaidplans (Nov 13, 2011)

Captain_Awesome said:


> Guitarists who own expensive gear and can only chug/breakdown with a few sweeps every now again, because, y'know... That's impressive! *sarcasm*



I'd have to say I may be guilty of having gear that may be over my skill level so to speak. But what's wrong with buying something above your level? Aside from buying your first guitar you should buy above your "level" so you'd get more out of the instrument rather than just buying a $500 guitar until you're good enough for a 1500 one. Inside of spending 2000 on 2 you spend 1500 on 1 and save time and money. However I do agree that it's lame when some one acts like they're Petrucci because they have a BFR


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## Son of Sam (Nov 14, 2011)

There are two attitudes that I generally see with playing guitar that irritate me somewhat. 

The first is the kind of person who tries to be as technical as possible. I like some crazy technical players, but that doesn't mean their playing is interesting.

Then there are the ones telling me that theory is useless and they "play with their heart." The people I've met like this have been very tongue in cheek about it.

There needs to be a good balance of the two in my opinion. They are two generative forces working as a whole; a yin and yang if you will. The technicality and theory can help the artist to express exactly what they mean to. I often think of it as an analogy to the tools a painter or a sculptor would use.


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## MitchellJBurgess (Nov 14, 2011)

I always accedently do the Vai thing, when I play guitar I concentrate on my posture and the guitar.

Not my face, which also involves any saliver in my mouth to do whatever it wants. Which tends to after a while make me dribble, or suddenly cough my lungs up because I'm choking on the saliva =P


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## Stealthdjentstic (Nov 14, 2011)

People postingthreads about how to get a good djent tone but pick like pussies and seemingly "need" 78 noisegates and 48 compressors.


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## Son of Sam (Nov 14, 2011)

Stealthdjentstic said:


> People postingthreads about how to get a good djent tone but pick like pussies and seemingly "need" 78 noisegates and 48 compressors.



Yes!! If they want a big sound, it takes an intense pick attack. I just love breaking into a low B string


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## Beowulf Von Thrashmeister (Nov 16, 2011)

Son of Sam said:


> There are two attitudes that I generally see with playing guitar that irritate me somewhat.
> 
> The first is the kind of person who tries to be as technical as possible. I like some crazy technical players, but that doesn't mean their playing is interesting.
> 
> ...


 
Does mean achieving a perfect balance of being both technical and creative with an open heart and mind ? 

Well said !!!.


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## Mr. Big Noodles (Nov 16, 2011)

Son of Sam said:


> There are two attitudes that I generally see with playing guitar that irritate me somewhat.
> 
> The first is the kind of person who tries to be as technical as possible. I like some crazy technical players, but that doesn't mean their playing is interesting.
> 
> ...


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## USMarine75 (Nov 16, 2011)

hereticemir said:


> Hey I am guilty of the talking down to people with a lack of theoritical knowledge and i don't mean to do it on purpose. I mean I wright a song in a certain key like C major please don't proceede to wright a solo in lets say F# minor and expect mean not to say something. I know metal exspecially death metal is about musical freedom and sticken it to the man and their contrived thoughts of music but still when it sounds off its off.
> 
> So what i'm saying is sorry to all those I might piss off both past and present


 
That's okay... and we forgive you for your horrendous slaughtering of the English language. 

Forget my old rant, my new one is regarding professional artists that endorse a signature model product and claim it is the best one that they've ever used, that the old company didn't "get them", and that this is the last product they'll ever use... and then they switch to another company and say all the same shit about the new product and bash the old one.

Yeah, I'm talking about you Eddie!!!


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## Son of Sam (Nov 16, 2011)

Beowulf Von Thrashmeister said:


> Does mean achieving a perfect balance of being both technical and creative with an open heart and mind ?
> 
> Well said !!!.



You got it! This is only my personal philosophy though. It seems to stem from my beliefs as a Taoist, but that is a different discussion in and of itself. 

Everyone has their own way of playing though.

SCHECTER WHORE!!!
Rush is one of those bands that I would lay down as an archetype for my ideas! Thanks for sharing this one, I haven't heard it.


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## Speedblooddeath (Nov 16, 2011)

Went to a death metal show and saw the lead guitarist of one band with his back to the audience during the entire show, didn't even turn around once... I dunno if it was stage fright or what... but it pissed me off. lol


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## Locrian (Nov 19, 2011)

ViolaceousVerdance said:


> SO,
> 
> There comes a time in many a metal guitar player's life when they discover the wondrous sonic-pummeling that is Meshuggah. Their reactions are generally either that of instant fanboy-dom or eternal hate. Let's talk about the first group for a second.
> 
> ...



While your point is valid about a vast number of young (and old) musicians not properly understanding the difference between a polymeter and a polyrhythm, some Meshuggah songs DO feature polyrhythms, not just polymeters. For example, on the song Sane, 1:12 into the song, during the guitar solo, the drum section features a section of 2 measures of 3:4 followed by a measure of 2:3. Very common polymeter usage between the crash and the snare.


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## Sy01 (Nov 19, 2011)

I tried out as a vocalist for a band, as I'd sorta known one of the guitarists for a while. From our discussion, he said "We're changing style from metalcore to progressive rock". I know progressive is thrown around a lot nowdays; and for some pretty good reasons, but Muse are about the lowest extreme of the prog spectrum. This guy was a serious muse fan.

I am also a Muse fan, so I jumped at the chance to join a band; any band.

What a fucking mistake that was!

They lived only about an hour away by train, so I was willing to fork out the £15 or so for the return ticket. I thought "I'll go up every other weekend and practice with them, and write material in between that." 

I wrote the basic structures of 4 songs over a course of 2 days; so excited was I to join in and really show them what I'd got. So I sent along the first track...

First practice came along, and we all ended up at this guy's house. They were sat around; bassist, two guitarists, and the drummer (minus drums; for some reason). I planned on being there for a good 5 hours to get some songwriting done; but for the first 3 hours it was just the guitarists dicking around.

Also, they were hardly "prog" by any standards; even compared to Muse. One guitarists will only reference GnR and The Scorpions as his biggest influences; played a flying V through a shitty, hi-treble, squealing valve amp. I fiddled with the settings to level out the mids and treble, but he scooped that fucker again after 3 minutes.

My ears will never be the same again.


The bassist had a bass amp with NO BASS CONTROL. It had snapped the fuck off the front of the panel. It also sounded as though the bass knob was at 0 beforehand, too; as all we got was some washy, noisy shit. I like mid tones on bass as much as the next guy, but this just sounded like popping and clicking.


In addition to all this; they were getting on at me to write vocals for them; so I tried while I was there with the lyrics I'd written up beforehand. They sat and listened intently for 5 minutes; I shot ideas around, they went "hmmm yeahhh~..." and then started playing Halo.

Also, in regards to the song I showed them, the main riff started on a dotted eighth note and two sixteenth notes, played open, followed by a hammer-on at the 12th. "Nobody could possibly mess that up" I thought, "Just got to feel that really simple groove", I concluded.

*Wrong*, they removed one of the 16th notes so that the hammer-on sat right on beat 2. I noticed the difference when they played it back; and it sounded dead and mechanical. It's pretty amazing, the difference that tiny note duration can have.

Throw in a total inability to comprehend 12/8 and 6/8, and you can see why I got the fuck out of there. 

I'd be several £ better off without even bothering, to be honest.

Though, I did keep hold of those other songs I wrote, so it's not all bad! ;D

*TL;DR*: *I hate musicians that pretend to be serious about their craft, and then just waste everyone's time and money.*


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## Mr. Big Noodles (Nov 20, 2011)

Sounds like my drummer. 

Actually, it's more like . He noodles at every conceivable moment, so that nobody can hear conversation during rehearsal and we end up wasting half of our short practice time because he's constantly fidgeting and we have to yell at him to shut up. Then my bassist holds a grudge for the remainder of practice and makes noise whenever the drummer talks, and nothing gets done. Meanwhile, I'm the only one setting up amps and our makeshift thousand-piece vocal rig. Not to mention that I'm the only member spending money on gas to cart 75% of my band to our rehearsal space. Please, if you're a musician, don't waste others' time. And try helping out for once!


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## Sy01 (Nov 20, 2011)

Because of all this, I've resorted to simply writing my own stuff and attempting to produce it on my own. I'll find a band someday, but not before I've got an album full of material. ;D


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 20, 2011)

Elitism/Arrogance/Looking down on others or ripping on others for trivial things.


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## Sy01 (Nov 20, 2011)

I used to jam with a guy I went to college with. We'd grab a few guitars, then we'd struggle deciding on what to do. I'm not well versed in music theory, but he thrived from it; and he'd always show me these "SICK LICKS" and I'd sit there bored for hours on end while he shouted out chord changes.

I know it was probably just because I didn't know any of the modes or anything back then, but it felt like he was just trying to 1up me at every turn.


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## Repner (Nov 21, 2011)

Sy01 said:


> Because of all this, I've resorted to simply writing my own stuff and attempting to produce it on my own. I'll find a band someday, but not before I've got an album full of material. ;D


Same here. I've been let down too many times. I'd much rather record my own stuff, then form my own band


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## Sy01 (Nov 21, 2011)

Having said all that though; I am looking around for bands in my local area just to get some experience working with other musicians. I suppose it comes down to who you know.

I probably won't contribute as much to the writing process, but I do like a lot of different styles of music, so I'll try and stretch to anything.


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## SirMyghin (Nov 21, 2011)

^^

Working with a band is a lot more fun than doing it alone. It is possible your past experience was largely soiled by your lack of knowledge, had you had the knowledge, would it have been better? Tough question really, but if he needed to shout the chord changes, I would wager yes, it would have. 

Don't let one experience set you back.


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## Repner (Nov 21, 2011)

SirMyghin said:


> ^^
> 
> Working with a band is a lot more fun than doing it alone. It is possible your past experience was largely soiled by your lack of knowledge, had you had the knowledge, would it have been better? Tough question really, but if he needed to shout the chord changes, I would wager yes, it would have.
> 
> Don't let one experience set you back.


Oh I'm definitely looking forward to having a full band again. It's just that everytime I join one, they turn out to be ridiculously lazy and unprofessional. A lot of them never even got around to playing together, half a year after asking me to join. 

The last one I was in did a bit better, as we did practice each week, however we almost never had the whole band there at any one time (we were a 4 piece, of which 3 of us where unemployed. How they couldn't organise it around ONE persons schedule is anyones guess), and they were still slowly showing me the old songs a year after joining. I don't understand how they couldn't just give me a damn recording. It usually involved the guitarist showing me a riff as if it's something he's just come up with, then the next week they'd say "lets practice *insert song title here*", usually followed by a "never heard of it" from me, followed by the guitarist saying "you know, this one *plays riff*". How am I supposed to know the whole song from one riff you very briefly showed me a week ago?

The singer had a nasally voice anyway, and they couldn't write a song to save their life. Nah, I think I like the idea of establishing a sound I'd like to play, then finding dedicated musicians who would be interested in playing it. No timewasters allowed


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## Stealthdjentstic (Nov 21, 2011)

Im tryin to do something similar. I know a few people now that are 15-30 away and not flakes so hopefully it works out.

Try internet projects too! Groff and I have been working on a song and writing together that way is pretty fun.


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## Ninjahat (Dec 27, 2011)

NECRO-BUMPED! I despise elitism, and when people refuse to learn something!


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## AK DRAGON (Dec 27, 2011)

Ninjahat said:


> NECRO-BUMPED! I despise elitism, and when people refuse to learn something!



When someone try's to force their idea on how to play something


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## cwhitey2 (Dec 27, 2011)

I hate it people refuse to compromise. Its not the end of the world if every little thing doesnt go _your_ way.

Also anyone who said playing in a band is better than playing alone, IMO you are 110% correct.

After years of searching my area for musicians I finally found a couple that are:

a) skilled
b) know what they are talking about (music technique and gear wise)
c) overall great people

I don't know how anyone can get better by limiting yourself to only playing with yourself.

Over the past year I have learned more about everything musically (from playing with other people) then I would ever be able to learn by myself. Plus i made great friends along the way. But i think the key is finding at least one person to jam with that takes absolutely no effort at all (by that i mean your brains are on the same page).

Example: i play in 2 bands, one we play shows, the other is on a hiatus right now but we are getting things together slowly. I went to my other guitarists house last night to work on some ideas we both had for a new song.

Literally it took me showing him my stuff (exactly 1min 5sec of stuff) and him showing me his stuff a riff or two and then BAM!!! 5 mins later we had a new song. We hadn't played together in probably a good 2.5 -3 months and it was like we never stopped jamming. And that's what I like most about jamming with other people especially if they write the same way you do. Plus it makes learning new thing WAY easier.

(ps idk if i was rambling there at the end but i felt like typing )


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## Aurochs34 (Dec 27, 2011)

USMarine75 said:


>


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## texshred777 (Dec 27, 2011)

I was in a band with a guy who turned every solo section into a dick measuring contest. It's nothing to be ashamed of to play melodic phrases if you can't shred. In fact, I'd rather hear a melody in there EVEN IF YOU CAN! 

When I solo, I'm not trying to outplay you. If I pull out a shreddy part between melodic phrases, it's just because I liked the way it sounds. I want you to kick ass too. I want the band as a whole to sound good. Playing up/down the pentatonic scale behind your head isn't impressive in any way. It sure as shit doesn't show me up, lol. 

Which brings me to my pet peeve list

Playing behind your head/back if the phrase you're playing sucks.

Refusing to practice between rehearsals. Band practice time is not where you should be learning the songs. That's why I fucking tabbed out the parts for you. 

Playing while I am talking. If I'm talking with the bassist about time changes it's not the time for an impromptu jam with the drummer. 

Bringing in your floyd equipped guitar for me to string/setup(during rehearsal), even though I've offered to teach you how to set it up before. If you want a floating trem, learn how to set it up.


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## Repner (Dec 27, 2011)

I'm not doubting it'll be better when it eventually gets going. But for now, instead of joining another band I may or may not like, I'd rather work on an album solo to kind of establish my sound, then find dedicated musicians to form a new band. Hopefully it can evolve from there


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## Danukenator (Dec 27, 2011)

To name a couple though some of these have been said:

1. Refusing to take a lessons because it will make them cooler. I don't like this one because it has this arrogant vibe. It assumes they will be famous and talked about one day where they can say "Hey, I never took a lesson (proceeds to whip hair out of corner of face)"

2. People who hold their pick in the Djent (my name for it, basically an upward angle) style. I've seen guitarists of all kind use it and I get that having the extreme angle can help with sections. Hell, Tosin can out play my ass a thousand times over and he holds it that way. It just peeves me.

3. People who complain about having more than six strings. Happens in my school alot. You can list every artist who uses every damn note of the extra strings and you just get a dull stare and a joke about chugging. 

4. People with half amazing gear. Example: KxK Custom--->Marshall 15 (Obviously exaggerating but still it happens with really nice stuff)

End of my rant.


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## texshred777 (Dec 31, 2011)

Another occured to me. Youtube bedroom shredders who blast away 32nd/16th note triplet patterns really fast, but anytime they play a melodic part their pitch is all over the place. Accidentally bending notes sharp and zero control on their vibrato.


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## Wolf ov Fire (Jan 2, 2012)

Danukenator said:


> 3. People who complain about having more than six strings. Happens in my school alot. You can list every artist who uses every damn note of the extra strings and you just get a dull stare and a joke about chugging.



People at my school do that too! WHY? Why do they give a fuck that I have an instrument capable of tones they could hardly fathom!?! 

As for things that piss me off:
1.When people complain about your technique. I hold my pick perpendicular to my thumb and skew to my index finger. People bitch about this all the time. And I can alternate pick very fast like this.

2.Flashy douchebaggery solos. I don't give a fuck if you can do extended legato phrasing and 12-string sweeps in half-diminished solos in G Locrian microtonal scales, Octave chords and melody would work just as well.

3.Entry-level metal being labeled as an influence by artists. Trivium sucks, there's no way around it.

4.When people touch your rig and turn your knobs and shit. Seriously are you 3 or what?


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jan 2, 2012)

When a bitch asks me to play Wonderwall. How about I Cum Blood instead?!?!


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## Ninjahat (Jan 2, 2012)

Yes, ERG hate is LAME! gosh, to say it pisses me off is an understatement! And when people feel the need to have a go at me because I don't like (insert band), when I have a firm beleif that aslong as the people making it made it out of passion for music, I may not like it but I'll respect it. and when people know very little or nothing about something, and feel the need to but in and add something (I'm talking about being rude though, not inquiring).


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## Blasphemer (Jan 2, 2012)

When other guitarists think theyre better than me because I'm not playing a gibson and a custom 7. Dudes around here are really bad for that. Yes, I play an ibanez 7 and an import Dillion PRS knockoff, but hey, dude, look whose band the crowd seems to like more...

Also, not necessarily a guitarist pet peeve, but when other people think that guitar is easy. And let me say, yes, guitar is easy. Why do you think there are so many people who play it? But when all the vocal majors in my school get on my case because my instrument is "easy":

fuoco - YouTube

Bitch, I dare you to play this...
It actually feels really good when people have to learn guitar for a music ed. class, and start to struggle playing 3 notes on the high e string.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jan 2, 2012)

Well guitar is relatively easy compared to something like the violin...


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## ViolaceousVerdance (Apr 4, 2012)

Locrian said:


> ...some Meshuggah songs DO feature polyrhythms, not just polymeters. For example, on the song Sane, 1:12 into the song, during the guitar solo, the drum section features a section of 2 measures of 3:4 followed by a measure of 2:3. Very common polymeter usage between the crash and the snare.



The thing with that part is that it can still be broken down into 16th notes; like you said, it's very common... not a whole lot like the 13:8 that instills dread in people as they're learning the guitar solo from "The Attitude Song." They do the 3:4 feel again in "I" from 5:40 to 7:46


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## JStraitiff (Apr 4, 2012)

I cant stand when entire bands head bang or do a stage move at once, like everyone throws their head down at the same time and drop down when they hit their chugging chords. I dont know what it is but i instantly get really embarrassed just being there haha.



thats a band i know.


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## breadtruck (Apr 6, 2012)

People who look down on others who play in any other tuning than standard E. Or look down on guitarists that play any more than 6 strings. I mean elitism/arrogance in general is annoying as fuck anyway, but I feel like this specific niche of elitism really pisses me off. 

I personally don't even play that low nowadays. I've dabbled with lower tunings but generally my 7 string stays in B Standard or half a step down; yet sometimes when I tell someone that I play in a B tuning, or I have a 7 string, or that I have another guitar in a drop tuning etc etc, they kind of scowl at me or make a snidy comment like "I don't understand how anyone could play in those silly tunings. There's no clarity in the low notes and you don't need 7 strings". As if tuning to drop D is suddenly going to make your guitar sound muddy or some shit. It's like their only experience with a drop tuning is when they saw a guy tune to drop C through a shitty 10w practice amp, with the bass on 10 and mid on 0, and ever since then they think that standard E is THE ONLY WAY you should play....

Just that small mindedness that bugs me. Am I special that I can hear a low B note?? Is it supposed to be inaudible to the human ear or somethin'?? What's hard to comrpehend about the extra range that a 7 string gives you? Or just simple personal preference??

RANT OVER haha


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## Jahanasaurus (Apr 6, 2012)

I once had an over-opinionated 16 year old tell me Orange Amps suck. Enough said.


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## Painhawg (Apr 7, 2012)

Rehearsals not being organized and projects being unfocused. My time is vauluable to me, and if I am making time for you, please don't waste it by trying to play video games or texting your girl or whatever. I am there with purpose and I expect you to be as well.

Musicians that make commitments with zero intention of meeting them.

Not getting a real opinion on something because so many folks try to be nice and not hurt feelings. If it sux, tell me so I can fix it.

Having rehearsals turn into drama, because someone's significant other decides now is the best time for a fight.

Bandmates drunk at a show or recording session, or rehearsal.


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## tacotiklah (Apr 7, 2012)

Oh boy..... one of the things I love to rant about..... 
(Disclaimer: This isn't aimed at anyone here in particular, but based on my own personal experiences with guitarists and musicians)

-Guitarists that show up to rehearsal drunk/stoned/coked out/etc. Still I'd rather have them than ones that don't even bother to show up until right before the gig.

-Guitarists that know check-in for a gig is in like 45 minutes, and does absolutely fuck all about helping load the vehicles with the gear and actually making an effort to get there on time

-Guitarists that have half the experience I do completely ignoring me when I say their amp settings are shit and that's why nobody can hear you at rehearsal or gigs. Your mids are there for a reason dumbass....

-Guitarists that join a brutal death metal band and expect the band to change it's sound to deathcore. Kinda like joining a jazz trio and expecting everyone to start playing thrash. 

-Guitarists that join a band KNOWING that they will have limited creative input, yet get butthurt when you only get to write a couple of songs.

-Guitar solos that make zero musical sense. Sweet, you can luguta tap and shit, but why not play something that actual contributes to the overall song? Don't get me wrong, some flash here and there always lights up a crowd, but mindless wank is only superficially fulfilling musically speaking. The real satisfaction is when you play something truly from the heart and get that crowd in awe. Damn kids will never learn this
/old lady yelling at kids in the street

-Guitarists that have ZERO sense of rhythm and timing. Seriously, can you not count? Did you sleep through all 5 years of schooling that you went to? A 4/4 measure has 4 quarter notes in a goddamn measure, not 3 or 5. Please, for the love of bacon, listen to the drummer since it's his job to keep time. Stop trying to play "by feel" if you have no clue at all on how to do this. 

-People that randomly come up to my guitars and start grabbing at/dicking around with the strings in that faux strum manner that they always seem to do. If you're gonna touch my guitar without asking, at least do me the courtesy of picking it up and actually playing something on it and stop grabbing at things like a fucking 2 year old. Even my 3 year old niece knows not to touch her Auntie's guitars unless she asks first. I paid good money for it to be used as a guitar, not as something to be poked and prodded at.

-Excessively using breakdowns and sweeps. Hey if one song had something like that, cool. But some of the guitarists these days think that if they chug for 5 minutes on every song, then have another guitarist throw down every random sweep they can think of over it, they are the most "technical" band ever. No, it just means that you can't play interesting music and are trying to over-compensate for this. Much like men with tiny penises buying giant handguns or super-powerful cars. I'm not impressed..

And related to that:
Just because your chugging is syncopated doesn't necessarily mean it's any more interesting. Sure, some odd rhythms sound cool and whatnot, but trying to mask your ineptitude as a rhythm guitarist by adding weird feels to your constant drop tuned G5 chord just makes you look even more retarded. Write a real progression please.

=Guitarists that say one thing and do another. Things like, "Hey, I'll have a solo written for that song by next practice." "Really?" "Yeah". Next practice rolls around and "Oh shit dude, I'm sorry. I totally forgot. Next week for sure man." Next week rolls around. "Wait I said I'd have it ready today? Oops. Totally spaced that out man..."

-Learn your parts at home. Come to practice knowing them already, or at least sounding like you've actually been making an attempt at them. If you're struggling, I don't mind helping or even re-writing stuff so that it's easier to learn/do, but if you make no attempt at all, then I will come to hate you in a hurry. Especially if I've been wasting my printer paper and ink/blank cds getting tabs to you. If I can get that stuff to you in less than a week's time, why can't you find time to learn the parts in a band that you've committed yourself to?

-Guitarists that try to have that larger-than-life ego. I don't care how good you are, or how good you THINK you are, don't be a douchebag. The rest of the band hates it, our fans hate it, and deep down, I know that you secretly hate it too and are doing it just to try and make a "persona". No, you're just killing off the morale of the band and alienating what little fan base we had to begin with.

-Guitarists that mooch your equipment. Look if you need to borrow a cable every fucking practice, it's high time you just hand me $15 and take the goddamn thing. Or you know, you could just show some responsibility and buy one of your own. 
And unless it's an emergency, you cannot use my guitar. I took the time, effort and money to make sure that I have all my gear and am ready to go. You need to grow up and do the same.

-If I'm trying to communicate with my bassist about a new song and we're discussing parts, that is not the time for you to crank your peavey 3120 and bang out cannibal corpse covers with the drummer. Just quietly text on your phone for a minute and let me talk with the bassist for science's sake.

-Please convert to the faith of a noise gate. Your squealing amp is irritating as fuck and fans hate that shit. Please buy one and use it every time you add switch on your distortion channels. Hell, for some amps, use it on the clean channel too.

-Guitarists that think because they bought (insert brand of guitar here) brand guitar, they will suddenly have amazing chops that were never there prior. Look, good gear will help your overall sound. No question there, but a shitty guitarist on quality gear still sounds like a shitty guitarist. In fact some high level gear makes your mistakes even more audible. Use that to your advantage by learning from it and playing cleaner and better.

-Guitarists that use the guitar solely as a vehicle for getting laid. I'm not wowed by your shitty G, C, D chord progression. At no point do I feel compelled to flash you or throw my panties in your direction, nor is it a siren for me to instantly fellate you. Play something with more substance and then we'll talk....

=Guitarists with no formal training trying to argue music theory with me despite having almost 2 years of college classes in both theory and performance along with almost 10 years of learning on my own to back me up. If I say it sounds major, it's because it sound fucking major. Granted I'm human and I make mistakes, but just because you've only spent the last few months dicking around with learning theory from shady sites online doesn't mean that you're now a walking PhD. in musical theory.

-Guitarists that know NOTHING about theory. This irks me even more than the previous one because I can't communicate what I'm doing to you in a way that you can understand. I don't speak ignorant, nor do I care to. If you don't care enough about guitar or music to actually learn something about it, wtf is the point in me working with you? If you're having trouble understanding it, ask me for help. I'm ALWAYS willing to help people out because I know people gotta start somewhere. But it's the lazy attitude that bugs me.





Looking back, it seems like most everything about guitarists bug me.


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## Jahanasaurus (Apr 8, 2012)

^ - I think I love you.


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## ViolaceousVerdance (Apr 9, 2012)

Yup. You said it... pretty much all of the things.


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## Blood Ghost (Apr 11, 2012)

BigPhi84 said:


> Being flaky. As a multi-instrumentalist, it always suck talking to another guitarist and they say, "Man, what's your number? We need to jam sometime."
> 
> You never hear from them. The next time you see them, it's "Long time no see. We need to jam some time." It would make sense if I sucked at my instruments or sucked as a person, but I know that neither is true! LOL.



This is the exact reason I started writing everything on my own. Literally every musician I've come across where I live flakes out.

Another thing, when a guitarist plays a fourth riff and a bassist plays the lower fourth consistently rather than the root note. God, shudder.


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## Davey (Apr 19, 2012)

It annoys me when guitarists noodle inbetween songs especially when the singer is trying to talk to the audience


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## Stealthdjentstic (Apr 19, 2012)

Fucking ghost = /thread


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## penguin_316 (Apr 19, 2012)

Not sure if it's been mentioned....

but, my pet peeve is going to concerts and listening to bands do the most blatant ripoff of signed artists. If you're going to keep the rhythm and tempo of the song the same, please at least change the notes or dynamics or something.

Also, searching for band members that you can actually stand as people. Maybe I'm just finicky, but there are plenty of talented musicians out there who forget to stay grounded. The most respected/successful ones do though....success is a relative term but I think you get my drift.

And for gods sake know the songs BEFORE practice, you know....practice them at home before wasting a room full of peoples time.

/end rant lol


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## SirMyghin (Apr 19, 2012)

ghstofperdition said:


> Looking back, it seems like most everything about guitarists bug me.



I was thinking that when reading it. Wow, you hate guitarists . As far as jamming stuff out when trying to talk, that was always the drummer in my past experience. The guitar and I would be trying to talk and then cymbals would start going off and fuck, I wanted to hit someone.


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## Gabe_LTD (Apr 20, 2012)

You know what I hate ? 

Guitarist that refuse to play bass,..and think that bass is a inferior instrument. 

Also I hate bassist that don't know how to play a bass, A bass isn't just a downtune guitar you play root notes with.
You gotta fucking groove, make basslines, Etc
doing root notes isn't always bad, but if that all you do.... 
Like come on!

I know this one is gonna get me some hate , BUT
I hate when Guitarist Are stuck in the past, and try to hard to sound like Metallica. 
IM not gonna give out names or anything, but there is this small high school band in my area that Seriously sounds like 17 year olds sucking Metallica's musical nutsacks.... like fuck they have talent and all but their stuck in this " We gotta sound exactly like metallica, slayer, and zack Wylde or else it's unoriginal and gay!" 
Don't get me wrong I love Metallica and slayer, I just don't like it when bands are stuck with this "80's was the only era of music " ideology.


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## 7stringDemon (Apr 20, 2012)

Let's see. . . .

People that don't show up to the first two practices even though they said they would. I don't care if you're Vai, I hate you.

The term "And then we go into a breakdown!". NO WE FUCKING DON'T!!!!

When they say that it doesn't matter if they're out of tune.

When I'm trying to think of a good addition to the song, STOP FUCKING PLAYING!

When I'm showing someone how to play the song, STOP FUCKING PLAYING!

When I'm writing the music down, STOP FUCKING PLAYING!

Breakdowns.

"Can I borrow your guitar?" - No. But you can go home .

When people edit every riff I write. I'm not an ego-maniac. Feel free to change a few things. But not everything!

Breakdowns.

The term "Not brutal enough!!!". Ever heard of melody, jackass?

Getting off task at practice.

"Hey dude, I didn't learn the part" - Come back when you do!

When they ask if you have any money for food. EVERY FUCKING TIME!

When they say that you should jam, then call you weird for asking to jam.

When you come to a full rehearsal with your 15 watt Line 6.

Breakdowns.


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## renzoip (Apr 20, 2012)

It annoys me when I have to look at someone's nasty feet ruining an otherwise cool guitar picture. Take a step back, then take the shot


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## sytraxiplague (Apr 21, 2012)

Skanky said:


> Inability to hear that their guitar is horribly out of tune. That's the one thing that really bugs me.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This. I think my prime example of the OPPOSITE of this is Robert Fripp. Honest guy, super open to genre, practices constantly, knows when to shut up (especially this.) One of my faves!


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## FrancescoFiligoi (Apr 21, 2012)

This is not entirely guitarist related, but is more of a "guy in a band" situation.

If you're using personal problems/family/girlfriend/study/work/dog/cat as an excuse to not put 100% of your effort in a serious band, don't do it and don't lie to yourself first. People have priorities, just be sure about yours instead of wasting people's time.


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## Gabe_LTD (Apr 24, 2012)

renzoip said:


> It annoys me when I have to look at someone's nasty feet ruining an otherwise cool guitar picture. Take a step back, then take the shot



I feel As though The only time its necessary To take a picture of your nasty infected feet right next to your sexy new guitar.
IS WHen your friends with a foot doctor, because then you can show him your sexy new guitar and your terrible foot infection all in one Picture !


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## MrPepperoniNipples (Apr 24, 2012)

Guitarists who think they're music theory masters because they've just learned their modes

I can't possibly be the only person that's come across this

EDIT: also, strictly metal guitarists who say their primary influence is the blues


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## C2Aye (Apr 24, 2012)

How my pinky is a million miles away from the fretboard at all times, stops by for a quick visit when I use it and then pisses off again


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## Gabe_LTD (Apr 25, 2012)

MrPepperoniNipples said:


> EDIT: also, strictly metal guitarists who say their primary influence is the blues



Cough cough* thrash metal Guitarists Cough cough*


im not saying I have anything Against thrash, I actually like a lot of thrash.
It's just That I've had a lot personal Experiences with thrash metal musicians. ( or retro thrash )
that are stuck in 1987 complaining about modern bands not being innovative.
but at the same time are Re-hashing Metallica inspired riffs with blues solos.
Im not saying there is anything wrong with that, but come on stop trying to sound like a Metallica wannabes.
instead try to make thrash interesting and exploring new boundaries with influences That aren't common in thrash.
Example: Thrash metal heavily inspired by funk, hip hop beats, prog rock and black metal ...now that will be cool take on thrash.!
but rather thrash musicians From my personal Experiences are like " new music sucks, the only realy genres are thrash metal, old school death metal, 80's metal, classic rock and blues!!! everything is else is lame1"

and im not trying to say thrash is a bad genre ( I love thrash), or that all thrash musicians are like this.
just the ones Ive had experiences with.


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