Intimidating Project:

Inspector #20

Ambassador of Tone
Fallen Star
Country flag
Our bassist is the chief songwriter, penning all of the musical arrangements for all the instruments. He is also a very accomplished guitarist and demos all the guitar parts.

His writing style is unbelievable. The song structure is always different. Sometimes verse-bridge-chorus, sometimes verse-verse-chorus-bridge , Sometimes an even more unusual structure.

My greatest strength in a band is being a lyricist. I frequently write 3 to 5 poem-style, themed works per day without trying. I simply put them into our dropbox and they are there when ideas are needed. Sometimes, these poetic phrases become complete songs. Sometimes they simply provide a basis for a song idea.

We currently have 10 originals that are musically challenging.

The rhythm work borders on sheer insanity. I am finding some of his techniques difficult to nail accurately by just listening to the tracks. It's like a melding of Ratt and Ramstein - complex arrangements, timing changes, unusual C-line phrasing and bizarre dissonant passages that somehow fit together and baffle the listener.

I look forward to being able to share this work with you all in the very near future...
 
So things are going really well. We have 13 original songs and a good catalogue of cover demos to pick from.

We are also covering White Punks On Dope and London Calling as a sneak peak...in an industrial metal arrangement.

Tone wise I am pretty much sticking with the S-G. It's the band favorite. I been running my Blackstar and my Marshall VS265 through a Jackson 4x12 cabinet loaded with factory Jackson/Eminence speakers and its got a good sound.

Only problem is my gear is too nice.

Our band is themed in post-apocalypse America with a very steam-diesel punk vibe, so my gear looks a bit out of place with the bassist's relic'd Gibson Thunderbirds and Peavey Bass Stack.

We have been recording every Saturday now and that's coming along well.

Character wise, I'm putting my look together. I finally found my Mark Kendall concho hat and for now I'm using a super-light, full-face balaclava. I haven't ruled out a mask, im just looking for the right one.

Ive got a couple of cool outfits. One is really posh...its a vampire-esque coat...very Victorian and ornate...mostly for photo ops and such.

I also have a black military jacket, somewhat Napoleonic, high boots, etc., so it should make for a cool look when its all put together and relic'd a bit.

Our vocalist goes by the stagename 'Xan' and I have been nicknamed 'Sledge' by bandmates.

The wireless unit from Don O and the amp switcher from Rob V have both added a great dimension. I can now switch between amps on the fly and no more tripping over cords. I probably spent two hours flipping my S-G over my shoulder just to get back into the feel of it again...

I suppose a relic'd guitar would be a good thing to have, from a visual aspect and being consistent with our theme.

I been looking at a few steampunk guitars for ideas. I considered maybe picking up a ratty H-H Squire Tele and doing a full relic/dispelling style thing on it with a copper pickguard and maybe a radioactive decal....big, fat 24.75" scale neck of course.

I still have my 1987 Squirecaster that my kid loves playing on, and it could be steampunk'd out too, but I would hate to alter such a historic piece.

I saw a Squire Affinity black H-H Tele body on E-bay that might make a good platform.

There's no requirement for me to have a steampunk'd guitar, but it would really fit our theme, so im not opposed to it.

More updates to follow....
 
Engineer wasn't happy with my overall tone. After listening to his explanation, I have to agree that my tone is far too "Classic Rock" for this venture- although it was fine for the copyright demos. I was very reluctant to play through the Line-6 Spider II, but I have to say, the sheer versatility of this amp is impressive...

Line-6 Spider II.JPG
 
this-----very much this
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