Yea, I noticed the trend here myself. Back to the 80's.

Funny thing is, I got my nickname in the 80's. People have been calling me Shred since somewhere around 1984. I won a small guitar competition between friends one day and somebody just yelled out " Dude, you shred!! ", and since my name is Ted, it seemed kind of fitting.

Ive had this nickname so long, it was cool, then not cool, then cool again.. Oh well, looks like it's going back to not being cool again.. Hahaha.

Oddly enough, I play Reggae now.

don't you know that your not good unless your fast lol. speed needs to be done right for me like srv or joe bonamassa or mike mccready does it you've got to know when to play fast and when to make it cry like david gilmore. speed should be done in licks. when i play live i like to throw in a fast lick in to a big long bend. i don't like to play fast all the way through a solo. then again i don't have much speed compared to those listed above

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Gentleman
why compare apples and oranges, people have a right to listen to music thats not just from texas. plus people like Vai,Satch etc. arent shredders.
Alex Laiho is the king of shred, leader of Finish super group Children of Bodom. Alex just won best shredder of Europe 2008, beating both of Triviums guitarists and many others. I strongly suggest that you view the youtube video of COB's clash of the booze brothers. You will see some of the finest guitar work you have ever seen, and then their amazing jazz trained keyboardist mimics each guitar solo on his keyboard! My 2008 AM deluxe 50's v-neck strat with s-1 switch in honey blonde sounds awseome thru my mesa lonestar special, but if i want to play shred/metal i use my 2007 dean dime razorback, with emg 81/85's active p/ups w/floyd rose trem. And crank my bugera 120w all tube head and 8x12 stack.
The Rat

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there's not just a Crescent wrench in my tonebox

LOL! That happens to me sometimes. I get pissed cuz he has the amp cranked to the max. When that happens I just go to the acoustic room

Wow another Rachmaninoff fan?! I just bought his "Complete Works" edition from Brilliant Classics..just discovering how amazing some of his Vespers are. Now THAT is music.

it's just something people who cant play fast say.l

The way I figure it, the faster one plays, the less technique one needs. Consequently, more and more inexperienced players can quickly gain glory in peer circles with it. I know I'm an old fart, set in my ways but I never understood shredding at all. To me, it's simply a mindless recitation of as many deviant scales as fast as one can play them where their only pause may be an occasional pinch harmonic or dive bomb. The phrase, "Fingerboard Diarrhea" comes to mind.

I can equate it to driving a car: There are fast drivers and then there are skilled drivers. "Flooring it" requires little or no skill. Safely and successfully driving in a place like say, Manhattan, NYC requires extreme skill and a good deal of experience and technique to safely, efficiently and effectively navigate. This latter group can surely drive extremely fast but have no practical reason to for any extended period of time. Or to put it another way, just because someone has a superior command of the English language doesn't mean (s)he must fit in every word (s)he knows in every sentence (s)he speaks.

OK, all you younguns', flame my geriatric butt!!

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You dig?

No flaming needed. Look speed is a tool, if it's the ONLY tool that you have, then your weak. There are a lot of great players who play fast and still bend notes and play as tastfully as anyone else.

These young kids build speed early on and the kudos they receive for doing so incurages them to continue growing. Eventually, many of these speedster slow down and grow into new things. Which is great because this leads to having less limitations as a player.


Most players who did'nt pick up speed early, never acheive it at all and that can be sad when they look on in envy at the youngs shredders.

All and all, I say everyone has something to offer, Yngwie is great and so is Gilmore. Yet, neither can handle the others music for crap.

I purfer to be balanced, yet if I had not shredded in my teens, I would be hard pressed to be balanced now.

Exactly. If all you ever do is play slow, then it's just as bad as playing super fast all the time. There's definately a balance. I've never been a shredder-type guitar player. I tried for years, I just didn't have the will power or patience to sit down and practice arpeggios and scales for hours a day. I'm good at tapping though, but I've never been able to really work it into songs, it just doesn't fit in most of them.
Also, speed has it's best impact if you save it for the right moments. If it's always full on, people think "OK, we get it, you're fast." But if you burst into a flurry of notes right at the climax of your solo or song, people go crazy (in a good way)!

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Let's not forget the disturbing trend towards de-tuned string banging.

There's a ton of newer players out there that are basically just playing bass instead of playing guitar. (you "chunka chunka" boys know who you are )

Thankfully it all seems to be cyclic. Pretty soon the pendulum will swing the other way and more players will be interested in playing well and playing more melodically instead of just playing finger exercises at high speed.

In the mean time, do what you like and try to find something to appreciate in everyones style of playing.

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"Life is like eating jalapenos. What you do today may burn your arse tomorrow"