i haven't posted in a wee while 'cos works getting in the way , but hey , i'm still playing in a bloody punk band for the moment anyways , last sunday i took an epi lp and my tacostrat (ceramic pups , you'd thing punksters would like the sound ) but the singer / rythm player said , that doesn't sound as good as your lp i pointed out that it sounds different and is every bit as good as his gibby lp studio , but it sounds kind of , well , different . time for a rant ( i've had a few beers , and a nice bottle of sauve , or hower it's splelled) anyhoooo , to give you picture of his sound , in the rehersal place we go to theres a marshall mg head with a 4x12 cab , (sounds $@!& imo , espesh when i take my jcm 800 for an outing )but he seems to thing all punk music is played with a chainsaw sounding fecking guitar (perhaps discharge and crass and some of the oi stuff but not the old gear) ohh and he playes the classic 5th punk chord , even when it's supposed to be a minor ( london calling for example ) ,the old tacostrat sounded excellent , i don't know what his problem is (apart from forgeting my chainsaw pedal we have a gig in a few weeks in a local bar , it might be the last for me i'll see how it all pans out but what a bloody cheek , i've tried to tell him that most of the early stuff is very low gain and tunefull , one of the things i love , i'll see how things go, apperently he has a habbit of turning his amp up gradually through the night (this is the guy who said a 600w pa isn't big enough to handle just the vocals ? ) and people ask why i take a pint or two sorry for the rant guys , cheers
Alan

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We all need a good rant now and then. Hope it works out...........

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The blues ain't nothin but a good man feelin bad.

The guy sounds like a real TOOL!!! (not in a good way) Ain't this sposta be fun?

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alanssaab, i've been in the same situation but on the other side of the coin. i was the chainsaw guy and the other guitarist didn't like it. i let him adjust my amp to his likings more than mine. it probably sounded better but it wasn't my preference. i only lasted one year in that band.
my only advice is to not make a hasty decision. maybe try and find some middle ground. ask some fans what they think of your sound. hell, i'd like to hear it.
cheers friend.

I think that many of us have 'been there' - - hope it all gets sorted out for ya soon enough...and it will...and you'll laugh about it many moons from now.

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

i'm in the same situation right now. a drummer thinks we're in a band but he keeps on telling me to write more complex songs. if he wants to make a complex band then he should leave me (i'll be happy with that), not try to change my playing style, plus he changed his lesson from tuesay to wedensday just so we could jam after school, an i'll feel so guilty if i say no.

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riley

Steve Jones Used A Twin Reverb Amp What Wasn't Punk About That. I'd Do What You Want To Do. Try Some Different Effects And Jam With Some Other Guys On The Side. Pete Townshend Was The First Punk And He Uses A Strat.

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Vintage Hotrod '57 Strat, 81 G&L L2000 Series E Bass, Fender Musicmaster Bass Amp.

To be happy and successfull there should be a chain of command in a band situation of 4-5 people. One must lead, follow, or get out of the way.

Sounds like the drummer I jam with. If it's not heavy, it sucks >_>

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I traded my car in for a microphone.

Hey, just be thankful you're not playing with this bozo......



You'd all be wearing pirate hats on stage, with day jobs at the local Long John Silvers.



Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I guess that guy is really famous now. he must have quit the free credit report gig to go on a world tour.

I must not have been around when you described exactly what the "tacostrat" is. Is it a single coil Strat?

If it's a single coil Strat, I would say he might be right. Depending on the music. In my opinion, single coils just don't distort as well as Humbuckers. They just tend to be ear piercing and kinda weak with heavy distortion. If you're playing power-punk, then I could see his side of the question.

I realize it's all subjective, I haven't heard your music, and that's just my humble opinion. You might be thinking "it's just as good, just different". But different doesn't always mean "different for the better" either. There are countless players who feel the need to step outside the box of the norm. I get that way myself sometimes. But when I think about things objectively, when dealing with any kind of hard-core music, I personally would opt for a humbucker equipped guitar pretty much every time.

If you are talking about 2 guitars that are both humbucker equipped, then the scale of subjectivity is probably more narrow. It's easier to find a happy medium between the 2 that you could both agree on. In that case you would more likely be deciphering between the EQ of the humbuckers as opposed to the output levels to kick the distortion.

My advice would be to be honest with yourself about a couple of basic things (before just calling out your band members),

* Which one kicks the distortion better?
* Which one is pumping the mids better?

When I was playing hard-core music, I can't think of one SC guitar that I had that could kick the distortion better than my HB equipped guitars. In fact, they failed miserably in comparison (once again, my opinion). The SC bridge pickups would be shrilly and weak at the same time, middle pickups just weak overall, and neck pickups a muddy mess (in comparison to the HB pickups). Humbuckers had a nice way of power-punching the mids into the distortion to get a more powerful smooth sound.

On another note. I hope I'm not coming across as attacking your views on this. Our other guitar player likes an ice-pick sound. I hate his sound (actually, I like the sound of his guitar, just not the way he uses it), but he likes it, and I just let him do his thing. We are polar opposites when it comes to guitars and the sounds of them. But rather than argue with him, I go out of my way to find a way to compliment his sound with my guitars. I do it in the spirit of being a team player. In the end, we both like our sounds and the people like the music. So why argue about it?

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HaleAmano- House Of Sharks (Now On iTunes)
http://www.reverbnation.com/haleamano
http://www.haleamano.com

Alan, just punch him in the face and walk out next time he starts. Bloody pratt. He sounds like he's 17. If he's carrying on like this, it's no wonder he's got no experience.

Crass are crap anyhow.

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No no and no

Ahh "if music be the food of love" never took punk into account eh, the beer wore off yet Al then nows the time to go have a chat and get things sorted, you're in it for the enjoyment of playing same as the other guy, best of luck

Niki I didn't want to be the one to say it. In the true nature of a punk band bash him with a pint to the head.