You know how you get stuck at times with what you're playing?
Plateau in your learning progression?

Well I've been in the same rut for the past year, dang it. So I finally just hung my guitar on the wall and just started listening again. Listening to music for the pure enjoyment, and singing along even. For some reason I think this might help. The "back to basics" approach? Enjoy music again, since I've been buried in the academic part of my guitar playing for the longest time, and bored to tears.

[somewhat of a rant]

What do ya'll do in a rut?

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-Kc
"Payin' dues."

I usually buy a new guitar.

I formed another band when I experienced this.

Start fresh with a genre you have not tried before.

Jam with other muso's that are still feeling fresh and challenge each other.

all the best......

Pick a technique that you do not ever use or hardly use be it sweep picking, tapping, legato, arpeggios and incorporate it into your own style. Just really throw your heart and soul into the technique and you dont have to play it blazingly fast but it will spice up your soloing big time and even make a slow solo sound fresh and different.

Play scales in patterns you dont use often. Say you use the minor pentatonic a lot in 5th position go and play it in 12th which is my favorite position of that scale and stay there for a while and you will come up with a lot of different and cool licks because of the way the notes sit.

Play a scale on one string. Sounds simple. But if you run the natural or harmonic minor in E or A on the E and B string using the open string as a pedal it is another great tool to have.

Learn different chord inversions and make up progressions with them ,also learn to use slash chords as they sound great and give that walking bass line groove.

Finally you have to kick back and play the guitar just to have fun and not get technical. Play songs you like and that come easy and have a goodtime.

I'm stuck in that rut right now and I have no clue how to get out of it. I'm learning just bits and pieces of everything, can't even seem to play songs I once had perfected, and cant even sing the songs that I know by heart and play at the same time. Pretty frustrating.

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I got a black cat bone, I got a mojo too.

When this happens, I simply put the guitar down for several days and let my head clear. Eventually, I'll severely miss playing it and when I do finally pick it up again, I am more focused and able to prioritize my next conquest(s). YMMV.

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You dig?

Since I have been out of work from My rigging job and most of the cash flow is from repair work for others I don't play no where near as much as I used to. A big RUT!!!! Right now I am sitting in bed with a sinus headache and I have two amps in the office to fix and I got and email to pick up five guitars to go over and setup at a local stop that had let there tech go and I don't feel like doing a thing.
I should have ignored the headache and went Duck hunting this morning. A friend who I gave two of the ones I got the other day said they were great and that his family enjoyed them and would like some more.

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

I've done that for a year once, not for the same reason. I just got busy with stuff. School, work, etc. I remember when I did come back to it, things clicked like never before. Don't know if I can do another year, but man I was having a blast when I finally picked it back up. And this was before I was a strat man! I couldn't imagine how much I'd miss my strats if I did it again.

But yes, definitely liking the leave idea.

Some of ya'll sound like you got it worse than me. Another thing to do, is to stop watching youtube vids.

_________________
-Kc
"Payin' dues."