Metal rehearsal recordings (RiffRaff Bridge / MQ Neck)

[hunter]

This is the SG with RR/MQ.

It was the first proper rehearsal with drummer, the other one was my audition for the band, so please accept my apologies for the unavoidable bummer here and there. Singer is still in India and will return next month, 2 weeks before the first 2 festival gigs :O)

Equipment was Axe FX, VHT2502, a Marshall Cab with G12T75s.
Recording device is a Tascam DR1 in the room.

My guitar is very loud on the recordings, bad overall but good for this purpose, as you can get a better idea of the RR doing metal  :D

It doesn't give a very modern metal tone, but while being a bit old skool, it is very articulate, crunchy and open sounding, also really nice is the middle position for cleans (intro to What Gets Me, here I used a MarkII Clean patch with Chorus and Delay). And I have to say, compared to the MM Axis, which I used last time, it punches me much more in the bottom when I do those muted notes on the low E, which feels GREAT.

During most of the rehearsal yesterday I used only one sound (an Axe FX patch with the Ueber, boosted by an TS808). Still good to have the Axe for all the FX (delays here and there, rotary on The Day Before I Die, clean intro on What Gets Me, etc).

So here are the mp3s:
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/million_redorblack.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/thedaybeforeidie.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/why.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/whatiam.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/heavylie.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/whatgetsme.mp3
http://www.thegutbusters.com/temp/freelaunch_04_05_09/dayafterday.mp3

[gwEm]

that is also my experience of the riff raff, for metal it sounds old skool, whatever you do. the mule is more versatile here. but i happen to like the really vintage metal tone the riff raff gives too.. but this is why i try to explain the riff raff is not so versatile in a V or SG. in a paul, the extra fatness can give a bit more versatility.

like your sound, and good songs too!

[hunter]

that is also my experience of the riff raff, for metal it sounds old skool, whatever you do. the mule is more versatile here. but i happen to like the really vintage metal tone the riff raff gives too.. but this is why i try to explain the riff raff is not so versatile in a V or SG. in a paul, the extra fatness can give a bit more versatility.

like your sound, and good songs too!

Thanks, great you like it. I start to warm towards the G12T75 for this type of music, but would really love to see the difference once I took the Bogner there. Maybe I should use both cabs for the killer mix :O)

Last night I spent most of my time being blown away by the drummer. If only he'd be louder on the recordings! He was pulling off some amazing runs, and his double bass technique is crazy.

[Balthazar]

That is great stuff, and cool metal sound. Old shool rocks.

Do you use the MQs alone anywhere in the songs? Could you give me a hint as to where - I've been thinking of getting MQs...

[hunter]

That is great stuff, and cool metal sound. Old shool rocks.

Do you use the MQs alone anywhere in the songs? Could you give me a hint as to where - I've been thinking of getting MQs...

Thanks! It's a good contrast as the other guy plays more modern tones and has an Ibanez 7 String.

Re the MQ, on the clean intro to "What gets me" I used either the middle or neck position. Can't remember which it was, as I usually switch pickups "subconciously" ...

[Tellboy]

Excellent - enjoyed that - always great to hear clips in a live/band setting. Old skool or not the Riff Raffs sound great.

[Balthazar]

Sounds great. Me, I'm more of an hardcore man than a metal man, and I have also been intrigued by the Gibson SG.

The brilliant guitar player in an old hardcore band from Oslo used to play an SG. What amazed me about his playing was the amazing variety of tones he was able to achieve through his playing, it seems only through various picking techniques etc... cause he varies the tone within the same riff, like each note sounds different. He always used the same guitar, I think.

Much of this is muddled because of poor recording equipment (underground stuff), and compression for streaming etc, but you can check it out here (some of these clips are live and therefore even worse sound quality):

http://www.myspace.com/lifebuthowtoliveit

From this video (horrible sound quality) I conclude it must have been an SG he played?

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=36103150

I have very little experience playing electric, so I don't know how he does it. But if anyone knows if it's anything about the pickups or guitar that helps him achieve all these sounds, I'd love to hear about it!

I know this is very off-topic compared to the OP but I thought that might help me finding the right pickups.

:)

[hunter]

From this video (horrible sound quality) I conclude it must have been an SG he played?

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=36103150

I have very little experience playing electric, so I don't know how he does it. But if anyone knows if it's anything about the pickups or guitar that helps him achieve all these sounds, I'd love to hear about it!

I know this is very off-topic compared to the OP but I thought that might help me finding the right pickups.

:)

Looks like he has an SG Special, which is the lower cost model SG (basically the same, but matte lacquer and dot inlays instead of trapezoids.

He is using a Marshall, and what you hear is typical Marshall crunch. Not too much gain, loads of upper mids, it's a great sound that will always show 100% what you put in. He has a good technique on the right hand, but also the way he is muting chords with the left makes a big part.

There's no secret, just turn it up and play great and you will sound like him :O)

[Balthazar]

There's no secret, just turn it up and play great and you will sound like him :O)

Wow that's great! So how do I play great??? Hehe... I forgot to tell you that not only have I little experience playing electric, I also have little experience playing with a pick... :) To copy his sound, that would take a lot of training.

You may wonder what a guy who says he's into hardcore is doing buying a semi-acoustic, and playing for many years before that only fingerstyle acoustic... well, I'm into many different styles. That's why. But when people see me with my semi-hollow and thinks I'm a sissy jazz player I wanna show'em!!! I'm gonna give'm nightmares for years to come. After I bought that "delectable" looking semi-hollowbody I just got more keen on playing hardcore with it:

http://www.ibanez.co.jp/products/eg_page09.php?data_id=615&color=CL02&area_id=3&year=2009&cat_id=1&series_id=244

That's the thing I'm gonna turn into a killing machine... :D

[Balthazar]

Hmm... the last clip was a bit laidback. I meant more like this:

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=36107538

I know it's still not like the most brutal metal stuff, but I'm not into that anyway... :)

[Denim n Leather]

Nice ones, hunter.

I originally got the RR to do hard rock, and every time I've tried using it in the TO context, it's been an epic FAIL. So, I stick with ceramic pups now for the NWOBHM stuff and use the RR my (even) older sounding material.

[Crazy_Joe]

I'm still surprised at how authentic sounding the Axe FX is. If you didn't know it was that you would think it was a real amp.

[hunter]

I'm still surprised at how authentic sounding the Axe FX is. If you didn't know it was that you would think it was a real amp.

I think so, too - some others here don't *cough

Keep in mind though, this is Axe only as preamp, poweramp and cab are a classic rig with tubes and speakers.

I should be getting a Verve 12MA next week for trying and then I will do the same recording Axe direct into FRFR, let's see how that goes.

[AndyR]

Wow - great stuff Hunter :D

Now I've just finished what I was working on I've started listening to the backlog of clips - yours is the first I picked. Sounds really good (I'm obviously "old skool" in my metal tastes :D).

You've just single-handedly inspired me to restring my Riff Raffed Epi SG and explore it some (my Riff Raffs are my least used BKPs at the moment).