The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen all at once*

...except that sometimes, it still does. Sad to say, we ended up not performing at Open Mic, due to a lot fo things culminating at once. I personally didn't feel prepared enough (having only practiced together three times) to get up on stage with such short notice, aside from the fact that I had an exam the next day. Miguel was still going to perform his rendition of Schindler's List, which sounded AMAZING when he was playing back in the dorm, but again schoolwork reared its ugly head, and that didn't happen either.

Hopefully, since this week is Humans vs. Zombies and we'll be leaving the dorm as little as possible, we'll be able to get some recordings up. The songs we were going to perform are Collide (which I know I promised but have yet to post), and Kiss Me (which is still gonna take some work as far as arranging).

On another note, I wanted to touch on the "nostalgia" of the young, as Sherry Turkle puts it. She talks about how this generation misses the time they never had with parents who are now always attached to their phones. They miss the times when you could just call someone up and talk, or the times when people would write proper letters to each other instead of just "poking" on Facebook to say, "hey, I'm thinking about you". The point is though, they miss all these things they never had. They long for how life "must have been" in their parents' days.

I remember when I was little, and getting a letter was such an exciting thing. I remember that I didn't start emailing people until middle school, and even then it was through my parents' account. And I do remember in middle school, when it was cool to just chat on the phone with a friend for hours, until mom yelled at you to stop tying up the phone lines. I was on the cusp of that transition.

The point of all this though, is that this type of "nostalgia" crops up in all fields.

As a biologist, I imagine the times when there were fewer regulations on the types of animals you could house. As a pre-health student, I miss the times when clinical trials were subjected to less rigorous standards.

As a guitarist, I miss the times when I could play a single song without my phone going off-- these are times I never had, but I still miss them. As a performer, I miss the times when you could just play with friends for the heck of it and not have to worry about a deadline. And not worry about being judged, for that matter. I imagine what it must be like to be able to sit around a campfire with your friends and just strum quietly in the background till someone recognizes the tune and everyone starts to sing along. I miss how music used to bring people together.

Why is this important though, if we miss all these things we never had? Well the point is, it doesn't matter what everyone around you is doing, and it doesn't matter how society is changing. All those little things? You can change them. When I'm playing, I can turn off my phone. I can knock on a friend's door and be like, hey, I'm kinda bored, lets go play for a bit.

No one's stopping you from writing letters or calling people or having proper alone time or proper friend time. It's all on you. Time to stop worrying about being judged, and go hang with the people who really matter to you.

Oh yeah, and don't forget to go outside every once in a while. No one likes that computer tan. Besides, it's nice to play in the sun.

-Kal

So where do I find all these tabs anyway?

When you first start out looking for music, you'll probably type something like "collide howie day tab" into Google. You'll get a zillion hits from sites like www.e-chords.com, www.911tabs.com, www.azchords.com, and of course, YouTube. I will tell you right now though, your best bet is this little thing called www.ultimate-guitar.com.

If you simply go to the site, it can be pretty overwhelming. You can search for songs, artists, albums; you can find tabs, chords, drum tabs, bass tabs, solo tabs, acoustic tabs and chords. They also have this thing called "pro tabs". This will show you the tab and will also play the song, allowing you to follow along. Sort of like a sing-along.

Point is, the site itself is a little difficult to navigate if you don't know what you're looking for. Or even if you do. What I like to do is search something like "howie day tab" on Google, and click on the ultiamte-guitar link that says "Howie Day Tabs: 89 Tabs total @ Ultimate-Guitar.com". They always mention the number of tabs available; that's how you'll know you've got the right link. I try to avoid 911tabs because although the site shows up frequently, it's often just a bunch of reposting of the same tabs.

So, what do you do once you get to this page? You'll see an alphabetical listing by song title of every song by this artist that has been tabbed by ultimate-guitar users. If the song is a "tab" that means you'll get this notation:

e|------3-3-3-------3-3-3---|------3-3-3-------3-3-3-------| B|------1-1-1-------1-1-1---|------1-1-1-------1-1-1-------| G|------0-0-0-------0-0-0---|------0-0-0-------0-0-0-------| D|------2-2-2-------2-2-2---|------0-0-0-------0-0-0-------| A|---3--3-3-3---3---3-3-3---|---2--2-2-2---2---2-2-2------|
E|--------------------------|------------------------------|

------0-0-0-------0-0-0---|------0-0-0--0----0-0--0-0-----| ------1-1-1-------1-1-1---|------1-1-1--1----1-1--1-1-----| ------2-2-2-------2-2-2---|------2-2-2--0h2--2-2--0-0-----| ------2-2-2-------2-2-2---|---3--3-3-3--3----3-3--0-0-----| ---0--0-0-0---0---0-0-0---|-------------------------------|
--------------------------|-------------------------------|


If the song is in "chord" notation, you'll get a set of lyrics with the chords listed out above the words, like this:

CAPO 4
G- 320033
Dsus2- 200233
Em7- 022033
Cadd4- 032033

G Dsus2

The dawn is breaking

Em7 Cadd4

A light shining through

G Dsus2

You're barely waking
Em7 Cadd4
And I'm tangled up in you

The great thing about ultimate-guitar is that there's almost always both; and if it's an electric song, chances are there will be a tab for an acoustic version, too. So, take your pick! Eventually, you'll get an idea of which you prefer.

Now on to your next question... Since users contribute tabs to the site, there can be upwards of 20 tabs for just one song. If there are that many, how do you know which to pick? Well, the site also lets users rate their tabs. If you see a tab that's rated 5 stars by at least 20 people, that's probably the one you're looking for. These highest rated songs (and the ones with lots of votes, not just one or two) are a great place to start. If something doesn't sound quite right, or you want to see what other people have done, just go back and click on another. I usually try and stick with 4-5 star tabs. Even 4 star tabs are pretty good, even if they might need some tweaking. Stars and votes are something you have to look at in concert: if one tab has 5 stars with 2 votes versus another with 4 stars and 20 votes, the latter is probably a safer bet.

Another benefit of having so many tabs on one site: some songs (case in point, Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls), excuse my Japanese, are A BITCH to tune. Iris, by happenstance, is EBBBBB when played live. No one wants to do that. Often though, users will transpose these tabs into "normal people" terms, so you can keep your guitar nice and happy and in tune.

The last thing to watch out for (on any tablature site) is that some people won't tell you if a song needs a capo. My favorite case of this was when I found the tab for Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer. It had 4 stars, 38 votes (that's pretty good by my standards), so I went to play and DAMN it was awful. I don't know what possessed me to start playing around with the capo, but I think I may have found another tab that suggested capoing the 3rd fret. And poof, the song sounded perfect. Moral of the story: feel free to explore other tabs, feel free to combine them, and don't be afraid to just play around.

Hope this helps, and if anyone needs a little more guidance in navigating ultimate-guitar or has a tab that they absolutely can't find, feel free to comment and I'll see what I can do.

Also, this totally isn't a plug, but ultimate-guitar also has an app which is epically amazing for looking up tabs on the spot. It's also a little easier to navigate than the comprehensive site.

-Kal

A New Cover

So, I know that we promised you a cover of Collide, which Miguel and I have been working on, I swear. This is a really busy week, and we really haven't gotten a chance to actually record it. Plus with Open Mic Night coming up this week, I may end up memorizing another monologue if we can't pull our act together with the songs we were arranging.

However. In lieu of this song*, I decided to record another cover in order to illustrate a point I've been meaning to make. So, here's another recording of Say It's Possible by Terra Naomi:



Now, I know we've done this one before (see Beginner Song: Say It's Possible for the chords)-- Rose and I covered this for Open Mic, and she's a wonderful singer. I've tried singing this before, and I absolutely cannot hit the notes in the chorus. I've discovered a neat little trick, though. I'm sure this has some basis in music theory, and I'll ask Miguel if he can explain it to me later. But the idea is, since the song is usually capo'd on fret 2, I can just ditch the capo and drop the song to a lower pitch-- one that's within my voice range. I can also put the capo two frets up (4th fret, in this case), and raise the pitch. I'm pretty sure the only time this works is when the song is played on the 2nd, 4th, or 8th fret, or open strings.

Other songs this works for:
- Collide by Howie Day (originally 4th fret)
- It's Been a While by Staind (originally tuned half a step down, but can be played capo 1)
- Swing Life Away (also half a step down, but can be played capo 1. I also think this can be played open frets if you're really lazy, though I'm not sure musically why that works)

I'll let you know if I find any others, but play around with it. It's a great trick to bring songs into your range.

Another quick thing to note, is that sometimes when you do switch the pitch of a song, it can be a bit weird to sing if you haven't practiced. It takes a little bit of trial and error to hit the appropriate notes (take note of my little slip at the beginning of the final chorus, when I slip down almost an octave). With some practice though, you'll be able to tell when you're hitting the right notes.

Also, sorry if I blew out the mic. I put some fabric around the computer to absorb the sound, but the acoustic is really loud and the mic is really bad.

-Kal

There is no spoon*

So, we watched The Matrix in class a few days ago, which was probably one of the most epic classes ever. We spent a lot of time afterwards discussing the symbolism-- what the glasses mean, the roll of the robots, the significance of the telephone as the connection between the worlds-- but of course the one thing that stuck out to me again was everyone's favorite line, "Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth.There is no spoon... Then you'll see, that it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself."

I thought this was an awesome quote the first time I watched the movie-- and of course I immediately went home and tried to bend a spoon, so obviously I missed the point of it the first time around. And admittedly, this time it took me at least until I got back to my dorm to make the connection.

But, just a few days ago, I picked up my electric (now named Moonlight), and set my mind to finger picking. I tuned the guitar down half a step (see Tuning...and its Hazards for more info) and decided to leave it like that, since a bunch of my favorite songs are tuned as such, and I'm quite lazy. The first song I chose was Broken (Seether, feat. Evanescence's Amy Lee), since the picking is very distinct. I barely even thought about it, just looked at the tab (shown below) named the positions in my head, and started playing. And lo and behold. The technique that for almost a year has been the bane of my guitarist existence suddely just...happened. I don't really know how to explain it otherwise. I sat down, and I decided to take a different approach. Since chords are my strength, I looked at where in the song I could keep my fingers planted, and tried to relate them to chord positions I already know:

D
e-2h3-------3--3---------3------------2h3-----3---3--------3------------|
B-------(0)------3------3----3-------3------0--------3-----3----3------3-|
G---------0------0---0-------------0-----------0------0---0-----------0---|
D-2------------------------------0-------2-----------------------------0-----|
A-----------------3--------------------------------------3---------------------|
E-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
                                                 D
e-2h3------3--3--------3-----------0h2-----3p2----0h2-|--------3p2-----|
B-------0-------3------3---3------3------3----------3-------|-3---3-----3----|
G---------0-----0---0-----------0-----------2----------------|----2---------0--|
D-2----------------------------0------0------------------0----|------------------|
A----------------3----------------------------------------------|------------------|
E----------------------------------------------------------------|------------------|

The first position reminds me of a D chord (xx0232), so that's what I named it. A little later in the song, an actual D chord position comes up, so I named that one as well. Once I was able to figure out those positions, I was able to just focus on my plucking hand.

Then I guess as I was playing, that's when it sort of hit me. About the spoon comment I mean-- it's like mind over matter. Once you overcome that mental construction of yourself that can't play, it's no longer a self-defeating construct. Like he points out, the spoon isn't bending-- likewise, the guitar isn't complying, because it's not the guitar that's the issue. You instead, bend around the guitar. You learn to move with it, to work with what you're given, your strengths and weaknesses. You learn how to relate what you can't understand into terms that you can.

And well...I'm still working on that with the acoustic, since it's a lot tougher on your hands. But don't forget-- THERE IS NO SPOON!!!

Till next time.

-Kal

Recording: Session 1

I don't think I've ever spent an hour and a half playing one song before. But thanks to Miguel, that's just what I did today.

Ok, ok, so it sounds a little harsh and a little bitter when I put it like that. No, it was a lot of fun. I really love practicing with different people. Maybe that sounds a little weird, but I feel like it gives you a new perspective on them, like you understand them at a different level. You start to understand what parts of themselves they're comfortable with, and which parts they're not. You learn their strengths and weaknesses, how harsh they are on themselves, and you get to know each other a little better.

I guess in that sense the best example that I can give is that when you've been practicing for so long with someone, some things just don't need to be said. You learn to read each other on a different level, and you can predict the other person's reactions. On the most rudimentary level, this means that after practicing a certain song with someone for so long, you don't need to tell them how many intro measures you're going to play. They just know when to come in.

Then after you've been practicing for a while, you learn where the other person is likely to have trouble. As a guitarist, this means cue-ing your singer in. Sometimes, it means you help them along with the pacing of a certain verse-- and if the singer doesn't need to be coached along, sometimes it means that you end up with some really cool harmonizing when all the recording is said and done.

On top of that, you get a little more comfortable with each other. Both of you have things you need to work on, and eventually you're not afraid of showing the other person that you're not perfect-- because you realize that they're not judging you. You feel comfortable pointing out the things you need to work on, and the things that they need to work on. And you're cool with helping them learn it. And then on top of that, it makes you really happy when the other person gets something that they've been working on.

Like when we were recording, and Miguel hit the high notes in the song. That made me really happy. He probably didn't notice the smile on my face for the rest of the song, but I really enjoyed it. I don't think he realizes what an amazing voice he has.

So by this point, you're probably wondering where this lovely recording is. Well, it doesn't exactly exist yet. This was the first time that we practiced together, and we spent almost the entire time on just one song. We played for an hour and a half and recorded maybe twice. By the end of all of this, the pick slipped from my hand, and my chord fingers were really starting to wear out. By the last recording, I had to stop and say I couldn't finish. Like I said, I've never done just one song for that long before. Since you're using the same fingers (all 4 of them in this case) plus the same muscles in your hand, it's tiring. So, we're back to the mic tomorrow to have another go at it.

And that's not to say that today wasn't productive-- it was very productive. It was a lot of fun. I actually can't wait for tomorrow.

On another note, Miguel, Rose, and I are just now looking at a set for Open Mic Night next Thursday. If we aren't able to pull it together by then, I'm happy to perform with Miguel or try to memorize a monologue by then. But this set list is going to take a lot of work on everyone's parts. Rose has to learn the lyrics and learn to harmonize with Miguel. I'm learning a song from scratch, and Miguel is basically putting together a violin solo by ear.

If not next week though, we'll try to record it for you right here.

Oh, and if I haven't mentioned this, I'd really love to record with Béa as well, if not this school year than definitely during the summer.

-Kal

For What It's Worth...*

...here is all the knowledge and experience I have with finger picking.

The two ways you can begin picking are 1) with just your thumb, or 2) with all your fingers. Usually it's just about what feels comfortable, and sometimes beginners feel more comfortable relying on just their thumb. I know I do. But when he saw me finger picking, Senpai suggested that you try to pick with all your fingers, by assigning each finger to a string. Even if you don't feel comfortable picking with your ring finger or pinky (watch the video to see just how uncomfortable I am with this), practice with your first three fingers and work up to that point. You'll be able to pluck a lot faster once you get the hang of it.

Next thing is that you can pick with your bare fingers, which is fine, or you can get these really cool picks that slide onto your fingers and make the sounds a lot more crisp. It's like the difference between strumming with your fingernails and strumming with a pick. The sound is just a lot less murky with the plastic. As you'll see in the video, I only have the pick that slides onto my thumb, but they make ones for your fingers too. And as you'll see from the video, I haven't used that pick in a while and I'm sort of messy with it. In fact, I abandoned it all together until I picked a song on just one string.

Lastly, there are three techniques that come into play with picking: hammer-ons (placing your finger on a fret after you've plucked the string), pull-offs (the opposite of hammer-on), and sliding (smooth transition, sliding your finger from one fret to a higher or lower one).



Tabs used:

Time- Hootie and the Blowfish
Dsus4
-------------------------3----------------------------3--
---------3------------3----3---------3------------3------
------2------------2--------------2------------2---------
--0--------0-h-2---------------0-------0-h-2-------------
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------


Sunny Came Home- Shawn Colvin
e------------------------------------------------|
b------------------------------------------------|
g------------------------------------------------|
d--------0-2-0------------------0-2-0-2-4--|
a—2/4---------4-2-0-0---2/4---------------|
E------------------------------------------------|

e---------------------------------------------------|
b---------------------------------------------------|
g---------------------------------------------------|
d--------0-2-2/0--------------------0-2-0------|
a—2/4------------4-2-0-0---2/4---------4-2-|
E---------------------------------------------------|


The Tain- The Decemberists
E|--0--3--7--6/7/6--3--0--3--7/10--11--12-----------------------|

E|--0--3--7--6/7/6--3--0-3--7/10--11--12-------------------------|
     Here upon this pillow

E|--0--3--7--6/7/6--3--0--3--7/10--11--12------------------------|
    Made of reed and willow.           You're

E|--0--3--7--6/7/6---3-0-3---5--7--0---12-11-12-----------------|
    a fickle little twister, are you sweet on your sister? Your

E|--0--3--7--6/7/6--3--0--------------------------------|
    fallow won't leave you alone.

-Kal

The Frustrations of Sudden Temperature Changes

No, weather changes isn't really that much of a hazard, but it's still something to pay attention to. And yes, there is a difference between the hazards and the frustrations, however subtle. Hazards usually involve some sort of bodily harm, while the frustrations are the little bumps you might encounter along the way.

Anyway.

It's gotten really warm and a little humid out these past few days, so my guitars have been slipping out of tune more easily. People mostly use that phrase "slipping" out of tune for cold weather-- because materials shrink in the cold, tuning pegs will become lose, and it's quite hard to keep the instrument from going flat. Now that it's spring though, the warming is causing the wood and all of my tuning pegs to expand, tightening the strings. The past few days when I've gone to play, my strings have been sharp instead of flat. The changes can be mild, and sometimes not noticeable for someone who doesn't have perfect pitch, but you should be careful to check your strings before you play when the weather starts changing rapidly.

-Kal