The spookiest guitar newsletter you'll read
And, do you really need a guitar teacher?
Eating all the candy
Happy spooky season to ya! I hope that whenever you’re reading this, you’re eating allll the candy. It just might help you achieve those James Hetfield-esque downstroke riffs. I’ve been playing a ton of guitar, doing a lot of recording and mixing, and have been so amped up about music in general lately.
As we’re only 2 months away from closing out 2022, I wanted to ask you - what was your favorite guitar/music story of the year? Let me know by replying in the comments if you’re reading this on Substack, or by replying to this email if you’re reading there instead! Alright, let’s get into this week’s links!
This week’s links!
- I tried writing the perfect solo... - Do solos still make sense in modern music? Is the solo dead? The answer is without a doubt, no. Paul Davids takes us on a journey to creating one sweet solo. It's always cool to see different people's processes when creating music. How do you come up with your lead lines?
- Greg Koch Podcast - Chewing the Gristle | Fishman - Jared James Nichols was the guest on the latest Chewing the Gristle podcast with Greg Koch. I loved this episode, because the guys are so open and honest. If you ever wanted to learn about making it, and tactics for the road, give this episode a listen. Later in the week, JJN broke down the riff to his latest song with Marty Schwartz. Check that out here.
- John 5 confirmed as new Mötley Crüe touring guitarist - There were a bunch of rumblings since John 5 was MIA from Rob Zombie's band, but now we've received confirmation that John will actually be the new guitarist in Motley Crue, replacing Mick Mars. If you get out to a Crue show with John, let me know how he does!
- Don't Waste Your Time With Modes (Without Doing THIS...) - Learning the modes is cool. Learning the theory behind them is even more important though. Learning shapes without understanding the why will never be as good as understanding these modes' formulas. Ross Campbell breaks down the why for us in his latest video.
- This is Why You Suck at Guitar: You Don't PIVOT! - Want your riffing to have more betterness? Then you should check out the new video from Ben Eller, where he talks about a simple pivot method you can use with your thumb. Earlier in the week, Ben broke down the "Welcome to the Jungle" solos, which I also loved!
- Octave Left hand Muting Technique and Beyond! - If instead you're into jazz technique, you should check out Tomo Fujita's lesson on Wes Montgomery style octaves, and all the muting that goes behind them to sound great.
- How Bias Affects Fuzz Pedals - Want to be able to turn your fuzz into a bunch of different fuzz pedals? Well, you can if you have access to a bias knob. StringJoy goes in depth about what bias is, and why it's so important with fuzz.
- Ray Parker Jr. - Ghostbusters Guitar Lesson - Depending on when you're reading this, we're in the midst of Halloween action. I felt it was a great time to learn the Ghostbusters classic.
- 3 Spooky Chords Used In Horror Movies - Want to get even spookier with your guitar playing? Sam Bell takes us from Danny Elfman to John Carpenter and more in this video for LickLibrary.
- Angus Young Tricked Us All! - Robert Baker is coming out with an Angus Young course, so he's in full swing of creating some really fun Angus vids on YouTube. In this video he shows us a “double roll" technique, on an awesome pentatonic lick.
- Do you NEED a Guitar Teacher in 2022? - After having done this for so many years, I'd say the short answer is yes. But there's also a great way to get inspired by yourself on different topics that can push your learning along. Thankfully, we live in the age of so much great information, on any topic really. But it's nice to have someone to guide you along the path.
- Watch Us Demo 87 New Pedals From Our Favorite Makers - 87 pedals in a little over 3 hours. You love to see it! If you're looking for something new to add to your board, check this video out.
- Warm Audio Centavo Professional Overdrive Pedal Demo - And speaking of pedals, one that's making the rounds this week is this new Klon clone by Warm Audio. I think it does this particular sound really well, and at a small fraction of the price of a real Klon, it won't break the bank.
- Solar Guitars enters the effects pedal market for the first time with the Chug distortion pedal - If instead you prefer to get even heavier with your tone, you should check out the new Chug pedal from Ola Englund's Solar Guitars. It's the company's first entry into pedals, and I think it sounds really good from Ola's demo.
- Lego-made effects pedals (that work) raffled for charity - One more pedal link for this week's issue! Andertons and Pedal Pawn have teamed up to make some awesome looking Lego renditions of popular pedals. The proceeds will go to the Teenage Cancer Trust. Love everything about this campaign.
- How To Be Metallica! - And finally, I had to laugh at this video from Stevie T. With all love to Metallica, it was pretty spot on.
That’s it for this week. Thanks for reading Six String Sunday!
Hey did you know, not only do I talk guitar each week, but I also teach it!
Try out a half an hour to see how much you can learn when you know the right things to practice. Whether you want to learn guitar, recording, mixing or more, I can help you out!