City Music year-end sale: Recommendations (Part 2)

It has always been the case of, gee, which wah pedal should I get? I'd say if you are starting out, Vox's V847 is one to consider. This pedal gives you some of the best wah tone to start with, very fundamental yet appealing & workable. If you aren't a newbie, then the V847 serves as a reality check- this is how a good, basic wah tone should be.

SALE: $81


You need a LINE6 tone on the go but you aren't using it on the floor, more of a desk top, fill-me-when-I'm-in-need utility application; the Pocket POD Express is it. You just work with the fundamental editing options here because you already like what the manufacturer has to offer. The Pocket POD range of effects unit is one of the best hardware out there which sounds superb through audio, non-guitar inclined drivers ('speakers' to the rest of us...).

SALE: $117

Korina singlecut

Heads up! PRS has released a singlecut Korina model & its a member of the SE family so breaking your piggy isn't necessary. Anticipations...

City Music Sale: Recommendations (Part 1)

Ah... the year-end City Music sale is here again, some stuff here for your considerations...

Echotone: If you're looking for an affordable semi, the Hamer Echotone should be on your list. It's a well-built guitar, nothing boutique grade though, but something very pleasant. Cleans are great from this guitar, especially some from the neck humbucker & the overdrive tones just sound very acceptable. For the discerning tone mongers, the Echotone sounds a little different as it sports a maple neck, not a mahogany piece like some others.

Sale: $466

Vector: OK, so the v-outline here might prove to be the attractive esthetic but that's besides the point. We should all prioritize tone & playability when it comes to an instrument selection which the Hamer Vector has aplenty- but the default humbuckers here are aimed at overdrive frenzies rather than squeaky clean moments. Be reminded though, of how practical all things of this contour would be when played sitting down. The alder (body) & maple (neck) combo also ensures inherent clarity.

Sale: $417

Busker...

The average busker today isn't one armed with pathetic equipment. The visually impaired individual above was seen with a Godin guitar & Crate amp, chances are, his equipment is more desireable than ours...

Mr. Big...

Mr. Big was here in S'pore on the 18th of October @ Fort Canning. As evident above, I was present at the show but wasn't keen in taking pics, hence the mobile-phone captured image you see above...

The show was fantastic & thoroughly entertaining, even non-Mr. Big fans would have been entertained by what's in store.

The intriguing occurrence would be the area marked above (blue arrow), which became the latrine of choice as the more civilized version was too out of the way for the audience. This was of course way back at the rear of Fort Canning Park, behind the refreshment tent which is partially visible here.

PS: Darling, you still remember the drunk guy who started climbing the tent structure?

Marshall MA50C: Preliminary report

I've managed to get my hands on Marshall's MA series, first & foremost, thanks to the very good people at Davis GMC for making this happen.

This is the most affordable tube unit the manufacturer has to offer which promises no concession when it comes to the typical Marshall bark. The cleans here are very enjoyable, please do not expect Fender's bells & chimes, it's a MARSHALL for goodness' sake. If you like how Hendrix sounded like, the MA won't disappoint.

I think the more pertinent anxiety would be the drive- make or break? First & foremost, it won't do metal by default. However you tweak it, how much inherent boost you dial in, it won't scream metal. In fact, I'd advise those hard rocking lads to hear if the MA has the intensity you are looking for, chances are, you'd be needing more.

So what's the MA good for? It serves players looking for a rounded single note definition, absolutely immaculate for the blues mongers out there. Think Dumble, not an exceptional reproduction but along this line of tonal manifestation, definitely. You'd love how the drive reacts with the amount of attack you put in your picking; anything in store for the shredders? If your life depends on the default drive- not quite.

The MA series isn't a utilitarian Marshall, it won't serve the aggressive music peddlers out there. But if you are in need of warmth with every note you churn out, this is perhaps what you've been looking for. In fact, it's not too far off from the discontinued DSL401. Why is it relatively affordable? It's Made in Vietnam but the overall QC (at least what my eyes could scrutinize) is above average, very Marshall in its strict, physical standards.

Marshall MA50C
List: $675
Availability: Davis GMC

Les Bucket Paul

So here's the official Buckethead Gibson Les Paul which looks rather ordinary, but that's how it is with needs- the instrument serves the player's needs, it shouldn't appease the masses... We would have thought Buckethead, being the prolific finger gymnast he is, would decorate his instrument with personal quirks but as you see above, it remains functional. From the commencial perspective, it remains 'ordinary' enough to attract the masses, not just ardent fans.

Hey, dad! (Part 10)

Hey, dad! You know, if you stack up all your guitar hard cases, it would help me touch the ceiling... he, he...

Flake off

One of the set backs of coated strings is that it flakes off readily at the picking area as depicted above (Guitar: my Ibanez RGR08). Some of us think this is 'bad' but it's expected isn't it? You aren't actually fingering your strings at that area, the pick proves to be a hard material which comes into contact with the coated material & naturally, flaking off occurs. However, we must be objective & remember the role of this coating; to preserve string life more so at the fretted area rather than the picking vicinity.

Of course, some of us just can't stand how this looks...

Gorgoroth: Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt

After the band name debacle, Gorgoroth is currently under the helm of guitarist, Infernus. The effective band line-up is as follows (as recruited by Infernus):

• Vocals: Pest
• Guitars: Infernus
• Guitars: Tormentor
• Boddel: Bass
• Drums: Tomas Asklund
  

I have Gorgoroth's latest release, Quantos Possunt Ad Satanitatem Trahunt in my possession & must say the songs are well pieced together. There are however no excessively fast, pre-Twilight of the Idols numbers, in fact, there are several tunes triggering the memory of the Reinchaos-era Dissection; very heavy with the essence of black metal still in tact. I always look forward to Infernus' guitar playing as he possesses this catchy, gallop riffs which are his trademark peddling.

The overall album production is impressive. If you think black metal dweebs are 100% lo-fi devotees who placed their recording equipment in a tree trunk & proceed to capture raw, evil, music in its ultra fundamental embodiment, then you are sick. As evident above, drummer Tomas Asklund is the very capable hand behind this successful recording in terms of technicalities.

As you have read recently in these pages, Infernus has an official endorsement deal with Jackson guitars but this didn't stop him from using the preferred recording guitar, in this case, a Fender Strat as seen in the pic above.

Misleading Santana

Was there anything wrong with the PRS Santana SE? Guitar-wise, there's absolutely nothing wrong- it's a great instrument to own in terms of feel & tone. It's just that it doesn't look like the Santana model...

There's currently a subsequent Santana model but it doesn't do any better in terms of its representation of the original Santana model outline; this one is in fact the SE One model with a relevantly themed graphic...

A Tribute to Les Paul @ NLB

You know the man, you know his legendary guitar... now you can get to know more about him at our very own National Library (Esplanade).

Details here: http://blogs.nlb.gov.sg/epcl/music/les-paul-tribute-man-music-gibson-guitar/