D-Trio

After years of living dangerously with high gain amps, I still include a distortion pedal in my set up. I have this trio out most of the time. 

The Malmsteen is the newest in the group. It's been labelled as an overdrive my the manufacturer & Malmsteen himself refers to it as one. I hear very hard clippings coming out of this one so calling it an OD is a little deceiving. 

The Dragon Hound is a good catch at SV's closing down sale, it was on 40% discount if memory serves me right. Also, this is the second gen illustration, the initial iteration featured a dragon / canine graphic befitting of the name but this comical edition does not make it a lesser pedal; it's one of the best 2-in-1 distortion unit I own. 

Of coure, the distortion that started it all - BOSS' DS-1 - is still a constant reference for my needs. This dilapidated pedal is the prized Japanese version which I received as a supplementary unit when purchasing a used guitar back in my pre-cancer days.

There's no firm favourite, I will deploy the preferred pedal according to my needs.

Force vits

This is legit. It's an official product by the man himself. Applaud him for his pro-health movement as opposed to other musicians with booze affiliation. 

Noted this over at his official IG account. Let's see if they have this here.

Pics: Malmsteen / IG

 

Indoor Saturday, laying low

Indoor Saturday as unemployment looms once more. 5 more days to feeling useless & vulnerable. In this country, if you have no money, it's like precipitating cataclysm. 

Anyway, spent time with the Ibanez ADX120. I dislike the default pickups, they sound fuzzy with high gain / intense distortion settings. In view of that pickup cavity limitations, majority of the replacement pickups won't fit in there.  The reason I don't play this much these days but the sustain coming from this beast... it's one of the best.

Surprisingly, these two sound good together. The MXR Malmsteen is hyped to deliver a certain distortion voicing but it is capable of churning out other pleasant tones as well. A deserving appraisal soon.

MXR: Malmsteen

You guessed it - the MXR Malmsteen signature pedal is finally available here (List: $189) & it's immediately out of stock - it's a Malmsteen thingy & I want one kind of fever setting in, every time all the time.

Pic: Dunlop

Yngwie @ CT

Folks, if you have bought the ticket for this one, do note the change in performance venue. I'm of the opinion that an enjoyable Malmsteen show should be done outdoors considering how loud he likes his live sets to be.

Pic: SISTIC 

M & M: 2 May

Marty & Malmsteen to play here on 2 May, Fort Canning Park, 7pm. Tickets on sale 26 February if you are keen.

Pic: Straits Times

Hail, King Y

Pretty much everyone got ticked off by Malmsteen, his demeanour especially, along the way despite him being the reigning king of neo-classical rock. I am of the opinion that some of the things he said / did were scrutinized out of context. The fact that I still listen to him & not Vai / Satch in the mean time, speaks a lot about appeal & relevance.

I've actually watched this a few times, once in its entirety & the rest, jumping to selective time frames to re-listen & respect his music / gear philosophy. It's a little under an hour but darn worthy it.

Pic: Loudmouth

Rising urge

This album is mandatory for guitar dweebs if you are really serious about getting somewhere in terms of your playing. I used to own the cassette version & it died due to over-play. I hate to buy a subsequent copy of something I already own but this one requires mandatory replacement. The consolation- it's now in CD format so it will not pose an issue in terms of over-playing (Will it? Time will tell).

What does this album offer me in terms of guitar education?

1) Precision- Malmsteen is a precise picker. All his picked notes are perfect (to me), there isn't a hint of sloppiness to be heard especially his lightning fast staccato passages. If he brags about it, he has the right to as he is pretty much the standard to beat in this case.

2) Analog heaviness- In view of the time this was recorded, it's free from those digital cess we hear in today's playback. The distortion here is downright heavy & it's all about his cranked up Marshall. Is this a case of less is more? It's definitely a case of sticking to what works.

So here's a reminder to myself- employ what works, stop trying to bow down to the current fad because the boutique effects units/ amps might amount to nothing in terms of fulfillment.

What restrictions?

Yngwie Malmsteen shred notes with only 21 frets in his guitar...

... & Allan Holdsworth bewildered everyone with only a single humbucker.

The features in our instruments are basically attending to our needs. Some of us do not need certain features, they are not essential anyway (eg: Floyd Rose bridge). The attributes of our instruments do not make us a less capable player because there are so many means to an end.