Ramadhan

To all Muslim friends, acquaintances & visitors of this blog- wishing you a blessed month of Ramadhan.

Fasting doesn't interfere with guitar playing, yes? Ditto guitar buying...

Japanese Cat (Part 2)

Ok, here it is, my Japanese (Fender) cat (Jaguar). It's the Special HH edition, it's something I am more accustomed to in terms of tone- the Jaguar single coil hum won't serve me well since I'm distortion inclined. The pickup switching is a little complicated but it's not beyond learning.

Thanks to Jumahat & Ms Yeo @ Swee Lee BB Showroom for the assitance of this acquisition!

String retainer (Ibanez)

The current Ibanez JEM make still features a string retainer behind the locking nut...

...while its Prestige counterpart is retainer-free...

...same goes for the standard RG headstock. I'm committing this to record because someone asked me if he's dealing with a fake JEM7V due to this string retainer issue.

T-rex: Mudhoney 2

I was attracted to the (T-Rex) Mudhoney 2 pedal for its dual distortion offering. I thought it'd be cool (not to mention economical) to own such a feature but the circuit is wired such that one simply cannot activate both distortions simultaneously... *SIGH*

1349: Demonoir

1349 has a reputation to uphold after the release of Revelations of the Black Flame. The band went ethereal leaving many fans utterly confused- were the chaps running out of ideas? But if you are a music proponent, you'd understand there would be times when the experimental itch takes over. It's an artistic turn which allows one to exercise liberty but not to the fans' understanding because to them, the artist's output is strictly fodder. They are oblivious to such artistic internalization so the aforementioned album, with its very capricious take on the genre, received very little appreciation.

But the band wasn't about to let that go. The 13 tracks offering in Demonoir are effectively 6 proper tracks in action while the Tunnel of Set tracks in between songs are bridging intermissions. This is where the Reveleations of the Black Flame philosophy remains. For those of us who were initially upset with Revelations, discovery & understanding take place. Demonoir is surprisingly a very structured release, there were no excessive unleashing of aggression yet such presence was felt all round. The guitars were more in place with overdubs clearly making their presence heard. There were also more definition & dedication to tone. On a personal note, 1349 didn't derail themselves from the genre's commitments. They took a turn for the artistic only to return more committed.

No...

Was in KL (Malaysia), dropping by Bentley Music was inevitable...

I would normally not visit this music store (no disrespect to Bentley Music whatsoever, the sales people there are some of the most courteous I've come across- salute!!) because I get good deals back home and the hassle of bringing home an instrument which would entail too may probes at the customs; I'm not that patient dealing with uniformed personnel (Yes, you people are doing your job but sometimes you are too judgmental & dismissive...). An avid follower of this blog, brother Ijau D. Koceng, tipped me off to the availability of this guitar. The list price was RM2,190. After a few minutes of noodling & proving familiarity with an Ibanez guitar as well as a Marshall amp, I asked for some discount considerations. The salesperson calculated his provisions accordingly & offered me the best he could endeavour: RM2,050. Elementary math would tell us it's not even a 10% discount... dum dee dum dee dum... *sigh*

The RGR465M is the current RG350M in another manifestation. In terms of feel, they are definitely on par but there are more likable tones from the former as the default pickups are DiMarzios- the Air Norton sounds above average in there but the Deactivator is simply menacing so all you distortion mongers be informed. 

I didn't buy it. Yes, I was hopeful the RGR565 would somehow be reincarnated & now that its closest manifestation, the RGR465 is here to appease me (maybe), I should just shut up & buy one. But I didn't. It could have been better priced. Definitely.

Typing this entry while watching the 2010 Singapore National Day parade (not really watching actually, just hearing what's going on): Happy 45th independence to all Singaporeans...