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StormX · 10-04-2004, 12:06 PM

Alright, it's been a few days, so I've thought of some more stuff to post.

Rhythm Guitar

Never overlook the rhythm guitar. SO many bands just have the rhythm guitar just do sets of 8-16 palm muted (or not) powerchords. I guess, they think thats all they need to do with it. But rhythm guitar can be a very powerful part of the song. Try using triplets, or something that like, to make up a more energetic beat for the song. Don't palm mute everything either, a good example of what I'm talking about is the rhythm for the verse of "ain't love grand" by atreyu. One or two palm muted notes between chords. And it's not just a generic pattern. Look at some other atreyu songs for more of what I'm talking about.

Another thing to do with rhythm guitar is play the same part as lead, but a counter melody thats lower. Sorry to keep using atreyu, but in the intro to "lip gloss and black" how the rhythm guitar comes in playing a counter melody. When used right, this is very powerful, and sounds awesome. Counter melodied pinch harmonics also sound very good. But don't overuse this.

Yet another thing, is to use octave chords instead of powerchords. You can do this with your own pattern, or the normal sets of 8. Octave chords give a sense of urgency, and it can totally change the sound of the song. Don't overuse ocatve chords either, but they work well replacing powerchords in parts of a song. Another thing to do, is make a small interlude/soloish part using single octave chords. Heh, another atreyu example, the interlude of "ain't love grand".

Vocals

I don't think I've really touched on vocals as much as I should have, and they are the main part of most songs. This is pretty hard, because vocals are different for every kind of music, so I might be a little partial in this part, but bear with me.

When playing live, and recording, NEVER mix the vocals a lot louder than everything else. A lot of times you get an egotistical singer that wants to be WAY louder than everything. Just tell them to suck it up. It makes the song sound bad. BUT, don't mix the vocals too low either, espically playing live. Too many shows I've been to sounded really bad because you couldn't hear the singer.

When actually coming up for the vocals of the song, a few things to keep in mind. Don't overuse screaming if it's in your genre. Try to keep screaming to backing vocals, but if it's your main vocals, DON'T overuse it. Just look on these forums, a lot of people don't like constant screaming. Try just screaming every other line, or every few lines. And try doing parts where you're screaming, then kind of drop out into singing in the middle of a word, then sing the first part of the next word, and push back into a scream. I personally think that sounds pretty good. Check out some of underoath's songs off "They're Only Chasing Safety" to see what I mean.

For those of you that don't have screaming in your genre, you can still make your vocals interesting and unique, espicially if you have a singer with unique voice. Try singing the vocals...dynamically, and put a lot of energy into them, unless it's a slow/acoustic song. But you don't have to have slow vocals for an acoustic song. Check out "Emily" by From First to Last, it has very powerful vocals, yet it's an acoustic song. And it goes well too. Try this out sometime to see how it sounds.

Hmm, thats all for now....how about, you guys tell me what you want to see in the next post.

10-04-2004, 12:06 PM	#17
StormX I love quilt maple Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Delaware Posts: 2,481	Alright, it's been a few days, so I've thought of some more stuff to post. Rhythm Guitar Never overlook the rhythm guitar. SO many bands just have the rhythm guitar just do sets of 8-16 palm muted (or not) powerchords. I guess, they think thats all they need to do with it. But rhythm guitar can be a very powerful part of the song. Try using triplets, or something that like, to make up a more energetic beat for the song. Don't palm mute everything either, a good example of what I'm talking about is the rhythm for the verse of "ain't love grand" by atreyu. One or two palm muted notes between chords. And it's not just a generic pattern. Look at some other atreyu songs for more of what I'm talking about. Another thing to do with rhythm guitar is play the same part as lead, but a counter melody thats lower. Sorry to keep using atreyu, but in the intro to "lip gloss and black" how the rhythm guitar comes in playing a counter melody. When used right, this is very powerful, and sounds awesome. Counter melodied pinch harmonics also sound very good. But don't overuse this. Yet another thing, is to use octave chords instead of powerchords. You can do this with your own pattern, or the normal sets of 8. Octave chords give a sense of urgency, and it can totally change the sound of the song. Don't overuse ocatve chords either, but they work well replacing powerchords in parts of a song. Another thing to do, is make a small interlude/soloish part using single octave chords. Heh, another atreyu example, the interlude of "ain't love grand". Vocals I don't think I've really touched on vocals as much as I should have, and they are the main part of most songs. This is pretty hard, because vocals are different for every kind of music, so I might be a little partial in this part, but bear with me. When playing live, and recording, NEVER mix the vocals a lot louder than everything else. A lot of times you get an egotistical singer that wants to be WAY louder than everything. Just tell them to suck it up. It makes the song sound bad. BUT, don't mix the vocals too low either, espically playing live. Too many shows I've been to sounded really bad because you couldn't hear the singer. When actually coming up for the vocals of the song, a few things to keep in mind. Don't overuse screaming if it's in your genre. Try to keep screaming to backing vocals, but if it's your main vocals, DON'T overuse it. Just look on these forums, a lot of people don't like constant screaming. Try just screaming every other line, or every few lines. And try doing parts where you're screaming, then kind of drop out into singing in the middle of a word, then sing the first part of the next word, and push back into a scream. I personally think that sounds pretty good. Check out some of underoath's songs off "They're Only Chasing Safety" to see what I mean. For those of you that don't have screaming in your genre, you can still make your vocals interesting and unique, espicially if you have a singer with unique voice. Try singing the vocals...dynamically, and put a lot of energy into them, unless it's a slow/acoustic song. But you don't have to have slow vocals for an acoustic song. Check out "Emily" by From First to Last, it has very powerful vocals, yet it's an acoustic song. And it goes well too. Try this out sometime to see how it sounds. Hmm, thats all for now....how about, you guys tell me what you want to see in the next post.