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BoatRich wrote:it's hard to write oppressively heavy music without oppressive volume.

Meh. I go back and forth on that.


There is also the fact that a lot of bands get loud for the sake of being loud, rather than using it to enhance the music.

I tried a 30 watt amp in an indie band and it was terrible....just totally drowned out. This band was a bit more on the Shellac/Jesus Lizard side of the tracks but either way at 30 watts the drummer really can't dig in.

The Science amps look good with some smart features but the names are pretty lame. Street Sweeper, Hellhawk and even the name Science....all pretty corny.

BoatRich wrote: As far as volume goes, I will literally never understand the need to play quietly. It just seems boring to me. Music should be felt as much as heard and it's hard to write oppressively heavy music without oppressive volume.

I think we do rather well as far as writing for not being able to turn up past 2-3 during practice. Writing the music IMO doesn't require volume, but its best used as an enhancing live tool. Some of the most oppressing and depressing music I've ever written was played out of a 1x12 SS marshall combo on 1 at 2am...

As far as live though, your damn right its gonna be felt as much as heard.

Ancient Astronaught wrote:

BoatRich wrote: As far as volume goes, I will literally never understand the need to play quietly. It just seems boring to me. Music should be felt as much as heard and it's hard to write oppressively heavy music without oppressive volume.

I think we do rather well as far as writing for not being able to turn up past 2-3 during practice. Writing the music IMO doesn't require volume, but its best used as an enhancing live tool. Some of the most oppressing and depressing music I've ever written was played out of a 1x12 SS marshall combo on 1 at 2am...

As far as live though, your damn right its gonna be felt as much as heard.

I probably should have clarified that I meant live, because we do write some heavy shit, and I'm positive it'll just sound better the louder it gets.

BoatRich wrote:I probably should have clarified that I meant live, because we do write some heavy shit, and I'm positive it'll just sound better the louder it gets.

Your damn right it will.

D.o.S. wrote:

christianatl wrote:That EXACT thing happened to us in Boston. So fucked up that the band on tour is asked to provide shit for bands in their hometown. I understand if something breaks or if you plan on sharing cabs with another band you know / trust / are doing a few shows with. But we were straight up asked to borrow gear because the local opener said their bass cab took "four people to move." I wish I was making that up.

On the flip side, they did give me a copy of their vinyl for free. Possibly -- there were two openers and I missed both of them, so it could be the other one.

Yeah they were totally giving it away. We threw it out the window of our van at about 70mph.

That's a shame. We have some mutual acquaintances and they seem like nice dudes (and that's a pretty rad record), but that's no bueno.

Streaming the new Mastodon. So far "High Road" is the best song I've heard. This does not bode well.

LOCOPELAND wrote:Streaming the new Mastodon. So far "High Road" is the best song I've heard. This does not bode well.

buddy of mine said that the first few songs were not bad at all but he said by song 8 he was starting to nod off, basically. he said better than the hunter and crack the skye.

I liked that song ok. But I've had to look at it sort of like do with Dillinger. They're two different bands.... one plays heavy shit like 43% burnt and the other plays great poppy songs like Setting Fire to Sleeping Giants and Black Bubblegum. In Mastodon's case though, one band plays amazing shit like Remission and Leviathan and the other plays really bad shit like The Hunter and Crack the Skye. I just choose to only listen to the good version of Mastodon.

conky wrote:I liked that song ok. But I've had to look at it sort of like do with Dillinger. They're two different bands.... one plays heavy shit like 43% burnt and the other plays great poppy songs like Setting Fire to Sleeping Giants and Black Bubblegum. In Mastodon's case though, one band plays amazing shit like Remission and Leviathan and the other plays really bad shit like The Hunter and Crack the Skye. I just choose to only listen to the good version of Mastodon.

Yeah.... I try to keep the positive Mastadon image in my head by only listening to Leviathan

To be honest with you, I watched the crack the syke documentary when it came out and was really impressed by how much that album meant to the guys.
It was an eye opener for me and was very interesting (and good!) to see a band push themselves into different styles of music - and in my opinion, pull it off.
I think crack the skye is intricate, intelligent and well placed.
The Hunter didn't mean any where near as much and that's why it doesn't come across special.

If you can get your hands on that documentary, it's really a worth while watch!

van_muddlestein wrote:

t-rey wrote:Jeebus, that is one sexy guitar.

I actually found someone else's mockup of almost exactly what I am planning on building.

Put a strat headstock on it and then:

Harry_Manback wrote:New Mastodon streaming on iTunes.

FFOM

I went in with low expectations. And I was still disappointed. There were a few songs or parts of songs that I liked, but that's about all I can say. I had it on at work, so it's not like I was intently listening to it, but I doubt anything positive would have come from paying more attention to it.

wildebelor wrote:To be honest with you, I watched the crack the syke documentary when it came out and was really impressed by how much that album meant to the guys.
It was an eye opener for me and was very interesting (and good!) to see a band push themselves into different styles of music - and in my opinion, pull it off.
I think crack the skye is intricate, intelligent and well placed.
The Hunter didn't mean any where near as much and that's why it doesn't come across special.

If you can get your hands on that documentary, it's really a worth while watch!

I liked that doc. Showed how much they dig what they do and how weird and dorky they are. I love Crack the Skye - it was a cool new approach, but I'm not much on The Hunter or this new album.

How's things, folks? Been a while. I'm finding it too hard to keep up with the forum these days. Still love this place though.

I think I've decided (though not unequivocally) that 30 watt valve amps are where my loyalties lie. It seems to be the perfect medium for me. If I was gigging I would go bigger/louder, but 30 watts right now is pretty epic. Even if I was gigging, unless I needed super clean tones, at the shows I'd be playing 30 watts is fine. I'm really looking forward to my Dunwich at around 15 watts. Then I might aim for a Rocker 30 and run that through my Matamp 2x12 in stereo with the Fryette. The Dunwich will be a portable gigging amp and the one I keep in the house and write and practise on. I'll have a Pedaltrain Junior alongside it in a nice carry case so it looks all sophisticated in the house and shit. I might see if a friend will build a custom wooden case for it since the Dunwich will be stained wood. A matching set would be so sweeeeeeet!

I think a lot of it depends on the drummer, the type of kit they use and the style they employ. Ryder's new set is gloriously loud, and now is proportionate with his cymbals. Very good.

50 watts would not come close to cutting it.