Be off-Fender-ed!

Fender have been a topic of ire here in recent months

When the company won a copyright ruling in the EU earlier this year I thought things looked grim.

The iconic guitar brand is owned by an investment firm and it seems obvious to anyone who has tried a variety of products that they sell over-priced instruments to maximise profits.

So I was shocked when I saw an apology issued by one retailer, as it showed the brand were using their dominance to limit competition. 

With the ruling against Chinese copies in Europe they were given an opportunity to further entrench their advantage to monopolise the market.

It is another example of how copyright is harming innovation.

Can you imagine what guitars might look like if the market was not dominated with the message that designs from the mid-20th Century are the best available?

Many are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Telecaster, yet is it really a design to put on a pedestal and say there is nothing to improve? 

(Nashville models with a Strat-style middle pickup say differently, obviously.) 

When I had that thought it prompted me to consider ideas about what else could be done, such as adding pickups for individual strings and multiple outputs.

It will be interesting to see if the Fender brand becomes toxic to consumers, because they lost my support last year for less. 

Larkin Miller on meeting music

There’s more than one “right” way to meet the music. One of my teachers used to say that if you move before the music, you’re anticipating it; if you move exactly with it you’re matching it; and if you move just slightly after, you’re responding to it. They’re all possibilities for one note and yet they all offer a completely different quality. I don’t try to own or claim the music. 

Don't let anyone

 

Disquiet Junto 0750 Let’s Get Heavy

The Junto prompt this week is to "record something epic," which I took somewhat literally.

I had a cheeky idea to record a bad cover of the song 'Epic' and claim it was something! 

Linda Perry on progress

“What I’m probably most proud of is that I never think I’m good enough,” she says. “But that’s also my damage; I was raised that way; you know, not being good enough. That little dark gift my mother gave me actually became a pot of gold.” 

Rhythm Droid

 

naviarhaiku642 – a moment before sunrise

 

The poem shared by Naviar Records this week had me reaching for my modified guitar.

Having never heard those footsteps for myself, I knew there was a broad scope for creative interpretation! 

Recommend your favourite music

 

Disquiet Junto 0747 And a One

The Junto project this week is to "Record the first third of a trio."

This is a quick recording on my modified Nukulele electric guitar, where I mostly just jam on the D string.

Ableton Live seems to think it's around 117 BPM, which is where I usually land.

There are two outputs, each going through an Alexander effect pedal.

A Wav file and a Mov file are available. 

I explain in the video below.

Reverb that goes places

Saw this on Pedalboards of Doom and it reminded me of one of those musical epiphanies.

I've been excited in the past by reverb models that offer recreations of famous spaces, like topline recording studios. 

Then a friend invited me to listen to her performance while lying on the floor with my eyes closed.

She began a drone and my sense of the environment shifted.

I forgot where I was as the illusion of floating in a 'no space' pushed back the walls with a never-ending note.

Since then I've had similar experiences with classical Indian music and pondered the sense of spirituality that follows from losing sense of the self.

Playing to a Youtube

 

Another pickup experiment

After installing the bass pickup last week, I thought it would be interesting to have outputs for each pickup. 

This is just a test.