Would Jimi Hendrix have used the Axe Fx?
Today it is 40 years ago since Jimi Hendrix passed away in a London Hotel room.
In today's Observer there's a great article talking about Hendrix' last days.
In the article we also hear about how Jimi was always interested in creating new sounds.
His collaboration with Roger Mayer is known to most enthusiats and here's a quote from the article that says; No, Jimi would never have used the Axe Fx.
Bear in mind, this is from the man who made the effects, not played them...
"The electronics we used were 'feed forward', which means that the input from the player projects forward – the equivalent of electronic shadow dancing – so that what happens derives from the original sound and modifies what is being played. But nothing can be predictive – it is speed-forward analogue, a non-repetitive wave form, and that is the definition of pure music and therefore the diametric opposite of digital.
"Look, if you throw a pebble into a lake, you have no way of predicting the ripples – it depends on how you throw the stone, or the wind. Digital makes the false presumption that you can predict those ripples, but Jimi and I were always looking for the warning signs. The brain knows when it hears repetition that this is no longer music and what you hear when you listen to Hendrix is pure music."
-Roger Mayer.
Off course, 40 years ago there were no digital gadgets around so saying that Hendrix woyuld have been against it might be taking it too far.
What's interesting here is that the debate used to be that the sound of a digital amp is nowhere near as good as the real thing.
Looks like the new argument for Analog is that it's better because it''s worse!
-Guru
How To Play Guitar, part 2/4
How to play guitar, explained in 20 minutes, part 2
In this second video in the series we shall see how to actually apply this.
The tune Little Wing by Jimi Hendrix use the chord progression:
Em – G – Am – Em – Bm – Am – C – G – F – C – D.
By applying a pentatonic scale to each of these chords you will sound much better than if you just play Em pentatonic over the entire progression.
Guru also talks about extra notes you can ad, such as b5 for the minor pentatonic, this would create the Blues Scale. And also, the maj7th which combined with the b5 gives you the Conspirian scale.
For a full explanation of this concept you need to read the guitar conspiracy, to learn how to do this yourself you need to practice all the scales.
Spytunes have taken care of this for you as well by structuring a complete practice routine with all exercises available as video demonstrations and as TAB notation.
The next part of this series will explain how you can by taking this concept ones step further, build all the modes on the guitar.
-Guru