I suck don't I? :/

  • Thread starter Thread starter danny.guitar
  • Start date Start date
Don't forget everyones worst critic should be themselves. So there is no harm in being hard on yourself. I'd been playing for years before I realised that in the end it doesn't really matter from a technical side if you've nailed it or not. Some of the most uninspiring playing I've heard has been technically flawless. No matter how good you are there will always be people who think they are better and those that are better.

The trick is to make it sound like you are comfortable with what you are playing and having fun with it.

Put this recording away and do something else for a week or so come back to it with fresh ears and you'll likely know where you want to improve it. Do it again then and try and measure your own improvement in terms of how well you did getting it to sound like you wanted it to, not is it perfect yet. In truth none of us are ever 100% happy with our output. At least we shouldn't be or we'd stop moving forwards.

As far as the recording itself it sounds fine. The only minor critic about the playing I'd have would be that in a few places in sounds as if you are frustrated with it or have over played it. It lacks a bit of spontaneity or passion. You can fix that by getting rid of the frustration by accepting that it wont come overnight and do something else for a while. Also when your playing two parts it needs to be spot on as far as timing goes. If you must work more on this work on that. Set the tempo get a click track and have fun...

Don't beat yourself up we have all been there and will be again.
 
I think style affects things like timing and accuracy. You've picked a challenging song to cover - fingerstyle-wise - but just because you can't play it note for note, that doesn't mean you suck...Besides, there's like a million guitars on that record.

You might suck at learning transcriptions note for note....but I've never learnt a solo off the record note for note. I'm all about practicing, practicing different styles and techniques and practicing with a metronome - but it's all about the feeling you create, especially when recording. It's about the overall vibe to a song.
 
danny.guitar said:
I had sent this recording to a couple of people and they said it sucked. Well, one said it just sounded "rusty" the other was less forgiving with his words... Poor timing, missed notes, "lack of feel and energy", "amateurish"...
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Well thats what you get for sending your stuff to Don Henley to be critiqued.
 
If you're asking other guitar players, then more than likely they'll tell you it sucks. That's because most guitar players think that anyone besides themself and (insert name of guitar hero) ... basically sucks.

If you ask me, as a bassist ... I tend to think that anyone who can play a full chord on six strings has got some pretty mad skills. :D Me and my big, clunky hands and stubby bass player fingers are just too clumsy to handle six tiny little strings all placed so closely together.

So yea, "suck" is kind of a relative term. Define "suck" for us, and I'll be happy to give you my opinion. :D

.
 
69 SG said:
Play your own stuff and it won't matter if it's right or wrong.....RIGHT?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
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If you play your own stuff, by definition it can never be wrong. Bad? Yes, it can be bad.
 
I think it sounded fine.
Maybe not as fluid as the guys who WROTE it would play it, but hey, it's their stuff not yours, and they have probably played it a thousand times, so that's to be expected.

I really think your playing is great. I do hear what you are talking about, a tiny bit regarding the timing and tempo. I call that the "groove". You've got to get the "groove" of a song and let it just kind of flow. I really think that has to do more with playing a song enough so that you don't have to think of the technical aspects of it, you can just flow along. If you are thinking about the technical aspects of the chord changes you are about to make, etc. then it's pretty damn hard to get into the "feel" of the song.

Not that I am saying this as if I am some great guitarist!
I couldn't have played that as well as you. But I do undertand the importance of emotion and putting your soul out in your playing. Which is weird, I guess, coming from a guy that likes to play metal. Anyways, I wouldn't sweat it. I think your playing is fine.

A.
 
ez_willis said:
Yes he does. People that seek praise to boost their low self-esteem suck. Unless they have big tits, then they're okay.
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LOL - great post, great avatar!

Anyway, matter in hand. I think it sounds mint. I love how precise your picking is, I love the fret buzz when you change chords, I love the tone of the guitar, I think all in all its really good.

Yeah you have timing issues, but you (appear to be) tracking two guitars without any method of timing. I dont know what you're using to record, but can you not record ur midi drums for timing, playem thru ur headphones quietly then just leave them out of the mix?

You dont suck m8. In anyway shape or form.

Keep at it!!!!!

(... but it IS hippy shit tho. You might need a tent and a camp fire before long too ;) )
 
Don't feel too bad. I've lived around really great guitar players all my life. They all made me feel like I should just use my guitar for firewood. I settled for being a good rhythm guitar player. You want a lead guitar? Talk to somebody else.

I have a recording I did of Rick Ruskin, live at an AES show, playing Hotel California - all the parts at the same time. Trust me, you don't wanna hear it; it'll make you sick.
 
Just record with a clicktrack.
..if timing bothers ya... play always with a click.
 
danny.guitar said:
Thanks for the feedback everyone. That's one of the main things, on the original (and when other people play it), it sounds so fluid and natural, not like they're reciting a guitar tab. I don't know why I have such a hard time putting feeling into it, or making it sound more "lively"...

I never practice to a metronome and I know I should. I play a long to MIDI drums pretty often and it's not a problem staying in time like that, unless there's a lot of dotted notes or time signature changes, and then I get lost real quick.
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Here's the reason why metronomes (MIDI drums, whatever) are good: they are really boring. Boring, boring, boring. Bored yet?

That's the idea. You grow so bored with playing in perfect time that you learn how to mess around with the beat to entertain yourself.

But you're still playing in time. It's a neat trick.
 
mshilarious said:
Here's the reason why metronomes (MIDI drums, whatever) are good: they are really boring. Boring, boring, boring. Bored yet?

That's the idea. You grow so bored with playing in perfect time that you learn how to mess around with the beat to entertain yourself.

But you're still playing in time. It's a neat trick.
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+1

If you wanna be a strong rhythm player, learn to play in time. Then you'll get better at phrasing.
 
danny.guitar said:
And my songwriting abilities aren't great...most of them sound the same.
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I think I can help you with this - start writing songs on a different instrument. Doesn't matter what it is; banjo, piano, melodica, whatever. If you don't fully understand the theory behind these instruments, then so much the better. You'll soon find that you're playing less typical progressions...
 
You definitely have a timing issue, but then lots of folks do. I am lucky to have been born with a good sense of timing, but I have other issues, some of which prevent me from being able to get through Hotel California as well as you do. I work on my issues in my own way, and you should yours, whether it be with a metronome, or tapping your foot or whatever works for you. As to whether your playing sucks, that would be a matter of the listener's expectations I suppose. I don't think so.

As for all your compositions sounding the same -- two suggestions: piano and music theory. Those two things taken together helped me expand my horizons, although some might think that the resulting compositions suck!

Regards,
Tom
 
Timing isn't an issue. Use a click track. That's why god invented them.

A track with no passion is an issue. God can't make anyone non-white after the fact.
 
ez_willis said:
Timing isn't an issue. Use a click track. That's why god invented them.

A track with no passion is an issue. God can't make anyone non-white after the fact.
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I think people get weird about click tracks. If you're not used to one they can be hard to work with at first.
 
No sucking there. The tone is excellent.

But I do agree that the timing issue is something you need to work on.

My biggest suggestion is that you take it and really make it your own. Just get the basics of it down and then put in your own interpretations. You'll never sound like the original, so why even bother. But you might be able to make it sound BETTER than the original. Go for it brother!

...just watch your timing.
 
ggunn said:
If you play your own stuff, by definition it can never be wrong. Bad? Yes, it can be bad.
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Bad is OK as long as it's not so bad that It SUCKS.
Bad can be made better, even to the point of being Good or even Great.
When it sucks.
That's pretty much time to get out the Bulk Eraser.
Back up and Punt
 
danny.guitar said:
I had sent this recording to a couple of people and they said it sucked. Well, one said it just sounded "rusty" the other was less forgiving with his words... Poor timing, missed notes, "lack of feel and energy", "amateurish"...and I have to agree with him.

I had already thought it wasn't good right after recording it. While recording, it sounds like I'm playing it ok but when I play it back it just sounds "amateurish" for lack of a better term.

I guess maybe if you play this back to back with the original maybe you'll hear what I'm talking about. :confused:

Oh, and I'm not "fishing for complements" and I don't have a low self esteem so go blow yourself :rolleyes:
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The title of your thread is " I suck, dont i?"..come on man.
 
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