I'm back!!!

That's right, I'm back and blogging happier than ever! It has been a while, and several of you (meaning my two faithful readers) have asked when I was going to get back to the blog, and I'm here to announce that 2011 is the year that all of my visions for GuitarGuyTim are to be unveiled!

For starters, I have 10 or so posts that I started last year and never completed. These include reviews of all three major Weezer releases from the fall of 2010, as well as a few other musical insights. Additionally I'm adding a new page/thread which will document my adventures in guitar building. I hope you're as excited as I am about my adventures into the unknown.

Finally, and most importantly, I have some new musical releases that need to see their time in the sun... Right now I'm looking at a copy of CAKE's latest, and I'm listening to Get Up Kids latest. It is going to be an exciting year ladies, gentleman and Emo Children, I hope you're ready for the ride!

-GGT

iTunes, You Sneaky Devil...

So iTunes... For those of you who either know me, or have read a handful of my posts, you know how much I hate music's communist regime, also know as Apple (this includes iTunes, iTunes Music Store, iPods, all of Apple's funky file types, etc.). So the question is, how did I, the anti-Apple, find myself not only at the gates of the iTunes Music Store, but actually downloading AAC files? Well friends, it is a long tail of deception, deceit, and falling from grace... or... I got $25 to the iTunes store for Christmas and decided to find out what it felt like to dip my toe into the forbidden pond of darkness.

So why do I hate the Apple-Machine so much? Well for starters it makes me sick to think that people pay the same amount of money to buy a digital version of an album online as they'd pay in a brick and mortar store. Sure they didn't have to leave their house to get the music, but they don't have a physical copy, and the sound quality is inferior. That being said, I do think it is better you buy inferior music, than steal inferior music.

Anyway, last fall I had a dilemma. As you probably already know, I love Weezer. Not just 90's Weezer, but all Weezer. Yes even Make Believe and Raditude. I am a die-hard Weezerhead. When Weezer came out with Raditude, they launched a special iTunes club that not only included the deluxe version of the album, but also included alternate takes, live tracks, videos, etc. Obviously I wanted all of this material, but I didn't want to have to buy the album twice (because I was already going to buy the physical version) just to get the bonus tracks. So the dilemma came into play, do I A: suck it up and submit to the evil known as iTunes, or do I B: Steal the mp3's? Fortunately there was an intervention, thanks to my mother-in-law and grandma-in-law, I walked away from Christmas with $25 in iTunes credit. Woohoo, Weezer iTunes club here I come.

So last week I finally got around to installing iTunes on to my computer and I set up my iTunes account (I was a little bit irritated that I was forced to give Apple my CC# just to set up an account). Then I was off to downloading my newest Weezer (Rivers, Brian, Pat & Scott, I want you to know that this is your fault, you create your crazy Raditude club pass which includes bonus tracks and videos, thus forcing me to not only buy a physical copy of the said album, but to also buy a communistic digital version).

So what did I think? Well it was super convenient, and the music quality is better than I expected (it should be noted that I've only listened through headphones and my laptop speakers thus far). I was less than impressed with the way Apple organized all of the files. Each week is set up as an individual album, so I have Raditude Club Week #1, Raditude Club Week #2, and so on. Couldn't they have just created a Raditude Club album/folder for all of the tracks? Also, what's up with these crazy AAC files that only play on authorized computers? Thank you for that headache Apple.

In conclusion, I'm not sold yet. I'm not going to give up physical discs for iTunes, although I will gladly accept more iTunes Gift Cards. I do think iTunes makes it very convenient to make those One Hit Wonders of the 90's collections (Just for the record, I have never made it past track 4 on my Deep Blue Something album. Instead of pulling it out of the used bin and paying $2.99 for it, I should have just purchased "Breakfast at Tiffany's" from iTunes... or wait, should I have purchased it from Amazon MP3? That's going to be my next adventure in the digital world. As far as I know Amazon's tracks aren't protected, so you can listen to there anywhere, but I have heard rumors that their sound quality is inferior to iTunes. That alone would be a deal breaker... I'll keep you updated since I know you're dying to hear about my adventures in digital music.

-Tim

P.S. One of these days I'll get around to reviewing all of the bonus Weezer tracks, but for now I think it's sufficient to say that I loved several of the bonus tracks, especially the alternate "rock" version of "Can't Stop Partying (Coconut Teaser Mix)." The bonus tracks definitely made it worth my while to re-purchasing/download all the stuff I already own.

Gotta Keep the Masses Happy

So I've been getting pretty high tech lately when it comes to my blog. I've added some analytic tracking so I can see what keywords are leading people here. One that has driven a decent amount of traffic is, "guitars used on haarp" and/or "guitars used in haarp." Since I'm pretty sure I haven't actually written about Muse's gear, I figured I better write up a quick post for the Google-driven-masses.

So here we go, Matthew Bellamy uses an assortment of custom built guitars by Hugh Manson of Manson Guitars. Since he pretty much changes guitars with every song, I'm not going to go through all the different models, but they are all Manson's. For more details on Matt's guitar specs, check out his guitar page on Manson's site here.

Bassist Chris Wolstenholme has an assortment of basses in his collection including both Fender Jass and Precision basses, custom built Mansons, Rickenbackers, and several others. I popped in the H.A.A.R.P. DVD to see what he's playing in the videos. On Map of the Problamatique and Knights of Cydonia, he is using a Rickenbacker 4003FL. For Time is Running Out, Supermassive Black Hole, Plug in Baby, Butterflies and Hurricanes, Hysteria, Invincible, and possibly others, he is using a red Fender Jazz bass. He also uses two other Jazz basses, a black one on New Born, and a white one on Starlight. Later on for Micro Cuts he uses a blue bass which I'm pretty sure is a custom built Manson (I could be wrong though, I can't get a clear view of it, but I'm pretty sure the headstock in a Manson).

Anyway, there you go as for H.A.A.R.P. guitars. If I have missed any, please let me know and I'll update the list.

-ggt

p.s. Next time we're going to be discussing Rivers Cuomos' gear (Franken-Strats, SG's, Explorers... it's gonna be fun!)

"The Decision" Update

Wednesday - "Hole in My Soul" Aerosmith (I'm not sure why Aerosmith has hit the list twice now, it's not like I'm a huge fan... for a while I even removed them from my Creative Nomad Mp3 Player).

Thursday - "Where is My Mind" The Pixies

Friday (today) - "San Dimas High School Football Rules" The Ataris

The Decision...

Wow, it has been like 3 months since my last post. I sure hope my lack of updates hasn't lost me my two faithful followers...

So today's topic is what I like to call "The Decision." It goes something like this, each morning I go to work and open my iTunes (I know, for how much I bash Apple, I use iTunes at work...) and brows through my list of nearly 9500 songs. I almost always leave my music on random play, so the decision comes in here, what do I start my random play with for the day? Sounds like a simple decisions doesn't it? But it isn't! The pattern of my entire day could be based on this decision. There are days, and I'm not kidding when I say this, where I literally take 30 minutes to make the decision (mind you, I am checking emails while making the decision, I don't just sit there and stare at iTunes for 30 mins with a blank expression on my face).

It was recommended by a friend that I just pick any song, and then hit the skip button and let iTunes randomly pick the song. This does sounds like a good idea, but do I really want to leave my entire day up to chance?

So my question is: Does anyone else deal with "The Decision" every morning, or am i just totally insane?

Here is a list of "The Decision" winners for last week/this week:

Monday 2/1 "Amazing" Aerosmith
Tuesday 2/2 "Rock You Like a Hurrican" Scorpians
Wednesday 2/3 "Put Me Back Together" Weezer
Thursday 2/4 Home Grown When It All Comes Down, the entire EP
Friday 2/5 "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" U2
Monday 2/8 "Good Times, Bad Times" Led Zeppelin
Tuesday 2/9 "Rock and Roll Lifestyle" CAKE

-Tim

Raditude... Super Rad, or Just Plain Bad?

Well folks, although my intentions are really here, my writing has been lacking... Once my thesis is officially done and out of the way, I'm going to become a "super blogger" but until then you may have to wait weeks or even months between posts, but for today I'm here for the most anticipated album of the year for me (MUSE's The Resistance was also highly anticipated and will one day see the light of day on GGT).

As you all know, I'm about as big of a Weezer fan as they come. Although there have been some things over the years that have made me roll my eyes, I've anticipated every album, and more importantly found the good on each album. Upon Weezer's initial announcement of album 7, I was ecstatic, but as the release date (still next week, you've got to love early leaks) grew nearer, my anticipation turned in to fear. First the title Raditude, then song titles like "Girl Got Hot," and "I'm Your Daddy," and finally the announcement about guest Little Wayne (yeah I know it's Lil'). I reached the point where I had to ask myself, "Is this going to be the album that finally loses me?"

The one redeeming factor was the first single, "(If You're Wondering if I Want You To) I Want You To" which in my opinion was fantastic, see the previous post for my initial reaction. "I Want You Too" gave me a glimmer of hope. Below we'll discuss whether River's and Co. delivered, or whether Raditude is the straw that broke the camels back... but first...

This is totally random, but I was looking over the track listing, and I'm pretty sure the creation of Raditude started like this. So the Weez's were sitting around and Rivers says, "Hey fella's lets make a new album!" to which Pat replies, "Hey Rivers I think you should write a song called If you're wondering if I want you to, I want you to." They all have a good laugh, but the next day Rivers show's up and demos his newest track. Seeing that the band is thoroughly impressed Rivers comments, "Who's your daddy now?" Over the next few weeks the band members start making up the most random song titles they can like run over by a truck, trippin' down the freeway, girl got hot, and so on... And that was the birth of Raditude.

Okay enough with the senseless babble, lets get to what you came here for.

(If You're Wondering if I Want You Too) I Want You Too - From day one I have loved this track, it's totally different than the traditional Weezer sound, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's upbeat, fun, and the chorus is probably the catchiest thing ever written. Great album opener, great track, and to make things better, the video is awesome!

I'm Your Daddy - I first heard a live version of this track on YouTube from the Fuji festival, and to be honest, I wasn't impressed at all. Honestly I think the lyrics are sub par in comparison to what we know River's is capable of writing (Then again, they are definitely better than the "Everybody Get Dangerous" lyrics). That being said, the chorus is great! Very catch, very fun, not incredibly deep but it's growing on me.

Girl Got Got - I think I already wrote about this in a previous post, but this song has the same theme as a song called "Early Bloomer" I co-wrote with my buddy Devin "Devok" Sheppard, that fact alone makes the song a winner. Like the previous track, I initially heard a live version from Fuji and wasn't impressed, but once I heard the polished version I changed my mind. The lyrics aren't anything special, and from all points of logic I should hate the song, but you know what I don't... in fact I think it's awesome!

I Can't Stop Partying - I was pretty disappointed when I heard this track made the cut, I didn't really like the demo version on Alone II, so I didn't think I'd like this one much. When I heard that Little Wayne was rapping a verse I was convinced that this would be my least favorite track on the album... and you know what, it is. This is pretty much the farthest thing from Weezer that I can imagine. I'm honestly a little disappointed in Pat, Brian, and Scott, I would have thought one of them would have had enough sense to tell River's "Heck No" on this track, but whatever... This may be the first Weezer track ever that I pull from my standard rotation... Oh by the way, did Timberland mix this one... (Okay, that was a really bad joke, but then again so is this entire song).

moving forward...

Put Me Back Together - This is probably my favorite track on the album. When I first heard it, I honestly thought it sounded a little like an AAR song, and I didn't even know that Tyson Ritter co-wrote it with Rivers. Regardless, I love this song, to me this song has ever element of classic Weezer track (well everything minus an amazing guitar solo). I love love love it. I even stayed up late last night figuring it out on the guitar. Yeah, it's that good.

Trippin' Down the Freeway - Okay when this track was released as an iTunes special, everyone on the Weezer forum ranted and raved about what an amazing song this was. Honestly, I'm not a huge fan, it's not good, not bad, just kind of there. The chorus is decent, and the guitar solo's pretty good, but yeah I'm not in love with it.

Love is the Answer - I'm pretty sure the ghost of George Harrison co-wrote this track. This like "Can't Stop Partying" is once again about as far from my idea of what Weezer is that you can get. That being said, I kind of like this track, but I'm not real sure why. It's weird, that's for sure. The sitars are kind of cool, and I like the Indian moaning/vocals at the beginning. I think the lead female vocals in... I don't know Hindi maybe are a bit bizarre, but for some reason I actually like this track quite a bit... It may be the Beatles-esq-weirdness of it... Who knows?

Let it All Hang Out - What's up with River's trying to talk like he's a gangster? Going out with your homies, really? Anyway, this song has probably the best intro of any song on the album. It is very reminiscent of the Green/Maladroit days, which by no means a bad thing. I actually really like this song, I'm not sure why, and I question the word choice of "Homie" but I guess sometimes you just have to go with the flow.

P.S. where can I get 180 proof vitamin water?

In The Mall - On Red, the only track I like that was contributed by a Weez other than Rivers was Pat's Automatic. Once again, Pat shows us that Rivers isn't Weezers only song writer. This track, like the previous has a Maladroit-ish feeling. The lyrics are more fun than deep, but you know what, it's a pretty good song, plus it has a cool guitar solo.

I Don't Want to Let You Go - This was one of my favorite demo's on Alone II, so I was pretty excited for a polished version. I wasn't expecting a "Kokomo Part II," but you know what, it works. I like the 60's pop/surf sound. It reminds me of early classics like "Buddy Holly." I actually really like this track as the closer for the standard version of the album. It's different, but it works.

Bonus Tracks (You can stop reading now if you want the standard version... that is assuming anyone actually reads this far...)

Get Me Some - This song just cracks me up. Lyrically this one is really weak, but the fact that it sounds like a party song from the 80's hair metal era is just too awesome. This song has some of the best guitar work of any Weezer song, and is totally a great addition to the Weezer catalog. I mean who doesn't love a crazy finger tapping solo every now and then?

Run Over by a Truck - Yeah, so I can tell you why this one made bonus status and not album status... It's just not that good. For some reason lots of other people loved this one, but honestly I just get bored which is pretty bad when the song is only 3:33 long. Oh well.

The Prettiest Girl in the Whole Wide World - This is another track that I really liked on Alone II, so I was really anticipating a finished version, and fortunately this one delivers. The tempo is a little slower than what I would have imagined, but its fine. I love the loud bass drum keeping the tempo, it reminds me of Ringo Starr. Lyrically this track has some similarities to "No One Else," which is a great thing. At about 2:30 the song breaks into random guitar parts, heavier drums, and vocal wailing... It sounds a lot like something from the Beatles timeless White Album.

The Underdogs - You know, I really love this one too. I think the lyrics are great, the emotion is there. It's different than what I'd expect from Weezer, but you know what it's really good. This track to me is trying to be the "Angel and the One" of Raditude, I'm not sure it's that good, but I do really like it. Just as a side note, I know I've made several Beatles references, but the piano chord progression at the beginning of this song is like the exact same as the progression in George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass." I'm starting to wonder what River's was listening to when he wrote all of this.

Additional Bonus Tracks

I Hear Bells - From what I understand, this is a Green period reject. It's a good track, it's fun and it totally sounds like early 2000's Weezer. I'm not sure it sticks out among other that songs from that period, but that's fine, it's still a good song.

Turn Me Round - I like the edge to the guitar and vocals at the beginning, the chorus is really good. It's a fun song.

So there you go, Raditude and a bunch of other stuff. As you've probably noticed I made a lot of comparisons throughout this review, everything from the Beatles and the Beach Boys, to Weezer classics. I think that alone should be enough to indicate that there is something special about Raditude. As much as I was fearing a let down, it wasn't delivered by any means. The album has its flaws, generic/shallow lyrics, and Little Wayne but over all I really enjoyed Raditude. In fact, I liked Raditude much more the first time through than I did Red, and I really like most of Red these days. I don't think much more can be said about Raditude other than, it's Rad! I give the album a B+.

Hey Rivers, Scott, Pat and Brian, thanks for not letting me down, I don't know why I ever doubted you guys -ggt

09-09-09 And The Beatles Have Arrived!

I was informed this afternoon that I am a "sound snob." As much as I wanted to become all defensive, take this as a huge insult, and be incredibly offended... I realized that this is totally true. I, GuitarGuyTim, am a sound snob! I'm not sure where my level of snobbery began, possibly all the concerts or the hours and hours of sitting in a studio. Regardless, somewhere in my 28 years of existence I've come to love high fidelity sound. In my opinion, there is nothing better than sitting back and listening to a great album on a great set of speakers!

Today, the Beatles, my favorite band of all time gave me something I didn't even know I was missing, truly hi-fi CD reproductions of their music! This afternoon while listening to The White Album, I was blown away by the clarity of Ringo's cymbal crashes and the thump of Paul's bass, among many other subtle improvements.

Musically the first thing you'll notice is that the volume level is substantially hotter (louder). The clarity is so good that the songs literally sound like they were recorded yesterday, not between 40-50 years ago. In addition to the volume increase, you can also hear the individual instrument better. The original '87 remasters were "muddy" sounding, meaning the instruments would blend in with one and other and parts of the mix were all but lost. This is no longer so, if you are familiar with the Beatles catalog you'll be amazed by the array of instruments you haven't noticed in the past.

One particular moment that stuck out to me was the 'bass line' on I Will which is actually sung by Paul. It is far more present and clearly a voice, not an instrument. You'll also notice a heavier reverb sound, amp feed back, longer ring of cymbals and much more. Other things like amp buzz in While My Guitar Gently Weeps and finger scrapes in Blackbird, give these remastered tracks the feeling of being live performances, like only the Beatles could produce.

The only criticism I can find (and it may be unfounded) is that all of the individual albums are in stereo. This maybe unfounded since I haven't listened to any of the earlier albums, but up until I believe either "Hard Days Night," or "Help" everything was recorded on two track tape. One track for the vocals, the other for the instrumentation. Not to be too critical, but I can't see how you can make an amazing stereo mix with only two tracks. Then again, I haven't heard any of the early albums yet, so I may be totally wrong.

So the question is, should you go re-buy the entire collection. The answer to this isn't so easy, obviously the new packaging is cool as are the mini-documentaries that are included with each album, but then again those are more for hard core fans and not casual listeners. If you're going to listen to the actual CD's these are a must have, if you're going to rip them to mp3's and stick them on your iPod, don't waste your time with the new versions. As for me, I'm afraid that I've found something to spend my hard earned cash on.