''GUITAR GODS: Stevie Salas''

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Thursday, February 19 2004 @ 18:15:03 GMT
 
Stevie Salas is among the most under-rated guitar gods in the history of rock-n-roll. But I doubt he will be for long, as Stevie - with his fresh mix of blistering funk, heavy rock grooves, wailing guitars, and classic rock-n-roll voice - is poised to be one of the first HUGE guitar stars of the 21st century.

...and remember you heard it here first!
 

"Insanity 101: Exotic Scales pt.2"

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
originally published at Insane Guitar, 2003

As we mentioned last time (in “Exotic Scales [part 1]“), the term “exotic scale” generally refers to scales outside of the standard Major Scale (& it’s modes), the Harmonic Minor, and the Melodic Minor…plus a few others (depending on which text you’re reading). Essentially, exoticism is the use of musical devices (melodies, harmonies, rhythms, instrumentation, etc.) to evoke the atmosphere of ancient or distant places, so the easiest way to gather such scales are to take them from non-western cultures.

Like the last two installments of “Insanity 101″, this article will assume a knowledge of modes. Rather than breaking each scale down myself as I have in the past, I urge you to pull each one apart yourself and experiment with them. Note that all scales herein are in the key of “A”.

'Le Bleu'' - Justin King

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Sunday, April 11 2004 @ 23:26:35 BST
 
Justin King, the subject of a recent "Guitar Gods" interview right here at Tinfoil (see link below), is a one-of-a-kind acoustic guitar phenomenon. Using hammered chord ostinatos, cascading harmonics, fiery flamenco techniques, and dreamy melodies, Justin creates stories with sound. His new CD, "le Bleu", features 19 incredible compositions that take the listener on a wild ride into territory seldom explored.
 
The comparisons to other great fingerstyle players is inevitable, but it's somewhat like pop music fans saying "I can't tell the difference between Bach and Beethoven" or classical music fans saying "all that heavy metal stuff sounds alike". The reality is that despite certain stylistic similarities, Justin King is worlds apart. His use of advanced techniques from a wide range of styles coupled with his odd sense of harmony and incredible rhythmic flourishes put Justin in a category all his own (Justin speaks of some of these techniques in an instructional piece found here).

''GUITAR GODS: Justin King''

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Saturday, January 10 2004 @ 17:02:43 GMT

Justin's official bio starts off, "Justin King has dramatically reshaped and extended the language of the acoustic guitar, introducing his own unique and outstanding techniques. With the intensity and passion with which he plays, Justin brings a quality to the music that is far beyond just his mastery of a dizzying variety of forms...". Most days, I ignore such hype, as it's easier to write a dazzling bio than to develop a dazzling guitar style, but in Justin King's case, this isn't saying nearly enough.

 I first heard a gorgeous and haunting piece ("Something About Angels") from this extraordinary guitarist and mentally bookmarked his name. Then a friend sent a link to Black Albino Films, which featured a film clip of Justin playing 2 minutes of absolute acoustic frenzy combining folk, fingerstyle, flamenco, and rock techniques with utter abandon. I knew right then that if this guy isn't famous yet, he surely will be soon.

"Insanity 101: Exotic Scales pt.1"

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
originally published at Insane Guitar, 2003 

The term “exotic scale” generally refers to scales outside of the standard Major Scale (& it’s modes), the Harmonic Minor, and the Melodic Minor…plus a few others (depending on which text you’re reading). Essentially, exoticism is the use of musical devices (melodies, harmonies, rhythms, instrumentation, etc.) to evoke the atmosphere of ancient or distant places, so the easiest way to gather such scales are to take them from non-western cultures.

Like the last installment of “Insanity 101″, this article will assume a knowledge of modes. Rather than breaking each scale down myself as I have in the past, I urge you to pull each one apart yourself and experiment with them. Note that all scales herein are in the key of “A”.

Billy Sheehan: ''Cosmic Troubadour''

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
Originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Tuesday, March 01 2005 @ 13:10:52 GMT


               If you don't know who Billy Sheehan is, then allow me to introduce him: He is the MAN. Stints with Mr. Big, Talas, David Lee Roth, and others have made him a legend in the world of music, and he is widely thought of as the greatest rock bassist in history. He is currently in Steve Vai's touring band and also played bass on Vai's latest CD (see review here at Tinfoil). In addition he has just released his latest solo effort, called "Cosmic Troubadour".

Ben Lacy's ''One Track Mind''

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
Originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Monday, April 19 2004 @ 14:35:56 BST


               Listening to Ben Lacy's "One Track Mind" is a fantastic experience, but when you realize all that sound came from one guy in one pass (no overdubs), it will blow your mind. Combining complex lines and techniques (funk slaps, hammered chords, blazing lines), Ben mimics bass & drum accompaniment to his guitar melodies and chordal stabs to brilliant effect!

''GUITAR GODS: Ben Lacy''

- David "Skinny Devil" McLean
Originally published at Tinfoil Music
Date: Monday, July 28 2003 @ 01:08:04 BST


               I first heard Ben Lacy when he was playing for a heavy-metal band back in the '89 or '90. I remember they were Pantera-like - very heavy grooves and wicked guitars - but the guitar player struck me as well above par. He was extremely clean and articulate...and fast. He also seemed to blaze through the barrage of notes in an effortless fashion and had a command of all the most difficult contemporary technique.

Several weeks later, I wandered into a jazz club and heard an awesome three-piece smoking through some classics, breathing new life into old standards. I made my way to the stage and saw a guy who looked exactly like the heavy metal player, but was sure they weren't the same guy. Couldn't be - this guy was playing in an entirely different style with completely different techniques and was obviously in possession of immense musical knowledge.

As I walked into work a few days later (composing & engineering at a local recording studio), one of the other engineers, Les Campbell, said, "You gotta hear this project I'm working on!". He slotted the DAT and out came some incredible solo guitar music. "He does some jazz things around town and also has a heavy-metal band, but these are some ideas he's got for a solo project. What do you think?" I think this guy can walk on water - who is it?!?

"Insanity 101: The Modes of Harmonic Minor"

-- David "Skinny Devil" McLean

Originally published at Insane Guitar, 2003

This column will assume the reader already has a grasp on modes. If not, a modal primer will be available via my site very soon.

The Harmonic Minor is a fairly common scale, familiar to most intermediate musicians. However, one seldom sees a complete modal breakdown of this scale, though the 5th mode (sometimes called the Harmonic Phrygian) is used often in Flamenco and Metal musics. The other modes of this scale offer just as rich a potential as the two common modes; while not technically “exotic scales” (exoticism in music is essentially a western term meaning music – or scales – designed to "evoke the sounds & images of far-away lands"), many of these modes blur the lines between exoticism and standard scales. Immerse yourself in these for a while – one at a time – and see what you come up with.

"Jeremy Greene"

"Jeremy Greene" by Caitlyn Waltermire

Jeremy Greene looked much like the insects he studied. His eyes, with their wet black irises, protruded from his face enough to be unfortunate. He had a small head that twitched at the slightest disturbance and his legs were stilts. Even his sadly outdated blazer had tails that flapped like long-backed wings. (In his favor, his hands were not mantis-like at all. They were delicately white with tapered fingernails, steady enough to pick the wings from a Musca domestica without damaging them). His mind was never bored and his eyes tended to fixate without wavering, beneficial when Morpho butterfly catching but not when he saw an attractive woman in a blue dress.

He sang a popular song in a pleasing tenor voice. The morning was chilly, typical to Maidstone. Filtered sunlight gauzed him in mist as he walked through the trees.