Te occidere possunt sed te edere non possunt nefas est.
Posted
Why the hate?*** While we could never be accused of being "math-rock," we do use an occasional odd time signature. This is not because we sit down and say "This song needs to be in 7/8," or "We need two measures of 5 and then a quick 13/16 measure right here..." I play what I am brought (brung?). Lance is not a classically trained guitarist and if he likes a riff he writes, he brings it to me and we figure out what the hell he's doing time-wise. Some stuff happens to be in extremely odd (combinations of) time signatures. Lance isn't a "shredder" either. But. My point here is that (I think, and I could be wrong) a lot of really technical music (Stravinsky, anyone?) just happens to be that. The technicality is what's being heard, not just what has been learned. I'm articulating poorly here, I think, but maybe more will come to me.
***Not dicking on "simple-er" songs!!!
"The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason." -Ben Franklin
What Dr. Thunda and I are doing for our New Album goes as follows. We bought a bunch of dice see.. And we roll them all. Whatever numbers we get is what time signatures we try to write our riffs in. But that doesn't always work to well.
Honestly, if we all played the same style of music..then that shit would get pretty fucking monotonous. Lets just all continue to talk shit about each other and make crappy music.
I know! I actually abandoned the band for 2 and a half months or some shit. Then they pleaded for my return. Offered me riches beyond my imagination. I said, "No.. I'll only come back if we can roll dice."
And I'm disappointed that I didn't see any more-than-four sided dice. We all know that you and Thunda don't have jobs or anything, just sit around in capes and shit all day saying, "I strike the troll with my sword!" Tsk-tsk.
"The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason." -Ben Franklin
For me, math rock isn't about using more ecletic signitures, it's using them just for the sake of using them. "Check out how intense we are." I for one like a break from the norm, but bands like Tool bore me. I've actually been too lazy to change the car radio and find that they have put me into such a mind-numbing trance that I drive from point A to point B without knowing how the hell I got there. Same goes for a lot of Rush. Stravinsky, on the other hand, gets my mind and soul whirling.
Okay, you may begin your attacks on my lack of intelligence and musical appriciation...NOW!
"Rock journalism is people who can't write interviewing people who can't talk for people who can't read" -- Zappa
What I have no patience for (among lots of other things) is patchwork songs. "Songs" constructed of several unrelated, uninspiring riffs or progressions.
Follow an idea to its conclusion, expand on it, make some art for christ's sake. If your riff is at a dead end it wasn't worth pursuing, at least for now. Don't paste a bunch of your other weak riffs onto it with no logical transition then try to pass it off as a song.
And if I hear one more A major to F sharp minor folk song with no melody I'm going to blow up the space station.
I have found that when we all play an odd time signature like 9/12 unless we work on it for weeks it sounds really forced and unnateral. I think alot of tool songs sound that way. But usually when we give it enough time and we develope a good feel for it we can find a good grove in accenting certain counts. But what we do best is split rythms like in our song charcoal and razor blades there's a spot where the guitars are in 4/4 and the bass is in 6/8 and Josh is playing the 6/8 on the snair and toms and keeping a 4/4 count on the kick. Another one is in one of our new songs where we do a 2/4 and a 7/8 at the same time in a similar fashion. I wouldn't say thats like mind blowing stuff but mastering the techniques involved in these songs was an accomplishment for us. Most importantly they grove well and contribute to the feel of the song.
Tool and Chief
Posts: 486 | Location: Albuquerque | Registered: July 29, 2003
I like varied/odd time signatures. However, I have to admit that I'm a "feel player" and generally have no freaking idea of what time sig I'm playing in.
Hooray for mixing up time signatures. Further, hooray for playing a 4/4 rhythm that doesn't go: booom chack boom boom chack. And hooray for Baterista Simfonika.
band goes boom ***************** myspace.com/theyayaboomproject myspace.com/mamacoma
I think all three of us in DRS, Rx, Faceless,and myself feel the same way about it. We play some seriously odd time signatures, combos of same, etc, but it's just where the riff falls. I've only ever bothered to actually count out one or two when I had trouble finding the groove. Once we fall into it, it's all about feel.
Originally posted by Nick Brown: What I have no patience for (among lots of other things) is patchwork songs. "Songs" constructed of several unrelated, uninspiring riffs or progressions.
Follow an idea to its conclusion, expand on it, make some art for christ's sake. If your riff is at a dead end it wasn't worth pursuing, at least for now. Don't paste a bunch of your other weak riffs onto it with no logical transition then try to pass it off as a song.
And if I hear one more A major to F sharp minor folk song with no melody I'm going to blow up the space station.
Otherwise, your performance is outstanding.
Does this mean you hate Rock Opera and the Beatles? Both R guilty of what you're on about, but not necessarily with the weak riffs.
wow. I had no idea that it involved so much work! Ummm...if anyone needs to borrow some 20 sided dice, give us a call. We'll just need those back by Wednesday night... Ella/U7d/IIFI
Originally posted by Baterista Simfonika: This song needs to be in 7/8, or two measures of 5 and then a quick 13/16 measure right here..."
Most of our new album will be after 7-11 time.
I was pissed after our last album cause some dude was like "did I hear you crumbling a wrapper from a SlimJim in the background?" And I was like "no dick wad - that was a Slurpee lid."
Originally posted by duckbeat: Skreech...um Not to bag on your theory or anything, but what the hell is 9/12? What's a 12th note?
Are you using a dotted 16th for the base? If so, I'd really hate to chart that out!
3/4 time..... I love reading all this strange time signature debate but the real question is does it GROOVE or not? For some grooving technical stuff check out the Mahivishna Orchestra with Billy Cobham on drums......
