Gear of the Gods

Hey,
Shown above is a pictorial of Kurt Cobain's typical stage set up.
I was a little surprised to see that he used a Mesa Boogie pre-amp.
Im not sure if he was getting his dirty sound from the pre amp or
the boss distortion pedal. Its also kind of crazy to think that he
may have been getting his distortion sound from that boss pedal.
Because, in my mind, that pedal is kind of a cheesy factory sound.
and kurt's sound was anything but pre-packaged sounding. It was in fact,
quite a unique tone. His guitar sound on Nevermind, really shaped the
guitar sounds of the 90's. Listen to Siamese Dream, by Smashing Pumkins.
Or, and i hate to use these guys as an example cause they suck so bad: Bush.
Their entire guitar sound was based on Nirvana's.
Thanks for reading. Gonna post a few of these over the next few weeks.

Beginners guitar lesson coming in a day or 2
just testing the chord graphic

Happy Birthday To Us!

Hey People,
Yes indeed, It has been a full year since the ball has started rolling here at Rawk U.
It has been a great year. Thanks to our customers, and to everyone from all over the world who support this. A few things to report: Starting Jan 1, 2009, all lesson videos will be sold for $15 USD. Thats right! Everyone of them for only $15. We had the good fortune of doing lessons with some awesome bands and guitarists this year: We did a lesson with Hamilton Jordan of Genghis Tron, and with Eidan Thorr of Valiant Thorr. In 2009, we hope to continue to bring you new and exciting lessons from more great guitarists. Also look for a new semi-regular column called "Tour Dog", that will be a mini blog from touring musicians and their life on the road. Also look for a new monthly column on Rock History by our resident Rock Historian, yes he is named DR. Roc.
So again, thanks for the support, and see you in 2009!
-Danielelectric

How To Start A Band

Rawkers,
I'm afraid the first step in starting a band is not actually going out and finding like-minded individuals to start exploring the musical universe with. The first step is you alone in your bedroom, practicing your ass off. I wouldn't even suggest trying to form a band until you have at least six months of experience under your fingers. That having been said, playing an instrument and not taking to the next level by playing with other musicians is a cardinal sin. I would equate it to being in a foreign country, and only going to McDonalds to eat. After you have spent a little while making your fingers hurt, and getting things like basic timing and technique down, i would say you are ready to start asking your friends if they want to jam. This advice applies to young and old. Everyone needs to be coming from the same place:Experience. Being in a band is hard work. You have to be willing to compromise, and above all listen to what other people are saying. Please check all egos at the door, as this will only create a lot of unwanted stress and problems. Bands just starting out suffer a lot from directional problems. What i mean is that people often sit there and wonder "We should be a metal band." or "we need to have a lot of keyboards so we can sound like the killers." If you are just starting out in your first band, just get together and play anything and everything. Play a lot of covers. Even if you eventually want to write and perform your own music. Picking the covers will help shape your taste and give you an idea of the style of music you want to sound like. This is especially important if you want to compose your own music. You have to learn and study other songs and see how they're put together in order to properly do it yourself. My last piece of advice is forget about loyalty. and what i mean by this is that you shouldnt limit yourself to one group. The smart musician plays with multiple groups at once and eventually sticks with the one that is most successful. That might not sound right to you, but that's the way it is.
If it was good enough for John Bonham....
Keep Playing and Rawking
-Danielelectric

Valient Thorr Lesson Sample

As some may know,
Rawk u went backstage at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia friday night to hang out with our friends in Valient Thorr. We filmed an awesome guitar lesson with Eidan Thorr. He taught the song "Heatseeker", right after getting offstage and with a fresh tatoo on his forearm. We want to thank them a lot for giving us backstage access and for being so nice. So anyway, here's the video:

Valient Himself!

Guys,
We were backstage tonight at the electric factory in philadelphia. We were there to hang out with our friends in the great band Valient Thorr. Besides being there to soak up the rock vibes, we were recording a guitar lesson.
check back in a few short days to see the full lesson.
Thanks!

Genghis Tron- Board up the House Lesson(sample)

Hey,
This is the second in a group of 3 lessons from the Genghis Tron sessions.
This song that Hamilton is teaching is called Board Up The House.
All three songs, "Things Don't Look Good, "Arms", and "Board Up The House", will be available for purchase this friday September 5th.
Thanks for listening.
-Danielelectric