Jero wrote:raj007 wrote:Jwar sells half his gear.
Jwar gets family member(s) to watch kids.
Jwar and Jwar-wife pick an amazing vacation spot.
Jwar and Jwar-wife vacation like bosses: drink, relax, bang--the whole 9, bitches.
Jwar comes back refreshed.
Jwar feels better about life.
Jwar makes music with a simpler outlook on his gear.
rfurtkamp wrote:Stop worrying about the gear.
Stop buying it. Stop selling it. Just *have* it.
Then make music.
No excuses.
No bullshit.
Just make music for a few minutes a day, whether you want to or not.
Only reason you haven't is you haven't wanted to enough.
It's all about actually doing it, not finding reasons not to.
rfurtkamp wrote:The other reason I suggested stopping the buy/sell cycle - you get invested in *that* instead of making music too.
"I'll make music once I strip down" is just as crippling as "I'll make music once I have the great guitar of the gods!"
Bill:
Ted, while I agree that, in time, our band will be most triumphant. The truth is, Wyld Stallyns will never be a super band until we have Eddie Van Halen on guitar.
Ted:
Yes, Bill. But, I do not believe we will get Eddie Van Halen until we have a triumphant video.
Bill:
Ted, it's pointless to have a triumphant video before we even have decent instruments.
Ted:
Well, how can we have decent instruments when we don't really even know how to play?
Bill:
That is why we NEED Eddie Van Halen!
Ted:
And THAT is why we need a triumphant video.
Much wisdom here
Yup. I know I use the "pedals are just tools"-argument a lot, and I stand by that, but it's also important to be aware of where your focus lies. When I say pedals are tools, it means they are purposeful additions in my noise making endeavours. However, I think having an interest
in the tools is a separate thing.
So, I can have a hammer which I use for hammering shit, and it could be any old hammer as long as it does what I need it to do, namely hammer shit. But I could also have a special bond with this particular hammer, because it hammers shit so damn good it's fucking amazing. Going further, I could have a general interest in hammers, and collect several of them that I use for different hammering purposes. In the end, I could have a fetish for hammers, and just collect any old hammer because fuck man, hammers are so sweet, look at the fancy handle on this one, shiiiiit.
All of these are fine relationships to have with hammers, but awareness is key. What is the purpose of the hammer(s)? Shockingly, hammers in this scenario is fuzz pedals. I was using the example of hammers as a metaphor. Pretty neat, right? But the point is that there are several ways to look at your tools; if you like collecting pedals without using (all of) them to make music, that can be ok. That has nothing to do with the separate issue of you making music. Having an active interest in pedals does not necessarily have to do with whether you will use them to create music or not. I know what tools I need, and have an interest in having the best tools that fit my purposes, and in this way I end up fetishizing certain pedals. But I could just as well have made my music with alternative variants of these tools - they are not an intrinsic part of what I do (beyond the fact that I need my fuzz to oscillate, obviously). So, never let the pedals and your relationship with them affect your music making, beyond being able to create the sounds you want. If you want ALL TEH SOUNDS readily available, that's cool. But it has little to do with the act of composing the music.
It's hot here, and I kinda lost track somewhere in the middle there. Got really invested in the hammer analogy. Anyway, follow your boner, jwar. Follow your boner.
). Sad to hear about your grandfather, those are some sweet looking hammers.
