Alexi's gear/rigs are up for auction

[drawnacrol]

Temmu is an insane player but he isn't allowed write anything in Wintersun, that's Jari Maenpaa's baby so he's basically just a touring guitarist for them since Jari plays all the guitars on the album. Jari is an equally good player but his compositional skills on recent albums are questionable. Teemu has writing credits for his new band Smackbound and the Imperanon 06 demo. On My Space he had a neo-classical project that was crazy but never went far. I wish I saved some of the songs.

Jason Richardson, Stephen Taranto and Rick Graham are some other players with insane skills. There's no shortage of virtuosos now with Instagram and Youtube to show off your chops. Alcohol effects people differently so for guys like Jeff Loomis they were still able to constantly practice and play their songs to a high standard live but for others it changes their life style so they stop practicing and trying to keep their technique up. Then there's how it effects your motor skills and the long term damage it can do from prologued use. Alexi was never the cleanest player when compared to guys like this but it was his compositions that made him stand out so much.

 

[CharIie]

Did you listen to those though ?





He's anything but a "touring" musician.

 

[Conti]

This is actually pretty good. Good production. The guitar tone is very something wild. Mean vocalist. I like it alot. Will deffo keep tabs on you. I think you could get up there, and I'd rather listen to your playing than opposed to alot of the more mainstream metal out there atm. Thank god it's not djent

Thanks! I'll be posting here with our new release because I think a lot of people here would really appreciate it.

 

[Conti]

So we all agree that this was shot during Alexi's peak playing abilities?



Well, he is indeed a composition master, but the playing skills were nothing out of the ordinary.



(Just for comparison with another guitarist whose technique really is impressive.)

Yeah I guess there are instances of him being crazy sloppy even back then. His playing sometimes sounds really unnatural. I wonder if he didn't really take to guitar that naturally and had to put in an insane amount of practice to get to where he did. Once more recognition started coming maybe he didn't keep up with practicing as much and his playing suffered.

 

[MattK]

Temmu is an insane player but he isn't allowed write anything in Wintersun, that's Jari Maenpaa's baby so he's basically just a touring guitarist for them since Jari plays all the guitars on the album. Jari is an equally good player but his compositional skills on recent albums are questionable. Teemu has writing credits for his new band Smackbound and the Imperanon 06 demo. On My Space he had a neo-classical project that was crazy but never went far. I wish I saved some of the songs.

Jason Richardson, Stephen Taranto and Rick Graham are some other players with insane skills. There's no shortage of virtuosos now with Instagram and Youtube to show off your chops. Alcohol effects people differently so for guys like Jeff Loomis they were still able to constantly practice and play their songs to a high standard live but for others it changes their life style so they stop practicing and trying to keep their technique up. Then there's how it effects your motor skills and the long term damage it can do from prologued use. Alexi was never the cleanest player when compared to guys like this but it was his compositions that made him stand out so much.

Exactly. There is a clear difference between being a technically great guitar player and an ARTIST. Alexi was an artist..

 

[drawnacrol]

Did you listen to those though ?





He's anything but a "touring" musician.

I didn't call him a touring musician. I said he was basically a touring guitarist for Wintersun which he is. He doesn't write or record with them.

 

[Inceptionist]

Honestly the biggest difference to me is that Alexi is one of very few who’s solos don’t just sound like guitar wanking. When you listen to Alexi, Randy, Dimebag… there’s a different attitude than any of these other guys like Temmu, Petrucci, or whoever.

Alexi made unique solos without having to rely on some obscure scale over an “interesting” chord progression in a 7/8 time signature at 280bpm.

 

[Sinthoras_96]

Exactly. There is a clear difference between being a technically great guitar player and an ARTIST. Alexi was an artist..

Very well said

 

[Lucas Snajder]

Honestly the biggest difference to me is that Alexi is one of very few who’s solos don’t just sound like guitar wanking. When you listen to Alexi, Randy, Dimebag… there’s a different attitude than any of these other guys like Temmu, Petrucci, or whoever.

Alexi made unique solos without having to rely on some obscure scale over an “interesting” chord progression in a 7/8 time signature at 280bpm.

exactly! I am a huge fan of both Wintersun (or at least I used to be) and Teemu's guitar playing, but those guest solos mentioned some replies above you are just what you said: "Let's combine all the techniques I know into this solo to fulfill the expectation of guitar-playing fans"

 

[dthmtl3]

Yes! 99% of guitar solos are completely pointless junk. I don't know where this dumb idea came from that every song must have a guitar solo, but if your guitarist has nothing to offer, just skip it. Give us a drum solo (remember those?) or a bass solo instead.

 

[rj rl]

Drum solos are even worse though

 

[CharIie]

Dang... And I thought I was a huge 'Laiho-fanboy', but you guys set the bar so high I can't possibly call myself that anymore.

You're thinking too much through your 'idolatry' lenses. There's clearly not much point discussing guitar wizardry here since it'll most likely end up in 'Alexi was a god, he was the greatest, no one will ever come close to his technical/compositional skills and he will be remembered for ever. And people should build altars to his name and worship him. With a special celebration on the anniversary of his death, and the long waiting for the messiah, spiritual resurrection of the Guitar God himself, to come restore balance in the music universe'.

In all seriousness though, y'all sound a hell of a lot like Twilight fan's who were requesting Kirsten Steward gets an oscar for her acting.

 

[Whiteknuckle Deathgrip]

Dang... And I thought I was a huge 'Laiho-fanboy', but you guys set the bar so high I can't possibly call myself that anymore.

You're thinking too much through your 'idolatry' lenses. There's clearly not much point discussing guitar wizardry here since it'll most likely end up in 'Alexi was a god, he was the greatest, no one will ever come close to his technical/compositional skills and he will be remembered for ever. And people should build altars to his name and worship him. With a special celebration on the anniversary of his death, and the long waiting for the messiah, spiritual resurrection of the Guitar God himself, to come restore balance in the music universe'.

In all seriousness though, y'all sound a hell of a lot like Twilight fan's who were requesting Kirsten Steward gets an oscar for her acting.

I really am that far out fanboy. It's the same with the guys that are into Dime and Rhoads. I fully realize there are guys that are faster and cleaner out there, but for me (this means it's subjective) Alexi will be my hero, and no amount of perfect sweeps will ever change my mind. I've come to terms with the fact that Alexi wasn't the worlds most technically accomplished guitar player long time ago. FFS, look at what asian kids on YouTube are doing. And then theres all the other shredders.
I realize also that I'm doing the exact same thing I've loathed boomer guitarist for saying to me in other contexts for years. These other guys just don't play with feeling

 

[rj rl]

Dude, this was the premise of the discussion

(Aleksi's) playing skills were nothing out of the ordinary

this staitment is plainly wrong and that's it. At the time Aleksi was one of the metal's best guitarists, be it technique or compositional prowess. No one in their right mind says he had THE best technique. There's a whole other tier of guitarists who take the instrument more as a sport than a musical device (I'm talking guys like Angelo Batio), if you want best technique, melodeath is probably the wrong place to look.

 

[CharIie]

This staitment is plainly wrong and that's it. At the time Aleksi was one of the metal's best guitarists, be it technique or compositional prowess.

At the time, Laiho had plenty of contenders for the title of best metal guitarist. He simply wasn't. It's not because some people were older that they didn't count. Marty Friedman, Paul Gilbert, Yngvie Malmsteen, Jeff Beck, Satriani, Steve Vai, Steve Morse, Jason Becker, Jani Liimatainen, Jari Maenpaa, Luca Turilli, etc. All of them are considered by their fans as the greatest guitarist of their time. It's just a fan thing to say.

And I know what I'm talking about, because I've been 15, I've been absolutely obsessed by Laiho, and I've been saying he was the greatest guitar player there was. But while that kind of statement holds when you're 15 and impressionable, it's 'simply is wrong' (as you put it) to say that Laiho was anything better than an average professional shredder. Where he shone was by his compositional skills, never by his guitar playing.

I really am that far out fanboy. It's the same with the guys that are into Dime and Rhoads.

Exactly, I've been that kind of Laiho fanboys in my early years so I understand the point of view, but it's just getting annoying when people can't understand that their views are scewed by their fandom. If you're aware of it, then it's all good I guess.
And yeah, Dimabag's fans are probably even more hardcore than Laiho's when it comes to defending their idols lol.

 

[rj rl]

I don't know what to say if you see "one of the best guitarists" and interpret it as "DEFINITELY THE FUCKING BEST GUITARIST" and go on to vehemently disagree

 

[CharIie]

No, I did get that, but what I meant to say is that he was but one in a myriad, not just amongst a handful.

 

[dthmtl3]

Much of these discussions are fruitless because there simply isn't a scenario to compare all these great guitarists. One huge advantage that Laiho, Rhoads, and Darrell had was that they were playing in the context of a band with vocals. There is a big difference between listening to a full-blown band song and some guy and his guitar and a computer drum program. No matter how enjoyable some of the work of Vai, Satriani, James, Buckethead, etc is, it usually boils down to individual parts within "songs." And it's quite tedious to listen to such albums. On the other hand it's rather difficult to mentally strip away just the lead guitar work from the whole experience of listening to a COB song. Easier of course for those of us who play guitar, and I'm by no means a fraction as good a player as some of the other guys here.

I'm glad Michael Angelo Batio was brought up, because now we're talking complete mastery of the instrument, stuff that all these other guys can't come close to. Of course, what is Batio doing with his talent and skill though...

A shame we never were able to witness Laiho develop as a musician without alcohol, injuries, medication, pain perhaps as well. Given all that though it's remarkable the legacy he did leave us.

 

[Works0fheart]

Dang... And I thought I was a huge 'Laiho-fanboy', but you guys set the bar so high I can't possibly call myself that anymore.

You're thinking too much through your 'idolatry' lenses. There's clearly not much point discussing guitar wizardry here since it'll most likely end up in 'Alexi was a god, he was the greatest, no one will ever come close to his technical/compositional skills and he will be remembered for ever. And people should build altars to his name and worship him. With a special celebration on the anniversary of his death, and the long waiting for the messiah, spiritual resurrection of the Guitar God himself, to come restore balance in the music universe'.

In all seriousness though, y'all sound a hell of a lot like Twilight fan's who were requesting Kirsten Steward gets an oscar for her acting.

There's no point in coming in here and berating people based on opinions. Music is subjective. There's no point in trying to argue what sounds better to you.

Yes, there are plenty of guitarists better than Alexi. It is easy to say that they're better musicians, and if you like their music more then you would consider them better songwriters. A lot of people can also use that defense with his (Alexi's) music saying that since they like his music better, he is the better player. Do you see the irony in this?

It feels pretty pointless that I even have to point this out, but here you are talking down to people on a Children of Bodom message-board, in 2021, actually surprised that a majority of the posters still here think Alexi is a better player than most.

If we're actually going to derail this thread with some petty, non-relevant arguments to the original post, at least consider some good points that have already been made that are practically facts:

1) Alexi was one of the progenitors of his genre. There weren't bands before CoB that had that sort of sound. Hence the million threads about people asking for bands that sound like CoB only to conclude there is no substitute.

2) Many of the bands already mentioned here as competition to the band (CoB) have had members site Alexi's music as an influence themselves.

3) Not that I agree that success=quality of music, but CoB was one of the more high-profile acts within their genre.

At the end of the day, it's all down to personal taste though. I can listen to solos like Hellion and Kissing the Shadows and still have them blow my mind to this day, a decade and a half after having initially heard them. I can hear the initial riff to Downfall kick in and no matter where I am in my own taste now days, the guitar tone just instantly hits you in the face and demands attention. Are there more technical songs out there? Of course. That shouldn't take anything away from how good they are, and there's no point arguing it because it's personal preference. So...

4) Coming full-circle back to what started this conversation several pages ago, even if you don't think Alexi was much of a guitarist/frontman/singer, there are over 2 decades worth of fans that feel otherwise. You don't have to agree, but to suggest he wasn't that great doesn't make it true. Enough people out there realize what a talent he had from both a songwriting perspective and technical ability. Guitar isn't a competition and one person's playing shouldn't be discounted just because someone out there is better. There is always someone better, so it isn't fair to discredit people based on this.

I'm not trying to be a dick to you, but you really came out swinging with that post and it's honestly a little childish because your point of view seems to boil down to little more than a "My dad is cooler than your dad" argument you'd hear in an elementary school classroom. People here have already made all the points that need to be made, but keep in mind that many of those guitar players you have cited as great have held just as much respect for Alexi as the rest of us.

 

[MattK]

There's no point in coming in here and berating people based on opinions. Music is subjective. There's no point in trying to argue what sounds better to you.

Yes, there are plenty of guitarists better than Alexi. It is easy to say that they're better musicians, and if you like their music more then you would consider them better songwriters. A lot of people can also use that defense with his (Alexi's) music saying that since they like his music better, he is the better player. Do you see the irony in this?

It feels pretty pointless that I even have to point this out, but here you are talking down to people on a Children of Bodom message-board, in 2021, actually surprised that a majority of the posters still here think Alexi is a better player than most.

If we're actually going to derail this thread with some petty, non-relevant arguments to the original post, at least consider some good points that have already been made that are practically facts:

1) Alexi was one of the progenitors of his genre. There weren't bands before CoB that had that sort of sound. Hence the million threads about people asking for bands that sound like CoB only to conclude there is no substitute.

2) Many of the bands already mentioned here as competition to the band (CoB) have had members site Alexi's music as an influence themselves.

3) Not that I agree that success=quality of music, but CoB was one of the more high-profile acts within their genre.

At the end of the day, it's all down to personal taste though. I can listen to solos like Hellion and Kissing the Shadows and still have them blow my mind to this day, a decade and a half after having initially heard them. I can hear the initial riff to Downfall kick in and no matter where I am in my own taste now days, the guitar tone just instantly hits you in the face and demands attention. Are there more technical songs out there? Of course. That shouldn't take anything away from how good they are, and there's no point arguing it because it's personal preference. So...

4) Coming full-circle back to what started this conversation several pages ago, even if you don't think Alexi was much of a guitarist/frontman/singer, there are over 2 decades worth of fans that feel otherwise. You don't have to agree, but to suggest he wasn't that great doesn't make it true. Enough people out there realize what a talent he had from both a songwriting perspective and technical ability. Guitar isn't a competition and one person's playing shouldn't be discounted just because someone out there is better. There is always someone better, so it isn't fair to discredit people based on this.

I'm not trying to be a dick to you, but you really came out swinging with that post and it's honestly a little childish because your point of view seems to boil down to little more than a "My dad is cooler than your dad" argument you'd hear in an elementary school classroom. People here have already made all the points that need to be made, but keep in mind that many of those guitar players you have cited as great have held just as much respect for Alexi as the rest of us.

This...