So, how many musicians are here?

[Knulla]

I stole this from the Symphony X forum.


1. What is your name?

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?

3. What style(s) of music do you play?

4. What, if any, music education have you had?

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

6. What goals do you have in music?

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)


My answers in the next post...

 

[Knulla]

1. What is your name?

Dan

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?

I play bass, and I've been playing since I was 13. I'm 16 now, so about three years. I started getting "serious" about four months into playing (when I started lessons). Also, I use my fingers, not a pick

3. What style(s) of music do you play?

I like to play everything. Jazz, metal, funk, rock, whatever. Every band I've been in has been metal (except a Led Zeppelin cover band).

4. What, if any, music education have you had?

I took lessons for over a year, but I moved to a different state and haven't found a teacher that I like around here.

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

Punctured - death metal band. My first band. We released two demos, both which sucked.

Led Zeppelin cover band - Just a band me and some friends would play in. Nothing serious. No shows or anything.

Ebullition - Current band. Thrash/power metal. We're working on our first album (not very much at the moment).

Noose of the Angel - Black metal band. I have about an hour of music written, but none is recorded, or rehearsed really. It's a two man band, so it goes pretty slow. I also do vocals in this band (not very good ones though).

6. What goals do you have in music?

Just have fun really. I take it serious, but I don't let myself get frustrated or anything. I'd like to record some albums that I'm really proud of one day.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

Cliff Burton, Jaco Pastorius, Kristoffer Gildenlöw, Steve DiGiorgio, Tony Choy

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)

Schector Stiletto Custom 5 (5 string bass) and SWR LA15 amp:

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/7592/mebassamppk7.jpg

 

[Beyond the Pale]

1. What is your name?

William

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?

Guitar, and bass(Somewhat), and oh, about close to two years now. Only been serious for about a year though. :/

3. What style(s) of music do you play?

Metal, Prog Rock, I dunno, I'm open to anything.

4. What, if any, music education have you had?

I have none. I'd love to get some though.

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

haha, nothing worth mentioning. I had a thing going with my friend from Point Pleasant called "Impulse Drive". I hated the damn name from the getgo but he insisted.. We went nowhere because no one knows what the fuck we're doing. So now it's just me and him occasionally figuring songs out together and shit. Meh >_>

6. What goals do you have in music?

Exactly the same thoughts as Dan.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

Steven Wilson, Daniel Gildenlow, whoever writes the music in Subterranean Masquerade, Devin Townsend, and honestly, not to kiss ass, but the guys in Suspyre <_< Because your music really came out of nowhere and is still deep in my mind and it doesn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. haha

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)

My gear consists of solely a Schecter C7 Hellraiser 7 string guitar, and an Ibanez GSR200 Bass. Both are black. I had a cheap little 10 watt practice amp for my guitar but it's busted as of today, and I have a shitty 15 watt Fender bass amp that I lost the plug to.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Schecter-Hellraiser-C7-Electric-Guitar?sku=513109
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ibanez-GSR200-4String-Bass?sku=519524

 

[Meedleyx10]

you stole that from me you jerk:Shedevil:


1. What is your name?

Drew

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?

Mainly guitar, been playing since I was 12/13 (I'm 19 now). I play a little bit of bass, but only spent about a year doing it seriously. I took keyboard classes both semesters last year but it's not something I plan to pursue much further. I'm constantly trying to work on my singing.

3. What style(s) of music do you play?

Everything, literally. Prog, metal, jazz, fusion, country, classic rock, pop, classical... Pretty much the only stuff I don't play are the more extreme types of metal.

4. What, if any, music education have you had?

I was self taught for the first couple years of my playing, with the exception of the stuff I got out of magazines and videos. When I was 15 I started taking lessons from Chris Gordon back in Delaware. I started studying theory on my own at about the same time with some help from my band directors at school. The summer after my senior year (living in Montana at this point), I took lessons from Larry Park who is probably the sickest country player out there...he could seriously show Brent Mason a thing or two. I started at McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul, MN in the fall of 2006, where I'll continue studying at least for the next year and possibly two more years after that (still undecided). Since being at McNally I have studied under Cliff Wittstruck and Bobby Stanton (amongst others) and take private lessons for Classical guitar with Mike Menard.

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

Unnamed band- some high school friends during my freshman year, we sucked horribly
Awakenings- prog/metal band I was in when I lived in Delaware. We did some great stuff together and I really hope we all can jam again some day. The drummer, Jeff Willet, is currently drumming for Suspyre.
Bats and Bandits- Band I started my senior year with some friends here in Montana. We did some Ozzy/Maiden covers and some original stuff in the same vein. Towards the end I was writing some very Rush-esque stuff but I've decided to save that for a future project
Caesar Rodney High School Jazz band-sophomore year
CMR High School Jazz Band- Junior and Senior year
CMR High School Symphonic Band- Senior Year, Played the string bass
University of Great Falls Jazz Band- during my Senior Year (of high school)
McNally Smith Rock Ensemble I- Spring semester '07 at McNally, played stuff ranging from Ratt to ZZ top to Lenny Kravitz to Alien Ant Farm, etc.
McNally Smith Classical Guitar Ensemble- I'll be in it this coming year

6. What goals do you have in music?

Ultimately I'd simply like to be able to live comfortable without having a non-music related job. After college, I'm planning to play on cruise ships for a while. I can't imagine anything better than getting paid to play guitar on a luxury cruiseline all day while seeing the world. After that I'm going to teach/do session work and see what happens from there, possibly land a spot in someones touring band. While I'd love to eventually get a solid band going and be able to make money doing original material, it's not something I'm planning around.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

1. Chris Gordon- the first teacher I ever had. He had a HUGE impact on my playing and my entire outlook on music. He really got me into shape and instilled a high level of discipline in me. He's also a very good friend. To this day, he's still (in my book) unmatched by anyone in terms of chops and he's ridiculously versatile.

2. John Petrucci

3. Eric Johnson

4. Daniel Gildenlow

4.5. Steve Morse

5. Guthrie Govan



8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)

Guitars: Ibanez Jem7vwh, Ibanez S7420fm, Jackson KVX10, Jackson DX10D, Washburn ???? classical guitar, Jay-junior classical guitar (cheap piece of shit I got to noodle around on).
Amps: Mesa boogie F-30 combo, Randall ??? (I used to use it to run my POD into for practicing)
Strings: D'Addario 11-49
Pedals: Boss CE-5, Ibanez TS-9, MXR 10-band EQ, Boss NS-2
Picks: Dunlop Jazztone R205

Here's a pic of some of it:

 

[usaprogmusic]

1. What is your name? Jill

2. What instrument(s) do you play and how long have you been playing?
Piano and guitar and vocals; I've been playing piano since I was about 5. Guitar since I was about 23. I've been singing on stage since I was 4 years old (part of choirs). I am now 26.

3. What style(s) of music do you play?
Mostly classic rock, some classical and broadway musicals. I used to play a lot of hymns, just cause I played for my church. That is not what I play now.

4. What, if any, music education have you had?
I took piano lessons for 5 years (9 - 14 years old) but my mother was a piano teacher so she did a lot of the teaching the first few years of my life until I found someone else to take lessons from (believe me, it is hard to learn from your mother!). I've been taking guitar lessons on & off for 3 years now. I took a couple music related courses in college (pop 'n rock history, and a voice class).

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

I had a crappy band that lasted all of 2 months in 10th grade, and i can't even remember if we had a name. I am now the 'behind the scenes' type of music person, running USA Progressive Music webzine (www.usaprogmusic.com) and the booking agent for Suspyre.

6. What goals do you have in music?
To learn enough to just play around the house. I am not the type who wants to perform live. I just love to play for my own enjoyment. I want to learn more about music, though ..more theory and also more about bands. I have this need to have a great archive of music history/knowlege in my head.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

Piano:
Billy Joel
My Mother (if only she played anymore)

Guitar:
Brian May
Slash
Jimmy Page
Gary Wehrkamp
Yngwie Malmsteen
John Petrucci


8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)
I plead the 5th. All my gear sucks.

 

[Taliwakker]

1. What is your name?

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?

3. What style(s) of music do you play?

4. What, if any, music education have you had?

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?

6. What goals do you have in music?

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)

1.Richard

2.Guitar...since i was 14...i'm now 32

3. mainly Hard Rock,Prog, Metal

4.Self taught

5.Taliesin is the name of the band...check sig for myspace etc

6.Goals are to sell enough copies of our ep to afford to record a full length cd. Have been teaching guitar for 12 years and have another job which pays well...so recording music and playing gigs is really just a serious hobby.

7. Eddie Van Halen/ Allan Holdsworth/ Andy Sturmer/ Mike Patton/ the late 80's-early 90's.

8.ADA poweramp/Digitech 2101 preamp/ Mesa Quad/ Ibanez Jem (floral) and some Jackson Professional as a second guitar.

 

[Servilonus]

1. What is your name?
Mike


2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?
Guitar, I've been playing since 1999, I play bass sometimes too, just for fun.


3. What style(s) of music do you play?
Rock, metal, funk, blues.


4. What, if any, music education have you had?
I had guitar lessons for maybe about a year or more when I first started on an acoustic. Learned to read music and such. From then on, I pretty much just self-educated myself by playing a variety of music, progressing to more difficult things, and abusing my schools printer by printing tabs. I'm quite sure my high school blocked mxtabs because of me.
Besides that, I had music theory for three years in high school, and one in a county college (it was basically a beginner's rehash).

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?
My band Mush (www.myspace.com/mushofficial), we're a Gwar style performance band that does costumes, props and such. Fun, hook and hit based music with singable simple choruses and an almost constant verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/guitar solo/chorus formation in various rock/metal based genres.

6. What goals do you have in music?
I love music, but it's not my career path. I just like to have fun being in a band, playing live, having some awesome tunes and playing for fun.


7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?
Kirk Hammett
Jimmy Page
Alex Lifeson
Nobuo Uematsu
John Petrucci

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)
A Blue Schecter Omen 7-String, an old used Line 6 Spider I 50 watt combo.

 

[voodoo]

I am actually not a musician. Took guitar lessons and a class at college but I just didn't have the finger dexterity. I can only appreciate what others can do.

 

[kazzman]

Heh... don't get me started on this one...

1. What is your name?
Matt

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?
Drums for 15 years

3. What style(s) of music do you play?
Pretty much anything at this point.

4. What, if any, music education have you had?
I started taking drum lessons when I was six and took them up until I was 18. I also was in my high school band.

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?
EverDream - Prog Metal project that went nowhere fast
Another Echo - My current band. Combine the styles of Rush, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Def Leppard, The Beatles and many of the classic rock bands and add a modern twist to it and you've got us.

6. What goals do you have in music?
To be able to at least gig regularly and make somewhat of a steady living off of it.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?
1. Neil Peart
2. Buddy Rich
3. Carl Palmer
4. Aaron Spears
5. Casey Grillo

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)
Do you really want to see this?

DW Collector's Series. Maple shell w/silver sparkle finish-ply & chrome lugs.

10x8 tom
12x9 tom
14x11 tom
16x14 tom
22x18 bass

5.5x14 Orange County Vented Snare. Maple shell w/tube lugs. Broken Glass finish
5x14 Gretsch Snare. Steel snare. Piano Black finish.

Cymbals:
8" Sabian Signature Mike Portnoy Max-Stax
10" Sabian Paragon Splash
10" Sabian AAX Splash
13" Zildjian Avedis Mastersound HiHats
14" Zildjian A Custom Masteround Hihats
16" Sabian Vault Crash (2)
18" Sabian Vault Crash (2)
18" Wuhan China w/rivets
18" Zildjian Oriental China Trash
21" Sabian Hand Hammered Raw Bell Dry Ride

All Pedals and Hardware are DW 9000 series. I use Evans Coated EC2 heads on the batter side of my toms and Evans G1 on the resonate sides. Evans Emad on my bass (both batter and resonant) and an Evans Coated G1 on my Gretsch and a Remo Powerstroke X on my Orange County. I'll post some pics later. I'm in the process of redesigning my set up currently.

 

[JeffSuspyre]

sounds pretty picture worthy ... got any?? i'd love to check it out

 

[kazzman]

Hey, sorry for the late response. I've been super busy at work (dept. manager at Guitar Center) so I haven't had the time to get on here. Anyway, here's the pics:

 

[StephenSLR]

1. Stephen

2. Guitarist many years

3. Previously played for Dungeon, now in Lycanthia

4. Educated at secondary school.

5. see 3.

6. Have recorded and toured major cities in Australia, plan to record again.

7. Influenced by 80's Metal.

8. My amplifier.

Lycanthia samples here

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/lycanthia/398872-lycanthia-discography-mp3-samples-lyrics.html

s

 

[DTJeff]

1. What is your name?
Jeff

2. What instrument(s) do you play and have long have you been playing?
Guitar primarily. Been playing for about 6-7 years (I'm 18). I've been playing piano and keyboards on the side for maybe 4 years.

3. What style(s) of music do you play?
Metal generally. Power, Progressive, Classic, Melodic. I stray occasionally though.

4. What, if any, music education have you had?
No formal training on guitar. I've had 2 years of Music Theory which have helped my writing an INSANE amount and I've also had one piano course.

5. What bands/projects have you been involved with (just a name/brief description)?
Necromance. Basically been my only band, I formed it back in late 2004. We've played about 30 gigs, no real recording experience though unfortunately. We played traditional/power metal, influences include Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Dio, Dungeon, Firewind, Nocturnal Rites, Journey, WASP, Masterplan, Riot, and Whitesnake.

6. What goals do you have in music?
I want my band to eventually be able to record proffesionally and make some sort of a career out of it by making albums and gigging regularly. I personally have an eventual dream of writing a metal opera of sorts that unlike many of the metal operas today actually is given the conceptual development of some sort of Broadway Musical production.

7. Who are your 5 greatest musical influences?
As a guitarist:
1.Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden)
2.Criss Oliva (RIP) (Savatage)
3."Lord" Tim Grose (Dungeon, LORD)
4.Gus G (Firewind, others)
5.Roy Z (Bruce Dickinson, Rob Rock, etc)
6.Magnus Karlsson (Allen/Lande, etc)
sorry, couldn't help adding a 6th.

8. What gear do you use? (pics are welcome!)
My 2 main guitars are an Epiphone Les Paul Studio (black) and an ESP/LTD M-200FM (see-thru black cherry). The Les Paul is the favorite of the two but I play them both.
Amp-wise I'm using a Line 6 Spider III HD-150W Half stack. I can't speak highly enough about it.
I use a Dunlop Crybaby Classic Wah pedal and the built in affects of my amp. Dunlop picks, Ernie Ball strings.
Here's me playing ESP. The amp in the back is my old, now defunct amp.

Here's me with my Les Paul:

No good pics of my amp unfortunately.

 

[Achtland]

3. Previously played for Dungeon, now in Lycanthia

You're a famous guy mate.