Secondly, a massive apology for the lack of updates. There are many articles in the pipeline from a guitar speaker build, a respray and various other tech articles.

If you have an interest in wtiting music related articles, or would like to help us out with a video lesson, then please get in touch. We really need writers!

Credited as the inventor of the electric guitar, a pioneer of recording techniques, an inductee of the Grammy and Rock ‘n’ Roll halls of fame; Les Paul was one of the great names in the world of guitars. He was suffering from from severe pneumonia and died at a hospital in White Plains, New York last night. He will be sadly missed by his many fans and those that he has influenced, and also remembered for his great work with guitars and music.

Some of you out there wish to become good at guitar - maybe even great, but to find true enlightenment, you must first take a magic carpet ride to an island far away from here. You will train with a master of the guitar - a sensei of shred. His name is Mr Fastfinger. Today I have the great honor to speak to Mika Tyyskä, the creator of Mr Fastfinger, about his debut album "The Way Of The Exploding Guitar".

Who is He?

"Mika Tyyskä (b. 1976) is an independent multimedia designer and producer in Finland. Mika graduated from Lahti polytechnic Institute of design, multimedia department 2005. His interests include arts and and especially music related projects in digital media. Mika wants to combine traditional storytelling with modern interactive technologies. He is highly interested in both audio and visual design."

"Mika is a part time musician and a composer as well. Playing guitar in front of an audience brings action to his life, after working long hours with computers. He composes and produces music."

The Interview

Video

Mr. Fastfinger "Wax On, Wax Off" Live at Magnusborg Studios Porvoo, Finland

Links

Take a look at Mika’s site over at guitarshredshow.com. You can buy the CD “The Way of the Exploding Guitar” from iTunes, amazon.com, CD Baby, Guitar Euro Shop and The Ground

Mika has also released a zip file of the "Wax On, Wax Off" Track containing the guitar tab and backing track so you can have a go at playing some of his crazy guitar licks. Get your hands on the file from his site.

Tim Owens has been one of the most important metal vocalists for over a decade. His career has seen him move from small time bands and a tribute act, to replacing Rob Halford in Judas Priest and (more recently) vocals for Yngwie Malmsteen. "The Ripper" has just released is first solo album featuring some special guests such as Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big), Michael Wilton (Queensrÿche), and James Lomenzo (Megadeth). Read on to find out what we think of it.

Background

Tim Owens has been very much in demand after performing with Judas Priest and Iced Earth. He has his own band "Beyond Fear" and more recently takes vocal duties for Yngwie Malmsteen. Having never had a chance to write many songs himself, this album was a chance for him to showcase his abilities.

What’s It Like

From the start, this album is very much an old school melodic heavy metal durge. Tim’s vocals are very much pitched down the middle of his range for most of the tracks. Yuo get this sense that it’s almost as if he’s singing over some heavy backing tracks rather than try and work the vocals together with the rest of the artists.

Despite the array of talent that Owens has brought on board, you never really get a true sense of individuality from any of the tracks. There are a few glimmers of hope in the form of "Pick Yourself Up" which could almost fit onto a Black Label Society album due to not only to the vocals, but a nice wah soaked solo. "Death Race" is a nice change that dips into a sort of thrash metal pace, and also features a half decent solo.

Track Listing

1. "Starting Over" - 3:33
2. "Believe" - 4:35
3. "The Cover Up" - 4:30
4. "Pick Yourself Up" - 4:32
5. "It Is Me" - 2:53
6. "No Good Goodbyes" - 3:35
7. "The World Is Blind" - 4:50
8. "To Live Again" - 6:00
9. "The Light" - 4:36
10. "Play My Game" - 4:43
11. "Death Race" - 3:29
12. "The Shadows Are Alive" - 5:35
13. "A Challenge" (iTunes bonus track)

Overall

Bit of a disappointment really. I had high hopes that this album would be pretty special taking all the best parts from the various bands and projects he has worked on. It all felt very similar, no tracks really stood out as amazing. After listening to it a few times over, it has grown slightly on me, but I still think he’s best when teamed up with other existing bands. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Many people like to build their own guitars and effects pedals. Getting a high quality finish is important if you want to replicate the look of a factory made guitar or effects pedal. This article will look at a method of getting a nice finish on a DIY homemade effects pedal.

Background

This guide assumes that you have planned out the electronics for the effects pedal first. You will need to drill the holes for the input/output jacks, power, and control dials first.

Tools & Materials

• Assorted grades of Wet & Dry sandpaper (ie 400,600,800,1200,1500)
• Methylated spirits
• Clean cloth / kitchen paper
• Can of spray primer (white / grey)
• Can of spray colour
• Can of lacquer spray (gloss / satin / matt)
• Metal or plastic effects pedal enclosure
• Big cardboard box or spray hood
• Thick wire to hold the enclosure for spraying & baking
• Old oven or camping oven
• T-Cut car paint restorer

Method

This process is best done outdoors on a warm dry day when it isn’t too windy. If you have access to a ventilated room specifically for spray painting - even better.

Preparation

The first stage is to prepare the metal or plastic enclosure for the paining. This envolves removing any dirt, rust, metal odidation, existing paint and lacquer or anything else that is covering the enclosure. I started with a Bimbox 5003-13 which is an aluminium enclosure similar to the Hammond and Eddystone die cast boxes. It was finished with a textured paint and gloss laquer which I sanded away with a small piece of 240grit wet and dry paper.

With a standard unfinished (no paint/lacquer) enclosure, you will need to take a finer grade piece of wet and dry paper and sand off the metal oxide. Around a 400grit is fine. This forms around the metal as it reacts in the air. By doing this, you create a better surface for the paint to stick to. When you can see a brighter metallic finish to the box, you can stop sanding.

Take a clean cloth or some kitchen paper and dampen it with some methylated spirits. Wipe the enclosure to remove all grease and powdered metal and paint from sanding. Try to hold the box from the inside by spreading your fingers out. You can also use some more cloth or kitchen paper to hold it. This removes the grease and other dirt that will prevent the paint from adhering properly.

Priming

Once the methylated sprit has evaporated, you can begin to spray paint the primer. This paint binds to the bare metal acting as a foundatin and creates a better surface for the top colour spray paint to stick to. If you have access to a fume hood / spray hood then these steps will be much easier. I didn’t, so I chose a cardboard box and some wire to spray the pedal in. The wire was used to suspent the metal enclosure in the middle of the box so that it could be sprayed and rotated without touching it. The box also helped shield the paint spray from the wind, allowing me to get an even coating.

Generally speaking, it is better to spray several light coats of paint rather than thicker coats. This again helps to give a better finish, reduces the chance of paint from running, and speeds up drying times. I sprayed 2 thin coats of primer and sanded lightly after the second coat.

The primer should be allowed to dry completely (read the can) before you spray any top colour coat. If in doubt, leave it for 24 hours in a warm dry place. You can also bake it at this point. See the Baking section for details. Use a fine grade sandpaper (600 grit) and very lightly sand the finish to remove any raised spots of paint. Don’t sand the corners or edges as you will quickly go back to the bare metal. If this happens, you will need to lightly sand over the whole enclosure and appy another coat of primer and let it thoroughly dry.

Colour Coat

With the enclosure primed, you are now ready to apply the colour coats. You should again try and spray several very light coats of paint and slowly build up the colour. Don’t be tempted to apply the top coat in one go because it will run, take ages to dry and leave a weaker finish. I spray around 5 fine coats and allowed it to try for several hours between each coat.

If you do get a run of paint, as you can see I did in these next 2 photos, simple let it dry, and then sand down that coat until the run isn’t visible. You will then need to spray this coat again.

After each colour coat, use a fine (600 grit / 800 grit) sandpaper to even out the paint and prepare it for the next coat. Don’t sand the coat if you want to bake the pedal. Some people have done this after each coat of paint, but I decided to bake once after 3 coats and then once at the end after the final coat.

The above photos were after 3 coats and one session in the oven.

Baking

This step is clearly only for metal enclosures! By heating up the metal enclosure, the paint applied to the surface will start to try and turn into a liquid. As it begins to form a liquid, the subtle imperfections will smooth out and set smooth after the metal is allowed to cool. As well as this, it also helps to bond the paint to the surface of the metal, and hence forming a more resistant finish to knocks and scratches.

I applied around 150°C for about 20 minutes after the first 3 coats of paint. After the final coat of paint, I again baked the pedal for the same amount of time to give me a good finish. You will need to use either an old oven strictly not for food use, or a small camping oven - again this should be a didicated bit of equipment and not for cooking food. The paint will emit small quantities of vapour that you really don’t want to consume. You can find these small ovens at camping stores for around £20.

I found the best method was to use some thick wire to build a rectangular box shape that sits inside of the big half of the enclosure. I build a second box that I could rest the bottom plate for the enclosure on. This held the surfaces off the oven so that nothing touches the paint.

After baking, open the door and allow the metal to cool completely. Don’t let anything touch the paint surface as it will still be tacky to the touch and it will mark (imprint) very easily - meaning you have to sand and paint all over again! A couple of hours should be enough but you can leave it for longer just to be safe.

This now leaves you with a good smooth finish that you could almost say is complete, but I went on to give it just a little more finishing.

Final Finishing

The last stage is to give the top coat a perfect finish. Start with a 1200grit wet and dry paper. Soak the pedal in water so that it leaves droplets on the surface. Sand in light circular motions all over the enclosure to level out any uneven areas in the finish. Repeat the process with the 1500 grit paper. You will notice that the water collects the paint and starts to form a paste. You can wash this away and replace with just water. This acts as a guide to how much paint is being removed. Remember, you are smoothing the surface, and not just trying to remove the paint. Keep drying the pedal and check the finish. It should feel smooth and glass like.

For the ultimate finish, take a clean cloth and put a pea sized drop of T-Cut on it. Work it all over the surface of the enclosure in small circles. You will notice that the cloth starts to pickup traces of the paint. This is fine. T-Cut actually eats away a very fine layer of paint to give a seriously smooth finish. Turn the cloth over to a clean patch and buff off the T-Cut. Rince the enclosure in water to ensure all of the T-Cut has been removed. Any left on the surface will continue to eat into the paint and ruin the finish. Dry thoroughly and then buff to a shine with another clean soft cloth.

You should have an incredible glassy finish now. If you baked the pedal, it should be reasonably tough, but for extra protection you can apply a spray lacquer on top to seal and protect the paint. 3 or 4 thin coats should be enough - apply them in the same way as the top colour. It will take 2 or 3 times longer to dry between coats, and it’s important to do this before sanding as you will simply clog up the paper if not. If the lacquer is a glossy finish, you can repeat the 1200grit / 1500grit and T-Cut to give the same high quality finish. Don’t do this if the finish is satin or matt.

After the box is populated with the rest of the electronics, it should look something like this:

Summary

Spray painting an effects pedal and achieving a good finish is fairly simple, provided you take the time and care to do each step properly. You can also apply water slide decals to finish your effects pedal after you have baked the paint, and before you apply the coat of lacquer. I have had a look into powder coating which is supposed to give a much better (and tougher) finish. I will post another article if I can get access to the tools.

Let me know in the comments if you have tried this yourself, or if you have any questions or tips.

Years ago, plectums were made of tortoise shell, bone, horn and hooves. Brian May from Queen liked to use a six pence piece as a plectrum. Now, with the aid of a "Pick Punch", you can easily create your own plectrums out of meterials you can find at home!

What Is It

This tool is basically a hole punch that cuts out guitar plectrum shaped pieces of plastic. It’s about the size of a normal desktop stapler and works with a similar action - squeeze it to cut out a plectril from any plastic material.

You can recycle old credit cards, gift cards, plastic lids or you can buy a sheet of celluloid or delrin to cut from. The Pick Punch should ba available to purcahse in a couple of months. We hope to get hold of one to review.

Links

You can find out more about the Pick Punch at their website, and there are videos and more details on thieir blog.

Green Day releases their eighth studio album, 5 years after the acclaimed 2004 release "American Idiot". The album follows the band’s new format of rock opera / pop-punk so you’re either going to love it or hate it!

Background

Since the release of the multi platinum, politically charged "American Idiot" in 2004, Green Day have been pretty quiet. However, they had been working on a side project, the "Foxboro Hot Tubs", releasing an album "Stop Drop and Roll!!!" in 2008. The album had a very different sort of sound - 60’s rock-and-roll. Since the release of "Warning" in 2000 and "American Idiot" in 2004, the band has seen a renewed popularity with a younger fanbase - many not aware of the punk rock origins of the band in the pre-dookie era. This distinct change in sound has led to criticism over being labeled a punk rock band. It has also divided the fans (myself included) into two groups divided either side of the "Nimrod" album - perhaps the middle ground between the transition from punk to a more commercial, pop-punk sound.

What’s It Like

"21st Century Breakdown" tells a story about Christian and Gloria, a young couple in love, surviving in a declining society. We revisit subjects found on the previous album such as politics, the decline in society, and the struggle to survive in modern America. It opens with a slow melody sung by Billie Joe that is produced to sound like an gramophone. This track opens what is a 3 part album. The songs are grouped into 3 acts, each dealing with a specific theme or subject matter.

The first act, "Heroes and Cons" dives straight into picking over the government and their control over the country. It addresses working class life, social struggles and on a larger scale - the war. The title track features some strong guitar riffs backed up by some doubled vocals, and a short drum interlude that almost sounds like the intro to "Longview". The next track "Know Your Enemy" is rather repetative with some pretty weak vocals: "Do you know the enemy? Do you know your enemy? Well, gotta know the enemy". The song is almost saved by an upbeat solo. Following this is "Viva La Gloria!" which opens with a piano and vocal section before breaking into a a rapidly moving verse and chorus that runs to the end of the song. "Before the Lobotomy" introduces one of the leading characters, Christian. This is followed by one of the better tracks on the album "Christian’s Inferno". The verses are a grungy riff / vocal combination, followed by a rapidly moving, more upbeat chorus. Simple lyrics again, but much more akin to their earlier work. The first act closes with a slower love song ballad.

The second act, "Charlatans and Saints" kicks off with "East Jesus of Nowhere" - an attack on religious fundamentalism, where Armstrong sings "the church of wishful thinking" and "The sirens of decay will infiltrate the faith fanatics". This track is followed by "Peacemaker", another rapidly moving song played on the acoustic. It’s a catchy despite the lyrical content regarding extremist religious behaviour. "Last Of The American Girls" is one of several tracks that seem to drop the vocals low down in the mix, making them sound forced and a bit weaked in comparison to the fullness of the bass and guitar riffs. The following track "Murder City" is much more like the earlier punk rock that we know and loved the back for in the 90s. Simple guitar power chords from start to finish make this one of the best songs on the album. The last two tracks of this act could be taken straight from the "Warning" album. Both follow a slower ballad style piano backed intro, followed by the wall of guitars. "Restless Heart Syndrome" has a great trem picked wah solo and a brilliant closing section - easily one of the better written tracks.

The last act, "Horseshoes and Handgrenades" opens with a track of the same name, sounding almost identical to "Main Offender" by The Hives. This track really bounces along, shouty vocals and another really solid sound from the rest of the band. "Static Age" and "21 Guns" fall into the same bag as earlier tracks. This is when you start to appreciate the runtime of the album is well over an hour. "American Eulogy" opens with the same lyrics as the first track, and covers off the subjects of the previous acts. It’s a breaking point dealing with anger and desperation at the state of affairs - "mass hysteria" and "I don’t want to live in the modern world" being the prominent lyrics. The act (and album) closes with "See The Light" that pleads to people to wake up and act on the current situation "I just want to see the light / I don’t want to lose my sight".

Track Listing

1. "Song of the Century" - 0:58
2. "21st Century Breakdown" - 5:09
3. "Know Your Enemy" - 3:11
4. "¡Viva la Gloria!" - 3:31
5. "Before the Lobotomy" - 4:37
6. "Christian’s Inferno" - 3:07
7. "Last Night on Earth" - 3:57
8. "East Jesus Nowhere" - 4:35
9. "Peacemaker" - 3:24
10. "Last of the American Girls" - 3:51
11. "Murder City" - 2:54
12. "¿Viva la Gloria? (Little Girl)" - 3:48
13. "Restless Heart Syndrome" - 4:20
14. "Horseshoes and Handgrenades" - 3:14
15. "The Static Age" - 4:17
16. "21 Guns" - 5:21
17. "American Eulogy" - 4:26
18. "See the Light” - 4:36

Overall

Fans of "American Idiot" are going to love this album. It’s another rock opera style album, with a running theme based around 2 people in a post-Bush America. Those of you that prefer the raw and unpolished punk rock sound that the band had through the 90s won’t be impressed. The whole sound is softened and produced with a view to pleasing the new resurgance of younger fans. The political slant is tiring, and the lyrics and themes drag on through each song with no respite. I got quite bored of this, however the occasional solid guitar performance was enough to keep me interested.

"Christian’s Inferno" and "Murder City" offer a glimpse into thier past, but we’re talking "Warning" and possibly "Nimrod". Unfortunately, this style of album seems to be the standard template for Green Day. Any hope of a raw sounding, energetic punk rock kick is pretty much gone.

Wrath is the sixth studio album from (New Wave of) American Heavy Metal band Lamb of God. Drummer Chris Adler says that the album "is going to surprise a lot of people". Read on to see what we thought about it.

Background

Chris Adler has said in an earlier interview (with blabbermouth) that "This album is going to surprise a lot of people. Typically bands that get to where we are in our career begin to slack off, smell the roses and regurgitate. We chose a different path. No one wants to hear another band member hyping a new record. ‘Wrath’ needs no hype. We have topped ourselves and on February 24 you will feel it."

The band have been regarded as part of the resurgence of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal (NWOAHM) and have focused on playing brutally fast and heavy. Each album release has seen glimmers of excellence, but still very much within a set template for the genre. Pleasing and reliable, but perhaps rather repetitive?

What’s It Like

The album opens with "The Passing", a classical guitar melody leading into a slow paced metal instrumental that harps back to early Metallica. The second track "In Your Words" opens with a relentless looping riff that sets the pace for the rest of the album. Dare I call up another reference to Metallica (Blackened)?

"Set To Fail" takes a jump back into the Southern swagger as favoured by Dimebag / Pantera. The track has a rather short but sweet solo with a few pinch harmonics thrown in for good measure. "Contractor" is rich with blast beats and tearing vocals from Randy Blythe but doesn’t really stand out as anything fresh and new. I wouldn’t doubt that when played live, it would be pretty brutal! "Fake Messiah" follows a similar pattern, the track tailing off into a half time feel durge overlayed with a wah like guitar phrase.

The 6th track, "Grace" opens with a rich clean melody that just bursts out into a full on kick in the face. Blythe’s vocals really pack a punch and the guitar work is pretty excellent. This is the sort of track that really shows off the potential of the band as a whole. Easily one of the best songs on the album.

The next 3 tracks present you with the same sort of “template”, which isn’t a bad thing - but you do keep waiting for that breakthrough to produce a really memorable song. "Choke Sermon" gallops along and showcases Blythe’s vocal range from piercing screams to deep growls. Another solo here as well.

The last track on the album (discounting the bonus tracks) is "Reclamation"; a seven minute brute that echoes the comments of the 6th track, "Grace". The song opens with a drop tuned acoustic riff (that could almost be Alice in Chains unplugged) later joined by second guitar that pulls you into another monsterous blast of sound. The track dips back and forth from the clean sound before smashing you back into the full force of the band. A brilliant track, probably the highlight of the album.

Track Listing

1. "The Passing" - 1:58
2. "In Your Words" - 5:24
3. "Set to Fail" - 3:46
4. "Contractor" - 3:22
5. "Fake Messiah" - 4:34
6. "Grace" - 3:55
7. "Broken Hands" - 3:53
8. "Dead Seeds" - 3:41
9. "Everything to Nothing" - 3:50
10. "Choke Sermon" - 3:20
11. "Reclamation" - 7:05
12. "We Die Alone" (USB bonus track) - 4:39
13. "Shoulder of Your God" (USB bonus track) - 5:55
14. "Condemn the Hive" (Japanese bonus track - 3:41

Overall

I’ve listened to the album cover to cover several times, and it’s been a real mixed bag. On the whole, it’s just another good album from Lamb of God. The recipe for solid metal is there, and they deliver on the sound but it’s nothing special. You feel like the band is holding back from really pushing themselves in terms of creativity. The energy and raw power is there, but that’s all you get. Maybe this puts a tick in the box for the majority of fans and leaves the rest of us waiting for more.

"Grace" and "Reclamation" are killer tracks well worth a listen - the rest is good, but not great.

The first lesson by our latest author Dr.Furqan Ali Shah looks at constructing the major and minor chords. This is a good place to start seriously learning about music theory.

What is a Chord?

A chord is a set/aggregate of three or more different pitches/notes from a specific key that may or may not sound simultaneously. In western music, the most basic chords are tertian sonorities constructed by stacking notes together that are spaced at intervals of major 3rd or minor 3rd from each other. So a basic major or minor chord, having three notes, each an interval of a Major 3rd or a minor 3rd away, all of which are taken form a specific key can also be called a “Diatonic Tertian Triad”

A chord with less than 3 notes, that is, having 2 notes, is more appropriately called an “Interval” or a “Diad”

Classification and Nomenclature

Chords can be classified, named and constructed on the basis of:

The scale degree of the root note

If the chord starts on the 1st degree of the Major scale, it is I chord (also called the Tonic chord, the C Major chord with respect to the C Major scale), if it starts on the 5th degree of the Major scale, it is the V chord (also called the Dominant, the G Major chord with respect to the C Major scale).

The number of distinct/different pitches used

There are three note chords (for example Major and minor chords, Augmented and Diminished triads, Sus2 and Sus4 chords etc..) four note chords (such as Add9, Add11, 7th chords) five or more note chords (like extended chords used often in jazz, such as 9th 11th chords) and so on.. I personally like to consider three note chords as “triads”, four and five note chords as “arpeggios” and six or seven note aggregates as “scales”.. Remember, count the distint or different pitches only. Pitches being repeated in various octaves all over the fretboard would essentially be the same note.

General type of intervals it contains

Such as seconds, thirds, fourths, fifths.. for example a chord consisting of notes at intervals of perfect fourths from each other [A D G C] as used when implying Quartal Harmony. On analysis A D G C can be an Am7add11 without a 5th.

Precise intervallic construction and Quality

Such as being a Major chord, minor chord, augmented and diminished triads, Major and minor 6th chords, 7th chords.. Generally, an ‘augmented’ chord contains a raised 5th or a #5 often with a Major 3rd, and a ‘diminished’ chord contains a flatted 5th or a b5 often with a minor 3rd.. There are various extended types of Major, minor, augmented and diminished chords.

Whether the chord is in Root position or Inversion

If tbe lowest sounding pitch is the chord Root, the chord voicing is said to be in Root Position, but if the lowest sounding pitch is a chord tone other than the Root note, the chord voicing is said to be an inversion.. (if the 3rd is the lowest sounding pitch, the voicing is said to be in 1st inversion, if the 5th is the lowest sounding pitch, the voicing is said to be in 2nd inversion).

Constructing the Major Chord

So going about constructing chords can be done in a few simple steps.. Say you want to form a Major chord with C as the root.. Lets say, the C major chord?

Step 1

Take the Natural Major scale of the appropriate root, in this case, C Major or C ionian mode. It would be good to recall the notes of the C Major scale here.. [ C D E F G A B C ]

Step 2

Now according to the earlier definition, a chord is an aggregate of pitches/notes. The basic Major or minor chords are “Tertian Triads” (a group of 3 pitches/notes, that are spaced an interval of a 3rd from each other). So you take the Root of the Major scale, that is C.. Then you take a note an interval of a 3rd from it, which is the 3rd degree of the scale, E, and then you take another note an interval of a 3rd from that, which is the 5th degree of the scale, G.

Step 3

Place the notes (of the C Major chord) in order.. C E G, which are the 1st, 3rd and 5th degrees of the Natural Major Scale starting on C (or the C Major scale)

According to the Formula of the Major chord, which is 1 3 5.. you have taken the notes 1 3 5 of the Major scale having the same root as the chord that you want to make.

You can repeat this same procedure

• with the D Major scale, which will give you the notes D F# A - D Major triad
• and the E Major scale, which will give you the notes E G# B - E Major triad
• and the F Major scale, which will give you the notes F A C - F Major triad
• and the G Major scale, which will give you the notes G B D - G Major triad
• and the A Major scale, which will give you the notes A C# E - A Major triad
• and the B Major scale, which will give you the notes B D# F# - B Major triad

and it can also be repeated for the Db, Eb, Gb, Ab, Bb Major chords as well..

Constructing the Minor Chord

Now if you wish to form a minor chord, again say with C as the root, the Formula of the minor chord is 1 b3 5.. So you can repeat the Steps 1, 2 and 3.. and then flatten the 3rd degree of the scale.. Since C was 1, E was 3, G was 5, you can flatten the E and make it Eb.. And so C E G (the C Major triad) becomes C Eb G (the C minor triad)

So the formula for the minor chord becomes 1 b3 5, which can be applied to the Natural Major scale of the same root as the minor chord that you wish to form. Now flatting the 3rd on each of the Major triads, you will get the minor triads.

• Flatten the 3rd on the D Major triad D F# A to D F A - D minor triad
• Flatten the 3rd on the E Major triad E G# B to E G B - E minor triad
• Flatten the 3rd on the F Major triad F A C to F Ab C - F minor triad
• Flatten the 3rd on the G Major triad G B D to G Bb D - G minor triad
• Flatten the 3rd on the A Major triad A C# E to A C E - A minor triad
• Flatten the 3rd on the B Major triad B D# F# to B D F# - B minor triad

It may be helpful to compare the intervals in a Major chord and a minor chord.

In a major triad - 1 3 5

• The interval between the Root and the 3 is a major 3rd [4 semitones]
• The interval between the 3rd and the 5th is a minor 3rd [3 semitones]
• The interval between the Root and the 5th is a Perfect 5th [7 semitones]

Incase of a minor triad - 1 b3 5

• The interval between the Root and the Flatted 3rd is NOW a minor 3rd [3 semitones]
• The interval between the Flatted 3rd and the 5th is NOW a major 3rd [4 semitones]
• The interval between the Root and the 5th is STILL a Perfect 5th [7 semitones]

So by keeping that in mind, any Major or minor chord can be formed by locating the notes on a single string as well.. If the Root of a chord is taken on fret 5 of the G string [C], a note 4 semitones up would be fret 9 [E], and a note a further 3 semitones up would be fret 12 [G], thus the C Major chord.

Similarly if the Root of a chord is taken on fret 5 of the G string [C], a note 3 semitones up would be fret 9 [Eb], and a note a further 4 semitones up would be fret 12 [G], thus the C minor chord.

Dr. Furqan Ali Shah - furqan84@hotmail.com

For most guitarists, a tuner is an essential piece of kit. Many of us also like to use a metronome when practicing to help keep good time. Whilst chord books make pretty dull reading, they are useful to quickly look up the odd complex chord. What if you could have all of these in one iPod shaped device…

What They Say

"Essential guitar utilities, including an amazingly flexible tuner and a library of over 1500 chord variations, all on your iPhone."

Features

• Chromatic Tuner with over 40 different tunings
• Scale references - touch each note to hear it
• Chord library with over 260 chord maps giving over 1500 different chords
• Adjustable metronome with visible flash, tab beat and multiple different sounds
• Support for 6 string and 12 string guitar, 4 and 5 string bass.
• Left hand mode for chords and scales

The app is available in English, and requires an iPhone or iPod touch with the iPhone 2.0 software or later.

In Use

I normally tune my guitars with my Boss GT10 or the TU-80 (the latter mainly for my acoustic). I wasn’t able to test the tuner on the Guitar Toolkit because I have a 1st Generation iPod Touch. With the latest firmware update, Apple have enabled the audio input capabilities of the 1st Gen iPod Touch using the dock connector. iPhones and 2nd Gen iPod Touch owners can use the built in microphone or the headphone microphone. I am hoping to get hold of a dock connector style microphone and will update the article afterwards.

The app is well made - a clean user interface and simple controls. The info button could have been a little bigger as it’s easy to miss on some of the configurable options. That was my only gripe. The fretboard is smart and the notes are marked with large clear discs so that you can easily identify the notes in the chord or scale.

The chord library is concise and has just over 1500 different chords based on 260 or so variations. You get the basic major and minor chords as well as augmented, diminished and suspended chords. The library also contains some chord inversions and also displays a couple of different positions for the same chord. These are easy to select - choose the root note, the chord type and then the position or inversion and the chord will show up on the fretboard. You can use the touch display to enlarge the guitar neck so that it’s easier to read.

The metronome is simple, but does everything you need. The tone can be changed to a number of different two-tone sounds and the time signature can also be set. The controls are simple; a button to turn the metronome on and off, and a scroller to adjust the tempo. You can also tap the tempo manually by holding one finger on the button and then tapping in time with another finger on the screen. Quite cool.

The scale tool is equally well built. Like the chord library, you simple select a key and a scale type and the fretboard will list all the notes for that scale. You can press each fret to hear the note. This also supports the list of alternate tunings, so you can see the adjusted note positions for the particular tuning you are using.

This video is a screencast from the Guitar Toolkit Website. It shows the main features of the application.

Overall

This is a really simple yet well made application for the iPhone and iPod Touch. You get chords, scales, a tuner and a metronome in one package. Whilst you probably won’t throw an iPod into your gig bag, it’s useful to have to hand. I use the app primarily for looking up some of the more complex chord shapes and it’s really quick and simple. For the sake of £5.99, you can’t really go wrong.

Links

Check out the guitar toolkit website.

You can buy the Guitar Toolkit app from the iTunes store

Getting started with the guitar can be quite daunting. There are thousands of different options out there to choose: guitars, amps and effects. Today we’re taking a look at the Roland Micro Cube amp, a small practice amp aimed at beginners and for home practice.

What They Say

"With the new Micro Cube, guitarists get a genuine Roland Cube amp in an ultra-compact package that even runs on batteries. Weighing in at just few pounds, the Micro Cube packs a big punch and comes with six DSP effects, COSM® Amp modelling and a new Digital Tuning Fork—giving guitarists everything they need for killer tone on the go."

"The Micro-CUBE RED also features a Recording/Headphones output and stereo Aux input for MP3/CD players, etc. Like its predecessor, the new CUBE can be powered on batteries (LR6 (AA) type x 6) or a supplied AC adapter. It also includes a carrying strap."

Features

• Ultra-compact DSP guitar amp with 5-inch/2-watt low magnetic leakage speaker
• Runs on battery or AC power (adapter supplied) and includes carry strap
• 7 COSM guitar amp models including JC-120 and a special mic preamp model
• 6 DSP effects: chorus, flanger, phaser, tremolo and separate Delay/Reverb
• New Digital Tuning Fork with support for flat tunings up to 2 semitones
• Recording/Headphones output and stereo Auxiliary input for CD players, etc.

The amp has a built in touch sensitive tuning tone set to A. Sliding the key switch over can drop this to Ab and again to Abb. This reference not lets to tune to standard, or drop tuned provided you can tune by ear or harmonics. By tapping the button harder, you get a louder reference tone. Since this is a beginners amp, I would have preferred a simple led tuner setup for EADGBE - but on the other hand, it does give you the first lesson in ear training!

The amp is available in black, white and limited edition red.

How Does It Sound

I first heard this amp in my local music store when I was helping a friend get kitted out with his first guitar. I started with a 15watt Ibanez practice amp, went through a few marshalls and I’m now playing a Mesa 50 Rect-O-Verb. When you then go back to playing or listening to any small practice amp, you really don’t get your hopes up. I think because of that, I was thrown back even more by the quality of the sound.

First of all, this amp is tiny - it’s about the size of a car battery. It weighs in at just over 3KG and is fitted with a 5″ speaker. The amp features six different COSM (Composite Object Sound Modeling) amp types which are accessed from one of the dials. The first is the acoustic setting, giving you a clean sound resembling an acoustic guitar. The JC Clean setting is a recreation of the famous Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus guitar amplifier. The Black Panel replicates Fender Twin Reverb amplifier and the Brit Combo is based on the Vox AC30TB. Classic stack produces a Marshall JMP1987 classic rock tone. The position marked R-fier Stack is modelled on a MESA Boogie Rectifier. The dial also has a 7th setting which is for connecting a 1/4″ (6.5mm) microphone jack lead.

COSM is found across many of the Boss and Roland products, so the quality of the effects is very good. The amp gives you a good spread of sounds and hence can cater for several different styles of music. I was very impressed when I heard it for the first time - you don’t expect that sort of sound from this level of amp.

The inbuilt effects are equally good. The first EFX dial gives you a choice of chorus, flanger, phaser or tremolo and the second gives you delay or reverb. The effects are on a graduated scale that lets you adjust the amount of that particular effect in the signal path. It’s a basic setup, but you can fairly easily get a good sound together.

Due to the size of the amp, there’s no way you could get the normal Bass / Mid / Treble EQ dials. Instead, the Cube has a single tone control ranging from low to high. Pretty basic again, but it gives a broad response and this is enough to tweak your sound effectively. The downside of the size of the amp (and hence the speaker) is that it can’t play very loudly - or more importantly, the low end, and deeper notes are lost. Despite the really nice COSM amp and effects, the tone has suffered a lot. A larger speaker would help, but that defeats the object of having a small portable amp; for playing at home, and casual practice, it’s not really an issue.

Other Features

The amp has a 1/4″ (6.5mm) headphone / recording output. This lets you practice without disturbing anyone, or you can run it into a recording device. Also on the back panel are two input ports for plugging in other sound sources like an iPod so that you can play along to your favourite songs. The inputs are 1/4″ (6.5mm) and 1/8″ (3.5mm).

The Cube comes with a small hand carry strap. This is attached to the amp with 2 standard guitar pins, so you can always swap the hand strap for a full-sized guitar strap and sling it over your shoulder. As noted earlier, it’s only 3.3KG so nothing too heavy to carry around.

Overall

What a brilliant little amp. When you play through this, you can’t help but smile. It packs a lot of sounds into one small, and very affordable amp with a name you can trust. For anyone looking to get into playing electric guitar - you won’t go far wrong with this amp.

Roland also have a number of models up in the range, so you have a progression of amps to work up to. I wasn’t able to test the battery life myself (as I used the 9V wall adapter) but 6 AA (LR6) batteries should last up to about 20 hours tops.

This is well worth getting hold of, and worth reccomending to people that may be thinking of taking up the guitar. It gets 2 thumbs up from me.

If you have ever been to a concert and seen a band play, you will know that feeling you get when they play one of your favourite tracks. It’s a total buzz. Terje Sørgjerd is a music photographer from Norway - and he managed to capture that essence of a live show with his photographs.

"These photographs have been produced to show you the intimate visual connection shared between the artist and the audience. If you take a look at the photos, you’ll get a sense of the emerging energy shared between them. It is my intention to present-through the medium of photography-intuitive observations of the connection which may have meaning to spectators."

"Terje is a concert photographer who has continued to be involved with festivals and concerts around scandinavia. Having contributed heavilty to many festivals, magazines and band portfolios. He also has a deep affinity for the music scene, rock and truely intimate concerts. Terje is an official photographer for Roskilde and Øyafestivalen. He has won several awards for his rock photos.&quot

Please visit Terje’s website and take a look at the other great photos he has taken.

Crack the Skye is the fourth studio album, released on the 24th March, by American progressive metal band Mastodon. Influenced (in their words) by Tsarist Russia, astral travel, out of body experiences and Stephen Hawking’s theories on wormholes. Can it top the success of Blood Mountain?

Background

Mastodon have been gaining pace ever since the release of their first full length album "Remission" back in 2002. Each album they release has been an energetic pounding on the senses; a combination of powerful guitar riffing, intricate melodies and a unique styles of vocals. This has meant an ever increasing fan base, bigger tours and more awards and recognition in a pretty saturated metal market.

The band has been on tour, playing the Mayhem Festival last year and then with Slayer on the The Unholy Alliance tour. It has also been announced that they will support Metallica this year on the World Magnetic Tour.

What’s It Like

I could just write "brilliant" and leave it as that, but lets dig a bit deeper. "Crack the Skye" takes a slight turn of style after the award winning and frantic "Blood Mountain". The subject matter revolves around Tsarist Russia, Astral Travel and a quadriplegic (stay with me), as drummer Bradd Dailor explained in an earlier interview:

"It’s about a crippled young man who experiments with astral travel. He goes up into outer space, goes too close to the sun, gets his golden umbilical cord burned off, flies into a wormhole, is thrust into the spirit real, has conversations with spirits about the fact that he’s not really dead, and they decide to help him. They put him into a divination that’s being performed by an early-20th-century Russian Orthodox sect called the Klisti, which Rasputin is part of."

"Knowing Rasputin is about to be murdered, they put the young boy’s spirit inside of Rasputin. Rasputin goes to usurp the throne of the czar and is murdered by the Yusupovs, and the boy and Rasputin fly out of Rasputin’s body up through the crack in the sky and head back. Rasputin gets him safely back into his body."

The lyrics do speak of some pretty odd things, but the guitar work is really great. Each of the 7 track is filled with a mix of bounding meaty riffs complimented with some melodic and progressive lead guitar runs from Brent Hinds. Scott Kelly of Neurosis makes a guest appearance on the title track and there are two 10 minute plus tracks in the form of "The Czar" and "The Last Baron". Both of these are real epics, taking you on a weird voyage into the stars!

Track Listing

1. “Oblivion” - 5:47
2. “Divinations” - 3:39
3. “Quintessence” - 5:27
4. “The Czar: I. Usurper - II. Escape - III. Martyr - IV. Spiral” - 10:54
5. “Ghost of Karelia” - 5:25
6. “Crack the Skye” - 5:54
7. “The Last Baron” - 13:01

Overall

This album proves that Mastodon can deliver the goods again and again. Some may find the concept of Rasputin, and time travel rather strange, but then this isn’t your average run of the mill metal band. Best guitar work is probably found on "Quintessence" but each track has its own slice of greatness. Well worth picking up a copy.

We’d like to encourage more people to learn to play the guitar (the one with the frets, not the buttons) and to help you, we’ve been lucky enough to get a copy of the "Start A Rock Band" video lesson pack from the guys at NextLevelGuitar - grab a real guitar and let’s rock!

Background

Since 2005, the Guitar Hero series has seen massive worldwide success breaking the $1 billion total sales barrier. They now have 8 different titles of game available to Playstation, Nintendo Wii, XBox and also on PC / Mac.

Two years later saw the release of the first Rock Band game, followed in 2008 by the sequel Rock band 2. The game has similar gameplay and controllers as the Guitar Hero series. As of March this year, Rock band has also reached the $1 billion total sales figure.

These two games have captivated a staggering amount of people however musicians and guitar tutors have been divided in their views of whether the game encourages people to progress to a real instrument, or remain glued to a TV screen.

What They Say

"Basically we have a full on instructional website where we teach students all over the world how to play guitar or how to get their playing to the next level. Our site has over 450 video lessons, written lessons, gear demos and reviews, chord library, forum, and much more. Its a membership site and has lessons for beginners, intermediates and advanced players."

The Start A Rock Band pack is a set of lessons designed to get you playing some of the tracks from the Guitar Hero game series.

What You Get

The Start a Rock Band pack contains 12 DVDs with the following songs:

• “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” - Pat Benatar
• “Sweet Home Alabama” - Lynyrd Skynyrd
• “Black Magic Woman” - Santana
• “You Really Got Me” - The Kinks
• “More Than A Feeling” - Boston
• “Dust In The Wind” - Kansas
• “Smoke On The Water” - Deep Purple
• “Detroit Rock City” - Kiss
• “American Pie” - Don McLean
• “La Grange” -ZZ Top
• “Free Bird” - Lynyrd Skynyrd
• “Barracuda” - Heart

The DVDs

The DVDs come in a plastic case so that you can keep them all together - they are printed with the song name and the NextLevelGuitar branding - all very professional so far.

Each DVD provides an introduction to the song - normally a quick play through the opening bars. You’re then given a menu to select the specific sections of the song that you wish to focus on - the main riffs, the bridge, solos, outro etc etc.

Each section is well explained, with chord patterns and progressions displayed on screen. The instructors offer words of encouragement, and they genuinely look like they are enjoying playing and teaching you the lesson. So many "pro" instructional DVDs are more of an ego booster or showcase to that particular artist and probably don’t really help you much! These guys really want to help you play better - personally I found that motivated me to spend more time learning.

This is an example of one of the video lessons:

Various parts of the lessons also show a very close zoomed shot of the left hand that helps you see the finger positions and notes played. Again, this is shown at a slow pace so it’s really easy to follow. However, sometimes it does feel a little slow progressing through the more simple songs, but the pack is intended more for the beginner player. The pace of learning the solos is just about right (from my point of view anyway).

There isn’t a great deal of theory (which again for the intended audience is probably a good thing) but when it is covered - it helps to give you a little understanding as to why some notes are played over certain chords. Generally this will be based on notes in a scale and chords from a certain key - most of the theory is wrapped up in its own chapter on the DVD so you can skip it if you want to just get on with learning the track.

The pack doesn’t come with any printed material such as chord boxes or tablature. Their website does have some material, but it would be nice to have a hard copy to read along with the video itself.

Overall

The Start a Rock Band DVD pack is a great tool to help you get to grips with some of the Guitar Hero classic tracks. Each DVD is split up into logical sections and the licks and riffs are played through at a speed that almost saves you having to even stop the DVD to learn certain bits. It’s perfect for people that are making the transition to real guitars from the Guitar Hero games.

I have been playing for a few years, but the Free Bird lesson by Jennifer Gamble helped me learn some slide guitar. Something I’d probably have never even thought about doing before.

To give a fair review, there are a few things that would help improve the DVD pack. I would like to have seen a short section for each song that explains the guitar and amp settings that they use. Quite often I hear beginners that suffer just as much with the setup as they do with learning the song. Ear training will develop, but as a kick start - a brief overview of the "sound" would be great.

It would be helpful to have a hard copy of the guitar tablature to accompany the videos. This is a useful reference and having it in front of you helps to visualise the patterns and postions of chords and notes.

Lastly, and this is just personal preference, but having a bit more of a mix of songs would be good. The classics are great but I’d like to have seen a couple of more modern rock tracks or one of the metal tracks. Like I said - personal preference and this may be just one of several guitar packs.

The pack comes in at $99 which is a good price given that each DVD is around the 2 hour mark and you get 12 DVDs (songs) in the pack. The lessons are clear and well explained - lots of close up shots to show the hand positions, and the media quality itself is good. For the budding guitar heros out there - I reccomend this.

Special thanks to David Taub for sorting this pack out for me. Very helpful and an all round nice guy - thanks.

Visit their site over at nextlevelguitar.com or check out some of the free lessons on their youtube channel.

Earthsblood is the fifth studio offering from American heavy metallers God Forbid, released on February 16 in Europe and February 24 in North America. The album is co-produced by ex-Fear Factory bassist / guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers. Brace yourself - it’s rather heavy.

Background

This summer is going to be a one for God Forbid. This month they are on playing across the US and Canada on the No Fear Energy Music Tour with the likes of Lamb of God and Children of Bodom. In July they are playing at the Rockstar Mayhem Festival with Slayer, Trivium, Bullet For My Valentine, Marylin Manson (looks like a cracking lineup). Unfortunately last month Dallas Coyle announced that he would not be on the US tour, leading to rumors of his departure from the band. Later confirmed by his brother and bandmate Doc Coyle, we now know this to be true. His replacement on the tour will be former Darkest Hour guitarist Kris Norris.

What’s It Like

"Earthsblood" opens with a symphonic track "The Discovery" that slowly raises the intensity to prepare you for the rest of the album. "The Rain", "Empire of the Gun" and "War of Attrition" are a mix of heavy half time riffs combined with rapid thrash outbursts. The vocals are brutal, and the doubled parts just add to this effect. "The New Clear" gives you a welcome break from what is a fairly average album so far. A more dynamic track that changes between clean and agressive vocals over some progressive sounding guitar parts. The track still dives back into the monolithic death metal sludge, but this gives a much better contrast to the track. One of the best on the album.

"Shallow" picks the pace up again, and features some great guitar including a nice closing solo. "Walk Alone" is another blend of heavy growls combined with some great guitar work and clean vocals for the chorus. A couple of nice solos. "Bat the Angels" is a pretty good track - doubled up vocal parts, melodic guitar parts and even a refrain in the middle of the song that I’m sure is part of "In the Halls of the Mountain King"

The album closes with 2 more tracks in a similar vein to "Bat the Angels". I think the tracks should have been re-ordered in reverse!

Track Listing

1. “The Discovery” - 1:43
2. “The Rain” - 5:21
3. “Empire of the Gun” - 4:43
4. “War of Attrition” - 4:27
5. “The New Clear” - 6:36
6. “Shallow” - 3:31
7. “Walk Alone” - 6:14
8. “Bat the Angels” - 6:06
9. “Earthsblood” - 9:03
10. “Gaia (The Vultures)” - 7:17

Overall

A pretty average album towards the start, but becoming more progressive and intricate towards the end. The sound isn’t anything new or inspiring, but there are a few hidden gems in amongst the more monotonous metalcore parts. Fans of God Forbid will enjoy this, the rest of you will just have to make up your own minds

Sonisphere is a relativley new rock festival held at Knebworth House in Hertfordshire over the August bank holiday. The lineup this year looks crushingly heavy!

Headlining this year are Metallica, Linkin Park, Machine Head and Avenged Sevenfold. This is also the only chance to see these 4 bands play outdoors this year.

Also confirmed are Nine Inch Nails, Anthrax, Alice in Chains, Thin Lizzy, Feeder, Taking Back Sunday, Skindred, Frank Turner, The Sword, Mastodon, Airbourne, Killing Joke, and Lamb Of God.

The festival has camping which is open from 3pm on Thursday and closes at midday on Monday. There are a limited number of lockers as well.

Tickets are on sale NOW!

Weekend tickets are priced at £132.50, or £157.50 with camping. Lockers are priced at £10, and parking is also £10 in advance or £20 on the day. And early arrival camping entry ticket is priced at £10, and tickets for camper vans are priced at £40.

Entry to the festival will now be free of charge for under 12s. Parents should purchase their own tickets and then take their child with them to the Box Office on arrival to be issued with a complementary wristband.

You can read the latest news from the Sonisphere Website and you can get tickets to the UK event from Ticketmaster.

Guitar fretboards are a mecca for the dirt and grime from your fingers. Washing your hands before playing, and wiping the strings down after playing will help to reduce this, but sometimes you need to give it a proper spring clean. Dunlop has a product just for this purpose.

This isn’t supposed to be a guide on how to care for your guitar fretboard, but for the purposes of explaining this product, I will cover the basics.

Background

Guitar fretboards are primarily made from rosewood, ebony and maple. These woods are dense and aside from maple, they are left untreated. Maple is normally finished with a very thin covering of varnish or lacquer. Maple is much lower maintenance because of this coating. You can normally use a clean cloth to wipe away the grime around the fret wire, or you can look for a product specifically for maple fretboards. So, for rosewood, ebony and other untreated woods, you should only use a good quality lemon oil.

They Say

"Fretboard 65 is specially formulated to clean away grime and return your guitar’s fretboard to its original luster, quickly and easily. Apply a thin coating using Dunlop’s Dab-O-Matic applicator top, work the gunk free, and wipe clean. It’s that simple. And once the dirt is gone, Fretboard 65 will help keep it away by providing an invisible sealant against stains and moisture. Player tested, tech approved—Fretboard 65 Ultimate Lemon Oil will clean up the mess that the music business leaves behind."

Lemon Oil

Pure lemon oil is contains around 90% of a compound called d-limonene, found in the skins of lemons and oranges. It’s is a strong solvent - meaning that in this form it has the ability to break down glue, paint, grease and wax. Using this on a guitar fretboard could do some bad damage.

Don’t use any products containing silicon or wax. Silicon can damage the wood over time and are best avoided. Wax will block the surface of the wood, and actually encourage more dirt. Furniture polish sprays are also best left in the cupboard. Apart from the fact they they often contain silicone, they can leave a bad finish on the wood. Why risk it?

Dunlop 65 Lemon oil is an evolution of two products; 01 Fingerboard Cleaner and 02 Fingerboard Deep Conditioner so it will clean first and nourish the fretboard afterwards.

How it works

Firstly, you will need to remove your old strings to get proper access to the fretboard. This may also be a good time to fix any problems with worn frets - if you know how to do that.

Unscrew the cap and turn the bottle upside down and give it a bit of a squeeze to get the solution onto the brush applicator. Work parallel to the frets and apply a very fine layer all over the wood, right up to the edges of the fret wire.

I like to leave the solution on for a few minutes so that it can start to work out the grime from the wood. 5 minutes or so should do. Then, take a soft cloth and wipe off each fret thoroughly. You can use your nail, or the edge of a plectrum under the cloth to clean right up against the fret wire - normally where the worst gunk is!

Go over the frets again with a clean part of the cloth, and make sure they are as dry as you can get. Pop on some new strings and you’re done.

In Summary

This is another great product from Dunlop. It smells great and you can see that after it has soaked into the wood - that it looks much better - like your fretboard has been cared for properly. You don’t want to do this each time you change your strings (a good wipe down with a cloth is enough) but it’s worth doing every 8-10 months. Your mileage may vary depending on a number of factors such as how much you play the guitar and the conditions that you store your instrument in. Over-use can cause damage to the wood and may also loosen the fret wire.

The applicator brush isn’t brilliant at getting right up to the egdes of the frets, and also a bit of a task to use it anywhere above the 15th fret. Nothing that you can’t fix with a cloth and a bit of elbow grease. It may be worth buying a toothbrush to help clean off any stubborn grime.

The bottle is 4oz (118ml) and will last you ages. It cost me £5 and I highly recommend it.

Any guitar that’s played on a regular basis will accumilate layers of dust and general grime. Fingerprints and other oily residue from fingerprints will tarnish the finish of the guitar. There are many different products on the market, but we are going to take a look at Dunlop’s Formula 65 Cleaner and Polish.

They Say

"Cleans totally and quickly. Restores any finish to its original luster. Leaves a micro-thin, resistant protective layer and won’t build up. Perfect for daily use."

In Use

The solution is a little thicker than water, and judging from the smell, it contains isopropyl alcohol. This is the same sulition as CD cleaner and computer screen cleaning wipes.

Because of this, you should only use it on polyester or polyurethane finishes - as found on most low to mid range electric guitars. Nitro-cellulose finishes on higher end electrics/acoustics, and also French Polish on classical guitars will be damaged by isopropyl alcohol. It will actually start to eat into the finish, and dissolve some of it away!

The solution also contains a polish solution that comes into play after the isopropyl alcohol has evaporated. It leaves a very thin residue that can be buffed with a clean cloth produce a bright shine. You can use this solution on a regular basis, but it’s easiest when you are replacing your strings as you can get proper access to the area around the pickups.

Hard to photograph the dirt - Guitar Before

Spray a couple of couple of times onto the guitar body (a little goes a long way), and then use a cloth to work over the surface to remove finderprints and other dirt. I use a large clean soft cloth to wipe away the isoproply alcohol, and then fine a dry bit to buff up the polish to make the guitar shine. You could always use another cloth for the polishing, but I didn’t find it necessary. Dunlop also sell a couple of guitar cleaning / polishing cloths.

Reflection - Great shine after polishing.

Overall

The cleaner does a great job at removing any traces of oil or grease (fingerprints) and the polish does leave an good shine. The polish does not cover fine scratches as some people have claimed - I don’t see this as a downside as it’s not what the product was designed to fix. If fine scratches are an issue, try Dunlop cream of Carnauba wax (which we will review in the near future). The cleaner is available in a 4 fl oz / 118 ml bottle, and will last you ages. Overall, this is another good quality product from Dunlop’s guitar maintenance range.

Staying in tune is probably the most fundamental thing to playing a guitar. Boss offeres a number of different tuners, from rack mount, to stomp boxes to hand held tuners for your gig bag. Today we’re taking a look at the Boss TU-80.

They Say

"The BOSS TU-80 brings super-accurate LCD tuning to a very affordable price, while adding unique features like a built-in metronome and Accu-Pitch™. The pocket-sized TU-80 runs on batteries and can tune almost any instrument, thanks to a chromatic tuning mode. It even tunes 7-string guitars and 6-string basses—putting the TU-80 in a class all its own."

Specifications

• Reference Pitch - A4=435 Hz-446 Hz (1 Hz steps)
• Tuning Range - E0(20.6 Hz) to C8(4186.0 Hz)
• Internal Tuning Accuracy - +/-1 cent
• Metronome Tempo - 30-250bpm
• Power Source - Dry Battery (R6/LR6 (AA) Type) x 2

Available in Black

… or White!

In Use

It’s a bit difficult to review something as basic as a tuner, but there are a few features that make this a good bit of kit.

The range of the tuner is large, spanning almost 8 octaves, and this means it’s not just restricted to guitars and bass instruments. I have heard of one person using it for an organ! The tuner isn’t really aimed for live performances (as with the TU-1000 Stage Tuner or the TU-2 Pedal) but you can still place it in your signal path.

The TU-80 features a metronome that lets you alter the time signature as well as the tempo. The LCD shows a neddle moving in time to the tempo, and the 2 LEDs also flash in time.

The TU-80 has a built in microphone for acoustic guitars. The AccuPitch electronics respond with a beep to let you know that the note is exactly in tune. The tuner can be set to bass or guitar - this indicates the string and note played, or it can be set to chromatic in which case the note and the octave is displayed.

Overall

The TU-80 is a very simple bit of kit, but it does everything you ask of it. Built well, weighs nothing and the batteries last for ages. I got mine for just under £20. If you want a downside to it - the metronome volume is quite low and cannot be adjusted. A solid performer.

More details and the user manuals can be found on the TU-80 product page on the Boss Website.

The lifespan of a set of guitar strings will vary depending on the brand of strings, the amout they are played, and how much grime and sweat is deposited onto the strings as you are playing. Typically, a nice new set of strings will lose their bright, swishy sound after about a week or two, before gradually becoming dull and muddy. A couple of months later - they will need to be replaced. If you’re playing in a band, or on a more regular basis - the lifespan will be far less.

What Is It?

GHS Fast Fret is branded as a “String and Neck Lubricant / String Cleaner for All Stringed Instruments.”

GHS Fast Fret is a bit cheaper than a packet of new strings, and improves the lifespan of a string, keeping it sounding bright for longer. As the name suggests, it also has an effect on the speed at which you navigate the fretboard.

The GHS website says: “Not a spray! Contains no silicone. It’s a liquid in an applicator. Use it on strings, fretboard, back of neck. Lets fingers slide freely, keeps strings clean, is good for wood.”

How Does it Work?

The product comes in a small tube, you get a cloth and the applicator - a wooden block with a material block on one end, soaked in the special liquid. To apply it, you simply wipe the applicator up and down your strings firmly, but no so hard as to force droplets of the liquid out of the applicator. I found it best to work up and down in pairs of strings E&A, D&G, B&E, covering them with 2 or 3 wipes.

This has now treated the strings with the fluid, which you can leave on to act as a lubricant to help reduce the friction against your fingers (which is where the claim to make you play faster comes from), or wipe it off to clean the strings.

You can also apply the product to the back of the guitar neck to help your hand slide more easily. This did help a little, but not really worth it in my opinion.

The Verdict.

Fast Fret was recommended to me by a friend, and for around £5 it’s a no-brainer! I tried it on my acoustic guitar first of all, and whilst the appearence of the strings didn’t change, the sound was slightly more bright and clean. I had only recently put new strings on it, so I wasn’t expecting a great difference. The second thing I noticed was the reduced friction between my fingers and the strings. The liquid is a white mineral oil, and this leaves a pleasant smelling residue on the strings (and your fingers if you don’t use the cloth), and whilst it’s not going to make you play like a guitar god, it does give you a little extra freedom of movement.

I had read through numerous other user comments, and people complained about 2 things. Firstly, the product does not clean under the strings and secondly the residue on the strings. Personally - I can’t see either of these points being an issue. Firstly, to clean under the strings - I applied a good amount of the product up and down the strings, and then folded the cloth in half so that it sat above and below the strings. I then held it at either end keeping the cloth taught, and ran it up and down the strings so that it cleaned the top and bottom. This clearly worked as I ended up with 6 grey lines on the cloth where the grime had come off!

Secondly, the user comments regarding the residue - the cloth will remove pretty much all of this. Just keep wiping the strings. It’s really not an issue.

In Summary

It did help loosen off the grime on my electric guitar strings, and the oil helps to slide around the frets a little more easily. I didn’t notice a staggering difference in the string brightness, and I will have to report back later on if the strings last any longer than ususal. The brightness of the strings did increase after a couple of applications.

Overall, you can’t really go wrong with the price, and this product will last a long time, so it’s well worth a try.