I ask this question to myself all the time. I will sit/stand and practice for
a couple of hours and when I'm done, I realize that nobody I know wants
to hear it or gives a shit.

It's not popular music that I practice (Death, MA, Slayer) around this area.
There's no real scene for this stuff around here. The scene is around nu
metal and that totally blows. I shred for the sole purpose of enjoying it. I
love to shred for the majority of my practice time but I jam with some guys
once a week and we do classic rock acoustic (The Guess Who, Allman Bros,
etc.) I enjoy that stuff too and it makes me a better all around guitarist.

Half the time I find myself wanting to shred with some other shredders. I've
been looking for this one guy in town because I've met him some time ago but
don't know where he lives. He's a shredder but I haven't got a hold of him
yet. We'll see where that turns up.

Really, besides the sheer enjoyment of shredding:

Does shredding get you anywhere in life?

(oh ya, Masked Jackal is on the radio (coroner)) gotta go.

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sure, playing in bands for me.

if you can't find guys to jam with, its just enjoyment for yourself, it might not get you anywhere at THAT moment, but later on if you ever find some lads to jam with you'll have some mad chops.

you just to need find more shredders in your area, and you'll feel more motivated
you could always move
so work on your chops now, so when you move, you won't suck 'cause you haven't been practicing

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Does anything get you anywhere in life? It you just shred then no. But if you make good enjoyable music then yes.

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who fucken cares if noone likes it....aslong as you do it shouldnt matter..

also try advertising in local guitar shops for band members...

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I could never find myself ONLY shredding. But the facts are, shredders are obviously the most technical guitar players (some) and they make up things that are mindblowing. Just listen to that and improvise your own style of playing, including chops you learn from shredding. You'll come up with some interesting stuff...

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shredding is worthwhile if you think its worthwhile.

apart from advancing your technical proficiency on the guitar/or bass, shredding is good for just making you feel good.

i mean, why the fuck would you play something if your heart is not in it? just the action of shredding is good enough.

now, if you wanna sell and become a guitar god, well, thats something else, thats a bonus. so basically, just enjoy it, and challenge yourself to do better, coz to me, thats what shred is about- self betterment.

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Shredders scare the crap out of me. They play too fast.

But with that out of the way - After a point, I get bored with speed. But hey, if you enjoy it, then go for it! I know there's a lot of people that like listening to shred - it's just not my cup of tea.

to me, shredding is mainly a tool to completely remove any barrier between my heart and my instrument. when i have some insane chops, i'll have the control necessary to do anything that i want with my guitar, so i'll be able to just let it pour out.

does playing guitar get you anywhere? most likely, no. well, i can get you girls, hehe. but there's no shredding scene anymore, not even an interest in solos for the popular music, so you just gotta do it cuz you like to do it. what else is more important? it's relaxation, a creative outlet, and something very fun and rewarding.

What is shredding?
A type of playing?
I would believe I does it, but I don't know the name...

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Just a thought: does posting on a forum get you anywere in life?

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Its very fast and technical playing. Usually moving your hands all over the neck and playing crazy scales and arpeggios. I heard some players can reach 24 notes a second...I don't know if thats true but some players I wouldn't be suprised.

Theres different styles of shredding too. Theres the boring neo-classical Yngwie Malmsteen, the fastest mother fucker alive Michael Angelo, the smooth jazzy yet original style of Steve Vai or Neil Zaza, but mainly they are really fast and tend to get kind of boring. I really like Steve Vai probobly the best because he comes up with amazing melodies...and thats what music is about. When he plays real fast its played at the appropriate timing which sounds very cool and can send chills running down your spine. But the players that play fast from beginning to end just overkill it.

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of course. It gets you tons of pussy and a career that can allow you to retire at age 50 with millions of dollars. And more pussy.

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postin on a forum helps you ask other people about things.. i'm the biggest shredder around, lol, and i'm still practicing the shit out of sweeps because i can't do them. readin darko's sweeps/scales posts and shit is great help. and lots of gear knowledge is good, too. my friends here all like marshalls exclusively, and i'm glad that i know better than that now lol.

a lot of people get bored by classical music, so neoclassical shredding isn't for them. i like it a lot, but i don't listen to it all the time. yeah, vai has some sweet shit.. he does it quite nicely. satch is also pretty good with nice melodies. i might favor steve morse above both of them, though.. he's a lot of fun to listen to and doesn't get boring for me.

Yeah, well I guess it depends on what your goals are. I have been trying to increase my speed ever since I got my strat last year. I admit, I fret wank and shred to no particular melody but for the purpose of hitting a shitload of notes.

I do scales, attempt sweeps, arpeggios, etc. but I can only do so much on my own. They say that you gotta play with others to learn the good stuff (tricks, tips, etc.) I've looked at local postings in music stores, local forums and things like that.

It's like what Mctrip said and that the scene blows. No soloists in mainstream anymore, just look at Metallica. Dropped tunings and no leads. (By the way, grammy's last night-some rapper got album of the year). What? no cannibal corpse?? he he.

I suppose a lot of things in life are pointless. Perhaps this is too large a question. Not for me, but for future guitarists. There's no money for them in this scene. How are they gonna make a living doing metal (ie good metal)?

I started too late in life to make a difference but my main goal is to do a metal gig live on stage to a crowd who really wants to be there for the music.

Hence, I will continue to shred until I make it happen. (or sell out!!!)




solos

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That is definatly not true. I didn't know one person that played gutiar or one person that liked metal until I moved here a couple months ago. I taught myself everything by sitting in my room and myself experimenting. Not to brag but I don't think theres an arpeggio I can't do Well theres some but they can be accomplished with a lot of practice.

fuck teachers.

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I totally agree. Perhaps I was being a bit confusing.

I am a beginner guitarist so I like to learn from both people and on my own. Half the deal is trial and error. Playing with others will reduce the time it takes to learn or figure things out. You still need others for timing, chemistry, teamwork, etc. (trying not to sound like a fluff). There's a time and place for jamming. I practice solo alot but then I want to execute it with others but no one's around. I'm still looking around and still shredding.

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I like shredding.....too bad I can't do much of it....

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Who cares? If you have to ask then just dont shred or play guitar at all, just play sum gay sport

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Does shredding get you anywhere in life? That doesn't matter. I just want to say that I really respect the guy who began this post (can't remember his name). When he said that he also played the acoustic, I could tell that he must be for real. Not very many of my friends play, and one that does thinks acoustic is only for country music, and that's not true at all. This guy wants to be a well rounded player. So, Does shredding get you anywhere in life? He doesn't have to ask that. He'll get very far in his talents with his mindset.

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and Party_Time_2000 (looked up the name), you'll do well, but you'll regret that you didn't begin sooner. I checked your profile. 27. I had been wondering why you sounded so mature about your approach to the guitar.

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Alot of people here play acoustics, for instance me and i know metal=life does also. Have you ever heard opeth??? And zakk wylde can kick sum serious ass on an acoustic. An acoustic just sound like it has so much more emotion thats why there still around, same reason tube amps will never disapear

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just keep on shredding.....

do what u love...not what others expect of you...

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Yeah, i play accoustic too. I have 3 guitars, 2 of wich are accoustic

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Hell yeah, acoustics rock. In my little apartment, we have 4 electrics, and 3 acoustics. You just can't replace their sweet sound sometimes. I love my Alvarez Artist.. 75th anniversary commemorative issue! Midnight special. It's all black, so still has a pretty mean look to it, but the sounds it makes can't be replaced. Gotta love acoustics.

I think that playing guitar, no matter what kind of playing you do, will get you somewhere in life. You'll have the satisfaction of doing something that you love, no matter what else happens. Well, you could go to jail, or have to sell off your shit, but damn, that would suck. As long as I can keep my guitars, I'm set. Anybody know that blue picasso of an old mn holding onto his classical acoustic? That's the shit, and I have a cheap print of it up on my wall. Everybody thinks it's all blue and sad, but I think it's awesome.. there's this old, skinny assed man hunched over and tired, but he's got his guitar, so he's all good. That's what guitar will get you.. something that never leaves. Shredding or acoustic, however you play.

My town is surrounded by people who enjoy punk, nu-metal, and metalcore. I just incorporate shred techniques (sweeps, bullshit fast trem. picking, divebombs, pinching, etc.) and stuff into that type of music. It really brings out a totally different style (like sweeping for punk). I'd suggest trying it since it is only the notes that are changing, not the actual feel. As for acoustic, I feel you need a quality acoustic to actually like it (mine sucks ). I think I'm going to get a Fender classical soon and pull off some flamenco... -cough-

shredding only really makes me a faster player,, but I just enjoy it cause its fun

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That's true x2xAreyux2x.

I have thought about incorporating it into some regular stuff that I play. It would totally add some new things to some mundane songs. That's one way to get your bag of tricks out there in the scene.


Metaltabs28:
Yeah, I definately started a little late in life for this hence you found the real reason why I started this thread. This playing style would've totally fitted me in highschool but now those days are over. I went through a phase in college and I almost bought a guitar. I ended up buying one once I graduated because I had no more homework (plenty of free time). I always loved metal from the beginning and I've always wanted to play it. So, overall, I'm trying to satisfy my original desire that I had in highschool-> and that's to shred and play metal.

Of course, I play the acoustic as well to try and be an overall player because I do have friends outside the metal scene. I jam with them doing some classic rock (guess who, kiss, some brit rock).

Funny thing is: my one buddy (not a metal player at all) actually asked me to pick out a death song for him to try out. "Crystal Mountain" He actually practices it. That's how it works: compromise for them, and if they're true to you, they'll return the favour.

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well, the main thing is that you're having fun and developing an eclectic taste in playing styles. And it's great that you're finally able to do something that you always wanted to do. Good luck.

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