GUITAR TRACKS
AREnD RABY
The Art of Noise
You know what I love about the guitar? If
you’re twisted enough, creative enough, or
destructive enough, you can pretty much
make it do whatever you want. If you ask me,
it’s the defining creative medium of expression for some of our generation’s most memorable compositions. It’s like a piano you can
wear. That said, here’s what I hate about it:
I’m not as good at playing it as I’d like to be!
In fact, I’d wager most of us aren’t. Just like
anything else, the guitar has its heroes and
champions, and those who seem to reach an
altitude where the air is just too thin for the
rest of us aspiring mortals.
location on the pad; the X axis controls one
parameter and the Y axis controls another.
I broke out the Dremel and soldering iron
and built one of these into a guitar for live
performance in an industrial band, after seeing Matt Bellamy do it. It’s incredibly fun,
and you can do really crazy things with delay
feedback and other effects, without reaching
down to tweak a pedal. Just be sure to use a
direct box, as the output of the Kaoss Pad is
line level, not guitar/instrument level.
path, muting the guitar’s output. With a little
timing and practice, this allows you to create
“slice” and “stutter” effects. It’s especially
interesting when combined with slide playing. (Listen to “RPM” by Sugar Ray for a
great example.)
I love to listen to artists ranging from
Larry Carlton to Eddie Van Halen, Fredrik
Thordendal (Mesuggah) to James Taylor, but
I’m often inclined to stop labeling myself a
musician by comparison. I remember reading
an interview with Tom Morello where he was
commenting on his early gigging days and
seeing the guitar players from other bands
warming up. He was floored by how amazing some guys were, and realized he’d have
to do something besides nail a diminished
sweep to be noticed. I think he succeeded
in his tenure with Rage Against the Machine
and Audioslave.
Speaking of delays, a really fun trick is to
set the tap tempo/delay time of a delay to
quarter notes and use the pedal as a harmonizer. If you’re arpeggiating in the correct
Try a special pick. There are a number of
non-standard pick options available these days
that can radically change the sound of your
guitar. I’m a big fan of metal picks, because
I can get really pronounced pick slides, and
playing pinch harmonics is a breeze. Jellyfish
picks are also interesting. They feature a row
of tines, and can create a 12-string effect
when used on a 6-string guitar.
If you’re looking to add a fresh twist
to your playing, here are some fun
things you can try.
intervals, the last arpeggio will repeat as
you’re playing the next one, allowing you to
harmonize with it. This is especially fun with
Line 6’s Sweep Delay effect, which is found
on their DL4 Delay modeler.
Other players in the past couple of decades
have been equally inventive, one of them
being Matt Bellamy from Muse. These guys
have inspired me quite a bit, and made me
step outside the box with my own playing.
If you’re looking to add a fresh twist to your
playing, here are some fun things you can
try with effects and, if you’re really feeling
adventurous, a Dremel tool or router and a
soldering iron—that will set you apart from
the rest of the pack:
I hope you enjoy using some or all of these
suggestions to freshen your playing. I think that
we’re still in the infant stages of where we’ll go
with the electric guitar, as young as the instru-
ment is. I challenge all of you to go out and do
something unique, and make it yours!
The Kaoss Pad, from Korg, is one of the
coolest gadgets for creating guitar effects,
even if it was originally designed as a DJ
piece. It’s a touchpad X-Y controller that’s full
of effects. It allows you to control the sounds
in real time depending on your finger’s
The Sustainer pickup, which is offered in different variations by Fernandes and Jackson, is
an absolute blast to just make noise with, but
also is a great way to get controlled feedback
of harmonics or straight notes. The lower
strings, when sustained under lots of distortion, can sound absolutely huge. This effect is
a big part of the sound of Type O Negative,
which many may know well. The EBow does
something similar to a single string, but without requiring modifications to your guitar, so
it is also worth mentioning here.
A killswitch can be really useful. This is a
momentary switch, usually in the form of a
button, which you can build into the body of
the guitar or wire into a pedal. Pressing the
killswitch momentarily interrupts the signal
Click here to find out how to
install a killswitch in your
guitar. [“Mod Garage,” Dec. 2009]
Arend Raby
Arend has been a Senior Sales Engineer at Sweetwater Sound
since 2002. He has owned the Womb Studio since 1993, has
recorded over 200 rock and metal acts, and is credited on
many major label releases. He is currently working on a solo
guitar-oriented electronic music project. You can reach him at
1-800-222-4700 ext. 1276 or arend_raby@sweetwater.com.
