I picked up my guitar for the first time in a long time today. My fingers are weak. When I was a kid growing up in the wilds of Coquitlam most my friends played something, usually guitar.
A friend in grade 9 named Adam was pretty good. Him and Dave Younghusband and Drew formed a band called Redrum and later Martyr. I remember that Adam self-taught …himself…to play guitar. He bought Guitar magazine which came with some tabs at the end. And he’d just figure it out. When the internet started getting wired into people’s homes with those Skrillex sounding dial-up modems, Dave’s family had it, and a printer. Whoa… infinity tabs.
The guys would learn all sorts of metal, speed metal, thrash, some punk. It was lots of fun to watch the guys make some noise. I never had the patience for it. Later, I bought a guitar from Alex Harford (I think) for $75. I started thrashing on it (trying to Blink 182 REALLY fast). Before I could get anywhere approaching actual music, someone stepped on it at a party and it broke.
I sucked and I was also broke…so no new guitar.
Then last year I bought one.
But learning shit is hard, so basically I turned my amp up loud after work, and just made noises for awhile. I realized I would never actually learn anything if I left it at work and brought it home. Where is now sits, neglected in the corner. Until today.
Got the hankering to figure out a song and I thought of two. Bear in Heaven’s “Lovesick Teenagers” which is mighty, but I don’t get it. And Beat Happening’s “Indian Summer.” Two chords (and I can play the drums on my maschine). I like your style Beat Happening.
I blogged before about the strange beauty of Beat Happening. I figure if I can get D and G down… you know, that’s something.
Obsessed, OBSESSED!
The tab I found for “Lovesick Teenagers” seems simple enough, maybe 5 chords… basic drums (so I can do that too)…but the execution looks a lot harder than the letters on the screen.
OK, that’s all I got. Beat Happening, yeah groovy. Go with yourself.
The Morning After 