Embracing Change for Musical Growth!

Keeping things fresh and new can be a practical skill that doesn’t only apply to underwear and socks, but can make a huge impact on your guitar playing. Change can be scary prospect for someone who wants to be accepted as a certain type of artist, but not being open to change can lead to stagnation. Music changes or evolves in cycles. For example -- hip hop and rap was big in the 80’s, then had a serious lull in the 90’s, then in the year 2000 it seemed to re-emerge stronger than ever. Speaking of the 90’s, grunge and new metal all but killed the guitar solo that use to be found in every song, yet today the guitar solo is making a comeback. As you can see, things move in waves and it’s always a good idea to be riding the top of that wave.

Get Creative with Your Playing

A few months back I did a review on Korn’s latest record which is heavily inspired by Dubstep and as I predicted the reaction from fans was 50/50. Former Korn drummer David Silveria recently announced he’s back with a new band that is much more Jane's Addiction/311 than his former nu-metal legacy and again fans are on the warpath already slinging mud because it doesn’t sound like Korn. But this is the conundrum, if you want to grow as a musician you have to open your mind and explore avenues that are outside of your comfort zone. We all love and respect Ynqwie Malmsteen for instance, but in my view he hasn’t written any new music since Odyssey because he stays in his comfort zone and does the same thing record to record. Take a look at John 5 for example, here is a guy who is known for being a very heavily goth inspired artist yet he is a master country picker, blues licker and shred guru who continues to remain true to his own artistry while crossing musical boundaries.

Contrast and Compare if you Dare!

With that, my thought for you today is to try something different! Go on Spotify or Pandora and look at artists similar to yourself and then look at new and obscure ones and dive into their sound a bit and see what you might be able to take away from it that could add a fresh take to your own artistic expression. Add some polka to your Pantera or some big band to your Zac Brown. You may be extremely surprised at what you come up with and you will definitely grow as a musician for thinking outside the box!