www.Guitariste.com
Interviewed by Hervé Allesant - JULY 2002
You release 'Adventures Of Bumblefoot and other tales of woe...' with Shrapnel.
That CD puts you on the map as 'the most innovative guitarist since Steve Vai's
Flexable'. It seems you dislike this guitar hero image. What would you do if you
had another shot?
If given a chance to do it all again, I would have released it myself.
That's the only thing I would have done differently. My advice to bands,
artists, guitarists is... DO NOT wait to release your first album through
a record label!!! 1) artists need the experience of promoting a
record to better understand the job of a record label, 2) artists should keep
the rights to their music - don't give it to a label that does nothing valuable
with those rights, 3) once an artist manages their own music career and has an
existing album, they have more equity to negotiate with a label with. I
would have released the CD myself and sold it on the internet, had the internet
been more popular in 1994...
You fingerpick your way on that CD's 'limberneck' and you play a
flamenco tune on '9-11' do you have other styles that you secretly master?
Yes, but if I tell you it won't be a *secret*...
In the French magazine 'guitar and bass' you said your high school
music teacher gave you exercises that pretty much shaped your technical level.
What would you recommend for the young practicing guitarists out there that wish
to reach your level?
Many times, the translation of my words aren't correct. My High School
teacher gave me classical pieces to work on, but nothing more. I took jazz
lessons from a private teacher while in High School - the teacher made me play
scales at 40bpm's to teach me discipline. My recommendation to young
guitarists is *DON'T PRACTICE TOO MUCH!!!* I always say this, because it's
the most important lesson... If you spend your time analyzing life
instead of living it, you will be a boring artist. Technique will develop
over time - what you do with your ability will be the extension of who you
are. So you must BE WHO YOU ARE - develop who you are and you will
automatically approach guitar the way you approach life.
We were talking about classes. You were advertised in a 'guitar on
the edge' CD as a 8 finger tapping book writer (for the shrapnel university) and
you currently have a CD-rom project for chopsfromhell.com. Is pedagogy one of
your battlehorses?
The "8-finger tapping" book was nothing interesting. It was
boring exercises in a booklet with a boring tape of me saying "OK, now put
your finger here..." Shrapnel tried to make it sound impressive
with the title "Octo-digital Technique" - I felt this was
deceitful - "2-handed tapping" was a more honest
description. None of the courses from "Shrapnel
University" were published because Shrapnel couldn't find a publisher that
would do business with them. As for ChopsFromHell, it will probably
be two years before I do a video, if ever. They said I can do videos on
any subject - I just need time to do it and there's never enough
time... that's why I stopped teaching in 2000 - not enough
time. I'm ok with "pedagogy", as long as people don't act snobby
about what they've learned - intelligence is a tool to build yourself, not a
weapon to break others...
Talking about chops, what did you want for your bumblefoot guitar
(except its outrageous shape :) ) Do you have specifications to play at that
level?
Nothing unusual (other than wings...) 24 frets and a Floyd Rose that only bends
down, not up. There's nothing worse than breaking a string in the middle
of a song and the whole guitar goes out of tune - since the bridge resists
bending up, the tension doesn't change when a string breaks...
We can hear the fretless Vigier Surfreter more and more. What did that instrument
inspire you, technically, and compositionally?
It allows me to explore dissonance in new ways. Combining frequencies that
aren't very gentle on the psyche... There's also a more expressive
reaction to dynamics - when you're sliding notes on the fretless, the decay of
overtones is more sensitive to the attack of the pick, giving a more living
inconsistency to the notes. Everything is a little more precious, because
there's less chance of delivering the music with the exact same expression.
How do you write your tunes, especially the 'weird ones' with time
changes and/or styles changes? Do you actually hear them, or do you work with a
pen and paper?
I never write music with a pen and paper. I write all the music in my
head, the arrangements, instrumentation, usually with no instruments
nearby. I listen to the music first in my head, and if I feel something
from the music, then I play it.
There were horns on 'bumblefoot' a cello on 'hermit' and a flute on
'uncool'. How do you choose those instruments? Do you arrange their parts
yourself?
I guess, the way painters go through "periods" where they feel certain
colors, musicians go through similar periods, with instrumentation as the
colors. Yeah, it sounds "artsy-fartsy" but it's
true. I do all the arranging for all that stuff.
You own a midi guitar, and a Surfrettter. Are you interested in 7
strings?
I get too confused with 7 strings. I get too confused with 6
strings. I was thinking of cutting off one of my strings and playing a
5-string guitar. Trying to simplify my life. Could work, if
it's tuned in ascending 5ths...
You produce lots of groups, you write for TV, you play for friends,
for charity, do you still have time to work on a CD for us, guitarists?
No, I don't... but I'm trying to change that. I've been searching
for months to find a permanent location where I can work 24/7. Somewhere
to record my own music, produce bands, rehearse... This way I can
keep constant momentum and not have to ever stop to eat, sleep, or
shit... When I have a location and it's fully functional, I'll post
information on bumblefoot.com
How about your French tour?
It was difficult to arrange shows for September 2002, so we're working on
November and I can only hope that everything works out :) The
tour company is at the mercy of club owners who wait till the last minute to
sign agreements, and if they decide to not sign at the last moment, there is
little time to find a new venue and advertise. For this tour, I'm having
the audience choose the songs. They email me with a list of 15 songs they
most want to hear, and I will play the most popular 25 or 30 songs. It's
been interesting to see what people prefer - now I know which songs people like,
and which ones *suck* :) I think they all suck.
I'd rather play all old-school metal covers. Maiden, Manowar...
hmmmmmmm... maybe for the next tour.....