Growing Up As A Guitar Freak In The 21st Century

Ever sat down and wonder about how hard it is growing up in the 21st century? Inflation, global warming, more ailments and illnesses arising, even academics are getting harder and harder on the students. Hell, things are getting more and more complicated the higher the year ticker goes. 

The same is true for the guitar industry. Informations are getting so readily available, that everyone is a genius when a smartphone is present in their pockets. Instead of the traditional way of gaining knowledge from books and magazines, we're getting all sorts of information, be it truth or rumours, from the same damned phone. And why is it hard growing up in the guitar industry of the 21st century? Enter the guitar freaks, who passionately and tirelessly do their deep researches late into the nights, only to find that they might be wasting their life on some insignificant details, but still carries on doing it nevertheless.

I am a guitar freak myself because of 3 things.

1. I don't play as much (or as well...I guess) as I do my guitar researches. Mahogany vs Alder? I can do this all day long. Graphite nut vs bone nut? It depends on which sound you're going. Play through Purple Haze and try to learn that solo section? Wait, I wonder what made Jimi's fuzz sound so special...

2. I love guitar gear. I love 'em to bit. I love looking at guitars, reading about guitars, explaining or talking about guitars, trying guitars, buying guitars, modifying guitars, selling guitars (I'm working in a music shop currently), then I'll move on to amps, pedals, etc. I love listening to music too, and also playing music. But as a guitar freak, apparently the "right" tone matters more, because I can't be inspired to play music if I ain't got that tone right...so I'm off to tone-chasing. Again.

3. It's late at night, and I'm still passionately and tirelessly blogging about guitars. Need I say more?

Being a guitar freak isn't that bad actually, apart from it messing up your body clock, maybe causing a couple hole in the wallets, or losing a girlfriend because you were trying a Custom Shop Les Paul and forgot to turn up at your movie date (no, this did not happen...it's just a joke). What's great about being a guitar freak is my knowledge and passion about guitars. It helped me land my job as a music shop sales assistant. It made my life a lot easier at the job because all I needed to learn was the SOP of working in the shop, and since our shop is more guitar-oriented, I've already been self-trained before I got the job, so it also made my superiors' life easier. It makes me connect to musicians, even though I am not as musically-talented as I wanted to be. It's a pretty good time-killer as well...

Here's what's fun about living in the 21st century. Info, info everywhere. There are abundant sources to learn your ropes from, whether you want to take up guitar playing, learn to build a guitar, guide to buying your first pedal, or even just looking for what kind of music to download. And everything is easily accessible with your smartphone. I have to confess, I spend more time on my phone these days than on my guitars, reading about guitars. You don't have to wait for TV programmes about guitars to air (that would be never, in my country), you can hit it up on Youtube, watch Rob and Capt demo some rad gear. Or you could be on retail websites looking for the best deals. Or on some blogs reading about the process of flipping your pickup magnet to get that Peter Green sound. Or even Harmony Central reading about how leaving that backplate off your Strat can improve it's sound (I do that too, but not for tonal purposes...). 

In time with the best technology that the world can ever have at the moment, you wanted nothing modern. You still wear that faded blue jeans from your 12th birthday and you still rocked Converse Chucks. You have the best digital modelling unit in the world for the cleanest and closest-to-the-real-deal sound ever, but you chose to sell it in favour of a very outdated, inefficient, high-maintainence, ridiculously heavyweighted and overly-loud tube amp. There are many great new and arguably similar overdrive pedals in the world, but that Klon Centaur, which is "just" a boutique variation of a Tube Screamer, still reigned supreme in your books and you want one, even though you've never tried one, and never will be able to own one, let alone justify the price to own one. You want "The Tone", and you want nothing else. Not even Vintage Noiseless pickups.

Tons of things you can do to convert yourself and devote your life to be a true guitar freak. Turning yourself in almost feels like having a new purpose for life. You're not wandering anymore, you know you want that blonde Tele. You want the deep, straight-grained rosewood fretboard, you want no neck-pickup on it, you want a Seymour Duncan Broadcaster bridge pickup in there. Oh and you have 3 words for the strings. Pure Nickel Only. 

That's it for my first post here. I know some parts of it might sound like I'm joking, indeed I am. But anyway, if any of you ever complete reading this whole post, I want to thank you for visiting my blog and taking an interest in reading my post. New post coming soon, so stay tuned! (if you're still interested...)