Tournament of Instrumentals (r1): 73 vs 74 + 75 vs 76

Vote for your FAVOURITE instrumental track: 1 vote per battle

  • Total voters
    17
  • Poll closed .
Not to mention it got everyone hooked on a guitar technique (tapping) that is still learned by anyone wanting to be a killer rock guitarist.
 
Cornfed Hick said:
Buckethead could release 100 albums a year and still will never do anything as monumental as "Eruption."
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"Monumental"? Hmmm. Eddie popularized, he didn't invent. Eddie has written as much shit as good stuff. And, in my opinion (although I haven't listened to everything he's played/written), none of his best is technically that good, when you compare it to today's guitarists. His soloing is idiosyncratic & filled with notes out of scale. And for a guy with a fairly decent musical knowledge from his piano/keyboard playing, some of his improvisation comes across as pretty weak in comparison to, say, Satriani. Yes, he incorporated many aberrant sounds that all guitarists encounter & try hard to eliminate from their playing --& made them part of his music. That's interesting, and sounds interesting too. But tapping, which he popularised, is technically easy & doesn't impress me. I'm sure it really impressed people at the time; and apparently still does; but plenty of guitarists before Eddie were tapping.
Cornfed Hick said:
In the era of disco, it was a complete game-changer. The whole album was revolutionary, but "Eruption" blew kids' minds when it came out.
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This makes it historically important. It doesn't make it good. Eruption, to me, is neither impressive or particularly stellar to listen to. And, for the record, in my opinion, Buckethead has written a ton of stuff that is superior to EVH in respect to playing & writing.
Mosh said:
Not to mention it got everyone hooked on a guitar technique (tapping) that is still learned by anyone wanting to be a killer rock guitarist.
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Really? I'm not being flippant, but if you mean it's an easy way to impress people who know nothing about guitar playing, then, yeh, I agree. But, that aside, tapping is just one technique --& not a particularly difficult one.

Related, and interesting in terms of influence --I see quite a lot of comment about EVH now (or more recently) experimenting with using a kill-switch on his guitar. I wonder where he got that idea from?
 
You're missing the point. Nobody is saying EVH invented tapping (he actually got it from Genesis' Steve Hackett btw), but he put it in the spotlight. And not just tapping, his explosive playing in general was unlike anyone else at the time. He was unique and is indirectly responsible for players like Randy Rhodes, Satriani, even Buckethead. Tapping isn't difficult, but that's besides the point. Before EVH, it was a technique that few guitarists knew.

I'm pretty sure Ace Frehley (another influence on EVH) was doing the kill switch thing as early as 1974. That's just off the top of my head.
 
Mosh said:
You're missing the point. Nobody is saying EVH invented tapping (he actually got it from Genesis' Steve Hackett btw), but he put it in the spotlight. And not just tapping, his explosive playing in general was unlike anyone else at the time. He was unique and is indirectly responsible for players like Randy Rhodes, Satriani, even Buckethead. Tapping isn't difficult, but that's besides the point. Before EVH, it was a technique that few guitarists knew.
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As interesting as this is, what does it have to do with the musical merits of Eruption? Nothing. I'm not missing the point. I didn't bring Buckethead into this debate; but I felt compelled to comment, as, clearly, I dig the guy, & his playing & writing. CH says it's "monumental". It's far too easy to throw words like this around, but they don't really mean very much. My argument is, while it may have been at the time, is it really now? I don't think so; and furthermore, anyone who does think this playing is monumental needs to listen a bit more guitar playing. It really isn't.

We're not voting on EVH's legendary status; we're voting on Eruption. Are you saying you really think Eruption is a great piece of composition & playing, Mosh? Would you describe the track itself, ignoring its significance in musical history, as monumental? I wouldn't. I think it's pretty ordinary in guitar playing terms; and pretty uninteresting as a piece of music, in the wider context of everything one might care to listen to.
Mosh said:
I'm pretty sure Ace Frehley (another influence on EVH) was doing the kill switch thing as early as 1974. That's just off the top of my head.
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Probably. I just threw that in, as I'm sure I read somewhere EVH either being asked or mentioning Buckethead in respect to using the kill-switch. I'm not suggesting Buckethead made it up, but I haven't heard anyone else use it the way he does in combination with pedals, etc.
 
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Okay, I can talk about Eruption itself. By itself, ignoring it's significance and legendary status (which I did anyway when I voted for it), I would describe it as a monumental track. Sure it's not technically impressive, but it has more musical merit than most of what I hear by today's instrumental shredders. The way it flows with it's many distinct parts, it has the merits of a song and doesn't just showcase Eddie's playing abilities. There are plenty of melodies throughout and the way it builds to the Baroque flavored tapping climax is explosive. It's dynamic, melodic, and above all fun to listen to. I never saw EVH's solos as wanking, but entertaining to listen to while also being impressive. In a wider context beyond the song, I'll take this over just about any guitar driven shred piece that has been posted here so far, and in general.
 
Honestly I've forgotten a lot of them. There was that Alter Bridge thing from a few days ago that did nothing for me, a Gus G thing that was too much wanking for me. Or to give some examples from outside of this game, a lot of the stuff on the Buckethead pikes are like this, which is why I've had trouble getting into those albums. Or a lot of stuff from John Petrucci's (maybe my favorite guitarist) solo albums are like this. None of this stuff has the same impact on me as Eruption does, even today.
 
Matter of opinion :p I can think of very few guitar pieces that are as memorable to me.
 
Mosh said:
Matter of opinion :p I can think of very few guitar pieces that are as memorable to me.
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Honestly? To take an example from this game: even Gilbert's Technical Difficulties (Racer X) is more memorable, for me, than EVH's Eruption. Seriously, you need to stop listening to all the Buckethead "shred" stuff that you've evidently been directed to; & start listening to his memorable stuff! :p
 
CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
Honestly? To take an example from this game: even Gilbert's Technical Difficulties (Racer X) is more memorable, for me, than EVH's Eruption. Seriously, you need to stop listening to all the Buckethead "shred" stuff that you've evidently been directed to; & start listening to his memorable stuff! :p
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I might've missed that, I'll check it out. I like Racer X and Paul Gilbert in general so I'll probably at least like it. I've heard plenty of Buckethead that I've liked! :p Coma and Giant Robot are excellent albums.
 
73 is not a song. Vote goes to 74 by a mile. I can't comprehend how they almost have the same amount of votes. The first 10 seconds of 74 has more music than all of 73. Priest worship. :rolleyes:

I don't consider either of the next two to be a "song"...but the playing in 76 is great, so I'll go with that.
 
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