Guitarface by Brett
As a long time proponent/proprietor of old-school 70’s & 80’s style hard rock, it always does my heart good to see and hear my favorite bands and songs resurface in contemporary popular culture– even if it is in a Cadillac commercial! When the Guitar Hero inferno began to rage, I was very excited about two particular aspects of the phenomenon:
- the possibility of exposing kids to great classic rock tunes
- inspiring a new generation to pick up the instrument and hopefully assisting them in developing the technical skills required to really RAWK!
Based on first-hand observations of my own progeny, I can say that I’m encouraged in-regards to the former and a bit discouraged in regards to the latter.
I can think of very few things that tickle me more than hearing my 6 year old son doing his best Dee Snider, walking around the house singing, We’re Not Gonna Take It or my 11 year old daughter humming China Grove while doing her homework. The flipside to their new interest in dad’s music is that my daughter’s actual guitar hasn’t left its case since she got the game. She asked Santa for a guitar two Christmases ago and while she was never the most dedicated student, she at least practiced regularly and was making some progress. Then she got Guitar Hero about six months ago and it would seem that the allure of the more immediate gratification afforded by the game has supplanted the thrill gained by learning to play music on a stringed guitar.
I do have hopes that once she’s mastered the expert level of the game (and she’s very close) she may want to explore her actual instrument. As for the question of whether the mechanics of playing Guitar Hero assists in developing the physical dexterity necessary to play guitar, it remains to be seen but I do believe that after she beats the top level, the Nirvana of video-game rock, she will be curious to unzip her real guitar again!
Hmm, all this is making me wonder, Reunion Blues bags for game controllers? Might not be a totally ridiculous idea….
BRETT’S MUSIC BAG:
For new bands that are rockin’ the streets the old school way check out End Ever After and Black Tide.
Chris says:
Brett,
Great read! Speaks to the decline of good music available to us. Hopefully a few of these gamers will grab a real instrument and create something they can play at a club instead of the basement!
Keep it up
Dave says:
It will be interesting to see how the music creation aspect in the new Guitar Hero affects the crossover from gamer to player, especially as it adds another creative outlet that could keep future talent from picking up a “real” instrument. Or will the game itself evolve into a “next generation” instrument itself? Will we someday be talking on this blog about Grammy award-winning records produced entirely on the Xbox? Who knows…
John says:
I saw a kid begging his dad to buy him one of these games at Target. He was using the arguement that it would lead to him playing a REAL guitar! The boy was pulling out all the stops and using a very interesting approach, one that perhaps came from reading up on the subject? Probably not but I could see the father was weakening.
Ragora says:
@Dave I don’t think the music creation is looking to be that great a tool really. Everything I’ve heard about it makes it out to be too complicated for anyone who doesn’t already have experience with that sort of thing to really do anything impressive. But, you never know
Merlock says:
I know that Guitar Hero has helped me pick up a few instruments, namely the guitar and bass. Would I have done so without it? Maybe. But seeing how the events unfolded, the game may have some credit.
Carleton says:
I’m 35 years old and yes, I picked up Guitar Hero before I picked up a real guitar. And yes, you are right on your second point. I was very much inspired to actually learn to play a real guitar. After nearly two painful and frustrating years I’m still playing the guitar…and sold my guitar hero game!
And yes, I did learn one or two songs from the game including “Jessica”. Hahaha!
By the way, I saw Black Tide at 9:30 Club in DC. They put on a great show. I look forward to hearing more of them in the future.
Carleton
Atlanta, GA
Aj says:
Oh, that sad truth of today.I actually learned to play guitar long before Guitar Hero came out, and then all of the sudden everyone became completely fascinated with guitar hero. I never really liked the game though, it’s just not like the real thing at all… I’d rather play a real guitar.
(Found this page on Consumerist)
Geff Popejoy says:
How many people know that Brett P. is in fact, a
stellar(Rawch) guitarist ? Very fluid, fluctuating
between dazzling solos and melding into the group’s
(Crunch) siesmic furnace. Preferring to hang his hat
on original pieces, the undertones of Steve Vai and
subtle influences of Jeff Beck are inescabable.
Hopefully it will morph into a new group, having lost
their drummer to a ‘surf/swing’ quintet in Pagosa
Sprngs, Col. We wish him Happy HannaChrisKwansika-
Festivus with the rest of us.