Robin's Guitar Playing

[Dont Try Me]

I already posted this in an old topic but I think it would be a usefull read. I edited a few new things in it as well. Please read this post with care:

First of all.? I think Robin Finck is a pretty good guitar player. That he definitely is. He has a cool and fresh approach, listen to the parts he played on the 2002 tour before paradise city. I think that his style of playing came out really well and soulfull on that special segment. That's a specialty of him for sure. I really enjoyed his solo's on Patience from the 2002 tour as well. Those gave the same feel to me. He's outstanding on those elements so it seems. Those were not out of key or anything.

Sure that rio sample that was posted was bad. I'm sure he slaps himself in the face when he hears that one back.....but no worry's every guitarist learns by mistakes....even playing in the wrong scale (in that particular jam).

1)The example however(rio, playing a bit in the wrong scale) could also be the cause by lack of communication (good agreements on how the jam is set up, planned on beforehand) between the band...... It was a jam which didn't exactly came out as it was meaned at the time.........It has fuck nothing to do with "dissonant" or whatever you people come up with. It wasn't a strange note or anything. Coz strange notes can / should sound great (on blues music for instance....the so called "blue notes". Just lack of communication. I stumble uppon the same problems when JAMMING cause well........it's jamming isn't it....... A jam can sound great.....but you could also play a bad jam.........it's all in the game....however setting some guidelines before the jam always helps. Perhaps they did, perhaps they didn't. I won't judge

2)That rio example could also be the result of a guitar that is differently tuned. Remember how they switch guitars with the old songs and new songs. The old ones are in Eb and the news ones in standard E tuning. The could've mixed it up.....I don't know.

Anyways, back to the 2002 tour:

the little things (before paradise city and such, patience solo..... impressed me about him + his stage movements. He got the same kinda approach on knocking on heaven's door. I'm convinced that those things will get him very far if he cary's out that "style" more out on the new songs.

However some things don't come out that well with his technique and style of playing.

- using "gain" / "overdrive" whatever the hell you want to name or catagorize it. The sound that those settings creates doesn't always compliment his playing technique. The way he strikes the strings and the way his hand moves on the fretboard is pretty risk-full. (also wearing a guitar low) There-for it doesn't come out to well on songs such as November Rain. His style doesnt suit that type of category.

He's awesome on the clean / crunched (solo) parts but he lacks suitement on some of the other leads. Robin Finck has great feel but to be able to show it properly he needs to play the things he is specialized in. And I'm sure he will in the future cause that (mainly) is why he was brought in. For Chinese Democracy!

[Genesis]

2)That rio example could also be the result of a guitar that is differently tuned. Remember how they switch guitars with the old songs and new songs.

Ok. Assume that the guitar is indeed tuned down a step or up. In the first few seconds they jam, shouldn't he realize this? Can't he shift his solo up or down a fret? ( It's not like it was tuned in open g tuning or something). Why would he continue to play the whole thing out of key?   That's the question.

Great songs don't always have solos.

Some really great songs don't have solo's. But if all ur songs don't have solos, u might as well be a pop band. (Or alternatively Metallica.  )

Solo's are nice but certainly not a requirement.

Whoa! Solo's are the staple of the rock industry and some of us like some songs only bcoz of the solo's in them. Speak for urself.

[madagas]

The Clash...the Sex Pistols....Nirvana. Pretty good bands...very few solos. I guess they are pop bands? Why don't you just admit that you only like rock and roll one way and all other avenues are closed! Typical Slash fan boy.

[makane]

The Clash...the Sex Pistols....Nirvana. Pretty good bands...very few solos. I guess they are pop bands? Why don't you just admit that you only like rock and roll one way and all other avenues are closed! Typical Slash fan boy.

Ramones!
Ye, but I think the POINT was that solo's are a part of Guns N' Roses, I couldn't imagine a good GN'R song without somekinda solo.
But obviously, all those are PUNK-rock bands. best blues based rockers have a solo.

[madagas]

Exactly...cookie cutter rock and roll. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. That is why the band broke up.

[Genesis]

Nirvana. Pretty good bands...very few solos. I guess they are pop bands?

No man, Nirvana is a hard core guitar pumping rock band  . I guess that settles ur case. And u were knocking me for quoting a Poison song.

[madagas]

You are not actually comparing Nirvana with Poison..are you? Oh my god. Nirvana doesn't play guitars?  Please tell me you are joking? The reek of cheese is all over the board.

[Genesis]

Oh my god. Nirvana doesn't play guitars?  Please tell me you are joking?

Anybody who thinks that Nirvana is a rock band is a stupid fool. Anybody who thinks Kurt Cobain can play solos is an even bigger fool. No questions asked. 

P.S: This thread is about Robin Finck and not Nirvana. If u think GN'R plays 'cookie-cutter' rn'r and that Nirvana rocks, go to a fucking Nirvana board. 

[jarmo]

Anybody who thinks that Nirvana is a rock band is a stupid fool. Anybody who thinks Kurt Cobain can play solos is an even bigger fool. No questions asked.?

I thought the solos he played fit the songs he wrote very nicely.

But I guess music is all about how great you play.... 


/jarmo

[makane]

They're called fillers. atleast in most of Nirvana's songs, but it doesn't mean they suck.

[Neemo]

I can pretty much guarantee that the new songs will be tuned half a step down, same as all GnR's other songs were/are. but I'm not 100% positive as I haven't tried to learn them. That tuning just works best with Axl's singing (Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, A, Eb), it's not like his voice has gotten higher or anything you know what I mean so i doubt they will switch to standard tuning? And his voice is too high for Drop D. I suppose 1 or 2 songs may have some fucked up tuning Open-G or whatnot but I doubt it). ?Anyway I don't thing He would picked up the wrong guitar, It's not his job to even do that, his tech prolly hands him the right guitar for the right song. He missed notes plain and simple (IMO Robin should just spend more time looking at his guitar than doing his little fairy dance with his eyes closed )

And to whoever said it, he played patience like shit, every time i hear it on a bootleg of 2002 he fucks it up. It's not a hard solo but he still managed to fuck it up every time he played it. That's my biggest problem. He played NR awesome.. but fucked up Patience, how do you accomplish that? seriously. I can play that solo better than him with one hand up my ass!!

The lack of solo's is the reason why music sucks so much these days, I can't even remember where ?that trend came in. Mike McCready (Pearl Jam), Jerry Cantrell (AIC), Kurt Cobain (Nirvana), Dean DeLeo (STP) they all had solos (they weren't super fantastic ones but they still had them) New music now Where did they go? It's almost like guitar players as a whole just got really shitty in a span of 3-5 years. If you don't think solos are important to a band like GnR then you have issues and you should have them addressed ..... immediately

Ramones, Clash, Sex Pistols?? where are you getting this stuff? Totally different, the were anti-rock (In fact anti everything) that's what punk was. They had no solos cuz everyone else had them. And punk was hardly was mainstream. until the poor imitations like blink-180-spew came along and made it boy-band like

[Genesis]

I thought the solos he played fit the songs he wrote very nicely.

Really? I'm sure that a solo on guitar that's just the chorus played out note for note (Aka Smells like Teen Spirit) fits the song. I mean it's got to... 

But I guess music is all about how great you play.... 

No, but some of us have higher standards of music.

[Neemo]

I thought the solos he played fit the songs he wrote very nicely.

Really? I'm sure that a solo on guitar that's just the chorus played out note for note (Aka Smells like Teen Spirit) fits the song. I mean it's got to...?

But at least he made an effort to put a solo in the song Kurt was by no means a fantastic guitarist. He even said it himself time after time in interviews. He was a songwriter who also happened to play guitar. but he still had solos even if they were (very) elementary

[makane]

Offtopic: Axl should hire David Gilmour to do Chinese Democracy solos 

[Voodoochild]

but i'll tell you something Axl did get pissed off a few times on that tour after a song robin was playing (The Blues in RIR and Patience in Detroit come to mind) and it wasn't for something intentional, you can bet your ass on that

Ok, if you don't like Robin, that's fine. But there's no need to lie.

Axl wasn't pissed off with Robin, what the hell are you talkin' about? In RIR, the mix in The Blues was pretty bad, Paul's guitar riff got way too loud... but there was nothing wrong with Robin. Axl did get pissed off, but with the sound man - that's why he gets pissed with the guy while he was singin the first verse and, after that, he just looks very angry at the soundboard and says "ok, nevermind!".

In Detroit, if you pay attention, Axl screw up the lyrics in the new songs (especially in CD and RATB) because there was some problem with the teleprompter. In Patience, he was already fuckin' up the lyrics and just sing the fuckin' chorus way before it was supposed to do - the whole band looks pretty lost, but they tried to follow him.. After Axl sings "because the lights they shine so bright", which indicates the ending of the chorus and the begining of the solo, he just get pissed and left the stage. Again, there was NOTHING wrong with Robin, for God's sake.

On top of all this discussion, we come back to Buckethead, now if Robin was so fantastic why bring in a technically superior player like him? To compliment robin's "sloppy" style? (there's that term again ppbebe )I just can't believe that. To me Bucket was brought in to fill a weak spot. (The lack of a quality lead guitarist)

Because Robin left the band in '99. Axl needed another guitarist, so he called Brian May, but he didn't want to get on tour. So, after a few months, Axl called Buckethead. There was no need to "fill a weak spot". Just read the articles on the site, man. Once Robin came back, Axl wanted to keep with Buckethead and tried the line-up with three guitars.

ppbebe, yes sossego was great as were the rest of the "new" songs they played live (rir blues excepted) but they hardly come close to matching the skill of slash's solos of GnR songs from '93 and prior. or is it just me?

I think it's not just you, but I sure don't agree. Ok, Slash is one of my favourites of all time (with Hendrix, of course) and when he was still a member of the band, he made awesome solos and guitar work. But I would go with Robin's guitar in The Blues, Madagascar and Rhyiad anytime over Slash's work in VR.

Ok, I had to bring this stupid discussion again because it's not fair to judge Robin in his worst moments  and compare to Slash with his better performances.

I can pretty much guarantee that the new songs will be tuned half a step down, same as all GnR's other songs were/are. but I'm not 100% positive as I haven't tried to learn them. That tuning just works best with Axl's singing (Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, A, Eb), it's not like his voice has gotten higher or anything you know what I mean so i doubt they will switch to standard tuning? And his voice is too high for Drop D.

I'm pretty sure that Chinese Democracy and KOHD uses Drop D. Also, Madagascar is played in Eb, but the chords looks like it were written in E.

[nesquick]

Offtopic: Axl should hire David Gilmour to do Chinese Democracy solos?

Richard Fortus is the man.
BTW, I can't believe some people can bash robin about "Sossego", I'm not a Robin's fan, but come on guys he played very well on Sossego. It kicks ass! It's my favourite Robin's solo. I easiily give a 9/10 on that one.

[Genesis]

Ok, I had to bring this stupid discussion again because it's not fair to judge Robin in his worst moments  and compare to Slash with his better performances.

Nobody is comparing Robin and Slash ok? Slash doesn't even figure in this discussion, so get that off ur chest.

[Voodoochild]

Ok, I had to bring this stupid discussion again because it's not fair to judge Robin in his worst moments and compare to Slash with his better performances.

Nobody is comparing Robin and Slash ok? Slash doesn't even figure in this discussion, so get that off ur chest.

Really? What's that?

ppbebe, yes sossego was great as were the rest of the "new" songs they played live (rir blues excepted) but they hardly come close to matching the skill of slash's solos of GnR songs from '93 and prior. or is it just me?

[Genesis]

Oh, I forgot Neemo's post. 

I'm pretty sure that Chinese Democracy and KOHD uses Drop D.

KOHD does not use Drop D.

[Neemo]

but i'll tell you something Axl did get pissed off a few times on that tour after a song robin was playing (The Blues in RIR and Patience in Detroit come to mind) and it wasn't for something intentional, you can bet your ass on that

Ok, if you don't like Robin, that's fine. But there's no need to lie.

Axl wasn't pissed off with Robin, what the hell are you talkin' about? In RIR, the mix in The Blues was pretty bad, Paul's guitar riff got way too loud... but there was nothing wrong with Robin. Axl did get pissed off, but with the sound man - that's why he gets pissed with the guy while he was singin the first verse and, after that, he just looks very angry at the soundboard and says "ok, nevermind!".

In Detroit, if you pay attention, Axl screw up the lyrics in the new songs (especially in CD and RATB) because there was some problem with the teleprompter. In Patience, he was already fuckin' up the lyrics and just sing the fuckin' chorus way before it was supposed to do - the whole band looks pretty lost, but they tried to follow him.. After Axl sings "because the lights they shine so bright", which indicates the ending of the chorus and the begining of the solo, he just get pissed and left the stage. Again, there was NOTHING wrong with Robin, for God's sake.

alright sorry. I only heard the detroit show once so you are prolly right on that one. and I've never watched the video for RIR so you are prolly right there too. but wasn't Paul Tobias still in for RIR? either way I'm pretty sure it's the solo that goes all crazy on the recording I have. of the blues for that show.

OK I Just watched the blues for RIR and you are right as well. but he does look to the soundboard and point to Robin, then says "OK nevermind" then skips a line of vocals and goes to the back and adjusts robin's volume and comes back out to finish singing the song.

I already said this once but I actually didn't mind Robin other than the fact he Fucks up Patience (To my ears anyway) every time I heard him play it. He just always seems to fight with it. it's all choppy and crappy sounding. I dunno why. and it really bugs me to see the new band play that song. (And it's one of my favorite tunes by them, I guess that's why i get so mad about it). That is my only beef with Robin. He plays NR fantastic!!! and all the new tunes sound great!

As for comparing Slash to Robin. ?I was just stating that the new songs that we've heard are not as intricate as the stuff slash did while in GnR. (Robin has been a member since 97 (8 years? but he left for less than a year to do a short tour with nin so really 7 years) Slash was in Gnr from '85-'96 (11 Years, but no new tracks since '91 so really 6 years). we have madagascar, blues, cd, irs, silkworms, omg and rhyad to judge Robin on. how do these songs stack up (from a guitarists point of view) to WttJ, NR, Patience, CW, Sweet Child, NT, OIAM, DC, YCBM, Estranged, etc. etc. etc.? one new song compares, the blues (I am waiting for a clean version of IRS to judge that song cuz i can't hear shit on it). Maddy is great but its alot of synth and light on guitar. Slash is a better guitarist, plain and simple. nobody can deny it so don't even try. (we have no solo stuff to judge Axl against Slash's other projects so it's not fair to say anything derogotory against him in that fashion, Izzy, Duff, Slash and Axl had this awesome fucking magic when they wrote tunes together it was almost magical, can axl deliver similar tunes to old GnR? we'll have to wait and see but you can't just assume he will come out with killer songs like they did in the 80's and 90's, cuz if you do then you may be very, very dissapointed)

Bucket was brought in when? you can't say it was to replace robin cuz we never saw him till 01 and robin was back before then.