In this, the concluding part of our series on the genius Les Paul, we are going to be looking at his contribution to the world of effects. For a modern guitarist, effects pedals are an integral part of their sound. There are a dizzying array of boxes available to feed the contemporary guitar slinger’s G.A.S. (“Gear Aquision Syndrome”), but in Les Paul’s day an amplifier was a pretty far out concept, let alone tone-bending stomp boxes! As usual Les broke out his tool kit and did some inventing…

We’re going to see how Les moved from capturing sounds to creating new ones, with Delay Effects, Vari-Speed, Special Vocal Effects – and a distinctive playing style to boot.

Les Paul’s Delay Effects

The effects most commonly associated with Les Paul are ‘delay’ or ‘echo’ effects. Many Les Paul recordings feature some kind of echo on the main guitar.

In the previous part we talked about Les’ involvement in the development of tape recording. Tape recorders have:

• a record head, which copies the sound onto the tape, and
• a play head which plays the sound back again

Les realised that if you position the play head after the record head and feed the signal coming from the play head back into the record head it creates a repeat or echo on the tape.

At first it might be confusing to understand why this works, but it’s much easier to get your head around it if you consider an example:

(For more on tape delay, see Hearing Effects: Echo… (echo… echo…))

The most common type of delay you will hear on Les’ records is a short delay often referred to as a “slapback”. This slapback delay has become synonymous with the rockabilly guitar sound.

Les Paul & Mary Ford – How High The Moon

How High The Moon (in 26 parts!)

Soon guitarists wanted to produce these amazing sounds when playing live, and Click to read the rest…

Steel Pole Bath Tub were an undeniably prolific band, releasing somewhere in the neighborhood of ten EPs and LPs between the years 1987 and 1995, as well as a heaping handful of singles. But even this level of productivity wasn’t enough for these noise-rock weirdoes, and the 90’s found the main members of SPBT participating in two fully-fledged side projects: Tumor Circus (with Jello Biafra), and Milk Cult, which was basically a pseudonym the band used when they wanted to explore their more sample-based, abstract electronic side. Some folks call it “industrial,” and as much as I’m not eager to describe this music as such (it’s not like it’s rooted in the KMFDM aesthetic) I guess that comes fairly close to hitting the mark.

I heard Milk Cult’s Burn or Bury (the band’s second release) shortly after it was released in 1994, and found myself particularly excited about it because the album featured guest spots from two members of one of my all-time favorite bands (still true): Faith No More. Billy Gould, Faith No More’s bass player, does a guest spot on guitar on a pummeling, metal-laced track called “Bow Kiness Static.” And it’s cool. But what I was really excited about was hearing the guest vocals that Mike Patton contributed to the album’s opener, “Psychoanalytwist.”

Patton’s now widely known as a highly experimental vocalist, but in ’94, he was still branching out, and a vocal turn like the one he pulls out on this song, while not completely out of left field, definitely felt like a step in a new direction. And that was exciting to me. But what was really exciting, and what kept me coming back, was the song itself. Patton’s vocals end up being only one part of what is not only an infectious and catchy tune, but also an unassumingly intricate one, which covers a lot of ground in three and a half minutes.

Milk Cult – “Psychoanalytwist”
 

The song opens with heavy breathing in the right channel, followed by a Click to read the rest…

Ear training doesn’t have to start when you are in elementary school or college. Music activities like ear training benefit you no matter what your age, from eight months to eighty.

This article provides useful information for:

• Older adults who want to discover the benefits of music
• Music students and health professionals interested in creative ways of working with the geriatric population, and
• Family members who want to use music to communicate with elderly loved ones in their lives.

So, what are some ways that ear training and music help older adults? Does musical training increase mental capacity and overall quality of life? Can music increase happiness?

1. Music therapy techniques, such as listening to live music, significantly increase the quality of life in elderly patients. Benefits included more restful sleep and a need for less medication. [1][4]
2. Musical activities increase communication in patients with dementia and reduce overall anxiety. Activities like singing and listening to music lightens mood and help elderly patients suffering from dementia self-express. [2]
3. Exercising to music can help older adults maintain balance and reduce falls. In fact, exercising to music yields better results than similar exercises performed without music. [3]
4. Studies suggest that leisurely enjoyment of music increases psychological well-being in the elderly, allows for self-expression, and can “facilitate successful aging.” [5]
5. Even musical interactive video games like Nintendo’s Wii Music can benefit the overall health of the elderly in long term nursing home facilities by increasing balance and reducing falls. [6]

Geriatric music therapists have discovered that Click to read the rest…