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Guitarist
Interview
with Mick Barr June 2012 Name: Mick Barr Bands: Orthrelm, Krallice, Ocrilim, I Don’t Hear Nothin But the Blues, MNDLSBLSTNG, Barr/Shea/Dahl, Mossenek, Oldest Websites: ocrilim.blogspot.com, ocrilim.bandcamp.com, mickbarr.info QRD – What was your first guitar & what happened to it? Mick – My first guitar was a no-name black electric guitar that my parents bought off a kid in the neighborhood. I don’t remember what exactly happened to it, but I’m pretty sure I destroyed it in some way. QRD – What’s your typical set-up from guitar to effects to amplifier? Mick – For Orthrelm, improv, & solo shows my Gibson SG into a Metalzone pedal into whatever amp or PA system happens to be around. For Kallice my Gibson SG into a Peavey 5150. QRD – What’s the most important part of your rig - guitar, amplifier, or effects? Mick – Guitar. Sound will always be secondary. QRD – What’s your main amplifier & why? Mick – The only amp I own is the Peavey 5150, which I use exclusively for Krallice. Reason being it sounds decent while playing chords with distortion. QRD – What’s your main guitar & what are the features that make it such? Mick – Gibson SG Standard, probably from 1993. Nothing special feature wise, just the guitar I’ve played the most & feel the most comfortable with. The frets are nice & worn down, the action is nice & high. I’ve spent more time with it than anything else in the world. QRD – If you had a signature guitar, what would it look like & what would some of its features be? Mick – I’ve always wanted a one-string guitar with a whammy bar. Like a vietnamese dan bau. QRD – How many guitars do you own? Mick – 2 of the same guitar. Gibson SG standard, one from 1993, one from 2008. The 2008 one hasn’t yet earned my respect, & is just a backup for travel & for different tunings. QRD – How & where do you store your guitars? Mick – At home. Both are in use regularly. QRD – What do you wish guitar cases had that they usually don’t? Mick – I wish hardcases had straps for carrying. QRD – What features do you look for when buying a guitar? Mick – Ability to reach the higher frets with ease. & how loud it is when unamplified. QRD – Do you upgrade & customize your guitars or just stick with what you get? Mick – Just stuck with what I got from the beginning. Once you get used to the limitations of an instrument, it can help guide you. QRD – How thoroughly do you research or test a piece of equipment before buying it? Mick – I don’t usually buy things. QRD – Do you change your rig around often? Mick – Almost never. QRD – Are you after one particular guitar tone & locking into it, or do you like to change your tone around a lot? Mick – I don’t understand how to make a good tone. I prefer to let my bandmate & expert producer Colin Marston find the suitable tone for me. QRD – What are some guitars, amps, & pedals you particularly lust after? Mick – I would love to own a persian tar. QRD – What do you think are some important features to be on a person’s first guitar that aren’t always there? Mick – Working tuning pegs. QRD – What have been the best & worst guitar related purchases you’ve made? Mick – My second Gibson SG in 2008. I’m still getting used to it, but I kind of wish I got something else. QRD – What’s the first thing you play when you pick up a guitar? Mick – The G string. QRD – How old were you when you started playing guitar? Mick – 13 years. QRD – At what age do you think you leveled up to your best guitar playing? Mick – Still working on it.… QRD – Why do you think a guitar fits you more so than other instruments? Mick – It’s the instrument I learned how to write music on. I also appreciate its portability, versatility, & range. QRD – Do you think guitar should be people’s first instrument as often as it is? Mick – Are we talking western culture? Music inclination should remain natural. So if getting a guitar first is the natural process, then by all means. I’m glad I didn’t start out playing clarinet. Though I would think that most people’s first instrument is a drum of some sort. Or just banging on the table. QRD – Do you see your guitar as your ally or adversary in making music? Mick – Ally. QRD – Who are the guitarists that most influenced your playing & sound? Mick – Mike from 1.6 band, Tony Joy from Universal Order of Armageddon, Piggy from Voivod, the Hoffman brothers from Deicide, Terrance Hobbs from Suffocation. QRD – Do you think people anthropomorphizing their guitars is natural or silly (e.g. naming their guitar)? Mick – Totally acceptable form of behavior. I don’t have a name for my guitar, but Colin calls it “Old Yellar”. QRD – What’s the most physical damage you’ve done to a guitar & how did you do it? Mick – I threw it on a half-pipe skate ramp & slid it up over the coping & right over the edge. It caught a nice bit of air. The knobs got pushed in. It never worked again. QRD – What do you do to practice other than simply playing? Mick – Stretches & playing. QRD – What type of pick do you use & why? Mick – Jim Dunlop .88 guage grey. The right amount of flexibility. & I need that grip it has. Most picks are smooth & slip after 10 minutes of straight tremolo picking. QRD – What gauge strings do you use & why? Mick – 12-52. Because they don’t break as much as 11-50. QRD – How often do you change strings? Mick – Only when I break a string will I change it. Or sometimes before a recording. QRD – How often do you break strings? Mick – Once every few months. QRD – Do you set-up your guitar yourself or send it to a guitar tech (or not set it up at all) & why? Mick – I try to never set it up. I don’t like changing anything on my guitar. Besides, being properly intonated is for the weak. QRD – What tunings do you use & why? Mick – Standard mostly. Just started working with CGDAEE & digging it. QRD – Do you prefer tablature, sheet music, or some other notation system for writing down your own ideas? Mick – Tablature & recordings. QRD – How high do you hold your guitar when playing (strap length)? Mick – Maybe about a foot from my chin... not completely sure. High-ish, but not ridiculous. QRD – What’s a type of guitar playing you wish you could do that you can’t? Mick – Flamenco. QRD – What’s a guitar goal you’ve never accomplished? Mick – Playing for 24 hours straight. Or playing guitar underwater. QRD – Did you ever take guitar lessons & if so, what did you learn from them? Mick – I had lessons when I was 13-14. I learned how to play a lot of Danzig songs. & how to do pick squeals. QRD – What would you teach someone in a guitar lesson that you don’t think they would generally get from a guitar teacher? Mick – I would teach them to avoid learning music theory. QRD – What’s something someone would have to do to emulate your style? Mick – One should never try to emulate another’s style. QRD – What’s your take on tremolo systems? Mick – Whammy bars are fun as hell. But I’m glad I don’t have to deal with those systems. Seem like a pain. QRD – How often do you adjust your tone knob? Mick – Enough to not want to have it removed. QRD – What do you see as the difference between lead guitar & rhythm guitar players? Mick – Lead guitarists have more of an ego. QRD – If a band has good guitar work, can you ignore the rest of the band not being good? Mick – Sure, might not be my favorite band. But if the guitar player has an original style, I’m usually intrigued. But that goes for original musicians on any instrument. QRD – What famous musician’s guitar would you like to own & why? Mick – One of Cliff Burton’s Rickenbachers. Because I need a bass & Cliff is the reason I started playing music. QRD – Who do you think is currently the most innovative guitar player & why? Mick – Diego Araujo from Infested Blood, Horror Illogium from Portal, Hasjarl from Deathspell Omega, Vindsval from Blut Aus Nord, & Remish. RIP Steeve Hurdle, one of the best ever! QRD – Where can people hear your best guitar work? Mick – In their own imagination. QRD – Anything else? Mick – Guitar culture generally disgusts me. Avoid learning too much. In the words of my friend Brian Degraw, play guitar like you are banging two rocks together.
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