Do any other musicians out there use "Less is More

[Grey Area]

Less is More.

Some musicians use this term to describe the inclination towards subtlety in their work, as opposed to blatentcy. David Gilmore has many examples of this in his lead guitar work, with his attention to tone and flow, rather than a tendancy (usually) towards showing his virtuosity. He sites BB King as an influence in this, and BB is, indeed a master of "less is more". It is ideally suited to getting the "Big Picture" of the song, rather than focusing on a single musician. The musician gets a spotlight, but the song is the important thing.

I tend towards it, myself. When I write, however, I am alone, I play and arrange all of the instruments myself, on my keyboard, recorded in MIDI information. This isn't the usual give and take of a band situation, it's more that of a solitary composer.

So my question is this: Do any other musicians on this forum use "Less is More"?

[the twinkster]

I replied to this over at Hatrack. :)

In essence, I find that "more" is, in fact, more. :P

[Grey Area]

Sorry Twink. I attempted to consoledate here, but lost your comment on layering guitars. (I often use a "sound on sound" approach to the guitars I demand in my music).

This wasn't intended to be a "better than" approach discussion, just an exploration of different types and approaches to composition.

Could you elaborate on your guitar layering approach? :D

[the twinkster]

I'm trying to work on my guitar harmony skills, so I basically just record over myself, adding small parts here and there and sometimes an overarching harmony track. By the end it can get up to six or seven tracks of nothing but guitar. :)

[Grey Area]

Are you familiar with Guitar Craft or Frippertronics?

[the twinkster]

Nope. Should I be?

[Grey Area]

I was just wondering if you had heard that particular style. It is very similar. Eno and Fripp were doing the same kind of things. Often that's the way I come to a guitar part, as tracking over the other guitar tracks adds a texture that I like to use, due to not being able to pick or strum very well on the keys. If I try to produce these effects, it sounds more like piano than guitar, even with bending.

I really like using distorted tones, then modifying them with the envelope, a feedback type of distortion. That way I get lots of crunch factor.

But not like real guitar. I leave a hole in the music for friends to jam to. And it's easy to turn off a lead and use that channel to jam with.

There is, after all, a finite limit on the number of voices I can produce at once. The synths (two, paired) are driving every sound of the "band", after all.

[the twinkster]

Hm. Cool :)

Here's (http://www.strobelight.ca/music/Lobotomized.mp3) one of my efforts in that regard. :)

[Grey Area]

I can't get this computer to download it.

Win ME sucks. <_<

[the twinkster]

Ugh, WinME does suck. Why no 2k/XP love for you? :(

[Grey Area]

Borrowed computer. Will get new PIV system when I am again employed.

Then my old computer (not this one) can be dedicated to driving the Roland! Woo Hoo!

[the twinkster]

:)

[GreNME]

I am totally a "less is more" kind of guy. When I first began learning to play guitar, I was totally a rhythm player. However, as I got better, I learned how to do all the neat little riffs. Even later than that, I discovered the chocolatey goodness that is effects pedals. Eventually, I graduated to my own effects processor. I was wah-ing and tremelo-ing and whooping it up with the best of them. What was even better was that I could hear any song that had flashy guitar sounds, and be able to recreate them. What's more is that I was learning tidbits of other instruments, and was able to apply a lot of the tricks I learned to those as well.

Then I learned how to mix and set tracks.

The need to overlay multiple times was cut down to a fraction. I finally learned why all of these smaller bands were able to come up with such robust sounds and music with only three, four, or five musicians. I was in a playland of sound.

That is, until I tried to break down a single multi-tracked song into a one-instrument live performance. Playing one track's music just sounded empty. Even snazzing it up didn't cover the full range. I started watching what those who played with minimalist setups as a matter of course were doing. I learned that everything I had picked up to that point—while very helpful and fun—didn't make the stuff sound good.

After that, I tried to get back into my older habits, and found that all of the tricks I used before didn't work any more. Everything was cluttered. I then got into trying to learn how to fill the empty spaces in a single-track composition with stuff that I'd normally stick in with extra tracks. This meant trimming a lot of excess notes, but making sure to include the ones that mattered. I was learning not how to be a minimalist, but learning how those minimalists were able to literally get more sound from less work. I was learning how less can actually be more.

Don't mistake my "less is more" attitude with not liking busy or robust mixes... my affinity for people like Reznor and Eno attests to my love for good busy music. However, after learning how less can actually be more, I understand better how those guys are probably not doing half the work I had originally though when composing. Heck, I could even use my preference of baroque style music—my favorite being (the "common" answer) Mozart—to show I don't mind musical meandering. In every instance, though, the music that I like isn't because it's full of many notes, but because each note and chord is necessary and deliberate.

[GreNME]

Though I freely admit to not being a "musician" any more. I can still play some instruments (and have a hell of a singing voice), but I don't actively make music any more, and haven't for a very long time. I was seriously hyped to get into Twinky's contest, but time and work constraints got in the way. Perhaps over winter break, I'll shake loose the cobwebs and try to come up with something to demonstrate my personal preferences.

Maybe I should begin practicing now. :)

[Nick]

Leto, you said you're a Mozart fan, so do you have all you songs follow the sonota form? Just curious.

[the twinkster]

See, my favourite classical composer is Chopin. I guess that's the crucial difference between us ;)

...maybe in a year or three I'll catch up to you, but right now I'm still at the "exploring the juicy world of effects" stage. :P

[GreNME]

It probably won't be a matter of "catching up" as it is growing differently (as if you didn't know that already). The thing is, while the effects thing is fun, I suggest trying to see how much you can get as much that is in many tracks into one or two. It's a helluva challenge, at the very least.

And no, Nick, I've never composed a sonata. I don't write baroque music (if it ain't baroque, don't fix it).

[Grey Area]

Your evolution as a guitarist seems to mirror mine as a keyboardist! We used to marvel at the sound Rush got with just three pieces (well, alright, they had pedal synths too!)

I am amazed at the progression Peter Gabriel has made over the years, for instance. Some of the work on Up is so subtle, saving the big sound for the right time. I've learned, I think, when to be quiet, and when to be noisy.

Sorry you don't have more time GreNME! I have to drag out the equipment occasionally just to keep sane!