I've been a HUGE fan of the TV show Metalocalypse since it began, and Dethklok is the fictitious band that show is centered on. I've been friends with creator/guitarist/vocalist Brendon Small for a while (he was one of the guitar players for the Queen tribute I was a part of last year) and I'm still so impressed at how he took this bizarre idea for a cartoon about a metal band that's the world's seventh largest economy and turned it into an actual touring band with some of the best musicians on the planet providing the talent, namely virtuoso guitarist Mike Keneally, metal drummer legend Gene Hoglan, and bassist/all-around amazing person Bryan Beller. Well, Bryan has some conflicts with the upcoming tour due to his commitment to his incredible power trio The Aristocrats so I get the formidable job of filling his shoes until he joins the tour.
Bryan and I have been orbiting in the same music circles for years now, he's played with Dweezil, Steve Vai, and Mike Keneally as well, but what's interesting to me is how different our approaches can be to the same material. For example, on the Dethklok tunes Bryan employs a three-finger technique with his right hand that allows him to match the speed picking of the guitars (and the double-kick drum stuff), but I've never really used more than 2 fingers on my right hand. However, I use a pick and he doesn't usually, so I have to figure out which technique to use where, in addition to getting used to playing in CFBbEb tuning (rather than EADG). But if playing Zappa music for 6 years taught me anything it's that nothing is impossible, so I'm up for the challenge! My 11 dates with them will be in the Northeast from October 30th to November 11th, come check it out!
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