Well, I figured I'd show you guys my stuff. It's nothing too great, but hopefully it isn't too bad either.

I don't play a specific sub-genre, as I often have these "musical phases" where I might listen to a certain something or someone specifically for a while. My ideas kind of change overtime, so I guess I'm still trying to find my "true sound," so to speak. Right now I have a death metal piece, a thrash/death one, another which was supposed to be viking metal but turned out more like power metal (which is not what I was aiming for at the time), and am currently working on a viking metal piece that actually sounds "viking," and a bit blackened as well. I have a 4-minute preview clip of the "blackened" viking metal song up for the time being, but I don't know when I'll be able to record the full thing, being a college student and all. But here it is:

MySpace:
http://www.myspace.com/bretthaynesmetal

SoundClick:
http://www.soundclick.com/bretthaynesmetal

Note that the older songs were recorded before I started studying music theory, so they might sound a bit "wrong" at some points. Also, I've only been playing guitar for 2 years, so any constructive criticism anyone has would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Hey there and Welcome,

Just listened to all three posted, and after reading that you have just been playing guitar for 2 years, I must say that you have a very tight rhythm sound. I think your right hand (assuming you're not a lefty) is very quick and you have good economy of motion when strumming. It sounds like you are playing through a small amplifier, which sounds cool in a thrash metal kinda way.

Another thing that you could do to save some cash is use a multi-effects pedal with kind of a room modeling setting to diversify your sound a little bit without the high dollar gear investment. I have a line 6 Floorpod (~$129) as well as a Korg multi effects pedal(~$25) which both have can sound really good directly plugged into the computer. I dont play through my amp much because of the noise disturbing sleeping children.

Something that has really helped me with songwriting is immersing myself into the piano roll and MIDI. Any song idea that I have immediately gets inputted into the piano roll and assigned a vst instrument. In my opinion, this takes me out of the rhythm guitar player mold and places me into songwriter mode, and then I learn the parts from there. I think in rhythm and it is good way to hear melodies over the rhythm. Also music theory is important....Until you say fuck it.

All in all pretty good, the songs need a little work and vocals. Dont say you cant sing, thats what auto-tune is for. Good Luck.

Hey there and Welcome,

Just listened to all three posted, and after reading that you have just been playing guitar for 2 years, I must say that you have a very tight rhythm sound. I think your right hand (assuming you're not a lefty) is very quick and you have good economy of motion when strumming. It sounds like you are playing through a small amplifier, which sounds cool in a thrash metal kinda way.

Another thing that you could do to save some cash is use a multi-effects pedal with kind of a room modeling setting to diversify your sound a little bit without the high dollar gear investment. I have a line 6 Floorpod (~$129) as well as a Korg multi effects pedal(~$25) which both have can sound really good directly plugged into the computer. I dont play through my amp much because of the noise disturbing sleeping children.

Something that has really helped me with songwriting is immersing myself into the piano roll and MIDI. Any song idea that I have immediately gets inputted into the piano roll and assigned a vst instrument. In my opinion, this takes me out of the rhythm guitar player mold and places me into songwriter mode, and then I learn the parts from there. I think in rhythm and it is good way to hear melodies over the rhythm. Also music theory is important....Until you say fuck it.

All in all pretty good, the songs need a little work and vocals. Dont say you cant sing, thats what auto-tune is for. Good Luck.

Thanks bro! I appreciate the input!

Yes, I'm a righty, and I am playing through a small amp. It may be only 19 watts, but it packs a punch for its size! It's an old Washburn Bad Dog BD12 my uncle let me have for free when I started out. I am looking for something a wee bit bigger though, like maybe a Line 6 Spider III or IV, anywhere from the 30 to 120 watt models. They have that crunch that I like, plus all sorts of cool built-in effects. But until then I'll be content with my Washburn. It's not like I'll be playing any big shows anytime soon anyhow.

I actually used a Floorpod for the studio recording on my MySpace ("From the Pit of the Volcano," I have yet to put it on SoundClick because I lost the disc). At the time I used it though, I didn't know a thing about multi-effects pedals. I think that was about 6 months after I picked up guitar? Now, I still have had little experience with them, but I have a basic idea of how they work. But I think a multi-effects pedal would be great for the music I have planned for the future. A lot of my ideas involve certain effects that I currently have no access to. But again, till I save up for a pedal, I'll just make due with the simple ways of little to no effects, haha. (By the way, what model is the Korg?)

I'm actually learning piano now. I only know my basic major/minor/diminished 7 triads and major/minor scales. While I can play those, switching from one chord to the next is my biggest problem, in rhythm. I'm also working on my inversions and chord progressions as well. I usually feel more comfortable though coming up with guitar riffs and then the keyboard parts. If I hear something in my head, I'll try to bring out the guitar part first, write it down, and then add the keyboard part after that, depending on the song anyway. And yes, every time I hear my older songs, it reminds me of how important music theory really is. I just played what sounded pretty to me at the time. =P

If this was a few months ago, I'd say that I can't sing. But I've been taking voice lessons at school and it's helped out a lot. I'd love to make some songs with one-man choir parts like Devin or Wintersun. As far as growls/screams are concerned, I've been told I have more of a black metal voice (which now I don't really mind). But I'd also like to work on some low-pitched death growls and use both.


NOTE: Equipment that I use:

Hardware:
- Guitar: Dean MLX, Ibanez nylon string acoustic (coming soon, will be used in the new viking metal song)
- Computer: a REALLY old HP Pavillion. So old it originally had Windows ME... Don't worry, it's been upgraded to XP now.
- Amp: Washburn Bad Dog BD12 (as mentioned earlier)

Software:
- Recording: Audacity
- VST: Cantible Lite
- Drum Programming: Acoustica Beatcraft

Yeah, my rig's ghetto.