Keith merrow working with schecter

[The Spanish Inquisition]

So, you want an Ibanez?

He said hardtail bridges

 

[Fred the Shred]

Well, to be absolutely honest, and in something as niche as ERG's, you want to cover a lot of ground pertaining people who are visible to other guitarists, and whose peers tend to respect in terms of honesty and consistency, even when they disagree with said taste.

Fans count a lot, of course, but I have been contacted numerous times for advice or feedback pertaining product A or B by people who aren't even into what I do solo (no clue if they are into any of the other shiz I do). I've seen many an online content maker (myself included) reach a rather broad audience, and that is like a premade market study for some companies, pretty much.

Having said this, Keith rocks.

 

[InfinityCollision]

Well maybe one of them could enlighten me???

This Going by this thread Ola, Keith, and Bulb are 3 I guess... maybe Fred? Tosin? I have no idea, honestly. I'd hardly even know who these guys are if I didn't post here. Ola and Keith from a couple of reviews I've seen, Tosin I guess just because his name pops up everywhere with 8-strings, maybe Fred. No disrespect to any of them, just not the kind of music I keep up with. I think the significance and popularity of that scene is overstated even here where it's relatively well-known.

Worth noting that in the last few lists we've come up with like 10 different potential people in the "5" EVERYONE KNOWS WHO THE 5 ARE

Curious to see what Keith and Schecter come up with

 

[Fred the Shred]

Welcome to the glorious world of the internet, where a piece of information known to all can actually be 50 different things!

Jokes aside, thing is I can't see any wrongdoing either from the musician or the company in a case such as a company wanting to gain exposure using the artist's fan base. One thing is certain, though: I sure as .... didn't piggy back on anyone - I never went around kissing people's asses as it's not in my temper to do so, and I am indeed a friend of some of the guys mentioned here as it is normal for people who do the same thing to cross paths at some point and, in some cases, become friends.

 

[Captain Butterscotch]

What a cynical bunch we have here on SSO.

 

[MAJ Meadows SF]

Interesting. I don't mind Schecter, still own one. I will check this out.

 

[Jonathan20022]

What a cynical bunch we have here on SSO.

That's what I'm thinking, can't people just be happy for another musician's good fortune of finding a reliable business to help them carry their talents to a wider spectrum of people and fans?

...., not everything's a conspiracy theory to sell more gaudy instruments to teenagers.

People need to just settle the .... down, if you want to accomplish things as the hardworking musicians mentioned do, then go out and try some of the shit they do.

Nolly - Amazing Producer, Photographer, and Multi-Instrumentalist. Picks things up with extreme ease it seems.
Ola E. - Ridiculous Producer, Sound Engineer, Professional Guitarist with a history of playing in a number of touring bands.
Keith M. - Amazing Producer, along with the others promoting a DIY way of putting your music out there the way YOU want it and on YOUR budget.
Misha M. - Pretty much all the above, along with years of music uploaded on his personal Soundclick and developing his fanbase from scratch.

Point is, these guys work hard to get what they want and if people can't appreciate that then that's just ignorant. And there's more than just 5 people getting instruments of that caliber frequently, you don't know their lifestyle, income, and line of work. So I'd tread lightly around matters that people have absolutely no clue about. Worry about yourself, your music, and your own gear and you might get to that point also.

 

[trianglebutt]

I'm pretty sure any of those as of yet unnamed five have worked extremely hard to get to the point at which they're at now. When you work hard, you are rewarded. For musicians, endorsements are commonly part of that reward.

I know that Bulb and others have made it very clear in the past that they are not getting freebies. Especially from the small custom shops, they're probably getting some sort of discount but are for damn sure not getting free guitars whenever they want. These guys love guitars, work hard, and manage their money well. That's why they have NGDs all the time. None of them just sat in their bedrooms, churned out a few tracks and suddenly had a huge following. It took time and effort to build a following, and obviously some talent as well.

If any kid could sit in their bedroom and end up being endorsed then why are there only five big names that you're talking about? I'm pretty sure there's thousands upon thousands of kids in their bedrooms making music. Obviously these guys have something extra, whether it's the work ethic or the talent.

 

[Zado]

I want more details

I wish mr Merrow would suggest schecter to produce such tops

I mean..........pleeeeeeaaase

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

I wouldn't hate a Mayones-shaped Schecter, to be honest. Just put C-1 horns on an Avenger.

 

[matt397]

I'm really happy for Keith and his new musical endeavors. He's an awesome player and if anything at all it just makes it all the more possible for him to keep putting out his own music.
Congrats Keith !

 

[Hollowway]

That's what I'm thinking, can't people just be happy for another musician's good fortune of finding a reliable business to help them carry their talents to a wider spectrum of people and fans?

...., not everything's a conspiracy theory to sell more gaudy instruments to teenagers.

People need to just settle the .... down, if you want to accomplish things as the hardworking musicians mentioned do, then go out and try some of the shit they do.

Nolly - Amazing Producer, Photographer, and Multi-Instrumentalist. Picks things up with extreme ease it seems.
Ola E. - Ridiculous Producer, Sound Engineer, Professional Guitarist with a history of playing in a number of touring bands.
Keith M. - Amazing Producer, along with the others promoting a DIY way of putting your music out there the way YOU want it and on YOUR budget.
Misha M. - Pretty much all the above, along with years of music uploaded on his personal Soundclick and developing his fanbase from scratch.

Point is, these guys work hard to get what they want and if people can't appreciate that then that's just ignorant. And there's more than just 5 people getting instruments of that caliber frequently, you don't know their lifestyle, income, and line of work. So I'd tread lightly around matters that people have absolutely no clue about. Worry about yourself, your music, and your own gear and you might get to that point also.

Who are you even yelling at? There was only one comment in this entire thread questioning Keith (or the other's) being worthy of an endorsement. The majority of this thread has been hoping Keith would change the gaudy parts about Schecters and discussing how endorsements work. We'll agree to tread lightly around these matters if you agree to switch to decaf.

EDIT: And yes, everything is a plan to sell more instruments to teenagers. Not a conspiracy, but a business plan. I doubt any company in their right mind would endorse someone just to recognize their accomplishments and not expect a ROI. I'm not sure there's anything wrong with that model, though. I don't know why a company would be embarrassed to say, "Yeah, we want to sell more instruments to people."

 

[Hollowway]

Dang, I wish Keith was allowed to divulge the details. I've never really had a hankerin' for a Shecter, but I totally agree that updating them to lose the abalone, inlays, thick necks and gloss would interest me. They have awesome price points, so if there was a Merrow sig made anything like his other sigs, and works it's way down to the import line, I think they could blow the roof of the joint.

 

[Forkface]

A couple of days ago I posted onto Schecter's Facebook wall asking if they were planning to release a Banshee 7, and they answered (very quickly, I might add) that they will, and it's coming out 4quarter 2013.
maybe this Merrow thing is related somehow?

I just want a banshee with a greenburst finish and all my dreams would come true.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

They've been saying a Banshee 7 and 8 was in the works months before Merrow joined them. But maybe he'd probably help them a bit with it. Same for Hipshot bridges.

They said that Evertune bridges aren't being considered yet, but maybe with Keith hopping on board, we may get something.

 

[purpledc]

Carvin endorse the guitarist from The Backstreet Boys, I'm guessing you're going to sell that one too? What a weird and childish attitude to have about a company/product. It goes against your signature completely as well haha.

Let me ask you this, I know you don't have land snakes in New Zealand but do they have this thing called humor? Its this new thing they have been doing where you make a sarcastic remark (do they have that too?) or quick and witty comment that is intended to make people crack what is known as a smile. In extreme cases even induce what they call a laugh. In other words, its a God damn joke, get over it. BTW sign it next time

 

[Captain Butterscotch]

Let me ask you this, I know you don't have snakes in New Zealand but do they have this thing called humor? Its this new thing they have been doing where you make a sarcastic remark (do they have that too?) or quick and witty comment that is intended to make people crack what is known as a smile. In extreme cases even induce what they call a laugh. In other words, its a God damn joke, get over it. BTW sign it next time

 

[xCaptainx]

Hey that first negative rep wasn't from me. I don't play PRS

But the second one was. And signed too, as per request.

p.s Sarcasm doesn't work with text. It just makes you look like a whiny child.

 

[matt397]

 

[Jonathan20022]

Who are you even yelling at? There was only one comment in this entire thread questioning Keith (or the other's) being worthy of an endorsement. The majority of this thread has been hoping Keith would change the gaudy parts about Schecters and discussing how endorsements work. We'll agree to tread lightly around these matters if you agree to switch to decaf.

EDIT: And yes, everything is a plan to sell more instruments to teenagers. Not a conspiracy, but a business plan. I doubt any company in their right mind would endorse someone just to recognize their accomplishments and not expect a ROI. I'm not sure there's anything wrong with that model, though. I don't know why a company would be embarrassed to say, "Yeah, we want to sell more instruments to people."

I'm not yelling at anyone, it wasn't targeted at anyone specifically. But quite a few people were just being cynical for the hell of it and assuming what Keith's venture with Schecter will entail when, you guessed it. NO ONE KNOWS.

And here's a few comments I could direct myself at, but hey pointing fingers is apparently fair game since you asked.

I'm not sure why Keith is such a big deal. Honestly. He's a decent guitarist that gets all kinds of amazing guitars. The guitar world is strange these days.

Yup, I fully understand that. It's also pretty lame. There are like 5 main guys that get ridiculous recognition and tons of very high end gear (we all know who they are)... because they are decent guitarists that made videos in their bedroom that tons of kids have watched. Bulb and Ola are a little different because they play in fairly popular bands and write good music. There are a few others that sorta piggy backed off them by associating with them. Pretty clever strategy and good for them, but I still find it strange that people will buy anything and everything they "endorse". They likely get this stuff at massive discounts or even free. They WILL be biased.

^ This specifically, everything I bolded carries with them a LARGE number of assumptions and situations that most likely not more than a handful of people know about for each guitarist. Kinda just sounds like he's shitting on their parade for being good at something and being represented by organizations for it.

I think we all fully realize it's a business, but it's changing... now any dude in his bedroom that can write something cool, gain a following and make it sound halfway decent has a shot at getting endorsed. THAT is the difference. You don't have to tour the world anymore... you need a youtube account and some writing skill. I actually like this as I hated touring myself, haha. The guys in the 80s (like me, lol) were not nearly so spoiled. We did not get $5k guitars thrown at us. We got $800 guitars and some shirts... and we had to know how to shred it up like the best of them.

1. If it were really that easy, I wouldn't mind being endorsed by some of my favorite companies. But let's be honest here, it's actually not that easy to write something cool, build a fanbase from it, and take it further than others would.
2. Yes, you do in fact need to tour. Because as any major artist will tell you, they're either losing, or breaking even man. I don't think you understand that man, most of the dudes you mentioned and "insinuated" have day jobs and work/save to maintain their lifestyles. A lifestyle which is arguably at or slightly above the line of poverty for most musicians based on their musical wages alone.
3. And lastly, inflation. Most Gibsons used to cost 259 with a hardshell case in 1959 according to a price list. That is all

It's late man, I should be getting some sleep. But my point is that it's not worth shitting on Keith's success expecting him to sell out from doing this. And let's be honest here, to my knowledge Keith's working with SD, Mayones, Schecter, Chapman Guitars. He's got a lot on his plate as is, and that's all a musician could ever ask for. An idle musician is a broke musician.

Toodles!