abandonist
Banned
I'll stop when people stop apologizing for the dude.
The HAARP Machine Megathread
- Thread starter HAARP
- Start date
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Cancer
Gazzmask
Uh, I know I'm a bit late to this party, but i just saw THM with the Faceless at Empire. I stood right in front of Mumin and he looked like he nailed it to me.
bhakan
Well-Known Member
For the record, I'm not saying I like the idea of using a backing track instead of a guitarist, but shit happens sometimes. If half an hour before the show, something happened to prevent Al from playing, they've got to do something, and I'd be more pissed if none of them played than if one of them couldn't.
Or you could find something more constructive to do with your time than continuing to beat a dead horse?
Let's take the heat away from Al a bit then. Is it me, or is Mike Semesky off-time in most of the vids I've seen? I mean his voice is fine but his timing seems to be off mostly. Alex Rudinger seems to have no issues and I honestly can't hear the bass so I don't know about that guy, but the guitarless vid posted on the previous page made it look like Mike was off. Going back to the other vids, he sounded off-time on those too I never noticed because I was paying attention to Al.
So I guess my point is that the band should have perhaps practiced more before embarking on this tour. No big deal, and Mike's voice is great, but his timing needs work - probably because the band hasn't had time to adjust to each other.
Necropitated
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2012
- Messages
- 248
- Reaction score
- 157
I really mike's perfomance in this video.
Though there are some timing-problems.
Though there are some timing-problems.
Haha yeah I mentioned it a page or two back but no one seemed interested. It seems it's mostly the busy screaming sections, especially Escapist notion.
I think you are being a bit dramatic, we don't know why Al didn't play that gig and I don't see what they are "getting away with". They performed as a 3 piece with backing tracks, it doesn't seem like there is much deception going on to be offended or "dead insulted" about.
abandonist
Banned
imo backing tracks are bullshit to start with. I didn't pay to see a tape recording of one of the members. Just cancel and reschedule.
gunch
goof-ass
Honestly I feel kind of duped that Mu'min came out like he was this mysterious dark horse virtuoso and then all of this happened. I feel even dumber for trying to defend him in the last thread.
That said he's got some good songwriting going and I hope he can get over this and improve for the future.
That said he's got some good songwriting going and I hope he can get over this and improve for the future.
sakeido
Contributor
tech metal: where being really fucking good at guitar just isn't good enough
DLG
not guthrie govan
that's actually the whole point.
there are about 400 brutal death metal bands for every technical death metal band. it's an elite company and if you can't play at the level, you shouldn't.
^ Exactly
I don't see many jazz bands or concert pianists playing along to CDs.
Don't write technical music you can't play live and get signed to a big label, earning money from music you can't play. It just isn't right. You should be experienced if you are in a "virtuoso" group. People are paying to see something amazing, to be inspired.
I don't see many jazz bands or concert pianists playing along to CDs.
Don't write technical music you can't play live and get signed to a big label, earning money from music you can't play. It just isn't right. You should be experienced if you are in a "virtuoso" group. People are paying to see something amazing, to be inspired.
sakeido
Contributor
jakrentschler
Well-Known Member
everyone needs to cut this band some slack. Rudy is a very good friend of mine and i know how hard he and the rest of The HAARP Machine have worked to get where they are. The bottom line is this is their first tour. They've had computer problems, gear problems, merch guy problems, etc and that stuff can be very stressful for a band to handle while having to play songs as difficult as their's live. Give them some more time, they'll blow you away once they get it all together.
Necropitated
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2012
- Messages
- 248
- Reaction score
- 157
My attempt on the intro of Lower The Populace.
The slides are a bit sloppy. And thanks to JosepAOI for
the tab
The slides are a bit sloppy. And thanks to JosepAOI for
the tab
Jonathan20022
Engineer
What are you talking about? The internet hyped this band and guitarist to levels that are absurd. He never came out as a mysterious virtuoso, they just didn't release any content or information and kept things under wraps. Don't blame them for getting your own hopes up due to OTHERS praising a band with very little to show for other than a commercial, a play through, and preproduction demos.
I love Disclosure, it's an awesome record, but personally the live show is inexcusable, they played their "first" show last year in september. And it looks practically identical to the videos of recent shows, hasn't the band learned anything? Or primarily Al since they replaced two members.
Feedback in the beginning, Al looking around to try and fix issues, the singer's mic not working. The only thing I enjoyed more about this performance, was that they were moving around a lot more. So the occasional fuck up was completely warranted when your head is spinning and your hair is everywhere. But point is, this isn't their first tour ever they've played in front of crowds before and they should know better.
DLG
not guthrie govan
firstly, that's you're opinion, I think that they are incredibly boring personally. Sounds like Necrophagist lite with cornball Killswitch-esque vocals to me, but that's not the point.
secondly, it's not the entire point, but at least 85 percent of the point/attraction of technical metal is that you are playing something that not many other people can play.
Anyone can write super-complex songs using guitar pro, not many can play them.
That's the point you are missing.
Ron Jarzombek probably wrote these song in the same way that Al Mumin wrote his songs.
But then he sat down and learned how to play them before making an album out them.
and that's why (along with several other reasons) he is a tech metal god and al mumin is an average player who is good at composing complex riffs on his computer.
sakeido
Contributor
and see necrophagist had a couple good tunes but all the rest, to me, is 100% completely by the book neoclassical. it doesn't surprise me all that much they don't have another new album out because judging from the two he does have, he had nothing in the tank. both albums sound exactly the same.
and that's why any shred-heavy genre is usually total ass. nothing is less interesting to listen to than guys going "lookit what I can do!" and nothing is more depressing to me then so many guys thinking that music & showing off are the same thing.
prove it then, crank out a tune as good as Haarp or Bulb at their best in guitar pro... very few people can actually write good songs. if everybody could be a good songwriter, maybe I wouldn't be so disillusioned about metal as a genre right now
lol wow if al mumin is only an average player, I might as well have no fingers on my left hand. tech metal fanboys
See, I don't know about that. I feel like how he presented himself and his band was very ominous and the edited .Strandberg* commercial did make him seem like some sort of evolved human being.
As a lot of people have said, it's their first tour. Shit happens. Al can obviously play, but he seems to be having some timing issues- whether or not that's a personal hurdle or just an issue with playing live we can't say just yet. The only thing that will for sure happen is that they WILL get better. I think the album is brilliant and very inspiring, I really hope that all of this internet hate doesn't discourage them.
exactly...I feel bad for them though. They're not scoring any points with a lot of people haha
HighGain510
Contributor
It's a good thing they never claimed to be a "virtuoso group" then, eh...?
Personally, I enjoy the music on their album. From your post above, if he can't pull it off live, it's better for him to have never written it at all and made money from it? Sorry, I can't agree with you there. 
I'm glad they put the album out, I can enjoy it when I'm driving to work without having to see them play it live. If you are so bothered by it, why keep watching videos of them playing live or going to their shows? If you stop subjecting yourself to it, you could save yourself from being so clearly upset about it. It really is a silly thing to get yourself all worked up over in the grand scheme of things. 
