Some genres are distinctively
related to a certain instrument or set of instruments, rock and roll and
bluegrass are two of those genres. Rock,
rock and roll, classic rock and all of its related genres hold the guitar, namely
the electric guitar, central to the genre.
An example of how important the guitar is can be seen in almost every
single band, because it is almost always held by the most important person in
the band, the lead singer. Likewise in
bluegrass the banjo is often played by the lead singer and even if it is not, the
instrument is usually featured over the other instruments. Also similar to the guitar in rock, the banjo
is a distinctive character and identifier in the genre of bluegrass.
The banjo definitely plays a
role in the role in the Avett Brothers album but I felt it was not as prevalent
as the banjo is in a lot of other bluegrass songs or even as prevalent as it is
in other Avett Brother’s albums. But a
main trait and feature of the Avett Brothers is that they are a contemporary
bluegrass band that incorporates a lot different styles and influences. Some of the influences that I noticed are indie
rock, roots rock, folk rock and acoustic blues.
In my opinion the rock influences really showed in this particular
album. In a majority of the songs I felt
that the acoustic guitar overpowered the banjo.
Contemporary blues makes good use of the acoustic guitar, which could be
an influence on the album.
Jimi Hendrix was a pioneer in
both the genre of rock and roll and as a player of the electric guitar. In his album, “Are You Experienced?” he takes
the electric guitar that was used by famous blues artists like Muddy Waters and
Chuck Berry and completely redefines what sounds the instrument can make and
its role in the song. Hendrix also draws
on some older blues artists and emulates a very raw sounding style of music
that was associated with the blues at its conception. Hendrix’s famous guitar solos like the ones
in, Foxey Lady, Purple Haze, Voodoo Child and Stones Free would pave the way
for many famous rock/metal bands that would make use of distortion, feedback,
the wammy bar and the wah wah pedal, techniques that Hendrix founded.
No comments:
Post a Comment