I already talked about L’Effet Défée which had already opened for Magma in last december. No cymbals or sticks were harmed this time, but they again played a nice set.

Slug plays a pop-jazz-rock kind of music which is interesting, but I thought there wasn’t enough “high” moments in the concert to my taste. Not to dismiss the others, but I think Antoine Paganotti on drums was the most interesting on stage, even though Emmanuel Borghi was almost close to waking up at some point and that would too have been interesting.

First first part was assumed by a guitar and bass hardcore duo. At first I was a bit non-plussed by effects on the voice (as usual, viking style) and by the over-use of a backing track, but they nevertheless hold the stage with style, fighting a really dull crowd. I’m in admiration.

Second first part was assumed by a DJ (whose name also escapes me). I’m not a specialist of this kind of music but it was quite enjoyable, with lots of BOM-BOM to resonate inside oneself.

Then came Atari Teenage Riot, and as there was a lot more people than when Alec Empire came “alone” at the same place a few years ago, and after taking off his shirt during the first two songs, he was able to do some crowd surfing without much trouble (even though he kept his wired mic— not that easy to do!). I’m not a fan of the mix, but there were a lot of sounds, it moved, it rocked and it felt good.

(there was a fourth act after that and some guy even asked me if I knew about it, but really it was already a bit late and I had some road ahead, so I didn’t even try to stay).

Anyway, one thing I keep wondering is how/why people can go to such loud concerts without any ear protections. Yeah, it may be more fun without and I’m just an old fart, but I’m thankful for my earplugs.

For example, After The Burial combines really brutal and heavy (8 strings baby!) sound with great technical and innovative syncopated guitar handling. Take for example Cursing Akenaten, it starts slowly with an oriental sounding melody, then there’s the heavy wall of guitars before the two mixes up; And then, there’s the double-time that just blows your mind. Or you could be misguided by the first seconds of Aspiration: Is that 80’s hair metal calling? But beware of the blowing heads that quickly follow. And there’s Ometh that pumps you forward so much with its melody/solo that just counterpoints the rhythm elements.

But if you want to go the old guys, there’s also Dream Theater latest opus, Black Clouds & Silver Linings. I kind of like their previous work but I wasn’t really a fan, mostly because of James LaBrie’s voice, but I was somehow amazed by the way they came full circle on this release. There are a lot of influences on this album, either from themselves, featuring themes and elements from previous albums (the most prominent for me would be The Glass Prison) but also from other bands: not exact riffs or melodies but some kind of sound and way of playing, just like discovering a good wine. When I listen to this album, I hear Pantera or Metallica and that’s without counting the covers included in extended versions. And obviously, they still excel technically.

So, yesterday I saw Andy McKee at L‘Étage: the guy was really cool and sweet, playing instrumental songs on acoustic guitar and harp guitar, adding percussion sounds using the guitar body and using a lot of different guitar technics (harmonics, taping…) which gave an impressive result. He also used a lot of different tunings (even breaking a string while retuning — I feel less alone). Highly recommended to guitar fans.

Punish Yourself may be uglier, but at least they sounded far better (even if this time I had a doubt with the drummer vs the backtrack). They were screaming, painted, flaming and moving the people around and that was good. Soundwise, they’re a bit of mix between punk, rockabilly (I’m pretty sure to have clearly heard that influence in one or two songs) and hard techno. Stage-wise, it was also really nice to watch: lasers, flames and body paint.

Overall, it was just a bit short (1h and 1:25 respectively) but it felt good in the end.

About a week and a half ago, I was seeing Magma in concert for the second time. The first part was filled by L’Effet Défée which provided us with a strange mix of sounds: Vocals (and samples), Harp (yes, harp!), Bass (with a bow) and noise/hardcored drums (the guy lost a cymbal and broke a stick, it can’t be much hardcore). In the end, it gave a powerful and refreshing mix, with a kind of Björk-meets-Magma result.

Next came Magma. They played a powerful set, although I was a bit disappointed because compared to the previous performance I saw, I thought that the bass and guitar were less overwhelming in their sound and presence. I think the guitar was a bit low in the mix and there was only one real solo. But I still love watching Christian Vander play the drums with ease and at the same time a lot of power (he too lost a cymbal, that wasn’t the night for the drums techs).

• NOT a superstrat body (but best if this is not a plain Les Paul copy or a SG;
• lighter and smaller than a Les Paul (and I mean it: not just a Lite LP);
• dual humbuckers (coil splitting a bonus but not required);
• oil/wax neck finish (even though this could be done after);
• NOT inlined tuners (but bonus for locked tuners);
• right arm rest is an ultra-bonus;
• low-mid range price (aka: not cheap but not requiring me to sell my kidneys again);
• either really good looking (but I’m picky) or cheap looking (and it will suffer);
• fixed bridge;

• available from a local dealer.

Currently, my eyes would be on a Godin LG, but I haven’t tested the neck yet. Otherwise a ’72 tele might fit part of the bill, but that would not be exactly my current aim.

• Dava Grip Tip: Maybe the most different of the picks I had, I think it requires more “training” to properly use it, since it would take advantage of the way the fingers handle it. A bit too soft to my taste. Maybe I should try instead the Rock Control or Precision versions which provide harder tips;
• Dunlop Big Stubby: A basic and large width pick, I don’t really like the grip I have on it, for my usual way of playing. Maybe I should try to use it for playing the bass or only for strumming;
• Dunlop Nylon Jazz XL: heavy (in width) but small pick with a nice tip. I think the “jazz” title is well earned since I like it to play melodies and solos, but I have a hard time keeping a good grip when changing styles for strumming or playing in a more rock or metal fashion;

• Dunlop Ultex Sharp: at first it felt weird, because I took one of the smallest of the lot with the 0.90mm and compared to my trusty 1.35 sharp tortex, it just felt naked, but once I got used to its width, it was just the right one, being hard enough, precise and with a good (basic) grip. I only need to see know how it holds in time (but so far, it looks good).

This is just a small review of what I got on my hands and there are many other products available on the market. At the time being, I think I’ll mostly go with the Ultex, maybe picking up the Jazz every now and then.