Impulse Buy and Day 24

Impulse buying is practically what Internet retail is based on.

I would not have gotten Rocksmith 2014 if it did not have a lot of songs that I personally like.and would not mind learning.  I like that there is some basic rock like Sixteen Saltines by Jack White, but also some metal like Blood and Thunder by Mastodon.

The classic rock offerings of Rocksmith 2013, 2014 and DLC is actually really really great.  The staples of the classic rock station are there: Dream On by Aerosmith, American Woman by The Guess Who, Carry on my Wayward Son by Kansas.  Drift Away by Dobie Grey.  All of that is DLC.

Pretty much any genre of Rock has some great DLC support.  I got Rocksmith with a PSN card and almost immediately went to buying songs I want to learn to play.  At $3 a pop, I was only going to be able to get a handful.  I easily got $60 in my cart and decided I should probably wait and see.  I think this is the best of advice, because I would have doubled my investment in the game, and I don't think I'd be playing most of those songs yet.

You might end up being like me.  I know there are people that are "learn the songs, and you'll learn the skills as you do the songs".  I've met them in real life, they exist.  I am just not one of them.  I am more academic.  It is not enough to know something is a chord, I want to know why its a chord.  I don't want to just know that these notes are played in a song, I want to know why these same notes are used in other songs too.  If I had a huge curriculum style book with quizzes and lesson reading, I'd have all the theory done in a heartbeat, I've always been very successful with "book learning".  I've got a mind for it.

So, so far, I do not rely on learning songs so much.

I'd do this: pick your 5 favorite songs from the original list and wait till you get them to 75% or so.  All five of them.  When you do that, then DLC may be a smart purchase.  Oh and for the record.... I'm 2 of 5 so far.


Day 24

I skipped ahead a few "recommended" lessons and went into some more chord lessons.  I do not think they emphasize the fact that your fingers will eventually stretch and learn to play these chords with time.  At least, that's what I've always been told and even people with small hands like me will be able to do them...

I realized I had not beat the first level of Return to Castle Chordead, so I devoted time to doing that.  I had to do a couple of "continues" during it, but less than I thought I would.  This game actually is pretty good at helping me memorize shapes and names of the chords they use, but I can't help but feel like they should let me customize what chords are used in stages.  I would like a sort of customized setting.  I am memorizing a handful of chords from the practice tracks and Chordead, but I do not think all but Em are recommended as frequently used in songs.  I guess time will tell.

I did some more session work with the Pent Major shape.  I really like the sound this scale is, it is very different than my blues and rock playing I've been doing since day 1.  It feels "pop" styled, and I'm pretty sure I've heard it as the basis of a lot of alternative acoustic songs.

Outside of Rocksmith... I almost broke down and ordered a 2nd guitar today.  I think I"ve said before that I would like a 2nd guitar I can take to places and practice with when I'm away from my PS3.  Today though, I found out that several of my most "want to learn" bands use Eb tuning.  I have put effort(and sucked at) tuning back and forth from Drop D without a tuner(I'm making progress though).  I accepted Drop D, I don't mind it.  The Eb tuning is every string being tuned down a half step.  This includes Jimi Hendrix, Guns N Roses, and Alice in Chains.  What a colossal pain in the ass.  Its like my Lead practice wants me to be in Eb, but all the chord songs I want to practice is in E standard.  I guess I'll need to come up with a list instead of just practicing what I feel like playing.