The Mood of Tone

rugerpc

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I submit that Tone is the mood of your guitar. Different tones elicit different responses.

A rich, clean tone over a minor key may just bring one to tears.

An aggressive overdrive on low strings might start a rumble.

A bouncy clean tone might get your toes tapping.

Tell us about your favorite tones and how they set the mood....
 
Here's a product introduction I scored for Cadillac. I wanted to create a serious, intelligent track with the piano, and then break out into a sort of soaring electronica track with shimmering guitar to contrast the car's movement and the light reflecting off its lines.

I wasn't really thinking about mood per se, but I like these kinds of contrasts.

 
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The right tone for the right song.
Music communicates emotion and different songs have different emotions to communicate.
The right tone for the right song.
 
Yup, that video music was cool. Sooooo.......... how does the type of car change your tone? Maybe I should start a new thread!
 
Sorry Ruger, my video killed your thread evidently.

Nah.. it's just a hard thread to add something to without thinking about for a minute.

Les, I don't think I've told you frequently enough about how I think what a really great job it is that you do. Your tones and compositions from the things you post always sound current, refined, and uncontrived... Which is weird to say about car commercials coming from an overcompensating-non-conformist-too cool for high school-faux-faboulous- ex-punker dude like me.

You're worth every penny.
 
Sooooo.......... how does the type of car change your tone?

It's not so much the type of car as the impression I get from looking at the picture a bunch of times, and talking out ideas with the clients about the idea they want the viewer to take away after watching it.

I try to think about tones not as guitar tones so much, but what instrument will do such and such, etc. For this one, I thought of piano as thoughtful and somewhat subdued, and then guitar as bright and shimmery. I know that's weird, but then, I'm weird.

Thanks for the kind words guys!

You're worth every penny.

I need more pennies.
 
Great job on the video Les! That's some really sophisticated music, perfect fit for the car ad (or the car) itself.

To touch on the original subject, I love mysterious music. I've been exploring (newer) Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Steven Wilson, Storm Corrosion, Dream Theater lately. The music has this really weird and tense atmosphere at times and really bends your ears. Y'know, your usual minor-y scales and dissonant sounds, riffs and melodies. Those are really intriguing stuff to me. They're not exactly easy listening music, more like mystical/magical atmosphere in the songs and there are these sudden change of "seasons" in the songs and you're often suddenly slammed with a barrage of absolute weirdness.

Switching over to the easy-listening channel, I like country as well as (only some) pop music. They just lighten up the mood a bit. Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Ed Sheeran, John Mayer's recent albums, they all had that "lifting" effect when you listen to their songs.

For more upbeat stuff, I like some funk-pop/straight-out rock/pop-punk, the usual alternative rock stuff. The 1975 is a recent favourite of mine, some recent funky songs from Daft Punk, Lawson, Avril Lavigne, then there are 80's rock stuff (not even going to mention names), the new Paramore album is great at setting an upbeat mood too. Another recent band that I heard and like is 5 Seconds of Summer, they're quite upbeat sounding too.

For physical motivation (to go jogging, that is...), I like listening to heavier stuff. They just pump me up real good. :D


how does the type of car change your tone?

If I were to associate songs to cars, it'd be this way..

An old convertible with the top down, driving on the open highway. - Highway To Hell

Beat-up pickup truck cruising the backroads. - Sweet Home Alabama

Supercars - Some random opera music (what?! It's classy! :rofl:)

50's Hot Rod classic in red - Sharp Dressed Man (obviously!)
 
Here's a product introduction I scored for Cadillac. I wanted to create a serious, intelligent track with the piano, and then break out into a sort of soaring electronica track with shimmering guitar to contrast the car's movement and the light reflecting off its lines.

I wasn't really thinking about mood per se, but I like these kinds of contrasts.

That is incredibly tasty. Well Done, Les!

Lloyd

P.S. - I will address the original topic later on. Please forgive me for the sidetrack here.
 
Thanks again for the nice comments, guys.

Guitars/amps in the video are all PRS.

Along with a bunch o' pedal FX and other tone-bending stuff.
 
Here's one. I recorded last fall and put to a video just after New Years on the beach in Costa Rica with some stuff I caught on my iPhone. It was all about the mood at the time. Somber, mysterious, not knowing what the new year would bring and celebratory. Recorded on my PRS CU22 (heavy mods). Tone is colour, tone is mood and I think tone is really multi-dimensional. At least that's how I perceive tone and I've been on a tone quest every since I invested in a PRS CU22.

Peace,

James

 
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So what your saying here is to improve my tone, I need to get that Cadillac? I'm goning to try to sell that one to the wife! lol'

That was awesome!
 
JamesT, I like what you did in that video! Very cool, kind of an ambient feel that really complimented the picture. :top:

So what your saying here is to improve my tone, I need to get that Cadillac? I'm goning to try to sell that one to the wife! lol'

Good luck with that one! Fortunately, it's a concept car at this point, so you're off the hook. ;)
 
Lloyd, bro -

you track anywhere you want to!

-Bill

Bill,

Thank you, Sir. You're too kind to me.

To your original point, I like your perspective. I've never really looked at it as tone being the mood of the guitar, but I see what you mean.

I tend to think of it as the tones are my own moods, and the guitar/amp/effects/whatever are the conduit through which I (try to) express them. Not very well sometimes, but that's my aim anyway...

As for my favorite tones, the first one that always comes to my mind is a snarly, barky P-90. A little nasal, very responsive, very vocal-like if that makes any sense. Almost to the point of sounding like a signal through a Talk-Box.

There are other tones I like and try to achieve, but the one with a Soapbar is the biggie for me. Thanks for posting such a great subject to think - and play - about!

Lloyd
 
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