Help with singing and playing at the same time

[ColdVayne]

We got rid of our lead singer because he sucked , and i took 4 years of singing lessons , so now im the new lead singer but im also the lead guitar player . Is their any tips you guys could give so i dont screw up on my first gig as both singer and guitar player??

[Ace]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

Is their any tips you guys could give so i dont screw up on my first gig as both singer and guitar player??

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Ummm... practice? I would like to sing and play guitar at the same time, but I can only do it if the vocal parts match the guitar parts almost exactly, otherwise it's a total abortion. I'd like to hear other people's advice on this one, and if you figure out any real secrets, let us know!!

[Newc]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

You can always use the Paul Stanley method - strum open chords at the beginning of each verse [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Seriously, it's tons easier if the guitar's meter matches the vocals. Ever hear Mustaine do Hangar18 live? He follows the notes with his voice - going high when the guitar goes high during the main verses (from the live clips I've seen - maybe he improved?).
I had to adapt War Pigs to be able to sing over the verses and play at the same time - give it more of a Thrash rhythm rather than the original Iommi version.
I still can't figure out how Hetfield pulls off Sad But True live. I've tried and tried to sing and play it at the same time.

Anyhow, practice practice practice.

Newc

[WarEnsemble]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

Pracice is obviously going to be the key. I know this sounds stupid but one of the things I did when I first started singin along with my playing was do it along to a video such as Megadeth's Rude Awakening or Binge and Purge from Metallica. Watching and playing/singing along helped a bunch. When I first learned to play Holy Wars I never thought I'd be able to sing and play the verse, but it turned out way easier than I expected. It also helped that I'm more of a visual learner.

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

The thing I tried to do was I would try to learn the guitar parts so good that my hands would just kinda go into autopilot and I could sing...this was very hard and only happened on occasion, lol. But since I wasn't the lead singer I didn't care too much. Just work at it, it takes time but you'll get it eventually.

[Kamo]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

I figure out the basic beat of the lyrics, and apply the sylibals(sp) to my playing. Try not to over do it on that. It becomes a problem but if you work with a metranome, eventually it'll go smoothly, and you'll be singing and playing each song properly, and it'll sound perfect for some reason or another lol.

[OnlineStageGear]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

Box kinda hit on my tip. Get the guitar part down so you dont even have to think about what you are playing, then you should no trouble singing over it.

Matt

[Ace]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

I try to write my guitar parts at the outer edge of my playing ability, I like to challenge myself through the whole song, so it makes it very difficult to focus on singing. I don't want to compromise either my guitar playing, or my singing, so I can't really do both.

[diablomozart]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

welcome to the club, i'm in the same boat...nothing helps like practice, after you do it over and over it does get easier...d.m.

[AlexL]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

I agree with Boxcar as well. Get the guitar parts down pat so you don't have to think about them, and then don't think about them! Just sing and let your hands go on autopilot.

I had to apply a similar technique when I was learning to play a song on keyboards that actually required both hands. Get each hand so it knows what to do on its own, and then do both together. The key is not overthinking.

- E.

[ColdVayne]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

Well did my first gig as lead singer and guitar player and it went awsome , everyone was like how the hell do you solo and sing at the same time??? , thanks for all the help guys.

[Newc]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

You play solos and sing at the same time?? I hate you [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Newc

[Ace]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

I could maybe do it like David Gilmore did it on Wish You Were Here, where he plays simple pentatonic phrases, and doubled them with his voice. Maybe.

[jgcable]

Re: Help with singing and playing at the same time

I am the lead guitar player/singer in my band. I have been fronting bands as both since the early 80's. The most successful band I was ever in was a power trio. We were set up like Triumph. The bass player and myself shared singing responsibilities and the drummer sang a few songs too. It becomes second nature after awhile. Congratz on your first gig as both.