Now and Then

chakeres

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Description

Well this is my latest hard rock piece. It started a while back as a simple guitar line that I recorded and promptly forgot about. The other day I came across the recording and started to add to what I had and ended up with this. It is more of an epic guitar song big sound and space with 5 guitar parts. Since this piece started I have gone through some philosophical changes and I'm in a little different place today then when I started it. I seem to have this on going conversation in my head about where I've been, where I'm at, and where I'm going so hence the title; Now and Then

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Song Stats

Hits: 2089
Comments: 38
Fans: 4
Plays: 346
Downloads: 111
Votes: 18
Uploaded: Jan 20, 2006 - 08:55:59 PM
Last Updated: Jan 20, 2006 - 07:39:27 PM Last Played: Nov 06, 2009 - 01:10:31 PM

Song License

Creative Commons License:
Attribution-NoDerivs-NonCommercial

Song Actions

Keywords:

chakeres (12), fender (23), strat (14), stratocaster (18), rock (1437), heavy (164), epic (43), hard rock (67), guitar (1073), electric guitar (37)

Hardware:

G5 Duel, Fender Strat, Ibenez Bass, M-Box, Vox ToneLab

Software:

GB2, DoD

Comments

springclock	springclock said 1402 days ago (January 20th, 2006)
	Mr. Tabor?? This has a very King's X thing to the riff....quite cool...good straight forward rock with a groove and good chord changes. Like the colour to the overdrive, and a very nice lead with notes that I can tell you were feeling ....good jam!!! thanks for the invite to listen Check out my latest song called Magnetar

chakeres	chakeres said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	Mr. Tabor?? Spring thanks for the comments and i will check out King's X. Glad you enjoyed the song.-JAC --- "The blank canvas was the beach." Check out my latest song called Steady

screamalexz	screamalexz said 1402 days ago (January 20th, 2006)
	gritty the guitar has a real rough gritty sound i love that. has an old rock feel to it. it's got a pretty good hook. the drums sound pretty good. not sure if it's real or loop. going back to old recordings is a good idea. maybe eventually you'll add some vocals? if not, still a cool instrumental. Check out my latest song called Die (Album Version)

chakeres	chakeres said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	gritty Chance thanks for the listen and the comments. I had the same feeling as you did that this song has an old rock vibe to it. Of course my roots are in that old rock. Thanks again.-JAC --- "The blank canvas was the beach." Check out my latest song called Steady

perceptualvortex	perceptualvortex said 1402 days ago (January 20th, 2006)
	Excellent grooving, John. The gritty guitar goes with your song art. Nice thinned out bridge and then into a great lead. I think this is my favorite of yours. Check out my latest song called Machine Man (w Beastie Boys)

chakeres	chakeres said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	Excellent David I always look forward to your comments and I thought you might like this one. I know how you like those epic songs. :-) I was pleased with the results and the sounds I was able to get with the guitars. Thanks for the listen and becoming a fan.-JAC --- "The blank canvas was the beach." Check out my latest song called Steady

snowdragon	snowdragon said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	Chak Rock loved it. Wish I had the time to write some words for it. Maybe one of these days . . . Check out my latest song called The Wolf 7

chakeres	chakeres said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	Chak Rock Snow thanks for the listen and the comments. I think there is definitely room for vocals in this song. Glad you like it.-JAC --- "The blank canvas was the beach." Check out my latest song called Steady

t-bone	t-bone said 1402 days ago (January 21st, 2006)
	whisked me away to a day when metal was king...........great listen, I was "hooked" from the get go...........t Check out my latest song called phasse

chakeres	chakeres said 1400 days ago (January 23rd, 2006)
	whisked me away Thanks for the listen, I'm glad I was able to hook you and keep you till the end of the song. Thanks for taking the time to comment.-JAC --- "The blank canvas was the beach." Check out my latest song called Steady

The Composer

The Composer said 1401 days ago (January 21st, 2006)

Cool, but a little grating
I like the riffs you're using here and the rock sound... but a couple of
comments with your structure and production.

You mentioned in the chat room that most of your guitar parts were
copied and pasted, which in itself can be fine, but the problem comes
from when you copy and paste everything the same way. Almost
everytime when a section was repeated (except the solo section), the
sound was exactly the same, same guitar lines, same amount of
guitars, same placement etc. Because there's little to no-recording of
the non-solo sections, there no variation or developement. An easy
and effective way to solve this would be to build up the parts through
the song. Ie, start off with the main lick, bass and drums... and each
time that section comes around, add another of the backing/rhythm
guitars. That way, even though non of the parts are technically
changing, theres a change in the density and more of an overall sense
of structure/building etc.

About the production... something about it forced me to turn it down
significantly because it hurt my hears (was wearing headphones).
Whats more, when I did this, I could only hear the main guitar and the
drums. My guess is that theres a little too much treble in the main
guitar... so either using a smoother distortion... or a slight lowpass/
treble reduction could make it alot easier to listen to. Turning down
the main guitar could help the mix a fair bit too, because as I said... at
the moment I can only really hear the main guitar and drums without
hurting my ears.

I do quite like the thinned out section right before the solo (which is
also quite cool)... and would certainly like to hear what happens with
this with vocals.

Check out my latest song called 25 Minutes in a Japanese Restaurant (Readers Digest Version) (MJRF)

The Composer

The Composer said 1401 days ago (January 21st, 2006)

Mistake
Ok, mistake... the guitar parts arn't copied and pasted... he was joking in the
chat. But the comment about keeping things changing and evoling still
applies.

---
The Composer, previously known as The Pianist who hasn't played the piano in a while...
<a href="http://www.macjams.com/song/17268">Sampled Sister</a>

Check out my latest song called 25 Minutes in a Japanese Restaurant (Readers Digest Version) (MJRF)

chakeres

chakeres said 1399 days ago (January 23rd, 2006)

Mistake
TC thanks for your insightful comments. As for the repetition in the song, I
really had vocals in mind for the parts that repeat. I think that would create a
little variation and more dynamics. I mixed the song using my headphone and it
seemed fine to me. I did notice one thing, when I converted to an mp3 the
levels were boosted a bit and that may account for it sounding a bit loud on you
headphones. I still don't know why the levels were boosted because it has not
happened before. If I had the opportunity to re-up the song I would lower the
levels compensate. Also on the headphones for my laptop, which are not nearly
as good as the ones I mix with I did notice some clipping. Thanks for listening
and taking the time to comment.-JAC

---
"The blank canvas was the beach."

Check out my latest song called Steady

Komrade K

Komrade K said 1401 days ago (January 22nd, 2006)

There's some amazing stuff here
I particularly like the stripped down bit in the middle. You're an excellent
guitarist and you do lots of fantastic stuff on this track - however, I'm in
agreement with The Composer, there needs to be more development as
the track has a similar density and feel for most of its length which gets a
bit wearing after a while.

KK

Check out my latest song called Ye Mariners All

underdog.

underdog. said 1401 days ago (January 22nd, 2006)

cathartic
hey chak,

it's always good to let your emotions roam and i'm glad you let it out
here. that's what writing music is all about. nice breakout halfway
deep. this is a great rip. sounds like you came home from an streddful
day and took a few cuts on your strat.

not sure if its the scope of your genre, but one dynamic suggestion
would be ot cut the drums out for a measure or two and fill in the
space with a thick synth pad... a breakdown, perhaps just before the
sonic explosion 1/2 way in.

nice ending, and the drums sounded real. well done.

-u.

Check out my latest song called The Prophet's Profits

	said 1400 days ago (January 22nd, 2006)
	As always very attractive guitar sounds. Bass is very thin but I get the feeling you like it that way. :) thanks for sharing Chak

loyd vader	loyd vader said 1400 days ago (January 22nd, 2006)
	As always i saw iggy pop in concert last night and this had a similar vibe....so thanks for nothing.....im so sore from dancing all night and now youve got me out of my chair getting a drawling boogie on......now im even sorer but better for it.................cheers --- \m/\m/ Check out my latest song called im not lazy, im just tired

caroline	caroline said 1400 days ago (January 23rd, 2006)
	my ears are bleeding... but in a good way!!! great energy! great playing!!! can i go back to simon and garfunkel now??!! xoxoxox @>---;--- Check out my latest song called clink that link mjrf

Einarus	Einarus said 1400 days ago (January 23rd, 2006)
	Epic, indeed Gritty, bloody and raw = very cool. Fits the artwork perfectly (presuming the reddish brown letters are blood). I agree with The Composer about the treble thingie - it sounds a little too high, not that it hurt my ears; I have speakers :P Cool track - you sure can rock that guitar of yours! Check out my latest song called Good Things Come in Fours

urbnite	urbnite said 1399 days ago (January 24th, 2006)
	rockin! i listened to this the other day and forgot to comment! killer guitars! the opening riff is great... and it just keeps on going! the drums on demand sound great too - very natural sounding. Check out my latest song called Everything's Perfect

urbnite	urbnite said 1399 days ago (January 24th, 2006)
	rockin! oh - the solos are great too, btw! Check out my latest song called Everything's Perfect

Audiologic	Audiologic said 1399 days ago (January 24th, 2006)
	I see slow motion I see people jumping out of helecopters fully equipped in slow motion. A little specific :) This is definantly the music for prepping that action scene in a movie. Invigorating. Downloaded. Ben Check out my latest song called Dessert Parade

	said 1398 days ago (January 25th, 2006)
	Wake up and smell the beat Ripples in my coffee cup!

drakonis	drakonis said 1398 days ago (January 25th, 2006)
	Can't sit still when I'm between a ROCK and a CHAK place! Great stuff, very spacious descent in the middle there, as we hold our breath on the way down to floor Dante-7. Driving beat, great growly guitar playing... and this definitely yearns for some lead singing over it. ttfn, Drakonis Check out my latest song called Lullaby for the Inner Child

	said 1398 days ago (January 25th, 2006)
	HEY DUDE! I'm smokin a doob right now and enjoying your solo! Nice work! I just spilled some hash on the couch! Damn! I'll smoke the cushion! Great groove man! Damn I'm high!

gwood	gwood said 1397 days ago (January 25th, 2006)
	pretty cool man... ...the only thing that I would add woulb be vocals, but it's still a good listen. Check out my latest song called RATIFY OR DIE

	said 1397 days ago (January 26th, 2006)
	Dayum! I really like the swampy, driving feel you've created with this tune. It's hard. It's rock. When the guitar kicks in after the bridge it requires foot stompin' and head bobbin'. Yeah. This rocks. Great tune. Thx for sharing it here.

thoddi

thoddi said 1397 days ago (January 26th, 2006)

Sound like my thing
Your description of the progress on this, is in many ways how I end up too. One day I may come up with a guitar riff that I get in the groove with. Maybe i fancy it so much that i bother to record it for later. And when I pick it up again after some days, I usually don't get the same groovy feeling it gave me the other day...

Well this riff of yours is a nice tight one. I can imagine it being a hook-line to a good rock'n roll tune. Nice crunchy sound in that guitar.

Well done:)

Check out my latest song called Don't tell me what I can't w/KTB and Ingve

Doadars Uncle	Doadars Uncle said 1396 days ago (January 27th, 2006)
	Crispy Rocks! Crunch crunch crunch crunch! Great beat. Head nods! Check out my latest song called Capitalist's Drag

jgurner	jgurner said 1395 days ago (January 28th, 2006)
	Crunching and Wailing Just what you need to wake you up on a Saturdat mornng! Excellent guitar work. Lots of power, helped along by the nice, thick, punchy percussion. The solo wails nicely. I hope you decide to go a head and lay done some lyrics with this. Check out my latest song called Bourbon Street Dawn

SlimGirlFat	SlimGirlFat said 1391 days ago (February 1st, 2006)
	Oh YES Excellent and passionate playing Chak I have this cranked up in itunes... hehehe :) Love the echoing break in the middle that goes into that riff.. awesome. D/L Slimmie Check out my latest song called Not Enough

macgalver	macgalver said 1382 days ago (February 10th, 2006)
	man, oh man what a classic sounding rift. can't you just see everyone getting to the stage? Totally cool in my book. Sweeeeet changes. Rawk on, dude. Check out my latest song called First Sight

macgalver	macgalver said 1382 days ago (February 10th, 2006)
	man, oh man what a classic sounding rift. can't you just see everyone getting to the stage? Totally cool in my book. Sweeeeet changes. Rawk on, dude. Check out my latest song called First Sight

spacekev	spacekev said 1367 days ago (February 24th, 2006)
	excellent I would have to agree with the first comment. This is very much a King's X flavored song. You can never go wrong there. I would also have to agree with many of the other comments, this is a very wonderfully catchy tune. Keep up the good work. Check out my latest song called Let Go

Warren Smith

Warren Smith said 1327 days ago (April 6th, 2006)

psychomachia
I like the way the different parts tear and try to pull apart this piece. If those clashes (and that long dramatic pause) represent a philosophical battle going on within your head, it feels like it's an epic struggle - a regular pyschomachia!

Yet, the piece ultimately holds together - a testament to the enduring human spirit.

Well - this may be a bit over-the-top in the interpretation department. However, one does get the feeling from the sound of those guitars that something monumental is going on. I especially like the opening theme - it hooks you right in - as well as the counterpart that plays off of it.

Check out my latest song called Pushing and Pulling

	said 1132 days ago (October 17th, 2006)
	great tune a little sound garden , a little hendrix overall it kicks like this 0ne alot

	said 911 days ago (May 27th, 2007)
	You rock CHAK! This kind of rock is a source of inspiration to me. On all of my albums, my favorites are heavy rock like this.... I'm smiling:):):) . - Harold

chakeres	chakeres said 910 days ago (May 27th, 2007)
	I rock :-) Hey Harold, glad you enjoyed it. Yeah heavy rock is what gets me going. Thanks, JAC --- "It's All Been Done Before" Check out my latest song called Steady

Fan List

Artist Info

Name: John A. Chakeres

This is the orginal "before" shot from my book "D'Art Object" published in 1979, along with my current "after" shot. It's been my personal little joke all these years. I’m an artist and teacher by trade and currently teach photography at our lo... [see more]

Check out some of my other songs:

Genre Info

More songs in Hard Rock:

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