My first month is almost over, and I guess it’s time to put to the test what I have learned so far. Justin has a video lesson for this song and he recommends eighths and thumb strumming. So I tried. It’s just the first verse and the chorus. Recording equipment is just my cell phone. There are small mistakes and I am unsure whether I am happy the take or not.
I would love to continue working on this beautiful song, but will turn to knitting or crocheting if you guys think that I am a rather hopeless case
Yeah it’s a beautiful song, you should definitely keep working on it and you’re certainly not hopeless so you can put aside the thoughts of knitting/crocheting for now
Hopefully you can work on getting this up to speed strumming wise, if I remember the lesson I think the strumming pattern is more of quick ‘pulsing’ down strums. Look forward to seeing how it progresses, well done
Certainly not a hopeless case Nicole. Plenty to be pleased with there.
Your chords looked and sounded pretty clean. You need to work on the timing for your strum pattern, maybe a metronome or a drum click track. That’ll get you strumming steadily. Maybe slow the whole thing down a bit and get the timing steady.
Your vocal was in tune and it sounds to me like you’ve got a decent voice, you just need some more confidence to sing a bit louder.
On a visual level, next time you post try to include your strumming hand. Makes it easier for people to offer comment on that aspect.
Also, unless you’re left handed and have a ‘hcsterg’ guitar you need to reconfigure you phone video settings.
Wow, Nicole, that was really nice progress for just one month of learning to play the guitar.
Strumming, fretting, and singing simultaniously is so hard in the beginning. You really did well .
Keep on practicing, and you will soon be able to play the whole song .
it’s hard to believe you’re only one month into it! You’re making really great progress and singing and playing at the same time is quite a thing! Some folks struggle with this even after months of practice. Congrats on that, you can be proud on your achievements so far!
As mentioned by Gordon, maybe try playing with a metronome to improve timing. Get into the groove, maybe even play along with the record, if it isn’t to fast (shame on me, I don’t know this one).
Very well done, Nicole! Forget about the knitting for a while - you’re making great progress here!
Most likely I should do it at some point anyhow… So why not now? Today was the third day in my life ever experimenting with riffs, so excuse missing notes and tempo variations. My husband came home - dead tired from work - and I was allowed one last run. Even if that Boss Mini Katana is not particularly loud, I understand why I got just that one chance.
Started maybe two or three hours before recording with that specific one. Never had used that technique before. There is lots of room for improvement. I am all too well aware of that. But this one felt too significant for burying it in the Learning Log
Nicely done! Seven Nation Army is a fun riff, and you can do all kinds of fun things with it as your skills progress. For example, as I work on my intermediate skills, I’ve been using it to learn about layering with online audio programs (might need to use headphones if dh is sleeping though ). You’re making great progress, and soon you’ll easily be able to bust this one out at a party. People will light right up and join in.
Thanks. My husband, who was impatiently waiting that I would be silent, said the same. “It’s seven something”. “Yes, that’s what they play at football matches often.” He: “I only recognize the Champions League anthem”. Well ok then .
Thanks, Donna. That sounds extremely interesting. Something to look forward to should I ever get to this stage🙂
I think, it was adding a few iconic riffs to the very beginner stage modules was a very good idea of Justin. I got such a sense of accomplishment from playing around with it yesterday. We will see, what it sounds like, say in one month time.
Great to see that you’ve figured it out, that’s good ear training!
The next step you should look at is to avoid squeaky string noise by changing strings to play instead of just using the one string, it will also help with timing as you will need less movement of your hands between notes.
Good to see you making progress. Some work to do on the timing so keep practicing every day.
I’d also encourage you to look at how you’re holding a pick. Look back at Justin’s lesson on it, the way you are holding it is going to make strumming and picking harder than it needs to be.
Hi Nicole,
that’s also one of my favourite riffs so far. And my kids love when I play it (the louder the better ).
As most things in Justins course, it’s a grower kind of thing. Meaning, you start with a simple version and come back to it again to play it with new techniques you’ve learnt in the meantime. So, your husband better get used to it .
I wish you lots of fun with this riff. You’re doing great .
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). You’re making great progress, and soon you’ll easily be able to bust this one out at a party. People will light right up and join in.
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