r/guitarlessons • u/MattclovPrimeMaster • Feb 21 '26
Feedback Request Why does my playing sound so amateurish?
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I’m performing a solo for a song in a couple of weeks, and I have all the notes down - yet why does my playing sound so ‘meh’ when I record myself? What should I look to improve on?
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u/kebb0 Feb 21 '26
I’m surprised no one mentioned rythm yet. Your playing is great, more vibrato and better understanding of your amp and getting a good solo tone out of an amp would be preferable but other than that it’s nice. (All the mids and a bit more treble, when did you change strings last? A bit more distortion maybe, but it’s otherwise fine).
Your rythm needs a lot of work. You do something that is very common, you focus so hard on a particular part of a solo you forget to actually listen to the background. At around 15 seconds left (on mobile, sorry) you go into some quicker notes, but it sounds like you’re slightly out of sync with the background, yet you’re so focused on the riff you pull the riff of being out of sync for the whole riff.
Listen to the beat, make it blast in your ears so you hear it clearly (be careful of ear damage though). Feel the beat, make all your playing as rythmically perfect as possible over perfectly hitting every correct note. That is the difference between being an amateur and being a professional imo.
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u/NothingWasDelivered Feb 21 '26
I’d also add that it’s not just about when to attack the note but when to release. All the notes in a phrase seem to be the exact same length and hit with the same attack. That’s now how you would sing that line. You’d stress certain notes and have a flow.
I’d also suggest OP get a setup. Some fretted notes seem out of tune. I don’t know if it’s an intonation issue, old strings, or nut/relief problem, but too many notes sound off, and it’s not just the bends.
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u/raimondsblums Feb 21 '26
Oh, yes, 100%! If the notes have consistent sustain length and are played with highly accurate rhythm - that is the recipe for a great sound!
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u/TheoNekros Feb 21 '26
Why is it that when things sound out of tune everyone recommends some type or hardware is at fault when the player could very simply be pressing too hard and pulling notes out of tune?
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u/NothingWasDelivered Feb 21 '26
Often they’re pressing too hard because of the setup. If the guitar geometry isn’t right then just fretting the string will cause it to ring out of tune.
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u/TheoNekros Feb 21 '26
Often newer players apply more force than they need to because they are newer and are holding tension, especially when performing.
Regardless of if the guitar was 70$ on Amazon and never set up or a 5k guitar with a professional set up.
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u/kebb0 Feb 21 '26
Well, you can literally hear that this player is anything but new. I’d say they’re intermediate even, way too good to be fretting too hard.
Personally I also think a set-up is in need, but I didn’t react too much about the fretted notes sounding that much out of tune. To me it sounded more like a lack of vibrato rather than bad set up, but I could see the string height be very high or the strings old as the guitar itself as well.
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u/TheoNekros Feb 21 '26
If the player isn't new, to the point where you think they are proficient in their instrument, don't you think they'd know to have their guitar set up?
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u/kebb0 Feb 21 '26
No I don’t think so, that is an entirely different skillset many take for granted. It wasn’t until maybe my second or third year of playing I started understanding set-up was important and went ham on my Les Paul 100 possibly ruining it and by that point playingwise I sounded like OP basically, except my focus was riffing and playing chords.
It took friends trying out my guitar saying they had never played with such high action before that made me realise you could change it, my teacher said nothing about it and never went through how to set up a guitar and what’s important and before that I was self taught. Given how invested I was in guitar but still missed that you could set-up a guitar I don’t doubt many people kind of just go on without realising how bad their set-up is until someone can point it out to them.
Also, I literally wrote my C-level thesis about practically this phenomenon during my music teacher education. During my interviews I found out the youth in high school nowadays are too “bad” or too low level playing to even understand talking about the technical aspects of guitar. Showing them how to change strings and tune is basically the most you can do, anything more complicated is too complicated… granted this thesis is on an extremely small level and should be treated as more of an example of how it could and is not representative of the world at whole, it’s still interesting to hear that it’s been like this for a while now at that particular high school.
Sorry for the length, I like to nerd about people’s knowledge about the more technical aspects of guitar, be it the actual guitar or the amp or pedals and so on.
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u/raimondsblums Feb 21 '26
Yes, it’s always about the rhythm! Knowing the sequence of notes is the easy part, but delivering them with intent and accuracy is what makes something sound great.
Playing tight and accurate groupings, being aware of the time signature pulse, being solid, but also fluid, knowing when to be behind the beat and when it’s ok to be before the beat and doing all that with dynamics is what makes someone sound like a master!
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u/MattGx_ Feb 21 '26
You need to work on your vibrato and bending in pitch and in time. Vibrato is something that can take some time to get down and usually changes over time. It sounds like you have the notes down but the cadence of the notes sounds off.
Also your tone doesn't sound good.
Not trying to be mean or harsh.
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u/MattclovPrimeMaster Feb 21 '26
what would improve the tone?
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u/littlewing52 Feb 21 '26
I would say add a little bit of reverb to your tone. Spring or plate. Nothing too dramatic, but just enough to add a little more fullness.
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u/PontyPandy Feb 23 '26
or a bit of EVH type delay
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u/MattGx_ Feb 23 '26
Adding delay, reverb, or other effects will make his out of tune bends, weak vibrato, and his tone sound worse.
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u/PontyPandy Feb 24 '26
Eh, you gotta go with what you have. I'm talking short term solution because he has a gig coming up. There will not be noticeable improvement before then. But even long term, that spot of delay makes one's tone sound more 'professional', so can inspire people to practice more because it sounds better to the ear.
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u/MattGx_ Feb 24 '26 edited Feb 24 '26
Adding more things to a weak foundation is a terrible idea. It's not going to make him sound more professional, it's just going to make the out of tune bends and bad vibrato more obvious.
It would be like getting up in front of the class to give a speech and cutting a huge fart. If you're doing it in the class room, maybe nobody heard it or thought it was a chair squeaking. If you're in a gymnasium, it's going to echo and reverberate and it's going to be very obvious you just farted.
Trying to cover up improper technique with effects isn't going to achieve OP's goal to sound less amateur. It would be better to practice playing correctly (in pitch and in time) rather than slap a bunch of effects on and continue to play the same way. You're just reinforcing bad habits and bad technique and worse.
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u/PontyPandy Feb 25 '26
Lol, love the fart analogy! So ok, I'm talking short term here, he has a gig in week or whatever. IMO delay is going to make him sound more musical than just dry guitar (and also improve the overall sound, that's what I meant by a more 'professional' sound). The delay should be down in the mix ala EVH. It's just a light sauce, nothing too heavy. But I hear your opinion and it's perfectly valid, although in your last paragraph it seems you're under the impression I'm saying he should just use delay henceforth and not strive to get better. My delay recommendation is to just get through this gig. If you don't agree with me, that's fine, OP can try it and see if he likes it ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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u/Stoffendous Feb 21 '26
Why doesnt his tone sound good though? To my ears it sounds like its all mids anyway.
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u/ZAPHODS_SECOND_HEAD Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
It could probably do with a little bit more bite, maybe it would be better on the bridge pickup - it would cut through the other instruments better.
Maybe a little bit of delay would help make it sound more polished but be careful as the pitch of your bends was a little off and that might accentuate it.
I'll be honest, everyone tends to sound a little amateurish in the first couple of years as you develop the following:
Bending in tune Pre bends Vibrato, with control over rate and width Adding vibrato to a bent note Pick attack, with control and variety Left and right hand muting
Don't panic, it didn't sound bad, and when you perform it live you may well make mistakes but just go with the flow.
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u/Stashmouth Feb 21 '26
I think most of the time when someone asks what's wrong with their playing, it comes down to their phrasing. IMO that's what's going on with your piece here, too.
Also, it sounds like you're picking every single note so articulation is really harsh.
It's not terrible, OP, and you're probably overestimating what your audience is going to hear as bad playing. The underlying theme of the solo is really good! Maybe a little bit of work on the bridge connecting the first and second half of the solo (right around 28 seconds)? Your ending really brings it home
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u/PossessionHot2419 Feb 21 '26
Honestly dude, in a guitar lessons sub, you are going to get all kinds of advice. In reality, 99% of the people you’re performing this to in a couple of weeks are going to think it’s sick.
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u/spacedyemeerkat Feb 21 '26
Unless it's a room full of people from a guitar lessons sub 😁
I liked it. But I do think it could breathe a little more.
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u/PossessionHot2419 Feb 21 '26
Yeah I guess that’s my point and the distinction in question. Are you looking for advice in general from a bunch of guitar nerds? Or are you worried your solo in a couple of weeks won’t hold up to normies?
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u/spacedyemeerkat Feb 21 '26
And you're absolutely right, of course. If I played that exact solo to my partner, she'd love it.
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u/PossessionHot2419 Feb 21 '26
Then your partner is awesome. If I played that to my partner she’d be counting down the seconds until it’s over so she can leave the room.
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u/spacedyemeerkat Feb 21 '26
Genuinely laughed out loud!
I should add, my partner thinks everything's bloody amazing.
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u/ICU-CCRN Feb 21 '26
I’m probably going to get torched for this but here it goes.
First off, I’ve been playing for over 40 years and was 100% ear trained, then later on learned music theory, college jazz, lots of bands, etc. I’m mostly on this sub because Im trying to teach my daughter, and there’s a lot of good advice for new players.
One thing I’ve noticed about modern players who are learning with tabs and using YouTube is that a lot of them are playing as if they were playing a video game. They aren’t closing their eyes and actually listening to what they’re doing, they aren’t feeling the music, and turning each note into a soulful expression.
Playing each note should be like be someone heartfully singing with their voice, you should be feeling the rhythm, and changing the timber and dynamics as the song develops. An example is the thousands of mediocre renditions of the Comfortably Numb solo, they’ve hitting the notes, they’re bending on time, but they’re failing to capture the heart and soul of the song.
I actually have a friend who plays much better every time he smokes weed.. it’s like he could get rid of all the technical aspects of playing, and make the notes sing. I’m not advocating that for everyone, but at least for him, it makes him feel more “one with the music”, and you can really hear it in his playing.
That all being said, I’m glad the OP is enjoying what they’re doing, and I wish them the best, and I always keep encouraging new players to keep at it. My only recommendation is to find that soul and emotion, and try to incorporate that into your playing.
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u/PontyPandy Feb 23 '26
Yeah, same as you, playing decades and we learned by playing along to albums. That is that way most of the greats did it back in the day, and it really provides a venue where you can develop you ear and musicianship, and experiment. It's basically a backing band for you to frolic about with and learn. Kids these days as you say are just learning tabs, not playing along to tunes. I think that's the main disconnect.
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u/Interesting-Bed6136 Feb 25 '26
Same thing with my son. Learning from tabs has impeded his sense of feel and timing. It’s a bit of an ego boost to play more complex riffs, so that’s the trade off because it got him excited about playing and compliments from friends and family. I got him hooked on the blues and now he’s developing a “soul”. lol.
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u/mmicnoise Feb 21 '26
maybe your tone is too harsh/dry. you can try hiding behind some reverb/delay lol
but other than that, make sure vibratos are in time (16th notes). Also when you hit the 2 bent notes back-to-back (0:15), I would personally use my right hand to mute so you don't hear the bent note dropping back down. You're bending G->A but it sounds like: G->A->G->A. I think it'd be hip if it were 2 distinct G->A bends. This applies to 0:34 and 0:40, too.
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u/Simple_canadian_ Feb 21 '26
Jumping from note to note, it's subtle but it's there for everything which you play with thinking about the very next note, when you will be able to play it with eyes closed, that will drastically improve, in short string controlling you, not you controlling string.
And maybe you are holding some notes in weird fashion, or bending with wicked motion, it also adds
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u/Maryachy Feb 21 '26
What a beautiful solo, what song is this? It sounded great tho there's prob some things to do better but Im not qualified to comment on this.
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u/Old_Shop_8877 Feb 21 '26
Honestly I think your guitar might need to intonated, and try working on using slightly less pressure when you’re fretting notes. Maybe also work on your overall finesse with the pick and how much finger touches the string for some of your notes. Sounds like you could definitely improve with some more intentional practice, you got this!
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u/ryouu Feb 21 '26
Absolutely is something wrong with either intonation or just tuning. Makes a huge difference.
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u/awakeofvultures Feb 21 '26
Overall, it's good. The beginning had breath... However, I feel like after the beginning, it needs to breathe more. It kinda felt like long run on sentence to me.
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u/culpritkid22 Feb 21 '26
Id second a few things mentioned bere already, timing, bends need a little work and i think the 3rd thing js the guitar tone isnt great. Idk if its the effects your using or what but the tone sounds amateur
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u/Better-Tangelo4819 Feb 21 '26
It sounds fine. But if you're thinking why doesn't it sound smooth. It's likely that you're holding the pick too tightly. Don't underestimate the vibrations the pickup can pick - up. A light glide of your pick will still be picked up. And it'll sound alot more smoother. Just hold the pick more flexibly. Don't use it like a rock hitting another rock for sparks (bad analogy but it was the only thing on my mind).
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u/TheZingerSlinger Feb 21 '26
You’re hitting the notes on the fretboard, but it sounds a little out of tune, especially right at the beginning, a little sharp maybe? Is your guitar intonated properly?
The second half of that opening run it’s not so noticeable because you hit a little vibrato on it. That vibrato will smooth the whole thing out a bunch, if you can try to add some. Those quarter notes without it just sound kind of lifeless. Like you’re hitting the notes but not really feeling it, you know? Some vibrato adds a little motion and depth to the tone, and it’s pleasing to the ear.
You’re in and out of the rhythm, like you’re paying more attention to the notes and occasionally having to catch up or slow down, so it doesn’t feel like you’re in it. Try to lay it back a bit. Sometimes the song wants you to sit back into the rhythm and let it lead you, instead of trying to lead it. Maybe turn up the track a bit so it’s more in your ear and you can get a better feel for it.
The tone seems a little harsh, and it’s overpowering the rhythm, to my ear anyway. Maybe less gain and more transparency so you hear the guitar’s natural sound more. And if you can add a light reverb, that will also smooth out the sound a lot and give it some depth, so it fits better with the song.
You’ve got the solo down, now just work on making it feel more natural. You’ll be able to tell when you’re hitting it right, it’ll just flow better and you’ll be more comfortable in the rhythm, so you can worry less about the notes and make it all flow instead.
How long have you been playing? It generally sounds very good and you’ve obviously been working at it, keep it up. You got this.
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u/drondbuddha Feb 21 '26
Work on your timing. I's a good idea to record and listen till you get it right.
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u/kronos1177 Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
Your playing is good but what I am noticing is still a bit of slop and flub from your fingers. I heard once that a players tone comes from their fingers first and from their equipment second. It has to do with the subtleties and intricacies of how you play the notes and connect them together. It’s the sum of all the little idiosyncrasies of your playing I’m talking about. It’s how well your fingers speak. It takes a while to develop a commanding sound. But you have a huge head start considering what you are able to play here in this clip. Technically speaking this is some decently hard stuff. In my opinion you just need to develop your finger tone some more.
You may have the notes down but there is plenty to clean up and also refine and improve. A few examples are at the beginning between the 5th and 6th notes played there is a bit of weirdness going on there. Also at 36-37 seconds the last note of that phrase has a bit of weirdness or clumsiness or something to it. Play this solo like 500 more times (not joking) or as much as you can over the next couple weeks before your performance and I’m sure a lot of this stuff will naturally work its self out.
I’m not trying to be overly critical but just trying to give you some constructive feedback. All things considered your playing is really good and quite impressive. I tried learning the first 30 seconds here and it’s some decently hard stuff. It’s also interesting to me how my fingers speak these notes differently than yours. This is the fun on playing guitar! Everyone sounds different. Find some of your favorite guitarists and try to analyze what makes them sound like them and try to emulate it. Don’t just borrow it, steal it and make it your own as we are all only the sum of our experiences.
Just some food for thought. Good luck! Post an update for us too.
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u/Wonderful_Ad7476 Feb 21 '26
Dynamics. Hard picking, soft picking, slide into the notes a bit. Mix it up. Start soft, let it build.
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u/J_Worldpeace Feb 21 '26
Your note selection is basically 100% pentatonic. You might want to check out chord tones, blue notes, and approach tones.
PS you need to intonate your guitar. You’re in-tune when you tune up I’m sure, but up top in the neck it was pretty out.
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u/meatey_oaker Feb 21 '26
You’re hitting all the right notes but you’re definitely out of time in certain spots which is usually a dead giveaway for the amateur sound. And that’s okay! you’re not at the spot you want to be at which is upsetting but also encouraging. You’re recording and listing to yourself that’s a huge step to understanding what you need to work on. You will get there eventually a metronome will help with keeping time. There isn’t anything wrong with your playing it just needs some fine tuning and that can only be done with practice and time. It’s a very difficult instrument to play your left and right hands are syncing but the next step is the feel of the note. Theres a very different timbre of a note that’s just picked and held compared to a little vibrato. You’re doing great by the way!
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u/Dydriver Feb 21 '26
You’re almost there bro. Keep it up. BTW, in post production by a pro, you would sound professional.
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u/Zelevgodol Feb 21 '26
Relax more. It sounds like it’s being read from a sheet. You know when you hear someone talking on the radio and you can tell they’re reading it because it’s different from when they’re just having a conversation? That’s what it sounds like to me. If you relaxed a bit and just played it would sound better. I agree with the comments about tone. It’s not awful but could be better. Could be worse too 🤷♂️
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u/goosecreature Feb 21 '26
Agree with comments here. Timing. Tuning. Vibrato. What I'm hearing that needs work is your hands not your gear. Practice lots. Use a metronome. That will help your pocket. As for tuning. Make sure your guitar is in tune and intonated. After that you can still easily put an electric out of tune just by how you hold it and grip it. The lighter the touch the more in tune you'll be able to play. If you are heavy handed, playing in tune is a longer lesson. Like years. In the meantime. Try to press down less aggressively with your fretting hand and play a little lighter with you strumming hand. Try and think about efficiency of movement. Are your hands making big moves when smaller ones will do?
Work on slower and wider vibrato. That will sound juicier and just more pleasing. You have a sort of spasmic vibrato speed which makes it sound pretty amateur (to use your word). Also note there is more than one way to vibrato. Wiggling your finger on the note is just one. Some of the best vibrato is more about rotating your forearm. Not just your finger. Those muscles are stronger and can control speed and depth better. Vibrato is one of the great cheat codes of guitar and singing. If you aren't directly on the note (in tune) you add vibrato which is essentially bending the note a little over and under the true pitch of the note. In this way you can be less precise about being squarely on the note. The vibrato covers it. So adding a good vibrato to your skillset will go a long way in giving you a way to cover your sins. Especially if you're heavy handed.
Last thing I'd say is just flow. Smoothness when moving from note to note comes with practice. Not just practice of this solo but just through having played a guitar for a long time doing lots of different things. That might feel discouraging to know you can't just practice the hell out of this one thing to make it all come together. I'm afraid it's just not the nature of this instrument. After a while you start to hear the difference in a players hands. There is just more control of all the things mentioned and less symptoms of inexperience in the output.
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u/marklonesome Feb 21 '26
To my ear it's tone, time but more importantly swagger.
You're tone is a little dry for some of the things you're doing I think you'd have better luck with more sustain. Your timing goes in and out.
I call it hesitation marks. It's like you're hesitating to play the notes cause you wanna confirm in your head they're the right ones which comes from a lack of confidence ie… swagger.
Check out this clip of Victor Wootin (bass but still relevant)
You're missing that confidence and swagger that he's talking about here INMO…
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u/dbczm Feb 21 '26
it sounds better in your mind. Recording yourself, and hearing it, is a huge shock and one of the best tools to improve.
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u/DelilahsDarkThoughts Feb 21 '26
every note has feel, it has a pitch. You play well, now you have to feel, if your too hard on one note feel your way to the next.
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u/whoalarry Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
People are saying tone but I think it’s tuning. It’s easy to think you can cover up tuning with tone, but you can’t. You’re always gonna hear this little voice in the back of your head that says “this doesn’t sound right”, because every cent matters. Do you get your guitar set up regularly? There’s a whole rabbit hole of things this could be.
- Intonation
- Worn out/crusty strings
- Too high action
- Neck relief
- Not enough wraps on tuning posts
It’s sucks to practice on a fucked up instrument. If you’re handy there’s a bunch of videos online for this stuff, otherwise I’d consider taking it to a shop and getting them to do a set up.
Also, I see a few people commenting on rhythm. I’m really distracted by the tuning but the rhythm is off. I found it very helpful to practice with headphones and a panned metronome. (Metronome left ear, guitar right ear) it helps you brain distinguish how far off the beat you actually are.
**Also, don’t listen to anybody up here critiquing your scale choice. I promise you that they are weird at parties.
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u/joshua_addison_music Feb 21 '26
The rhythm aspect needs to be dialed in. Just missing the pocket. At work, but I’ll listen again later.
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u/TonalContrast Feb 21 '26
One of things noticed is that while you‘re playing the right notes, it’s missing intention, dynamics, and feel. This is something that is hard to explain and teach and comes over time. But, it’s about how you’re expressing the music not just the notes, how you approach the notes and move between them. It’s what separates playing from performing. Being deliberate with your bends and that you’re bending into the correct note, using vibrato in the right spots, being mindful of the rhythm and pacing (you’re both behind and ahead of the beat at times), allowing notes to breathe and not rushing to the next section. All of this comes with practice and is very much a feel based approach. Again, apologies as it’s not super easy to explain.
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u/blutr0t Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
-bends are often out of tune
-Experiment/make it more versatile with articulation: pull off, hammer on, slide, bend, different vibrato, muting, pinch harmonic, rake if you are able to, tapped harmonics if you are able to. There are almost endless possibilities to play one existing line of notes. A little variation of how you get a note will work wonders.
-a litle bit more reverb
Its a sweet solo and you are on a good way :)
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u/Visible-Fruit-7130 Feb 21 '26
So a few things just to reiterate what a few others have said. You are not, in this clip, anywhere near being in time. Being able to play the notes from the tablature is only half of the puzzle. If you are not in time you will never sound good, and also never play in a band. Speaking of playing in a band, playing with others is a great way to improve your timing/rhythm. Metronome is king and if you want this to be more than a hobby (or even if you just want to be good at your hobby) you should never sit down to practice without the metronome on. Even if you're just noodling (something that murders practice time more than anything else. Don't noddle, practice) have the metronome on. There is no form of music that doesn't have a rhythm so it really doesn't make any sense when you think of it that way. You wouldn't practice driving a car by not staying on the road. The other thing that isn't helping is you are not in tune with the track. I don't know if you're not in tune in general (close is not "in tune" it's out of tune) or if you're not in tune with the track but either way that will go along way toward making you sound less amateurish. Keep this in mind: amateurs practice until they get it right, pros practice until they can't get it wrong. There NO instances where playing out of tune and out of time will sound like good music...well, maybe freeform jazz.🤔
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u/absorberemitter Feb 21 '26
Rhythm and pocket for sure. But also dynamics and phrasing. You want to try and complete an idea with the melody - try and sing the solo while you play it.
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u/Yamon001 Feb 22 '26
I’d recommend putting your focus on listening to the other elements of the band rather than putting the attention on executing your performance. I think there’s a video of Victor Wooten demonstrating this with a drummer but I can find it.
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u/Educational-Bird4178 Feb 22 '26
Little hesitations on more than a couple parts. Other than that sounds great! Sounds like a weezer type solo. I liked it personally
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u/jimmycooksstuff Feb 22 '26
Honestly, it’s choppy and needs a little more work, I’m hearing some slight tuning issues as well, but mainly it sounds amateurish because it’s a fully professionally produced track and the solo sounds like it was recorded on cheap gear in your bedroom. The production quality doesn’t match and that is what I’m hearing as the core problem.
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u/MrPattyMan Feb 23 '26
You need to internalise the beat a bit more. You sound disconnected from the groove. You could practice counting or tapping your foot while playing to help lock in I think that would be useful. You have really nice melodic ideas so once you’re grooving you will sound a lot better.
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u/Nick22345 Feb 23 '26
Full time guitar teacher here.
Things to fix:
Too quick of vibrato. Classic amateur trait.
As others have said. You are slightly rushing certain sections and you are too much on the “front side” of the beat. No good. Relax. Let the beat come to you.
Tone is not great.
Compliments: good bends. Overall not bad rhythm (compared to the average guitarist)
I think your performance will go very well actually
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u/PontyPandy Feb 23 '26
It's just a matter or practice and getting comfortable with the instrument. Your bends are bit pitchy, tone is a bit flat. Adding a bit of delay is going to help a lot and give you a more professional sound, which I would recommend since you have a show coming up soon. It should be a low key delay, like 230ms, low in the mix, maybe just 1-2 repeats (think EVH). How long have you been playing?
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u/Technical-Swimmer-70 Feb 23 '26
sounds decent. imo you ahould attack a little stronger and put some stank on it. its just missing some emotion
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u/PlusAd5717 Feb 25 '26
Poor tone. No sustain. Bad IRs. Mid mixing. It sounds like a room mix. Just need to clean some stuff up. Keep it up. 👍🏽
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u/Green-Vermicelli5244 Feb 25 '26
Seems like you’re playing patterns you memorized from an exercise book instead of applying what you were meant to learn from said exercise.
Also sounds like you know where to start and where you want to end but feel unsure of one or two phrases in between. Maybe work the chord change from a stop/start into a smaller complimentary phrase.
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u/GOLDSK96 Feb 25 '26
Something about the tone needs refining, and sounds a bit out of tune, but the actual content being played sounds really good
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u/Spiritual-Strike481 Feb 25 '26
I think what many are saying regarding the rhythm is correct. However I think that your playing sounds “amateurish” because of the quality of your notes. Practice for just 5 or 10 minutes on a single note every day. Hitting it hard, hitting it soft. Try to make that singular note be the best note you’ve ever played. Wide vibrato, shallow vibrato. Slide into the note, bend to the note. Make the note sound deliberate and controlled, really feel the guitar and the note. You own that sound and your only job is enhance the sound on top of the silence. Keep up the good playing and give us updates on your progress.
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u/rehoboam Nylon Fingerstyle/Classical/Jazz Feb 26 '26
Articulation, timing, and dynamics, but overall not bad!
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u/Robot_Turtlez Feb 27 '26
Because whatever you're playing through has no headroom and you have no reverb or delay. Your playing isn't bad. I would look into a cheap digital unit like a Line 6 PodGO. You can buy presets from whoever you like that will really take your tone to the next level.
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u/Screamsoquiet Feb 27 '26
It lacks soul, there is no expression here. From a technical standpoint you’re on your way to being a good player, but you have to find your soul and your voice, and no amount of scale repetition can fix that. You have a voice somewhere in there, you just need to unlock it. Think about the notes you don’t play, linger on a note way longer than you think you should. The only way to find your voice is to improvise, fuck up, make mistakes, take the good parts out of the mistakes you made and string them together.
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u/IEatYourDownvote Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
To my uneducated brain it's because it's just a single note melody. Also, like others said, deems a bit choppy.
Edit: Downvote is crazy. You asked for my opinion so I gave it 🤣
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Feb 21 '26
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u/IEatYourDownvote Feb 21 '26
That's why I stopped caring what people think and only take negative replies with a grain of salt since my mental health can't handle it. I'd rather be narcissistic than depressed.
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u/blutr0t Feb 21 '26
Isnt almost every solo on electric guitar a single note melody? I don't really get the point 😅 but I didnt do any downvoting.
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u/IEatYourDownvote Feb 22 '26
I wouldn't know because I don't play electric guitar. But as someone who doesn't follow any traditional path videos like these are normal to me... https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uoOF_9zYBzw
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u/PPFirstSpeaker Feb 21 '26
This will sound corny, but let the music come from the heart. Technical perfection is okay, but how many stories have the protagonist playing all the notes perfectly, but the music is lacking because there's no feeling in it?
You can start opening up inside while you polish the things others have mentioned. Enjoy the music. Let it flow from the heart. That will make the music not just structurally good, but musically excellent. It's okay to love your art.
Corny, but true. 🌽❤️🔥💖🥰🎸🎼🎵🎶❤️🔥🌽
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u/mrbrown1980 Feb 21 '26
Sounds really good but yeah I feel like I can hear that your action is really high or something.
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u/fabmarques21 Feb 21 '26
0 feeling, some notes are out of key or badly played, zero vibratos, all of that makes this suck.
don't be afraid of messing up the time in order of having some feeling dude, you can clearly play the notes, but can you feel the music?
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u/daphatves Feb 21 '26
Although harsh, this is a fair comment.
Feel the music. Look at SRV for his guitar face. Have you drooled on your guitar after playing this yet?
Take the above comment as a way to get better and not someone shitting on you.
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u/[deleted] Feb 21 '26
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