Becker, Jason

09 ERIC JOHNSON

Have a peep at Johnson’s live rig from the 2010 Experience Hendrix tour

08 JASON BECKER

Perpetual Burn – Jason’s three biggest tips

1. Listen back to your playing

“There are so many fantastic guitar players out there and I just love seeing anyone with passion for guitar. I guess the most common thing is that some of them haven’t put enough time into developing their vibrato and bends. It is good to record yourself so you can see where you need to improve. Listen closely to your favorite players and try to see how far off you are – that’s exactly what I did. It is so much fun when you start to see yourself getting better and better.”

2. Think about note choices

“I have to admit that I haven’t cared or thought about this stuff in so many years. If I kept it in my mind, I would probably always be depressed! But I liked to mix up note choices and octaves in arpeggios. I might start with a low note, and then instead of playing the 3rd on the same string, play the 3rd an octave up, and then a lower 5th. It has been so long since I have thought about intervals like that, but my teacher Dave Creamer was a master of this kind of stuff. Him and Marty [Friedman] would often break scales into patterns of five or seven, which sounds really cool.”

3. Learn to break the rules

“What felt like the most groundbreaking lesson was something that Marty taught me, and that was once you’ve learned some theory, it’s more fun to break the rules. We would make up weird harmonies that made no theoretical sense, but we liked how they sounded, so thus it was good. If something is ‘wrong’ but it sounds interesting or funny, then it still can be good!”