For the Love of the Power Chord
The story of losing and recovering a part of me
We’ve all lost stuff: keys, wallets, water bottles, and even our heads!
But have you ever lost parts of your soul? Things that define you and make you happy. Well, if you haven’t, don’t make the same mistake I have.
I sold my guitar and amp 3 years ago. I never really got anywhere as a guitar player and I hadn’t picked up my cherry red SG in years. I was happily swinging my squash racket instead, along with raising kids and working at a job.
Music had been a huge part of my life since early childhood. I went to music school from 5 to 15 studying the piano. I picked up the guitar right after I graduated, and I discovered rock and metal music a little earlier. Since then I, as many true music aficionados, had been on a journey of listening, studying, and seeking new music ever since.
Until I wasn’t…
The hustle and bustle of responsibility-filled life make us forget about our own needs, and we sacrifice parts of ourselves that make us who we are. If you don’t check in with yourself from time to time, you risk waking up one day with a realization that you are a completely different person than you used to be — and not in a good way.
The dangerous and tricky part is that these changes happen so gradually and slowly that we don’t notice them. That’s called gradual change blindness.
That’s what happened to me. I lost my guitar habit and, later on, my music habit—listening to complex music for inspiration, recharging, and stimulation.
This could happen to you, too: your passion for photography, writing poetry, painting, playing an instrument.
A few months ago, music re-entered our family in a profound way. My wife and I were watching a late-night show, where the host and guest were jamming on bass guitars. We enjoyed it so much that we decided that she should learn to play the bass. After all, she had always enjoyed it more than any other instrument in the mix, and she had always wanted to be able to play music.
In no time, we found a teacher, bought her a bass and an amp, and she started practicing.
Weeks went by. Even though the idea of getting a guitar and playing together with my wife crossed my mind, nothing pushed me over the edge just yet. The pressures of work and life with three kids kept the desire at bay. The idea was planted though. The yeast had been mixed in and was starting to ferment in the cask of my mind.
What made the brew overflow was music, the muse behind every boy’s and girl’s desire to learn to play an instrument and create their own music.
This time for me, it was Black Sabbath’s “Into the Void” from the iconic record Master of Reality. The opening riff was irresistible: catchy, groovy, with that unique Sabbath guitar tone that can only be described as perfection. Electric on a whole different level, beyond the guitar type
Just listen to it:
I lost no time and started looking for a guitar on the internet with a faint idea for a budget, not knowing what to look for, when I found a budget PRS.
I had always dreamed of a PRS seeing some of my favorite guitars players and music heroes using them. The guitar was simple and beautiful, with those signature bird inlays on the neck.
Two guitar player friends approved it, and I went for it.
This time had to be different. I was older, wiser, and had more money to spend. My first goal was to learn “Into the Void” and give credit to the inspiration that brought me back from musical death.
I am more patient now, practicing unplugged first, nailing the technique, and working on the clean, noise-free sound when playing with distortion.
I am happy again. Not that I had been particularly miserable, but I hadn’t experienced that happiness in a long time, and that happiness turned out to be really important for me.
I don’t know where this new journey will take me, but I know I should never let go of playing music. It’s part of my DNA, and it’s own one of humanity’s great gifts.
Let’s not lose ourselves! Peace! 🖖
