Hi Monkeys, it’s glorious out.

My article was well-received. I just came back from a meeting about it and feedback from around the table was fairly glowing, which feels pretty good since I actually thought it was a bit sprawling. They think one section should be turned into separate document. Unfortunately, that means weekend writing again.

At least I know where I’ll be for that. Up near the tree.

Dare I bring electronic technology into that sacred space? Fuck no. Already printed it out for the backpack, pencils already sharpened.

I forgot to mention that I played with the Xiphos at the last jam, instead of the LP Baritone. Somewhat shockingly, I actually really strongly prefer the Xiphos tone. I think I realized this immediately when I got the new axe last year, but my psychology took over my judgement and forced me to like the LP better, especially since I had dropped so much money on it. I remember now that I had played with it with its standard pickups (Gibsons) for a while, and eventually let myself accept that fact that it just wasn’t playing hot enough. That’s when I looked around for some super brutal replacement pickups and discovered the Bareknuckles, hand-wound in the UK. They had one model called the Warpigs that were supposed to be screamingly hot, and I dropped about $350 on a calibrated set. I put them in the LP and it improved very much and I was thrilled for months. I continued playing the LP exclusively for maybe close a to a year.

And then on Monday’s jam in Hollow Way, I broke out the Xiphos, just for a change, and… HOLY. The DiMarzio D-Activators simply scream in that setup. My tones really knocked me back–  rich, full growls with extreme harmonics, which is perfect for my style of playing. They basically sound like EMG 81s on extreme juice, but are less expensive and are passive.

(Pickups in guitars can be active or passive, with the former meaning they require a 9volt battery to function properly, and passives needed no external power at all.)

One thing that’s tricky about guitars is that so many things matter when trying to achieve a certain sound. The wood-type, the body shape, the neck design, the pick-ups, and most importantly, how everything sounds together. That’s why even if you find an axe with the perfect tone, you can’t merely replace your pickups with those of the one you like and expect an even remotely similar sound. It just doesn’t work that way. The D-Activators in the Xiphos sound incredible. I have no idea what they would sound like in another axe, and it’s just not worth it to try moving them into the LP after the work I did in getting the Warpigs in there. Those are just very different guitars. For one thing, one is a 28″ scale baritone, which will have a completely different sound than most standard guitars. For another, the Xiphos has neck-through construction, which means the neck actually runs through the body of the guitar, like a good knife or sword. The LP, despite being a kind of high-end axe, has a bolt-on neck. That’s pretty standard even for high-end axes, but in the metal world, neck-through is generally preferred. People believe it provides better sustain because the vibration is coming through a single piece of wood, rather than two (the neck and body) that are stuck /glued/bolted on together. Other things matter too. The neck thickness of the LP is extreme, and the Xiphos couldn’t be more opposite. It’s the thinnest neck possible, really, and the entire thing will bend if you flex it gently, which I like.

So, I’m going to hang up the big one for a while and work with the Xiphos more. I might try doing something with the pickups in the big one to bring it more to life– maybe some active EMGs would work well in there. That’s not great, of course, because I have those expensive Warpigs already. I suppose I could try selling them on ebay or something, or perhaps putting them into another axe someday.

I had excellent training yesterday and by the time my hour-long swim was over, you could see veins in my hip flexors and lower abdominals, which I hadn’t seen in a long time, and is an indication that I’m down to about 5-7% bodyfat. That’s good for my fight coming up. I’m about 4lbs over now and have six weeks to come down. I feel 100%.

I would love to get a hot, safe PoA for the summer. Yet I still stay out of all of that. I wonder if eventually I’ll die from my self-imposed deprivation.

But enough about my dick. Have a great weekend– get messy and creative because every chance is the best chance, and every time is the best time. Later my beloved monkeys.