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57-467: VAST's sound is identifiable as ambient electro-rock with considerable industrial and acoustic influences, usually made with Crosby's traditional acoustic guitar , electronic instruments and processing, drum-driven tracks, and heavy bass. Vocally similarities range from classic rock to post-grunge . In recent years, however, VAST's sound has been more identifiable with acoustic rock in releases such as April and Me and You . The band's latest release

114-494: A violin family instrument (a trait found in some electric guitars such as the ES-335 and ES-175 models from Gibson). This coupling is most efficient because here the impedance matching is perfect: it is air pushing air. A guitar has several sound coupling modes: string to soundboard, soundboard to cavity air, and both soundboard and cavity air to outside air. The back of the guitar also vibrates to some degree, driven by air in

171-488: A Helmholtz resonator, the air at the opening is vibrating in or out of phase with the air in the box and in or out of phase with the strings. These resonance interactions attenuate or amplify the sound at different frequencies, boosting or damping various harmonic tones. Ultimately, the cavity air vibrations couple to the outside air through the sound hole, though some variants of the acoustic guitar omit this hole, or have f {\displaystyle f} holes, like

228-442: A North American tour in support of the album. Me and You contains songs from Crosby's Generica series reworked into a full-band setting. Crosby also is planning on launching a release of the album in which you can purchase the album and allow the proceeds to go to a charity of the purchaser's choice. Me and You is currently only released through retail. From October 2013, through the official VAST Facebook account, Crosby put out

285-461: A four-person band. With the unusual method of distribution of these tracks by a band with a relatively large fanbase formerly signed to a major label, many record companies were outraged with the releases. As a result, from pressure from his former label, Elektra, Crosby was forced to sign a short-term deal with Carson Daly -owned independent label 456 Entertainment to release the best of both bundles as one album, titled Nude . This release also had

342-564: A full sounding recording. A standard, acoustic version was also released. It has also come to be known as “Peeled Orange”. Although intended to be a five-part series, Stripped/Violet was released in December 2016, with Jon going on to say: "I felt like something was missing from the "Stripped" series. All songs I wrote before the first VAST album ended up ignored. They are a little raw because I wrote them between 16 and 18 years old, but I feel they are an important part of my body of work." Five of

399-402: A full waist. Because of the smaller body, grand concert guitars have a more controlled overtone and are often used for their sound projection when recording. Auditorium – Similar in dimensions to the dreadnought body shape, but with a much more pronounced waist. This general body shape is also sometimes referred to as an "Orchestra" style guitar depending on the manufacturer. The shifting of

456-442: A guitar's cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and soundboard. At low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator , increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound again depending on whether the air in the box moves in phase or out of phase with the strings. When in phase, the sound increases by about 3 decibels. In opposing phase, it decreases about 3 decibels. As

513-401: A left-handed guitar) across the strings , while the opposite ("fretting") hand is in chord formation. This can be done with or without a guitar pick , depending on if the guitarist wants a crisp or more dull and blended sound, respectively. There are many common strumming patterns, which are played based on the specific time signature of a given song. Simple on-beat strumming is typically

570-519: A mixer or amplifier. A Piezo pickup made by Baldwin was incorporated in the body of Ovation guitars, rather than attached by drilling through the body; the combination of the Piezo pickup and parabolic ("roundback") body helped Ovation succeed in the market during the 1970s. Magnetic pickups on acoustic guitars are generally mounted in the sound hole, and are similar to those in electric guitars. An acoustic guitar with pickups for electrical amplification

627-437: A process called mechanical impedance matching . The soundboard can move the air much more easily than the string alone, because it is large and flat. This increases the entire system's energy transfer efficiency, and musicians emit a much louder sound. In addition, the acoustic guitar has a hollow body, and an additional coupling and resonance effect increases the efficiency of energy transmission in lower frequencies. The air in

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684-420: A string with in a given picking pattern. When strings are plucked downward, this technique produces a clear and articulate sound that adds movement and melody to a song. A variation of fingerstyle is "percussive fingerstyle," where guitarists combine traditional fingerstyle with rhythmic taps or hits on the body of the guitar to imitate a percussion sound. An example of a song featuring the fingerstyle technique

741-1045: A total of five "Works In Progress". Fans were encouraged to vote on their favorite tracks in a similar nature to the release of Turquoise & Crimson in 2003. "Works In Progress 1" featured three new demo tracks: "Again And Again", "Noise" and "Where'd You Go". "Works In Progress 2" featured five new demo tracks: "They Only Love You When You Die", "Kimi", "Fire Of Love", "Desperate" and "I Want It Back". "Works In Progress 3" featured four new demo tracks: "Diamonds To Coal", "Burning Desire", "The Thing They Took" and "Something About You Turns Me On". "Works In Progress 4" featured four new demo tracks: "Call On Me", "Broken Girl", "Like God" and "Put Your Lips Around My Generation". The fifth and final installment, "Works In Progress 5", featured six new demo tracks: "Trail Of Tears", "Whisper My Name In Your Heart", "There Is No Tomorrow", "It's Time", "I Would Like It", and "No One Could Know". Of all these demo tracks, "Like God" had previously been released in

798-415: Is " Landslide " by Fleetwood Mac , where you hear plucked moving notes rather than full strums. Slide guitar is a common technique that can be played on acoustic, steel acoustic, and/or electric guitars. It is primarily used in the blues, rock, and country genres. When playing with this technique, guitarists wear a small metal, glass, or plastic tube on one of their fretting hand fingers and slide it across

855-906: Is 2018's She Is Murder EP Crosby's musical endeavors began at the age of 13, where he was noted in Guitar Player Magazine as a promising guitarist of the future. Growing up, Crosby spent his teen years in Humboldt County, California . He often recorded home demos with nothing more than a guitar and a drum machine , sometimes a bass player with him as well. He nearly signed onto a guitar-based label Shrapnel, but turned it down to work on his budding songwriting skills. Crosby eventually left Rancho Cotate High School in Rohnert Park, California , to do home study and begin his own band, which he dubbed VAST. Much like fellow alternative rock/industrial band Nine Inch Nails , Crosby

912-486: Is Murder EP. As of September 2022, Black Magic has not released and is yet to have an official release date announced. Solo: Jon Crosby and the Resonator Band: Acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to

969-423: Is called an acoustic-electric guitar . In the 2000s, manufacturers introduced new types of pickups to try to amplify the full sound of these instruments. This includes body sensors, and systems that include an internal microphone along with body sensors or under-the-saddle pickups. Historical and modern acoustic guitars are extremely varied in their design and construction. Some of the most important varieties are

1026-520: The Renaissance . Later, Spanish writers distinguished these instruments into two categories of vihuelas. The vihuela de arco was an instrument that mimicked the violin, and the vihuela de Penola was played with a plectrum or by hand. When it was played by hand it was known as the vihuela de mano. Vihuela de mano shared extreme similarities with the Renaissance guitar as it used hand movement at

1083-441: The classical guitar (Spanish Guitar/Nylon-stringed), steel-string acoustic guitar and Colombian tiple . Common body shapes for modern acoustic guitars, from smallest to largest: Range – The smallest common body shape, sometimes called a mini jumbo , is three-quarters the size of a jumbo-shaped guitar. A range shape typically has a rounded back to improve projection for the smaller body. The smaller body and scale length make

1140-444: The fretboard rather than pressing firmly on singular frets . The picking hand either strums or plucks as normal. This produces a smooth and blended transition between notes and chords, called glissando . An example of a song featuring the slide technique is " For Emma, Forever Ago " by Bon Iver , in which a seamless sliding melody over the song can be heard. Nude (VAST album) Too Many Requests If you report this error to

1197-455: The 1960s, Ovation 's parabolic bowls dramatically reduced feedback, allowing greater amplification of acoustic guitars. In the 1970s, Ovation developed thinner sound-boards with carbon-based composites laminating a thin layer of birch, in its Adamas model, which has been viewed as one of the most radical designs in the history of acoustic guitars. The Adamas model dissipated the sound-hole of the traditional soundboard among 22 small sound-holes in

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1254-547: The Spanish Middle Ages with a round back, like that of the lute . Modern guitar-shaped instruments were not seen until the Renaissance era, when the body and size began to take a guitar-like shape. The earliest string instruments related to the guitar and its structure were broadly known as vihuelas within Spanish musical culture. Vihuelas were string instruments that were commonly seen in the 16th century during

1311-443: The acoustic album online with ten tracks. April was mostly recorded only by Crosby and an acoustic guitar , with minimal use of bass and drums. After the online release, Crosby said he was unhappy with it and went back to the studio to add four new tracks and a whole new track listing. The cover featured fan-made artwork, and the album received a traditional release in stores. The album was not as well received by critics and fans, but

1368-450: The album's recording and rehearsal process as Crosby constantly fought with record executives over the music's direction and former backup guitarist Rowan Robertson wishing to leave VAST to begin his own solo career. By the end of the album's recording process, Robertson had left VAST, and Crosby reluctantly moved forward with the band. Music for People provided the band with MTV airplay through their lead single "Free"'s music video, with

1425-477: The attention of a mainstream audience, when it was featured in the Dana Brown surfing film Step into Liquid . It also received exposure when it was played briefly in the trailer for the movie The Beach (even though the song never made it to the actual soundtrack). NBC also used it as a promo song during TV show advertisements. After Visual Audio Sensory Theater , Elektra pressured Crosby to go back to

1482-474: The band released 2blossoms's first release, A Complete Demonstration , which was a collection of early demo tracks during the Visual Audio sessions. The album was a limited-edition piece and sold quickly due to popular demand. Then in 2006, VAST released Turquoise & Crimson , a double-disc collection of all the tracks that were released as bundles online in 2004 online under his label. Originally it

1539-543: The cavity and mechanical coupling to the rest of the guitar. The guitar—as an acoustic system—colors the sound by the way it generates and emphasizes harmonics, and how it couples this energy to the surrounding air (which ultimately is what we perceive as loudness). Improved coupling, however, comes costing decay time, since the string's energy is more efficiently transmitted. Solid body electric guitars (with no soundboard at all) produce very low volume, but tend to have long sustain. All these complex air coupling interactions, and

1596-539: The drawing board and craft an album that was accessible to more listeners, but still retaining the distinct sound of the last album. After two years of recording, VAST returned with 2000's Music for People . The album featured a more rock-oriented sound, and benefited from major-label funding by allowing Crosby to work with the New Bombay Recording Orchestra in India. Turmoil was abundant during

1653-412: The first and least complex technique that guitarists learn. Guitarists can also alternate patterns or emphasize strums on specific beats to add rhythm, character, and unique style to a song. An example of a song featuring the strum technique is " Free Fallin' " by Tom Petty , where you hear full open chord strums. Fingerstyle, also known as fingerpicking, involves a patterned plucking of the strings with

1710-422: The form and structure of the modern guitar was established by Spanish guitar maker Antonio Torres Jurado who increased the size of the guitar body, altered its proportions, and made use of fan bracing, which first appeared in guitars made by Francisco Sanguino in the late 18th century. The bracing pattern, which refers to the internal pattern of wood reinforcements used to secure the guitar's top and back to prevent

1767-499: The fundamental pitch.) The string causes the soundboard and the air enclosed by the sound box to vibrate. As these have their own resonances, they amplify some overtones more strongly than others, affecting the timbre of the resulting sound. The guitar likely originated in Spain in the early 16th century, deriving from the guitarra latina . Gitterns (small, plucked guitars), were the first small, guitar-like instruments created during

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1824-641: The increasing of the guitar top area; the popularity of Martin's larger " dreadnought " body size among acoustic performers is related to the greater sound volume produced. These innovations allowed guitars to compete with and often displace the banjos that had previously dominated jazz bands. The steel-strings increased tension on the neck; for stability, Martin reinforced the neck with a steel truss rod , which became standard in later steel-string guitars. An acoustic guitar can be amplified by using various types of pickups or microphones. However, amplification of acoustic guitars had many problems with audio feedback . In

1881-406: The instrument from collapsing under tension, is an important factor in how the guitar sounds. Torres' design greatly improved the volume, tone, and projection of the instrument, and it has remained essentially unchanged since. The acoustic guitar's soundboard, or top, also has a strong effect on the loudness of the guitar. Woods that are good at transmitting sound, like spruce, are commonly used for

1938-406: The most high-quality versions of the songs, as the online releases were only available via mp3 . In later years, Crosby said the idea of releasing Nude on an indie label was a "nightmare" because "There were so many problems dealing with them (456 Entertainment) on every level. I feel we made a big mistake not believing in ourselves enough and doing it on our own." After a short tour for Nude ,

1995-464: The most notable being the Gibson J-45. Jumbo – The largest standard guitar body shape found on acoustic guitars. Jumbo is bigger than an Auditorium but similarly proportioned, and is generally designed to provide a deep tone similar to a dreadnought's. It was designed by Gibson to compete with the dreadnought, but with maximum resonant space for greater volume and sustain. The foremost example of

2052-489: The official VAST shop website announced the track listing for Black Magic , as well as two other releases: a limited edition EP for the song "She Is Murder," along with a follow-up to the Jon Crosby solo release Posthumous Serenade titled "More Posthumous Serenades". On April 24, 2018, The VAST Companion was made available for pre-order, a book detailing the stories behind VAST songs: "The book goes into where he [Jon]

2109-428: The picking hand. This technique focuses on playing specific notes in a melodic pattern, rather than full chord strums. Guitarists use their thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers, which are notated as "p" (as in pulgar), "i" (as in indice), "m" (as in medio), and "a" (as in annular), respectively, based on the Spanish language. This "PIMA" acronym in sheet music or tabs tells guitarists which picking hand finger to pluck

2166-444: The range guitar an option for players who struggle with larger body guitars. Parlor – Parlor guitars have small compact bodies and have been described as "punchy" sounding with a delicate tone. It normally has 12 open frets. The smaller body makes the parlor a more comfortable option for players who find large body guitars uncomfortable. Grand Concert – This mid-sized body shape is not as deep as other full-size guitars, but has

2223-480: The release of Posthumous Serenade , a two-part collection of twenty acoustic covers done by Crosby (solo) as a tribute to some of his favorite musicians who have died. Artists include Joy Division, Prince and Johnny Cash, among many others. In March 2018, it was announced that the next VAST album proper will be called Black Magic . "She Is Murder" will be the first single lifted from the album, and its music video has been officially posted online. On April 22, 2018,

2280-426: The release of an EP for Crosby's science fiction novel Bang Band SiXXX . The EP, containing six songs, is closely related to his older music with lots of electronics leading the music instead of acoustic guitars. Crosby claims it is a return to his older, darker sound. The EP is entitled Bang Band SiXXX: Relay EP . Many of the songs have become live staples at shows. In May 2009, Crosby released Me and You and

2337-468: The resonant properties of the panels themselves, are a key reason that different guitars have different tonal qualities. The sound is a complex mixture of harmonics that give the guitar its distinctive sound. Classical gut-string guitars lacked adequate projection, and were unable to displace banjos until innovations introduced helped to increase their volume. Two important innovations were introduced by United States firm C.F. Martin : steel strings and

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2394-486: The rest. A finished version of this album is yet to be released. Late 2015 and early 2016 have seen the releases of Stripped/Black, Stripped/Red and Stripped/Blue; a five-part collection of VAST songs all done acoustically. Stripped/Orange was released on August 28, 2016. Unlike the other albums in the Stripped series, this album includes bass guitar, electric guitar, djembe, percussion and other vocal overdubs, to create

2451-417: The same demo form in 2005 as part of the official VAST fan club package, "No One Could Know" had been played live in 2009, and "Whisper My Name In Your Heart" was played live in 2009 under the working title of "This Love Song". The outcome of this project culminated in the release of Making Evening and Night — a double album with disc 1 featuring all the songs the fans voted for, and the second disc featuring

2508-422: The side and back of the instrument, resonating through the air in the body, and producing sound from the sound hole. While the original, general term for this stringed instrument is guitar , the retronym 'acoustic guitar' – often used to indicate the steel stringed model – distinguishes it from an electric guitar , which relies on electronic amplification. Typically, a guitar's body is a sound box , of which

2565-688: The single charting on the Billboard's Hot 100 , and hitting No. 2 on the Modern Rock Tracks. The band became a relative success after Music for People , but the album's poor sales and lack of a second charting single led to tension between Elektra and Crosby. In late 2002, Elektra terminated VAST's contract. In 2004, Crosby recorded bundles of tracks that were titled Turquoise 3.x and Crimson 3.x ; they were released through an online electronic delivery outlet. Crosby solidified his band's line-up during this time, and from then on, VAST became

2622-426: The songs on this album are previously unreleased. 2017 saw the release of Jon's second publication, Ruminations On Everything , a non-fiction work, also released in audiobook format. They Only Love You When You Die EP followed, with a music video for the song announced but remains unreleased. The next two EPs released were Here I Am and Little Darling . The fourth was In Lieu Of Flowers . November 2017 also saw

2679-447: The sound hole or sound chamber of the instrument to create music. By 1790 only six-course vihuela guitars (six unison-tuned pairs of strings) were being created and had become the main type and model of guitar used in Spain. Most of the older 5-course guitars were still in use but were also being modified to a six-coursed acoustical guitar. Fernando Ferandiere's book Arte de tocar la Guitarra Española por Música (Madrid, 1799) describes

2736-412: The soundboard. No amplification occurs in this process, because musicians add no external energy to increase the loudness of the sound (as would be the case with an electronic amplifier). All the energy is provided by the plucking of the string. Without a soundboard, however, the string would just "cut" through the air without moving it much. The soundboard increases the surface of the vibrating area in

2793-414: The standard Spanish guitar from his time as an instrument with seventeen frets and six courses with the first two 'gut' strings tuned in unison called the terceras and the tuning named to 'G' of the two strings. The acoustic guitar at this time began to take the shape familiar in the modern acoustic guitar. The coursed pairs of strings eventually became less common in favor of single strings. Around 1850,

2850-493: The style is the Gibson J-200 , but like the dreadnought, most guitar manufacturers have at least one jumbo model. The acoustic guitar is played in a variety of different genres and musical styles, with each featuring different playing techniques. Some of the most commonly used techniques are: Strumming involves a rhythmic upward and downward motion of the picking hand (right if playing a right-handed guitar; left if playing

2907-502: The top side serves as a sound board that enhances the vibration sounds of the strings. In standard tuning the guitar's six strings are tuned (low to high) E 2 A 2 D 3 G 3 B 3 E 4 . Guitar strings may be plucked individually with a pick (plectrum) or fingertip, or strummed to play chords . Plucking a string causes it to vibrate at a fundamental pitch determined by the string's length, mass, and tension. ( Overtones are also present, closely related to harmonics of

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2964-417: The upper chamber of the guitar, yielding greater volume and further reducing feedback during amplification. Another method for reducing feedback is to fit a rubber or plastic disc into the sound hole. The most common types of pickups used for acoustic guitar amplification are piezo and magnetic pickups. Piezo pickups are generally mounted under the bridge saddle of the acoustic guitar and can be plugged into

3021-547: The waist provides different tones to stand out. The auditorium body shape is a newer body when compared to the other shapes such as dreadnought. Dreadnought – This is the classic guitar body shape. The style was designed by Martin Guitars to produce a deeper sound than "classic"-style guitars, with very resonant bass. The body is large and the waist of the guitar is not as pronounced as the auditorium and grand concert bodies. There are many Dreadnought variants produced, one of

3078-505: Was modestly embraced. Crosby later said that he only had it in him to do one album like April , and that it was his favorite VAST album. Crosby also released a span of solo albums entitled Generica with him and an acoustic guitar throughout 2007 and 2008, culminating in a collection in 2009. The music would later find its way onto VAST albums being reworked into a full-band setting on future release Me and You . Despite an expected documentary entitled Closed Romantic Realism , 2008 saw

3135-463: Was only available through the 2blossoms website, but it was later released to retail stores. During the tour for the double album, VAST played at CBGB's , and, in late 2006, released Live at CBGB's on their 2blossoms record to moderate sales. After multiple tours, VAST went back to the studio and recorded their first all-acoustic album, April . The release method for April was, once again, unorthodox. In 2006, Crosby released an online version of

3192-503: Was the only member but found a touring band who knew the songs well enough to play with him live. After sending multiple demo tapes to nearby radio stations in his home state of California, the band got a contract with Elektra Records . VAST released a teaser of their upcoming debut album Visual Audio Sensory Theater , titled VAST Is... , which featured the first four tracks of the album. The track "Touched" received considerable amounts of airplay on local radio stations before capturing

3249-506: Was when he wrote them, what went into making them, and the stories behind each song. Written with humor, introspection, and tenderness, this book will entertain VAST fans universally with anecdotes and stories behind over 100 songs." Throughout 2018 the four EP's from the previous year were reissued on CD and bundled together. Many of these songs were later compiled for the digital release of the She

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