Steve Vai Presents : GuitarTV
by Alissa Ordabai
Staff Writer
“Simplicity and instant gratification is what we are striving for,” Steve Vai tells me over the phone when describing how the internet age has changed the expectations of those who want to learn and to access music in the 21st century. Vai’s new project called GuitarTV, which launched on May 10, aims to answer the demands of the time by offering an online TV channel which would cater for both fans and musicians alike. New patented technology allows any viewer not only to watch vast numbers of guitar performances, lessons, and interviews, but also to access tablature for every song, to buy those songs online, as well as to learn about the instruments and the equipment used in each performance. All this without leaving the main page of the site, which at the moment has enough footage to run for three and half weeks straight without ever repeating itself.
“Some people work really hard because they are driven to perform, and then there are others who really enjoy experiencing it,” Vai says. And it seems that he had both categories in mind when developing ideas for this project. “Live” and “video-on-demand” options make it easy for any fan to explore in-depth any genre, style or decade of guitar music with additional options of buying concert tickets, viewing musicians’ biographies, linking to social networking sites, and taking part in online chats.
On the other hand, someone who also plays the guitar, will find tablature and the information about instruments, amps, and pedals practically useful. Co-creator of the site Andy Alt has gone into great lengths to research and identify the instruments and the equipment used in each video. Already partners with Amazon.com and iTunes for music, and Songsterr.com for tablature, GuitarTV has also teamed up with MusiciansFriend.com, where viewers can buy guitars and gear, as well as read up on any particular instrument or piece of equipment.
But it’s not just the celebrated guitar icons and things related to their craft that this site is focusing on. Features on guitarists who haven’t yet been discovered is something that GuitarTV plans for the future. “I am an American, obviously, and I watch American TV,” explains Vai, “and I do appreciate music shows like American Idol. It is an opportunity for unknown people who have a particular type of talent to rise to the top. But here isn’t really an outlet for wildly talented musicians as opposed to just pop singers. And this is a great form for that. There are all sorts of shows that we are going to develop that are going to cater to this, so it’s very musician-oriented.”
A musician first, and everything else second, Vai also tells me that although GuitarTV has been nothing but a “labour of love” for him, he still gets his biggest thrills from playing the guitar and from touring. With the new studio album in the works and the upcoming world tour, Hardrock Haven got a chance to talk to the maestro about the concept behind the upcoming release and things that influence his creative decisions. After all, as Vai himself says, “Technology is the product of the physical. And spirituality generates from a different dimension altogether.”
Hardrock Haven: Thank you for agreeing to do this interview with us, we really appreciate your time.
Steve Vai: No problem.
HRH: And we at Hardrock Haven are very excited about your new venture – GuitarTV.com.
SV: Oh, great!
HRH: And we’ve had a quick look online and were very impressed by the way it integrates all the resources from tablature to information about instruments and equipment.
SV: It’s pretty cool, isn’t it?
HRH: It is pretty impressive! And I guess every guitarist has this inner fan in him, this appreciation for other guitar players. And most people never lose this sense of awe for people who have inspired them. Was that what motivated you start this project, or were there other motivation behind this?
SV: You know, the motivation for me is the same thing that inspired so many people who love to play the guitar and just love to watch people playing the guitar. Whenever we see somebody doing something that’s extraordinary and shows a very gifted nature, it inspires us. It’s kind of like a great design: some people work really hard because they are driven to perform, and then there are others who really enjoy experiencing it. I know form me that whenever I would see somebody playing the guitar, it was just beautiful. The guitar was always such a beautiful instrument to me. Just the way it looks, and the way it hangs, and you put two hands on it…
And for me, when I was a teenager in the 70s, and I was listening to all this great progressive rock music of the 70s like Queen and Led Zeppelin, and Jethro Tull, and all this rock music of the 70s, I had a great appreciation for watching anyone play the guitar in any capacity. It’s ridiculous… Even when I’m at a wedding, I’m watching the wedding band guitar player play. Because it’s always fascinating to me. So I always thought it would be great to have a station, like a real television station that just has performance after performance of incredible, inspiring, and stimulating guitar players. And it didn’t exist. And I’m the kind of guy that when I see something that I want that doesn’t exist, I go about creating it. And this was something that I was really passionate about. And it was mainly because I wanted to see it.
There are great performers in every genre, and if you are sitting and you are watching, you just can’t wait to see what comes up next. So I set out to do this years ago, before the internet. Can you imagine that? Even before the internet I wanted to do this. And I actually looked into what it would take to start a cable station. The first big problem was that somebody already owned the GuitarTV name. Then they dropped out and didn’t do anything with it, so I registered it for trademark. But launching a video station was unbelievably cost-prohibitive and time-consuming. What it takes to do something like that is the same thing that took me to be able to play the instrument. So I needed good partners – people who really understood the vision and had the drive and the ambition to make this vision come to reality, and also help cultivate the vision.
So I purchased the domain name “GuitarTV” in the infancy of the internet. And even back then people were snatching up domain names. And I bought it for like 2500 dollars which at the time was unbelievably expensive for a domain name. These days you couldn’t touch it for that. But I held on to it, and I worked with various people, but nothing ever panned out because I didn’t find the right guy. And then I met Andrew Alt, a young guitar player and a really smart savvy internet person. (Laughs). And he was definitely the right guy. I discussed the concept with him, and he’s well aware of a lot great technology that the internet is capable of. We just kind of worked together on it, and were coming up with ideas. So he basically built the site.
Because the internet is such a fascinating technological revolution, there were always other things we were capable of doing. So not only do you get to be able to watch the video, but you can watch TV and see one great performance after another. But you can click and go to the performer’s Wikipedia page and the web site, you can purchase their music without even leaving the player, which actually a technology that we have developed and patented called in-EVO, and could be revolutionary design, because you can click through and purchase things without leaving the player. You can see the exact instrument that the performer is player – whether it a guitar or an amplifier. And you can purchase it on Musician’s Friend, if you like. You can see the tablature, which is extraordinary for a guitar player, and it’s all free.
We also have top 10 guitar records in all genres. You know, whenever you see these “top 10 best” whatever, you are always wondering who voted that. Usually it’s a couple of guys sitting in a room. And that never made sense to me. But how do you figure that out? So we actually had various charts. One chart is based on our decisions, what we like. Another chart is based on Soundscan sales, so you can see what are the best-selling top 10 guitar records are. And then there is another one which is user votes, so you can see what the public thinks are the best top 10. So it’s trying to be unbiased. Because if see Hank Garland playing Sugarfoot Rag, you go, “Wow, man, where can I buy it? I want the music!” And it’s all right there.
And then we have an ability to create a community were people can communicate with each other and chat online. There is going to be a vast library of performances that you can pull from. We are going to have interviews, we are going to have tips from players, we are going to show films related to the guitar, we are going to have tours of music factories. Because for a guitar player it’s really fascinating to see how a guitar is made. And there are going to be live concerts and tons of live events that we are going to be showing. All focused on the guitar.
I am an American, obviously, and I watch American TV, which can be detrimental enough, and I do appreciate music shows like American Idol and things like that. It is an opportunity for unknown people who have a particular type of talent to rise to the top. I do appreciate that. But here isn’t really an outlet for wildly talented musicians as opposed to just pop singers. And this is a great form for that. There are all sorts of shows that we are going to develop that are going to cater to this, so it’s very musician-oriented. I am at the helm, and I don’t have to worry about making this my living as far as any financial income is concerned. This is pure fantasy labour of love. I am surrounded by great people with Andy managing it. He’s put together this wonderful team of passionate people who get it, so it’s heavily policed for pop-culture goo-goo.
HRH: It’s interesting how projects like this can show you how much you can learn about the guitar and how to play it without leaving your house. Would you say that having a real-life guitar teacher still becomes important at a certain stage? Or have we now arrived at a point where it can all be done over the internet, and after that you can just go out and form your own band and start playing live?
SV: Nothing quite replaces interacting with people, seeing them play and being part of their atmosphere, and looking in their eyes, and communicating with them that way. I don’t think there will ever be a replacement of that for some people. I don’t think it’s one way or another, I think it’s both. Because some people just want to sit at home and work at their computer. And some people don’t even have an e-mail address. So I think we have to gravitate to the thing that’s most interesting to us. And I’ve always been a big proponent of finding a good teacher. If you are interested in that kind of thing. If you want to understand music, you can understand it, and you can have a better understanding of it now by going on the internet and finding out all sorts of things. But there is also that personal communication with somebody where you can sit and talk, and ask questions that, and they will answer, and you can shake their hand. I think there is always going to be a need for that.
HRH: If we forget for a moment about technology, and new ways of distribution, and the internet, and think purely in terms of craft, of what really takes to be a professional rock guitarist, do you think that there have been any significant, big changes in this profession since the time when you were growing up?
SV: There have been big changes in the music industry in general. The way that we create, record, manufacture, distribute, and listen to music has changed dramatically. When I started making records, there were no CDs. You had to go to a place, and they had to manufacture your record, and you had to get it distributed. And you had to listen to it on a record player. I’m dating myself. (Laughs). Right now you can make a record, or you can create a song (because we are moving away from record-based projects, going into a singles market) in your kitchen on your laptop, and you can put it on the internet. Right from there in all the major digital stores, and somebody can download it into their phone and listen to it on a box the size of Captain Kirk’s hand transmitter.
But the things that will always remain the same, I believe, is the need for this music and the place that it comes from. Which is… who knows.
HRH: Which is spiritual reality that remains untouched by technology.
SV: Absolutely, because technology is the product of the physical. And spirituality, I think, generates form a different dimension altogether, but it’s expressed in the physical. It’s expressed in music and all the different ways that music… But it transcends the physical, and technology will only be useful in the physical.
HRH: But do you think that guitar players face more expectations these days – both from labels and from fans – in terms of technique, and being able to write, and being able to integrate different genres and cultures into their playing, and being able to learn theory?
SV: Oh, yeah, it makes all those things a lot more accessible. And for that it’s a wonderful tool. Are you talking about the internet in general?
HRH: I’m just talking about expectations from the industry, about what it takes to be a professional rock guitar player these days.
SV: Well, it’s changing. Professional musicians these days need to be much more aware of the technology, and they are. Because they are born into the world from ground zero. They are starting with that technology that’s very different from ground zero of an artist who started ten years ago, or five years ago, or fifty years ago, or a hundred years ago. But the bottom line, the thing that remains the same, is that music still has to come from that person. And the song remains the same, so to speak, you know?
HRH: Ha-ha! Which we’ve all watched on cassette tapes back in the day, and now we can watch it on GuitarTV.
SV: Yes, and we’d be arrogant and foolish to believe that we’ve hit a pinnacle. There’s never going to be a pinnacle. You know, when the first guy put the needle on the record player, he said, “Holy mackerel, we’ve arrived!”. And we are like sitting here, having to go to a computer, which is something you have to buy in a store, and turn it on, which is going to be archaic at some point, and actually type with your fingers a code of sorts, to get anywhere. And then you have to purchase it by connecting into an account. All of this is going to seem really archaic at some point. Because what we are striving for is simplicity and instant gratification. That’s what we want. And the way that it’s now is going to seem really archaic. I am completely frustrated and bored with the way it is now. It’s really too complicated and frustrating. My computer still crashes, you know? And I still to plug stuff in. It’s a pain in the ass plugging anything in, ever. Typing in a code – I don’t want to do any of that stuff, I just want it, and I want it now. And one of these days I’ll get it.
HRH: On what basis were you selecting material for this web site? Was it your personal taste that guided you, or was it more a historical or an intellectual approach, what was seen as important, or influential in guitar music, what guided you?
SV: It’s all of it. The concept was great performers playing stimulating music. Stimulating performances. Now, I know that my taste is different from some of the public, maybe the majority of the public. So it’s not based around just my taste. As a matter of fact, I didn’t have much to do with the programming. My discussions with Andy were to get a wide range of performers and genres. From Jeff Beck to Django Reinhardt, to blah-blah-blah. The thing that it has to have is entertaining, stimulating value on the guitar.
HRH: We are also being told that you are currently working on a new album. Is this a new studio album?
SV: Yeah, finally.
HRH: Do you have a released date in mind for this record?
SV: Well, because I’m doing so many other things, it’s funny how these release dates always seem to get compromised. And they always seem for good reasons. But I’m hoping that it will be either… You know, the way that releases work for artists such as myself is that if you can’t get it out by October, you have to wait until the next year because of the Christmas rush. So I’m hoping it will come out by October. But primarily playing the guitar is my biggest thrill, and going on tour. It’s very exciting to me and that’s the most important thing. So once this record is done, I’ll be embarking on a world tour that will be pretty in-depth.
HRH: Was there a concept behind this new album or does it all come together spontaneously as you go along?
SV: Well, I come up with a title…
HRH: Would you mind sharing the title with us?
SV: Ah… I really can’t yet.
HRH: OK.
SV: But what you can do is visit my web site, because I’m slowly revealing the title there.
HRH: OK.
SV: But yeah, I’m very excited. I came up with the title, and I just think about that title, and then through the process of… I don’t know… (laughs) language osmosis the music sort of takes shape around the sentiment of the title.
HRH: So is it hard to continue being un-self-conscious in your music when you are so successful?
SV: Well, self-conscious, I think, shows itself in various ways. But I’m very self-conscious in some aspects, but for the most part I’m fiercely confident. It’s kind of like a weird dichotomy – you can hear all those little voices that say, “Oh, no, this isn’t good enough”, or, “You are not doing what everybody else is doing”, or, “People are going to think this is funny.” But that, I guess, is the aspect of being self-conscious, but at the end of the day a really good idea overpowers all those negative thoughts. When you get a great idea that excites you, nothing can stop you from making it real.
HRH: Were you ever in a position where you had to choose or compromise between making your music accessible to an as wide an audience as possible, and at the same time expressing your full self?
SV: Well, I fooled myself into thinking that at times. But basically what happens is, if you do what you can do best, that’s gonna have the biggest impact in the public. I like writing some pop music sometimes to use in my songs, but I’m not Elton John. You know what I mean? So if I try to be, I’d be in competition with people that are really doing things that are very, very suited to them. But what I have discovered is that there is a particular kind of music that really resonates with me, that excites me. When I do that, I’m in a class by myself. And that’s what I do best, and there is an audience for it. And I believe that there is an audience for any artist, if they can find the audience. But the audience is only going to be as sincere as the music that the performer is creating. If you are creating the music that’s really important to you, and not the music that you think you have to create in order to be accessible, that’s what you are going to be the most successful at. Or else you are just going to be chasing after a feather in the wind. That’s what I have discovered for me. Does that make sense?
HRH: It does, absolutely. Which leads me to my next question, which may sound a bit goofy, I hope you don’t mind.
SV: No problem.
HRH: Do you ever listen back to stuff that you wrote, or stuff you’ve just played, and go, “I didn’t know there was this aspect to my character.”? Or simply, “I didn’t know I could be like this.”?
SV: Well, no. Because I know who I am. But what I do notice that later on when you look back at the music you’ve created in the past, it’s surprising to see the person you were. Because when you create something, it’s a little snapshot of who you are at the time. And sometimes it’s startling to see who you were back then compared to how you’ve changed. But one other thing that I’ve noticed, and it may sound a little pretentious, is when I get an idea of something that I think is exciting to me, and I hear it in my head, and I go about building it, a lot of times when I’m really being sincere about it, and the more excited I am, the better it comes out. Sometimes I sit back and I listen, and I just feel waves of gratitude because it came out much better than I could have expected. And it’s deeper and richer than what I’ve set out to do.
HRH: Incredible.
SV: It’s my perception and it’s my perspective, which is privy to every artist. Our music is based on our own perception. And usually we criticise others because we see their music or their work to our own perception which is based on what we think they should be doing, which is based on what we want to do. So we are thinking, “They are not doing it like us, so they are not doing it right.” Kind of like religion, you know?
HRH: Yes, absolutely.
SV: So I kind of try to keep a healthy perspective on it and on what’s important to you. And if you are honest with it, then you will attract people who are stimulated by it, and that’s all.
HRH: Well, thank you for such a brilliant interview and for your time.
SV: Thank you.
HRH: And we are looking forward to the launch of GuitarTV, and the new album, and the tour.
SV: Thank you very much.