Yngwie J. Malmsteen, Chris Impelliteri, Dream Theater, Cacophony, Nocturnus, Michael Angelo, Megadeth, Testament, Blue Murder (John Sykes) Dave Chastain, Bern Stitle, anyone who has a superve technical command of the instrument.. Violin music, Bach, Vivaldi, Chopin, All the great classical masters.... All the great neo-shred guitarists... In this section we interviewed Travis about his technique, style, progression as a player and equipment. By: M Britten M: Your lightning fast fingers and incredible control of the guitar have really sky rocketed you to new levels. How did you become so accurate and fierce with your picking hand? T: I have no idea really. I hate lessons and being taught this is wrong or this is right. I developed a way to do it on my own. A very clean, precise way of using the guitar to do what i want it to do. i wanted to be really good so i strived twords it. I thought to myself what do i wanna' accomplish by playing the way i do? I set goals and had a good idea of how i wanted to excell as a player. Im not proper or schooled in anything. Its very natural to me now. I incorporate the entire neck into my playing. Im very flashy and very "dead-on" with my picking. i found a way that worked for me and became very good at it. Its second nature now and i feel very blessed to do what i do. I have my own mini studio, beautiful guitars and lots of great equipment. I just want to create. I have something in me i have to get out. Its the only way i can really breathe. M: Do you have a practice routine?? Do you say or think ok i'm going to play this or that for so many minutes to build yourself up? T: I play chromatic type linear based scales. I go from the 2nd fret to the 14th and back etc etc... constantly keeping my picking very even and very timed out. I don't really have a warm up routine or specific set way of playing before i really go away at it. Its all in the light touch i have with the pic. I can play on 9's 10's 11's 12's you name it. Its all in the feel of the tip of the pick against the string. Once i get that "wave" feel like an ocean bobbing up and down..im unstoppable. M: How have your idols musically influenced you threw the years? T: I basically just watched them for inspiration. Theres many things in each players technique that are really cool. Theres also things you wanna' try to stay away from. Everyone has some type of flaw that bugs them to death. With Malmsteen he's very brilliant but is very inconsistant. Im alot like him. I rarely play something the same way twice. That can be a good thing because it keeps things fresh. I got to a point where i stopped listening to alot of what others did and just did my own thing. Its a great thing to get to. Where you don't have to copy others and you just do your own thing. Im very happy with my playing at this moment. M: What are your guitars of choice? amps? pics? etc etc T: I always, ALWAYS 99.9% of the tiem play strats. I hate pointy guitars with a passion. To me they feel off balance and very bulky. They have there purpose and alot of them are very beautiful but there not for me. I have 4 Aria Pro II's that i've kept threw the years. Im very very close to them and if i ever get an endorsement it will be from that company. I love there look, feel, sound and dimensions. i use my Fender Roc Pro 1000 for recording with a Boss GT3 guitar effects processor. 99.9% of what you hear from me are my fingers. I kill all the effects and have a dry tone. Depends on my mood. Sometimes i go crazy with effects cuz' i love em' and sometimes i don't. I never allow the effects to get in the way of the tone or notes. My pics are Tortex .50 MM. I never will use any other pic. I've used them for years and years and years. Alot of people were amazed i played with a pic thats so thin. It feels good to me. M: You have a new cd called Close To Misery. Tell us about that. T: Its my second cd and im extremely pleased with it. My first was a killer shred album for electric guitar and piano. This one is also killer. It has every element of the first but is much much more refined and perfect. The recording qualitt is 100% great. The guitar tones are in your face and very wicked. The solos are my linear based shred style solos where i just go all out. Its a demo sampler cd with 3 songs. I'm very pleased with it. M: What do you hope to accomplish with your music and the way you play? Money, Fame?? etc etc T: I just want to create. Life can be very hectic and many times we feel powerless. The creation of something new that you did and you control and can show others is very refreshing. If i make some cash im happy.. but i want to die knowing that i left something behind. Im not a greedy person at all really. Im content with what i've got and what i can do. I wanna' make 20-30 more cds before im dead. I wanna' make a difference and give some joy to other musicians/people. M: Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Will you be happy? Married? T: I just wanna' take care of my mother (she had a stroke), be happy with my girlfriend, play, compose, record and live life. I wanna do the right thing for god and finally find out some day the purpose for all our troubles and torment. Life was not at all easy for me. Alot had happened when i grew into manhood. i can now pick the guitar up and breathe easily as i play and try to expand, grow and become a better musician. ======================================================== |
