new album info

https://soundcloud.com/p-v-herrera

You can stream an preview of what the new album is going to sound like. The album is going to feature my back catalog from 2008-2015 (but not the songs from Cigarettes and Weddings, by P.V. Herrera) and will be recorded by Jeff Grandinetti in my own studio. I love the songs sounds. I just discovered how to program drums loops on my boss looper and when Jeff comes to record again, we will have to redo some tracks with drums loops. The two tracks on the soundcloud are my favorite songs I like to play: "Crystal Clearwater" and "Cousins" without drum loops. They are recorded live but sound so good.

Gear wise...I am hoping to have some new guitars by the new year. I'm thinking about get a G&L for the album recording as well as using the Jazzmaster and hopefully the Gibson S-1. The amp of choice will be a Fender Musicmaster Bass amp, it has a tone knob and has great cleans. For pedals, will be using a Echobox by Subdecay and Mono Shimmer by a company name I can't and am to lazy to look up. For fuzz, it varies.

NEWSLETTER OF NEW VIDEOS

It's late at night (P.V. Herrera news)

So, I decided to do an official follow up to my first album "Cigarettes and Weddings". The album will be simply titled "An Album". It will feature songs from Your Shinigami Eyes and A Very Serious Knock Knock Joke, selected songs from both those albums. Those album were demos, tests, and seeing what songs people liked and what I liked. What going to be different from those albums and "An Album", is that it will be recorded by someone, mixed and mastered by someone, put on iTunes, google play and amazon, and hopefully a local label in town will release in town based CD-R. There will be different album arts, one for iTunes, one for google play and amazon, one for CD-R/label and yah yah yah. To show that I am seriously about this, I have updated the tracks for "Cigarettes and Weddings" with those from The Best of as well as keeping the originals hidden. The first four tracks are updated while the rest remains original. The album "Cigarettes and Weddings" was recorded by Loom Fittue, a musician and optoer of his own recording studio and a fellow guitar gear slut.

Also, with these tracks recorded professioally or sounding good, I'll have these tracks on the radio.

There are still kinks to work out with different recorders and shit. The album will have 11 tracks.

The Following tracks you heard of, but will get the work and sound they deserved.

AZ Order:
Anne Hathaway
Arriba
Big Tought Arianna
Chelsea's Gas Station
Cousins
Crystal Clearwater
Eyebleed
For Hailee
A Letter Never Given
The Roommate
Vicky J Bravo

Plus two bonus tracks on the CD-R label, demos from 2012-2015.

May release this shit by the end of the year or beginning of Jan 2016.

For those who are wondering about the acoustic project, The Birthday Card, that will still be happening and will be self recorded and self released until I get some attention with "An Album"

The Birthday Card

I have a new project. It is called "The Birthday Card", a emo/acoustic outfit that will be active by being of 2016. All things acoustic will be under "The Birthday Card", all things Electric "P.V. Herrera".

I created this project to write more on the acoustic. I'm using more chord shapes and progressions than melodies I do on the electric guitar. Just a different appoarch to music.

The name is indeed (IMO) EMO sounding, like the Promise Ring or American Football.

And since its emo style lyrics, there is going to be a lot of emotion and relationship based songs.

My first album will come out this year, maybe on a local label in my town. If not, I'll just self released it.

The album will features some recordings that dated back to 2007. In fact, I will put the year that songs were written (not recorded, though some songs will be in the original form/recording.)

By next week, when my voice is healed from this cold, I'll be recording songs.

You can hear and listen to the old songs that I wrote back in 2007-2008.

MUSIC FROM "THE BIRTHDAY CARD"

It all make sense.

You know the moment where someone tells you more about a person (assmusing that they know and trust you like family) that you been looking about some stuff that makes a compete circle and even the fact that person (the messager) uses that word. That everything makes sense afterward, all the little things that happen matters. Yeah I had that moment today.

N/A

There are no plans to released anymore music or do shows. July 3rd show at Bambu Batu will probably be the last one I do for now. Too much personal shit going on and need to take a break to work on it.

Selena Gomez live video.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QEE60H62smg

I got a fender mustang and still working out the kinks on guitar but it's awesome so far.

More info later.

New hearing and iPod.

Two things today. After seven years, I am planing to upgrade my hearing aid. The new HA is going awesome and more easy for my needs. Now since I found this out...the aid is competely Bluetooth so meaning I will use the wireless features. The problem with that is that I won't be able to use headphone jacks since my new hearing aid cable that connects to my headphone jack. Bummer. I won't be able to used my nano or the 80 gb classic ipod i  just ordered. I have never been a fan of the regular iPod touch. I have had three of them and to be honest, they are POS. The headphone jack on the touch is the worst that is why I use old iPods or Nanos. Now, since I will be using the Bluetooth tech, the new new touch that will be coming out in sept of this year will be better because it will have expandable memory instead of storage. I will have a bigger memory card to put all my media on it. That why I got that classic. So in summary, I will have a new hearing aid for first time in seven years, hear better, and like the touch a little bit better.

I will never conform

My music is so misunderstood. Everyone says they want a fresh take on music yet, its right there in front of them but they take unoriginal shit because it conforms with the standards of music. I don't sing but that doesn't mean I need to sing in order for my music to have meaning. Maybe I don't need to sing because my music is strong and already meaningful thru my fingers. I take influence from Post-Rock and Shoegaze but I fresh it up. I have been compared to some bands that I love but people would say that its something they never heard of despite that its similar to the bands I love. I have such a hard time playing shows because I don't conform to their ideals of music. Everyone here has a narrow mind yet they want something new and fresh. IMO, if its not your taste, it doesn't mean that your taste is everyone else taste. Look, I don't want money or fame, I just want to play and show what my music is, what I do and enjoy doing. I am not trying to be somebody...I'm just me. I love music, that i even give away my music for those who want it. I fucking play for free, because I enjoy so much, I'm not bitching about getting paid or anything, I don't even care if I play to three people, as along those three people were listening. I enjoy it that much, its not a job for me, its not something I want to get paid for. I will and live by the Joe Bonamassa style of music ideals, I will keep going and never stop the music I WANT TO PLAY even if you don't want it or understand it.  If I wasn't medical franige, I moved away from this place or just quit music and keep it to my self.

The point is: Don't conform for your passion, pay it forward, help unknown ORIGINAL HARD WORKING musicians. After all, we all want the fucking american dream. If its something you like, don't give it up, I sound like I'm giving up and I thinking I am but I don't want you to. I deal with too much stuff to keep doing this and for people not to understand...its not worth it. I don't know if my music would have made in past, like in the 70's or 80's or 90's, I don't fucking know. All I know is, I'm not going to make, I'm giving up, I don't care. Music is going no where for me so I am just going to give it up.

And oh yeah, I once played at a dinner place and got a $20 dollar tip from a couple, the only couple eating at that diner. I guess either they like the fresh diverse sound I had and set(Although my mom said I sound the same) or they just felt sorry for me. I don't know.

I scored this Peavey Envoy 110 at the Flea Market Sunday April 19th

While I was at the Nipomo Swap Meat, coming back to get some anime that I saw, I saw this amp. I asked the guy for how much. First, he saw the known-age of me knowing what the hell a peavey amp was. To show proof of that, I told him that I had a bunch of Peaveys, and have two in setup: T-30 and Patriot. I guess he like since he held for me and gave me a deal on. This amp is so awesome and loud for solid state. These solid state peavey amps are so awesome that they sound similar to a tube amp and sound really great with fuzz and dirt, which is a plus for me. With my T-30, I have the original amp case, with the amp inside and its awesome. I remember when I plugged the T-30 amp and played it, it had a similar sound to a tube believe or not because of the fuzz textures. That's why I picked up this amp because I need something to take with me on small open mics  and friends houses without the heavy weight and this is all I need. It still has the original Spring Reverb Tank.

Anne Hathaway video and pedalboard that was used.

My last video of Anne Hathaway was out of tuned because my t30, it innation but it fixed and will use it for cousins 2015 video, it will be the guitar solo only. I'm using my Patriot by Peavey and using a couple EQD pedals. You can see the board here:

Review for last years lackluster "A Very Serious Knock-Knock Joke"

This guy has written a really great and honest review of my lackluster work of my third album: A Very Serious Knock Knock Joke. He right on point about this not being my best work. I thank him and admired him for his honest review. You must think I'm crazy for not bashing him, but he's right. This is a guy who knows his stuff about music and not some weird close-minded motherfucker who think SLASH (the guitarist) is god.

Read the review here: http://cerebralrift.org/2014/04/01/very-serious-knock-knock-joke-is-no-april-fools-prank/

Don't bash him. He is good for his reviews and I am honor to have my work reviewed and telling me what I need to work on better.

Classic Track by P.V. Herrera "Olivia Wilde"

This track was recorded during the sessions of the out of print "Goat" in 2011. It never made it onto "Goat" due to it mood. At the time, I liked Olivia Wilde because of her role in House. She was in a good episode in season five, try to find it. The drums were by me, I can only do drums on my own songs. You can find this track as a bonus track on the album "Cigarettes and Weddings".

tags: #freemusic #freedownload #actress #music #songbasedonperson #postrock #shoegaze #2011 #pvherrera

The first time I listened to Kid A by Radiohead

I became a fan of Radiohead after listening to Karma Police, which impacted me in a big way and made me take the unused acoustic guitar in my grandparents garage which made me play acoustic for acoustic songs since I couldn't do the same on a unplugged Eleectirc guitar.

Anyways, I was 16, it was in June or July of 2007 and I was playing teiris on my iPod( remember those days?) and i listen to kid a straight thru. My first time of listening to it was in my room, on a couch from target, with a old iPod and just loving the beats and sounds. It became my favorite Radiohead album like many others. Don't get me wrong I love old Radiohead Rock albums like the bends and ok computer, but it show me how a band must evolved and can evolved. If you can't grow as a musician and as a artist, i don't the answer, but I think it's important.

Because of this album,i wrote my own kid a style album called Vera Dynamite, which was uses of synthesizers mostly. That show me to grow from my roots of punk and classic rock.

Then i heard Sigur Ros in 2008, which we will talk about in another post.

Bye.

tags: #radiohead #kida #music #albumsthatinspriedme #pvherrera

Postrocker

A few things about me

I am a local guitar player

I enjoy make melodies and not shredding. A girl that I asked out before ask me if I was a shredder when I told her i played guitar. I wrote a album about her and gave it to her.

I enjoy anime and which I named an album after an anime called Death Note, which Gus Van Saint will be directing a american version of it. It will probably be shitty considering american adaptions are shitty of japanese stuff. I LOVE DEATH NOTE.

I am not  a joke, I do joke a lot  but I am not a joke. I make very serious knock knock jokes. 

I do like to play shows but no one seems to care about what I do. I want shows, have the skills, played with some good bands like EL Ten Eleven in 2013 and Pit Per Pat and Evangicails in 2008. 

I think Myspace was a good form of social music media. We had better contacts with other musicians and could get shows easily via message sometimes. Back then, I was an horrible musician with no skills but after my depression and smelling the coffee I became better and played better. I wish we still have the old MySpace for music because just like we are in a recession, we are in music media recession. And I could’ve not ruined my persona and making people think that I suck at music and did not grow as musician. I did suck back then but I grew and am better now, which is part of the human life.

Yeah, oh and here some links:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQfdibtYzntJgnVpcrnLXQg

https://soundcloud.com/p-v-herrera

http://pvherreraoffical.blogspot.com

P.S. I am also effect pedal nerd and a snobby one too.

My j Macsis Jazzmaster

When I got this Jazzmaster, it didn't come with a tremolo arm and just a while ago, I modded myself. What I did was get a gorralla tape and tape the steel arm holder and then stuck in it to hold in place. Just about two days ago, I basically had the tape and the arm become one (that's doesn't make sense), meaning I put the arm on top of the tape and it doesn't come lose or anything. I am getting cool sounds out it.

I got this jazzmaster in the fall of 2012, about a month or so before my surgery in the hole in my stochen. I remember before buying I would play it and sounded good. I really like the Fender Japan stuff better then the American stuff (That's just my option, I always had tried the american and I just don't like the feel of the neck and stuff). These guitars are a lot of money like $1299 brand new back in the day, I got mine on consignment at a little guitar store called Coelho Music (mostly is a place to get lessons, but he got stuff that are cool and rare to the naked eye) in Santa Maria. You probably thought I was going to say Lighting Joes, but no, I think small places have better stuff sometimes and they are not always found beacause their small. The guitar was in really great condion when I got it. My grandma bought for me, herself thinking that to much for a guitar but she don't know the real value. Big bang for my buck, or in other words, my grandma's buck. 

Picture one: My mod for the tremolo arm

My Jazzy

tags: #jazzmaster #guitar #fender #fenderguitars #awesome #purple

Crystal Clearwater song meaning and story behind making it.

Memories of it:

Back in 2008, I began to explore the sounds of post-rock and shoegaze. This is one of the early songs that I wrote in that year. The loop you hear in the begining, I remember how it was made, I was working on one of my early albums, a album you have some of you have not heard and is hidden in my archvies, called "Death Smiles and the Angels Fall", a double album, and a sqeurl to my other early album "Vera Dynatime", which some of you have but not all. It just came to me, by accident, the loop meoldy was perhaps the most beauiftul sound I heard and back then, if you knew me, my sound did not sound like it does now. This is somewhat my flagship song. It was nearly a month before Prom and I really wanted to impress a girl with this song, but she never gave me a time a day to even listen to the song. Back then, there was myspace, and bands actually listen to other bands music. There was band from Lompoc, the name I can't recall, but the lead singer/acoustic guitarist, after I recorded it and released on myspace, heard and said it was one of the most beauiftul things he had ever heard.

in 2010, during the time of my depression, this song acutally made me skip a show because it didn't make the timing right and playing, and that was the time that I started to hate real digital delays (digital analog and tape echos are fine for me), becauase I couldn't get the time right, in reality the delay time was too long, and I got super pissed off and just said "Fuck it". I was in a really bad place at that time. But in the same year, a couple months later, I remember my mom's friend and her children came to visit for the first time (right around the time that Frank Black came to SLO, the second time), I striped down my pedalboard and worked my way up and started to use this song as a practice tool. I started to work on the timing and playing better, using my head to think, until it became auto to me.

It still a regular on the setlists today in 2013-14. Also, it one of my favorites to play. When I play a guitar and/or a amp, I use this song to see if it works with the amp or guitar that I am trying out.

Meaning behind the song

Most of the time post rock songs don't have meaning, at least to me, because they are wordless songs, but I have wrote lyrics for this song back in 2012. When I write lyrics, I just write words without realizing what the meaning it out, its basically my sub-consusic writng my words and it isn't until I read them and figure out what it means. Based on the lyrics, its about sudcide by jumping off a edge, more like a hill, and going to the afterlife. The twist is that someone is watching, and is decding to wait to go die naturally or go after that person and be with them in death. Weird idea but I did however posted in my creative wrting class and it was a hit with the old and smart people.

My Pharoah pedal broke before my birthday...

And I am getting some new pedals on the way. The problem with my BAT Pharaoh is that the battery snap broke and it's making a weird sound out of it. In its replacement until I get the Pharoah fixed will be a basic audio foxey lady...which going to be cool because it more compressed sounding which i like compressed sounds. Also it's my Birthday and I am not feeling well. In my last post I've said that I was going for a new tone sound. I usually hang around on the i love fuzz fourms and get good deals on there. From there I got a wright sound fuzz stang which has a compressed sound and is based on a Sam ash pedal from the 60s. My uncle got me a blackout effectors fuzz bear(which is limited) for a tone blender sound with sag and bais control. I just discover that I'm going to use my effector 13 as separate entities from devi ever (even its by the same person). The white spider by effector 13 gets a really nice gated fuzz face sound that i really enjoy than other fuzz face sound and cannot wait to get my muffs to stack with. That's about it. My birthday was chill for being sick. From my San Jose friends, I got a pick puncher maker Which is something that I been wanting for long time. Rest was money which a good thing because I need it for stuff...you know...pedals.

By the way, I am going to be selling some devi ever pedals that i don't need on reverb. So visit my shop at https://reverb.com/shop/pv-herreras-vintage-and-boutique with the next couple of weeks. There will be four for sale.

Peace

P.V.

Working on my sound/tone

Lately, I have been in a sound funk. My favorite effects brand would be the cheap boutique maker but yet simple to use: Devi Ever (original not the DWARFCRAFT). I been using these pedals since I discovered them in 2012. Right now I'm collecting all big white knobs, old school graphics of Devi Ever, where she and company made them back in the day. I also have a couple of the Effector 13 pedals by them as well.

Anyways, the thing about these pedals is that they are sometimes out of control which I like. I like the fact that they stack well with each other to create different textures and sounds. But again, they make loud strange noises which can sometimes annoy my mom who lives next store at on our properly. She tells me that I just make noise as if that is the final result of my sound. The thing is, everyday I am always tweaking to find new sounds and textures, and she doesn't understand that. I keep telling her that guitar tone doesn't come straight out of the box. You have to fine tune your sound all the time. Like how there are practices for lawyers and doctors, they have the skill but they must practice their skill everyday. I think that kind of make sense.

I just picked up a Black Arts Toneworks Pharaoh, and its awesome when you have the right one that is working and not b-stock like my first Pharaoh who I sold off to my friend in BLOODMOON. What I am going to do is to change up my sound, keeping the delay and modulation sounds same but the fuzz different. I am planning on getting a Basic Audio Scarab Deluxe which is a tone blender sound and a DBA Soundwave Breakdown for compressed out of control (but sometimes controllable) and for big muff drives, my pharaoh, and hoping to get a LSTR and BLACK FOREST by Black Arts Toneworks. These effects are more classic sounding and less chaotic. And when the time comes, I'm for sure getting a new DUNLOP WAH-WAH Mini.

Meanwhile, I am hoping to have a show in May to show/test this sound. Experience it.

New video: Crystal Clearwater

https://youtu.be/QAyoipJ6j44

New video on the youtube page. One of my oldies that I wrote in 2008. Ah, those days are so long ago.

Youtube Channel

YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

Old Pedalboard #2

This was around either 2013 or early 2014, i'm not sure. I was really into small sound/ big sound pedals at the time as well as T-Rex. I perfer my devis now but that Year4545 was killer. Also this picture was like by the official T-Rex Pedal Company Instagram.

1950's Kent amp.

This amp right here is an old vintage 1950s Kent made in japanusa (meaning it was made in usa with Japan parts) and it's awesome. When I first got it, it wasn't really working properly until one day it fell and basically like a bone breaks back into place, that is how this amp work really well. The speaker is original and so is the plug and does not have a ground. It's tube, old tunes that probably don't exist anymore and it get a nice sound.

I use this amp for practice and it's sounds really good. I love this amp and will not part with it . It sounds really great with fuzz. 

Also it made me like tones knobs better than Eq knobs like bass and treble. I am going to switch to amps that either have prefixed tone or tone knobs.

Old pic of an old pedal setup

Here's a pic of a old set up that I had last year in April 2014. You can hear this set up in the live video tab for cousins. I'll be uploading pictures of my past boards from the years. I still have BOB the (digitech) looper but the power supply broke and i replaced it with a boss looper which is actually logical for power suppies. I gave the tuner to my uncle and switch to clip on tuner which saves space on the board. As of 2015 I use a pedalboard mini. I still have the regular pedaltrain board my mom got me in 2009 for $25 from a old famous musician here where I live. Thanks to that pedal board my addiction started.

New Modulation pedals (DOD 401B Phasor and BOSS BF-2 Flanger)

I got these new modulation pedals in the mail today (March 13th). I really like the BF-2 because it reminds of the EHX Electric Mistress (Original, the one the Hartman Flanger is based on) but I don't like using the EHX because 1. 18 volts, 2. Even know my EM is beat to shit on the outside, its still worth some money regardless of the looks. I scored on the BF-2 because they usually go for between $99-$125 used for a old black label made in japan and my is a black label made in japan model and score it for $55 shipped.

Onto the DOD Phasor. This was dubbed as the best Phase 45 you heard and its true. Its has the warm vibe you get from the MXR 45 (Mines an original script bud box '75) but in 4 stages rather than 2 stages from a MXR 45. Sounds great. Better than a old 80's phase 90 because 80's phase 90 have sometimes an unwanted distortion signal.

Pics (Phaser blue on the left and flanger on the right)

Welcome to the new website...again.

You are probably tired of getting a new website from me but since this is added on google and looks easier to use, I just might use as the official website. Check here for all news, shows, music, and other stuff if I ever update it.

Peace,

P.V. Herrera