THE AXEMEN SERIES : BLOOD OF ANGELS: AARON ROBINSON

1.Tell us your name and the band you play for

My name is Aaron Robinson, and I am the guitarist for Blood of Angels

2.Who made you want to pick up the guitar

I had a love for music as far back as I can remember. Metal music is something I always shared with my dad. One day my dad came home with a new Ozzy Osbourne album. That album was the Randy Rhodes Tribute. As soon as I heard that album I was hooked. All I wanted was to play guitar with passion like Randy Rhodes. Even to this day, I can’t listen to “Mr. Crowley” without getting emotional.

3.Are you self taught or did you take lessons?

Mostly self taught. I took lessons for periods of time. In high school I played a lot of jazz.

4. Can you read music, Can you read tab?

I can read tab, and sheet music. Although I am not a sight reader. I need to spend some time with the music and get it down.

5.Do you feel like you have your own sound / tone ?

I finally feel like I have my own sound. It took me 20 years of playing in various bands, but I feel I have achieved the cohesive blend of different metal genres within one sound. This is a sound that I have been striving for.

6.Tell us about your guitar ( brand ,model . year , color )

My main guitar is a custom Jovic Mini-V 7-String that I call the “Stealth.” It was built in 2013 I used to be endorsed by them. They built me an awesome guitar that totally suits me. With a single tailpiece humbucker pickup and volume knob. Just keeping it a simple set up. The body is made of mahogany and maple through neck. My backup is a LTD Stephen Carpenter model 7-string. It is foregin made, but has a really good tone with the two Seymour Duncan design humbucker pickups

7.What about pickups? Passive or active ? Tell us about them

I prefer active pickups. EMG 707 is what I use in my main guitar. They do a great job at capturing the balance between heavy and bright tone.

8.Lets get into amplification, Same drill brand , model , speakers etc

I currently use a Crate flexwave half stack. It has the power that I require. I got the amp back in 2004 and it has served me well through a few US tours. Speakers are Crate stock speakers. I mostly use the amp for power. My sound comes from my guitar processor. That way I can always have my sound. I have had to perform a lot of shows that required me to use the backline amp. So I have used and performed through everything from Ibanez to Mesa. I have found it is a lot easier just plug my processor into the effects loop of an amp than to have to spend the time to dial in the EQ of a different amp every night.

9.Do you have a pedal board? Tell us about that badboy

I run my guitar into a Shure wireless transmitter. The first pedal is my Shure wireless receiver. That connects to a Digitech Whammy DT pedal. I run that into a Morley mini Wah-Pedal. I plug that into a Boss Guitar tuner. I run that into a Zoom G5n guitar processor. I plug into the effects loop of my amp. The Zoom can do anything. I started using those processors back in 2004. I have bought every upgrade.

10.Now tell us your Dream Rig in detail….

I don’t really have a dream rig. I am really happy with my sound and set up. I may change my amp to a Laney. I played through a Laney amp while touring in Peru. I really dug it. It seemed to fit my style very well.

12. Is tone more important or is technique?

For me one is not more important than another. You have to find the tone that works for your style. Every musician, no matter what style you play should continue to learn and push the boundaries of your playing. I just ordered a video that is focused on different arpeggio sweep techniques to continue to challenge myself.

13. Name your top 5 guitarist

1. Andre Segovia
2. Randy Rhodes
3. BB King
4. Stevie Ray Vaughn
5. Kerry King

14.Who is the most overrated guitarist

I do have a few opinions, but I feel I have no right to judge this. Every musician has their own style. Although I may not like their style that has made that artist popular, that doesn’t mean they should deserve the title of being overrated. I am sure they’re a lot of people who have heard me and Blood of Angels and feel I am overrated.

15.Who would you like a one hour private sit down lessons with anyone dead or alive?

Without question Randy Rhodes. He died to early. The music that he left us is a brilliant legacy. He was not only a technically proficient player. He was also a very emotional player. You could feel every note he played. That is the goal that all of us are trying to achieve as musicians and as artists. 

 Aaron /Blood of Angels are Metal Coffee PR artist and are available for interview by contacting metalcoffeepr@gmail.com