NIGHTMARE TOYS

Monday, September 16, 2019

THE AXEMEN SERIES : Andy Harmic from 2 As In 12.




1.Tell us your name and the band you play for
I'm Andy Harmic and I play guitar (and sing) for 2 As In 12.

2. Who made you want to pick up the guitar?
It actually wasn't a famous band or musician that made me want to play. My maternal grandfather, long since passed, was my main source of inspiration in picking up ye olde six string twanger.

3. Are you self taught or did you take lessons?
I'm primarily self taught save for 8 months worth of lessons in junior high.
  


4. Can you read music, Can you read tab?
Sadly, I cannot read sheet music well enough to save my own life, let alone play along. Tab on the other hand, it's safe to say I learned how to play guitar via tab and ear training.

5. Do you feel like you have your own sound / tone ?
I'd like to think I have a distinctive sound in how I write riffs and play. Tone wise, I think it's still too early to tell since I only have our debut album, It Be One, to reference. I guess we'll have to wait and see if I change my tune, err tone, when we get around to recording more material.

6. Tell us about your guitar ( brand ,model . year , color )
For my main squeeze I'm rocking a 2014 PRS Custom 24 10-top in jade with gold hardware and the classic birds of prey fretboard inlay. It pretty much speaks for itself so not much more to say about it other than I would immediately buy another if lost or stolen.

7. What about pickups? Passive or active ? Tell us about them
I decided to keep the stock pickups because they are amazing. Two PRS 57/08 passive PAF humbuckers with gold covers. Handwound with vintage wire, they are so hot I'm blushing just thinking about them.

8. Lets get into amplification, Same drill brand , model , speakers etc
I'm pushing air through an Orange Rockerverb 50 MKIII head into an Orange 2×12 cab loaded with Celestion Vintage 30s. The V30s are quite pervasive in rock music, and I personally love them despite some people claiming they are ice picky and vanilla. I think my amp rig sounds absolutely beastly in combination with my axe.

9. Do you have a pedal board? Tell us about that badboy
I do have a pedal board, but I primarily use it for practice and noodling around. In fact, I prefer to plug my guitar straight into the amp and forget it even has an FX loop. Plus, it makes it a hell of a lot easier to pack up and play with others. I used to be the guy everyone had to wait on because I was still setting up. Now, I plug and play.

10. Now tell us your Dream Rig in detail…..
I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a gear head, but I'll give this a go. So I would take my rig as it is right now and split out my signal to a Marshall JCM-800 head on top of a cab loaded with Eminence Swamp Thangs based on name alone. Then, I'd probably snag a 1959 Les Paul just for kicks and call it a day.

11. What guitarist can you not stand?
This is going to be a tough one for a millennial like myself because I don't want to trigger anyone. I suppose if I take off my snowflake hat for a minute though I'd have to say Zakk Wylde. He just rubs me the wrong way being a Jesus freak playing the devil's music.
  

12. Is tone more important or is technique?
First and foremost, I'm not the most technical player myself so please take this with a grain of salt. I don't think there is an absolute right or wrong answer to this. I think it really depends on the style of music. I've heard amazing technical players with crap tone and vice-versa. I think it's probably best to find a happy medium of the two if you can. However, there might be a situation where it's all about tone and the playing style is sloppy and loose on purpose because it's some obscure genre that calls for that. You get the idea. I'm trying hard to not really answer this.

13. Name your top 5 guitarist
In no particular order, Jimi Hendrix, Brian May, Jeff Loomis, James Hetfield, Brent Hinds.

14. Who is the most overrated guitarist
This is another tough one since I'm not big on judging other musicians. Sidebar, please judge me all you want. I'm a big boy with thick, gelatinous skin. Anywho, art and music are subjective. You might play in a way that sounds like a sick cat hacking up a furball and someone out there might dig it so who am I to judge.

15. Who would you like a one hour private sit down lessons with anyone dead or alive?
I would definitely sit down with my late grandfather for a private lesson. Unfortunately, he was in poor health and passed away before we ever had a chance to play together.

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