THE AXEMEN SERIES : Andy Songhurst and Chris Bone, Forged In Black.

 

1.Tell us your name and the band you play for
Andy Songhurst and Chris Bone, we play guitar in the heavy metal band, Forged In Black.

2.Who made you want to pick up the guitar

Andy: My music teacher actually pressured me into it when I was about 9 years old… I was playing piano and trumpet with little interest and the second I got my hands on a  guitar I couldn’t put it down. Every clumsy strum felt like the most profound work of art that my family needed to hear immediately. The guitar actually lead me to find music, rather than the other way around.

  

Chris: I was brought up on the likes of Carlos Santana, Hendrix and Lynyrd Skynyrd from my Dad, some amazing players and that made me want to play also. When I was a kid however I played Euphonium as they had ran out of guitars in the music programme at my school, a natural second choice with them being nothing alike! Anyways I finally got round to it at about aged 16/17 when I purchased my first guitar and have not looked back since!

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

Andy: I did have guitar lessons for 5 years as a kid, but paid them very little attention. They became more an opportunity to show someone teacher the latest Metallica riffs Id learnt. He did eventually convince me to try alternative picking occasionally, a mindblowing concept at the time. The real breakthroughs were very much self taught, from working out why cant I play this Yngwie Malmsteen solo? Or how did they write this harmony? Or that time I read an entire music theory textbook on a family holiday..

  

Chris: The internet was my teacher, there is such a wealth of knowledge now for free on the likes of YouTube you can teach yourself anything! Quite amazing really how accessible it all is these days but it certainly has it's hurdles not having someone there to correct bad technique.

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

Andy: Yes. Its very helpful for writing and learning more complex music, I have no idea how you'd keep track otherwise! Sometimes I actually write music without a guitar using tab software, its an insanely useful tool.

Chris: I was taught to read sheet music when younger but can barely remember now, I think tab is perfect for guitar and what we use it for. We tab all of our music when we write as there’s nothing worse than forgetting that newest riff you made!

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

Andy: I usually shoot for a tight, tube screamer boosted distortion. Something punchy, clear and expressive. Ive never gone too crazy on the gain or mid scoops.

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

Andy: I found a Gibson Vampire Blood Moon Explorer second hand a few years back, and havent had the new guitar itch since, which I never thought would happen. It’s a black, limited edition Explorer from 2010s and its main unique feature is the floyd rose system (on an explorer!? Blasphemy!?). Its not too sensitive and feels like you can really hammer the riffs out, and looks badass so it was meant to be.

   

Chris: I use a carbon black V shape from a fairly new brand called Solar guitars, who I am a proud to have an endorsement with. It's super comfortable and plays like butter. Like Andy I also use a Floyd rose and this guitar has glow in the dark fret markers which is a first for me, but very useful for dark stages!

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

Andy: I like both, Ive mostly used active, high gain pickups like EMGs, which are great for tight riffing that’s our staple. Ive found the passives Ive encountered to be more expressive. And for cleans I do lean towards the passive variety but In the studios Ive never asked what the hell Im using!

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

Chris: We've used a mix of different amplification in the studio from Peavey, Blackstar to Laney on our most recent release, it really depends on what feels/ sounds best at the time. Live Andy uses a Peavey 6505 amp and I use the same but as a Kemper profile, with a fender AC 30 profile for cleans.

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

Andy: A tuner and TS9 are always the frontline and I like to use a boost, reverb and chorus for leads and cleans but Im not too fussy on what ones. I like to be minimal to avoid too much tapdancing!

Chris: I've never enjoyed having complex pedal boards, more variables to go wrong and i prefer simplicity, so I now use a Midi switcher from Microdesignum, with a button set to each patch (clean, rythum and solo/ lead tone).

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

Chris: This is a tough one! For live I think the Kemper profiler is perfect for my needs. It's very versatile and compact.

  

I've always had soft spots for Mesa amps, I've owned a Triple Rectifier in the past and loved it but it’s not my choice for Forged In Black’s sound. For personal use I would love a Mark V through a Zilla Cab with Maxon 808 and HM-2 pedals (I’m a big fan of the old Swedish Death Metal tone). This is more based on my influences though. Different rigs suit different purposes, in Forged In Black I think our current equipment is perfect for the sound we are going for.

11.What guitarist can you not stand?

Chris: There isn’t any to be honest that come to mind, there’s plenty of bands I may not listen to but each to their own. It’s all personal tastes after all.

12. Is tone more important or is technique?

Andy: There’s a lot of interaction between the two, either can mess the whole thing up, and they gotta work together. But I think technique can make the difference from good to great and holds people back more than the knobs not being in thee best place.

Chris: Agreed, I think a great guitarist could still make a poor sounding rig sound amazing. It’s easy to get caught up in gear but ultimately your playing is were you’re style, individuality and conviction shows.

13. Name your top 5 guitarist

Andy: Zakk Wylde (early Ozzy era) for the crazy raunch, Randy Rhoads and Yngwie Malsmteen for their classical inspiration, Jeff Waters from Annihilator for his creative and machine tight riffs and Dimebag for that distinctive raunchy sound.

Chris: Always changing but currently I would say Per Nilsson for his amazing legato, melody rich but technical playing, Jesper Stromblad for that early Gothenburg melodic death metal era, Benjamin Ellis, Steffen Kummerer and Dimebag.

14.Who is the most overrated guitarist

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

Andy: Id say Dimebag, more for that distinct energy that Id pickup on than a technical lesson.

Chris: I'd agree with Andy here, he'd be an awesome guy to meet!