Personal Time

I usually make posts every other day but I don't have much to do today so I decided to tell you about myself. I've been playing guitar for about five to six years. When I first started, my father taught me a few chords and showed me some songs to play. Although they weren't my favorite, I played them anyway, because there wasn't much else I could do at the moment. Gradually, my practice was paying off. It was about time to move on.
I used to be into mainstream pop rock when I first started playing and at this moment, I felt it was a challenge I could now attempt. I was slowly getting there - taking my time figuring things out. It wasn't until someone showed me what tablature was when my adventure really started.
At first, I was perplexed - confused by all of the numbers and letters - but once it was explained to me, it couldn't be any simpler. In fact, it made me wonder why sheet music existed at all. The only problem with tablature was that it forces the reader to listen to the song as they are learning it. Very few tablatures have tempos and time signatures, but I never minded this. The fact was, I could easily read how to play any song, which is a huge opportunity for a self-taught guitarist.
As I started to get better, I became friends with others interested in music. I remember, maybe into my second or third year of playing, an old friend of mine asked me to try out for his band. When I arrived, I showed them whatever skill I possessed (which wasn't much at the time, I promise). The try out ended up with them teaching me new guitar techniques that I still hold invaluable today.
I was jealous of my friends. They have been playing about as long as I have, but, they were so much better than me. I felt embarrassed when I sat there, quietly, as they played riffs I've never heard before. It was then that I realized that they have been exposed to more challenging music than I have. I took it upon myself to challenge myself even more, practice my skills, and someday give my friends someone to look up to.
I slowly started weave away from mainstream rock and found my self more interested in heavy metal. It first started with Metallica (LOL) and some of the other heavier bands one would find on MTV such as The Devil Wears Prada and Attack Attack!. Then I got more into bands like As I Lay Dying and Trivium, who I felt had much more to offer in musical talent.
At this point, it's been three years since that one band practice. The same old friend asked me to try out for the band. I showed them what I could play and some songs I wrote myself. They were impressed, but I was still mesmerized by my friend's ability to literally sweep up and down the neck now. I felt like I have been wasting my time. I found out about new, more technically challenging bands;but this time, I wasn't going to rely on other bands to guide me, nor try to please anyone else. I decided to start writing my own songs and challenging myself.
Within the past outings with my friends, I felt I was able to redeem myself of all the suck I carried with me. I found myself up to par - maybe even surpassing them, but I still can't consider myself a very good guitarist. I have a long way to go.

My top three favorite bands are Veil of Maya, Periphery, and Animals As Leaders. They have been my favorites and my inspirations since the past couple of months. I'm into very experimental riffs and heavier tunings, but I appreciate all forms of music. I'm currently in an experimental/progressive metal band. I will probably post more about it when we record more things.
My guitar videos on YouTube are how I record some ideas that I'm too lazy to tab out. They are generally done on the spot without any practice - I feel I don't need to impress anyone if it's just an idea and not an actual song just yet.

Here are some examples of my ideas





I can easily admit that I messed up a lot in these videos but, as I said earlier, perfection wasn't the purpose of recording these.
I really hope some people enjoy what I write and try to write and share their own music with the world.