I-I have to learn this little... I mean...
This riff was made at the spot, I have to learn it first, OK?
Ah...
Yeeeah
Yeeeeah
OK
It's actually been a while since I've played guitar, I've been playing a lot of drums lately
Let's just say that, so it feels a little bit weird
Sounds good, man, that's what's up
What's up everyone?
Welcome to FAQ one-hundred-and-six-
165
As I told you guys, I've been practicing drums
And if you wanna see the progress of me practicing drums...
Head over to my second channel, I'll link it right here
That's where I upload the progress
And it's going very slow
Unfortunately
But it's a lot of fun
And it will keep me going for sure, it's a lot of fun
Let's just say that, so...
Go to my second channel, you can watch me playing a song or 2
And I'm also planning on making like an Ola Learns a song on drums
We'll just have to see how that works out
But today is an FAQ day, how about that?
I think it's been more than a month since the last FAQ
The last FAQ was in the old office
Now it's finally time...
Fi-'Fimally'... It's 'fimally' time...
For a 'New Office FAQ', let's go
Oh, I need it I think
We have the first question from Petr Slaný
"FAQ: Hi Ola, beginner's question
"How do you play power chords? Do you prefer two or three strings power chords?
"Do you use your ringer finger and pinky or just pinky to bar two strings?
"Is there any difference when you stand or sit?
"Thank you, love your album" Thank you so much.
Alright, with a power chord I guess you're talking about like a root and a fifth
So...
I remember when I started playing guitar, I was using my ring finger a lot more, so...
And then, if you had a broader power chord
You would add the octave as well, so...
With your little pinky right there
So, this is...
This is how I, you know, learned how to play Nirvana, like...
I used to play like that for a long time
And then I saw that John Petrucci was playing his power chords
With the pinky
I don't know why, but I switched
And that's what I'm doing today, if I'm playing with The Haunted live
Standing up, sitting down... doesn't matter, I use my pinky
But if I add the octave to this...
I definitely use the ring finger for the fifth
OK? So...
So, when I'm just riffing out, you know, root and fifth...
...I use the pinky, when I have root, fifth and the octave
I use the ring finger as well, so...
I mean, if you're using the ring finger
And the pinky for the octave
It's very close to getting a major chord
Just by barring this one right here
So you're basically forming a chord, it's just that you remove the...
The bar-
Uh...
And same thing when you go like this
It's very close to go...
So I guess it all depends on the application, and what's happening afterwards
But if it's just like straight-up riffing, it's just the...
...pointing finger, and my pinky
Damn, guitar playing is a lot of fun, let's just say that
I kinda forgot
Claude-Andre Cloutier
"Question for the next FAQ
"I recently listened a lot to the Strength in Numbers album
"I feel that around the Strength in Numbers track
"Number 5, there's a shift between styles of songs and vibes.
"Did Jensen and you write the songs together
"Or you both brought your tracks separately and put them together?
"Am I in the left field?" OK...
Uh... let me bring out the album, because I'm not entirely sure which song is coming before that
I mean, before Strength in Numbers we have Preachers of Death
Which is my song
And uh...
And Strength in Numbers is also my song, it's mine and Jonas' song
And then we have Tighten the Noose, which is Jensen's song
So, I don't wanna play too much, because I know Century Media will block my video and seriously...
F*** labels
Let me just go through real quick, Fill the Darkness with Black and Brute Force
Those are both my songs
Spark is mine and Jonas' song
Preachers of Death is my song, Strength in Numbers is mine and Jonas'
Tighten the Noose is Jensen's song
This Is the End is Jensen's song, The F-
Fall is me and Jonas'
Means to an End is me and Jonas and Monuments is mine
Around here somewhere, yes, there's definitely a shift in style and vibe
But I mean, that's also what's awesome with an album
You're supposed to kinda switch up and down
in vibes and feelings and emotions in between the songs
In my opinion, that's what creates a good vibe for a full album
To have a bunch of songs, that's good
But it's almost even more important to put the songs in the right order
To create a great album
And that's incredibly hard
Let's just say that, and...
You know, I spend a lot of time thinking about the... you know...
Where to place a song on an album
It's... it's... it's...
It's definitely challenging
But if you get it right...
It's usually... you know, pretty good
Alright, Guitar Hoarder: "Hi Ola, hope all is well.
"I'm setting up a new home studio soon
"and I'm heavily inspired by your lighting in your studio/office
"Can you please do a rundown
"of the ceiling lights and all the led lights around the room? Thanks."
Uh... yes, let's do it, buddy!
That's what's so good about having a lot of cameras
One there, one there, I can just show you, you know?
First of all, like the main lights that I have...
Are these Aputure lights
that I have, I have one here
Did you see that? I turned it off and everything became very black.
I have this side-light
Or... that just gives me a little bit of a...
A contrast over here, just...
Helps my head to get some sort of edge
A little bit... look at this, this is without that light
And now with
Ha?
I mean, it's a little bright actually, let's turn it down
It's just supposed to be a little bit for effect
OK, check this out
Ah?
It just adds a little bit to the atmosphere, let's just say that
Uh...
Have you noticed how much I'm saying 'Let's just say that'?
Let's just say that, OK?
Other than that, I also have the ceiling lights
Which are the ones that I have brought from my old office, which I can...
...set colors to, I have them in purple right now
Not sure if you can see 'em in any shot
You can probably see 'em over there
I can shut that off, it's not really doing that much to the...
It's doing more for the walls and whatnot
Just gives it a little bit of a vibe
And then I have Hue lights
So, right here I have spo-
Spots... spots!
Check this out, I can turn them off, look at that
They're off
And...
I also have spots over here, so...
They, you know, they lighten my desk, look at this
Ha...
And over there I have, you know, spot-lights on these guitars, I have these...
That LED strip over there
So it just creates a cool mood, so it's...
It's definitely like a... a mix between a lot of things
To create this nice vibe in here, but you know...
I really love experimenting with lights
And uh... it can really set the mood in a good way
And I'm currently really liking this right now
I'm getting good vibes in here, and a lot of inspiration, so that's good
Guitarmageddon
"FAQ: Hey Ola, I've been using a POD GO for a couple of months now
"and it's really great for the price."
I agree
"but I've found the noise gates to be lacking
"Though that could just be me not setting them up properly lol
"What noise gate do you use or recommend for fast/tight metal and djent riffs?"
Immediately as I'm reading this...
I told myself to bring out a couple of noise gates just before starting to record this
But I didn't
How about that? Great job, Ola.
Uh... but I have a couple of go-to noise gates that I use
I mean, the Boss Noise Suppressor is just...
It just works, man, and it's...
Widely available
And there's a bunch of used ones out there, it's...
It's a working pedal, let's just say that, it's been out for a lot of years
It's a good testament of a good noise gate pedal
Now, there are new alternative that work really really well for metal, in my opinion
Those are like the Fortin Zuul+
That's a really good one
There's also the... you know, the Cockblocker from...
...Glenn
I think those are the ones that I go to
I mainly put a Fortin Zuul when I'm using demos and stuff like that
That's what I use
I can key the input to work in the loop, and that gives it an even tighter loop on and off
So uh... yes
The Fortin Zuul is definitely my first choice when it comes to noise gates
But the Cockblocker is also good
The Boss Noise Suppressor also works
And sometimes you need 2
Because I mean... because of all the gain
Good
Rod Reyes
"Ola, have you ever had a change of heart with any amplifiers?
"For example, you loved an amp before, but not now, or vice versa?"
"I recently went through this when I fell out of love with my Mark V and sold it..."
Yes, this happens all the time
That, you know, some days...
You know, you hear me talking about how awesome the Dual Rectifier is and you know...
How I swear by it, it was my first amplifier that I had, and it's just like...
I will never stop loving Dual Rectifiers, but some days man...
It just sounds like shit
Let's just say that
How many times have I said 'Let's just say that'?
Well, let's just say that
But I usually remedy this by...
...changing out the speaker cabinet, or just switching to another cabinet
Because, I mean, the cabinet is almost 80% of the perception of an amplifier
I mean, it all comes down to the cabinet, in my opinion
I'm thinking about amplifiers that I didn't like back in the day
I was probably not a fan of the JCM800 back in the day
But now, when I have one and, you know, play it... it...
Mine sounds absolutely disgusting, the one that I have
It's over there, can you see it?
It's over there
Oh, little dog
I'm just communicating with my dog
Hello
Are you OK?
Oh, you'e tired
My little dog
Oh, Baxter, my little dog, I love you Baxter
I love you
So yeah, it definitely goes up and down in regards of amplifiers, man, it's...
It goes...
Almost day by day
You know, sometimes I don't like my Dual Rectifiers and sometimes they're unbeatable
Favorite guitar amplifiers right now, I'm... you know, my...
My JP2C
John Petrucci is a good contestant
As well as the Badlander, I'm really a fan of that one right now
But... I haven't played too many amps in a while, maybe I....
It's time for a new test
Let's just say that, OK?
F*** me and 'Let's just say that', man
Václav Slovák
"Hi Ola, thanks for your content, you are my favorite subscribed youtuber
"since maybe your very beginnings (fearedse).
"Even my wife gave me your t-shirt.
"My question is, what was your worst decision in the youtube career?
"Thanks, keep the shit going."
That's actually a great question
The worst decision I ever made as a youtuber...
Which...
I mean, it's probably a bad decision as a youtuber
But not a bad decision as a human being and person
Was when I joined The Haunted back in 2013
And I kinda...
I kinda stopped with the youtube videos
Or the youtube video-making, I was doing... you know...
I was writing songs and I was being in the band and I was touring with Six Feet Under too
I was quite active back then and...
Because The Haunted came back
We had a lot of gigs, so I... you know...
I was just really living the moment with The Haunted and being out on tour
And I just spent less attention to the youtube channel
You know, for my youtube career, that was a mistake obviously
But for myself, it was probably needed
Uh... and you know, I got to be a rockstar for a little second
It's not something I regret
But I remember seeing that...
All the other youtubers were kinda growing, surpassing me
The ones that started at the same time, so I was just...
I was like 'Oh...'
OK
Ah, let's just start making youtube videos again
You know, I was aiming a little bit too much, maybe, to become a rockstar
And I remember I was saying, like, you know...
'I don't wanna be remembered as being the youtuber'
I wanted to be remembered for my music and whatnot
You know, today I just don't give a shit, really, you know...
As long as I'm having fun, that's what's important
And playing with The Haunted and doing youtube videos...
I mean, both are fun for me to do
And just to counter this question, because you asked for the worst
I'm gonna talk about my best decisions
And I think the best decision I've made is when I got my new office
And you know...
I was able to separate the work from my private life
You know, a lot of you guys have been following me since I was working from home, you know
Doing in my small little room in our apartment or condo
And it was getting...
It was getting really hard to separate work and private life
Let's just say that, with having...
One of my rooms and my office where I lived
So getting the office space was the best decision I've ever made for my career, because...
It gives a distinct disconnect between when I work and when I get home
And when I'm with my kids for instance
So that's absolutely the best decision I've ever taken
And I should have done it sooner, in my opinion
But...
There you go, that's a great question, hope you got a good answer
Spoon: "FAQ. Yo Ola!
"Do you have a plan about your beard?
"Like shaving it or making it long?
"What kind of style do you prefer?
That's a great question, sometimes...
You might think...
That I have a plan for my beard, but...
The thing is that, when it becomes too long...
And too much to manage
That's where I usually, you know, shave it off
And make it shorter, because I just don't...
I just don't want to deal with all that shit, man
When you have to take care of yourself, that...
That's when it becomes a problem for me, because I don't
So, you konw, the beard goes all the way over here or over here
Just all over the place
I'd rather just have something that's easy
Or easily managed, let's just say that
F***, OK
OK, good
Alright, alright
Joe Jacobs: "FAQ: Hola Ola
"Do cabs really make a big difference to your sound?
"I'm thinking about getting an Orange PPC212-X 120W 2x12 closed back
"To put under my Peavey Invective head.
"I am trying to get something with a lot of range
"Without losing out on high-gain shenanigans."
Absolutely, it makes all the difference
And the biggest difference is going from like a 1x12
To a 2x12, to a 4x12... I mean, that's the absolute biggest difference right there
You're just gonna continue upgrading your sound
If you go from a 1x12 to a 2x12
That's a huge upgrade, a 2x12 can get you very very far
But if you wanna have even more and even more bass to be moved, get a 4x12
So, yes, it definitely matters
And I think if you're upgrading to a closed 2x12, Orange one
It's gonna be great
You're gonna get a lot of new low end that you didn't have with like a 1x12
There's a lot of differences in between the different cabs, obviously
You can hear that, like if you check out the impulse responses or what-
I get to plug my impulse responses now
Did you know I have impulse responses for sale on my site?
No? OK, well, go there.
There's a couple of really good ones.
But you can listen to the differences between the different cabinets there
Obviously it's also because of the microphone positioning and all that, but...
Uh... it definitely matters a lot
And some cabinets can sound really really good in one room
And some absolute horse shit in another room
That's the beauty about the cabinets right there
It's just different applications for different types of cabinets
So... absolutely, they make all the difference
Jonathan Donnchadh
"Can you do a whole video about your dog?"
Well, I wish I could
But I know there are dog-haters out there, man
Did you know about this?
People hating dogs
There's some people out there, just saying
So no, I won't do a full segment or full video about my dog on this channel
Maybe on Ola Englund channel number 2, how about that?
No, OK, great
And that was actually the last question, guys, thank you so much
I had a pretty good time
To be honest, I'm still kinda trying to get back into making videos again
Since we moved to this new office
I love being here, but I just haven't gotten into a good routine for making videos
Even now, just sitting in front of the camera, it feels...
...a little unfamiliar
You know, I don't really... it doesn't feel natural anymore, I have to get back into...
Where it feels a little bit more natural for me to talk to the camera like this
I don't know what happened, but I think it's just been...
I just haven't been making enough videos lately
So I'm kinda falling off a little bit
But I'm getting back into it, guys, I'm trying
I'm trying really really hard
Anyways, thank you so much for watching
If you have any questions, please post them in the comment section of this video
And I'll see you next time, OK?
Thank you for watching, goodbye