Instrumental Inquisition!

Instrumentals have supplied some of music’s most evocative moments. We asked some top guitarists for their take on this iconic movement. This month: singer, producer, solo artist (as Lonely Robot) and current It Bites guitarist, John Mitchell.

- John Mitchell

GT: What is it about guitar instrumentals that appeal to you?

JM: I guess that I don’t have to write lyrics, lol. Also, in the absence of lyrics, you have to find ways to be expressive and unusual melodically without the lyrical vehicle. Plus you have a legitimate reason to let rip at some point.

GT: What can an instrumental provide a listener that a vocal song can’t?

JM: That’s it’s painting a picture without words. Lyrics have a visual pointer so in some ways that set the precedent for mental imagery off the bat.

GT: What do you embrace or avoid with instrumentals?

JM: I aim to avoid at all costs pointless shredding from the outset. It has to be about dynamics. If you start a song playing 32nd notes you have literally nowhere to go. Plus I can’t play 32nd notes above 6bpm, haha!

GT: Is a typical song structure (intro, verse, chorus, etc) always relevant for an instrumental?

JM: Not necessarily. Repetition of a theme with increasing urgency is a favorite of mine. At the end of the day, the basic concept of theme and variation is the benchmark. A LOT of prog rock is what I call ‘cut and shut’ which basically means clumsily gluing together irrelevant bits of music. It’s the musical equivalent of welding the front end of a 1983 Ford Escort onto the back end of a Corsair.

GT: How useful is studying a vocalist’s approach for creating guitar melodies?

JM: Well it certainly helps me being a singer and guitarist. If you have a foot in both camps, you certainly learn a different approach to phrasing. That said, I steal a lot of my guitar riffs off sax players, Leo P from Too Many Zooz is a fave.

GT: How do you start writing one; is there a typical approach?