Most Unusual Instruments Used in Bands...

Guybrush · 01-27-2010, 05:17 AM

Hah, that's a brilliant vid Petula

It's perhaps not super-unusual, but for the sake of mentioning something exciting in this thread, I'll mention the Chapman Stick used for example by Tony Levin from King Crimson.

Here's Mr. Chapman demonstrating it :

Here it is in action in KC's song "Elephant Talk" from Discipline released in 1981

SATCHMO · 01-27-2010, 02:24 PM

Page & Plant live with an amazing hurdy gurdy player:

storymilo · 01-27-2010, 05:32 PM

Maybe not as weird as some of these but when They Might Be Giants played in New Haven there was a euphonium solo. I found a youtube clip of a bunch of moments of the show, and they mention it about 1:29 but for some reason the actual euphonium got cut out

Stone Birds · 02-04-2010, 08:48 PM

i sorta play bowed guitar (i still need to arch the bridge so i can play more precise)

Vancouver · 02-05-2010, 09:40 AM

Zamfir King of the Pan Flute

Psy-Fi · 02-05-2010, 09:47 PM

Eugene Chadbourne has a homemade instrument he calls "The Electric Rake."
Its a lawn rake with a guitar pickup attached to it.
I saw him use it at a show once. There was a bald guy sitting in the front row, and Eugene walked over to him and scraped the rake over his head a few times and then held the rake like a guitar and started hitting the tines. He then moved over to a window and scraped the glass up and down with the rake. Odd sounds indeed!

PuebloFuerte · 02-06-2010, 10:33 AM

Not as unusual as snales or a typewriter, its a flute instrument known as a 'Gaita'. You can see it on my Avatar.

Boza

P.S the Chapman stick is a really interesting sounding instrument.

Petula07 · 02-10-2010, 03:10 AM

I now flute and piano aren't unusual instruments but for me this guy is unusual

P A N · 02-10-2010, 09:25 AM

that one-string bass that les claypool plays (the sh*t out of) is pretty rad. if you haven't seen it, it's just one string and a stick and the pitch is determined not by frets but by the fact that the string is attached to this giant torque lever at the top.

another bjork thing i saw was on a live youtube vid. from her volta tour... there was this guy with a round table... looked like a poker table, with "chips" lined up around the edge and everything, but the tabletop was glowing blue, and the chips, which were actually shapes (say like x's and y's) were moved around on the table... added.. subtracted from the table, and between them was this lightning. i take it that to stretch two of the shape's distance was to alter the circuit thusly creating new sound.

i downloaded a vst called joy synth cuz it kinda looked like the same idea, but the sound was ****e or the whole thing was just beyond me. anyway, it was neat.

ElephantSack · 02-10-2010, 10:53 AM

I saw Sleepytime Gorilla Museum last April, and they have not one, but two sledgehammer dulcimers. And the percussionist/guitarist/clarinet player was beating on old metal dish tubs and bicycle spokes among other things. And the first opener was playing a strange configuration of computer and radio parts, a television and Wii remotes.

I saw That One Guy with his homemade instrument "The Magic Pipe", and then he played a saw and a boot. Cool stuff.

01-27-2010, 05:17 AM	#21 (permalink)
Guybrush Juicious Maximus III Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Scabb Island Posts: 6,525	Hah, that's a brilliant vid Petula It's perhaps not super-unusual, but for the sake of mentioning something exciting in this thread, I'll mention the Chapman Stick used for example by Tony Levin from King Crimson. Here's Mr. Chapman demonstrating it : Here it is in action in KC's song "Elephant Talk" from Discipline released in 1981 __________________ Something Completely Different

02-04-2010, 08:48 PM	#24 (permalink)
Stone Birds myspace.com/stonebirdies Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Conor Oberst Was/is Here Posts: 1,401	i sorta play bowed guitar (i still need to arch the bridge so i can play more precise) __________________ Silk & Tree Records //\\//\\/\\/\/\/\\\\\\\\///\/\/\/\/\\////\/\\\\\///\V //\\//\\/\\/\/\/\\\\\\\\///\/\/\/\/\\////\/\\\\\///\V soundcloud.com/stonebirds [Link removed by mod, no advertising] ... Damn those mods are always gettin ya :)

02-05-2010, 09:40 AM	#25 (permalink)
Vancouver Music Addict Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 188	Zamfir King of the Pan Flute __________________ http://www.last.fm/user/VancouverFlanke The face is familiar but I can't quite remember my name.

02-10-2010, 03:10 AM	#28 (permalink)
Petula07 ♫ Music 'n' Sun ♫ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Prague Posts: 388	I now flute and piano aren't unusual instruments but for me this guy is unusual __________________ *Take whatever comes to you 'cause time flies...* ♫ ♫ Some Song ♫ ♫ Last.fm ♫ ♫ Some Song ♫ ♫

02-10-2010, 10:53 AM	#30 (permalink)
ElephantSack Man vs. Wild Turkey Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: ATX Posts: 948	I saw Sleepytime Gorilla Museum last April, and they have not one, but two sledgehammer dulcimers. And the percussionist/guitarist/clarinet player was beating on old metal dish tubs and bicycle spokes among other things. And the first opener was playing a strange configuration of computer and radio parts, a television and Wii remotes. I saw That One Guy with his homemade instrument "The Magic Pipe", and then he played a saw and a boot. Cool stuff. __________________ OF THE SUN

01-27-2010, 02:24 PM	#22 (permalink)
SATCHMO Al Dente Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 4,708	Page & Plant live with an amazing hurdy gurdy player:

01-27-2010, 05:32 PM	#23 (permalink)
storymilo Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,845	Maybe not as weird as some of these but when They Might Be Giants played in New Haven there was a euphonium solo. I found a youtube clip of a bunch of moments of the show, and they mention it about 1:29 but for some reason the actual euphonium got cut out

02-05-2010, 09:47 PM	#26 (permalink)
Psy-Fi Aficionado of Fine Filth Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: You don't want to look in there. Posts: 6,797	Eugene Chadbourne has a homemade instrument he calls "The Electric Rake." Its a lawn rake with a guitar pickup attached to it. I saw him use it at a show once. There was a bald guy sitting in the front row, and Eugene walked over to him and scraped the rake over his head a few times and then held the rake like a guitar and started hitting the tines. He then moved over to a window and scraped the glass up and down with the rake. Odd sounds indeed!

02-06-2010, 10:33 AM	#27 (permalink)
PuebloFuerte Groupie Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: London Posts: 9	Not as unusual as snales or a typewriter, its a flute instrument known as a 'Gaita'. You can see it on my Avatar. Boza P.S the Chapman stick is a really interesting sounding instrument.

02-10-2010, 09:25 AM	#29 (permalink)
P A N DO LIKE YOU. Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 629	that one-string bass that les claypool plays (the sht out of) is pretty rad. if you haven't seen it, it's just one string and a stick and the pitch is determined not by frets but by the fact that the string is attached to this giant torque lever at the top. another bjork thing i saw was on a live youtube vid. from her volta tour... there was this guy with a round table... looked like a poker table, with "chips" lined up around the edge and everything, but the tabletop was glowing blue, and the chips, which were actually shapes (say like x's and y's) were moved around on the table... added.. subtracted from the table, and between them was this lightning. i take it that to stretch two of the shape's distance was to alter the circuit thusly creating new sound. i downloaded a vst called joy synth cuz it kinda looked like the same idea, but the sound was ***e or the whole thing was just beyond me. anyway, it was neat.