Rock Band Review
John Doherty
here's my review:
Wii All Live In a Yellow Submarine
Beatles Rock Band review
I suspect I’m not the only one playing it (or who has played it), and
that there are folks out there wondering about its alleged fab-ness.
First off, I’m a Wii partisan. Some of the best Wii games get your ass
off the couch, and using the Wii Fit has helped me keep weight off
lately (down from 217 pounds to 198 today).
But with Rock Band, I think it pretty much plays the same cross
platform, with the advantage on PS3 & perhaps X-Box of the blue ray
graphics or sound. But the sound is great on the Wii, FWIW. The
visuals for reading lyrics are likely better on the other platforms,
because of more pixels per square inch.
For those who have never played guitar hero or rock band, you use a
smaller size guitar controller (maybe 1/2 to 2/3rds actual size) and
you “play” by strumming a strum bar and hitting a colored button on
the fret at the same time. If you do this correctly, the note for the
part you are playing sounds. If you miss it, you hear nothing at all
in its place (in guitar hero you hear a dissonant sound). As you move
beyond easy, you have to play "chords" of a sort, like the third &
fourth buttons at the same time.
BTW, the definition of the "guitar part" can be liberal; on "Lucy"
for
instance, the guitar plays the spidery keyboard line.
The drum controls work the same way, with four drum pads and a kick
pedal in lieu of the fret buttons. The drums correspond to snare,
bass, cymbal, etc. As a non musician, I think the drum set corresponds
more closely to a real drum kit than the guitar corresponds to actual
guitar playing.
Ironically, the drum kit sounds less like the real thing, because the
act of drumming on the pads creates a bit of noise itself.
Giles Martin (son of George Martin) who did the Love mixes (for the
Cirque du Soleil production), took the original Beatles recordings,
some done on two track, and broke them down to isolated tracks for
bass, drum & guitar, a necessary step when you are “playing” Ringo’s
drum track, for instance. I am not sure if there is a separate rhythm
guitar track, since we usually play bass & lead if there are two
guitar controller players.
When you select a given track, there is a corresponding “video” of
Beatle avatars playing the tune as you play it.
In story mode, you work your way from the Cavern Club, to Ed Sullivan
to Budokan, to Shea Stadium. If you select quickplay for one of these
songs, the corresponding era video plays.
After that, you start in the Abbey Road studio, but by midsong, the
Beatles are in any number of trippy scenarios, from singing on a hill
beneath a tree to swirling mandalas of color enveloping them during
George’s sitar era. As a Beatles trivia zealot, I appreciate the
clothes and hair length corresponding to each era.
And in the end... we’re Up on The Roof at Apple Corps for the
legendary rooftop concert. This is a real gem-- the gritty London
winter of 1969 realized in computer modeled 3 dimensions.
It’s clear they fed the actual data of the buildings into the program
and let it rip, so the camera can go where it couldn’t then, swirling
low & high for dramatic effect. Clouds glide by and flocks of birds
fly past as they play.
For fans who’ve loved this stuff for years it’s a real treat to see
-- more immediate than the actual film that I have on a bootleg, and
to see the band members ad libbing familiar lines. The videos are best
appreciated when you are not playing the game, as it’s hard to follow
your part & watch the video. And the more players playing, the less of
the video you see on screen, because each person's guide is a fret
board down which the notes slide toward us.
When you play a band member’s part and miss the note, it’s evocative
of many bootlegs I have where there’s a deviation from the script,
like someone tripped over George’s guitar plug for a note or two.
The vocals are a real fun thing for lots of people who might be
intimidated from “playing” the instruments. There are single vocals,
and two or three part harmonies, each with its separate line with a
distinct color: blue orange or brown. Oddly, singing some of the songs
is not hard for me, even on “hard”; by contrast, I have worked my way
to medium level on the guitar.
“Do You Want To Know A Secret?” is a good place to start on vocals, at
least for me, since much of it is in a sort of monotone. Imitating
George’s delivery helps for me, FWIW.
Playing this game puts you “into the music” more than ever (or at
least it feels that way): reading the lyrics to find out some of the
words you never knew or trying to emulate some of the trickier
harmonies. Just playing the drum kit to the off kilter beats of “I Am
The Walrus” is a major blast.
Is it making music? Maybe , in the vocals at least. In the
instruments, it's strictly a binary option: you hit the real note, or
nothing sounds at all, so that's more like tetris than playing a real
instrument, I guess.
But that's another angle for aging boomers: this looks like precisely
the sort of puzzle kind of exercise that is recommended for avoiding
alzheimer's and other dementias. Building some new furrows in your
grey matter is no small thing, and "you know that can't be bad". ;-)
It's the least we can do to compensate for all those brain cells that
went south when we we turning off our minds and floating downstream.
BTW, you get 45 Beatle songs with the game, and will be able to buy
more later, at apparently the same price as the CDs; like I need to
send more money down Penny Lane for yet another format. "All You Need
is Cash" as the Rutles told us, all those years ago.
There's plenty of great tunes missing (Strawberry Fields, Across the
Universe, etc.) , but the ones here are wonderful, too.
But I probably will-- it's too much fun. And with a roomful of people
it's Big Fun! We can have three singers doing solo & two harmonies, a
guitar, bass & drums for 6 folks on one song.
Some songs on the game that were played by the GD (or associate
bands):
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Revolution
Dear Prudence
Come Together
Day Tripper
Get Back
I Am the Walrus
I Saw Her Standing There
there is also Tomorrow Never Knows, but it's the mashup from Love with
Within You Without You.
------
postscript: I wrote the above in September; since then there's been
two albums released as downloadable content. I snagged the medley & Oh
Darling from AR, and Day in the Life & Fixing a Hole from Pepper. One
downside for the Wii is that supposedly size restrictions of the
platform prevent buying the whole album, so one is stuck with paying
per song, which is more expensive if you buy them all.
John Doherty
(software alone that is), if you have the hardware previously.
Hardware here is the guitar controller, drums controller and
microphones.
Beatles Rock Band is a departure from previous Rock Band titles in a
number of ways. One is that you can't play other downloadable rock
band content tunes on it. That's no big deal, because you can buy a
used Rock Band disc at a gamestop or whatever for around $20, and then
you can play any DLC.
The other big departure is the harmonies on vocals. Previously, you
got to sing the lead vocal only. On the Beatles version you can have
up to three people singing three parts in songs that have three parts.
While selecting songs, you can organize them various ways
(alphabetically, by album, etc.) and one option is by vocal parts.
If you want to try "I'm Looking Through You", you can do either just
the lead or elect harmonies, which gives three distinct pitch lines on
screen, representing the three vocal parts. For those who have not
played this sort of game before, the pitch line goes one better than
karaoke, as you can see onscreen how close you are getting to the
correct range. If you are singing too low, the arrow indicating your
microphone will show below the pitch line, etc.
When playing with say, 6 people, I use two guitar controllers (lead &
bass-- they do not include a rhythm guitar part, absorbing that into
the lead), drum controller, and one more handheld wii-mote that
controls all three microphones. Each mic has its own onscreen arrow
icon, so if you look closely, you can identify where your own voice is
showing up. Though ideally, each separate vocalist should cover a
separate Beatle vocal (this means a separate pitch line onscreen--
blue for lead , and orange and brown for backing vocals), the scoring
is quite forgiving, in that if anyone misses a note but a buddy gets
it, you get scored for that note correctly.
We purchased the Beatles Rock Band economy package, without the vanity
reproduction style guitars & drum kit, which add no functionality. The
higher end version includes a mic stand, but its damn near impossible
to play the guitar part and sing it at the same time, so the stand is
a bit redundant, IMO. The economy version includes software, one
guitar drums and one microphone. We had a Guitar Hero controller that
works (so we can do bass & guitar together), and we had two mics
already from the American Idol titles that work with the software, so
we have all we need.
The economy pack was around $138, versus about $250 for the repro high
end series.
I love the whole thing, and amazed how it gets you deeper into songs
that you think you couldn't possibly know any better. It's big fun
with a group, but I play solo from time to time, too.
If any one has further questions, ask and I'll respond.
The Arranger
> The economy pack was around $138, versus about $250 for the repro high
> end series.
>
> I love the whole thing, and amazed how it gets you deeper into songs
> that you think you couldn't possibly know any better. It's big fun
> with a group, but I play solo from time to time, too.
It sounds like a lot of fun...but t putting the same time and money
into mastering a real instrument might pay off better than you
expected.
(Proud parent alert...you've been warned):
My son has been playing guitar for about a year and a half...here's a
sample:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZMuphm5HwM
The Arranger
The Arranger
Sorry about mentioning my son's video a second time...the OP is a
member of another group I frequent, and I responded thinking his post
was the that group.
The Arranger
John Doherty
>
> > The economy pack was around $138, versus about $250 for the repro high
> > end series.
>
> > I love the whole thing, and amazed how it gets you deeper into songs
> > that you think you couldn't possibly know any better. It's big fun
> > with a group, but I play solo from time to time, too.
>
> It sounds like a lot of fun...but t putting the same time and money
> into mastering a real instrument might pay off better than you
> expected.
Maybe it's my (undiagnosed) ADHD, but I find the rewards of playing
aren't big enough to keep me doing the work necessary to attain them.
With the software, it's instant gratification and its own reward-
albeit perhaps more fleeting, but that's video games;-). And though
it's not "real music" (except arguably the singing*), it does graduate
you from the absolute listener status to more inside it, in that you
are responsible for parts of it that are heard only if you do your
part correctly.
*Singing with this is fun-- you can choose four ranges (easy, moderate
hard & expert) just like on the instruments. with the top three you
can "fail". There's the practice mode that offers a pitch to sing to
in one usage, so you hear the vocal line plus a mechanical pitch tone
that shows where to aim your own vocal.
>
> (Proud parent alert...you've been warned):
>
> My son has been playing guitar for about a year and a half...here's a
> sample:
>
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZMuphm5HwM
I had not seen the earlier post, so thanks, and he's great!
BLACKPOOLJIMMY
Pride doesn't call for apologies.
iarwain
You wouldn't get the cool graphics though.
:)
RichL
> It sounds like a lot of fun...but t putting the same time and money
> into mastering a real instrument might pay off better than you
> expected.
Is this necessarily a one-or-the-other choice? To me it's like saying
if you go to movies for entertainment, you'll never learn to ski. One
is short-term diversion, and the other is long-term skill development.
The Arranger
Today's video games are so complex and challenging to master that they
often don't fall into the "short-term diversion" category. I was from
the pinball era...you had to go to the arcade and put money in the
slot, and the games were relatively simple. Today's games tend to be
as much an obsession as they are a diversion.
I just think that we're in danger of becoming an ersatz society in
many ways. Live venues for musicians are thinning out, as DJs have
replaced local bands. Now Rock Band seems to be attacking from the
other side. Many of my son's friends have dropped their instrumental
music lessons, and all of them play video games constantly. Our
outmoded Playstation, purchased so that my son could have a chance at
participating during rainy-day playdates, gathers dust ever since the
guitar came on the scene.
The singing component sounds the most promising...if it can detect
pitch and train people to song in harmony and in tune, that's a
definite benefit. For grown men, I agree that it can be a
diversion...for kids, I'd steer them to the real thing, if possible.
I'm having a second adolescence jamming along with my son, but I
eagerly await the day that I'm replaced by his peers.
BTW, the original poster and I are near neighbors, and actually met in
real life before our 'net' interaction. He's a bright, interesting and
witty guy, and he'd be a most welcome regular presence here. You'd
like him a lot.
The Arranger
RichL
> On Nov 23, 6:02 pm, "RichL" <rpleav...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> The Arranger <recur...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>> It sounds like a lot of fun...but t putting the same time and money
>>> into mastering a real instrument might pay off better than you
>>> expected.
>>
>> Is this necessarily a one-or-the-other choice? To me it's like saying
>> if you go to movies for entertainment, you'll never learn to ski. One
>> is short-term diversion, and the other is long-term skill
>> development.
>
> Today's video games are so complex and challenging to master that they
> often don't fall into the "short-term diversion" category. I was from
> the pinball era...you had to go to the arcade and put money in the
> slot, and the games were relatively simple. Today's games tend to be
> as much an obsession as they are a diversion.
>
> I just think that we're in danger of becoming an ersatz society in
> many ways. Live venues for musicians are thinning out, as DJs have
> replaced local bands. Now Rock Band seems to be attacking from the
> other side. Many of my son's friends have dropped their instrumental
> music lessons, and all of them play video games constantly. Our
> outmoded Playstation, purchased so that my son could have a chance at
> participating during rainy-day playdates, gathers dust ever since the
> guitar came on the scene.
I'm just thinking in terms of my sons' playing development. My younger
one in particular was a video game fanatic yet learned to play guitar
and bass very well. At least with him, I didn't see a conflict.
> The singing component sounds the most promising...if it can detect
> pitch and train people to song in harmony and in tune, that's a
> definite benefit. For grown men, I agree that it can be a
> diversion...for kids, I'd steer them to the real thing, if possible.
> I'm having a second adolescence jamming along with my son, but I
> eagerly await the day that I'm replaced by his peers.
It is fun, isn't it?
I spent a lot of time playing guitar to my older son's drumming when he
was a teen, and laying down some guitar and bass tracks for him when he
was first learning to do multitrack recording.
The younger one was a different story though. He was bashful to a fault
and wouldn't play if he thought others could hear. I heard him playing
once when he thought I wasn't home and couldn't hear. He was playing
stuff that would give me fits if I tried. So as much as I'd like to
take credit for his development, I can't.
> BTW, the original poster and I are near neighbors, and actually met in
> real life before our 'net' interaction. He's a bright, interesting and
> witty guy, and he'd be a most welcome regular presence here. You'd
> like him a lot.
Cool! But will he pass the "I hate Yoko" test? You know that's a
requirement these days, right?
John Doherty
>
> > The Arranger <recur...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > It sounds like a lot of fun...but t putting the same time and money
> > > into mastering a real instrument might pay off better than you
> > > expected.
>
> On Nov 23, 6:02 pm, "RichL" <rpleav...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > Is this necessarily a one-or-the-other choice? To me it's like saying
> > if you go to movies for entertainment, you'll never learn to ski. One
> > is short-term diversion, and the other is long-term skill development.
It's complicated, I guess. A while back I noodled a bit with Garage
Band on the Mac. and that lead me to the keyboard. I can pick out some
tunes with my right hand, but getting the left hand involved reminds
me of when I took a ballroom dance class once: I got it much better
from the waist up, (which still puts me ahead of 90% of my
demographic-- we all land to noodle dance in the 70s);-)
I am proficient as an artist, and in fact, make my living at it; that
comes more naturally to me than playing an instrument.
So I guess I should ask The Arranger why he's wasting time at a
computer keyboard when he could be practicing some life drawing;-)
>
On Nov 23, 6:18 pm, The Arranger <recur...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Today's video games are so complex and challenging to master that they
> often don't fall into the "short-term diversion" category.
You say that like it's a bad thing. ;-)
> I was from
> the pinball era...you had to go to the arcade and put money in the
> slot, and the games were relatively simple. Today's games tend to be
> as much an obsession as they are a diversion.
Yeah, I did pinball, too, but anyone back in the day seeing today's
games would think they had died and gone to heaven.
I see video games as a fun diversion, some not unlike a pop novel in
the way they enthrall you.
The Wii adds the physical dimension, and it's been helpful in my
getting my weight under control as well.
A great benefit of the Rock Band franchise is the brain stimulation
involved in retraining one's fingers to work independently and
together in various formations as you work the fret. This seems like
precisely the wort of brain workout that can help forestall loss of
brain power that comes with age (I'm over 50).
> I just think that we're in danger of becoming an ersatz society in
> many ways. Live venues for musicians are thinning out, as DJs have
> replaced local bands.
Yadda yadda, we're entitled to be cranky because of our advanced
age. ;-)
"You kids get off my lawn!!";-)
> Now Rock Band seems to be attacking from the
> other side.
I'll tell you that my niece is 14 and regularly plays with me; if
anything,
it's intrigued her about instruments in a way she wasn't before she
played.
We'll see if it goes anywhere...
> Many of my son's friends have dropped their instrumental
> music lessons, and all of them play video games constantly.
'Twas ever thus. This is what kids do, start music lessons and lose
interest. That's a big part of being a kid, trying out different
enthusiasms.
Kids did this long before video games.
>Our
> outmoded Playstation, purchased so that my son could have a chance at
> participating during rainy-day playdates, gathers dust ever since the
> guitar came on the scene.
>
> The singing component sounds the most promising...if it can detect
> pitch and train people to song in harmony and in tune, that's a
> definite benefit. For grown men, I agree that it can be a
> diversion...for kids, I'd steer them to the real thing, if possible.
And there's the rub. Maybe your kid is more steerable than the ones
I know, but mostly I find you can just support the stuff they find on
their own.
By definition anything your parents like usually is boring to the
adolescent as
a consequence of the age group.
> I'm having a second adolescence jamming along with my son, but I
> eagerly await the day that I'm replaced by his peers.
>
> BTW, the original poster and I are near neighbors, and actually met in
> real life before our 'net' interaction. He's a bright, interesting and
> witty guy, and he'd be a most welcome regular presence here. You'd
> like him a lot.
Thanks for the character reference (he can vouch that I am , indeed, a
character ;-).
But I've been an infrequent flyer here for years. It's just hard to be
a regular in more than a couple groups, I think.
John Doherty
> Cool! But will he pass the "I hate Yoko" test? You know that's a
> requirement these days, right?
As an artist, I spent years defending Yoko, but had to laugh at the
recent PBS special about the impact of the Fab Four behind the Iron
Curtain. They showed a "Cavern Club" in Kiev that hosts only
performers playing Beatles.
There at the bar was a crusty old fart with a black T shirt and in the
famous Beatles font "Still Pissed at Yoko". ;-)
RichL
Yeah, I saw that too. And despite my periodic barking at the
Yoko-hating contingent here, I *do* have a sense of humor!