Supreme Commander/Brian Swerdfeger Interview

[michaelomiya]

http://www.elixirstrings.com/cables/tom.html


Tre Keeeewl. Tom, very nice plug for the MOD50 and the new elixir cables!
Brian, I think "E! News", "Access Hollywood" and "Entertainment Tonight" are on the line......:D

Very insightful! Nice set, BTW!

"no more pedals"!!!

[michaelomiya]

oh, and nice butterscotch classic T and seafoamgreen classic in the background. and while you guys look so cute on camera:eek: :p it was pretty cool to see the Andy's behind you.

[tom]

i think the sea foam is a, gulp, fender:eek:
that was pretty fun to do. swerd is a very patient man. it sure is weird to see and hear yourself from the pother side. "do i really look like that?" ,"do i really sound like that?" a very humbling experience.

[michaelomiya]

AHHHH - no. OK. Sorry to bring that up.

tom, FWIW, you sound very natural and look very comfortable. Brian's all over nowadays from local cable with Marc Seal to hangin' with Bob T, you, Bruce E, and it shows in the way he couches his questions and segues into the various topics. It's a very informative interview and provided lots of insights into the new Elixir cables, but (more importantly for me) was loaded with nuggets of TAG tone info! You both rock.

[theatomicjeff]

Cool interview = thanks Michael.

*I might have to check out the Elixir cable*

Tom, just curious - how loud do you play in church?

[Dave K]

Is that kid really Tom? ;)

[tom]

not loud enough of course. i'd say about 10 watts loud, which of course is meaningless. with the egnater and 6v6's, my master is about 11:00 with the gains about half way up. i used the divided by 13 9/15 last week and it was at the point of breaking up pretty good on the 9 watt setting and the hotplate at -4 db. it's a challenge to get an amp working at that volume, but the egnater has worked the best for me.

[guitarzan]

Tom,
I've been talking about you for years and trying to describe your demeanor to my wife. The cables are cool, but I am glad that I finally was able to sit my wife down and say, "THAT is Tom Anderson".

Great video.

[Rupe]

Cool interview...I too have always been a bit disappointed with high end cables and I've tried a lot of them.

What type of music do you play at church? I've always wanted to do that but if it wasn't an old hymn fingerpicked on an acoustic, they really weren't interested :(

[pipedwho]

Cool interview!

What does the cable itself feel like? (ie. flexibility, jacket strength, connectors, etc)

Rupe, I have the same problem re church playing, but I find I can sneak in a little electric every now and then - volume, is of course way down in most cases, but occaisionally I can goose it up for a spirited rhythmic finishing hymn. ;)

[tom]

it's a full band at our church. if you listen to david crowder band, chris tomlin,tim hughes, you'll get a general feel for the music. it's pretty darn fun to play, and no ego's in the band make it even better.
the cable has a fairly fat grey jacket, but is very tangle free and makes no noise when slapping the floor. it' very flexible as well.

[Shannon]

it's a full band at our church. if you listen to david crowder band, chris tomlin,tim hughes, you'll get a general feel for the music. it's pretty darn fun to play, and no ego's in the band make it even better.
the cable has a fairly fat grey jacket, but is very tangle free and makes no noise when slapping the floor. it' very flexible as well.

Don't ya just love that!

That's how our band is too... all "regular" guys just doing the P&W thing with no egos...
I love the progressive worship thing too... I was just hired as the Contemporary worship leader at my church here in St. Louis (been in the praise band and leading more often than not for 6 months though) and we are doing some really fun (and relevant) stuff...
Crowder is Generally in the lineup 2-3 sundays a month! Love his stuff.

[csd]

Ya, it is awesome to play without 'that rub'. Ditto at our church, same deal, different side of the border! A 4 J!
We do a version of Baloche's 'Praise', and throw a bit of 'Sweet Home Alabama' twang in there to change it up! It is a great deal of fun to play, all of it.

[Suriel Zayas]

i can see tom doing the weather on the 6pm news, but with a cool swagger. :) and i agree with cory, great way to introduce tom to my wife and friends virtually. great job tom, excellent audition for your new "weekly video blog." :D

[tom]

i think i would have a nervous breakdown if i had to do that on a regular basis. i'm not comfortable at all talking or playing in front of a camera. swerd did a wonderful job of making me feel at home. thanks brian.

[michaelomiya]

:) and i agree with cory, great way to introduce tom to my wife and friends virtually. great job tom, excellent audition for your new "weekly video blog." :D

Suriel, I did the same thing. The conversation went something like this:

Wife: "what a nice man, I understand why you love the company so much"
Mike: "thanks Honey, now you won't feel so bad when I give them some more $$$ for a CT Atom....":D :D :D
Wife: (pauses and remembers that I really suffer chronic gas after NAMM and reaches for the Tivo remote)
Wife: "sounds good. now here, let me show you this episode of Dr 90210....."
Mike: "...bummer, I thought it would be north of the waistline.....":p
Wife: ............:mad:
Mike: (note to self: only bring up gear purchases after purchase, or consequences will be very, very expensive!)

[Pietro]

Yes, for those that don't know, Church music is not what it used to be. It's the most fun I've ever had in a band. Of course, I do it for a living, so I'm cheatin'... but it's da bomb! A lot of great artists came along in the 90s and then the 00s to change it into something interesting, fun, and TRULY contemporary.

And the ONLY way to do it TOTALLY right is, of course, with a TAGW guitar around your neck.

[GaryMcT]

Tom, you seem like an even more intelligent/thoughtful guy that I expected.

I was hoping you'd pick up your guitar and rip it up though. :)

[Mister T]

I have always liked putting a face to a voice or vice-versa. I have spoken with Tom on the phone but it is quite different seeing a person's inflections and body motion while they speak. It is interesting how some people are the way you expect them to be (which is the case with the video of Tom in that interview footage) and others are NOT in any way.

[guitarzan]

I have always liked putting a face to a voice or vice-versa. I have spoken with Tom on the phone but it is quite different seeing a person's inflections and body motion while they speak. It is interesting how some people are the way you expect them to be (which is the case with the video of Tom in that interview footage) and others are NOT in any way.

This is a really good point. Lemme take this opportunity to put a face to my posts. This is the beauty that is Guitarzan.

http://www.dognmoon.com/humongousfaceB.jpg

[Suriel Zayas]

This is a really good point. Lemme take this opportunity to put a face to my posts. This is the beauty that is Guitarzan.

http://www.dognmoon.com/humongousfaceB.jpg
cory, i know the feeling. i sit in front of my macbook and get this uncontrollable urge to open photo booth and send my wife and daughter the most annoying and hideous pics and video messages. :D

[guitarzan]

cory, i know the feeling. i sit in front of my macbook and get this uncontrollable urge to open photo booth and send my wife and daughter the most annoying and hideous pics and video messages. :D

It hurts my feelings that you think this image has been manipulated in some way. I have a heart, ya know...

My gorgeous wife loves me for my mad nunchuck skillz.

So back to the OP- Brian, do you think there's a place for me in the next round of videos? If Tom backs out, I wouldn't mind being the face of Elixir.

[ToneLounge]

"I was young, and I needed the money..."
Does that excuse still work?

Thanks Tom - it's always my privilege, and a pleasure.

[dave]

at the risk of asking a stupid question........if you're using the new Elixir cable for the guitar lead, should you also use it for the effects loop too?:confused:

[tom]

it is most noticeable as the first cable since the guitar is high impedance and most susceptible to signal loss. once things have been buffered they are "safer". i did think that even after my pedalboard it sounded better though. i never did any a/b tests in a loop. others may be better equipped than i at how lower impedance affects cable loss.

[dave]

thanks Tom

[dave]

finally got the cables - very impressive! even my old ears could hear the difference!