Hello, Rocksmith fans!
Autumn creeps in once again, bringing a full end to yet another month of Rocksmith DLC. Let’s have a look at what the month had to offer, shall we?
First, here are the results of last month’s DLC poll:
*(secretly hopes no one notices that I voted twice)*
Bit of a low voter turnout this time, more than 1/4 fewer people voted for August than July’s 417. Nice to see that people loved Fleetwood Mac and Kansas as much as I did, though.
September has been an interesting month for DLC, since this might just be the first month in a long time entirely composed of single-artist three-packs (no mixed singles or 4 to 5-packs this time, unfortunately). Bass guitarists especially should have fun with this month’s DLC: With the challenging, active basslines of Earth, Wind & Fire, the surprisingly varied psychedelic rhythms of The Doors, and the challenging charts of Polyamorous‘ slap bass and So Cold by Breaking Benjamin, lower-octave enthusiasts had quite a bit to keep them busy.
If you own a bass, and you didn’t pick up the @EWF pack: why?
The Doors may not have an official bassist, but this and L.A. Woman‘s bass charts are pretty darn fun and varied.
A nice, active bassline with a really challenging main riff.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bIciE1RE6c
Slappa dat bass!
Of course, if you’re more a beginner on bass, @therejects have you covered with their varied, yet moderately easy charts.
Guitarists had some nicely varied material to play as well, with shred-tastic solos on the likes of EWF’s Shining Star, the Doors’ L.A. Woman, and Breaking Benjamin’s So Cold, the challenging riffs on Brand New’s Sic Transit Gloria… Glory Fades and Earth, Wind & Fire’s Sing a Song, and the moderate beginner-friendly charts on The All-American Rejects, EWF’s September, and Brand New’s Okay I Believe You, But My Tommy Gun Don’t.
“Funk is only challenging on bass” my ass, have you even looked at this solo yet?
Robby Krieger sure knows how to make an interesting 8-minute shred.
“Poly-aye-morous”
That muted guitar riff should take quite some time to master.
Not a bad chart at all if you prefer chordier pop.
A nice change-up from standard power chords.
Although E Standard continues to dominate, we did see some nice variety with the presence of other tunings this month:
| Arrangement | E Standard | Eb Standard | Eb Drop Db | D Drop C | Capo Required | True-Tuned |
| Lead | 8 | 3 | 1 | 2 | X | 1 |
| Rhythm | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Bass | 8 | 2 | 2 | 2 | X | 1 |
| Alternate Lead | X | 1 | X | X | X | X |
This all brings one question to mind:
Have fun, and start voting!
People Are Strange and September are both songs I’ve been wanting to learn before Rocksmith. People Are Strange has a ton more plays so far but I’m looking forward to digging more into EWF when I get into more of a bass mood.
I voted for Brand New personally over The Doors because I keep coming back to play it, whereas LA Woman is a bit too long to always play. Thought it was a great month personally
Bassist, my vote has to go to EWF. Melodic and rhythmically interesting bass lines FTW!
My guess would be that if people don’t vote last month, that probably means they didn’t like any of it. I’m not voting this month. Because I didn’t like any of it. Literally not one song this month that I had the slightest interest in playing.
No vote for me – First time I think since I bought RS14 20 months ago I’ve given all monthly DLC a miss.
Here’s to hoping some of my votes come in. Would love to see some more brit pop. Placebo, Suede, Blur and The Smiths would be awesome and of course an Oasis 2 pack.
Aside from that, less 2000’s rock, it was a pretty rubbish era musically. (yes I know The Doors and EWF aren’t, but lately there has been a lot of bland 2000 era rock)
Not all 2000s era rock, just the pop punk, emo, hardcore/post-hardcore/post-grunge drivel. 2000s was great for garage rock and blues rock.
1. Brand New – Yes, I’m biased. 3 songs from one of my top 10 albums of all time? Pack is well rounded for all instruments, intermediate difficulty.
2. Earth, Wind & Fire – Great bass on all 3 tracks. Guitar is engaging on Shining Star but the rest is only interesting because this style is not represented often (I can think of only a few songs that have lead lines focused on mutes and single notes like most of this pack). Super fun songs to listen to and play all-around.
3. The Doors (II) – LA Woman is fun on guitar and challenging on bass (mostly due to it’s length and repetition). The rest of the pack is fun on both instruments but not really my bag. I see the musical value in all these songs, I just don’t have as much fun playing them as I do the EW&F pack.
4. Breaking Benjamin – I despise both BB & AAR due to negative live experiences with both bands and an overwhelming feeling that their music is boringly calculated to a pop audience. Regardless, between the two bands I think that the BB pack had more to offer guitarists and bassists. The bass is obviously more challenging (bassline to So Cold, slapping in Polyamorous) and the guitar incorporates a few more techniques (and I use that term very loosely when describing the technical prowess of Breaking Benjamin).
5. The All-American Rejects – I recommend playing these songs is you’re interested in exploring the different ways that a single melody can be re-used throughout a song. While to advanced players this pack seems boring, the band makes great use of the fretboard when trying to embellish any simple melodies. I give them credit for that but overall, this pack is a snore on all paths. Songwriting gets a nod but the rest of the song makes for boring gameplay.
Is it bad that DLS is one of my favourite tracks of the month >__>
yes. shame on you. ;-P
The Doors and Breaking Benjamin make this a highlight month for me since The Doors are my favorite of all time and when it comes to new hard rock Breaking Benjamin is a shining example.
I did not buy anything but EWF initially, because it isn’t familiar or terribly exciting to me…used to love the doors but they have been spent over time…so either too unfamiliar or too bored with it. Then I realized…It’s only money…I can always print more…and got all of it. That’s when I realized…I can’t print money. Can I get a refund? My favorite was EWF. AAR and Brand New were ok.
Rocktober’s DLC has got to be better than Sucktember’s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j95kNwZw8YY
That was so clever. Did you give yourself a standing ovation after coming up with that?
I liked the funk track (shining star) from the EWF pack, didn’t like the 2 disco tracks. I liked the Doors, but they are pretty much my favourite band. I had not even heard of the other three bands prior to this, they are ok but not the kind of thing I’d listen to. But hey, i got 3 songs from one of my favourite bands so I’m happy, that’s a good month by my standards!