Tosin Abasi

Chewing the Gristle with Greg Koch

Tosin is truly a 21st Century guitar-hero, leading a new generation of players into sonic parts-unknown. With Animals as Leaders, he's pushed past the boundries of progressive-metal and has helped to define a new, mind-bending world of "djent", seamlessly integrating multiple tones, time-signatures, and music-styles into something wholly new and exciting. He's also brought new technological advancements in guitar design to the masses with his Abasi Concepts guitars, which incorporate 7 and 8-string multi-scale designs. Greg and Tosin cover a lot of ground here, so buckle-up!

1:26 - The influence of social media on modern day musicians
7:01 - The difference between wanting to play, and having to play - how to deal with creative roadblocks
9:34 - Tosin’s creative process working through varying time signatures, thoughts on improvisation, and how Animals As Leaders approaches new material
17:44 - How Tosin decided to pursue instrumental music, and the idea of the lead vocal as just another melodic element within an ensemble
27:48 - Tosin’s music and artistic influences over the years, the complexity of jazz less as a music style and more of a genre itself, and the beauty of opinion within music
54:05 - For those times when you feel like you need a break from listening to music, where to find inspiration, and the interesting evolution of purchased music vs streaming music
60:20 - Tosin’s ‘Abasi’ line of guitars, how his playing style lent to the creation of the guitar, and how improvisation plays into the Animals As Leaders palette
Total Length: 91:12

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