"I don't believe you, I don't believe you…" The young man in front of him looked like a leopard ready to pounce, his black curly hair hanging loosely, his face wearing an expression of utmost seriousness, as if facing a particularly grave life-or-death matter, shaking his head vigorously.
"Julio…" Hugo's voice had just started when the young man interrupted him. "Call me Pepe." Hugo replied casually, "Pepe, why don't you believe me? I just said I could create a rock song without a guitar, but there's no guarantee it'll be high quality."
"Liar!" This young man, Pepe, was clearly the guy who handed Hugo a flyer at the car shop earlier that morning. He knew Neil—though not close friends, they had crossed paths in the same circle. His full name was Julio Pedro Cesar Casa, a name that immediately marked him as Brazilian, with the combination of first name, Christian name, mother's surname, and father's surname making it dizzying.
Earlier, Pedro had seen Neil and went over to greet him, then noticed Hugo's changed appearance. He quickly recognized him as the "Wall Street professional" from the morning and teased, "Looks like the amateur life on Wall Street isn't too bad." Indeed, just two streets north of the Poor Street was Los Angeles' Wall Street, home to many financial centers. But separated by only one street, it felt like a world apart, a stark contrast that made one marvel.
Unexpectedly, Neil told Pedro that Hugo was an outstanding guitarist, which triggered Pedro's strong suspicion. Words couldn't compare to live demonstration, so Hugo began performing right there on the street. This, in turn, stirred Neil's itch to play, and the two began a guitar duel by the roadside. While an acoustic guitar duel lacked the auditory thrill of electric guitars, the peak-level techniques dazzled the eyes, attracting a crowd.
Hugo had previously handled melodic guitar in Death Or Glory. His strength lay in melody and composition rather than pure speed. Compared to world-renowned speed guitarists, he was far behind, yet his technical skill was excellent—strumming, plucking, finger rolls—all superb. His left hand pressed chords while his right hand danced across five strings, producing a whirlwind of high-to-low changes that made the heart race and blood surge in time with his fingertips.
If Hugo's skills were ever-evolving and abundant, Neil's technique was the epitome of control. His mastery of rhythm and speed was at will. Neil's strumming speed was at least twice Hugo's, creating a blur of light almost impossible to track with the eye—only an illusion sweeping across vision. His flowing melodies transformed from trickling streams into roaring rivers, magnificent enough to leave onlookers stunned. More importantly, Neil wasn't just fast—his command of rhythm was superb, like a river racing to the sea, sometimes turbulent, sometimes gentle, with turns and pauses. The whole experience felt like a rollercoaster or whitewater rafting, thrilling and exhilarating.
In truth, it was nearly impossible to determine a winner. Hugo specialized in melodic guitar, while Neil excelled in rhythm guitar; even with the same instrument, the roles were different. What could be said for certain was that both were exceptional guitarists. Performing on stage, with coordination with other band members, controlling the atmosphere, and live improvisation would matter, but both's excellence was undeniable.
Hugo and Neil dueled for three rounds, pushing the street atmosphere to a climax. Tonight, even those not in a band attending Rock Night were seasoned music enthusiasts, capable of discerning skill. Hugo and Neil, two peak-level guitarists, quickly drew applause from the crowd, the heated discussions and admiration prompting whistles from many.
In professional circles, superb skill easily earns acclaim—provided the talent is genuine, else the results are disastrous. Clearly, Hugo and Neil earned their applause.
Pedro was astonished, not realizing Hugo's hidden depth, and even noting Neil seemed more skilled than he had known. Pedro immediately gained a new respect for Hugo, openly praising and admiring him.
Young people like Pedro often appeared rebellious or difficult externally, yet in music they were simple, focusing solely on the music. Sharing musical taste could forge friendships, and admiration for skill invited generous recognition.
This simplicity, however, is also why many classic rock bands eventually fell apart: conflicts in musical vision. While internal strife contributed, differences in musical philosophy undeniably led many bands downhill.
Soon, other young people, itching to play, brought out guitars and joined in, exchanging ideas and techniques. Around Hugo and Neil formed a small circle of twenty-plus people, truly integrating Hugo into this music circle. Music's power bridges even first-time meetings.
However, the joyous atmosphere shifted due to differing views on music. Pedro lamented the indispensable role of the guitar in rock, overshadowing other instruments. As a bassist, he felt personally slighted, but his point was factual: until 2000, the guitar held supreme status in rock bands. Guitarists often had popularity equal to vocalists in famous bands.
For instance, Guns N' Roses' Slash; Metallica's Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield; Van Halen's Eddie Van Halen. These guitarists were legendary, with massive followings. Many classic rock songs had sections dedicated to guitar melodies, cementing the instrument's absolute status.
Pedro's complaints aside, Hugo knew that entering the 21st century, bands emphasized collective and musical diversity. Bands like Linkin Park, U2, Coldplay, OneRepublic, My Chemical Romance, and Simple Plan exemplified this.
This was largely a matter of music trends. 1980s metal rock bands obsessed over technical innovation; complex techniques and arrangements were the trend, pushing rock to a peak. This era's metal bands elevated rock to a new high, with intricate technical climaxes as essential skills. This explained why Hugo and Neil's duel drew such attention—the emphasis on technique had reached a new level. Rock enthusiasts cherished technical battles and skill improvement, making high-level lead guitar central to metal bands. Excellence also reflected in arrangement, with guitar-dominated, complex compositions, distorted tones, and extreme volume channeling emotional expression, pushing metal rock to the extreme. In this era, the guitar's importance to metal bands was unparalleled.
But entering the nineties, this innovation in technique gradually went into a dead end. Rock bands fell into a monotonous predicament, with countless imitative bands appearing, making it hard for heavy metal rock to bring forth novelty. Thus, in the first half of this decade, nu-metal with open and simple structures began gradually to rise, and in the latter half of the nineties became the mainstream, redrawing the map of rock music. Compared to technique, feeling held a more important place in nu-metal bands. Although some nu-metal bands were technically solid, the majority leaned toward simplification as the mainstream. Their playing skills might not have been outstanding, but through diversified arrangements they could present music in the simplest way. It was during this period that the guitar's absolute supremacy was replaced.
Finally, when time entered the twenty-first century, the development of nu-metal bands declined again, while musical diversity and fusion reached a new height. At this time, rock bands emphasized cooperation among instruments and the overall integrity of the band. Solid technique remained essential, but rigidly polishing technique was also undesirable. How to use technique to serve feeling, how to blend musical thought into melody, became the new questions. At this stage, no instrument was irreplaceable, and at the same time more diverse top-level skills were valued by bands. One could say the development of rock entered yet another stage.
Now it was 1992, nu-metal had not yet taken shape. At this time Hugo proposed the idea of creating a rock song without guitar. In the situation where eighties heavy metal rock was still strong, Hugo immediately suffered attacks from the circle of people around him. This gave Hugo firsthand experience of what was called "new things always face heavy blows." The position of mobile phones in society and culture was probably even better than Hugo's current situation.
Pedro, with an indignant expression, shouted, "Liar! You just said you could create an excellent rock song without guitar—you said it!" After speaking, Pedro looked around to others, seeking allies, which was obviously not difficult. Everyone around him was Pedro's ally, including Neil.
Hugo chuckled speechlessly. "Fine, let's say I did say that. Then tell me—why do you think it can't be done?" In Hugo's eyes, whether technique or feeling, both served music. The musical philosophy he embraced was solid technical foundation, excellent playing skill, rich performance methods, diverse element fusion—expressing the colorful splendor of rock in his own way.
"Because…" Pedro opened his mouth, wanting to give a reason, but for a moment he could not say anything. Mainly because music creation inherently had no fixed formula. If there was a fixed formula, it would be plagiarism. So, to lay out rules or boxes was truly very difficult.
This was still the situation of the early nineties. At this time, pop was pop, rock was rock, hip-hop was hip-hop. But after entering the twenty-first century, jazz fused with soul and pop, R&B fused with rock and hip-hop. All kinds of style mash-ups made it increasingly difficult to define a precise genre.
Hugo directly interrupted Pedro's words. "So just because the current mainstream is this way, because Nirvana is this way, AC/DC is this way, Metallica is this way, Stone Roses is this way, The Smiths is this way—does that mean it must be this way?" Hugo's string of words left everyone silent, Pedro staring wide-eyed at him, but Hugo clearly was not finished. "I don't know when rock started advocating the mainstream. Is following these so-called mainstreams the only authentic rock?"
This series of rhetorical questions left everyone speechless. Sitting beside Hugo, Neil lowered his head in deep thought. This statement seemed shocking, yet it was hard truth.
"Aren't we supposed to break free of restraints, to create a style that belongs to us? If not, then why were we so happy when Nirvana succeeded?" Hugo's words did not deliberately carry force, spoken in his usual spring-breeze tone, yet they quietly sank into everyone's heart, ringing like a thunderclap.
"But… but…" Pedro, like a child unwilling to concede, wanted to argue further, but found he had nothing to say. Instead, Neil, who had been sitting quietly beside, opened his mouth. "Since you think this way, and you say you can do it, then bring out the evidence!"
Neil's words instantly gave Pedro a life-saving straw. "Yes, prove it! Can you prove it?"
Hugo looked at all the eyes fixed on him. These gazes, hot, expectant, and provocative, made Hugo feel a slight heat upon his skin. Far from any timidity, a lofty, soaring spirit surged within him. Then Hugo nodded with full confidence, a radiant smile spreading across his face. "Why not?"
Words firm as stone!
...
Hi For access to additional chapters of
Director in Hollywood (40 chpaters)
Made In Hollywood (60 Chapters)
Pokemon:Bounty Hunter(30 Chapters)
Douluo Dalu: Reincarnated as Yan(40 Chapters)
Hollywood:From Razzie to Legend(40 Chapters)
The Great Ruler (30 Chapters)
Join pateron.com/Translaterappu