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7-4-2 is the new 7-string guitar duo formed by Art Rodriguez from Albacete, Spain and Jean-Do Leonelli from Corsica, France. Last year they joined forces and created their contest-winning debut track, “Never Enough”. News of these two has been traveling fast, as their flawless cover videos of notoriously difficult songs by guitar legends such as John Petrucci, Paul Gilbert, Joe Satriani, and Kiko Loureiro sweep the net (no pun intended). Now Jean-Do and Art are with us at InstruMentalCase.com to do this exclusive interview and a special 7-string licks lesson to follow.
An Interview with 7-4-2
(Jean-Do Leonelli & Art Rodriguez's "Never Enough" music video)
IC: First off, what got both of you interested in playing guitar initially, and what age were you at the time?
Jean-Do: I first became interested after seeing Angus Young and Slash on TV. I remember that my first hard rock CD’s were “The Razor’s Edge” by AC/DC, “No Prayer For The Dying” by Iron Maiden, and the one and only “Appetite For Destruction” by Guns N’ Roses. I listened to that when I was 13 or 14 years old and thought, “Wow, that’s what I wanna do!” [Laughs]
Art: I started playing the guitar because my father had studied classical guitar for many years, and he showed me my first chords when I was 6 years old. Later on I studied classical guitar at a conservatory.
IC: How many years have you been playing, and how old are you now?
Art: I’ve been playing for around 18 years, but I didn’t get my first electric guitar until I was 14. I’m now 24 years old.
Jean-Do: I didn’t actually start until I was 16, and I’m now 27 years old. But I completely stopped playing for three years when I was studying… so even though I started 11 years ago, I’ve really only practiced for 8 of those.
IC: How long was it until you really got serious about practicing, and what was your practice schedule like back then?
Jean-Do: I got serious about practicing when I was 23 years old. I’m not as serious right now. I don’t really have a practice schedule anymore. During my first few years of playing guitar I played jazz with my teacher, and I jammed a lot to the radio. I’d just turn it on and say, “let’s play!” I’d also try to imitate other guitarists of all different styles. So I used to pick apart a lot of solos by ear, by players such as Mark Knopfler, Hendrix, S.R.V., Van Halen, Nuno Bettencourt, Dimebag, and Tom Morello. I like all kinds of music! But I preferred to learn songs that I felt better helped me in developing a good ear, sense of rhythm, and musicality.
Then in 2002 I met Carlos Lozano (of the band “Persefone”) in 2002. He helped me realize that I needed to focus more on my picking hand, so I started practicing alternate and sweep picking with him. He’s a real shredder, and he showed me a lot of things to help my technique and changed my vision of the instrument. Thanks again, Carlos!
I always practice with a metronome, because it’s really good for teaching you how to accent notes. When I write solos I try to sing something and then play it… always searching for uncommon licks, so that my playing sounds original... [Laughs] … and of course, I always try to place musicality before technique.
Art: Well, I got serious about practicing when I was about 18 or 19. I started to practice with a metronome, and always with a clean sound. During those years I tried to develop my own technical style by watching lots of videos of other guitarists and by creating my own exercises.
IC: Do you guys still spend a lot of time practicing, or is it more pick-up and play / writing new material these days?
Art: Right now I can’t practice a lot because I’m on my way to finishing my student career, but I still try to get some hours in a day to preserve my technique and to write new music.
Jean-Do: For me it’s more pick-up and play. I can have one good hour of practice a day, but the rest of the time is spent making new videos for the web, teaching, writing new material for bands, etc… I never had the change to practice 8 to 10 hours a day in my life.
IC: How did the two of you first meet, and how did 7-4-2 come about?
Jean-Do: I met Arturo on the popular Spanish guitar website, www.guitarristas.info. Then we started talking over messenger, and one day I started looking for someone to help me do some instrumental songs. You see… here in Corsica, there is one bassist or drummer for every 5,000 guitarists! [Laughs] So I was pretty alone music-wise. Then one day I was chatting with Art, and he told me he was really sad because his band, “Anima Sola”, had just split up… then I asked him if he would be interested in making something with me, and he said yes, so we formed this band. It’s called “7-4-2” (pronounced Seven for Two), because we both use 7-string guitars! [Laughs]
IC: I’m told you both recently got new guitars. Could you tell us a little bit about them?
Art: My new one is an Ibanez Rg2027x. It’s very versatile because it has 7-strings, a maple fretboard, the Piezo pick-up which sounds really close to an actual acoustic guitar, and I also put DiMarzio Blaze pick-ups in it, which are my favorite for 7-string guitars.
Jean-Do: I exchanged my two Vigier’s for an ESP Horizon FR 2 (6-string) and an Ibanez Universe (7-string). I got the ESP because Carlos had the M-II model, and when I heard the sound of the guitar - which was cheaper than my Vigier by about $1,000 dollars - I said, "Damn! That’s metal!" [Laughs] So I sold my Vigier, and for the money I could afford the Horizon FR 2, so I bought it. This guitar is just amazing! The look, the sound, the sustain… everything!
I got the Universe, well… just to have the same guitar as Art! [Laughs] No, just kidding! It’s pure coincidence. I was selling my Vigier Supra 7 and a guy called me and said he wanted to trade his Ibanez Universe for it. I was never interested in Ibanez before, so I don’t know why… but I was looking at a lot of 7-string guitars and not really finding one that made me go, “Wow!” So I accepted his offer to trade, and “Wow!” [Laughs] This guitar is just incredible! How did I spend all that time without playing an Ibanez?! This guitar is just perfect!
IC: What are your older guitars, and which are your favorites?
Art: My favorite guitar is the Ibanez Universe, but I like my Ibanez Rg 3120 and Rg 2027x, too! I have an Ovation acoustic, which is over 20 years old. My first electric was a 1996 Ibanez Blazer, and I still have it.
Jean-Do: I sold most of my older guitars, but I still have my first one. It’s a black Jim Harley strat-copy. My favorites are the ESP and the Universe, of course. But I’m already waiting for a new girl! [Laughs] A Fender USA Strat Deluxe. I ordered it, and it should be here in April (I hope). It’s just to have a lot of different sounds. I got the ESP for metal and fusion, with an ebony fretboard. The Universe with the 7-strings and rosewood fretboard, and the Fender with the single coils and a maple fretboard for pop, blues, funk, and rock. You see, it’s not just to have a collection of guitars! [Laughs] It’s just to be a versatile musician.
IC: Which guitarists or groups sparked your interest in 7-strings? What sort of advantages do you see in them?
Jean-Do: Well, Korn and Dream Theater of course. All the bands with a loud sound like Black Label Society, Killswitch Engage, Slipknot, etc... even if they’re playing in low tunings. I had a baritone guitar before, but I definitely prefer 7-strings. First of all, you can still play all the songs written on normal 6-string guitars, but you can’t do the opposite with a 6-string guitar. Most of all, it’s very comfortable for the right hand, and it sounds so good and so loud! You can also find a lot of new licks, extended scales, etc… I love it!
Art: I became interested in 7-string guitars because of my admiration for John Petrucci of Dream Theater. I always loved the heavy sound of low tunings, but I didn’t want to lose the possibility of playing solos in standard tuning. The other nice thing about 7-strings for me is that the necks are more comfortable, because my hand is really huge! [Laughs]
IC: What’s the writing process like for 7-4-2? It must be interesting considering the two of you live in different parts of the world!
Jean-Do: We talk by webcam, messenger, or sometimes by phone. For “Never Enough” the backing track was already recorded... it s Art's song.
Art: I already have a home studio, so I record the backing tracks there.
Jean-Do: We needed to make a track quickly to participate in the guitarristas.info contest, so we took his backing track and we chose where each of us wanted to play, and then we just jammed on it. Afterwards, we sent each other the parts and talked about it... whether or not it’s ok or if we must change something.
Art: He is a really exigent guy! [Laughs] But once I have the final mix the mastering is done at a professional studio in Spain.
Jean-Do: Oh, and I’d like to mention that there is a problem on that track... The studio didn’t fit my track perfectly to the backing. But it seems like nobody noticed, because I’ve never had any comments about it, so that’s cool. [Laughs]
I hope to record my guitar parts again soon. For the next songs I’d like to bring some of my own rhythm ideas, because I have a lot of riffs. The biggest problem before was that I didn’t know how to make the drums and percussion, but now I have all I need to do that, so I’m going to work on it as soon as possible!
IC: How do you like writing and playing as a duo? In what ways do you feel your styles compliment each other?
Jean-Do: First of all, I really like Art’s playing. I think it’s pure power, and very clean and tasteful. He has everything I want as a guitarist! [Laughs]
He’s has such good technique he can do a lot of licks similar to Gilbert, Loureiro, and Petrucci’s styles. My style is different from his though. It’s more about melodies and strange ideas. I try to be as original as possible when I’m writing. I like to play with the rhythms. Art is very original, and he has very nice melodies too (listen to his first solo on “Never Enough”)… but he’s more of a shredder than I am. That’s good, because I find that we really compliment each other in that way.
Art: I think that both have very similar tastes… We both like instrumental music with technical difficulties but also with feeling and an aggressive sound. That’s exactly the way we want to be.
Jean-Do: As a duo, we can critique each other’s solos and make everything work better. I like him to tell me if he thinks it’s okay or not. Maybe in the future we’ll try to do the backing tracks as a duo. I’d record a rhythm guitar part for 30 seconds or so, and then Art could change it up with his own riff and send back to me, and so on.
IC: What recording equipment do you use?
Art: An Ibanez Universe and a Line6 Pod Xt. For the home studio I have a Pentium4 3.00 Ghz and Cubase Sx.
Jean-Do: I use an EMU 12-12M soundcard, a POD XT, M-AUDIO speakers, Cool Edit Pro version 2, Jim Dunlop Jazz III black picks, D'Addario strings (they’re some of the cheaper strings here, but they’re also some of the best), and Fender cables.
IC: How is writing and recording coming along for 7-4-2? Any new tracks finished yet?
Art: We recorded “Never Enough” in two weeks, but the time we have to spend on writing and recording new music depends on having free time. So we don’t have the new tracks finished yet, but we have ideas that will soon become our next song… It’s going to be darker and more aggressive than “Never Enough”.
Jean-Do: … and if we don’t have new tracks soon it’s my fault! I told Art I would record all the rhythm guitars to a metronome, and I never did because it was too difficult to explain the drums I had in my head. So right now Art is working on the next backing, but the third will be mine. We also lost a lot of time due to problems with our computers and internet connections... and work, of course!
IC: Are there any other guitarists you’d like to collaborate with in the future? … Perhaps to guest solo on one of 7-4-2’s upcoming songs?
Jean-Do: There is a lot! We have a lot of good friends who play the guitar! Great guitarists like Arnold Garcia, Carlos Lozano, David Valdes, Vidda, Paco Hernandez, Oscar Garrigues, Fanalo... There is a lot, so maybe three guest solos per album, because there are not enough tracks to invite everyone! [Laughs] Or we must do 45 minute long tracks!
Art: I would like to collaborate with keyboardist Pablo Sancha. He’s a real virtuoso!
IC: What are your favorite instrumental guitar albums, and which guitarists were the most influential on you?
Art: There s a lot of instrumental CD’s I like, but most of all there’s “The Extremist” and “Crystal Planet” by Joe Satriani, everything by Andy Timmons, and “No Gravity” and “Universo Inverso” by Kiko Loureiro. John Petrucci, Paul Gilbert, Michael Romeo, and Stephan Forté were the most influential on me.
Jean-Do: Wow, that’s hard to pick. "Welcome to Morglbl Land” by the Morglbl Trio (with Christophe Godin on guitar), “Un Poco De Lo Mío” by José de Castro, “Time Machine” by Satriani, “9.11” by Bumblefoot (Ron Thal), “Illicit” by Tribal Tech, “Perpetual Burn” by Jason Becker, and Greg Howe’s new best-of album, “The Shrapnel Years”. The guitarists that were the most influential on me are SRV, Hendrix, Satriani, Dimebag, Lukather, Angus Young, Slash, Van Halen, Knopler, Scott Henderson, Nuno Bettencourt, Tom Morello, Christophe Godin, Carlos Lozano, Gilbert, Michael Romeo, and Robben Ford… but right now my favorites are Guthrie Govan and Pavel Zaburuyev… although I don’t have any of their CD’s yet.
IC: Art, you recently posted a rock cover video of Mozart's Turkish March. Who or what inspired you to learn that piece?
(Art Rodriguez - Turkish March)
Art: The first time I heard a rock cover version of that track was seeing the Spanish metal band “Dark Moor” play it live back in 2002. I was so impressed that I decided to practice it, and in ’03 I recorded a version for a guitar forum called guitarramania.com. I used the same backing to make the recent video. I used to play it to practice my alternate picking, work on my tone, and keep my hands in shape. I think it’s a good example of practicing and having fun at the same time!
IC: Are either of you involved in any other bands?
Jean-Do: Well, actually I’m working in four French pop-rock projects. I do song writing for them and arrangements for the guitars. I’d like to do a metal band as soon as possible, but to find a good metal singer here in Corsica is very hard. Last summer I went to Los Angeles to join Nick Menza's new band after winning an audition, but I left 15 days later… We weren’t compatible! [Laughs]
Art: Yes, here in Albacete (Spain) I formed a progressive metal band called “Evolve”. We’re working on our first demo right now, and it should be ready in a few months.
IC: What’s the guitar scene like where each of you live? Is there much of an audience for instrumental guitar music?
Art: In Albacete people like the guitar but not instrumental music. They prefer form bands with vocals. There are some places to play but the conditions aren’t very good. Maybe the best places for playing live are the summer festivals, but it’s very difficult to enter there if you play instrumental music.
Jean-Do: Here in Corsica we have the huge Festival of Patrimonio every summer. Jeff Beck, TOTO and Lukather, the Vai, Satriani and Fripp G3, Patrick Rondat, Tomatito, McLaughlin, Jean-Marie Ecay, and many more great guitarists went there. So I think there is an audience, but only for that kind of huge festival. I don’t know if a lot of people would come to see me if I played tomorrow at a bar... but now I must try and tell you! Good idea, Dave! [Laughs]
IC: Have either of you performed live before?
Jean-Do: Yes, I performed with a local band, "A Tramuntana", and in “Andorra” with Persefone, and “Wee-Shirt”, too.
Art: Yes, with “Anima Sola”. We did a lot of gigs in Spain… I really enjoyed those days.
IC: Is guitar just a hobby for you guys, or are you trying to do music professionally?
Art: For me it’s somewhere between being a hobby and being my profession. I’m teaching at a modern music academy, and I’m also working with a band doing covers and stuff. The music I do with Jean-Do and with my prog band doesn’t sell out (that would be a dream). So for now writing music is more of a hobby, but I have hopes for the future.
Jean-Do: I try to do it professionally, and I hope that Art and I can make the album and enter into the real world of professional musicians. Right now I have 15 students so I think I can consider it semi-professionally.
IC: What do you guys do other than music? What’s an average day like for you?
Jean-Do: I have a store with my brother. I like to go to the gym too, so an average day for me goes by fast! [Laughs] No time for sleeping! At 9am I have to go to work, and at 12pm I go to the gym and I eat. At 2:30 I go back to work till 7:30. Then I have a guitar student for an hour. At 8:30 I got to call my girlfriend… when I have one that is, because right now she’s gone! [Laughs] Then I have my dinner, I answer my mail, I make videos for people, and try to practice guitar for two or three hours! Nice day isn’t it? [Laughs]
Art: My days should be 40 hours longer! [Laughs] Most days I have to be at the university, but when I’m home I try to spend time practicing, studying, and writing music. At night I do guitar classes or I meet the other members of my band and help work on the demo. I also try to find time for my friends and my girlfriend.
IC: Do either of you have any solo instrumental material recorded outside of 7-4-2? Do you hope to do solo albums of your own?
Jean-Do: Yes, I have all the solos on A Tramuntana’s “Petra…Terra” (I’m only 17 years old on it), Plug-In’s "Hi-Jack” (which also features Ron Thal, Mattias Eklundh, Patrick Rondat, Christophe Godin, Sylvain Coudret, Cyril Achard, Andy Timmons, Fanalo, etc..), a solo on "Core-Persefone" (on the track "Seed"), and a solo on Arnold Garcia’s "Hurricane". Actually I’m recording some solos for the new CD of Jacques Cesari (a local artist) and for another French pop singer… whose name I can’t tell! [Laughs]
I’m going to collaborate with the drummer Gary Oppert and the band “Neon Knight” on some future tracks I hope (like Paco Hernández does). You can already listen to a sample on Gary's Myspace. I play on "Evening sky". Thanks a lot, Gary!
Oh, and in the future I would like to make a funky blues album using my strat… in an SRV/Hendrix/Ford style. But right now it’s impossible, because I have too much work to do already!
(Art's and Jean-Do's John Petrucci covers)
Art: I have some instrumental songs of my own, but the major part of my work has been with my bands. Right now I don’t have any wish to do my solo album, because I’m so busy.
IC: Do either of you plan to release some instructional material?
Art: Yeah, we’re looking for something like that....
Jean-Do: We could do something like… Art could teach alternate picking, sweep picking and string skipping licks, and I could show legato licks, slides and arpeggios. You know… it could be cool.
I just recorded some material for the next DVD of Carlos Lozano’s at Chops From Hell instructionals. My good friend Carlos had a deal with Chops From Hell, and he invited me to participate by contributing some instruction for the bonus content on the DVD... which is really cool!
IC: And my final question… what’s the one thing you want people to know about you?
Art: We are two young guys working hard to make a name in the world of the instrumental guitar! I’d really enjoy that people listen to our music and say, "Hey, those guys rock!"
I think that we’re giving our best, and I hope people feel that.
Jean-Do: Hmm... Yes, and my English accent is very bad, and I’m a very bad singer, too! [Laughs]
IC: Thanks for answering my questions!
Jean-Do: It’s been a pleasure.
Art: Thanks a lot for everything, Dave!
Jean-Do: And thanks to everyone for reading the interview, listening to the songs, and watching the videos!