See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Max Jaeger
Brooklyn Daily
This is one for the average Joe strummers!
A Bay Ridge rocker will help wannabe guitar gods live out their fantasy on stage at No Quarter Tavern on Oct. 31. “Shredaoke” is karaoke for guitar geeks — instead of humming along with that epic riff from “Bohemian Rhapsody,” you can play it in all its bombastic glory.
The organizer has recorded backing tracks for more than 100 rock classics that aspiring axe-players can shred along with. But democratizing bar rock wasn’t the guitarist’s original goal — he really just needed some backup.
“I play a lot of bars, and I got tired of depending on musicians and bands, so I decided to record and edit my own backing tracks,” said string-tickler and instructor Paul Lucenti.
So Lucenti spent a year and a half recording the drums and bass to more than 100 songs — including hits from hometown heroes the Beastie Boys and Type O Negative.
The tunes simply acted as Lucenti’s personal fallback band, until he realized he could use them to make bedroom musicians’ rock star dreams a reality, he said.
The only catch is — you have to know the song. Lucenti’s tracks include lyrics for singers, but there is no guitar sheet music or tablature. So start boning up on “Sweet Child O’ Mine” now, because no one is going to be holding your hand through it, Lucenti said.
The Halloween-adjacent bash at No Quarter promises more than six-string showboating — drink specials and a $100 prize for best costume are on the set list, so even the tone-deaf can have some fun.
While you are there, tell Lucenti which song you want him to Shredaoke-ify next — he is taking requests and copyrights be damned.
“I have heard that record companies are cracking down on cover bands,” Lucenti said. “I don’t care if I become a target.”
Shredaoke at No Quarter Tavern [8015 Fifth Ave. between 80th and 81st streets, (718) 701–9180], www.facebook.com/noquartertavern. Oct. 31 at 9 pm. Free.