Today, I'm gonna do a (probably shorter) post about otamatones, and my thoughts about them.
I first heard of otamatones through YouTube- I can't remember what the video was, but I think it was just someone messing around with one. I was immediately intrigued- it's an instrument with a face that makes a little honking, beeping noise, what's not to like? Somehow, I managed to forget about it for at least a week, before coming across another video of one. This led me to go on a little binge, watching a bunch of songs covered on otamatones. It didn't take long for me to order one.
Around three weeks later, I got the otamatone in the mail. I'll admit, I was pretty excited, as was my cousin (who was watching me unbox it via Skype, even the painstaking process of opening everything (including the battery case) with just a multitool). My first reactions: it was harder to get it to make a sound than I expected; it was a bit smaller than I expected (though I did get the cheaper one); the "face" felt different than I thought it would; and it is very difficult to know what sounds are where on the neck.
It's been around two months since I got it, and I definitely haven't been playing regularly- it's not that I don't like playing or anything, it's more that I have a bass with amp right next to it which feels more musically "rewarding" to play. That said, I have brought it to the Rock and Roll club a couple of times, and I played alongside my cousin when he got his (the nicer model- I'm indescribably jealous. His can plug into an amplifier!), and honestly I can see progress from when I started. At first, I struggled to play anything half-decent, but as of writing this, I've actually managed to play some songs pretty well (a few by Dio/Sabbath, and a few others).
So what do I think of it now? Well, it's very fun to mess around with, once you get a general idea of where to press for certain pitches. I've yet to see anyone watch me play it with a straight face- everyone ends up laughing at some point or another, me included. It's not the best instrument musically speaking, but it's a very fun one, and not too hard to pick up (compared to, say, a guitar, or a saxophone). That said, I do think the more expensive otamatone deluxe is worth the price. It's anywhere from 1.5 to 2 times as much as the regular one, but it has better sound quality, and can be plugged straight into an amp, rather than "singing" into a microphone (which is, admittedly, a pretty funny sight). If you're a fan of musical toys, and know people who might appreciate it, I would recommend it.
Anyways, that's it for today- hopefully you enjoyed this post! If you've tried playing one of these, let me know what you thought about it!
