Ernie Ball‘s latest “String Theory” episode features former MEGADETH and current ACT OF DEFIANCE guitarist Chris Broderick. In the seven-minute clip below, Broderick talks about how he discovered the guys who influenced his style of play (“I got into the shredders — Yngwie [Malmsteen], [Paul] Gilbert and Jason Becker, and they’ve been torturing these fingers ever since”) and recalls landing his first pro gig (“When JAG PANZER asked me if I wanted to do a European tour with them, for a half second I did say ‘no,’ because I was registered for classes in college, but I thought, I can always go back to college, but I’ll never get this opportunity again”).

“String Theory” features a selection of Ernie Ball‘s most innovative and influential brand ambassadors as they talk about the sonic origins of their tone and playing styles. Created and produced by Ernie Ball, the series is filmed in the home studios where artists can pick up their guitars and demonstrate skills and tricks they’e learned on their lifelong exploration of the guitar.

In addition to Broderick, ACT OF DEFIANCE features former MEGADETH drummer Shawn Drover, ex-SCAR THE MARTYR singer Henry Derek Bonner and SHADOWS FALL‘s Matt Bachand (bass).

ACT OF DEFIANCE‘s debut album, “Birth And The Burial”, was released on August 21, 2015 via Metal Blade Records.

Speaking about the writing process for the follow-up to “Birth And The Burial”, Broderick told Maximum Threshold Radio: “We’re really excited to be able to have the full band contributing equally. Because Matt was such a late addition to the band, all he got to do is record his bass lines. So he’ll be able to write on this CD, and then we kind of know each other a lot better now than we did, and so we kind of know how to contribute with each other. It’s more of a working relationship, whereas last time it was, ‘All right, here’s our format. This is the way we’re gonna do it, because we’ve gotta get it out.'”

Chris also talked about the importance of getting everybody’s input and allowing every musician to contribute his ideas to the final product. He said: “The main thing is not to bicker and argue. I think you have to put your ego aside and just realize that everybody’s opinion is valid. There is no one best way to write a song or to make a band the way that the band should come across or the way that people should act. It’s not for any one of us to try and do that.”

Broderick told the “Thunder Underground” podcast last year that his desire to be more involved in the creative process contributed to his decision to leave MEGADETH and launch ACT OF DEFIANCE. “That was the whole reason for the formation of this band — so that we could have our own say and be our own musicians and be our own people,” he explained. “Obviously, we’re coming out [on the road], we’re grinding it out, we’re building it again, and that’s fine, because it’s all about the music. Because, at the end of the day, Shawn and I could have stayed where we were at, but if you’re not on the stage playing your own music, then, at some point, it’s, like, why are you here?”

Fonte: Blabbermouth.net