I might add, that the day I figured out how to palm mute was the most joyous of days. While figuring out how darn simple the music in reggae really is was much less so.

Knowing all the tricks didn't ruin creating music, but it went a long way toward taking the magic out of listening to it.

What's more knowing how to palm mute didn't mean I was any good at it.

Knowing the tricks tends to lean me toward not using them, which is a long and dreadful path toward John Zorn noise jams. A path I want to avoid.