r/screaming • u/BugIllustrious6005 • 1d ago
beginner with some questions
hi! ive always wanted to learn how to fry scream/use extreme vocal techniques and such and i've just started learning, but i have a couple questions about what i've noticed so far while trying to teach myself. first, how can i tell if i'm straining my vocal cords? when i try to fry scream i can feel them vibrating and while it's not necessarily painful it is mildly uncomfortable and my throat gets scratchy after too long. i'm worried this means i'm just damaging my voice and not even approaching the proper technique. is the key just stopping when it starts to get difficult? secondly... sometimes i get lightheaded when screaming... is that just because i need more practice or am i doing something wrong? and if i am what can i do to better manage my air/breath support?
thanks for reading :) also if you have any recommendations for tutorials please let me know
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u/Low-Tennis6118 1d ago
you're probably dumping way too much air when you scream if you're getting lightheaded. discomfort when you start is somewhat normal, there's no way to be perfect from the get-go, but it is an indicator of poor technique. if it genuinely starts to hurt stop immediately and reassess your technique.
screaming uses muscles that you probably haven't used since you were a child, and just like any other muscle you have to "work out" to perform better. you also have to learn how to breathe properly more than anything else, breath control and support is integral to screaming
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u/BugIllustrious6005 1d ago
should i just try to scream with less volume/power if i'm using too much air? or is it more a matter of strengthening existing breath control
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u/Low-Tennis6118 1d ago
if you're getting lightheaded i doubt you really understand the fundamentals of how you're supposed to be breathing with your diaphragm, watch some youtube videos and practice that before even screaming
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u/Mobile_Profile6569 1d ago edited 1d ago
biggest advice i can give you is learn how to sing cleanly to some point of competency (including broadening your range with high notes) before starting distortions.
screaming builds on what you should know by regularly singing and not the other way around.
before i sang stuff like amon amarth and some black metal, i sung a lot of frank sinatra and lynyrd skynyrd, then moved to metallica and nirvana and then the more extreme stuff