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I am new, but very happy to find myself here - hoping to learn lots from some seasoned pro's I have been playing on-and-off since picking the bass up in 2020 (lockdown). I feel like i'm starting to get more comfortable with the bass in my hand, and want to be more experimental with my playstyle & setup. I don't have any pics to share unfortunately, but i currently use a cream squire vintage series and a budget amp my sister got me for my birthday a few years ago - i'm looking at upgrading all around, but very much still doing research. I like buying stuff that will last, and prefer buying second-hand if i can manage to. Cheers!

We went to see ‘The Gerry Rafferty Songbook’ at Wakefield Theatre Royal at the weekend. Nice old Victorian venue which holds around 500, all seated. We were in the front row of the circle, with a great view of the stage. The band were all on IEMs I think, but unfortunately the first few songs were marred by an appalling mix - all lead vocal and drums, and I honestly didn’t think the bass was working! It got marginally better during the set, but in the interval I popped downstairs and had a friendly word with the sound guy. Subsequently the second set was a big improvement, and I could hear the bassist, who was a bit good too! The band were all great, and the singer had an amazing voice. Not the easiest stuff to perform but they did a sterling job, finishing off with ‘Stuck in the middle’. I think the earlier naff sound was down to them using the house PA, which maybe wasn’t fully up to the job. Didn’t stop us from enjoying the gig though, recommended if you like the material.

I wear two rings on my ring finger - a simple wedding ring and an 'engagement ring' as I didn't want to miss out on a bit of jewellery. It's basically a plain band with a raised black onyx stone in a setting. Initially I was worried that I would feel them clanking on the neck of my bass and become a distraction, so for a couple of gigs post-wedding, I took them off. When gig three rolled around, I forgot to remove them and only remembered I was wearing them about halfway through the set. I've not taken them off for a gig since. The only time I notice them is if the ring with the stone in swivels a little bit, and I can feel it against the adjacent finger. It's not enough of an inconvenience to make me want to take it off though.

Think that would count as 'cruel and unusual punishment' under the UDHR?

as punishment you must now download Dexed and program it to recreate as close to the Roland sound-in-you-head as you can.

I had never worn a ring before getting married, so it felt a little strange at first. I ‘designed’ my ring, so it was heavily rounded, no flat edges on the side and the top has a curve as well, so it sits incredibly flush to my finger. Over time the usual indentation happens as well so it’s not overly noticeable now. In terms of playing and it getting in the way, in my experience some of it is your technique. I play with my thumb anchored to the middle of the back of the neck and I have quite big hands, so my wedding ring doesn’t go anywhere near the fretboard because of the arc of my fingers. I would guess that if you play with the thumb around the top of the neck then a wedding ring would rub and get in the way a bit.

We had a good one tonight, focused on new additions to the set for our big gig at the Earl Haig on Sunday. Edit: it's very odd being under blue lights for three hours!

Rone - The B 52s

Must be something in the air, the vocalist in one of my bands suggested doing it. I like the version by Sabrina Teenage Witch ☺️

It can indeed.

No worries. I'll ask a friendly neighbour mod if they can be combined.

Public service announcement / humble pie consumption 🍰 I need to issue a correction before the synth police revoke my license. Earlier I confidently declared that “Warm Pad Fade” was my favourite Yamaha DX7 patch. Several of you (correctly, and with admirable restraint) pointed out that this patch does not exist on the DX7. You are 100% right. My brain has since rebooted, and the truth has emerged: I was thinking of the Roland D-10. That lush, nostalgic Warm Pad Fade lives firmly in Roland-land, not Yamaha-land. I have unfairly slandered the DX7 by giving it credit for something it never did, which is ironic because the DX7 usually gets blamed for things it did do.

More of an audition than a rehearsal but whilst at Whitby Goth festival last November, I had a call from the singer of Siouxsie and the Banshees tribute “Painted Bird” saying that the bassist had left and the remaining three had all said I would be a great replacement. I was flattered. I said yes and tonight was my first rehearsal / audition. I took my Fender USA Jazz, for that Steve Severin vibe and my Blackstar U700 head. The built in chorus and overdrive immediately gets my sound in the right area. I have been so busy with real life that I went in feeling under rehearsed and I didn’t want to waste anybody’s time. We started with Metal Postcard and then launched into Happy House. I could tell they were happy. As the set wore on, it was obvious that I had put the work in. Nine songs in and I missed the timing on a section of Switch, but it was in the bank by then! I am officially the new member of the band… and I must be doing alright as I was presented with a band t-shirt too! My first show is Water Rats in March with Echoes of the Bunnymen.

Kingston upon Thames that London, not to be confused with any other Kingston 😉