Leaderboard

We're doing an outside 12:00-2:30 full Maple Road gig this Saturday at The Harley Motor. We'll be leaving at 9:00. That's very early for me. This one will be a little different Usually we do our acoustic offering inside 5:00-7:30. I'm hoping there's some type of special event to ensure a decent crowd. I hope we can keep our streak going. We've had 3 really good gigs in a row. Daryl

Here's all the bits on a untidy bed Control panel all wired, pickups recased, pickguard printed, bridge holder and neck holder all printed and checked for fit. Next steps are drilling, filing, shaping, polishing the aluminium into shape. I may not get the chance to finish the body to the level I wanted to. Its a choice between this and the six string. Decisions, decisions, decisions....

Update on RRP prices for these basses, which should be available within the next 4-8 weeks: Icon 4 Black or White gloss £819 Icon 4 Black Stain or Black Cherry £849 Icon 5 Black or White Gloss £839 Icon 5 Black Stain or Black Cherry £869 So you can expect to see them in the shops in the high £700's...... fantastic value!

I remember seeing Kenickie, fronted by Lauren Laverne, at a festival waay back in the '90s. It stuck in my memory purely because Lauren's between song banter was so brilliant, it was really disappointing every time they interrupted it with one of their awful songs.

Bently Heath charge £180 for a full day 9:30am-6:00pm and seem to have availability in April and June. I shall start a new thread, see what dates suit people, and then - as there will be no consensus - just book a weekend anyway!

Speak softly... and carry a big stick. In other words, be approachable and genial and make light friendly conversation on arrival...... but know your worth and don't feel intimidated. You are auditioning them as much as they are auditioning you. Chat with the drummer and keep eye contact with him. You will be seen to be locking in, he will appreciate it.... and his could be the vote you need if it comes down to you and one other. Let them know what other skills/useful things you bring to the table. e.g. are you great at listings, social media, have a following of your own, do you own a PA/van etc.... Good luck!

New pickup day - is there such a thing? I’m slowly doing up a bitsa P which used to belong to my brother. It’s mostly a pretty ancient Squier Affinity P with a few upgrades and changes over the years. Bit the bullet and bought some Tonerider Classic P pickups for it which i installed today. Wow. Absolutely chalk and cheese compared to the cheap nasty pickups that were in there (somewhere amid the grime and rust.). In fairness I’ve been gigging it with the original pickups over the last few weeks: it’s sounded thumpy and thick but hey it’s a P with flats. But suddenly yeah it’s like a blanket has been taken off it. Suddenly loud, bright, articulate, punchy. All the good things you’d want. And didn’t burn myself on the soldering iron, which itself is progress. Top marks. Best £35 I’ve spent in a while. Gigging it tomorrow so I can’t wait to hear it. Here’s a pic of the finished work, which admittedly just shows a bass with some pickups in it…..

Toneriders make PUPs that should make us all realise we’re being fed a load of shit by some of the better known and more expensive manufacturers 😡

They really are good pickups, imo very similar to Fender Custom Shop 62s which are pretty much £100 more.

I love his playing so much. Was as big a shock as hearing Jimi Hendrix had died. He always added so much but never got in the way of the song. Thank you Danny.

Here you go, just received a M6-5 stringer. Pre amp is the heritage model pretty much one everything they make except the Z3. Bass response is huge, possibly down to the pickup pairing, lots of headroom. 18V Knobs are the ones that appeared when the Z series was launched. Better than pure plastic ones i guess. String spacing is 17 to 17.5mm (best i could measure and guess...dont judge) Stanless steel frets. Three switches. Admittedly I havent looked too hard yet to find out what they do. One is pre amp on/off Other two? series/parallel/single per pickup (three way) as far as i can tell. Info is that readily available except AI generated boll0cks. Scale lengths are: B 35 1/4 E 34 3/4 A 34 1/2 D 33 3/4 G 33 String are ball end at the bridge and clamped by two quite small allen s at the 'stump' (unlike my Cort space 5 which has one larger allen bolt and one smaller per string.) 5 piece neck. Finish feels almost plastic like. not bad, but different.

Because they've been around for about 2/3 of the history of the modern electric bass?

Who wrote the script... 'comfortability'...? It's not even a word. Come on, marketing department at Korg.... that's just Buzzword Bingo.

I've had the (mis)fortune to experience a wide spectrum of stage patter over my gigging career. I started off in an originals band where the aim was to play a set through with little or no interaction with the audience - we played a Hawkwind influenced 'show' with linking music of sound effects between the actual songs so there was little scope for it. As the audience were there to see us, it didn't matter too much and worked in the context of what we were doing. That was a good thing because we were all so new to it all that we wouldn't really have been able to handle a difficult audience. Later I was very fortunate to work with a guy in a covers band who was a very good front man. He was able to gauge an audience and interact with them very well. His patter would be different according to the circumstances, ranging from next to nothing if the crowd were dancing (we once played an hour of the set back to back with no gaps as the punters were filling the dance floor) to gentle jokes at the band's expense if he needed to inject some humour. He had spontaneity and wit and the wisdom to know how and when to use it. There were never any controversial topics, inappropriate language or picking on audience members. I think these two examples show the difference between the stage patter required for an audience who is there for the band or music and one that is there anyway and for whom the band is incidental. I played in a trio where the frontwoman was a good singer but had no self confidence away from singing. Between songs was an awkward silence. Standing on the stage while we lined up the next song (we were using backing tracks) or tuned up was excruciating and made me realise that regardless of the circumstances, it may be necessary to engage with the audience if there's an unexpected delay. In this case I was forced into it with mixed results; I'm not very good with spontaneous witty banter. I played in a duo with a front man who decided he was a comedian and significant amounts of gig time were given over to his comedy script. There was occasional polite laughter but for people who had come to see and dance to music, it was totally inappropriate and went on far too long between songs. I didn't stick with that duo for long. For me and in my experience stage patter is important and the ability to deploy it appropriately and skillfully is essential. Knowing when to shut up is equally important. People pay to see a band primarily for the music and dancing and while for me it should be a performance, that doesn't mean scripted jokes or long song introductions. Personally, I make a few notes; for example at the recent festival gig where I played in a support band before my main band, I made sure that as the front man I could thank the previous act, introduce the act on after us and talk about the charities that were being supported by the event. I thanked the volunteers helping and our sound man. I had to say some words between songs as we had instrument swaps and I made a point of getting the audience to acknowledge a particularly good performance by our sax player. Most of that was prompted by words or phrases scribbled on my set list and it was spread across the 45 minutes of our set.

Just echoing what most other people have said: how lame can you get Rickenbacker? They had an opportunity to come up with something that would tick all the short scale boxes: less reach, smaller lighter body (important for Rickies), pickups in the sweet spot (but still different fundamentals from the scale), etc. it could have been a Rickenbacker for players who hanker after one but can’t handle the size and weight of the standard offerings. They could even have taken the opportunity to fix some of the other shortcomings like the bridge/intonation and the sharp edges! Opportunity lost IMO!

A typical band PA in a pub/club is usually set up to deal with loud rock music, not a guy trying to engage in witty banter, so his mumbling will be largely inaudible anyway. Given that one man's "witty banter" is another's "who the hell is this dickhead?" you're set up to fail if you do much of this stuff. It gets worse. Very few people are natural entertainers, still less spontaneous ones. A line gets a few laughs at a gig and instantly becomes part of a fixed script, to be repeated at each and every bloody gig at exactly the same point, until everyone is sick to death of it. Sometimes you reach the Seventh Level Of Hell, where there's only one singer but everyone in the band has a mic so that they can all take part in the stale, pre-prepared banter. A bit like a badly-read radio script. The audience is there for the booze and the women. Your music is pretty much incidental. No one gives a tinker's cuss that the drummer's name is Dave or that the band comes from Slough, no one is interested in being thanked for coming to their local. Just play the bloody songs.

Two of us share lead vocal duties in my band, and the band leader sings backing. We have sort of settled on whichever of us is singing the next tune, then it's up to them to talk if they feel like it. We don't have a hard and fast rule, we keep it low key, brief, and appropriate to the audience. Some rooms are bouncing and they love the recognition that we, as a band, are loving their appreciation. I suppose it's like having a conversation with your audience. We now have the added problem of merchandise. So a couple of times last night, I did mention that "this next song is the title track of our album, etc", come and see us after the set and grab a copy etc. We did sell A LOT of merch last night! Rob

IME it very much depends on the band and how good the person doing the stage patter is. In many ways I'm with @Lozz196 in that most of time I want the talking between the songs to be kept to minimum. Announce who you are before or after the first song, if you have a new single out mention that before you play it (or album before you play the title/lead track from it). Announce who you are again at the end and thank the audience for coming. And that's all most bands need. However the singer from my current band is very good at communicating with the audience between songs we let him even though the default setting for most Goth bands is to say nothing and "let the music do the talking". I think because of this having a talkative front person sets us apart from lots of the bands that we play with and has definitely worked to our advantage. Having said that, IMO if you are going to say something on stage make sure that the audience can understand you. In The Terrortones, Mr Venom who was very good with words used to do quite a lot of talking between songs. Unfortunately most of this sounded like Elvis through a 70s British Rail Tannoy system so almost everything he said was completely incomprehensible to the vast majority of the audience. Also remember that if you are engaging in banter with audience members most of the other people in attendance will only be able to hear half the conversation which doesn't make it very interesting for them. The worst band for this I have seen were Fleet Foxes who engaged in endless banter between themselves and with members of the audience at the front much of which was off mic. I'm sure it would have worked fine for an acoustic set in an intimate venue with an audience of 50-75, but in a big 500+ capacity hall most of us had no idea what was going on. And when some of these inter-song interludes were almost as long as the songs themselves it didn't make for a very entertaining gig.

I bagged the last one from Thomann - ordered early hours of Saturday morning - and it arrives tomorrow, just in time for the weekend's shows. I'm trying to be cool about it but, well, y'know...

The finish looks cheap.

I didn't think they could make them any uglier

It's an art form in itself if it can be tailored to the crowd and event. The worse on stage patter though is in-band jokes that noone else gets.

I'm sure there are endless views on this, but all I know is I'd much rather someone said something - anything - between songs rather than the stony silence you get from some bands. If you can be witty with it, all the better, but perhaps draw the line at a full comedy routine. That said, read the room. Bill Bailey tells a tale of going to a Whitney Houston gig. She kept the audience waiting for an hour, then came onstage and gushed "I just wanna say, I love each and every one of you!" at which point a big black guy standing beside him shouted "Sing, b*tch!!". Tough crowd.

They don't work for me; ugly & stupid IMHO. I don't see the point of having a short scale full-sized instrument with the bridge half-way up the body.

https://youtu.be/YI4ykZkBO4A?si=g8xWH2xoIERbLzQ4

Hi Folks, I've got an audition for another covers band coming up next month and thought it would be a good opportunity to gather and collate advice from the collective on the broad subject of auditioning, so that could become a resource. I've had a brief search and didn't find a comprehensive thread on auditioning. My new audition is: 1. Long established (>10 years) reasonably busy (30 gigs a year), 5 piece (vox, 2 gtr, bass, drums) covers band with good rep playing a broad mix of rock/pop/indie covers to decent bar/pub/club/functions. 2. The audition looks like they are doing slots on an evening to try out a few bassists. It's a proper rehearsal studio. 3. I've been given 4 very different songs to learn. E standard, all as per the original recordings. The songs appear to me to have been chosen as they require a certain level of competence. This makes a lot of sense to me. I've never played the songs before although after spending the day yesterday doing charts and getting any tricky bits in my fingers, they should be straightforward and they're all fun to play (or will be on the night, hopefully). I always regard auditions as a two-way street inasmuch as it's as much about the the auditionee picking the band as it is about the band picking the auditionee. What advice would we give on auditioning? My tick list for a starter would be: The Material: Learn the material to the standard required for the audition. Don't skimp. If they're expecting replica/tribute bass lines, learn it inside out, if they're expecting your interpretation, learn that, know the structure, leave nothing to chance. You shoud know the material to gigging standard. If you need an aide memoir, make sure it's discreet and you understand it at a glance. Sheet music and extensive charts on music stands can, in many situations, freak out bands. If reading score off stands is part of the expectation, go for it. Don't be afraid of going back to clarify or check if they have endings/deviations that are specific to their band. Don't showboat. Unless they've requested it. If possible, send them recordings/videos of your playing in a live band context when/before applying. Sending recordings of recent live band performances got me a very rapid and positive initial response this week. Find out what the expectation is for you doing backing vocals. Logistics and Gear at Auditions: Take your own gear to the audition as much as possible and make sure it all works before you go. Don't rely on rehearsal studio gear unless you have no option. Turn up early. It's better to get there 30 minutes early and sit in the car browsing Basschat than it is to be stressed out about running late. Don't play a bass that you aren't familiar with at an audition. Play the one you learned the material on. If it's a band with "a look" or "an image" and assuming you want the gig, try to fit in. If it's a tribute band that wears costumes or specific gear, then obviously you're not going to go in your full demon make-up or wearing just a sock to cover your bits. When you get in the room (or before, preferably) establish how long you've got and what the format of the audition is. Take your own mic if required. Don't use any gear you're not 100% familiar with. Don't be the guy who bought an HX Stomp last week and give it its first outing without fully understanding how to use it in a live scenario. Other Stuff Related to Joining a Band: Understand the nature of the gigs they play. If it's a band that does quite a few "freebies" for charity, decide if that's OK with you. I've done a few over the years to keep the peace that cost me a day, 50-100 miles of fuel and on one occasion a lot of grief that was unnecessary. If you're not into "freebies" it's best to find out up front. Have a look at the band's social media. What do they wear? What kind of gear do they use? Is the band all IEM? Check why the previous bassist left. Try and understand the space that you could be filling. I've replaced previous incumbents that were: Not up to the job, b. Recently deceased, c. Moved abroad, d. Set up their own band, e. Taken a 6 month cruise contract. This could give you insight. Check how the band communicates. WhatsApp group, shared calendars, who does socials? How are bookings arranged? Do they use agents? I've been in a band that had a WhatsApp group for band business and they also had a WhatsApp group for the band with one member not included (me!). Understand the dynamic of the band. Leader? Who calls the shots? Who owns the PA? Is it co-owned? How does that work? What advice would you give me and others? What's gone wrong for you in the past and what did you learn from it? What audition-related stories have you got?

The Spector thread was on the brink of falling off the first page so let's get a bit of Friday interest in this slightly quirky alternative to the NS Icon fest in the other thread. This is a Rebop that has been modded (not brilliantly) but it looks to be a good price for anyone wanting a quality MM-sounding bass. It's Czech-made and the quality and DNA of these is as good as you'll get. At £699 (negotiable?) it looks like someone with some wiring skills could have a belter of an instrument. Remember, those SD pickups will sell quickly and part-fund the EMGs you'll need and then you just need to sell one dusty old unused cab to pay for the LHZ-04 preamp. Even at retail used I think this is a good buy for anyone who likes a "semi-rescue". Or, you might just like it as it is. https://www.bassdirect.co.uk/product/spector-rebop-4-mm-trans-blue-stain-2015-pre-owned/ The photos don't really show the detail of how bad that route is but I'm sure they'd send you a close up of you asked.

Sadly, I wasn't getting on with the Stingray Special 5, especially in comparison with the 'Dreadnaught' 95 Stingray, so I spotted this in BassBros and sallied forth to do a deal with Will. I have an old association with Goodfellow/Nightingale/GB instruments - Many, many moons [read decades] ago, someone at the then Derby branch of Carlsbro took a lump out of my original Status Series II neck with a hammer while trying to reseat a fret, so I was without the bass for what turned out to be quite a few months. During this period, they loaned me one of the Goodfellow Standard originals, which I really enjoyed playing. Of course, it's faded into a distant memory now, but it was a very good long term impression of Goodfellow basses. As for the old 97-98 Spitfire, it's certainly VERY punchy and seriously fast. It was apparently at BB for quite a while, so I'm surprised no one jumped on it. Destiny, I expect. Anyway, here are the obligatory pictures...

This is an important aspect of band performance. Personally I dislike the gaps between songs, particularly during the second set when punters are on the dancefloor. They don't want the music to keep stopping every 3 minutes or so. But effective banter between the front person and the audience/ rest of the band can make the difference between a half decent gig and a memorable one. A live band is a 'show' first and foremost. A previous band I was a member of was mediocre but adequate technically, however the actual 'show' they put on was brilliant because of the p*ss taking between the guitarist and other members, and the laughs from the crowd. My wife has not forgiven me for leaving that band for other more musically satisfying projects 😂

I'd be interested to hear this bass. Never heard of the Fame company before.

Hi Rob, as you've seen, I've only gone and bought one, ain't I? It was your approval and @agedhorse being involved - I've seen his stuff on Talkbass and he knows his pigeons - what swung it for me in the end. Looks like I be selling some amps an' ting soon. At this money, it's gonna have to be better sounding than both the Demeter pre + power amp rig AND the Genz Benz Shuttle or back to Thomann it goes. Spec looks perfect for my needs , though, and I dig the cosmetics. I'll keep you informed. Got me a gig in Ulverston tomorrow so it's gon' make its debut there. We'll see...

Neck thickness is one of those things that I don't actually have a strong opinion about. I'm as happy playing a thick neck as a thin one, it just took me by surprise.

I know they've been in development at least 3 years, I think Sheldon really wanted to get the design right - but agree they are a bit late to the party. I also expected a much more different body design to the Afterburner, but it is unmistakably a Dingwall. Not for me (i've just got an ABZ), but would definitely have a crack on one.

https://www.instagram.com/guitarauctions/p/DPByRFeDVYr/?img_index=4 Some quite nice kit coming up in the next GH auction, particularly for enthusiasts of CAR and the year 1966

Our guitarist really has a gift for banter. Usually he's talking utter rubbish but you just go with it because the audience finds it hilarious. Don't be precious as you're there to entertain, but then try to keep the banter pretty harmless too and you won't upset anyone.

just drop a few f and c bombs ... im sure theyll figure out some alternative quickly enough hope this helps

Our singer/guitarist handles the announcements but we all chip in, off mic, when we are inspired. Usually for the purposes of urine extraction.

Danny has been a mentor and been a wonderful friend to me. Although most of our friendship was done from a distance, his wisdom, kindness and humour were just a text away, and that felt great. His music and personality touched so many people, such diverse people…and we all loved him. What he thought me about playing the double bass (and music…and life) can be written on the back of a stamp, yet would take a lifetime to elaborate upon. I’m certainly still working on it. Such was the depth of his magnificent character. We will all miss him very much, but we can all rejoice in the fact that his tone, that unique Danny tone, will be forever.

Finally…… I have got my hands on the one. I was 16, when I first got into bass. A mate played me “Live Xcert” by The Stranglers…. and I was hooked. Jean Jaques Burnel playing a black/maple Fender Precision. Yes mate. 44yrs later, and 100’s of basses…. like all the basses, and finally I have the one I should have had in the first place….. I’ve owned most brands except Fodera , but one bass always eluded me, the one that started it, at least in my head. I have no idea why it took so long tbh… Anyway, there you go, better late than never eh?

Lets just say that when I jam with my kids it doesn't quite sound like this:

I'd get a lot more practicing done if I wasn't too busy upping my auntie.