Mornats

Way to go Seashell, hope you really enjoy it!

[quote name='fumps' timestamp='1341320793' post='1716937'] I like different things for different moods. it all depends with me. i have become a lover of all kinds of music so the idea of staying with one style makes me feel like I'm trapped......if that makes sense ?!?! [/quote] Mate, that sounds like an inspiring musical mish-mash just waiting to happen! Bring other styles into the songs in the setlist and make something really interesting. My bass background is similar in some respects to yours. Started when I was 16 or so, just learnt some songs, joined a band at uni, just learnt the songs and played them (but with only a couple of gigs, nothing great although it certainly felt great playing live). Then I stopped when I was about 21. Roll on to 2 years ago when I was 35 and out of the blue I picked up a bass again. Learnta few songs, played them then thought "ok, I played a song but no one heard it". So I wasn't really getting anything out of it. Then a mate at work got me into recording my own stuff which I said I just couldn't do as I no zero music theory. Anyhoo, I got a book (Bass for Dummies - actually a great book, I highly recommend it) and learnt the single most important thing (for me) about music theory. It's been mentioned above already but it's basically, if a chord is being played, you can play any of the notes in that chord in pretty much any order. You mainly want to start or end with the root note (the C# in a C# chord). We're lucky as bass players as each chord is just a shape on the fretboard and you can use the same shape anywhere. I know the major chord (no idea what type of major) and the minor pentatonic (because a lot of rock and metal are based on that) chord shapes. And that's it. All of the stuff in my soundcloud link in my sig were written andplayed by me with only that knowledge. It was a massive lightbulb moment for me. This is a great website that shows you visually what the chord shapes are: [url="http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/index.php"]http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/index.php[/url], and in particular: [url="http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/basic/index.php"]http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/basic/index.php[/url]. I've tried learning more but what little I know has worked so far for me. I know for a fact that you (and I, and others) aren't alone in not knowing much, if any music theory. I saw something on Sky Arts where Kasabian's guitarist was saying he doesn't know any music theory but knows what fits the stuff he's hearing. Also, I saw a video about Flea where he said he doesn't know the type of chords or scales he's playing, he just knows what sounds good. Finally, here's something interesting that I heard. My mate's sister is a classical music tutor. She's got some of the highest grade qualifications in music and she can't listen to a lot of music now as she always tries to examine it. In a similar fashion, I'm actually hesitant to learn more theory as my lack of knowledge is helping me explore and try things that I wouldn't think of it I just tried to fit everything into an established theory.

I saw Miles Kane support Kasabian last year and they were playing what looked like semi hollow Gretsch's. That's the sound that I really liked and is also what I mean when I say jangly. I've been reading up on the Danelectros and think they'll give me a much different sound to my Ibby. Plus they're cheap as chips and look funky.

[quote name='rogerstodge' timestamp='1341246371' post='1715691'] If i win it who wants to buy it ?? Cheers Dave [/quote] If I win it, I'll be sleeping with it.

But then I'd have to throw an Ashdown VS-112 cab on top of it to get the free postage and that'll be over £300!

Well jangly is what I'm after (without dist and reverb of course) so I think a Danelectro is at the top of my list now. I had a quick google of the Godins and they look different, if a little fruity so I'll keep an eye out for those too. One advantage that I thought the hollow bodies would give is that I could play it acoustically and have it sound ok but that's just a guess. I'm not sure if they would sound ok without an amp (I'm thinking of just noodling around on one in the house to practice guitar skills without plugging it in). It's not a big requirement though, just a nice to have. Thanks for all your rather prompt comments and suggestions folks. To sum up, a Les Paul is off the list if it's not giving me anything other than a different look to the guitar. Danelectros seem to be jumping out as being what I'm after and I'll have to listen to a hollow body being played before making a judgement. You guys rock, cheers!

I meant the Squire in the vid wasf ugly, not the Danelectro - you got your post in just as I got mine in. Now they're guitars that I like the look of. The one in that pic is a beaut. There's something very different about them. And as a bonus, the small independent music shop in the town I live in outside of Bristol happens to have a few of those in stock.

Shame they're fugly! They do sound pretty good but in all honesty, I'd not be motivated to pick up one of those. I know, I know, it's all about the sound rather than the looks but I do like a nice instrument that just begs you to pick it up. I'm shallow, what can I say? I'll have a good browse through their range though. Being Squire/Fender they'll have a million different versions so there may well be one that I like... (ooh, actually this looks interesting: [url="http://www.dv247.com/guitars/squier-vintage-modified-telecaster-thinline-guitar-shoreline-gold-rosewood--44428"]http://www.dv247.com/guitars/squier-vintage-modified-telecaster-thinline-guitar-shoreline-gold-rosewood--44428[/url])

Hi folks, So, obviously I'm a bass player but I'm branching out a little into playing the 6 string electric a bit. I do this mainly for recording stuff where I can almost blunder my way through playing and with judicious use of distortion, reverb and luck I can get it sounding ok! I'm actually learning a bit and getting better each time I record more guitar work so I'm thinking a nice little treat is in order to reward my perseverance. I'm currently using the most entry level Ibanez Gio - a GRG70DX which in all honesty is quite a decent guitar. I think Ibanez have done themselves proud with this cheap little thing. However, I'd like something a little different so I'm thinking of a few options. I'm looking at the Epiphone Les Pauls and also at the hollow body jazz style guitars from the likes of Gretsch (if only they were cheaper), Hagstrom and Farida. I will of course pop down to my local, friendly guitar shop and ask the guys very nicely if they'll play a few of them for me so I can judge whether they sound different enough to my Ibanez to be worth buying. Budget is around £200 or under. Any more and I'd have to justify spending that amount of cash on bass gear or software. So, I'm trying to find out what I need to look for in the sub £200 price range when it comes to guitars. If I was buying a bass I'd start looking at the Squire VM P and J basses as they're brilliant and well underpriced for what they are. So I'm after the guitar equivalent to one of these really. I'm not a snob on brands but I do like guitars to look nice! I love the look of the Gretsch hollow bodies and the Les Paul shape (but only in black). This is currently top of my list (Epiphone Les Paul Special II for £120): [url="http://www.dv247.com/guitars/epiphone-les-paul-special-ii-electric-guitar-ebony--37103"]http://www.dv247.com...ar-ebony--37103[/url] but it seems just a little too cheap. But if it's a sound guitar and is different enough to my Ibanez then I'd grab one. These look really nice too (I loved the sound of Miles Kane's band's Gretsch's when I saw them live): [url="http://www.dv247.com/guitars/gretsch-g5415-special-jet-electric-guitar-black--89601"]http://www.dv247.com...ar-black--89601[/url] A hollow body may be a really nice one to have to get that jangly sound from chords. I'm stalking one of these on Ebay at the moment: [url="http://www.dawsons.co.uk/farida-sa16mp-black"]http://www.dawsons.c...da-sa16mp-black[/url] <looks up> Sorry for the long post! Any and all advice is appreciated (oh, and I'm happy to look second hand for anything too). Cheers!

I was drunk once (more than once, but once was enough for this) and found myself outside the dressing room where Let Loose were. I proceeded to tell them that "I loved that song you did" (Crazy For You) for which they ever so politely thanked me for and let me go on my way. Nice guys. Can I name drop them next time I'm on stage?

Left side of the drummer for me for the same reasons as most: better communication with him, better view of what he's hitting, no fear of taking his eye out plus our guitarist is left handed so there's a little bit of symmetry on stage. So we look like this: \non/

Bit of a trek but J.G. Windows in Newcastle and the Metro Centre do finance (they did it for me on my £300 Dean and I'm above the 25 year old age for the scheme mentioned above, and it was 0% for 10 months).

I've got the Laney RB-1 and it's quite decent for a practice amp. Nice neutral sound and plenty of control with the EQ too.

Just followed you on Soundcloud. Really like what you're doing.

Now I do like that. I couldn't pick out what was the rhythm bass and what was the lead bass (may put it through my studio monitors and have a listen) but the overall effect is nice.

I played a gig in Somerset from the back of a trailer in May. It rained right after our set and we had to dismantle the PA quickly as the plugs were out in the open. Very very surprisingly, nothing went bang. (Off-topic I know, but I have no idea what the power of our PA was - sorry!)

May I try and clear up one of the points here (and really, I'm being pedantic). Copyright infringement is not theft or stealing. It's copyright infringement. Which is a totally different crime altogether. See UK law: [url="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1968/60"]http://www.legislati...k/ukpga/1968/60[/url] [quote[size=3]][color=black][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif]Basic definition of theft.[/font][/color][/size] [right][size=3](1)[/size][/right] [size=3]A person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it; and “thief” and “steal” shall be construed accordingly.[/size] [right][size=3][color=black][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif](2)[/font][/color][/size][/right] [size=3][color=black][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif]It is immaterial whether the appropriation is made with a view to gain, or is made for the thief’s own benefit.[/font][/color][/size] [right][size=3][color=black][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif](3)[/font][/color][/size][/right] [size=3][color=black][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif]The five following sections of this Act shall have effect as regards the interpretation and operation of this section (and, except as otherwise provided by this Act, shall apply only for purposes of this section).[/font][/color][/size][/quote] [size=3]"[color=#000000][font=arial, helvetica, verdana, sans-serif][b]with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it[/b]" is the key bit. *Edit* to make the quote legible.[/font][/color][/size]

If allofmp3.com taught us anything it's that people are more than happy to pay £2-4 for a downloadable album. I bought loads (with the mistaken belief at the time that artists were actually getting something from it) mainly because it was worth it to take a chance on an album that sounded good from a couple of snippets. What did the music industry learn? Nothing. They need to change their business model to take advantage of the Internet and not try and suppress it. But I think I'm going off topic a bit here. Artists and those involved in producing music DO need to be compensated for it. I just bloody wish they'd get off their arses and do something innovative with the technologies available. The movie and book publishing industries are heading the same way too. In the book publishing industry (which I work in) entrepreneurs are cutting out the publisher, going straight to the agent and striking deals with Amazon and making a decent about of cash. I think I'm straying from the point again (I tend to do that). Ok, so my point. Rather than introducing innovation and exploring new markets, the record industry is sitting back in yesteryear panicking. Their tactic is to use bully-boy tactics of suing their fans and customers and spending untold amounts of money on politicians to change laws in their favour. All this serves to do is make piracy a more attractive option. It instils the "screwing the corporation" ethos into people. It helps no artist or record label in the slightest. They need to change and do business in a way that makes it pretty pointless to download music for free. I really wish I knew what that way was.

Well, this was recorded just by popping my iPhone 4 on a seat about 8 feet from us. No external mic and it sounds ok. [url="http://soundcloud.com/mornats/whisky-river-money"]http://soundcloud.com/mornats/whisky-river-money[/url]. How much better is a Zoom Q3 than this? (Really curious as I was well impressed by the iPhone in this regard but would love something better.)

That slipperiness is why I've not used it much to be honest but I found it actually helped with playing when I did it before band practice. Other times I'd used it I only played it at home for a bit and never really used the bass in earnest as I didn't like the feel. Different matter at band practice though. I'm pretty pleased with it for now.

Quite the opposite for me. I went out shopping for bed linen and came back with an Overwater Contemporary J4.

Not he link I was thinking of Lozz but thanks for posting that one. the one I saw had a table with the string names down the left and a brief description of their brightness etc. on the right, so all on one page. That's still a useful link though! I've been meaning to try DAddario, Elites, Elixirs etc. but it's a long process of trial and error as a: bass strings are expensive and b: they'll last a few months. Worth a punt though otherwise I'll never know! I have however found a temporary solution. I remembered that I had some fast fret that I'd used to clean strings with so popped some of that on and voila, a nice bright sound. So it's not snake oil after all...

I love how their Speaker Cranker pedal just has a "more" button.

Check out Scott Devine's video about his pedal board. I was watching it earlier and he can get some pretty good synth bass tones out of his bass with some of his pedals: [url="http://scottsbasslessons.com/gear/the-pedal-board.html"]http://scottsbasslessons.com/gear/the-pedal-board.html[/url]