BigRedX

There have been two site updates that rendered a lot of the old posts close to unreadable. The end of BBCode as seen above was one, and the other was when using "return" added a paragraph spacing for after one update and then reverted back to just a line space with the subsequent one meaning that many posts from that time are now solid impenetrable blocks of text.

Almost always caused by your microphone picking up the sound from your speakers. Replacing the speakers with headphones is generally the simplest way of sorting it out.

To the OP. What is your writing/composing for. Simply personal enjoyment or for your band or musicians to play? If I don't have something I actually need to compose for I can find the motivation to write quite low. Luckily right now I'm in a very active band and I actually have the opposite problem where I don't have enough time to work on all the song ideas I have going on. For me the biggest motivator for composition is playing with other musicians (see above). IME there's nothing that gets a song finished quicker than having other people to bounce ideas off and collaborate with. If that's not possible then here are a couple of other things to try: Revisit one of your old songs. I'm sure that there are things that could be updated or improved. Right now for me about half of my "new" song ideas come from things I originally wrote when I was in my 20s (I'm now in my 60s). In every case I've been able to make massive improvements, or even produce something so far removed from the original inspiration that it sounds like a brand new song. Even just trying an old song in a different key may open up new compositional possibilities. Alternatively try playing along with other people's songs, and then removing to original inspiration and seeing where it takes you. One of my most successful songs in the past was composed like this. Because I pushed the harmonic structure of my "new part" quite hard, once the original song had been removed it was impossible to hear where my "inspiration" had come from. HTH.

What's wrong with the original bridge?

That's weird. Could you post some photos of how you have the lead arranged with the strap when you are playing. I had a Yamaha guitar with this output socket arrangement and never had any problems with it.

The last gig I went to where I wasn't also playing was Auger/Westenra/Dhampyres at The Met in Whitby as part of WGW. The bands were all great but struggled with appalling sound from an under-powered PA and seemingly incompetent sound engineers. The strange thing was that at various points throughout the evening the mix would suddenly improve for about 10 seconds and then mysteriously go back to being terrible again. Auger actually stopped their set after the first song and essentially did a second sound check and didn't continue the set until it sounded half-way decent. Overall a less than brilliant start to the weekend. I would have also gone the gig there the following night to see Deviant UK, but the appalling sound put me off. From what I hear the sound was better, but still not very good. I played at the Met two years previously and it looked like the same people doing the PA, and while they weren't brilliant they weren't as terrible as on this occasion. They also brought a much larger PA that was far more suitable for the size of the venue.

But a lot of that back catalogue sold in significant numbers when it was released so there are plenty of copies still around for anyone who wants to hear or buy them.

And what's the betting that one of the listeners manages to sneak in a recording device and the tracks are all over the internet before the end of June?

It is indeed. I played Corrosion Festival there a couple of years ago with In Isolation. Looking forward to getting on that stage again.

Next Hurtsfall gig is opening day 2 of BLAQKHOLESUN 2024 at The Alhambra in Morecambe. We'll be on at 16.20 on Saturday 8th June but the whole weekend looks brilliant:

Next Hurtsfall gig is opening day 2 of BLAQKHOLESUN 2024 at The Alhambra in Morecambe. We'll be on at 16.20 on Saturday 8th June but the whole weekend looks brilliant:

I play my Eastwood Hooky as both a guitar and a bass which confuses quite a few people - mostly PA sound engineers. Despite mentioning this when we set up, I have discovered that it's still necessary to soundcheck one of the songs with a "guitar" part so they don't EQ out all the top end.

In Isolation played The Arches in Coventry with Chaos Bleak on Saturday. I played there a about 10 years ago in my Terrortone days, but the venue has improved massively since then although it's still just as difficult to find. Both bands played to a small but very enthusiastic, and relatively young (for a "goth" gig) audience. Obligatory photos: Next gig for me is with Hurtsfall in Morecambe on the 8th June opening day two of BLAQKHOLESUN Next In Isolation gig is supporting The Rose Of Avalanche in Leicester on 28th July.

If you are going to use a band finder internet site make sure your ad is very specific about you want both musically and in in terms of commitment. Alternatively stalk your favourite local bands on social media, as you never know when they might suddenly require a replacement bass player. Both of these approaches have worked for me.

Unless they are written down I find most lyrics at least partially unintelligible, and of those that I can understand a lot are cringe-worthy.

Here's my gig-hardened playback system: This is the current evolution of about 20 years of using computers for gigging. Everything fits in a 3U rack case with removable front and top. All the connections are made at the patch panel at front of the rack. It might not look as neat but it's much easier than trying to find the correct sockets at the back on a darkened stage with only 10 minutes to set up and line check before you play. The laptop is a 2012 MacPro with an SSD and 16GB RAM. It has been completely rock-solid in the 7 years I've been using it for backing playback. I use Logic Pro X (again without problems although I only run a single 3rd party plug-in and the track and plug-in count is kept to a minimum - usually 1 reverb and a couple of compressors) running a mixture of MIDI and audio. It runs under its own login that is just for live playback with WiFi and Bluetooth disabled. Interface is a Focusrite which is completely overkill in terms of I/O for our needs, however it was chosen because it is properly rack mountable in a 1U space. Before that I had a "half rack" sized interface that was impossible to secure properly in the rack and as a consequence wasn't always reliable. It provides a balanced line outputs for the PA, but we also run this through an ART DTI box first (hidden inside the rack) which completely isolates the interface from the PA feed preventing ground loops and will protect the interface should anything nasty be inadvertently be sent to it. If you are doing serious level gigs I would suggest that you invest in one of these for every stereo feed you want to send to the PA. As far as possible all the connections to the outside world are made via XLR cables. The patch panel left to right is as follows: Channels 3 & 4 XLR inputs. These have never been used and will probably be removed if I ever need to add more front panel outputs. Channels 1 & 2 XLR outputs. Via the ART DTI box. These are the outputs we normally use to connect to the PA. Channels 1 & 2 Jack outputs. Via the ART DTI box. Occasionally we encounter a sound engineer who insists on using their own DI boxes. In that case we connect to these. Channel 3 XLR output. This provides a click track for the drummer Channel 4 XLR output (added since this photo was taken). This provides a backing track mix for the drummer. MIDI Out XLR. We use MIDI to automate patch changes for the live instruments and effects. USB output. I try as far a possible not to use computer-grade connectors in a gigging environment, but this one is a necessary evil which allows me to control the backing from an Elgato Stream Deck pedal. The alternative would be something that connects wirelessly which IMO is even less reliable. I carry 2 spare USB cables and the system can run without the footswitch if absolutely necessary - it's just not as convenient and the rack can't be positioned off-stage in that case. All USB cables inside the rack are cable-tied and hot-glued in place. Powercon connector for mains power to the rack. This splits two ways inside the rack to provide power for the laptop and interface. The Elgato Stream Deck pedal provides all the playback functions we need live. The large middle pedal is start/pause for the playback. The right pedal triggers a macro which closes the current song and loads the next one from the Finder. The songs all have a number at the front of the song name and changing the set order is done by simply renumbering the songs. The left pedal toggles the loop function in Logic on and off which allows us to extend a selected part of a song if required. The whole system takes less than 5 minutes to set up on stage which includes all the MIDI connections, and has proved far more reliable than the majority of other systems I see bands on the same bill as mine using. I know of at least one other band who, having seen this, have subsequently produced their own version of it. Because it's controlled via MIDI having the Helix on stage is a bit redundant, but it serves two very important functions. Firstly because each song has its own named Preset it serves as an automated setlist. Secondly it is set up to receive MIDI sync for delays and other time-based effects the LED on the tap-tempo footswitch changes from red to blue when receiving the sync signal which gives me a visual indication that the backing is running without needing to be able to see the computer screen. We did try running dispensing with the Helix hardware and running Helix Native on the laptop, but it massively increased the load time for each song which made it a bit impractical for quick song changes. At the moment the current load time is less than it takes for the applause to die down after we finish the previous song, so we can give the impression of going seamlessly form one song to the next. Maybe when I upgrade to an Apple Silicon laptop we'll have another look. HTH.

Personally I wouldn't use an iPad as it IMO is too fragile for live use especially if you are going to be connecting via the Lightning or USBC connector. Also the touch screen is less than responsive to sweaty fingers. I'll respond more late today when I have more time with details of the gig-hardened set-up I use.

What is your playback device for the backing and clicks? Unless you are planning to have sections of the songs with no live drums that need to be synchronised to the backing, the normal practice is just for the drummer to have the click and the rest of the band plays to the drummer. Also IME bands using backing have a tendency to put far too much on there, just because they can which in turn gives an over-complicated and messy live sound. Being in charge of the backing playback for both bands I play in, I now have a policy of turning down anything I think is unnecessary by 1dB every time we rehearse. If I get the fader down to "0" without anyone saying anything I remove the track from the backing permanently. The thing to remember is that the recorded and live versions of songs are two different things. Just because it's on the recording don't automatically mean you need to reproduce it on stage. Also IME stereo FoH isn't always a particularly good idea as only a select few members of the audience stood in the sweet spot in the middle get the full benefit. Unless you have some very obvious panning effects, I'd consider reducing everything down to mono, but if you must have stereo backing reduce the width FoH to no more than 9 o'clock to 3 o'clock pan, and during your technical rehearsals check what it sounds like with only the left and only the right channel audible to ensure that you don't have stereo effects that sound wrong with a channel missing.

IMO some of the tunes are massively uplifting, even if the lyrics can be a bit dark.

What DAW are you using?

I've got the Helix Floor which is slightly bigger than the LT. I don't think the size is a problem as it's essentially a self-contained pedal board, plus I have made the decision that if it can't be done with the Helix then live I don't need to do it.

My selections - The old: The new: Mine:

Right now, for originals bands the financial entry level to getting your music out to the public has never been lower in every respect. That means the cost of decent instruments as well as making and "releasing" a recording. Of course that means that everyone who can is now doing it, so the signal to noise ratio is now greater than ever. In the past I don't think that not having much money has ever been a real barrier to making music for me. Lack of it might have meant that I couldn't always do things exactly how I wanted, but I always found ways to at least make music and get it out to the public. Some of it might have meant making lifestyle choices that others might not find palatable, but those of us who a truly driven to make music will always find ways of doing so.

What's your amp and cab? IME you need a clean amp otherwise the drive sounds from the effects can have a tendency to clash with the drive of the amp. Also set your amp's EQ to as close to neutral as is possible and use the Helix to shape the sound. Whenever I hear musicians struggling with multi-effects often the problem is that the amp and cab is getting in the way with conflicting EQs and drives. For me my amp has been just about making me audible as far as possible and anything else is an unwanted side effect. I'd start with just the Obsidian 7000 module. I know that Dark Glass devices as supposed to be aimed at "metal" sounds, but for me this is by far the most comprehensive set of drive and EQ possibilities.