BigRedX

Hurtsfall have been going in our present incarnation since October of 2021, although we had done a handful of gigs in 2019. The current sound and line-up is a result of the original drummer and guitarist leaving the band and us deciding not to replace them, instead with me switching from conventional bass to a Bass VI and alternating melody and bass parts with our synth player and using a drum machine to replace the drummer: We play originals in a post-punk/goth/synth-pop style, and while we are based in Nottingham will travel anywhere for the right gig. Currently we are doing on average a gig every 2-3 weeks. We've released 10 singles, the most recent of which is "Robert Smith's Eyes": We're currently working on our debut album for release later this year. We'll play anywhere that will give us a gig and pay at least enough to cover our expenses. Most of the gigs we've done so far have been supports or festivals. These are the sorts of gigs that we like since it puts us in front of audiences whom may not have seen us play before. Our singer who is good with people and social media sorts all of this out. Here's a short clip of us performing "Revelator" at a festival last year: Hurtsfall-Revelator.mp4

Thanks! Lyric video up now:

What does the binding do around the forearm contour?

Depends on the construction. Does this bass have a centre block supporting the bridge and for the tail-piece to screw into? Even if not the way the forces are angled with regards to the tailpiece mounting shouldn't be causing the top to separate from the sides like that. However I'd be tempted to take the strings and the tail-piece off and have a look at what is happening where the tail-piece is screwed into the end of the bass.

It's on the iPlayer

Mastering is applied to the final stereo (or mono) mix. It involves EQ, compression - usually multi-band - and for vinyl collapsing any stereo imaging of low frequencies into mono. All the changes are global and any apparent change to the mix will be the result of the EQ and multi-band compression. Generally a separate master is required for each delivery medium - vinyl, Compact Cassette, CD/Uncompressed Digital, Compressed Digital in order to play to the strengths of each, and in the case of vinyl make sure the audio capable of being cut. Anything involving the use of the original multi-track recording or "stems" should be labelled as a remix.

I'd do it in 2-4 bar segments. With 16 bars I suspect that you've been limited to the nearest whole bar by the number of different notes that MIDI supports. Export audio is in the Format drop down menu in the Export dialogue box. The default setting is just the MIDI file, but if you change that to one of the audio formats the next dialogue asks if you also want to export the MIDI file as well. From what I recall (it's over 25 years since I last used it like that) ReCycle! works/worked very well with Akai samplers. I bought my copy to use with an S2000 which was connected directly to my Mac via SCSI. As I suggested in my last post, if all you want to do is change the loop tempo you are better of using REX files so long as your DAW supports them.

If you've got 91 slices either your pattern is too long or you haven't correctly identified all the relevant slice points and removed the "ghost" ones. You need to play with the sensitivity slider until it detects all the slice starts that you need and then delete the ones that aren't required. Unless it's very busy, a typical 2-bar pattern should have around 16-24 slices, and none should be shorter than 1/16 note The ascending pattern is created with the intention that you also save each slice as an audio file. You then load these into a sampler (real or plug-in) each one to a note. When it plays the MIDI file it will replay the pattern but now you can change the tempo without changing the pitch. However if that's all you want to do, it is simpler to save the REX file and if you have a Mac and are running Logic convert it into an Apple Loop which will do the same thing automatically. If you want to use your own drum samples you'll need to identify what each slice does (which is why it's important to remove the ones you don't want) and the edit the MIDI file in your DAW moving each note to the correct pitch for the relevant drum sound and duplicating those that correspond to multiple drums that occur on the same beat. Alternatively you can save the MIDI pattern as a quantise template and then program your own drums and use this template to replicate the feel of the original rhythm. HTH

Spent most of the morning listening and occasionally watching (I'm working at the same time) to the BBC's "Must Watch Track" selection. It seemed the best way of checking out lots of bands with what I would hope was one of their better songs and performances. For the most part I was struck by how weedy most of the bands sounded. Notable exceptions so far were The Prodigy and St. Vincent, but everything else so far was pretty much just a wash. It was a bit like listening to the radio in 1975/6 after glam rock had fizzled out and before punk. All technically accomplished for sure, but just aural wallpaper, and nothing good with a William Morris pattern, but bland, just wood chip painted magnolia. There was also a worrying amount of C&W influences both musically and sartorially for which there is no need if you are outside of Nashville. And some of it was just awful. Most notably The Libertines, not just weedy but out of tune vocals, too many bum notes from guitars and seemingly under-rehearsed with regards to the intro and ending. Maybe there's some songs and performances I'll like that I haven't got to yet...

All the post-processing will be just as important as the bass, strings and amp.

The "Drummer" instrument in Logic will generate drum parts based on the recordings of other instruments. However unless your tastes are very mainstream you might struggle to find rhythms in the style that you want. In the long term I have found it more effective to use a beat/groove detector (Recycle! is what I am most familiar with) on sampled drum parts that are close to the style/pattern you want and edit the results. That way not only do you get the rhythms you want but you also learn about how an actual drummer puts those rhythms together which will lead to improvements in your own drum programming.

Thanks for taking the time to answer. Due to the sheer scale of the event and numbers who attend, are you guaranteed an audience or do some bands end up playing to virtually no-one on a stage tucked away in an unpopular corner of the site? Has anyone who has attended as a punter witnessed this? I have to admit I'm not a massive fan of festivals in general, but the more I hear about the festival the less impressed I am from a band's PoV. Like so much in the current musical climate the artists who appear to be able to make it work are those who already have some success and a following.

Guitars and basses displayed with no strings fitted always make me wary. To me that says there is a problem with the neck that will become obvious when strung.

The Op hasn't been on Basschat for over 3 years now.

Because while both are past their sell-by date, the 1975 aren't quite as stale, and neither have been going long enough to get a second wind as "legends".

I would like to think that any promotor putting us on and any audience coming to see us would be somewhat disappointed if there were different people on stage to those they were expecting. Any bass player replacing me in this band, trying to use a standard 4-string bass would find much of the set challenging and some of it completely impossible to play. That's not because I'm some "monster" player (I'm not by any stretch of the imagination), but simply because they wouldn't have access to a lot of the correct notes I play. As the live sound is stripped back to vocals, synth, bass VI and drums, what I play is integral to the overall band sound and playing something different because your choice of instrument is different to mine is not going to cut it.

I think it is very easy to speak out against the paying practices of the Glastonbury Festival for bands when the vast majority of us are never going to find ourselves in the situation where we have to choose between sticking to our principles about getting paid, or sucking it up and playing for the "vibe" or "exposure" or whatever other reason works. It would be interesting and enlightening if @Linus27 could report back after the weekend with how it went financially for his band. Did it cost them overall to play the festival? I notice that they appeared to be playing 4 times - was that required to make it financially viable? How did merch sales go? Were there any and does the festival take a cut? And then maybe come back at the end of the year and let us know if playing Glastonbury got them any more gigs or other opportunities, or did it end up just being another gig in a tent in a field (albeit one that most people have heard of).

I think sometimes musicians have a very blinkered or naive view of what it is like for other bands (especially originals bands), regarding the use of deps. There are some great musicians out there but, IME once you step outside of conventional blue-based rock, soul and jazz, finding ones that understand the specifics of the music are few and far between. It's not just about playing the right notes in the right order. For instance it would nearly impossible to replace any of my current band with deps. Firstly if we turned up with a different singer (no matter how technically good they may be) half the audience would want their money back. Any dep for our synth player would either need to have the same synthesisers with the same custom patches or they would need to spend some serious time with the recordings working out suitable facsimiles of the sounds. My dep would need a Bass VI with the same non-standard tuning as many of the songs are completely impossible to play using normal Bass VI tuning and a Helix or pedal board capable of producing all the bass and guitar sounds I use. And all of that is before we even consider band image...

This. My gear is all repairable and/or replaceable - it might not be cheap and it might take some time but it can be done. Myself, particularly now I'm in my 60s, maybe not so much.

I don't want to rain on @Linus27 parade, but I hope this is the soundcheck. Otherwise why is no-one down the front and what is that carrier bag doing on stage?

The best thing you can do is to not concentrate on it. I can tune mine out a lot of the time. Unfortunately reading this thread has made it obvious again!

This assumes that all bands and the music they play is equal and interchangeable. Maybe that's the case if you're playing generic covers, but for everyone else it's not. It doesn't bother affect me in the slightest what other bands charge (or don't) because they are not my band, and they are in no way a substitute for what we do, and therefore not seen as competition. While we do have a figure in mind when venues and promotors are asking us to play, what we ask for gig is on an individual basis, and playing in front of a new audience who may well all want to buy CDs and T-shirts afterwards can influence what we ask for.

I can't help you with piano recommendations, but bear in mind the following: 1. There is no volume control or headphones socket on an upright piano, and when played enthusiastically they can be loud. May be a concern if you have neighbours with adjoining walls. 2. They are big and heavy. check that you'll be able to get it into whichever room you want to have it in. I had to turn down the family upright piano because it wouldn't fit around the corner at the top of the stairs, assuming I would have been able to get it up the stairs in the first place. 3. As has been said you need to factor the annual tuning cost. 4. Don't buy anything with a wooden frame. I will never stay in tune in a modern heated house. 5. However it should be possible to get something serviceable for free. Here in the UK people can't even give away old upright pianos. So if the situation is similar in Belgium and you are prepared to wait and see what is available you could end up with something nice for the cost of transport and a full service and tune once it installed at your property.

But there's no point (IMO) in having a "transparent" amp if you cab(s) aren't transparent too.

Does it matter having a "transparent" amp when the cab(s) are likely to be introducing far more colour to your sound.