uk_lefty

Proud Mary seems to be too well worn. Others from my old band: Sharp Dressed Man, Sex on Fire... It's like "what's the easiest song by....insert band name?". Problem is audiences in pubs and even music venues want this and will go mad for it, so you have to play some of these "classics". I think the trick is to play them really, really well and not many covers bands can! Then also to have a rotation of these so if people see you more than once you can swap a "sex on fire" for a "Mr brightside". My new band has loads of songs that I cringed at when first reading the setlist: Dakota, Seven Nation Army, Mr Brightside... There's more. But. This band plays them bloody well and structures the set well. When we rehearse we concentrate on the details in the songs to keep it interesting for ourselves and elevate the song above a pub band bashing around at it. Makes it work for us. I still hate some of the songs though, I'd gladly never play Seven Nation Army ever again.

The Desert Penguins will do a one off 00's indie rock night at the Corn Exchange, Hertford, Friday 17th May. We are learning a lot of new material for this so please come on down and enjoy the night. After the live music a DJ will be on until late. Great venue, decent sound set up, left handed bassist. What more could you want?

Awesome name for a cover band.

I got back in Sunday after a whirlwind two days away for this gig. What an experience!! Left home at 5am Friday and arrived in Amsterdam early afternoon. Taking guitars and cymbals on the Eurostar was so easy, far better than flying IMO. We arrived, had some food and a few drinks and eventually got ready for the gig. We walked into the venue, which was packed, and there was a band on stage (they do two bands each night Thursday to Sunday I think) and they were good. A countryish band with great backing vocals. The crowd enjoyed it.... We are nothing like that. After a v quick setup we were on. We spread out our set into four parts to fit the running order and to manage the churn of audience as people go bar to bar. Each of the four forty five min sets was a mini whole gig setlist with a "big one" at the end. We moved the order around a bit and played for over an hour in the first set to minimise breaks. My hands felt like sausages and I fluffed a few lines here and there but no clangers in the first forty odd mins. The place was full and the crowd were energetic, singing and dancing. We powered through and the place was heaving. In the second set I can't remember which song started it but bouncing around turned to gentle shoving and then a sort of mosh pit formed. A few songs later and I saw something I didn't like one bit, a lady was shoved by the back of her head, and stopped playing and had to say something over the mic. The band continued and I joined back in a few bars later. We gave a bit of a warning out on behaviour and shoving people who probably don't want to be shoved about. That sorted things and we continued. The energy in the place was amazing, loads of people genuinely there for the live music and bouncing around, singing along to every song. Overall it was an incredible experience. I never thought I'd end up doing something like this. Playing pubs can be great fun, but playing full music venues in a foreign capital city was just something else! The staff and the soundman loved the set, I think we will be going back!

I personally can't stand them, so different strokes etc I expect. I can't stand the way they look, especially the really long ones you get on quite high end basses, and I can't stand the feel of them. I fitted one to a jazz bass once and hated it, it felt quite restrictive. Then I play my Jack Casady and my hand slips all over the bass, if only there was just something to grip... 🤔

My favourite home base varies. The Jack Casady is great for a quick noodle when I can't be bothered amping up. My fretless is great because I've had it for twenty years so it's the most natural to play, but my band doesn't really fit for fretless playing. My number 1 love bass is my Stingray, the massive ballsy sound is what I need and what my band want, but I'm very protective of that bass and often can't be bothered getting it out the case to play at home when there are others waiting around to be played.

Hmmm... I like a lot of stuff that some people love and some hate. I like metal, Megadeth probably being my favourite but a lot of people hate them because of Dave Mustaine's voice and personality. I like Sixx:AM but wanting to see them at Download 2016 I got a drubbing from my friends cos they're seen as very naff (does anyone still say Naff?) but I think the guitarist is outstanding. I liked country when I was ten and discovered my mum's Johnny Cash LPs, that was very unpopular until the film Walk the Line came out then suddenly everyone idolised Johnny Cash. I love 80s music from Level 42 to the cheesiest of pop. Club Tropicana is pop perfection, but I am now in a band where half the people cannot stand anything 80s.

I'd love to have the time to learn it. It all looks so easy. Then you sit there and it's like your very first driving lesson all over again.

You can't stop it, and why would you? Punter sees something interesting and videos it... Then hopefully they whack it up online and tag the band in, traffic to your own pages develops and you might get more interest from further afield. It would be nice if people did post it and tag the band in so you can choose whether to keep it or not but usually there's a few people filming and then you, maybe even they, never actually see that film played back. We've made twenty second advertising clips using stitched together mobile footage and recordings from gigs made by people we know who have shared them with us. So the viewer gets multiple camera angles, perhaps from multiple gigs, alongside a good quality audio that is also recorded live, every box ticked.

"custom" must be part of the ad template for guitars in eBay. Many described as "custom" are either not at all in any way customised or custom made. Some are badly modified though. "Hand made". Yup, your Yamaha Pacifica was handmade. Well, someone picked it up by hand at some point in the production process. "Collection only DO NOT contact me asking about delivery". Items described like this are often located in a dragons backside, guarded by hungry dobermans in the hardest to reach part of some remote Scottish island. Or just some sh!thole somewhere around the country that's a pain to get to. Either way, if I'm willing to send a courier and pay the asking price and nobody else is biting why wouldn't you sell it? "Never gigged" what are you implying happens at gigs? Why would it be better if it just had the stuffing knocked out of it at home by your kids, but NEVER GIGGED. Why does it matter? It's either in good condition or it's not.

The Water Hole

Looks ok. If it were cheaper and I hadn't just spent too much on kit already I'd want it, take it to Mike and have it defretted and less vulgar hardware fitted.

Amateurs playing for one night only. Not Pink Floyd selling out every city three nights in a row.

This news is what we are relying on, also we are not earning from it. Understand it's not a dig, the topic is a minefield and one I've been wary of ever since it was first mentioned. Going by Eurostar I'm afraid so all luggage space is allocated!

Am thinking of sticking some stuff up on Instagram about it if I have time, can be bothered and don't look a complete t!t doing so. I am one of the most boring people on Instagram, but if you like pictures of left handed bass guitars you're welcome to check it out: @rr_on_bass

I raised this and one of the lads googled it, for small one offs there is no visa requirement.

Yeah I feel a bit bad going away without the family but do want to get a good look around. Thankfully the rest of the band aren't the "waaaaaayyyyy lads lads lads!" Spend all day and night drinking types so I expect to see more than just a few pubs.

Isn't it always the way... If you can decipher the timetables and where to go! We are going by Eurostar, the other lads have done this before so I'm relying on them to help get me around.

No real reason to post other than I'm very excited about this opportunity. I joined a band just before Christmas who have a linkup with a bar in Amsterdam that they e played in before. They couldn't do it through covid but now we are booked in for a monster four hour set on Fri 20th May. We are well rehearsed, well prepared and ready to go! Really looking forward to it. Have never been to the Netherlands at all so to go there for a gig is a bit surreal.

The Desert Penguins go international! Revisiting the Water Hole in Amsterdam on Fri 20th May playing a monster four hours of guitar driven pop/ rock. Come along and ply me with red bull. 11 til 3. That's 11pm til 3am.

Looking for someone who'll pay seven grand not to wait I guess?

It is one of those impulse purchases you could make, like a few extra plectrums or something.

2016 I think