thepurpleblob

As you progress playing harder stuff gets harder - if you see what I mean. You also see less improvement in yourself even though there is some. It suddenly creeps up on you that you can play stuff you couldn't 6 months ago. You just have to push yourself.... listen for those bass lines in any music that you think you can't play and go and have a go. Some songs took me years on and off to learn. It's all good - just keep going and be positive about your abilities. Oh, yes, join a band. That helps a *lot*.

[quote name='Musky' post='540145' date='Jul 14 2009, 11:09 AM']I read an article 10 or more years ago saying that you could! Though the article also noted that the taxman would probably only wear that for a couple of years before deciding it was just a hobby rather than a serious business. Things might have changed now, but if it's still allowed you can also claim for a instruments, rehearsals and a whole bunch of other stuff like your 'home office'. [/quote] Well... they're going to come round and ask you what you're using to buy food eventually

I asked the same question recently with some useful replies. The fact of the matter is that slap is an absolute witch to get right whatever anybody tells you. The sequence of movements is, in reality, slightly too complex to explain which doesn't help at all. A lot of advice misses the bit about muting the strings with the fretting hand which is just as tricky as getting the slap/pop right. It's a pure technique thing and you're just going to have to suffer until you build the muscles and reflexes and get the timing together. I'm still rubbish by the way!

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='540118' date='Jul 14 2009, 10:53 AM']Agreed - I take it you meant the second question - no to effects pedals.. To OP: Many of your questions make assumptions and/or miss out possible answers. Your survey has very limited reliability and validity.[/quote] Yeh - same for me. "Do you use effects", No. Bit of a problem.

My suspicion has always been that if there was significant tax revenue to be had in chasing down pub covers bands then the tax offices would be doing it. They know there's no profit in it for most bands. Even the bands charging proper money are probably dripped up paying for their massive PAs. Having said that, some awkward bugger could spoil your day by getting you to fill out tax returns for the last n years when you have no receipts for anything. At the end of the day, if you are getting paid income and not declaring it it's a risk you take. EDIT: Yeh - when I was self employed I found the tax office advice people to be more than helpful. They don't want to drag you through an investigation either.

[quote name='Krysbass' post='537222' date='Jul 10 2009, 01:48 PM']When you’re in a covers band and nobody pays any attention to your ideas, whether it’s song choices or anything else. I’d rather not speculate on what anti-bassist prejudices might be behind this. [/quote] To be fair, my cover song choices are always terrible

...when you don't think Slash is cool at all AND you enjoy the look of horror on your guitarist's face when you tell him that.

Some that we do that seem to get them going particularly well.... Almost anything by Oasis Almost anything by Greenday (even though I hate them!) Almost anything by U2 Almost anything by Stereophonics Radiohead - Creep Talking Heads - Psycho Killer Some Pink Floyd stuff in the right places Kaiser Chiefs - I predict a riot

When you have to explain to the keyboard player what the notes are in a Bbm7

[quote name='Eight' post='528977' date='Jun 30 2009, 06:54 PM']Cheers mate. So you ask them directly then? There's not like PRS/MCSP type agency for this stuff?[/quote] Not that I know about. You'd have to figure out who the copyright holder is. However, I would just put it up and hope for the best. If you get a lawyers letter then take it down. You'd be bloody unlucky to get a summons first go.

[quote name='Eight' post='528950' date='Jun 30 2009, 06:36 PM']I remembered this thread the other day it got me thinking. I had promised myself that when I sorted the amp/cab situation out that I'd join a band. My teacher also gave me some encouragement to do it. That situation is drawing closer rapidly... But I just don't see much (if anything) in the area that interests me; so have started wondering whether I should stick my neck out and try and form a semi-themed metal covers band? In theory, and assuming anyone wanted to join, that'd mean I could be playing music I like with people of a level and age etc. that's comfortable for me. But a comment earlier in this thread gives me some worries - along the lines of if I form the band then they're going to expect me to know what I'm doing on a management side. I think the idea would be to try and find people who mainly want to rehearse and play this stuff - [i]maybe[/i] with the goal of playing a few pub/club gigs for the experience. Definitely not this corporate and wedding stuff. Any comments or advice? I know organising this would be asking a lot of myself since I've never played in a band before let alone tried to start one. BTW Apparently PRS is paid by the venue right? But I was wondering what (if anything) could be done if we wanted to put audio/video recordings of us playing the covers on a web site? How do you file stuff like that? You must have to pay but can anyone point me in the right direction of how you could go about it? Edit: And I'm not thinking that gigging or distributing records in any form would be a certainty; just trying to fill in the blanks of things I might be expected to know.[/quote] Second point first.... to use copyright material you have to ask the permission of the copyright holder. They might say - yes, go ahead. They might say, give us ten grand. First point second - the covers band I play in is very much "we play what we like". So it's all very loud, Clash, Green Day, Killers, Biffy Clyro et al. The result of this is that we don't play many gigs. There's a very limited demand for loud rocky bands. I imagine that playing metal will be even worse. I can only think of two venues in Glasgow but it's not my thing to be fair. What all the pubs want is cheese - Summer of 69, Mustang Sally etc. If you don't play that stuff then you're not going to be out every weekend.

[quote name='beerdragon' post='525079' date='Jun 26 2009, 05:51 PM']Dennis Healey played bass?[/quote] Yep.... [url="http://www.myspace.com/dadsoutlate"]http://www.myspace.com/dadsoutlate[/url]

[quote name='Hot Tub' post='524994' date='Jun 26 2009, 04:44 PM']A few have asked "what's the worst that can happen?", and I have thought about that. A lot. I think the worst that could happen is not that I make a mistake, or stick to roots, or "forget which end to blow into" (I spat tea when I read that one! ), or even just freeze and do nothing. I think the worst that could happen is that I disappoint myself.[/quote] I've done all of these things and worse at one time or another. I completely forgot "Pretty Vacant" the other week. Sh*t happens. It's not that it happens it's how badly you take it. I am terribly self critical... but in the cold light of the next day nobody ever noticed.

Mmmm..... I have a lot of sympathy. I am the same age as you more or less and I can relate to a lot you are saying. I used to be desperately shy and solitary but I've worked hard over the years to combat this. I'm a lot better now but I'm never going to be a slap-on-the-back-team-player type and I accept that. BUT.... you know what the best thing I ever did was? I joined a pub band - a just starting out with only three songs pub band luckily - at age forty. I was bloody terrified. I kid you not. It still doesn't take much to get me into a complete flap but three bands and hundreds of gigs later I'm an altogether better person. It's brilliant therapy. Post in gumtree or somesuch for some like minded musicians who might like to learn a few songs and maybe play some small gigs, possibly in front of a few friends to start and work up. Think about it! EDIT: Forgot to add... can't slap either and it doesn't matter because almost no songs need it. Can't play with pick blah blah. Bass has the advantage that you can wear black, stand at the back and just rumble away on the roots if that's all your nerves will stand. You don't have to be Wooten you just have to follow the roots and have good timing. The rest is just polish!

I saw BF and the FTs live a year or so ago. Left halfway through - dull and boring beyond belief IMO. You don't need to convince me that they are great musicians but I don't find them remotely musical.

Maybe I'm having a hay-fever riddled angry day so sorry in advance... but... this is *really* stupid. What you hear on a recording has got almost nothing to do with what his "settings" are. Live in the something-academy evern less probably. It's down to thousands of pounds of digital processing gear (that you don't have) and a lots-by-the-hour sound engineer.

I've just read through this.... interesting. It's tricky - if they want James Jamerson then they'd better go get a shovel and someone called Igor! On the other hand if the band leader has a picture in his head of someone plunking away on a muddy sounding P, you might just have to suck it up and go buy one. Remember it's about image too! I wouldn't take any sh*t. I don't think it's unreasonable to ask them for a decision by (say) the end of the weekend. It shows a business like attitude on your part if nothing else.

I think I've mentioned this before... I play both a 4 string with a drop-D detuner thingy and a "normal" 5 string. The sound and feel is so different even I notice. I can now jump between the two without thinking about it too much but I do have the odd "accident" if I'm not careful.

I can only think of one.... Comfortably Numb!! In particular the Guy Pratt / Pulse live version.

Got them on my Precision Fretless - sounds the business. Never had any bother at all.

[quote name='Jamesemt' post='516637' date='Jun 17 2009, 05:14 PM']I'm recovering a grotty old peavey 2x12 and was wondering if carpet is any easier than vinyl?? Any other recovering advice? I've bought the textured paint but have had second thoughts...[/quote] Carpet. It is stretchy! Vinyl isn't much harder though. Make sure it's proper carpet for the job though. Here's what they don't tell you though. Do the main parts with spray adhesive. Do the edges and corners with a decent hot glue gun and a very sharp stanley blade. Watch your fingers - roasting hot gluey carpet is a nasty combination! Staples don't work on carpet. It's too soft to cover any voids if you have any. Glue some of that fibreglass mesh for bridging big holes in car panels first if you have any.