dodge_bass

1 hour ago, spacecowboy said:

Yeah the guitarists weren’t my idea! Singer wanted two, the keys players face was a picture when he found out there was two… he’s so talented as well… he can absolutely do the job for both of them! 

Absolutely get rid of both of them. They both sound like a total waste of time. Find one decent guitarist, it will be worth the wait. There’s no longevity in either of these two players and they’ll only cause ongoing trouble down there line if you try to persevere. Good luck. 

I traded a bass with Will a few weeks back and it was seamless. Great comms (even over Easter weekend) and he paid for a courier to collect my bass as well. All happened as it said it would - highly recommended! :)

13 hours ago, Quatschmacher said:

Source Audio are overhauling their Neuro platform and want as much customer (current and potential) input as possible. See the post here with links to the questionnaire.

 

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/source-audio-sorcerers-society-s-a-s-s-part-3.1056621/page-731#post-27337250

 

@dodge_bass @lee650

Done. 

I just use an FX loop on the pedal board rather than the amp itself. Much easier IMO plus it means you don't HAVE to use your amp all the time - easier for touring gigs or when you might have to share rigs etc. Sometimes I've been told I categorically have to use the backline so if my setup relied upon using an FX loop in an amp I'd have been scuppered.

Ooh. The Ottobit is sweeetttt - GLWTS!

Any trades?

1 hour ago, Quatschmacher said:

Dark horse, had I known that…

Sorry dude!

1 hour ago, Quatschmacher said:

Wait, what? You’ve had a Squeezer all this time and you never said?!

Yeah man - had it for years. Made / tweaked a few good presets for it a while back but it was SUCH a pain to programme that I gave up with it really. There are also no presents knocking around anywhere on line so it was hard to get the best from it. 

On 20/02/2023 at 21:45, Burns-bass said:

This is great…

 

If you are willing, could you sketch out a good 30 minute practice block would be each day.

 

I’ve been a music teacher for EB, so this is all about technique so that I can apply that knowledge to DB.

 

 

Well....this is probably something that needs more than a quick post but I'd suggest:

4 x 7 min blocks - use a timer for each one - short and focused burst of practice will yield a good return in the medium term. Turn your phone off and just be in the moment in the practice room.  Have a minute break between each one and trust the process. Try to practice at least 5 days in 7 - any less and you'll be playing catch up all the time - any more and you risk burn out. 6 days in 7 is the dream I reckon. Make sure you know exactly what you're working on each day before you even turn up to start practicing.

Pick four exercises from the above given and start there. If you're an electric bass teacher then you'll have a sense of how to develop exercises to push you on and how to move on when you need to.  For intonation practice working with a drone Is a good idea, as is one finger scales sliding between each note on one string. There are loads of options but I'd suggest just picking a few and getting started. Recording yourself is also a really useful tool for refection and self-evaluation. As you get into the process you'll start to see what works and what doesn't work and adapt the exercises as required. 

On 08/02/2023 at 19:43, Burns-bass said:

So, I’ve started 2023 with the dedication  to DB I’ve never had before. I am lucky enough to have an hour of practice time at least 5 days a week (I work for myself, and work in a room with my basses in).

 

I also enjoy the kind of stuff people don’t enjoy (playing with a metronome, doing the same exercises etc).

 

My aim is to get out and gig as I used to, so I’m working on intonation mostly.

 

I’m hoping to engage a tutor again, but I’d be interested in how best to structure my practice. 
 

Any experienced DBers care to offer any suggestions?

I'd suggest the following:

Set some medium / long terms goals and then work backwards from there. You want to play in tune? Fab - set that as you 12 month goal and then 'deconstruct' that and work backwards from there. What things do I need to work on to achieve this longer term goal? Folks have given you lots of ideas of WHAT to practice but nobody has really talked about structuring your practice and that's absolutely key. It sounds like you've got regular time available (absolutely vital) and some idea of what you'd like to achieve which is a real start. I've got a 12 month practice diary on my wall (in days) so I can mark off what I'm doing each day and see visually how I"m progressing and what I need to work on each day. Hope that helps - it's a quick summary but I'd be very happy to go into more detail via DM if you would like - I've got 20plus years of teaching and performing and practicing (!) so I'd like to think I've a vague idea of what I'm taking about. Good luck with it all. 

On 02/01/2023 at 16:01, ped said:

Chunk systems Octavius squeezer! And I have one for sale

These are amazing but SO convoluted to use unless you dedicate many hours to them. @peddo you have any presets you fancy sharing...I could be tempted to get back into mine again. 

On 14/02/2023 at 10:01, ped said:

I'd also suggest the Crowther Audio Prunes and Custard - it only does a couple of sounds, but it can sound amazingly synthy. No tracking or latency and because you can blend in some clean mix, and because of the way the filter reacts, you can accentuate certain parts of baselines which poke through the synth sound. It's so natural to play and hugely responsive to touch.. play super light and it's a warm 'whomp', dig in and it splutters.

 

Quick demo here

 

 

TASTY

Oooof

Any trades?

On 18/01/2023 at 07:33, Quatschmacher said:

Definitely read the short manual. This thing does quite a lot of cool stuff.

 

https://kinotoneaudio.com/ribbons-manual/

Lush. And somewhat pricey before import taxes. BOO. 

Any trades?

12 hours ago, Dan Dare said:

As dear old Ian Dury put it, a sense of humour is required amongst the bacon rinds. Lighten up, peeps.

I don’t think anyones getting particularly heavy, just chewing the fat (bacon rind) on an interesting topic is all. 

I too love this film. There’s a bunch of transcriptions on my website for those who haven’t got the book mentioned.

I didn’t get it first time but second viewing in a decent home cinema setup and I was like ‘hello, listen to the bass…”. Dunn is a killer player - he says so much, often using very little. I always compare his (mainly) crotchet and quaver approach with Jamerson’s 16th note approach and how they both work, in very different ways to propel the music along. 

39 minutes ago, TimR said:

 

You may never be called to play like that. I haven't in 40 years of playing semi-professionally in pit, jazz, function and originals bands. 

 

I mean you'd never audition for a funk gig if you don't play funk music well, and if you liked playing funk music, then you'd be able to do those things. It's self fulfilling. 

 

Triplets are something that trips up a lot of people.

 

How are your 'internal' dynamics, that's not just playing loudly or softly for a whole bar, it's placing accents on individual notes and paying attention to note lengths. A quarter note can be played legato (sounds for the length of the quarter beat) or staccato (sounds very short). Muting is another essential technique that separates the amateur/beginner from the more advanced player. 

Slightly tangentially - there’s been some really interesting posts from Ed Friedland recently about the role of a supporting bass player as opposed to a ‘superstar DJ’ bass player (all bells and whistles and looks great for 30secs on Instagram) and how important that is. Lots of food for thought about the differing roles of a bass player (and making money from it!). 

16 minutes ago, Fishfacefour said:

It's telling though that there are literally zero bad comments about Newcastle in this whole thread. 

 

Shsss! Don’t tell everyone or they’ll all want to move here 😂

52 minutes ago, lownote said:

Maybe we could open this out.  Are there some places that are more - or less - magic, and others that are ghastly s***holes? Or is everywhere a bit of both depending on our personal experiences? Personally, as discussed, I adore Newcastle, my missis loathes Sunderland based on having to live there, and I loathe the whole of Devon based on personal experiences. But I like Warwick, and Norwich is nice, but Ipswich isn't. Is it possible or even sensible to generalise? Maybe not. And not least because places change with the years.

Perhaps…though given the thread is titled somewhat specifically ‘Newcastle’ perhaps generalising could be moved to another thread?!  

1 minute ago, bass_dinger said:

 

And that is why I asked the question....

 

Surely if he can do it, why do others of us need to practice, learn music, study chord charts, and nurture a good attitude?

 

I guess that Sid V had a short career in a single band that was more about attitude, and less about the technical aspects of the music. I would say that he was primarily a professional entertainer, and not so much a bass musician.  

 

 

 

 

Try rocking up to any musical situation bar a sex pistols cover band with this lack of ability….

12 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

Hmmm. The estimable and worthy qualities outlined over the previous 4 pages of this thread are all well and good, but this fellow made a living out of playing the bass...

 

 

Indeed. This Q was posed about 15 years ago to me in a different context about the meaning of ‘professional’. If you’re in a band that’s making enough money to make a living then it doesn’t matter how good (or in this case bad) you are. For the most part though we’re talking about freelance musicians who aren’t in a single band and therefore need a range of skills to make money from a range of different musical situations. 

And if you wanted a skill set / job description for being a professional musician you couldn’t go wrong as a starting point with:

Musical attributes:

- Good understanding of the genres you want to work in

- ability to read music

- ability to read leadsheets

- good ears & ability to play from memory / off chart 

- strong sense of time (!)

- ability to work with a click 

- ability to improvise / create own bass parts (not necessarily soloing though that’s definitely a bonus)

Non-musical attributes:

Good reliable gear

Driving licence & a working car

Flexible 

EXTREMELY reliable and good at diary management 

Very good and setting goals and organising yourself (practice / preparation)

Excellent communication skills 

That’s a quick blast off the top of my head after 20 years. There will be more 

19 hours ago, TimR said:

Flexibility.

 

I meet a lot of amateurs and semi-pros who need everything mapped out and organised to the nth degree. Parts rehearsed to death. Set List written down a week in advance. Where's the parking? What size is the stage?

 

Music isn't like that. Playing live you have to be ready to improvise to react to changes when it goes wrong. Being on stage is no place to be if you can't cope with that.

 

I do meet the odd pro like that but they're good, really good, and people smile at their eccentricities. 

I sort of agree and disagree with this point at the same time. For me (pro player of 20years) I know if somebody wants a good job then part of that is being organised. So if they can provide a set list (and maybe parts or, leadsheets or recordings in advance) then I’ll take them so that I can be as prepared as possible. The result is that I can then be as flexible as possible on the day because I’m not asking basic questions like ‘what key’ ‘or which version’ and don’t have my head buried in the music. If a booker is like unsure of what the gig is, what the setlist is etc there’s a high possibility that it may be crap and therefore worth avoiding.

So for me being super organised / prepared whilst being ready to be as flexible as necessary on the night are two sides of the same coin rather than at odds with eachother. Ive worked for 20years successfully and nobody has EVER complained about me being too prepared or knowing what I’m doing on the bandstand