NickD

Having said that.... I'm not sure asking bass players if there's too much bass is the wisest idea! 🤣

I think it needs that kind of bass to move it along. It's totally appropriate to me, and I daresay it could have stood for a little more without a problem.

There's little wrong with the current crop of 5 string jazzes, but you're looking at 18-19mm spacing, as with a 4 string. That's my preference anyway, but basses I've not got on with because the spacing is tighter, would probably be closer to what you're looking for neck-wise. Ibanez SR are 16.5, and the necks feel fast and skinny, Warwicks are the same as standard (except the broadnecks), but adjustable to about 17mm at a push. Spectors come in about 17mm too.

I found it hard to choose this month, but that was a great tune, congratulations! 😎

Thanks all... I'll take a look at these after work!

I'm a fan of the Tascam GB-10, just because of it's flexibility. It's tiny, pretty easy on batteries, pitch change, tempo change, tuner, overdubbing onto tracks, etc. The effects aren't particularly great, better on guitar, but I use it for playing along with tunes mostly, or recording rough takes on acoustic recordings to send back to collaborators for feedback, so I don't really use them. I mostly do what I do at the computer nowadays, but as a portable, all in one solution it's great.

I'd appreciate any recommendations for the above. I'm throwing demos at my drummer at an alarming rate at the minute, straight out of Cubase in WAV, with a click put on and any drum tracks I've cobbled together removed. These are then downloaded to the Ipad, auxed in to an electronic kit and used to develop drum parts. What we're after is an app in which we can either open or upload the tracks, and vary the tempo without changing pitch, so they can be slowed down to get the parts together, then worked up to tempo as you would learning a part against just a metronome. Free is good, but paid is fine for something good. Ease of use is the most important thing here. Ideally it would work with wav files, but I guess I could run the tracks through an online converter for other formats if neccessary. Thanks in advance! 😊

I'd echo that. Seeing as I'm sat WFH next to it, this is the Mrs kit, set up pretty much as her acoustic kit, so she can move seamlessly between the two.

Sorry to hear that. Here's hoping for the best. My brother works in a pattern shop and over the years there has been a number of hideous accidents, usually involving mangled hands, most of which had a much better outcome than the initial carnage suggested. He himself had to have tendons reconnected after an incident the left his fingers curled uselessly into the palm of his hand. That didn't look good for a while, but after the surgery and a period of recovery (ie, doing what he was told), everything is largely back to normal, with no significant loss of function or strength. He's a climber, so finger strength is important, and he still kicks my a$$ when we climb together.

You did post the track though.... Like a Duane Eddy bass part at the beginning.... but then it went!

It was nice to be able to turn it up, so to speak. Our walls are paper thin so any demo stuff I do at home is practically at whisper level, and sounds crap. I think that was part of my apprehension. Getting into the studio and being able to go for it a bit... well it wasn't perfect, but it was 10 times better than I'd expected it to be from the demos. I've started practicing in the car on the way back from dropping the Mrs off in the mornings. I must look like a loon.

Thanks Phil, I'll take a look!

Odd, It worked for me the first time, in the browser, but now I'm getting the same error!

I can imagine it's pretty critical when you're doing something at a 'Sting' level too. I did scour the internet for do and don't lists before the first session, and took it really easy. Water throughout the day and tuna salad at lunch. Even then, my voice was fecked by the end of the day... Luckily the last track required some distortion on the voice anyway, or I wouldn't have got away with that one. I think it's fair to say I was terrified the couple of days preceding it, but I find I'm now really impatient for the next one (which due do all the postponements at the studio isn't until the 3rd week in Jan), and I hope that's a good sign.

Actually, while I'm obviously joking, that is an issue... When you're not used to singing, if it doesn't come naturally to you, there's a nervousness, almost an embarrassment, that totally closes your throat. Even just in front of a friendly, supportive producer, and one bandmate, there was a hesitancy, that manifested itself in a physical way until I got into it and relaxed. Back in the mists of time, I probably had something similar with bass too, but that was less exposed.

Only if you promise not to laugh! 🤣

That's what I'm going for. Trying to get something across, to communicate... to compensate a bit for my ignorance.🤣 A lot of my favourite singers aren't what you'd call great singers, but there's something special there. Of course I do love to listen to great voices too, but still there's got to be more than just that (like Sting for example, who seems to have it all). Hopefully, through the recording process I can develop, and find a sound that's ours, I plan on lots of harmonies so I won't be completely naked. Given everything else I have on, lessons aren't really an option atm... I just need to find one teacher on YouTube that doesn't make we want to punch them!

I have little to offer, as a complete chancer, but I'm watching this thread with interest in the hope of becoming more competent. I've always copped for BV duties over the years, but nothing that required any finesse, but due to not really being in contact with any good singers, and not having much of an appetite for auditioning random folk, I've been pushed towards lead vocals on our new recording (that we're just putting the vocals on now). Against me, I have a voice that I don't particularly like, there's not really anything bad about it, I can do in time and in tune as long as I stay within my fairly limited range, but there's nothing particularly notable about it. I also have no real knowledge of singing or mic technique. In my favour, our producer is IMO a really good singer/guitarist in his own band, runs a busy studio so gets to see a lot of singers of varying quality, and is good at giving quality advice and support (as I found out on our first vocals session). Also, while it's not an issue yet, I find that as long as I've learned both parts well independently, Playing and singing together doesn't seem as hard as I thought it would be. Also, because the songs are mine, they mean something to me, and hopefully I can get that across.

Oddly, I labelled this months tune 'Hip Hop' (though it's probably not), and the scammers seemed to come in faster. I guess that's a more popular genre than Patagonian Nose-Flute Space Jazz.

They're talented people these influencers, they can tell if a tune is ground breaking, earth shattering stuff without even listening to it!

Ha... Awesome. 6 likes, and 2 offers of assistance in world domination from producers/influencers/ bloggers.... from a grand total of 2 listens!🤣

My entry for the Basschat November Composition Challenge inspired by the picture chosen by Upside Downer, co-winner of last month's comp (along with Dad3353 & xgsjx). *** Hope I can get let off here... Soundcloud says it's 5:20 long but it's not, it's 4mins 50 secs. I had to re-do the fade, but when I've uploaded it, the whole time between the locators has been included. There's no sound at all after 4:50.*** Due to being the wrong side of the generational, cultural and social divide, I never anticipated the opportunity to write a tune about 'beeeaches' as appears to be popular nowadays among the yoof, but here we go! I wanted that chilled, sparse Scoopy Dog-Dog feel, but with proper instruments, as that's all I know how to use (a bit). Recorded using my Elwood L for a lighter touch than usual (plus it takes a filter better), and my Vintage V6, both through the Helix. Drums provided by the Mrs, using Roland's 909 sim. Genuine imported South American dogs in the playout! 🤣 My partner has always talked of the soundtrack to her growing up was dogs barking. Apparently, suburban Buenos Ares is awash with them, 24 hours a day. Leave your house, cough, fart or whatever, and they're off for hours.... So I messaged the MIL and asked her to stick her phone out of the window and record the canine cacophony... and she did... bless her! Apologies for all the doggy puns, and the general roughness of it. There's a lot I'd tidy up about it, but I'm up to the neck in finishing some demos, and I'm up against the clock.

The Alesis I got my boy was one of the DM range, and I didn't pay a lot for it....£120 s/h, mint & boxed. The brain is less featured than the Roland, 16 kits IIRC, but the sounds are good solid drum sounds, Rock Kit, Jazz Kit, etc, plus a few crazy African/ Indian/ Hip-Hop type kits. It's responsive, ie, no noticable latency, and has the things you would want like record, aux in, metronome, etc. Maybe a bit light on features, but quality, and useful.

It's the pedal noise and the cymbals that is the worst. There's not really much can be done about the cymbals, but we've got the kit downstairs where the floor is more solid, on a pretty dense rug, with some really heavy underlay under it, and that's minimised it to quite a degree. For our purposes, everything is through headphones, if we were to amplify, it'd have to get fairly loud to make it worthwhile. Luckily the neighbours haven't been round yet, our walls are paper thin and I can hear conversations happening next door... Hopefully their TV drowns it out. Having said that, when reskinning the acoustic kit for the studio recently, just fairly gentle hitting while bringing them up to pitch, in the same room the difference is massive.