T-Bay

Within reason I agree, my other band plays stuff I don’t mind with three or four songs I love in and I’m fine with that. This one is different, she is trying to put stuff like disco songs, Whitney Houston and George Michael in with hard rock/ alternative. I am a punk at heart and that is stuff I grew up despising and in my late 40s haven’t changed. If it comes on the radio it’s an instant channel change. So why would I spend my valuable spare time listening to it to learn it? As a comparison, last night I learnt I believe in a thing called love for a friend’s wedding, a song I have no time for really buts it’s not offensive so could happily play it anyway. If paying the bills relied on playing George Michael and Whitney Houston I would be a miserable individual to say the least.

Is this with or without the Scottish police approved apocalypse grab bag essentials?

Sadly moving the way the vocalist wants would reduce chances of bookings locally, we have had a grand total of two gigs so far and thankfully I don’t have to rely on it for my income. I expected the first 6 months to be gig free but the attempts at trying to shift direction just mean we are stuck in a cycle as she wants to dump stuff we already know which keeps us from being gig ready as well. Your situation as a professional is very different, being a job you have to roll with it to at least some degree. You always seem to be enjoying yourself and you post up some amazing gigs so it’s working for you which is good.

It’s more than that though, one of my bands looks to be winding down. It was started with an agreement on the sort of music we were going to be playing but after 6 months the vocalist started vetoing songs that fitted perfectly with the original genres and suggesting stuff that didn’t (70s disco songs for a band formed to play 80s-90s alternative rock) and the drummer is happy to go along. Everyone in the band is sober reliable and I love rehearsals but the music being suggested is stuff that I hate. A case of the classic ‘musical differences’ I suppose. It’s frustrating as it’s a band full of people I really enjoy being in a band with but can’t see a way to find enough music to fit in a common ground. It would be fair to say that the vocalist was perhaps a little reticent to say what she really wanted to be doing at the start, it would have saved a lot of time if she had though as you need to be honest so people are all comfortable with a project.

I could be imagining this but I sure I remember reading an article in the NME many years ago about about a German metal band (I think) who used to employ people to have sex on stage while they played. I can only assume their music wasn’t very good so they needing to pep the gigs up a bit.

A, but depends on where you are. If you live in the middle of London why would you drive an hour and an half to go to a village in Norfolk? The other way around makes sense.

And another one here sadly, a years effort seems to be going nowhere. And with my other band on sabbatical due to new babies arriving and someone moving I am staring at the prospect of no gigs after playing a mates wedding next month.

That’s a shame, they sound superb.

And thinking about it, the way the pj engages means that if it failed with a bass on then the weight of the bass would prevent the pin escaping until the bass was removed. So it would only collapse once the bass was taken off.

Another sufferer here, Hercules were brilliant and sent a replacement the next day. They asked for a number off a sicker under the bottom, as already said above they had a dodgy batch a few years back. I just stuck a nut and bolt through the old one and it works fine (apart from collapsing down obviously).

Do you know which hot rod ones are the same as the ones you have? The 64, 74 or 84 ones?

I bought one second hand as a backup for the rougher pubs we play/ places I may get a bump or two. It has become my go to bass and being so cheap I don’t have the worry if it picks up a nick or two here and there.

For rehearsal you want it as quiet as possible, no point deafening yourself because the guitarist thinks he is at Wembley. We have had a fight in one of my bands to get to sensible levels as the guitarist would bring a massive Marshall stack despite there being a perfectly adequate rig there.

Back in the UK soon, I have tickets 😁

Warwick reds sound very similar and do last longer, not months and months but a good few weeks.

Rotos used to last me a couple of weeks max, Warwick reds are cheaper and last longer but the set I have on now are dead as anything as yesterday’s gig sadly proved.

When everything comes together the high you get from it is amazing. I love it, the other hassles of being in a band, less so.

Played an afternoon gig at a local mini festival, problems with the electric cutting out locally caused problems before we went on and we followed a band so dire I can’t believe it. A ‘folk’ band in their eyes, just wow, that aside we haven’t rehearsed for a couple of months due to clashes with holidays. No time at all to soundcheck due to delays so it was start playing and adjust on the fly. I was pleased with how I played, overall we were ok but not great. It was only our second outing but nowhere near as tight as the first. Responses from the crowd were incredibly positive. The only thing is at the mo I am not feeling a buzz with this band and don’t know why. When I play with our other band I always coming off stage absolutely high as a kite, and that’s not happening. Some of the possible song suggestions also have me worried. Hmmmm, a mixed one.

I remember waiting for it to come out, driving home with it and putting it straight on. I have never ever been so disappointed in my entire life. I have tried to listen to it a few times over the years but it’s just drivel. Then I listen to Bleach and it all makes sense again. My guess is you are under 35-38 years old, for some reason the 3rd album seems to have a following for those who don’t remember its release much more than those who do, but I digress. And he was no performer before he was a heroin addict, thankfully I have no personal experience of heroin so don’t know whether it would make him more or less introspective. Such a waste 😞

I have one and was similarly dubious but listened to people on here and is perfect. I got it 2nd hand as they aren’t cheap.

I use mine a hell of a lot, set low and ALWAYS on with mild distortion it fills out the bass in a way that really helps in a band with only one guitarist. The only time I use it on its own is for when I play she sells sanctuary with my other band, it just seems to suit it really well.

Dave Grohl is a master at working a crowd by any standards. I watched last night wondering if he had been more to the forefront in Nirvana would Kurt Cobain still be with us (probably not I decided). Much as I loved Nirvana’s first two albums and some other early stuff released later on I never once saw Kurt Cobain look like he was really enjoying himself. Dave Grohl looked like a man who had won the lottery and knew he would win it again and again, night after night for years to come. I am not a super fan and only have a few of their offerings but they are the top pinnacle of the superband at the moment. If you want cutting edge there are loads of bands to look at, rough edges? Again loads including one of my favourites The Idols. I saw Royal Blood in Nottingham last year and was slightly disappointed, they were technically excellent but somehow the gig lacked atmosphere - not helped by the fashion to film a gig instead of bloody watching it. As is increasing the case the BBC sit firmly in the middle of the road.

And if you play a bum note shoot the guitarist a dirty look, always works for me.