Spoombung

[quote name='BassBus' post='533632' date='Jul 6 2009, 11:24 AM']In my earlier post I related my experience of sitting down and talking to the drummer which achieved precisely nothing. That brings me back to listening and bilbo makes a good point about stifling the creativity of others by stating what I want.[/quote] Well, I take your point of course, but I think asking a drummer to keep the beat and not take a nap while the solo is in progress (for instance) is hardly 'stifling' the poor guy's creativity - I mean it's quite handy to know another musician's likes and dislikes before you begin playing with them - that's if you accept you're in a dynamic relationship with them (for a short while) and that expressing a simple opinion about a minor matter won't make them sulk and protest about their creativity being compromised.

[quote name='BassBus' post='533183' date='Jul 5 2009, 06:12 PM']"Musical telepathy"? It's called listening. You should try it some time, it actually makes music fun.[/quote] Oh, you can't always rely on a listening. Talking first means you set some preferences (like [i]please[/i] keep playing when I play my bass solo)

[quote name='Major-Minor' post='531565' date='Jul 3 2009, 12:04 PM']Don't let them take a nap ! Be more demanding! The Major[/quote] What I find very strange among Jazzers is that they are often are utterly oblivious to a gigantic, embarrassing hole opening up when the bass solo starts. I can't help thinking that's because they don't actually communicate with each very well - they rarely sit down and discuss each others likes and dislikes - they try and rely on some sort of romantic idea of musical telepathy instead - hence so much of it sounds characterless or 'trad'. No one wants to tell their colleague they have body odour.

[quote name='bassace' post='531368' date='Jul 3 2009, 08:27 AM']Reminds me of the old joke, which I'll quote very badly, about the married couple who hadn't spoken to each other for the past five years. The went to Relate and in order to break the impasse the counsellor wheeled in a double bass and played a solo. People always talk over a solo.[/quote] If I'm in the audience I always start a new and very loud conversation over the bass solo, if I can.

[quote name='bassace' post='530990' date='Jul 2 2009, 07:48 PM']Doesn't have to be like that.[/quote] Yes, I agree it doesn't have to be like that. The drummer dying during the bass solo harks back to a time of unamplified acoustic basses. Nowadays double basses are as loud as electric basses and I don't think I've ever seen an unamplified double bass - except perhaps at free-impro gigs.

[quote name='Major-Minor' post='530843' date='Jul 2 2009, 05:36 PM']Spoombung - I think you have been watching and listening to the wrong quality of jazz bands ! The Major[/quote] You may be right. My experience of Jazz is largely limited to Thursday Jazz Nite at the [i]The Lord Hood[/i] in Greenwich - which tends to feature swing-Jazz musicians who can play in their sleep (and audiences who can listen in their sleep). I know some of them. They're a terrific bunch but they never ever discuss [i]how[/i] they're gonna play the music - only [i]what[/i] they're gonna play. It always stays the same. But weirdly, that seems to be the whole point for them. It's the culture of [i]standards[/i] - a sought of false modesty and anonymity that always leaves me disappointed. And the (double) bass solos are the most anonymous, the most modest, the most exposed and the most out of tune.

I always enjoy that incredibly flat, anti-climatic moment when you're watching a jazz band and there's a few looks between band members and the bass solo starts. Everything just grinds to a halt. The drummer looks embarrassed and just stops to make way for a gloriously out- of- tune walking bass line... which is nearly always what the bass player was playing under the song, anyway.

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='520462' date='Jun 22 2009, 03:42 AM'](for the record I have no idea who he is)[/quote] Punks always [i]pretend [/i]they don't know in case they're brought before the Punk Gestapo to explain why they have Yes albums in their collection.

Before: After:

[quote name='YouMa' post='517954' date='Jun 18 2009, 11:00 PM']Hmm yes,i dont know why he doesnt just use a nylon strung classical guitar for this one,i still love some of his stuff though.[/quote] It's a very guitary sound all right. I think he has some great techniques (speedy thumbing, dexterity etc) -but if I can offer some criticism - the combination of the hard, clanky sound, combined with his rather hurried timing (which means he misses a lot of his targets)...well I think it makes for a difficult listen. Also if you're looking towards him as some sort of new bass saviour, his tunes tend to move in a curiously traditional, classical, harmonic way and there are few suprises in the way of unusual note intervals and chord progressions. He has bass superpowers - that's obvious - but I don't think I'll be buying the CD. Just doesn't grab me enough and I have to say I prefer his programming innovations which are far more extreme.

[quote name='jmesa' post='517675' date='Jun 18 2009, 06:27 PM']Squarepusher’s excursions as a solo bass virtuoso will be immortalised with the forthcoming release of 'Solo Electric Bass 1', out on August 17th on Limited CD and Digital.[/quote] Well, all the warning signs are there: use of the word ' [i]virtuoso[/i]' '[i]immortal[/i]' and '[i]pure[/i]' -and if that wasn't enough a title that suggests the threat of more to come ' Solo electric Bass 1'

Also, Walter Becker from Steely Dan is an incredible melodic player.

Here's one that most of you won't know about. From the free impro/experimental world, Jerry Bird: [url="http://www.myspace.com/jerrybirdmusic"]http://www.myspace.com/jerrybirdmusic[/url]

[quote name='51m0n' post='512118' date='Jun 12 2009, 01:58 PM']Anyone got a midi file he can have???[/quote] Above ^

[url="http://midi-karaoke.info/213a570d.html"]http://midi-karaoke.info/213a570d.html[/url]

Terrific looking instrument. Congrats

You can't hear or touch anything since they went online. You have to believe in it instead.

[quote name='charic' post='505143' date='Jun 3 2009, 10:38 PM']This was a fair bit lighter than either me or Alan were looking for unfortunately and the amount of coats needed to get a bright colour would have created a risk of the lacquer cracking. So body got sanded (after setting ofcourse), and after Alans hardwork and sanding the body got stained [attachment=26501:Staingreen.jpg][/quote] Er...I'm not clear about this. Do you mean it got lacquered (sprayed) first, then that was sanded off and stained instead?

[quote name='Mikey R' post='502630' date='May 31 2009, 10:08 PM']Kev, I remember hearing some of your playing at the Harrogate bash, I'd forgotten the kinds of sounds you can get. Ive got to say the look of the bass matches your playing style perfectly! Really like it![/quote] Thanks, Mikey. I always think the bass guitar won't do it for you alone - you've got to work on getting a good sound (or an interesting sound, more to the point). And sometimes changing your tuning can be as valuable as acquiring a new instrument. And one shouldn't worry about pleasing everyone....

[quote name='MacDaddy' post='502592' date='May 31 2009, 09:31 PM']So what were the tweaks?[/quote] The bass is back in Mike's workshop being attended to. One or two issues/preferences that should get sorted soon enough.

[quote name='peted' post='502552' date='May 31 2009, 08:51 PM']Wow! I love all those percussive sounds you make in that clip. Very interesting. Have you got any more of your playing available online?[/quote] That's something I've always worked on. You can download all my stuff for free (last album was 2005) at my website.

[color="#FF0000"][size=6]Okay...Here's a Youtube Video:[/size][/color] Excuse the shorts, the glasses, the wondering and unfocused direction of my playing and the rather muffled sound - the result of recording an amp under the table turned the wrong way around through the cheap inbuilt Mac Mic.

[quote name='MB1' post='502337' date='May 31 2009, 03:53 PM']MB1. Congratulations!....the finished bass looks great!.....is it just my imagination...(running away with me?) or is there some kind of alien lifeform pictured in the bodies woodgrain(last pic).....or should i stop smoking these funny cigarettes? [/quote] Ah, yes, I noticed that too!

[quote name='urb' post='499859' date='May 28 2009, 01:53 PM']I hope so for my sake! I really meant what I said though - your bass looks very cool and from the look on your buddy Sean's face while he's playing it, it'll no doubt bring you years of happy service - very cool indeed - now where's my posh Fender copy... Mike PS I really dig the High Lamas[/quote] The smirk on his face is due to the merciless amount of piss-taking going on - Tears for Fears songs and bluesy bass lines! He's a cheeky sod. It's fair to say the bass and bass lines don't figure too much in High Llamas music. Are you expecting a Posh Fender Copy, soon? Is it a Shuker?

[quote name='Mikey R' post='498603' date='May 27 2009, 11:30 AM']Have you uploaded any MP3s of the bass yet? Have I missed them?[/quote] Not yet, but it is my solemn intention to do so (to prove I'm active and not simply a collector - if anything else). The bass actually needs a few tweeks (I'll elaborate later)and annoyingly, I have to try and find time to take it back to Mike ASAP to get it sorted out. I'll post an MP3 soon.