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BillyBass

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Posts posted by BillyBass

  1. I'll give this one a 6/10

     

    My favourite tracks are 'We are Young' and 'No Say', & 'You're the Light'.  If the rest of the album had have been to this standard it would have got 7-8/10 but I found a lot of the stuff in the latter part of the album left me a bit frustrated in that I wanted the songs to take off a bit more and they didn't.

     

    I haven't listened to their first album but I imagine that if I saw them live I would be tapping my feet more than dancing.

     

    I see that signed to Kill Rock Stars, which if you are a Post Punk fan, you might have heard of.

    • Like 1
  2. 36 minutes ago, HMX said:

    I’ve never been to a bass bash but would love to attend, if I can. We’ve got a handful of a lovely 10 month old so I wouldn’t be there for the whole day. Do other folk stick around for just a couple of hours?

     

    If I came I’d be bringing my rather unexotic duo of MIM P bass and Silverburst Sterling Ray 34. I don’t have an amp, only a Nux preamp.

    Do come!  I'll have a go on your Ray34, please.

  3. I've recently put a set of Rotosound Nexus black coated strings on a P bass.  I'd had the set for ages, I bought them to try out but was a bit nervous about me picking the coating off.  Reading a bit more it seems it doesn't matter if the coating comes off through picking as the benefits of the coating are gained from in-between the core and the wrap, not the outside.

     

    My first impressions are really positive.  They are matt black with different coloured silks, so that is a plus.  These sounded good brand new; I really don't like the sound of rounds before they are broken in and these don't have that initial glassy brittle top.  The coating feels very slightly sticky.  If you like flats then you might not like this but I don't like the slippery feel from flats and the black coating feels quite grippy.

     

    My initial thoughts then are positive.  Just like my preferred NYXLs, they sound good brand new and I found a few sets for about the same price as the cheapest NYXLs.  So over the next 6-12 months I'm going to be comparing these two different strings on my basses to see if one stands out.

     

     

  4. 48 minutes ago, taunton-hobbit said:

    I used to live on the outskirts of Wycombe, this is adjacent to a massive council estate (probably mostly sold off) & close to Downley Common, it's been a lot of things in its life, would be nice if Wycombe could 'grow' another music venue.

     

    😎

    I don't know High Wycombe or Buckinghamshire at all, but looking on a map, the Bricklayers arms appears to be right at the edge of town, next to countryside/farmland.  I arrived after dark and departed after midnight so I didn't see much.  Maybe if the council estate residents were keen it could happen but the landlords will have to a bit more marketing than just leaving our poster on their front door.

    • Like 2
  5. We had a paid rehearsal last night.  This was at the Bricklayers Arms, High Wycombe.  Everyone was in the pub for the rugby, so we decided to start our first set as soon as the match finished.  It was all going well until about three minutes from the end when South Africa overtook England.  The atmosphere in the pub vanished and at the final whistle most people packed up and went home.  We ended up playing to 5 people, or 7 if you count the bar staff.  If England had won it would have been a different story.

     

    I've never been to this pub before, our singer, who is local-ish, said he thinks they are trying to set themselves up as a music venue.  I got the impression this was a bit of a country pub and everyone there could walk home, so not much footfall.

    • Like 2
    • Sad 6
  6. My punk covers band has started to diversify a bit and some of our newer covers I prefer to play with fingers.  We are going to add 'Are you gonna be my girl' by Jet.  Apparently, the Jet bassist used an Epiphone Jack Casady with a pick in the studio for this song, whereas he uses a P bass with pick for their other songs.  There is a distinct bass tone  tooth's song which certainly isn't P bass with rounds.  Watching live videos of them, he uses his P bass but doesn't replicate the studio version's tone.

     

    I'm not going to buy an Epiphone Jack Casady for one song or put flats on one of my basses but I can get close to the tone by using fingers, in a certain way.  Close enough for a covers band at least.

     

    I play most of our set with a pick: Sex Pistols, The Jam, The Damned, Green Day, Undertones, Buzzcocks, UK Subs, The Ruts, Kaiser Chiefs, The Clash, Motorhead, Hives

     

    I feel these songs work better with fingers:

     

    Hold your Hands Up - Reef

    Are You Gonna be my Girl - Lenny Kravitz

    Pump it up - Elvis Costello

    Get it on - T-Rex

     

     

     

  7. 8 hours ago, casapete said:

    No pressure then Billy!

    I just hope you enjoy the gig - we’re a theatre show so play most of the hits from ELO in 2 x 50 min sets.

    The venue has a bit of a sports hall feel, so we’ll do our best to warm it up a bit! Our sound guy usually

    does a great job, so hopefully it should be a good night.

    Cheers, Pete.

    I'm looking forward to it.  ELO are one of those rare bands that have so many great songs that you could do 2x50 minute sets full of crackers and have plenty left over.

     

     

    • Like 1
  8. On November 4th, myself, wifey and my cousin are off to see @casapete's band 'The ELO Experience' play in Stevenage.  My cousin once travelled to Dublin to see ELO, he loves them and we are all looking forward to this.

     

    Though gigs are a bit like buses.  Jah Wobble is playing in Camden on the same night.  Shame I can't be in two places at once.

    • Like 2
  9. Merchant City Music in Glasgow have a few Reverend fivers for sale.  String spacing at the bridge is 19mm and the one I tried in August had a good B string.  I love the looks but they aren't everyone's cup of tea.  

  10. On 13/10/2023 at 15:25, Woodinblack said:

     

    It used to be. But then it depends where you are buying from, if you happen to be taking a trip to one of the states with no sales tax such as Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon (or alaska, but a long way for a bass!), it can be worth it, assuming you don't get caught out, in which case it is likely more expensive.

     

    Not sure I understand the logic of carrying an empty case out, for one it will probably cost you more in bagage and for a second, who is going to make a note that you went out with a case?

    Is it possible to avoid paying sales tax or get a refund if you are taking the object bought abroad?  Like VAT in this country?  

  11. 4 minutes ago, Leonard Smalls said:

    We supported Original Punks, 999 at a cosy little pub (The Victoria) in Birmingham. It's probably about 100 people max allowed in! 

    Unfortunately, I had The Cold From Hell (first for years!) - I'd got over the aches'n'chills and was on the dribbling and feeling a tiny bit less duff stage. I even wore a mask in the car to make an attempt at protecting 2 of my bandmates who were getting a lift from me, though who knows?

    Anyway, deliberately arrived only half an hour before we were due to go on as it was line check only, after we finally managed to get the previous band off stage (they took forever unplugging a guitar and bass, possibly to to over-refreshment) and found a space for my Markbass 4x10 with Crown PA head (firing across the stage!), plus a little niche for me, my Wal and Helix to stand in, we could get going. And despite the venue being tiny, and everything mic-ed/DI-ed up it was not too loud (unheard of!) and sound was great both on and off-stage. Cheers Mr Soundman! I was also very pleased with a new patch I'd made with some GK drive and Ampeg sound in parallel and mixed with a spot of reverb compressed both front and back end - it cut through beautifully and I managed to get far more of The Funk into our songs than usual (normally, as the sound is an overloud unholy mess there's no point!), which was nice!

    Crowd were very appreciative, though being mainly Original Punx Of A Certain Age too there wasn't much dancefloor action.

    Still, we sold some merch, and one of the CD buyers insisted on us all signing it. Fame!!!

    Sneaked off immediately afterwards making sure that everyone had congratulated me for being a brave soldier, to discover that the Hagley Road was closed, meaning teh quickes way was via M6, M54 and Much Wenlock, probably 20 miles extra. But rewarded myself with a rather fine dram of Ludlow single malt whisky.

     

     

    ChokedBham999-12-10-23.jpg

    I saw 999 (and the Lurkers) a few times back in the day. They always put on a good show.  I would feel honoured to support them.

    • Like 2
  12. We played at the Fox and Hounds, nr Watford, last night.  Small but appreciative crowd, particularly after the football had finished.  Like most of our gigs recently, the crowd gets more enthusiastic as the night goes on, no doubt helped by beer, and for the last few songs people start dancing.

     

    This was the first time I had taken the Reverend Decision P out for a gig; I love this bass.

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    • Like 16
  13. 2 hours ago, TimR said:

    We have 2 separate what'sapp chats. One for general chatter, setting up gigs, arranging practices and choosing new tunes. 

     

    The other just has details of gigs we are playing. This means no searching in the main chat and we can delete past gig messages. It stays very clean and empty except for upcoming gigs. 

     

    1 hour ago, philbie said:

    That's a great idea, we have one whatsapp chat and it's mostly full of total drivel tbh so hard to keep track of important details. 

    We have three.  One for gig bookings, one for song related stuff and one for everything else.

    • Like 2
  14. 4 hours ago, casapete said:

    Our upcoming gigs over the next few months, ( although we’ve just heard that the Carlisle gig has been 

    cancelled due to problems at The Sands venue regarding the concrete structure of the building.)

     

     

    IMG_3446.jpeg

    I have a family member in Welwyn Garden City that loves ELO, I think the two of us will be going to the Stevenage gig.

    • Like 1
  15. 2 minutes ago, binky_bass said:

    Not as colourful as your lot though. Not had an 11, but I did have a 13 string at one point! 

    13 string!  More of a portable harp than a bass.

     

    I'd love an ACG but I just couldn't take them to the Dog 'n' Duck for a gig.  Maybe when I retired I've got lots of spare time I'll buy one to noodle with at home.

  16. 1 hour ago, binky_bass said:

    Not quite as rainbow-ish as yours @BillyBass, but mine are quite a colourful bunch!

     

    20230601_154910.thumb.jpg.cf574b3b4f4a9087d32e7cf4950c716e.jpg

     

    There are some serious holes in your collection there.  Where is your 11 string?

     

    But seriously, bloody hell!  Those two ACGs in the front row🥰  That's an amazing collection.

    • Like 1
  17. 21 minutes ago, odarellmc said:

    How does a tuner substitute a pre amp? 

    It isn't being substituted for a pre amp, read it again.  I needed more space on my pedal board and I was hoping to replace my existing pre amp with something smaller.  In the end, I kept the pre amp and swapped the tuner for a smaller model. 

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