Leonard Smalls

I was a big fan of Stump, and bought my Wal not long after seeing them at the London College of Printing many years ago...

In other words: [i]Music was much better in my youth. Nowadays it's just a noise. The kids these days don't know what music is anymore![/i] Funnily enough, as folks have got older and more jaded they've been uttering exactly that sentiment since Guido of Arezzo and his hexatone system involving the Devil's Interval!

[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1492510028' post='3280759'] Bet you are a Derek Bailey fan, aren't you? [/quote] Funnily enough, I tend to like the idea of him more than the practice. Saying that, I went to see him once at the Barbican where he was supporting the crazy trio of Bill Laswell, John Zorn and Dave Lombardo. And he was excellently entertaining! His fellow musicians were a turntablist and keyboard player who spent as much time using his elbows as fingers. 2 of my companions thought it the worst rubbish they'd ever heard, whereas me and t'other one hadn't had so much fun since That Night In Amsterdam. However, I do like this DB album, with Jamaaladeen on bass and Calvin Weston on drums. Allegedly when Mr Bailey walked in Jamaaladeen said "Hey Derek, let's funk!" [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOGdAFxe9_0[/MEDIA]

Music must always have humour... Even if it's only hiding round the back of the drums! And I could never confine myself to playing [I]purely[/I] rhythm. I like bass, in any genre, to at least occasionally, be seriously centre=stage. Probably because 2 of my favourite players are Bootsy and this chap: [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ekyz6IDQlY[/MEDIA]

[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1492365649' post='3279715'] Country music is also a very broad church. How do you feel about that stuff? Elevator music/Kenny G has NOTHING to do with jazz and never has. Come to think of it, on listening to your example about I got the distinct impression that this was some decent players with a sax player who felt like he had to put in irrelevant atonal squawks from time to time in order to be taken as a serious jazzer. Mor smoke and mirrors but at least there is SOME musicianship in there. [/quote] I'm not normally a fan of Both Kinds of Music, though I've enjoyed Hank Wangford's take on it! However, I feel that some jazz fans have a very narrow, and perhaps snobbish view of what jazz is; anything they don't like is sneered at as "fusion" - especially if there are electric instruments, or, the horror! effects... Here's the supremely talented John Zorn with barely a tune in sight, then it gets all melodical. Bit it's about the aural assault, the spectacle, and most of all, the feeling: [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dF5tidRij1g[MEDIA]

[quote name='Mornats' timestamp='1492282678' post='3279240'] I've found that a good range of speakers can help with mixing. [/quote] I use Adam F7 monitors, AKG phones and rubbish Logitech computer speakers, and if I can be bothered to move the laptop, Ditton 66 and Leema Xavier via a Bryston bsst14 amp, which shows any faults down to 18Hz! However, I'm a bit lazy and rarely spend more than 3 hours mixing and try and do all playing in one take. I sometimes have the old BBC make-do attitude of "it's good enough for sport" though I don't often sink to "it's good enough for news"!

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' timestamp='1492273693' post='3279153'] I get this a lot too, the mix sounds decent on the studio monitors, then you play it on something "inferior" like my home cinema system, and suddenly you hear some right howlers! I need to put some rubbish speakers up in my studio for mix checking, keep meaning to get round to it. Monitors and headphones doesn't cover all bases. [/quote] I've remixed it so you can hear the drums... https://soundcloud.com/leonard-smalls/16-choke-start

[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1492074024' post='3277629'] I am so glad to see a lot of what [b]I [/b]think of as jazz in this thread, rather than the usual lame "fusion" stuff that seems to be widdly rock guitarists wearing serious expressions playing everything starting on the "and of 1", prefereably in weird meter and with very little reference to a discernible melody. My heartfelt thanks to the usually silent majority! [/quote] Arf! Jazz is about expression and musicianship, and pushing the boundaries (or not, in many cases!). As a result it's a broad church, and not all of it is to everybody's taste. Personally I can't stand lounge/elevator type jazz as it seems safe, sanitised and designed for people who don't like to be distracted while they eat their prawn cocktail! Each to their own - but this is more my type of thing, though I can see why many would think it unlistenable unmusic! [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKYq4H3-iKM[/MEDIA]

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' timestamp='1492206122' post='3278740'] Great stuff as usual Leonard, got more than a little Primus vibe to that. [/quote] Cheers! And you're right... The mix sounds much wonkier on small speakers than it did on my monitors - and it's worst at the beginning. I think I was too keen to get it out! Still, our drummer's back from hols so maybe I'll re-record using him rather than my own programmes and fiddle with the balance at the same time. Though that's likely to be after the deadline.

I started off with 1 line - "Death From Above", and a slightly Phrygian bassline. Then the guitarist from my newly formed band came round, we had a fiddle and somehow it became our eponymous debut song. As we don't have a singer, and our drummer was on his hols, all those bits are down to me (I have to do everything, me!). So I spose it counts as an entry to the compocompo as that was the initial inspiration! And can I just apologise to those who think there's rude words in it, there isn't though it's a touch suggestive if you can hear it. It's just my diction is poor! And I'll apologise to everyone else because of the racket... Track remixed - look into the future for link!

Our singer used to be in death metal thrashers Arceye... But we're a lot more funky than that - but still rockin'. And I usie my thumb as a plectrum and for slapping, as well as 2 or sometimes even 3 fingers. It's odd, but I can't help myself!

Why thank you! It's all done with smoke and mirrors though... I'm currently wading through; standards seem to rise every month!

Managed to squeeze a short one out... Bit rough but not much time this month! And unusually, I've used the Sandberg. [url="https://soundcloud.com/dredd-and-the-badass-weed/ive-seen-the-light"]https://soundcloud.c...-seen-the-light[/url] And beware, it comes in fast and loud!

Parumpapumpum? [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9kfdEyV3RQ[/MEDIA]

Personally, I wouldn't "check the local market" to see what punters like because I want to play what I want to play; if other folks like it that's a bonus! So I'd look for like minded others, and get them together for a jam. This is easier said than done, especially if you're in a very rural area like I am! I put an ad in our local listings mag - "The Broad Sheep" - for musicians to start a band somewhere between Parliament, Motorhead and Ornette Coleman. I got 1 reply from an appalling singer-songwriter, who was basically looking for an audience to play his "song" to (i.e. me), and from 2 blokes who wanted to start a Beatles tribute band... Now, quite a few years after just writing my own songs and ploughing my own little sad furrow, I happened to put my local village into JoinMyBand, and found a drummer and guitarist looking to form an originals band playing funky metal, influences Rage, Chillis etc. Then quite by chance - during a conversation at the butcher's shop - the drummer found a singer who'd just left a quite well established metal band. He'd left due to being a bored bored of playing straight-ahead metal and wanted something a bit more syncopated. So we're now jamming, and sounding somewhere between Primus, 24-7 Spyz and Skindred! We're expecting to take a lot longer than 6 months to get paid gigs! But we're rehearsing in my garage, so no rehearsal room fees, we've all got the kit and all are very competent indeed. So my advice - at least if you want to play your own stuff - is keep looking, keep practicing, and keep visiting your local butcher.

I use my FX loop as a means of blending the sound of the bass with the sound of the FX. And I'm about to try splitting that loop into 2 with a Palmer fx loop splitter so I can drive chains of FX cleanly, and also blend them with each other and the clean bass if needed. It's all an excuse for extra fiddling and twiddling!

One of my favourites, with glorious Flora Purim bassline: [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trbvx1U6Ry8[/MEDIA] Old Skool! [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63I6XIZ0zp8[/MEDIA] Funky! [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZX-VOcW2Qo[/MEDIA]

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1488725704' post='3251299'] +1 ^ Run for president, Lenny; run for president. [/quote] I'm so tactful I could be the Queen!

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1488724791' post='3251291'] I'd certainly suggest that these monies are being used to pay for things like Trident missiles and submarines. There's an economy that would enable lower rates, I'm sure. T'aint easy, is it..? [/quote] I saw a post recently on Facethingy which suggested that the £100bn or so used to pay for Trident should in fact go to Children In Need, then the BBC could do a fundraisathon for Trident In Need!

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1488716519' post='3251206'] Having owned a shop in the past, the rates was a very considerable overhead. It's like the Council is another member of staff - only that one doesn't do much. They don't even take much rubbish away. You have to take out a contract with a private company to get that done. [/quote] Aye! We pay £9k in business rates plus £8k to a private contractor to take our rubbish away. Still haven't worked out what we get for the rates: the new business help dept were deeply unhelpful, the road to our shop is maintained by Highways, there's no streetlights.

This would be my entry if it didn't contravene just about all the rules! [MEDIA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J1sOQdvudc[/MEDIA]

Lawks! Two very different winning offerings... Didn't think many would take to my rather odd, Trump-based noodling but thanks to all who voted - shame there's not more who do that thing! And congrats to Mr. Fingers - excellent song.

Funnily enough I've just joined my first metal band, and not only are they happy with my Wal, but they don't mind me playing funk and even disco bass lines!

A mate of mine from Frome managed to get in!

[sharedmedia=core:attachments:239255] Wal it Yammy FX7700 used as pre-amp and tuner, into ch.1 of DBX compressor, into 1990 Marshall Jubilee amp. FX loop goes into Bass Whammy, Darkglass tube distortion, 3 Leaf envelope follower and back into ch.2 of compressor. and then amp. Amp outputs into Markbass 2x10 and Precision Devices 15" in ancient Yamaha cab. Sounds pretty big and perhaps a touch weird!