AdamWoodBass

[quote name='chardbass' post='652596' date='Nov 12 2009, 01:13 PM']IMO when he plays like this he isn't a bassist- he's a musician/composer expressing himself through a (modified relative of a) bass guitar.[/quote] My thoughts exactly. People bash Jean Baudin for playing a 14 string bass but he doesn't actually describe himself as a bass player anymore and when your bass has a greater range than a grand piano I suppose you aren't a bass player anymore!

I think the key here is to expect to be messed around. Its not just amatures, I've worked with pros that have been less organised than some bog standard pub bands. The thing is music and business are two seperate entities and its very rare that a good musician is also a good businessman and a good organiser. I suppose you have to look at your expectations of that particular band too. For example if it is primarily a "session" gig then you should basically be expected to turn up either early or at least on time, nail everything note for note, get paid and go home. If it's an originals band looking for a deal you should basically be expecting to shoulder a lot of the burden of the band and also expect that there will be weak links ie people who can't be arsed to pull their own weight. I've done both situations and I've been in a signed band. I have to say that on the whole I prefer the session situation which I've been doing for the past 4/5 years. You don't have to get involved in inevitable band politics, you can charge a minimum fee and as a bonus you can protect yourself with a contract, plus more often than not you get to play with some really good musicians.

[quote name='endorka' post='651839' date='Nov 11 2009, 06:04 PM']Perhaps it is best listened to without the visuals. Jennifer[/quote] I agree with this to be honest, I have listened to it without watching the vid and I still find it amazing. I think what is probably most staggering to me is that he's spent so much time figuring out how to create these tones with harmonics by using different tunings. It blows my mind that essentially he is constantly playing in a different tuning which in all honesty is testiment to just how good a musician he is.

No words needed: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eTBc7aWBGw"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eTBc7aWBGw[/url] Anyone seen anything else like this? If so post it up here! Ad

Had a similar thing ages ago with my left wrist after I'd done 2 sets on a 6 string bass. I'd never played one before and was considering buying one so I borrowed one for the gig. My hand was obviously not used to the width and got fatigued pretty quickly, didn't help that most of the stuff I was playing was around the Low C. It cleared up after a couple of days but a drummer friend of mine told me it was a warning sign to RSI and told me to make sure I stretch properly before I play. +1 to everyone who's said get it checked out, muscles and tendons can be quite complicated and tend to do odd things when they get tired.

Similar amp story. I was doing a function gig a few years ago and I'd borrowed a bass amp for the gig as mine was at another venue cos I was playing at a festival the following day. Plugged it in, strapped on the bass, started playing, lots of blinking lights on the amp indicating it was getting a signal but no sound! I started checking all the volume controls and checking it wasn't muted etc but I couldn't find anything. After about 10 minutes of scratching my head I was starting to freak out thinking that I'd broken it so I called a sound guy over. His first word to me were "this might be the problem mate" and showed me the speaker lead that I hadn't plugged into the cab! Pretty embarrassing considering it was a dep gig and I was trying to impress the band leader in the hope of getting some more work!

Seen this vid before and it still raises the question "erm... so what exactly is his main instrument?!" I bet he can paint fine art with his toes and do really hard sums!

Yeah stick it to the man! Great vid Si! I actually quite liked them when they first came out, very catchy with pretty cool lyrics. It's nice to see that they know the label are trying to push them into the commercial world but they're still trying to persue their own musicality.

Talk about pitching problems man! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rV4_c10Lano"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rV4_c10Lano[/url]

Did a gig for Blue Peter a few years ago, our footage didn't make it into the show though which was a pain. It was a pretty odd experience having steady cams thrust into your face! We got treated like celebs by the BBC though which was pretty cool. Nice little green room, loads of catering, private parking and a bunch of techies who set all our gear up for us and packed it down again! Got a Blue Peter badge too which was a nice touch!

[quote name='munkonthehill' post='642028' date='Oct 31 2009, 05:22 PM']I can honestly say I will never be a part of anything like that again.[/quote] The sad thing is though dude you probably will without realising it! The ammount of times I've said that and ended up doing a similarly badly organised sham of an event after I was told it was gonna be the gig of the century! I think the lesson on this is you have to take each gig as it comes, at least thats what I try and do nowadays. Try not to have an expectation of the gig, that way if it's amazing it'll be a nice suprise and if it was crap you won't be too bothered about it. You do the crap gigs because you can't do a belter of a gig every night but on the night when you do rock the house you love it that little bit more! Adam

[quote name='alexclaber' post='638875' date='Oct 28 2009, 10:40 AM']What you need is an epic gig throne of doom.[/quote]

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='638828' date='Oct 28 2009, 09:56 AM']Anthony Jackson only ever plays sitting down and he ROCKS![/quote] I was just thinking that! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXT07AnkYRE"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXT07AnkYRE[/url] I don't care if he's sitting down, thats bloody cool! Actually I heard James Jamerson used to lay on the floor in the studio!

[quote name='doctor_of_the_bass' post='638834' date='Oct 28 2009, 10:00 AM']Absolutely! I recall a function gig we did down south somewhere with a dep guitar player (pro of course) - he turns up with a Peavey Rage practice amp with no channel select footswtich, no FX etc and a 50p lead - he kept having to bend down and press the channel button! What a berk! Needless to say he never got called back...[/quote] Like I said make sure your gear's up to scratch! Also another point I thought about which may have been mentioned before so apologies if it has; when you're going to a gig/rehearsal make sure you actually know the tunes you're going to be playing! Just sacked a guitarist for these reasons. He turned up 3/4 hour late to the rehearsal with a guitar with shoddy electronics and didn't work properly, an amp that wasn't his and he wasn't sure if he could borrow it for the gig (he didn't actually own one!) and had only bothered to learn the songs that he actually liked on the set list which was 3 out of about 26! And to top it off, he came up to me after about 3/4 hour of fumbling his way through chord sheets and said he could only rehearse til 9pm and had to go, he'd only turned up at 8.15pm!!! We did the gig without a guitarist by just rearranging some of the tunes and it went really well! Needless to say I won't be calling him again!

[quote name='crez5150' post='637075' date='Oct 26 2009, 05:02 PM']Weddings mate..... [/quote] + 100000 Best way to bring in a living as a pro. You earn upwards of £100 a gig usually and in the summer months you can probably get pretty regular work. Also look at the cruise ships, you can usually get an audition with P&O or Ocean Village etc fairly easily and the money is pretty good. It's a good way to get a guaranteed amount of money for a certain number of months. Most of the time you don't have to pay for anything other than your beer (and to be honest if you're doing 2 shows a day you probably won't drink much!) Be prepared to live pretty frugally though mate as it's not easy to budget when your main income is gigging which by its very nature is sporadic. A good side earner is teaching, look into private lessons but also look into the peripatetic route (google it lol!) Make sure that your gear is up to scratch too, don't skimp on things as you'll only pay for it in the long run when it lets you down. You don't need a boutique rig and a Fodera to be a pro but you do need to make sure you have reasonably decent quality equipment. And I suppose my last piece of advice is get registered as self employed and learn how to do your taxes, once you get the hang of it you won't need to shell out loads of money for an accountant to do it for you. I wouldn't really regard myself as a "pro", more a working musician but my aspiration is to one day be able to "go pro". Hope this is helpful and best of luck to you mate. Adam

I've wanted a Markbass since the first time I tried one which was ages ago when they first came out! Problem is when money's tight you have to shift you existing rig in order to pay for one! I will get one though eventually, I just can't seem to find anything I don't like about them. I was even more impressed when I borrowed a CMD 121P to do a gig. I just couldn't believe that something that small was producing that much sound! They would definitely get my recommendation for any working bass player. I know of a bass player who works like Tombboy and gets the train to gigs. He just has his bass over his shoulder, a bag of music books and stands etc in one hand and a Markbass combo in the other and he's set for pretty much any gig!

Played a couple of 55/01's and loved them, they have a bit of a marmite body shape though. A few of my mates have said they found it quite uncomfortable to play while sitting down but I suppose the easy answer to that is erm... stand up?! Monstrous Low B which is always nice and plenty of tone options to keep you busy. I'm always gonna be a jazz bass fan but I just have my own issues with Fender, I just think you can do so much better for the same money. Why not try a Sandberg California? I've played about 6 of them now in different shops and they've blown me away everytime. Amazingly well built and sound the gonads plugged into just about any old crate of an amp. They're also very consistant basses, tone wise I mean. There's nothing they particularly excel at, they just tend to be really good for any kind of tone. Very tight and defined Low B as well which is the most important thing for a 5 string. Obviously a wee bit more expensive than the Lakland but I think you'll find it's worth the extra cash. Just my 2p Adam

De Grey Rooms in York, 3 flights of spiraling staircase. Not fun at all. If I rememeber correctly though the money was quite good. Cinnamon Club Manchester, dead easy. Straight through the double doors at the front and down to the stage plus the liklihood is you won't have to bring a PA. If you're playing upstairs though it might be a bit of a pain as the stairs looked pretty narrow last time I was there. Chester Race course is pretty easy too. There's probably about 3 different venues you could play there but 2 of them are straigh in the front door no steps and the other has a lift. Nunsmere Hotel Cheshire, really easy just straight in the front down the corridor and turn left into the restaurant. There's probably a load of really nasty ones that I've done but I can't remember them right now.

Thats a really nice tone you've got going on there mate, that would be a really good studio bass I reckon. Nice and clear. The bridge pickup sounds a bit Wooteny which can't be bad considering the total cost! Good job mate.

I'm gonna go with Stefan Lessard from Dave Matthews Band. Reeeeeeally underrated player. Everything he does just seems to be so well thought out. Miroslav Vitous doesn't seem to get much of a mention anymore. Awesome player. I love Avishai Cohen as well and again people don't tend to mention him when talking about really good jazz bass players.

Interesting thread this. I personally love the signature but I don't have an educated opinion here as I've never actually played a KS. I do love the sound of them though and I would love to see what they're like to play. Hopefully gonna be popping down to London soon to see some friends so I should get a chance to have a plonk in the gallery. Hadrien is an absolute inspiration to me, someone about my age with probably 100 times the musical knowledge I have. In my opinion that deserves a standing ovation. The guy is one of those few players I would refer to as being "gifted" and good on him for being so outstanding that he's landed himself with a KS Sig! His sense of harmony is just on another level, I'm convinced he either has four brains or he is infact a top secret goverment superhuman bass playing experiment who escaped from a secure facility in the middle of nowhere! I bet he can do really hard sums as well! If he is on the forum and happens to stop by this thread I say good on ya mate, just keep up the good work blowing us away.

I've given up on bass mags, the content just started to get less and less interesting and before I knew it I was stood in Borders thumbing through Bassplayer and BGM and I might as well have been reading NME. I used to have a subscription to Bassplayer years ago but I cancelled it when I used to pay for 12 issues and get maybe 4 half decent ones. I also noticed that the mags got much thinner but stayed the same price.... hmmmm!

Didn't he study with Jack DeJohnette and Dave Holland when he was really young? Kind of explains why he is "a bit good". Git!