BassAgent

I made a bit of a crappy demo for the Origin:

Added the fretless De Gier Origin so everything had to go on the sofa again: And there is one more bass on the way but that could take a while.

As of last week I own two fretlesses again: De Gier Origin fretless and my trusty 17 year old Fender MIM Standard fretless with Lollar pickups.

So here’s a story: on the Dutch bass forums someone linked to a De Gier fretless that was for sale on Bassic.de for a pretty good price. It was just before I went on tour to Germany, so I thought: let’s check where the bass is located. It was in Schwandorf, about an hour’s drive from Nürnberg. Now on the first leg of the tour we weren’t going to be near there, but we were going to play Nürnberg on the very last night of the tour. However, we’re touring by train so going to Schwandorf was going to be a bit of a hassle. I sent the seller a message asking if he’d be prepared to come to Nürnberg, so I could check out the bass in my hotel. His first response was “sorry, that’s too far away”. Hm. I really wanted to check out this bass. So I offered to pay his petrol and put him on the guest list for our show, while simultaneously checking out what it would cost to rent a car, in case he said no. And then I got an email: he was coming to Nürnberg! I felt sooooo lucky. He came to my hotel room to check out the bass. Amazingly friendly guy who told me the bass once belonged to Karel Gott’s bass player. Gott was a Czech singer whose state funeral happened two days ago, when we were in Prague too🤯 So here it is: my new De Gier Origin, serial #020. Padouk body, maple neck, spalted maple top, cocobolo fingerboard, Bartolini pickups, Aguilar preamp. It sings like nothing else, the low B is insane. I’m in love. This is one of the few basses that can compete with my world class fretless Jazz.

Update at the end of the tour: I flew to Vienna with the bass in a Hiscox hard case and it was totally fine! 😊

Hahahaha that would be an awesome trick to pull! I've arranged my bass to go as "special luggage" and can borrow an SKB Bass Safe from a friend Wheels!

I'm in Amsterdam, so that might be a bit of a hassle Luckily I found a friend who has a Hiscox case that I can borrow.

What do you mean "asking for trouble"?

Hmm yeah but what to do if the airline refuses the bass? Oh and we're playing in Palac Akropolis Not with a UK band (I'm Dutch) but I'm playing with Svavar Knútur, a singer/songwriter from Iceland.

So I'm going on tour to Vienna, Prague and Nürnberg this Thursday and I had a choice with the airline: either buy an extra seat (which would be kinda expensive) or check it in as "special baggage" for a smaller fee. I did the second thing and now I'm doubting: I have Mono M80 gig bag (the classic one) and I think the bass will survive, especially with the string tension off. I have to do the other gigs by train so carrying a big flightcase might be a bit of a hassle... Are there people here that have experience with flying a bass in a Mono gigbag or something similar?

Tomorrow: Jeff Berlin here in Amsterdam. I'll be interviewing him for my podcast! Let me know if you have any questions.

So a couple of months ago I've started a podcast called "Basgasten" (Bass guests in Dutch) in which I interview well-known Dutch bass players about their career, gear and influences. In the coming few months I'll also be interviewing some international bassists, starting with the bass player for one of my favourite bands: Wilco! I'll be talking to John Stirratt this afternoon, the episode will be online in about two weeks. Got any questions for John? Want to know everything about the new album? His gear? Let me know

Have fun this weekend people! Don't forget to check out the stand of Roks Instruments: a young, Dutch luthier. I reviewed one of his basses for De Bassist (Dutch bass magazine) and they are bleedin' awesome.

Here's a 20 minute live video of Tyranni Flock!

That is possibly the perfect beginner rig.

Somehow in that photo they look like they're made out of pieces of old floor.

This, you mean? Yeah that's pretty awesome.

I started on the perfect starter bass IMO: Yamaha RBX-270 And a Crate BX-25 amp. I think. I'm sure I started on a Crate but I can't remember the type. This one looks like the one in my memory.

There are many, but one colour or other kind of finish on a bass must be your favourite. Mine, for example, is Olympic White:

I'm now at seven. It used to be ten at one point, but seven is fine. For now. -1966 Fender Jazz Bass Original except for the frets and the finish. -1971 Fender Precision Bass Original except for the frets, the bridge chrome cover and the finish. -2013 De Gier Bebop 5 Custom built for yours truly. First Bebop ever with dot inlay and neck binding. -2018 Dingwall Combustion 5 Trans White Played this bass at the 2018 LBGS and now I have it. But not before Yolanda Charles played it. -2002 Fender Standard Jazz Bass fretless Lollar pickups, epoxied fingerboard, Gotoh 201 bridge, black pickguard. Best fretless I've ever owned and probably ever will own. This bass is made for me. -2001 Blade B2 Tetra Bass Nordstrand pickups, Aguilar OBP-1 preamp, otherwise original. Amazing 70's sound that feels great. -2001 Yamaha BB N5II My second bass ever, tuned EADGC. Will never sell this.

Here's how it sounds:

Patitucci is also an awesome guy to listen to if his music isn't your cup of tea. I have seen a clinic by him, Brian Blade and Danilo Perez (Fellowship of the Light Trio) a few years ago and JP is a calm, inspiring guy who is excellent in explaining tons of musical ideas and concepts.