dmccombe7

Yep must be a bass player thing as i'm the same but i accept that if we go down well and we have a lot of dancing and feedback at the end is good plus we get rebooked then we are doing something right. Dave

Bit varied for me as i progressed thru bassists and music styles. Geddy Lee since 1976 Glenn Hughes Deep Purple era Richard Sinclair from Camel era Jeff Berlin from Bruford era

I think its only during daytime from 7am to 7pm but don't quote me on the times. Dave

Having used my Godin for the last few gigs i've done with both the Glam and punk bands i decided to go back to my VM4 as my back was aching a bit with the Godin even tho its only 0.5ibs heavier. I just love that VM4. Its so comfy to wear and the neck is an absolute dream. It just makes life easier on the road. Love the tone from the Godin tho, it has that warm P sound with the J pick up giving it a nice bite but if the weight's going to be a problem i'll be sticking to my Sandbergs. Pity the Sandberg didn't have the Godin tone and i could possibly have the perfect bass. Before anyone suggests it i'm not someone that changes pick ups on a bass altho i have considered it with the VM4. Its probably just me that notices the difference in tone anyways. Audience won't spot it. Dave

Last 2-3 times i played there the sound engineers were poor but they were straight out of Uni. Had all the theory but no practical experience and working under pressure. We also had some electrical issues with the mains causing loud buzzing on valve amps at one side of the stage. Plugged into the other side of stage and was fine. Weird one as i expected them all to be on the same ring mains ? We also had the front multicore box failed last two times i was there. It just needs a bit of money spent to get it back up to a decent standard again. I think covid hit it quite badly like many venues i guess. Those road works were there the last time i played there which was not long after covid lifted. Also along the street under the bridge. Glasgow is becoming very much like most other large cities and just making it difficult to access for gigs. Lot of bands won't play Glasgow or Edinburgh because of it all ULEZ, Bus Lanes, Parking restrictions, roadworks. Jings i've become Victor Meldrew in my old age. "I don't believe it" As long as the gig went well for you that's the main thing. Dave

Played there a few times and the SE used to be first class but he retired and lately the people they've brought in haven't been up to the mark in our opinion. Hope you didn't go round the buses only lanes on that street. The restricted lanes are a pain in the a** and when trying to find venue you get easily distracted and miss the many many signs on that street. We've decided not to play there again for those reasons, sound isn't great and parking and traffic management is a nightmare. Shame as it used to be one of the best rock venues in Glasgow. Dave

Great stuff Michael. Love it. Dave

Get yourself an 18" gym fan. They work a treat. We have 3 of them, drummer, myself and our female singer using them. Guitarist and male singer don't like them, it blows their hair about You can either position at each end of the stage and just creates an overall air flow across the full stage or position for individual needs. I personally need one because of that wig i have, its long and very thick.............no pun there, honest !!! Dave

First time for us in the Bridgeness Club in Boness with BLOCKBUSTARZ Glam band last night. Another sold out gig for us which is always nice. Early load in at 4pm doors opened at 6pm. Started at 8:15pm finished at 11:30pm with a 30min break in the middle. Easy load in as emergency sxit was next to stage and cars were parked on roadside next to it so that was good. Long narrow club house with a large dance floor that we had dancers most songs 1st set and full for most of the 2nd set. Asked back for next year, feedback was great. Odd one as another Glam band that i used to be in was in the Boness Town Hall but that obviously didn't affect our ticket sales. Easy drive home with little or no traffic on the country roads. Used my Sandberg VM4 into Handbox WB-100 and Mesa 210/115 cabs. Sound wise i could clearly hear the low end but not the top end. Had to boost the top end a bit more than normal. Guitarist at half time told me he had same issue and noticed the bass top end was getting lost in first half. Singer had issues with his IEM and ended up taking them out. All in all tho the sound out front was excellent according to my wife who attends all my gigs. Lots of vids being taken but no pics as yet. Dave

Great pic of the band. Quite like that. Dave

Jings you must be thirsty. Dave

I never really got the non-alcoholic beers thing. Probably down to the taste of barbican to be fair. Dave

I'm at an age where i just don't miss or need it when gigging. To be honest i've always had strict views on drinking at gigs and when in my 20's it would be one beer before the gig to calm my nerves and then a bucketful at the end. No driving in my early 20's as i had no car licence until i was 26. Dave

a banana ? Having checked my facts its 22mcg/100ml. Altho we have a "zero tolerance" it can't be true zero because of what you say that some foods and things like mouthwash will have alcohol in them. I think what they mean is that one beer or one spirit could in theory put you over the limit but its not exactly very clear on the website. Dave

Don't risk it up here with zero tolerance. Any alcohol showing and you are done. Dave

Were you over the limit with one guinness and a JD sauce ? Dave

Its a thing i've never done. I've never smoked and always found it disgusting so i guess i was never tempted into it thru smoking unlike many guys i knew from back in 70's who are now sadly long gone thru escalating drug misuse. Dave

I remember when i first moved into our village i was down at the one and only pub at Hogmanay and after the bells the local Bobbies came in, had a look around , had a wee dram each and left. Was breathalysed once during day at a road side stop where they randomly picked people to stop. I hadn't been drinking night before so was ok but that was way back in late 80's. I've been stopped in middle of the night when attending call outs for work but guys were fine when i explained what i was doing and where i had been. Was just a routine stop and search, i was pleasant enough to them and they responded same. For me i thought "at least they are doing something" Pretty sure that its a zero tolerance limit up here in Scotland, not sure about rest of UK. I very rarely drink these days and i'm happier drinking bottled water at gigs than beer. I've mellowed with age. Dave

I went for a Volvo V90 estate but it was pure luck that i could actually fit the QSC 3-way 15's PA cabs as well as my 2off Mesa cabs etc. I didn't buy it with that intention but its saved us a lot of money on van hires. Dave

I was and still am the van driver. Not sure why i've always seemed to be left to do any van hire. Possibly because i've been retired in recent years and had more time available. In late 80's/early 90's we had our own Ford Cargo truck that i usually drove. To be fair i really enjoyed driving the truck. Current bands use our cars for most gigs these days. I carry the bass rig and larger PA cabs and drummer carries the smaller PA and his drums and lights etc. Our Glam band stay so far apart across Scotland that its not practical getting one vehicle for a gig. When we need the subs for larger gigs we hire a van tho and it comes off the fee that night altho its usually just myself and drummer that use it as we live approx 25min apart and for most gigs he goes past my area but guitarist lives approx 100miles from me. Singer is approx 40miles away. Dave

Some people can just visualise in 3D. I find it fairly easy packing a van yet others in bands just don't get it. Maybe its all the puzzles i did as a kid. Had one band member who would not stack any gear in a van. We had to hire LWB vans so that nothing was sitting on anything else. Talking the heavier stuff like cabs, PA, flight cases etc. Things like gig bags etc he was ok with whereas i'd have hired a smaller van and just double stacked and secured to the side. If you pack a van correctly things shouldn't move about but its definitely an art in its own. Dave

Had exact same with punk band in fact it was SLF that was playing locally too. Fortunately they were doing a late Sun afternoon slot finishing at 6pm and we were due to start at 6 so we agreed with landlord to move the start back an hr and we might pull in the SLF crowd and yep we did. Bar was full that night and we did a few SLF covers. Everyone wins. Dave

I've been asked a few times over the years but its not something i do. Because of how my wee brain has been trained in an engineering background I simply don't retain songs. I spent 40 yrs sorting faults and just moving on from one fault to the next, no time for sitting back and examining the faults in details. Gas plants and profits were dependant on me sorting faults ASAP and i've found since starting in bands again in 2012 my brain now does that automatically. When a song is dropped i completely shut it down and forget it. If someone asked me to play a song we've dropped in past 6mths i couldn't play it without going back over it and re-learning it again. I think if you are good at depping you need to have a huge repertoire of songs that you can call on. I know some guys on here can dep at the drop of a hat and play in a variety of styles and i am always taken aback and amazed at them with a huge respect and envy. Perhaps you should advertise yourself for depping work in your local area. I see that done on FB and other social media. Dave

Never heard of those strings. Will need to investigate. Dave

I tried Low Tension flats on my VM4 and i really liked them but they didn't really suit the music i was playing plus i found they burned my wee dainty fingers if i slid from lower frets to higher ones so decided to remove them. Depending on your style of playing i would certainly give them a try. Dave