dmccombe7

Not so much a gig tonight but more a set the gear up and sound check for tomorrow nights gig for the drummers 65th party in his mates house. Its a large 8 bedroom sleeps 22 house with function room, swimming pool, sauna and games room. He lets the drummer use it for "special parties" and the owner has a large outdoor BBQ and Pizza oven. Tonight after setting up we had home made pizza's which were amazing. Both the Glam and Punk bands playing tomorrow night so the stage area was a bit busy. Got the punk sound check done and dusted and as soon as the singer arrived from Glam band we did the sound check and ran thru 3-4 songs. Its funny how quickly a band that gigs regularly together can adjust their own sounds and volumes to suit an unusual gig very quickly. After the first verse the balance and tones were sorted but we did 4 songs anyways. Only doing an hour set each band tomorrow night so that will be good fun. Tonight had a small audience as people are staying from Fri to Sun so maybe around 20 folks in including the house owner and his wife. Used the Godin Crafter classic bass tonight for both bands into my Handbox WB-100 and Mesa 210/115 cabs. I had forgotten how good that HB amp sounded. Warm, deep and clear sounding too. The Godin boosting the depth with its amazing solid deep pick ups. Was considering selling the HB and tonight was going to be its last gig before i advertised it but now i'm not so sure. The tone was spectacular. The Godin having very hot passive pick ups too meant i could push the HB amp easily into valve distortion giving it a really nice edge when hitting the strings hard during the punk songs. Think i might just keep the HB as it sounds wonderful matched with the Godin bass. Will update you all Sun on the actual gig tomorrow night. Dave

To be honest i did ask what the band thought of the tone with the flats but the guitarist was the one who spoke his mind. I'd rather have an honest opinion in a band than to remain silent. The guitarist is no longer in the band. (his choice i have to add) Dave

I put Low Tension Flays (i think they were LaBella) and quite liked the tone but guitarist wasn't so keen so i went back to my usual D'addario nickels. It obviously doesn't have that top end zing but it made the Glam songs sound very studio like and it reduced any string noise to almost zero. I'm now using Elixir nickels. Dave

On one occasion we had 2x1hr slots so that meant cutting a fair few songs out of our 2:45 min set. We left out Slade mainly because the singer struggles with them a bit. At the end when we got to the encore we did the usual extended encore medley and the shouts continued with we want Slade so we did a Slade song as the last song and we've kept a Slade song as a final encore ever since providing the singers voice is ok. On the longer sets where its up to us to decide when to finish each set we'll just play the full list of songs. That all depends on the audience and if they are up for a full party night. I think the longest we've done is almost 3hrs at a Xmas party night. I was absolutely knackered after it wearing all the Glam gear incl the wig and wearing platform boots. Sweating like .......... well you know and legs and feet aching with those bloomin boots but i loved every minute of it. Dave

Its an odd one cause its the same drummer and female singer in both bands so why the punk band doesn't have a song up its cuff for an encore has always surprised me but if suggested we do a song for an encore in both bands then that song ends up in the set list and we just do it leaving us with considerably longer sets than we need or venues expect with no encores to do. With the Glam band we always keep the last song as the encore and the singer will announce this is our last song knowing we have one more to do. We always seem to get asked for an encore but in the rare occasion we dont he'll ad-lib his chat and announce something daft that by special request or because you've been such a great audience we'll do one more song. Wearing all the glam gear etc with those platform boots and wigs does make it difficult when finished as we sometimes need to walk thru the venue to get to our changing rooms so we will linger a bit at the end like you say put the bass on the stand and put the amp on standby to see what happens. I totally leave it up to the main singer to make the call. Dave

In the Glam band we'll do up to 2 encores depending how long we've been on stage and if venue time allows. Think the most we've ever done is 3 but that's our fav venue and we need to ask the owner if its ok to do another. He's usually up for it so that helps but he runs a Rock night club upstairs directly after the band so it cuts into the DJ's time but he's ok with that too. In the punk band we generally don't do an encore and if we do its usually a song from the start of the first set. Dave

After a gig i open a bag of peanut M&M's for the drive home but i like the Red Bull and Yorkie idea from @Gasman When i get home its coffee and 2 tea biscuit dookers and like @TimR if local kebab shop open its a cheeky wee donner kebab to be eaten when i get home another 8 miles up the road. (country living means takeaway food is usually a bit cool when i get home so i have to pop it in the old microwave for 20-30secs. Happy Days. Dave

WOW that's a bit of a blow but well done the 22 yr old and wishing you all the best with the gig. Dave

What Kramer basses do they have ? Nothing on the website ? Dave

Well done. 👍 Dave

Not exactly a big set list to learn. Sure you'll make the right decision for you but keep us posted on what happens. Dave

Appreciate it can be a bit daunting but as mentioned before its an opportunity of a lifetime plus it will get you noticed on the circuit a lot more than down the local pub. I'd give it serious consideration. As for learning the songs quickly you'll find once you start it will come quickly. Dave

Do you mean Horse & Jockey ? Dave

Is that the very young drummer. ? Played in a band years ago with Jack called George's Kitchen named after Jack's dog that he always left in kitchen when he was out. We've kept in touch since 80's. Incredible guitarist and a pure showman into the bargain hence his Zep band. I went to one of the jam sessions but it was too busy for me. Couldn't move anywhere. Its well attended and quite well organised for different bands. Wee Ted should consider it as he's a legend in Wishaw. Dave

I mentioned it earlier. Its never your fault. That's why bands have drummers. 😂 Dave

100% this

I did say aim high but realistically i'm happy if we have a completely faultless gig I'll accept 1 mistake, 2 means punishment with the lash and 3 well you might as well pick up your jacket on way out. I jest of course. I think most bands will aim high but we won't achieve it every time. Dave

Whenever i make a mistake i just turn round and look at the drummer. Takes the pressure off me. Is that not why we have drummers.........to take the blame for all mistooks. Dave

We have an approach that if a mistake is made we carry on and if after the gig the person realises they made it and it was just a senior moment then job done. That's just human error and can't be helped. It doesn't need the band have a rehearsal to rectify. It just means someone goofed a bit and knows it. We never have a mistake where we are wondering WTF happened there. I think as long as the band are aware what happened and its not the norm then its sorted. Please don't get me wrong either and as a band Yes we make mistakes during a gig so i'm not saying every gig i play is spot on 100% perfect but its what we aim for. I don't think many bands will have a faultless year of gigs. Certainly not me. Dave

Yep that's where i've always been. I've always aimed high. I hate to hear a band make a lot of obvious mistooks. I feel embarrassed for them. If i notice then others will too. I wouldn't go back to see a band that makes a lot of mistakes. Dave

I aim for perfection but i know we'll never achieve it but i like to think we can get as close to as possible. The higher you aim the better the results for everyone. That's my theory anyways. I'm well aware that we will always make mistooks at a gig but hopefully the better you are will minimise the outcome. I'm so full of theories, others would call it something else but that's a different theory altogether. 🤣 Dave

As long as the amps are well-built, reliable and come from a reputable company the country isn't a main concern for me. Mesa's quality control is one of the best, they use top grade components and for me that should mean reliability and less chance of something going wrong. I saw it in my first Mesa gear an Mpulse 600 that was approx 20 yrs old when i bought it 2nd hand and it has never let me down other than a crackling pot that was a simple skoosh of cleaner to fix. Everything about it just said quality. The new SW cabs i bought 3 yrs ago are the same. Solid well built cabs with speakers that can take anything i can hit them with. That is what Mesa means to me. Reliability, quality and one of the best tones i've ever had. Expensive ? YES but you get what you pay for in life. The TT800 i originally ordered 3 yrs ago was £1150 and now £1550. The WD800 from £1150 to £1299 which i don't quite understand but the TT800 is the amp i've been trying to buy for some considerable time and if that means paying more then i'm ok with it. I have to admit i'm a Mesa fan and love their gear. I associate quality with Mesa. Dave