BigRedX

Where's Bilbo?

Hazards of being in a tribute band, and especially if there is another one covering the same artist that is better known.

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1457621384' post='3000244'] Inset handles, Tolex covering & a grill that covers the whole of the front of the cab. You did ask [/quote] I thought the whole point of Barefaced was the cabs are small and super-light. Pretty much everything you want will add unnecessary weight and size to the cab.

[quote name='fleabag' timestamp='1457627587' post='3000387'] Weird looking plank [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We2ORbOVFuw[/media] [/quote] That will be the Epiphone Newport mentioned earlier in this thread.

[quote name='pendingrequests' timestamp='1457626651' post='3000374'] Check with the airline man. They will tell you what to do. The musicians union allows it to come onboard as baggage. If I'm not mistaken? [/quote] Checking with the airline is useless. The ultimate decision rests with the cabin crew at time of check-in. IIRC the MU have got some motion in EU parliament to get the major European airlines to agree to allow musical instruments to be carried in the cabin. However this is still some way off being policy.

[quote name='EmmettC' timestamp='1457624055' post='3000314'] I think it's great they treat their staff well, and they demand is still very high. I still think if I went to a good British Luthier (ACG, Overwater etc) I could spec something very similar for a lot less money. [/quote] But it wouldn't be a Fodera, and wouldn't have all those details that someone who wants a Fodera would expect. That's not to say that any of our brilliant British luthiers don't make great basses, but each has it's own individuality and that should be why a player will pick one luthier over another to build their bass. Otherwise if you just wanted a bass guitar I'm sure that for most people something like a Squier P or J would be fine.

[quote name='Sibob' timestamp='1457616429' post='3000152'] For what it's worth, I think Gus Basses are ugly as sin, and a 5 string variant couldn't look less punk IMHO....... [/quote] So what am I expected to play? A boring old P-Bass? That's such a cliché.

In terms of supply and demand, if you look at the waiting times for a new Fodera they are probably still underpriced.

Can't see what's custom about that. Looks like one of the standard Spear models. And about twice the price they were selling for new in the UK.

[quote name='therealting' timestamp='1457435229' post='2998437'] Just wondering if anyone has tried one yet. I'm considering their smaller-bodied hollowbody guitar from the same range... [/quote] If you are going for one of their vibrato-equipped guitars make sure you try it first. Our guitarist had one for a while and the shallow break angle over the bridge meant that he was forever pinging the strings off their saddles. The problem is that for some reason they've omitted the bar that strings pass under on a real Bigsby unit.

Mine was Polysics playing their one-off UK debut gig in the Bar venue of the Islington Academy. Tiny venue and almost ear-bleeding volume. The two support bands played at far more sensible levels and were all the better for it. The volume was verging on painful but as I expected this to be the only chance I'd get to see Polysics without going to Japan, I endured it. My ears were ringing for days. Of course Polysics went on to do 3 full UK tours and this was just the first of many times I saw them - all at far more comfortable volumes.

I think a lot of the problem is for Fodera is that apart from the ring-yang bass, looks wise there's nothing really special about them. As a bassist of below average ability I can get away with playing my Gus in a punk band because it looks the part, and the relatively high cost of the bass never comes into question.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1457431760' post='2998379'] Would you say that Mustang Sally was the best cover by The Commitments? Just the way it is, I guess. [/quote] I don't have a problem with "Mustang Sally" because I rarely hear it (I'd never heard before I saw the film) and I've never had to play it. It's not really the sort of music I'd choose to listen to or to play but I "get" why it's popular with audiences because it's upbeat and catchy - things I can't hear in "Sex On Fire".

Looking at the photographs again it strikes me that because of the fan-frets the Dingwall has worse upper range access than the original...

[quote name='Muzz' timestamp='1457430313' post='2998349'] Don't ask me, mate, I just play it... Hammered wedding punters love it, though: there's unseemly jumping around and a lot of fun had by the crowd. Every single time... I've very very very rarely seen an originals band (present company excluded, natch ) play to that kind of reaction in a similar-sized venue... It is out of all proportion to the song, though: it's got a big chorus, but so have zillions of other songs... [/quote] I don't play it. I only knowingly heard it for the first time the other week. Even in my relatively brief stint of being in a covers band the question of playing "Sex On Fire" never came up. However we did play "I Predict A Riot" to which I had a similar reaction, although I quite liked the baseline in the verse on that. And I don't think the chorus on "Sex On Fire" is that big. On the whole the song doesn't seem to really get going until just before the end.

Not wanting to high-jack the thread but can someone please tell me what is so special about "Sex On Fire"? TBH I'm not really a Kings Of Leon fan. Their earlier songs were OK if nothing particularly special, but a photo of them in a music mag sporting ridiculous beards pretty much put me off investigating any further. A couple of weeks ago my girlfriend was playing their "Only By The Night" album in the car, and I got to hear Sex On Fire properly for the first time. I really don't get it. It's not the best track on the album by a long shot and not helped by the fact that the two tracks before it are far stronger songs, in terms of tunes, riff and general anthemic qualities. So what's the big deal? Why is a fairly mediocre song by a mediocre band such a crowd pleaser?

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1457427883' post='2998294'] Headstock proportion is still not right - matched headstock would be preferable too as you say imho. [/quote] I'd want the back of neck to be the same colour as the body - and fingerboard in wood that compliments that colour. Just having a matching headstock is completely half-arsed. IMO natural finished neck unless it's attached to a matching natural body makes the whole bass look cheap.

For an originals band I'd be looking to find a songwriting partner first, so probably a singer or perhaps a guitarist. IME it's a lot easier to recruit other musicians if you have a definite musical direction and a bunch of songs already written. For covers I would want to join an existing band that needed a bass player.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1457400811' post='2998211'] The Dingwall Thunderbird. Headstock fail. [/quote] I don't have a problem with it. The fact that the neck and headstock aren't the same colour as the body and the super-tacky looking wooden scratch plate are far worse aesthetic faux-pas IMO.

IME slipping tuners are due to the bearings for the worm gear having worn out and not holding the two gears tight enough together. And I've never seen this on anything other than very old open style mechanisms. AFAIK the tension adjustment on modern tuners simply adjusts how hard (or not) it is to turn the worm gear and nothing else. To the OP are you sure the problem is the tuners? can you see the string post actually turning back when under string tension?

[quote name='thebassist' timestamp='1457389581' post='2998145'] There is no point, I'm just saying. [/quote] No point in what? What are you saying?

Unfortunately there's plenty of time wasters in all the corners of the internet. And that's because it's simply too easy to place or respond to an ad on those sites. Before all these join my band type web sites, if you wanted to be in a band, you had to make the journey into town and visit your local music shop (or hip record shop if they did band ads) scour the ads board and write down the contact details from any ad that looked interesting. Then you actually had to phone them up and talk to the person who placed the ad. Alternatively you could spend an hour going through the ads in the classified section of Melody Maker If you were actually looking for band members then putting an ad together and getting it up on the notice boards or paying for it to be in the music press was another level of commitment.

[quote name='EmmettC' timestamp='1457388172' post='2998123'] Nice, that definitely suits the image of your band, I still haven't found a bass I like that visually suits my alter-ego in my industrial band Metaltech. If I could find a nice 5 string Iceman with a full size body....... [/quote] Born To Rock F4B? [IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n249/BigRedX/DSC02174-1_zps72ba13f8.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='EmmettC' timestamp='1457269325' post='2996852'] Sorry to dig up an old thread, I was just wondering about Foderas and came across this, so when there's guys selling Stingrays for £700 in the marketplace and Maruszczyk are putting out amazing customs below £1000 why do people buy Foderas? Is anyone using a Fodera at a paid gig, like theatre work or functions? I'm not against custom basses, but I play in a function band so my Sandberg and Musicman seem perfect for me, so I'm really interested to see if any other working musicians are using really expensive or custom stuff. [/quote] Do I count as a working musician? My band do about 40 paying gigs a year playing our own material and have just released our first full-length album which is currently getting airplay on 6 Music. If so... [IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n249/BigRedX/BigRedX.jpg[/IMG] That's a Gus G3 5-string. Last time I asked - about 5 years ago - a new one to the same specification would have set you back just over £5k. I bought it because it's a fantastic looking, sounding and playing bass. Stingrays and Maruszczyk might be far more affordable but they simply don't do anything for me and I find Fender basses and their copies awkward and uncomfortable to play.

Way over-optimistic price considering the condition, and not even the added John Birch pickup makes up for that.