Bloodaxe

A Strange Evening... ...& Bloody Good Fun. OK, this was a hastily arranged gig - not confirmed until Tuesday afternoon - which left no time to organise any realistic publicity. Which meant that bugger all people turned up, & as we were playing for a cut of the door... So I get a lift from the Guitarist (who [i]deserves[/i] the capital G) - Dave Briggs - & we fetch up at 7:30 for "the soundcheck" that duly takes place at 9:00. The soundman then insists on miking the kit up - in a pub that can probably hold 100-odd people max - & takes ages . We hit the stage about 10-ish to an audience of 1) The Staff, 2) a couple of studenty types 3) The drummers' gf & her mate & 4) two very drunk Lithuanian Builders - one of whom appeared to be dead (until he got up & left at closing time - & you [i]don't[/i] want to know about the other one). Heigh-Ho, On with the Motley & that... What a great couple of sets! Brilliant fun - a few fluffs but that's what comes of a dep gig (my last with these guys was back in October). Guitar sounded great (Strat > bit of wire > Fender Tweed Vibroverb), drummer laid it down good 'n' proper, Harp (Steve Matthews) blowing like a train &, even though I say it myself, THE best fretless bass sound I've had to date. Plenty of bottom end, but sufficient middlyness to poke thrugh so that (for once) I wasn't playing in Braille. I could feel it flapping me trousis [i]and[/i] I could hear it even though I was right next to the rig. Superfly + Epi UL-110 + Flite 15 + SB-1000 = Win. Oh & I has a nice new blister from digging in. So, why was it strange I hear you ask? Well... The Montague Arms has a reputation for being a bit odd & it's rightly deserved. In fact, I reckon that since the sale of the [url="http://www.taxidermy4cash.com/potter.html"]Potter Collection[/url] that used to be at the Jamaica Inn in Cornwall, there may not be a pub in England that comes close to it for daftness. The decor can, at best, be described as eclectic & at worst bloody awful. Two stuffed Zebra heads (one in a stagecoach, naturally), misc other stuffed ungulates, a proper alchemical alligator over the bar (stuffed) & a couple of skeletons (one made up as a zombie in a coffin behind the fruit machine - as you do). Then there's the hardware... It's like someone's gone dumpster-diving in the kind of scrapyard that only exists in some kind of post-stilton fantasyland. Portholes, Ships' Telegraphs, an Anti-Aircraft spotlight, Diving Boots, a crossbow, two muskets, more broken clocks & oil lamps than can probably safely exist in one location, yet more assorted bits of dead animals fashioned into "objets d'art", a really crap 6' model of what I assumed to be HMS Victory (but wouldn't be prepared to bet on), another of either the Titanic (possibly) or the Lusitania (maybe) over the bar... Oh, and a really good selection of Proper Beer. I reckon the pub's worth more in scrap value than real-estate. I made the princely sum of £8 (which covered my beer & tabs bill), had a whale of a time, & to top it all the guvnor's loved us and have offered a regular monthly Saturday night slot... Goldsmiths' College is just up the road... Blart, Beer, Blues & the potential for a spot of cash in the nuttiest pub in Christendom... My kinda gig. Pete.

Last-minute pre-have-I-got-everything-panic-&-soundcheck bump. Soundcheck? In Peckham? Onna Thursday? This Bodes. If it'll tempt anyone, I'll have the SB-1000 frankenfretless, the Superfly, Epi 110 & Flite 15. Pete.

[quote name='Mr. Quiet' post='720161' date='Jan 21 2010, 02:41 PM']Bilbo, We knew you were coming, we could hear the tractor miles away Basically Somerset opens for the 8 Pagan festivals each year, the rest of the time we keep ourselves to ourselves I would like to say it is nice to be on a forum with like minded people, that is what I would [i][b]like[/b][/i] to say but........ HeeHee take care all[/quote] Careful, or it'll be the Wicker Man Festival all over again...

Quick bump for the morning people/nightowls. Forgot to say - kick-off 8:30 for 9:00pm (as far as I know) Pete.

[quote name='Netballman' post='718780' date='Jan 20 2010, 10:29 AM']Mmm all these London bass players... we should have a bass party...[/quote] Funny you should say that... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=72161"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=72161[/url] Hunting for a venue at the moment. Pete.

[quote name='Sibob' post='718612' date='Jan 20 2010, 12:07 AM']Bizarre Can anyone confirm or deny these.....I'm a skeptic! Si[/quote] I can confirm, they're 100% hand-selected triple-filtered I've got some Magic Beans too if'n y'alls interested:

I has a pickup gig this Thursday! Venue: The Montague Arms, 289 Queens Rd, New Cross, London, SE15 2PA Straightforward Rock Roll Rhythm & Blues with a bit of Jump thrown in for good measure. £3 on the door. [url="http://www.myspace.com/stevematthewsrazers"]http://www.myspace.com/stevematthewsrazers[/url] Pete.

+ 1 for [url="http://cdexos.sourceforge.net/"]CDex[/url] Another useful one is [url="http://www.formatoz.com/"]Format Factory[/url] - converts a bucketload of media types into a shedload of others. Both 100% Freeware. Pete.

Now, I don't much care for slap, but I remember seeing this on "The Tube"... 3:15 - 4:22 Russell Jackson - woah!

[quote name='Bernmeister' post='715886' date='Jan 17 2010, 06:56 PM']Well, i take my Caps off to him !!!! [/quote] [url="http://www.instantrimshot.com/"]I see what you did there[/url]

[quote name='Hot Tub' post='715010' date='Jan 16 2010, 05:16 PM']Never been a huge Elvis fan, but just listened to the track. Man, I'd love to be able to play that! I reckon even on electric that'd sound amazing![/quote] Works on a fretless beautifully. Dead easy too. This sounds about right - no expression, but the notes are there. It's also in C, I'm used to it in Bb, but once you've got the shape nailed it's segmented urea to transpose it. Pete.

Can't help with a solution, but can add into the "symptoms"... I use a Superfly & it totally blitzes my Freeview box - I'm guessing that it's some kind of digital interference. Is the numpty neighbour using DAB radios? Pete.

[quote name='fatgoogle' post='714882' date='Jan 16 2010, 03:03 PM']Just wondering if any one has a chord progression sheet for fever or were i can find one. Need one for someone to back me on bass while im playing trumpet. Thanks Sam H[/quote] Fever as in Little Willie John/Peggy Lee/Elvis/James Cotton? Fever as in THAT bass part? or d'you mean Kylie? I've got a James Cotton take on it somewhere, I'll have a go at tabbing it out later if no-one else jumps in. It's not that hard. Here's the King: & a rather scratchy LWJ One of those tunes that the bass owns Pete

[quote name='Deep Thought' post='714838' date='Jan 16 2010, 02:04 PM']I'm going to see this on the 2nd! New film about Dr.Feelgood, with a live gig by Wilko Johnson! Sounds like a bloody good night out to me. [url="http://alternative.artsalliancemedia.com/oilcity/cinemas#UK"]http://alternative.artsalliancemedia.com/oilcity/cinemas#UK[/url][/quote] I am soooo looking forward to this!

[quote name='pooker' post='714710' date='Jan 16 2010, 11:48 AM']Hello everyone! Just joined the forum, looking for a bass, advice and a gig! Been playing in bands since age of 13 (now 39), Guitar and Bass. Got a good 15 years solid Bass playing under my belt, and no money. Playing a battered old Aria Pro II (de-tuned to DGCF) thru a vintage orange on a trace 4 x 10. Sounds like a cement mixer full of gravel / wasp in a jar - ideal for filthy punk blues we been kickin out as Butcher, way down in Bristol... However! Moved to London, live in a barge, had to leave the Trace behind.. And, more recently, the band. Have tax rebate in bank, looking for a USA fender Jazz, and a band. Diverse influences - check myspace page when finished (no URL yet). Been looking at a 93 Jazz which has had its pots and wiring replaced, but kept original pickups. Can anyone describe how this may have affected the sound? Cheers Jon[/quote] Welcome along. Questions 1 & 2 - no problem, plenty of good advice, opinions, more opinions, points of view & personal tastes than you can wave a stick at around these parts. You're on your own with getting a gig though - there's a few threads around on "musician's wanted" boards, have a hunt & good luck! Battered old Aria Pro II? Ooooohhh! Details? Pics? As you can see from my sig I like an APII, & I'm not alone. Just rewiring a Jazz shouldn't alter it's essentials significantly if at all if it's straight replacements. The only thing that I can think of that could affect it would be to put lower value pots in, which would allow more signal to leak off starting with the highs. High values (500K) allow more of the pickup signal to reach the amp. Tone control caps have a big part to play as well, anything bigger than a 0.047uF tend to cause "mud" IME. Pete.

01. Essexbasscat 02. Lonestar. Fender 4string Jazz Pervy TL5 Markbass2x10 (not very exciting but they're all I have!) 03. molan - Celinder J4 Update, Zon VB4, Spector NS5XL, Epifani Ul510, Bergantio AE1x12's, who knows what else. . . 04. Jerry_B - Westone Spectrum DX (unless I acquire something I like better before the meet). 05. michael-faces - Probably just a Warrior Soldier bass 06. JackLondon - Simnett MK6 (Should have this month), Ibanez BTB556MP, Ibanez SR305 Fretless, GK 1001RBII, Barefaced Compact, Boss GT 10-B, £X, 40 cigarettes, 07. Stingray5 - Selected basses in my sig pic (Music Man, Tune, Fender, Westone); Trace Elliot GP12 SMX rig (depending on venue); Boss GT-6B; donuts... 08. Paul S - Fender Jaguar, Trace Elliot rig. 09.Waynepunkdude: Fender Jazz, SX P-Bass, 75 JAzz RI Clone, Ampeg SVT5 Pro, Ashdown ABM 4X10, Mag 1X15. 10. MacDaddy. Custom Shuker, Custom Iceni Zoot &/or Hamer Blaze (depending on transport). 11.Thunderbird 13 - Cort CQ4 Zoom B2.1u maybe an Epiphone Thunderbird if anyone is interested 12.JayGarrett (depending on date) - TC Electronic RH450, RS210, and RC4 and one of these if needed as I'll be travelling by tube: Yamaha Attitude Limited, Schecter Diamond Custom 5 or Italia Modulo or even the Mex Jazz fretless. 13. Bloodaxe - Aria SB-1000 Fretless, SB-900, Ashdown Superfly, Epifani UL-110

One tip that turfed up on "another forum" is to start at the 5th fret on the low B (i.e. E) & ignore anything to the left of that fret - kinda like having an imaginary capo. I had/have no end of trouble adjusting to a 5'er, but this method seems to make sense & work *for me*. I'll investigate further after this weekend, an upcoming audition is no time to be experimenting! Pete.

Welcome aboard - Another Londoner, like buses at the moment! Your budget is going to give you plenty of choice, I'd suggest a day out to [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/"]The Gallery[/url] in Camden & go through everything that's within your budget. They're pretty good for amplification too, so that might give you a few pointers. Wunjo's in Denmark Street are worth a look too if you're in the area, they often get some interesting secondhand stuff in & they're really friendly. You might curse your tutor over the Tippex incident, but I reckon that'll pay off in the long run - especially as you say you find it "exciting". At some point in the (hopefully) not-too-distant future there's likely to be a "London Bash". These are great for getting hands-on with a whole range of gear from the mundane to the uber-boutique & having a relaxed social get-together putting faces to avatars. There's a thread on that [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=72161"]here[/url]. We're after finding a venue for it - any chance you could ask the ICMP? Pete.

One of the web's great resources vanished when Tiscali went titzup, but thankfully Graeme Fyfe has found a new home for his stuff... [url="http://www.prog.rockers.co.uk/aria.htm"]http://www.prog.rockers.co.uk/aria.htm[/url]

[quote name='johnbass57' post='712105' date='Jan 13 2010, 11:47 PM']You should have gone to OBBM You should know better [/quote] I won't say a word against him - quality product, great price, sterling customer service & he's a really nice bloke! However, I choose & prefer to make (and use) my own cables. Pete.

[quote name='crez5150' post='711910' date='Jan 13 2010, 08:56 PM']there you go - [url="http://www.neutrik.com/fr/en/audio/210_308361/NL4FC_detail.aspx"]http://www.neutrik.com/fr/en/audio/210_308...4FC_detail.aspx[/url][/quote] Thanks for that.

[quote name='crez5150' post='711862' date='Jan 13 2010, 08:14 PM']you can solder them too. When you buy them you get copper sleeves with the connector to do this with[/quote] Really?! Never seen these! Got a link? I'll admit I've only ever bought four, all Neutrik & all from Maplin - basic 2-pole type. Trouble free so far, so I'm not in a-flustered. Pete.

[quote name='crez5150' post='711742' date='Jan 13 2010, 06:54 PM']Speakon is more secure as it locks in place and also it is now pretty much a standard connection on pro amps/speakers[/quote] Once Upon A Time, in a far-off & strange land (Taunton) I had an ancient WEM 2 x 15" that once spat a 1/4" plug out of its socket (mind you, I think that cab was Cursed - it would pick up Norwegian radio stations as well). Speakons also make it nigh-on impossible to confuse a speaker lead with a patch lead. My only (minor) gripe is that the bodies snap together & the internal connections are secured by screws - I'd prefer it if they were solder connections. Pete.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='711801' date='Jan 13 2010, 07:28 PM']If you buy in maplins, check everything and believe nothing the staff tell you.[/quote] Word.

[quote name='Mr. Quiet' post='711670' date='Jan 13 2010, 06:06 PM'][font="Verdana"]And very spookily, I was born in Plumstead, spent 4 years in Blackheath! So, the balance of the universe is maintained, one moves from Lunnon to Zomerzet, and Sarf Lunnon gets Pete. Happy times Are you gigging up there? Mr. Quiet[/font][/quote] oo-er... Not gigging at the moment, this [i]may[/i] change soon. Pete.