ambient

I know a few people who play them. I’m assured by them that they’re fantastic instruments.

If the original songs are good and fit with the general vibe of the rest of your set, then it shouldn’t matter. I’d never heard the song I’ve got - rather annoyingly - going round in my head at the moment until five minutes ago, when I heard it on the radio. It is apparently the new single from Jake Bugg, and sounds quite different to his previous songs. Just because someone hasn’t heard something before, it doesn’t follow they won’t like it.

I quite like the badges.

Why is it named after a rather dodgy area of Birmingham?

It’s certainly ‘different’ isn’t it? That’s the politest thing I can think to say about it. It’s a creative bit of recycling though, could it be something knocked up on that ‘money for nothing’ programme, using a canoe paddle and a bit of wardrobe?

I owned one briefly whilst at uni. They’re really nice, very well made instruments.

That’s fantastic. Good to put faces to the people who aren’t replying to my emails.

Another VAT rule came into force from July 1st, with the removal of the €22 VAT exemption for imports. This is affecting quite a few small labels and artists, selling CDs, vinyl, cassettes etc into the EU. Whilst the VAT on its own isn’t a big deal, it also attracts a handling fee from the import country’s post office. I sold a cassette and a booklet last week to someone who was charged an extra €20. Consequently he won’t be buying anything else. There’s a few people I know who have been similarly affected by this.

Just a follow up to this. The shop rearranged the delivery themselves - obviously something they should have done much earlier so that DPD didn’t make a wasted journey. I am however still waiting for my refund. They’re punishing me by not refunding me until they absolutely have to because I opened a PayPal dispute. The shop in question is Craig’s Music in Bodmin, Cornwall. They sell through eBay and Reverb. Their customer service is absolutely appalling.

You could approach your local school or music hub for a recommendation. Make sure whoever you choose has an enhanced DBS check.

I had percussion lessons from him at ICMP. He is fabulous, and such a nice guy too.

DPD have tried, they also notified the shop by text and email giving them a delivery slot. If it wasn’t a suitable time then all they needed to do was change it via the text/email, rather than buggering off home.

PayPal. That was my concern too. I mean, if you get a text and an email from DPD telling you to expect a delivery between 3pm and 4pm, you’d wait on for it, or use the text/email to change the time.

Exactly. Plus I don’t have the information that he’s been given to be able to rebook. I’m not convinced that what I bought wasn’t actually faulty, it didn’t perform like the one I tried in a shop, or as people had described to me. I emailed them telling them that and received a very flippant reply. I’ve emailed them anyway, telling them that they should rearrange the delivery so the time suits them. I’ve also told them I’m not standing for being messed around.

I recently ordered a bass rig from a music shop, sadly I didn’t like it. The seller agreed to me returning it which I’ve done - at my expense. I used DPD courier service, I’ve used them previously and always been pleased with their service. They sent the shop an email and a text to let them know the date of delivery and the expected time slot. Despite that they weren’t there when DPD turned up. DPD have left a card, and sent a text message and an email with details of how to rebook. I sent them an email when I realised what had happened, politely asking them to contact DPD and arrange a new date/time. They've replied telling me it’s my responsibility to do that. I’ve never in all my time of buying or selling encountered that. It’s always been the person the item is being delivered to that’s rearranged delivery. Am I right with that?

I did one a few months ago organised by a small independent label. It worked fine. It was nice seeing the live comments left by the audience. It was just me solo with a MacBook and a bunch of midi controllers. I used my iPhone as the camera. Logic Pro makes a great performance tool, I used Soundflower to connect Logic to OBS.

That’s exactly what I’ve just found too, I just got a quote direct through DPD’s website.

I was looking at DPD. There’s a small combo and I’m returning an amp head and a cab (separate parcels) to a shop. Booking through Parcel2Go the insurance adds £40 to the total cost.

I have a few items of equipment to send. The total value is about £900, I’m always wary of posting expensive items uninsured, it’s quite a lot of money though. I came across this company and wondered if anyone had any experience of them? https://www.secursus.com/en-gb/

I think you’ll be fine with those gauges. My high C is a .028. I’m pretty certain I used a .020 gauge for a high F - my 7 string was an overwater 35 inch beast of a bass, I never encountered any strings breaking. Just tune slowly. This is one of the great things about extended range instruments, there’s no right or wrong.