Doctor J

I always keep them short, both right and left hand. Trim every week, no exception.

Is it a tone hole?

It probably gets harder as time goes on but I think it's ridiculous to say there's very little opportunity for 'new' music left. Just because you or I may not conceive it doesn't mean someone else can't. For every leader there are countless followers who don't have that level of talent and imagination. That's why we remember the likes of Metallica, the true creative forces stand out.

Metallica in 2024 would not be playing thrash, as Metallica were doing something new, not their interpretation of music of 40 years ago. However, a band bringing something new and high quality, to the same standard as Metallica were new and high quality in their time, will have a better chance of standing out in this day and age than a band ploughing a 40 year old trough.

But that's my entire point, thrash is a 40 year old music form. It's been done as well as it's ever going to be done. New new music has a better chance of standing out and succeeding as it is creating its own market, genre, audience, whatever you want to call it. It's not another fish in a pond which has been filling up for 40 years. Metallica brought something new as well as something very high quality. A new thrash band might be high quality but they are not bringing new music, therefore it stands to reason they are less likely to succeed in this day and age. A band who create a sound of their own have a better chance of standing out, just as Metallica did. A band needs to not conform to thrash and its 40 year old template to stand out.

And perhaps you're missing mine too. You mention the amount of music out there and you're right, but it's worth bearing in mind that new bands aren't just in competition with the other new bands, they're also in competition with everything which has gone before, such is the current streaming age. If you're playing music of a bygone age, you're putting yourself in competition with those who created the genre in the first place too and you're unlikely to be that good if you're operating within parameters created by someone else and not creating your own unlimited artistic expression. Why would I ever listen to a new thrash band playing their interpretation of Master of Puppets or Reign in Blood when I can just listen to Master of Puppets and Reign in Blood? If a new band came along of high quality who were doing something actually new, I would think it might stand a better chance of standing out and reaching an audience than a regurgitation of something which already exists with a 40 year catalogue of releases to compete against. In a nutshell, by creating something new, you reduce the amount of direct competition. That's what Metallica did in the 80's. That's what Korn, for example, did in the 90's. Would a band bringing something as new and as good as what Metallica brought in the 80's stand out today? I'd say yes. More so than a band in competition with the past.

Interesting comparison, using Metallica. They were pioneers. In the 80's they were pushing the boundaries of music to somewhere it had never been before. Underground bands playing thrash now are pedalling a music form from 40 years ago, one which already died on its arse in the early 90's. What they're doing has likely already been done as well as it's ever going to be. Think about it, it'd be like Metallica copying Glenn Miller and the like in the 80's instead of establishing their own sound in a contemporary genre. How big would they have been then? A lot of what made Metallica stand out was that they brought something which had never been heard before and it was of exceptional quality. That's what made them remarkable to me back then. Can a new band playing old music ever attain a similar status? Personally, I don't think so. No matter how good the quality, they don't have that new factor, just an interpretation of what as already been done and that's why they're in tiny venues. I say this as someone who is often in the crowd at these gigs at tiny venues. Could a band bringing something genuinely new and high quality "make it" these days? I'd like to think so, just don't think it'll be something which has already been done to death for 40 years.

I suppose we'll have to.

It didn't start as an argumentative thread, just a guy expressing an opinion and then a couple of posts took jabs at the poster rather than engage in debate with the point of the posts, no?

Fresh off the press, track 4, The Chicken's Head, is probably the most easily accessible and singalong 😀

If he was just some dude playing bass tastefully, you would never have heard of him. His appeal is doing the tasteless and artistically void. Fair play to him, he found a gap in a very crowded market and made something of it. He's a stunt pilot, though, not the lad who's going to get you to Malaga in an Airbus.

Think of it in the sense that he's an entertainer rather than a musician. He's not making a career out of playing music, as such, but rather using a musical instrument as a prop to show off high-level muscular co-ordination exercises, not unlike a gymnast, say. There's clearly a market for it but just don't let the presence of a musical instrument trick you into thinking it's musical 😉

Pfffff... twice the work if you want to defret it

Three down, on to the next one.

Might make sense to put this info together in the same place

You won't find anything better for 550 quid

Acebassmusic is spot on. You need to know what it is you're looking for in a bass, first. If this will be your first 5er then the principal feature to consider, in my opinion, will be string spacing, but everything plays a part in you being happy with what you buy. Before you spend a penny, understand what type of sound you want, then make time to go to shops and play as many different 5ers as you can to see what you need in terms of string spacing and playability. Only then start worrying about brands and which models can give you that. My favourite 5er was a 04 Bacchus Standard 5... but that's not much use to anyone but me 🙂

Wait just a second... Did Bob Ferrari invent Magnum? 😲

The yellow adds brightness while orange is famous for rich midrange.

Could be that day they ran out of Made in Japan transfers or the person doing the neck that day forgot to put it on. The bass looks very clearly genuine otherwise. There are plenty of pics here to refer to. https://en.audiofanzine.com/electric-fretted-bass/fender/precision-bass-japan-57-reissue/medias/pictures/p.5.html

Name and shame, 100%.

Lovely. I've had three Rays over the years and never even touched a Sterling. They're a very rare bird over here. I'd love to own one. The slimmer neck is right up my street.

Do you have an EMG blend pot as part of the system? There's a part on it specifically designed for you to solder older pickups onto.