BrunoBass

Nick Lowe’s ‘Quality Street’ is a fine album and a great alt Christmas listen https://open.spotify.com/album/4UTDxqtArR8UdDpENv7vHu?si=6snaq7ILSAW8bA-UASiVIg

The Fab Four, the American ‘Bootleg Beatles’. Good fun: A link to the whole album, if you can stand it, is here: https://open.spotify.com/album/0Q7BGWEFYOZo8htFFuPGBY?si=MNQhtOJ4TuOaHX6UALwLsQ

Does anyone know anything about the way that Spotify delivers music to your computer or device, for instance the format and how compressed it is? The reason I ask is that I’ve just released a song on Spotify and iTunes. The iTunes download (yes, I downloaded my own song - I might be the only one who does...) sounds great - really punchy, lively and full. I’m very happy with it. In comparison the Spotify stream sounds good too, although only slightly but noticeably inferior to the iTunes version. Both platforms used the same WAV file, which was professionally mastered. Does the fact the iTunes download is now a file on my device and therefore more direct than a stream coming over a WiFi connection make a difference? Surely being just zeroes and ones there shouldn’t be?

I sometimes dream about gigs, usually if we’ve got something big like a festival the next day. Probably venting some latent anxiety that things will go wrong.

Totally agree.

Depends where the other band with the same name is. We share our name with (at least) two bar bands in the US, and one in Australia. Our paths will never cross, so no problem. A couple of years ago a band formed in our hometown with a name almost identical to ours. They knew of us too, but refused to change it.

Well my intention originally was to release it digitally only, and it was only someone asking me if I was doing a CD that got me thinking. If I did do a CD it would a small run which is why I questioned how viable it may be. I’d sell (well, try) some at any gigs I do but I think most would be given away for review or to radio. As I think more about it the less I think it’s worth doing, for me. I can’t see the point of doing anything half heartedly so I’d want a quality cover / case and I think that combined with pressing costs probably prices me out of the equation.

Great thread. I’d been aware of my band for a while as they were prominent on the local pub circuit, and I liked what they did. At the time I was doing my solo singer-songwriter thing, and whilst I enjoyed doing it (and still do) I was feeling the urge to pick up a bass again (at that point I hadn’t played bass for a few years) and get into a gigging band. As luck would have it I saw on the band’s Facebook page that their bass player was retiring and they were looking to replace him, and relaunch with a new name. Despite my hometown’s relatively small population and fairly tight music scene I didn’t actually know any of them. I did know the singer’s girlfriend though, so I went to see them at what turned out was their bass players last gig, and I got her to introduce me to the band. It turned out they’d auditioned a few bass players and had kind of settled on one. I was really up for joining though, and I managed convince them to give me a go. They gave me three songs to learn and a week to learn them. At this point I didn’t actually own a bass guitar or an amp, so I took a load of stuff I wasn't using to PMT and traded it all in (plus a bit of cash) for what I needed. I learned all three songs quickly, and then looked at their set list on their Facebook page and learned about thirty songs. A week later I auditioned, we played the three songs they’d asked me to learn, we played some of the extra songs I’d learned and then we went for a pint. A couple of days later the singer rang me to tell me I was in. That was summer 2015 and we’re still together. We’ve lost another member in that time so we’re now a three piece but we’re playing and sounding better than ever and next weekend we play our 76th gig (since I joined). We have a good local following and I’m still enjoying it, for now.

Yes. Awesome indeed. They were great live too.

It seems a true One Hit Wonder, by definition, is an artist that’s had one UK number single, and then nothing else. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_one-hit_wonders_on_the_UK_Singles_Chart I must admit I’m familiar with very few of these from 2010 onwards.

Unbelievable by EMF still fills the floor, sounds great and although it’s very much of it’s time it hasn’t dated badly. I know they had a few minor hits too, but Unbelievable was the one big hit and one song they’re really known for. Number 1 in the USA, Top 3 in the UK and pretty much every other country with a singles chart. And scarily, it’s nearly thirty years old...

Excellent track

That’s about the size if it for me too. However if we’re booked for a party (ie in a venue, and we’re booked on the basis that it’s a party) we charge double or triple what we do a pub gig for, owing to the generally increased faff.

I’ve never used a Pirate Studio and seeing as the nearest location to me is 43 miles away in Digbeth it’s unlikely I will any time soon. A pity, because from the look of their website the facilities appear to be infinitely superior to the absolute dumps we practise in, through necessity and lack of any alternative. Interesting to see a few posts mentioning the lack of anyone on site; I don’t think I’ve ever rehearsed anywhere where there’s been someone there. Is that unusual?

Interesting, I’m considering doing the same and had looked at Sims’ website. The cost they’ve quoted you is prohibitive for me, I’ll consider David Wilson instead. Thanks for inadvertently helping me.

Cokeheads are the bane of our pub gig lives at the moment. The last three pub gigs we’ve done have been blighted by one or more weekend rockstar racing his nuts off and acting like a prize prick. As you say, not especially aggressive behaviour but pretty annoying nonetheless. Coke seems more widespread than ever nowadays. In my day twenty B&H and a few pints of snakebite sufficed. But also in my day there was much more violence, so maybe things are better now? Who knows...

Yes. It was only a gig bag I bought but it arrived quickly and was a hassle free experience. I would use them again.

I’ve got a solo EP coming out in the new year. My plan all along was to release it digitally only, but I was asked yesterday if I was releasing it on CD too? I hadn’t considered it, as I didn’t really think it’d be viable to do so. Does anyone buy CDs anymore? I see the benefit of having something to sell at gigs, but I rarely gig solo these days. Has anyone released a CD recently? Is it worth it / financially viable? Do people even want them? Do you still have boxes of the things gathering dust in your loft?

Cost, aesthetics, personal preference...

Not at all, I totally agree (perhaps that makes me a grumpy old git too... 😉). Reading lyrics off an iPad is bad enough when it’s for covers, inexcusable when it’s your own song. Learn the bloody words.

Thanks all *heads off to eBay...*

Always a sight to behold 😊

I don’t particularly like: Natural wood finishes, gold hardware, black hardware, ‘boutique’ basses, single cut basses, basses that look like they’ve been made in a prison woodwork class, five stringers, silks on strings, active versions of traditionally passive basses, tortoiseshell pickguards, single ply pickguards, Dingwall basses / fanned frets generally, any bass that screams ‘look at me!’ No irrational hatred of any of these, just a dislike / indifference / can’t imagine myself ever playing or wanting.

Big Manics fan here. It amuses me how Nicky likes to play the anti musician when he’s actually a perfectly capable bass player. I think James Dean Bradfield played the bass on their early stuff though? I remember hearing Stefan’s tone on the breakdown in Nancy Boy and thinking ‘I want that tone’. Massive.

I’m lucky in that my hometown enjoys a fairly decent live music scene, but it’s nowhere near as good as it was a few years ago. Anyone else found the same? Five years ago there were many pubs in town and in the surrounding towns with bands playing on Friday’s and Saturday’s every week, open mic / acoustic nights on week nights or Sunday’s, loads of local bands, and a good gang of musicians willing to support and help each other. Fast forward to today and there are much fewer pubs putting on bands and those that are only have them on Saturday’s, there are far fewer bands in town now and the one remaining open mic has just finished. The pubs and bands that are still active are still fairly busy (including us), but numbers have noticeably dwindled. None of the pubs have closed, they’re just not hosting live music as frequently as before. What’s it like where you are?