Rexel Matador

Everything About You by Ugly Kid Joe. 27 years later my band opened for Whitfield Crane in Newcastle and I got to tell him about it 🤣

I play in a power trio and in my experience the drummer holds the key. The change in the dynamics when our drummer opens up on his ride cymbal is huge.

First rehearsal of the new year last night. And first one since I announced that I'm leaving the band (have a baby now, just too knackered for it!). Something wasn't working on my pedal board due to it having been left in a cold car for a bit too long, so I ended up going direct into the amp with a single cable and found I actually preferred the sound. Drummer had been in over Xmas and tidied the rehearsal space, which was a lovely surprise. Not tripping over anything anymore. We sounded surprisingly good - dusted off a lot of long neglected songs for an upcoming gig. I've told them I'll stick around until a replacement is found, so if anyone is based in or around Liverpool and fancies joining a chilled but hardworking blues/rock covers trio, give me a shout!

Hi all, I'm posting this to try and help out my band, which I'm regrettably having to leave as I have a little baby now and am really struggling to find the time and energy for it! 100% my decision, just to be clear - they were great when the baby first came along, giving me a few months off and getting deps in for gigs, leaving the door open for me. I'm just not finding the time for other things I want to do and don't want to hold them back. It's a three-piece band, gigging around the north-west, with our own rehearsal space in Wavertree, Liverpool. Setlist is pretty varied, but with a general classic rock/blues rock vibe - Free, Zeppelin, Rory Gallagher, Deep Purple, etc, with some more obscure stuff and a bit of Beatles etc if it's that kind of gig. Rehearsal is usually one evening a week. It's a hard-working band, but pretty chilled at the same time. I sing a handful of songs at the moment, with the bulk of lead vox being shared about 50/50 by the other two - so you could say singing is encouraged but not mandatory! They're always open to song/arrangement suggestions, and no ego issues to speak of, in my experience. Gigs tend to be between one or two a month at the moment, but they're always putting the feelers out for more. I've probably slowed them down a bit with my recent personal circumstances! Anyway, if that sounds like something you'd be into, I gladly vouch for them as the real deal. Let me know if you want me to put you in touch or you have any questions, or drop them a message yourself. Here's the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Stranglehold.uklive/

I think they're a great solution for a achieving a nice tight B string. I built one that was (I think) 35" scale on the bass side and it still doesn't seem to be enough for me. I'm planning another one that's 37" to 34", which I think is what Dingwall do. I had no issues adjusting to it, but I guess that might depend on your playing style - I went for the perpendicular 7th fret, again based on Dingwall, as I assume they know what they're doing.

This is mine. The bridge and pickup look oversized because the body is very small. The fender was too much wood and my back just can't handle it anymore. It's still fairly new but wear is creeping in at the top of the pickup, where my thumb tends to rest, and on the headstock where I keep bashing it on cymbals in a cramped rehearsal space.

Just looking at it is making my back hurt. Interesting though.

My current covers band ends our first set with this song. I find it weirdly daunting to have to just play one note for the first minute or so. Really hammers home how it's all about the groove! First song I ever played live was a self penned rap-metal original called "Harmless Powder". I was on guitar (sorry). Circa 1995, so I'd have been about 14. First cover I played live would have been about four songs into the same set, when I put down the guitar and me and the singer launched into a duet of "I ain't goin' out like that" by Cypress Hill. We genuinely thought we were the coolest mfs to ever exist.

That would actually be the perfect name for my band if it weren't a tad unwieldy.

Sometimes a band might not seem perfect at first, but things get ironed out with a little perseverance. I joined a covers band and was very unsure about it, but once the second guitarist got kicked out due to his negative attitude and generally not being a great fit, we started to gel as a three piece. We're not perfect but audiences seem to like us and the gigs are steady. I'm taking a break now as there's a baby on the way, and they're adamant they want me back when I'm ready - we'll see. Either way, it's restored my faith a bit, both in what's out there and my own judgement.

Branding on the body.

I think I once recorded there too!

1981 Tokai Hard Puncher

Definitely more of an Ox than an Este here. Except for the regular winces when I hit a bum note.

It's been a while, but I have made a bit of progress. The neck is profiled, the fingerboard is attached and the wings are currently being glued on. I've gone for a neck break angle this time. The last one had no angle, just a step down to accommodate the bridge height, if that make sense. I glued on one wing then made a jig to match the angle with the second one. I was going to do a walnut headstock veneer to match the wings, but I forgot to cut one from the body stock and the bits of walnut veneer I had didn't match. So I'm going to leave it as it is. I think it'll look quite nice with the laminates on display.

Ok, watching that and consequently hearing it for a second time, I didn't find the song quite so bad... but I think that's only because it was relative to how utterly terrible the video is. What were they thinking?

Love Ron. Jim Hall's Concierto is one of my favourite jazz albums, thanks in no small part to his playing - so smooth.

Really weak. Almost as bad as Imagine. I have a lot of time for the Beatles, in general. Though living in Liverpool for the last 5 years and being beaten over the head with them daily may have dampened that a bit!

I'm in a 3-piece blues/classic rock covers band (what can I say, we saw a gap in the market 🤣) that mostly plays around the North-West of England. We usually get around £250 for two 45 minute sets. Some places are strict about the time so they get exactly that. If they're not bothered we'll play longer if we feel like it. We've all got day jobs so the cash is just split between us for a bit of extra pocket money. I wouldn't do it for free though, on principle. I've done my time playing original music to empty rooms and a gig is a fair bit of work when you factor in rehearsal, setting up, etc.

AC/DC's ode to the A63 - Highway to Hull

Not a particularly exciting update but this is where I'm up to: the neck blank is being glued up and the fingerboard is shaped (but not radiused). Still looking a bit rough as you can see, but it's going to look very pretty once it's finished, I can tell. I'm going to glue it on before radiusing and use it as a template to get the shape of the neck below it. I might need to do a slight neck angle on this one. Last time it was all flat and the body was just a bit lower than the neck, but there are no frets this time, so it would need to be an even bigger step. I should be able to angle the body section and attach the wings accordingly, but it is messing mith my head a bit!

No solutions from me I'm afraid but I'm curious - why do Mustangs have worse neck-dive than Precisions? They both seem to have the upper horn strap button roughly in line with the 12th fret and you would think that the shorter neck gave it less torque. Is it because the body is lighter providing less counter-weight?

I gigged one once when the one bass I'd brought with me didn't make any sound when I plugged in. In a ridiculous stroke of luck the singer just happened to have it in his van. It sounded absolutely fine and could have been a perfectly nice bass with a proper set up. Nice shoreline gold-ish finish too, which you don't often see. Was a while ago though so I have no idea if they still do that colour!

I've had a few periods like this over the years, but it always creeps back in. In the last few years I've discovered a passion for building basses and playing them is now firmly in second place. I'm in a gigging covers band at the moment, but if I wasn't I could see myself going ages without actually playing a bass, while still being fascinated by the instruments themselves - so the scrolling through bass websites, I totally understand!

You're feeling down and you like a bit of Tom Waits? I think I have just the thing...