Cat Burrito

I have a bit of dyslexia but was only tested in later life. I think the issue is trying to learn everything at once. My advice is take it a piece at a time and learn just a few lower notes across a couple of strings or some notes on one string. Get comfortable with those and then build up slowly. Literally have a fair few practices where you are just concentrating on the few notes you have learned. The rest will come but just slow it down rather than overloading yourself. Good luck.

Thanks. We're both of that era where bass practice amps used to be terrible and they all sound pretty good to me these days. That Orange one I had was great too.

I always like my home practice amp to be similar to my main gigging rig. When I used Orange amplification, I had the Orange practice amp, same with Ampeg. Last year, I moved to Blackstar. I've long sold my Orange practice amp and the plan was always to get the Blackstar practice amp when I sold the Ampeg. Despite listing on here (& elsewhere), practice amps don't exactly sell like hot cakes. I'd considered getting a 0% finance deal on the Blackstar when the time comes but one popped up recently in immaculate condition for £120. When he lowered the price to £100 as he was moving and I saw he was just up the road, I thought it was now or never. Plugging it in, it doesn't even feel like an ex-display model, nevermind a second hand bargain. The seller said he'd only used it half a dozen times, having bought it from PMT just a few months back. Knowing the Blackstar sound, it took me just a few tweaks to find my sound at a sensible home volume. My niggles are that the control panel is on the top so I have to stand up to tweak it (is that a first world problem?) and the MP3 jack socket is on the back of the amp, but that's a great price to pay for such a cool looking frontage. Other than that, I can't really fault it. And I don't expect a sale from this thread but as Basschat rules state that if you mention kit you have for sale, the link should be posted, https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/473415-ampeg-ba108-practice-amp-now-£75/

If you zoom in, you'll see the band logo! It was a Rally. However, I recommended one to a friend who bought the same model from the same shop, in the same year and it wasn't as good. I think I just got lucky with the wood. Absolutely everyone I know comments on my tone & as much as I would like to say it's all my fingers, I think occasionally companies make good and bad instruments within the same batch. I don't really see Rally stuff anymore but it was just a budget brand from possibly China. I could never sell it because I'd spend twice as much to get something not as good!

I got rid of everything in my life after my first marriage broke up in 2010, bar a small handful of items. The only musical instrument to survive from then was an F scroll black mandolin. It's solid wood and sounds like it cost ten times the £200 I paid for it in 2005. I've revamped it a few times with decals but it is essentially stock. For some reason, I also have the pickguard / wiring / pickup to my very original 89 MIJ Fender Precision. Because I thought I was so edgy (ahem!) back then, I used to stub cigarettes out on the pickguard. The 51yr old me wonders on what planet that was ever a good idea, on every level! Having owned more basses than most shops stock, I've actually kept the same few since around 2014-16 now and it's much healthier than the constant rotation I had for the decade or so beforehand.

I spent several years from the early noughties until about 5yrs ago playing on the UK Americana circuit. We did 4 albums, got on prime time CBS TV in the USA and did a few UK tours and festivals. There was definitely a scene but I thought it kind of fizzled out. Looking at Basschat over the last couple of days, it seems much like everything else, like it might be coming back. I enjoyed it at the time but I think having done it for so long in a really good band, it's something that I have a passing curiosity in, rather than wanting to return to it. Definitely loads of fun and I would recommend it to anyone.

Ours is held on PayPal as a balance with any cash in an envelope at my house. We put all of our money back into recording / band merch. I do a periodic message with where it has gone but as it's a duo consisting of two old school friends, I don't think Nick is worried I will do a Father Ted / Arthur Fowler type stitch up!

interesting… I have always envisaged my music as LP records because it is the format that I grew up with. I am lucky enough to say most have been released on vinyl and sold quite well. My current band do small run CDs because I don’t think we have the audience to sell vinyl to. I wish we did but I don’t want hundreds taking up space here.

You can't play it in the car or take it to the gym. Summed up beautifully by the New Yorker cartoon (I think I like the nostalgia of it all)

I struggle with RSD since it stopped benefiting the shops and artists and became more of an excuse for industry fat cats to take over, pushing live desk tape recordings and demos on vinyl that should probably never have seen the light of day. That said, it doesn't take much for me to buy an LP so I lounged around all morning thinking "they won't sell out of what I want", only to discover they had and it was busier than ever. The queue of almost entirely middle aged men, all mansplaining how "this one is purple smoke vinyl" to some very bored looking partners - like a less filtered version of myself! In the true spirit of RSD I found myself walking away with an LP of two EPs I have owned since the 80s, have on both CD and a different vinyl format and having parted £38 for the pleasure of doing so. No doubt I'll be back next time.

Around 2005, those CIJ / MIJ Fenders had a fantastic reputation. I owned a few and they were all exceptional. I don't know the site but that seems priced pretty fairly.

I did exactly the same. Definitely takes it into more bass territory.

My Bass VI journey started with a Burns SSJ that was good fun. Although I bought it for a studio project where a Glen Campbell type line was required, that song was quickly shelved. It sat in storage for a year until finding new life playing 80s Goth type stuff. Seeing bands like The Cure using them, reignited my interest. I upgraded to The Squier ltd edition purple one and it immediately felt better. The string spacing is obviously different to a regular bass but I approach it as a different instrument. The finish is excellent, the tuners are stable and the frets / hardware all well finished. The one little gripe is that the tremolo very occasionally rattles on the lower notes BUT this doesn’t do that through the amp. I think a lot of people buy these for projects, only to sell them on so there are plenty of second hand bargains to be had with a bit of investigation. Here's my colour coordinated picture I have previously shared (featuring the old boy in the tuxedo suit).

When I started playing, I was very much a traditionalist (Fenders, Gibsons, Rickenbackers etc) and was probably a bit sniffy about headless designs and anything that was more modern that a Musicman. However, getting older I have learnt to appreciate most basses. Playing different styles over the years, I have seen players with basses that I personally wouldn't wish to own, sounding great and looking good. I remember turning my nose up at basses I have subsequently owned and enjoyed. As a now multi-instrumentalist, I have a bigger issue with guitarists who play bass and make apologies or joke about being demoted. No issue with guitarists playing bass but do your thing and enjoy it, however that looks sounds and do it unapologetically.

I'd get a custom replacement. If you are a pick player, you may wear the paint (less of an issue if you are a finger player). There's loads of after market ones that look great and can be made to whatever specs you have. My feeling is the paint would probably not look too good, unless you are really artistic and careful. If it's a standard style like a Precision, there may be some non custom replacements that are cheap and look the part.

We made a film when we recorded the acoustic covers album in a Saxon Church.

Deadlight Dance had our album launch at my local pub. I was mostly on the mandocello with occasional mandolin and three songs on my bass vi. We sold a few albums to a respectable sized crowd and my absolute highlight was we got sketched - the picture is to be framed in the pub wall! I thought we played well and I particularly like my growing confidence in the bass vi.

I'm off to my album launch this afternoon so shared a pic of me outside the pub we're playing - my favourite comment so far "The venue looks very small". 🙈 I'm pretty sure I am not releasing "Dark Side of the Moon"! Over the years I have had some lovely well intentioned fails from friends, including; "I'm surprised you have time for a day job" - yes, thank you, I am friends with two of my bosses! "Dan & I would love to come but Harry is back from Uni" - family first but this also works well as a private message! I'm sure Mick Jagger doesn't get this! "I played there six months ago" (with accompanying picture of them on stage at the venue) - Great, post it on your page! "I must check out your band sometime" - I've mostly posted the playing videos over the last 15yrs just for myself, I appreciate people lead busy lives but perhaps just once over that decade and a half time frame, you could have clicked on one! "It's a shame you are not playing (inserts name of town) / on a different day" - Again, works great as a PM. The whole band is travelling half way across the UK but you can't travel 20 minutes. Oh and constantly liking the posts of friend's bands and getting nothing back. What do you enjoy the least when sharing band stuff on social media?

Deadlight Dance played The Beehive in Swindon on Thursday. A personal one for me as it is where I met my wife, whom I was previously as school with and hadn't seen for 22yrs. We were supporting a Texan songwriter called Tommy Hale and had a half hour set, mainly two mandocellos. Being hyer critical, I thought the volume was just slightly too loud, and not the greatest sound. We used it as an opportunity to test acoustic versions of 3 new songs we had written and played an originals heavy set of dark acoustic music. Incredibly we sold a couple of CDs. The downside was we're both having car trouble so I had to pick the other guy up (he's 45 minutes away and in the wrong direction. We have a similar problem tomorrow at the moment but what goes around comes around... and to double the cliches, the show must go on! We didn't get any pictures of the show but I took this quick snap before we went in.

Not expecting big numbers with this follow up, but for the minority of people interested in the hours of outtake visuals (or in this case audio), we did this talk through audio video about what those songs meant to us.

I'm afraid I don't have a fancy flyer this time, but my little goth / alternative duo are doing an acoustic support this Thursday at The Beehive in Swindon, supporting Dallas based roots-rocker Tommy Hale. Free entry and we're on 8.15pm / 8.30pm sort of time.