Franticsmurf

This has never happened to me. Ever. 😬 And its not happening now, held in check by the through of failing the Gear Abstinence pledge I made only 1 month ago. Nope. Not at all.

About a year ago I started with a new band consisting of friends I'd played with before. We had come together with the initial idea of taking Abba songs and rocking them up a bit - but this quickly morphed into a general 70's and 80's funk thing. As we were all of the same general thinking we got together one evening, went through a load of song suggestions and ended up individually listing our top 30. The set list was made up of songs that got three votes, plus a few that got two. There was flexibility within the list but as we had already agreed on a general direction, very little disagreement. It was a good set and more importantly, as we had all had a say, there was no one in the band thinking 'I don't want to play that' or 'I've been left out'. For our first gig we had to borrow a singer and although she was already singing similar material to us, she brought a few songs with her. There was compromise as her stuff was more modern than the 70s & 80s stuff we were doing, but it was no bad thing and opened us up to new ideas. We retained the original idea of rocking up funk, but now applied it to more modern material. In my experience, a combination of similar directions, flexibility and the willingness to listen and consider new ideas is the key to getting the set list right. I have found that with this approach, there are not too many wasted practices. Personally, I find it hard to motivate myself to practice without some goal so learning new songs works for me, even if we ultimately don't play them. With the specific example above I had to learn to play funk and disco style and that has opened up a whole new genre to me that I might have missed otherwise.

Don't tell anyone, but I still enjoy playing guitar as well. 😃

Hi BB, come on in. 😃

Hi Woolly.

Hi Steve - I'm also a reformed guitarist. Same as you, on reflection I think I should have been a bassist from the beginning as rhythm and locking with the drums has always been my thing. Started off listening to Chris Squire and my best mate in school was the drummer in my first couple of bands. I was never naturally gifted on guitar and I drifted into bass when recording my own songs. Meanwhile, in bands there was always someone better on guitar than me and eventually I got the message. 😃

Hello Havok, welcome to the site.

58 also, and I agree. The problem is we only really remember the good stuff, so the past seems to have been all great songs, just like every school summer holiday was sunny and warm. In my case (and many others I suspect) songs from my past are associated with memories, too, so that clouds my judgement. I do agree with the OP that songs that are on rotation on the mainstream radio channels are lacking in individuality and I struggle to hear anything that would pass my own version of the old grey whistle test. But I acknowledge that it might be my bias, too. I do get annoyed when I'm told that songs must be good because they sell well. With downloading and streaming now the norm I would argue that there is little or no effort involved in purchasing them and that many songs are downloaded on a whim, to be discarded equally quickly. When I started buying music, I had to save up for a single and the purchase was anticipated and enjoyed. Albums took even longer to fund. I still have albums (now on CD) that I originally bought on vinyl when they first came out.

So far so good here too - plenty of temptation, mainly from this site. But... "Hi, my name is Dave and I'm a gearaholic. It's been 38 days since I last bought something instrument related." 😃

I've got 2x TE1x10 cabs but I'm using them with a Peavey 600w head. Not sure how much difference they'd make with the Elf head but you wouldn't have to worry about headroom. They sound great - full with lots of punch - with the Peavey. My take on it would be that with the 2 separate cabs you have flexibility to use one or two as the gig dictates.

You can suspend them from a short length of wood and hang them in a doorway to provide bass wind chimes to compliment the jangly rhythm wind chimes.

The duo I was in used to use this website. I like the ability to drop any tracks to customise the arrangement. We also used it occasionally for practice when in the band so that we were all working off the same version of the song.

I've got that sound set up as a patch on my MS60b because one band does it. 😃 Maybe I should just 'forget' to switch it off afterwards? 😂 The sound I'm tinkering with is more subtle.

I'm the same as you. I love the phaser but haven't been able to find an appropriate place to use it in the setlists I'm playing. However, I've been experimenting with a very subtle 'always on' phase sound recently - the intention is to use it on songs where I would default to chorus. Sounds good (to me) in isolation but I have yet to unleash it on the band sound. I watched a YT video a while back where delay was used to thicken the sound during the guitar solo in a three piece - I dep in a three piece occasionally so that's something else I'll be working on.

Many moons ago I was involved in recruitment and promotion boards and we were always impressed with the candidates who took the initiative and made the effort to visit and check out the job or promotion they were going for. Surprisingly few did. Good luck. 😃

No problem. 😃 Edit: Not related, but a couple of months ago I mistakenly powered my board with a daisy chain cable linked to the supply that normally runs my powerblock. So 18v instead of 9v. I didn't realise for several days of practice - perhaps 4 hours in total. There were 5 pedals including my Bass Clone. I only realised what I'd done when the Clone stopped working. All the other pedals survived but the Clone refused to work (although the LED came on and off when the switch was engaged). I even tried batteries but no effect, just the LED. I decided to wait until after Christmas to get another one (as I love the pedal). For some reason I gave it one more go and somehow it was working again. No idea what had happened. It's back as a permanent board member now.

I'm assuming that nothing else has changed since it was last working correctly. Have you tried taking the Clone out of the loop to run it directly into your amp to confirm the issue lies with the Clone?

If I get cramp while I'm out on the hills, I usually try and add a tiny bit of salt to a mug of water. It usually fixes things quite quickly. But prevention is better than cure and keeping hydrated is good practice.

It depends on the nature of those who make the decisions. In the past I've experienced band-ocracy where no one can really make their mind up or are willing to challenge (me included) and the end result is weak songs - usually safe songs with safe arrangements. I've also experienced the band-tater who has no regard for anyone's opinions and who thinks he knows best. Ironically, the end result with him was also a safe setlist albeit with different songs, and the rest of the band walked. Given the choice of those two in those circumstances, I'd go with 'ocracy' as at least I'd have a say. My recent experience with two relatively new bands also spans both, but in the 'ocracy' band we are all pretty much on the same wavelength and the discussion rarely gets to the point of complete disagreement. We have a strong Blues based set and an agreed approach to frequency of gigs. We also have an open door policy with regard to new materiel and in most cases it is tried out in rehearsal before the final decision is made whether its a keeper. In the 'tater' band, the BL knows the band members and their abilities very well (it's a large, mixed ability level bunch with Ukes, banjo, brass, keys, guitars drums and bass which he started). When I first joined I questioned some of his song and arrangement choices but I soon realised the reasons and logic behind them and I have come to understand why he chooses the songs he does. It's very much a benevolent dictatorship and he does take into account the views of the rest of the band. To end with a yes/no answer - my perfect band would be a democracy. Everyone would be in the band because they know and share the aims and outcomes and also have the maturity and be realistic enough to talk through any problems. There would probably need to be a nominal band leader to sort out specifics (final decisions on gigs, fees, expenses etc).

No, or I wouldn't be able to justify having more than one bass. 😃 I would say that I am 100% satisfied with my no.1 rock bass (Sterling HH) for playing modern rock/pop, and 100% satisfied with my no. 1 'bass for all seasons' (P Bass) for being able to cope with a varied diet when I dep with a band whose setlist varies randomly, often between songs.

I've posted on other threads that one of the main reasons I love gigging is that interaction you get between band members when everything is cooking. It doesn't always happen, and it takes time and effort to get to the point where it could happen. But when it does, whether you're writing, recording or playing a gig, it is priceless. I've experienced it enough to know I want more. I totally get the OP's post and the reason for posting it. If that makes me a hippy, well, yeah, maaaan. 😃

Hi McGee.

Hi HB, welcome to the site.

Sounds to me as if you're being more realistic, particularly if the sound isn't being affected. And IEM potentially relieves you of the need for any on stage amplification. Personally, I was forced away from the big boxes by a pair of matching hernias. I discovered the little TE 1x10 cabs, which do exactly what I want, and I wouldn't go back to the big stuff as it's too inconvenient (and I have discovered lazy old toad-ness😃). More space in the car or easier to car share, easy carry in and (more importantly) carry out. Less space taken up on stage. Not to mention better sound than with my old gear. I'm using IEM in one band now and one cab provides enough for the drummer, who isn't.

Its difficult to put an exact % figure on it. What happens if, for genuine reasons, it's exceeded one year? Edit: That said, I think 50% isn't good enough. I have played in a band which regularly used (different) deps for drums and rhythm guitar because the singer/BL wouldn't commit to a regular line up. It was never as a good as a full band who have played together and know each other. It's not a reflection on the dep's technical ability or personality, but there will always be a difference between full regular line up and dep line up and usually that will be negative. Ironically, I now dep occasionally for that BL in his duo/trio.