Chris2112

I tend to use four fingers for this technique, though I will rarely revert to starting a line with a thumb unless there is a distinct rest or a break. In quicker, flowing lines I tend to just roll on the plucking order of my fingers and thumbs and take the first note with whatever is available. But in terms of becoming comfortable with this technique, I think slow speed practice is the way to nail it. That said, a lot of the 'feel' in this kind of playing only really becomes apparent at higher bpm's where the fluidity afforded by the plucking motion really comes into play.

Great basses. Probably worth about £800-£900 now, there have been a few that have hung around at those sorts of prices for a while. They generally don't seem to be as sought after used as the first generation Urge bass, which was a bit more 'special' in my eyes. Are they any good? No doubt, they are a great basses. They don't sound like a normal jazz bass or Precision bass though, even though they have the pickups, as the active preamp adds a bit of colour to the sound. IIRC, the pickups are slightly displaced from their normal positions, IE: everything is a little closer to the bridge than on the normal J and P basses. The sound is typically bright and modern and they are nice to play. A few Urge II's were handmade by Todd Krause at the Fender customshop. Most went to Stuart Hamm, though I believe a few made their way into general circulation. These are one off items, and are supposedly frighteningly good. They also did an Anniversary Edition that was pretty cool. Stuart played his main Urge II (Mel) for over a decade and only retired it when the neck started to wear out after many trips round the globe!

[quote name='gafbass02' timestamp='1333805591' post='1606752'] Some of those are very tasty. I wonder if it's the same builder [/quote] They're off the same website!

I think a lot of the perceived rudeness with bands/auditions tends to stem from the gulfs that exist in the way we approach bands. Some bands think they are the tits, when really they're the pits. Ergo, their members act like preening rock stars. Often, it's just one person who has this God complex, he will be the one who takes it all too seriously or never calls. On the other hand, a lot of bands are pretty lax affairs, which is communicated in the way they conduct their business. Again, these sorts might not be so inclined to keep in touch with you, simply because 'the band' is fairly low down on their list of priorities. That said, I always try to be polite and friendly and maintain communications in band situations. At least everyone then knows what you're about, and that you can be relied upon.

[quote name='kjb' timestamp='1333733280' post='1605907'] What I mean by saying you don't know what you're talking about is this. You state that janek is a 'pretender'. Which is a bit of an odd thing to say considering his position in the New York jazz scene. He regularly plays with Mike Stern for example, a gig he shares with Anthony Jackson, Chris Minh Doky anfRichard Bona. Now that's not a gig that gets offered to just anyone. [/quote] I am inclined to rate musicians on their merit, rather than their 'position' in any music scene. A fairly sensible way of doing things, I don't consider U2 to be a great rock band just because they have sold a few copies. By that logic, I can think of a few players (irrelevant to this discussion) who are big names but I wouldn't rate. Janek is just one of them. He has the chops to play a Stern gig, but I don't feel any soul in his music and he always sounds lifeless and lacklustre to me. That lack of passion is the killer, as other players have shown that high-stakes jazz fusion can be rich with energy and passion. Dominic Di Piazza...Jonas Hellborg...Stuart Hamm...VIctor Wooten...Michael Manring...etc etc; these are top flight bassists who can make fusion as emotive as a classical aria. I just don't hear it with Janek, and to that end I don't rate him. You may have some schoolboy crush on him because he's taught a few classes at your college. Thats great, go and buy his records and get a poster of him for your bedroom wall. I won't be joining in the love fest though.

This guy has been making basses for ages, but his site still looks like it did about 7 years ago! Some of his more conventional designs are really cool:

Sounds like a great event, hope you guys have fun!

[quote name='stonecoldbass' timestamp='1333676203' post='1605262'] This is Hadrian playing with fire... [media]http://youtu.be/-6qT2jEwPBw[/media] [/quote] He is truely stunning. I didn't massively dig his solo album but as a sideman he is incredible. He has come on leaps and bounds from when he was playing with John McLaughlin (and pissing off Gary Husband IIRC), and he was no slouch then. But every time he plays he seems to be a bit more 'on the button', which is fine form considering he was on fire when he played on [i]Industrial Zen[/i]. I think the praise Hadrien deserves goes far beyond his technique. To whoever it was above who tried to say I 'don't know what I'm talking about', please try to be more constructive than that. You cheapen the discussion with lazy quips like that, it may be that you're a Janek fanboi who doesn't like the tone of the debate here but you could do more good by explaining your thoughts and feelings in depth.

Yes, it's something I've used before though never really for any length of time. I tend to prefer/find more use for B-G. I suppose the main issue that some basses might have is that they just might not sound 'sweet' producing higher notes and frequencies. Think of Carl Thompson, who doesn't like C strings on basses less than 36" scale because he thinks the thin C string sounds rubbish! Whilst I don't agree, every bass will sound different and some may not project that high C in such a nice fashion. String gauge doesn't come into it for me.

I have really found that Janek has been more of a pretender than someone seriously delivering the goods. His name often gets dropped alongside great players like Tony Grey, Hadrien Feraud, Matt Garrison etc etc...yet for me, Janek just lacks that special something. Soul, verve, imagination, passion, heart, feeling...call it what you will. The basic element of making good music seems fundamentally missing with him. The other guys are playing relatively similar stuff but the quality is just much better; they [i]sound[/i] passionate and this is something I can really dig. On the whole, I guess it is not surprising you'd be left feeling nonplussed by an album of jamming where 'it' isn't really happening. For those kinds of records to sound any better than your own bands mid-rehearshal noodlings you need some serious firepower; some Grade A musicians who are gunning to make it happen. Consider the Hellborg/Lane/Sipe trio records. Those guys were on fire. Listen to 'Temporal Analogues of Paradise', that is what proper jamming is all about. No safety net, just a framework and space to improvise over the top. And those guys got [i]that[/i] to record? It makes me weep, to think of the beautiful music they must have been making show after show on the road, and yet so little of it is recorded. A true shame, when you know it's all different. On a wider note, does this hint somewhat at solo bassists edging closer to creative bankruptcy? Even as a fan of a the genre, I will admit that recent records do not have the 'fire' of the early days when Jonas Hellborg, Stuart Hamm [i]et al[/i] were breaking new ground. The spirit of innovation has carried on since the Millenium in less interesting forms like Squarepusher, Seth Horan etc etc...but the overall music just doesn't seem as good.

That is a nice looking bass! Nifty little bass solo too.

It's not that I don't like them, they just don't blow my socks off. They have lots of fans though, so they are clearly a good product.

I used to have one, it was a nice bass. Two J pickups, which was a bit different for me on a Status bass. Sounded great, very light and played like a drea. Pretty much what you'd expect from Status!

This one is all about that classic 'growling' sound. Just check out the awesome snap on the line at 02:06: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWOd1N-njlc&ob=av2e Simply stunning stuff, one of the great basslines of that era and probably Erasure's best.

Looks like a nice one! I would probably prefer 34" scale to live with, day to day. The bendwell is a cool piece of kit, but I can't see me using it anywhere other than when I'm doing a Mark King-esque bass solo!

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1331284172' post='1570646'] Stay off the drugs kids. Contents of my wallet say that you haven't even played one. [/quote] Then I claim my £5!

[quote name='cetera' timestamp='1306158069' post='1241664'] My 'white' Spectors..... from left.... Euro NS2JA-CR, Euro4, Korean Kramer NS2A & US Kramer NS2 LUSH! [/quote] Top class stuff!

[quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1329162556' post='1538233'] Perhaps they sounded on what is only one video. I'd hardly say GB sound "crap" though. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l22dtkq8srE[/media] [/quote] Case in point, this sounds awful. Like a butter tub strung with rubber bands, all floppy with no sparkle, no punch, in fact nothing really to speak of. Beige bass tone, if you will. I'm still waiting to hear or play a GB that sounds great! Mark has used many basses that sounded 10x better. That said, I've never known anyone to comment on how much they loved the Ohne Filter sound, even though it's often mentioned as a low point in terms of his tone (and the band itself).

I remember speaking to Pete at Howard's Bass Place once and he was talking about the black hardware on Status basses going green and yellow over time. Very strange!