No more Mr Nice Guy

[tauzero]

4 hours ago, hiram.k.hackenbacker said:

You just have to wonder what they were looking for last time that your description of a cab cover actually helped 🙄

I don't know how accurate the message to them was - I phoned up and someone in the office passed the message on to the stage crew. When I talked to them direct, I was able to say it was black with white piping, which may have helped somewhat.

[Monkey Steve]

I'm usually pretty relaxed about sharing gear at gigs, and on occasions when I've brought my own backline I'd much rather other bands used my kit than all the fannying about changing amps and having to have way too much gear on stage, especially on multi band bills.

The only time I've had any issues was when supporting Splodgenessabounds - I was playing guitar and was sharing my amp anyway, and their guitarist asked if it was OK to use my pedalboard.  It was actually pretty funny - just randomly hitting pedals as he was playing to see what it did to the guitar sound.  But the stomping on the stomp boxes was somewhat over-enthusiastic, and at the next practice a couple of the pedals weren't working because he'd stamped on the wrong end and sheared off the power socket.  Only cost a fiver to get the replacement bit for the repairs, but still mildly annoying at the time.

Using my instruments is another issue and you'd only get to do that if you're a really good mate.  One I loaned a Les Paul to when we were in a band together, he actually dropped it and chipped the binding, but immediately told me an offered to get it repaired. But i was happy to lend him one of my basses when he was recording his current band's last album.

Not sure I'd let anybody I didn't know/trust take any of my gear home...and even if I did know them that's not the same as trusting them.  Some people just don't look after stuff properly.  I joined a band once and after the first rehearsal it was agreed that the rhythm guitarist (who I didn't know) would store my amp head and the drummer (who I did and had asked me to join) would take my cab (I didn't drive).

Then a couple of months later the rhythm guitarist was talking about some new band he'd heard of and I'd said that I had their album (back in the days of vinyl) and was on the verge of offering to lend it to him when the lead guitarist tapped me on the shoulder and quietly suggested that I shouldn't do so.  He explained that he'd been to the rhythm players house and his own record collection wasn't exactly well cared for - records out of their sleeves left on the floor, piled up all over the place, left against radiators, sat on by the cat, etc.  So it wasn't that he would treat my stuff any worse than his own gear, but rather than he treated his stuff appallingly badly. 

Still, not much damage he could do to an old Marshall head if he's just taking it home every week, right?  Turns out he was just sticking it in the garden shed and over the following winter the cold and damp weren't doing it much good (and his gear also suffered, he just didn't seem to understand why).  I found an excuse for why it would be much better if my amp head was actually cared for by someone else in the band, to save him the bother of having to cart my amp around...

[Monkey Steve]

just remembered, I'm also responsible for breaking someone else's gear!

I still maintain that it wasn't my fault.  It was a Network Rail charity gig that was on at Dingwalls every year (most of the band worked for them at the time) - any employees who were in a band could put themselves forward to play and would get anywhere between five minutes and half an hour.  We'd provided the backline for all the bands the previous year, but this time somebody else wanted to bring their guitar amp (presumably for "their sound") and was told that that was OK but everybody would be sharing it.  Suited me as it was a Mesa Boogie and at the time I was using an old Marshall but with a SansAmp that did a Mesa impression.  Strict instructions that while everybody could use the amp, we were banned from touching the eq.

I plugged in for the soundcheck, amp sounding a bit ropey, play a few chords and see if I can sort it out using my pedals, loud bang and amp stops working.  It wasn't me guv!

Fortunately my defence was water tight - as instructed, I hadn't touched any of the knobs, just plugged in.  So the owner looked a bit sheepish and took the blame for letting the other bands down by bringing an amp that didn't work.  But I did feel a bit bad that it had broken under my watch, and was a particularly expensive bit of kit

[thebassist]

I leant out my amplifier twice.

The first time - the bassist put a bit of tape over the lights on the amp head and when they were pulled off took the paint off with it.

The second time - the bassist had it on 11 with the gain and drive turned all the way up - the amp was clipping the entire gig.

There won't be a third time.

[cheddatom]

I've played a few supports recently and the headliners have demanded that the support bands supply all the gear. I don't mind it to be honest, my drum kit sounds way better than most I play on if using headliner's kit. Sometimes it's the total opposite - the headliners take up the entire stage with their kit, won't let you use any of it, and won't let you move it. 

[uk_lefty]

As long as everyone knows what is going on in enough time before the gig I don't mind either bringing my own or borrowing. We do a charity festival each year, last year the organisers said they would provide amps if we needed. Our guitarists amp was knackered and he hadn't got the money to buy a new one. When we got there the stage was lined up with amps, seriously a whole line of guitar amps all across the stage, of varying quality. It was such an effort for them to allow him to use an amp, they gave him the crappest most unreliable one available and told him not to touch the settings. It's OK he will only use the clean channel he says. The bass amp looked like it had been salvaged from a WWI U boat wreck so I took my own up. We could barely move on stage for amps we weren't allowed to use! In the first song I moved my foot and managed to unplug a monitor and there was buzz coming through the PA. Had they been clear beforehand about what they would or would not lend out we could have made decisions like DI'ing the bass if there was no room, brining another guitar amp if we weren't allowed to use anything half decent... 

[NikNik]

14 minutes ago, uk_lefty said:

In the first song I moved my foot and managed to unplug a monitor and there was buzz coming through the PA. Had they been clear beforehand about what they would or would not lend out we could have made decisions like DI'ing the bass if there was no room, brining another guitar amp if we weren't allowed to use anything half decent... 

Seriously? That's quite a feat, unplugging an NL4 plug from a monitor with one's foot! 😉

[uk_lefty]

1 minute ago, NikNik said:

Seriously? That's quite a feat, unplugging an NL4 plug from a monitor with one's foot! 😉

Woukdnt surprise me if it hadn't been plugged in properly in the first place! May have just been a shoddy connection or something? Anyway, it made a loud buzz through the monitor, there's video of me pointing to it for the sound man while missing a bv cue and then he runs on and plays with loads of cable by my feet. 

[taunton-hobbit]

^ ^ ^  You're assuming this was 'good' kit - by the description I'll bet the monitor was jack plug fed..........

😎

[NikNik]

2 minutes ago, uk_lefty said:

Woukdnt surprise me if it hadn't been plugged in properly in the first place! May have just been a shoddy connection or something? Anyway, it made a loud buzz through the monitor, there's video of me pointing to it for the sound man while missing a bv cue and then he runs on and plays with loads of cable by my feet. 

Hey, that's nothing.  I accidentally kicked a 32-16A power drop and all the gear cut out for a second or two. That didn't go down too well!

Edited August 8, 2019 by NikNik

[FinnDave]

I have occasionally let other bassists use my gear, but only when I am there and to people I know. 

The last couple of shows I've played with the Grateful Dudes has been with borrowed amps, though. The first was in Germany and couldn't take much of our own gear. I spent three nights playing through a combo which worked fine, but I can't remember what it was now. Last weekend, we played a festival and my car broke down on the way. I used my wife's car to get there after that, but it is too small for my cab, so I took an amp and one of the guitarists said he'd arrange a cab for me. When I got there, I ended up using a Rumble 100 combo that one of our drummer had brought along for the bassist in another band he plays with. He has rehearsal studios so has plenty of gear. Again, the combo worked well, and I certainly didn't cause any damage to either of them!

[bigjohn]

I don’t mind lending gear under supervision, strict instruction and implicit threat of proportional violence. Never had any trouble, but it is a PITA. 

Glad all is sorted. 

[12stringbassist]

I don't let other people use my gear.
In the situation of supporting, "I am leaving after we have played".

Nobody that I don't know quite well will ever touch one of my basses.

I once played a gig supporting a former name 60's musician from Liverpool. His bass player (ex Eurythmics, allegedly) looked at my two Trace Elliot combos -  which were already nicely balanced in the PA mix from our mindgame of a soundcheck earlier and he asked to use them.

I was used to a nice low onstage balance. He wasn't and he turned them both right up, so the crowd out front got treated to what amounted to a terrifying bass solo from him, instead of turgid jangly 12-string 60's hits. People were holding their ears.

He was not pleased when I walked onstage immediately and turned off and unplugged the one that wasn't mic'd up and turned the other one back down. On my way offstage, I told him (on mic) he was free to take a break between their songs to get his gear out of his car if he touched the volume again.

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Having said all of that, I DO let people plug into my gear at the weekly jam night. But I have total control over the volume in that situation and take a spare bass for the mortals to use.

Edited August 12, 2019 by 12stringbassist

[TrevorR]

On 27/07/2019 at 02:06, Jus Lukin said:

I've occasionally had to lend gear to bands after me, but I have always taken full responsibility my stuff. You agree to lend, you agree to pick up the pieces. Walk out of the place and leave it to someone who has very little invested in your stuff, and you have kind of derilicted your duty.

 

I’ve had my amp rig used as a multi band backline or as an ad hoc “lend” (there was one where we all lent our amps to a bunch of teenagers “support band” doing their first gig - they’d all come on the bus!) but I’d never leave it unattended either. It’s only been backline for shows organised by people I know so they were happy for me to lay down the law. Basically that came down to, “it’s loud enough as it’s set up, you really don’t need to touch any of those knobs. You want more level - just ask that sound guy over there” or at least discussing and approving any settings at sound check. Frankly, if one of the bands bassists had come up on stage, whacked all the knobs up to 11 and launched into the first number I’d have had no problem with walking right up onto stage and turning them back down then standing by the amp with my arms folded glaring at him all the way through his set! I’d have got no complaints from either the promoter or sound guy!

[TrevorR]

Ok to redress the grumpy old Bass-tard sound of the last post I’ll tell you about a 50th birthday party gig our cover band did once. Biggish back garden, marquee sort of affair. We arrived, set up and sound checked while dad, teenage son and chums watched us run through a few songs. Waiting for the guests to arrive we were chatting to the family and then after the first set remarked that the kids very interested and engaged in watching the band. She laughed and said, “Yes, they’re all just learning instruments with the intention of forming a band at school.” The were all really nice, polite, well mannered kids (the antithesis of the teenage yobbo stereotypes) so B/L threw me a nod...  then said would they like to do a couple of numbers to start the second set. Son said lthat was really kind but all the other’s instruments were at home so it wouldn’t be possible. But thanks so much for the offer.” - in a totally genuine, non-angling way. B/L and I glanced at each other and said, “You could just use ours...” Kids nearly fell off their chairs!

Of course their instruments were the typical teenage starter stuff... bottom of the range Squiers, Epiphones, Encores and the like. The looks on their faces when we slung a Les Paul, a Takamine and a Wal round their necks, plugged them into a valve Fender, an AER and a MarkBass rig and gave them the big “Hello Wemberley, welcome to the stage a brand new rock sensation...” intro over the mic. Seventh heaven, grinning from ear to ear as they hacked nervously through a couple of covers doesn’t come close. 

We certainly racked up a few positive karma points in our favour that night!

Edited August 10, 2019 by TrevorR