Hello, Hello !

[Damakun]

Hello ! I have been lurking for a long while, and decided to take the plunge and get a bass. Well, the bass is a spalted maple Tune TWB-4 that I had put on layaway... Looks very nice.

Anyway, I decided to sign up, and may pelt the forum with questions about strings and tone and such. As I mentioned in another thread already, I am actually a keyboardist. I like music though, and nothing grooves like a bass in the end. But what tipped the scales for me was discovering that Level 42 did not use a sequencer for their music. I like the complicated, rythmic styles that Mark King plays, and looking up information on various electronica forums only came up with Mike Lindup's rig (since he's the keyboardist)... It took me a few days to realise exactly what was going on. Once I figured it out, though, I decided to give bass a chance.

It took a while for things to work out, but eventually I decided to take the plunge a few days ago. I have been playing keys for about 2 years, and I once played the violin when I was younger. I like all kinds of electronic music, 80's new wave, etc. I really like Level 42, groovy basslines from Tony Butler, and the classic Beatles basslines (before Yellow Submarine, although Helter Skelter rocks).

Also I am inspired by J-pop (Dream Come True, Susumu Hirasawa, Two-Mix, Ayumi Hamasaki, Globe, etc.) - they in turn have been inspired by a lot of classic Jazz, actually (Sarah Vaughn, Billie Holiday, etc.). I studied some of their chord progressions with a friend of mine, and we figured out that not only do they not have such a sharp division between Jazz and not-Jazz in Japan, but they favour the minor 6th interval. Much to learn...

At any rate, I hope to play bass well enough to expand my musical palate and lay down the low end on my own tracks. Who knows ? Maybe I can sell enough CD's/mp3's to buy more basses/keyboards/glass harmonicas/etc. ?

Great forum, and I look forward to the posting !