Looking for a Simon Gallup-esque sound

mozzer138 · #1 05-17-2011, 09:28 AM

Hi there, this is my first post on talkbass

I was wondering what strings what give me this kind of edge outta my t-bird. Huge simon gallup/cure fan and I absolutely love the sound on The Figurehead. Vid below of the sound I'm going for! Thanks in advance

YouTube - The Cure | Figurehead | Trilogy

winterburn69 · #2 05-17-2011, 09:54 AM

Hey, HUGE Cure & Simon Gallup fan here.

First, I really hope you realize he's using Rickenbacker for this song. He only used the Thunderbird on the Bloodflowers part of Trilogy. Different basses to sound like what he used on those particular albums & tours (I wonder if he'll use a Fender P for the Sydney shows later this month?)

Rickenbackers sounds WAY different than a Thunderbird.

Now beyond that, he plays through Ampegs, lots of Boss effects (MT-2, DD-3, BF-2, CE-5 & the NS-2). The Figurehead however, sounds like a heavy flanger and maybe some distortion. Now I don't have the exact effects he uses. I use a BF-3 for a flanger and no distortion, just overdrive with the ODB-3, I play alot of Cure stuff and I think it works, still need a distortion pedal though...

Quite honestly, with all the effects he uses, I think strings aren't too much of a worry, I'm pretty sure he uses roundwounds now, but back in the '80s (The Head on the Door, Disintegration) I'm positive he used flatwounds. I have no idea what brand though. Maybe RotoSound? they're an English company, he's English.

I hope this helps you, here's a quote from Simon:

"I must admit I've never studied different speakers or things like that. I just tend to plug into whatever is there and mess around until I get something that I like! It does go down to that original punk rock thing of not really caring what you play through"

Good luck, I hope I was some help.

winterburn69 · #3 05-17-2011, 10:00 AM

Sorry for the double post, but dammit, you need to know what you've done!

You've got me thinking about Pornography and now I HAVE to listen to the Trilogy version! but it doesn't take much to get me to listen to some Cure.

Good job

mozzer138 · #4 05-17-2011, 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winterburn69

Hey, HUGE Cure & Simon Gallup fan here.

First, I really hope you realize he's using Rickenbacker for this song. He only used the Thunderbird on the Bloodflowers part of Trilogy. Different basses to sound like what he used on those particular albums & tours (I wonder if he'll use a Fender P for the Sydney shows later this month?)

Rickenbackers sounds WAY different than a Thunderbird.

Now beyond that, he plays through Ampegs, lots of Boss effects (MT-2, DD-3, BF-2, CE-5 & the NS-2). The Figurehead however, sounds like a heavy flanger and maybe some distortion. Now I don't have the exact effects he uses. I use a BF-3 for a flanger and no distortion, just overdrive with the ODB-3, I play alot of Cure stuff and I think it works, still need a distortion pedal though...

Quite honestly, with all the effects he uses, I think strings aren't too much of a worry, I'm pretty sure he uses roundwounds now, but back in the '80s (The Head on the Door, Disintegration) I'm positive he used flatwounds. I have no idea what brand though. Maybe RotoSound? they're an English company, he's English.

I hope this helps you, here's a quote from Simon:

"I must admit I've never studied different speakers or things like that. I just tend to plug into whatever is there and mess around until I get something that I like! It does go down to that original punk rock thing of not really caring what you play through"

Good luck, I hope I was some help.

Thanks this is actually a huge help! So maybe I shouldn't worry about the strings right now and just save my money for some pedals lol
I had pretty much decided on roundwounds but after seeing that you said he used flatwounds on some of my favorite albums (namely Disintegration) I'm unsure now

mozzer138 · #5 05-17-2011, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winterburn69

Sorry for the double post, but dammit, you need to know what you've done!

You've got me thinking about Pornography and now I HAVE to listen to the Trilogy version! but it doesn't take much to get me to listen to some Cure.

Good job

Haha! The Trilogy sets are so amazing! But I think my favorite performance will always be In Orange

winterburn69 · #6 05-17-2011, 10:14 AM

Yes, save your cash for some effects. If you're going for JUST his sound, get the chorus, flanger and distortion first.

In my humble opinion, stick with roundwounds on the Thunderbird. I've never tried flatwounds on my Thunderbird, so I can't say how it will sound, and I don't know if many people use flats & Thunderbirds. Being that the Thunderbird is best suited to rock n' roll (as opposed to funk or jazz) I would assume most people use roundwounds, but hey, I could be wrong.