Recent content by Atticus

I've got a Squier CV Thinline Tele and I dig it. The pickups on a Tele are very flexible, and there's something nice about the smaller body. My main guitar is a Blacktop Strat, which has a whammy bar, but I rarely use it. Even when I do, I've got set up so that it's rarely in my way. Another...

I'm a sort of utility musician in my school's jazz band. I mostly play guitar (one of two), but I also play bass when our bassist is singing, tuba on New Orleans jazz that calls for it, and hand percussion on some Latin songs that call for more percussionists than we have. Now, we rarely get...

CAKE The Clash Morphine ZZ Top

Our (Presbyterian) church's regular music is strictly organ and choir, but we have guest music now and again. We've had string quintets, brass quartets (one of which I've played in), jazz groups, and all kinds of stuff. I'm on the Worship and Music Committee so I'm privy to a lot of the set-up...

Depending on the instruments available, "Hot Rats" by Frank Zappa might work, although the arrangement is a bit tight for jamming over.

On the one hand, one time a friend and I had to wait for at least half an hour for some help in the Live Sound and Recording section because there was only one guy on staff and he spent forever talking to some guy about all the ins and outs of every possible product he could buy. All we had to...

I just don't ever wear shorts, gig or not. So that solves that problem.

I definitely prefer DR, having tried multiple D'Addario styles for bass and guitar and never liking them as much.

If I go into my store of choice for any reason, even if I'm just looking at instruments, I usually try to walk out with some strings or a cable or something. Even a small purchase is a good way to show you care, and if you do it often enough, the staff will get to know you and appreciate you. I...

I've been using Atticus as my Internet handle for... four, maybe five years? It's not totally unique so when I find a site with other Atticuses (Attici?) I'll throw some predetermined numbers onto the end. It's got a touch of elegance to it that I'm fond of, evoking one of my favorite literary...

Seconding Seas of Cheese. Blue Collar Tweekers is really easy with the exception of the bass solo, as is Here Come the B******s. Both will get you good at playing fourth and fifth chords, respectively, which is important because Les uses a lot of chords. Eleven is not hard if you can swing the...

I use the floating thumb for fingerstyle, the palm of my hand for slap, and my fretting hand for pick.

Yeah, the Internet doesn't handle sarcasm well. Unfortunately this might swiftly become a dead end issue since my lead on keys fell through, and I really don't want to try power trio jazz. But it'll be good to file away for future reference.

I choose to assume critics of piano/bass/drums are just being facetious, or just haven't heard some good things done with that lineup. I guess I should clarify a few things. The drummer is the secondary drummer from my school jazz band, looking to play for more than two songs a gig. He's...

So, I've been putting together a little instrumental jazz combo, to play mostly fusion but also some post-bop and modal stuff. I've got a good drummer, I've got a decent guitarist, I've got a lead on some keys, and I consider myself to be a good enough bassist to do well (although I'm looking...