I like those 'mini interviews' bass player does with session guys and other slightly more obscure players. I wish they'd expand on those interviews and make them longer as it's good insight as to what I'd like to do someday.
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Bassists Who Don't Need Another Interview
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
The rags are as much about a small community of people cross-promoting eachother's interrelated commercial endeavors as anything else. Rush has a new album out and Orange buys ads in the rag so it's all pretty incestuous IMHO. I'm sick of the same 20 players accounting for 80% of the covers, but it's all about moving product, whether it's magazines, gear or whatever
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The rags are as much about a small community of people cross-promoting eachother's interrelated commercial endeavors as anything else. Rush has a new album out and Orange buys ads in the rag so it's all pretty incestuous IMHO. I'm sick of the same 20 players accounting for 80% of the covers, but it's all about moving product, whether it's magazines, gear or whatever
I know you are right. I have just reached a point in my life with magazines just have limited value for me. I'm pretty much past the fanboy stage, and even with new people, the staged aspect of interviews are so obvious to me that they lose me. For instance, I really enjoyed the Esperanza Spalding interview that came out in BP last March because she really gave some thoughtful answers and interesting information. The pics, however, looked so staged that it turned me off. She did a series of poses next to a big tubehead Ampeg rig. These same pics turned up in the interview she did for Bass Guitar and for Jazz Times later. When I was watching the film that comes with her current CD, I saw that these pics were outtakes from a video she did for song that was part of that film. I know it's no big deal, but I would prefer some stage or studio footage. The pics of Flea jumping around on a recent BP also have that phony aspect about them also.
working at a news publication, people always THINK that they're getting more coverage than they are. I wonder when the last time Bass Player interviewed Marcus Miller. I'd bet it had been a year at least, if not more. They're doing their by saying "hey, Marcus has a new album out..we should talk to him", even though someone else might have two weeks ago. In this case, I'd say that perception =/= reality.
Especially with music coverage, we have people rag on us about "always covering the same artists..." which is wholesale untrue. When a big KC name does something, we cover it, i.e. tech9 releasing an album. He probably has an interview every 18 months or so with us or a story about him, etc, but people always ask "why tech9 ALL THE TIME", but then again, they want to buy the album, etc.
Especially with music coverage, we have people rag on us about "always covering the same artists..." which is wholesale untrue. When a big KC name does something, we cover it, i.e. tech9 releasing an album. He probably has an interview every 18 months or so with us or a story about him, etc, but people always ask "why tech9 ALL THE TIME", but then again, they want to buy the album, etc.
lomo said:The rags are as much about a small community of people cross-promoting eachother's interrelated commercial endeavors as anything else. Rush has a new album out and Orange buys ads in the rag so it's all pretty incestuous IMHO. I'm sick of the same 20 players accounting for 80% of the covers, but it's all about moving product, whether it's magazines, gear or whatever
Totally agree!!!
I don't see that many interviews with Chris Squire,but almost every one that I see is almost always the same questions and info.
That's probably because he really doesn't want to do them, so they all drag up the same pro forma questions again and again.
I'm not naive, I know interviews are about moving product of one kind or another, but I think the magazine and the artist should put some real effort in putting these interviews together.
I think the problem isn't the same interviewees, it's the fact that they're always asked the same questions. Nothing unique to bass or even to music, it seems a lot of interviews with creative people always are some variation of "where do you get your ideas?"
I suspect those magazines do very little of their own photography. They buy license use of existing photo's for the most part. And I imagine many of the interview are phone interviews. I've yet to see anyone from any of the other bass magazines walking around with a bevy of DSLR's at NAMM. Its evidently not important to them.
They could interview anybody from Rush, and a lot of other favorite bands of mine about any subject, including where they like to vacation, and their favorite ice cream, and I would probably read it.
You just never know what you will glean from such a thing.
You just never know what you will glean from such a thing.
a john mcvie interview would be fantastic. providing you could get him to elaborate on some of his ideas on constructing bass parts - and get to tell stories about working with F/M-
i think that after a while, like in the case of Miller, Mccartney etc. it's up to the interviewer to steer the interview into something interesting- that could be the bassists new rig, what inpired any new songs, or who he/she thinks is an up and coming player. - because most of the natural questions /stories have been asked & answered many times. If the journalist thought it would be a good idea to interview them, then it's up to the journalist not to deliver a "puff piece".
