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Can you ID the "What You Need" sound? (INXS content)

Radio

Radio

Jan 8, 2010
532
565
New Haven, CT
#1
I listened to this INXS song tonight and love the sound that Gary Garry Beers gets from what I presume is a P bass.

But, how is he getting that raspy, sustaining growl?
Could it be a distortion pedal with a compressor?

I've Googled until my googler went numb, and I cannot find where this is discussed.

Not just idle curiosity; I'd like to duplicate that tone for a tune my band is doing.

If I can figure out how to put a clip in here, I will.

Thanks in advance.
 
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#3
Interesting, I first assumed it was a synth playing that bass line, but when you watch the live clips it shows him playing the bass line with that tone present in the mix, and the keyboard player was actually playing guitar in all the live clips...except in one live shot I saw "someone" from the back that was standing at a synth who seemed to be playing the bass line on it
 
#4
Thundar said:
Interesting, I first assumed it was a synth playing that bass line, but when you watch the live clips it shows him playing the bass line with that tone present in the mix, and the keyboard player was actually playing guitar in all the live clips...except in one live shot I saw "someone" from the back that was standing at a synth who seemed to be playing the bass line on it
Click to expand...

Doubling it perhaps?
 
#5
Radio said:
I listened to this INXS song tonight and love the sound that Gary Garry Beers gets from what I presume is a P bass.

But, how is he getting that raspy, sustaining growl?
Could it be a distortion pedal with a compressor?

I've Googled until my googler went numb, and I cannot find where this is discussed.

Not just idle curiosity; I'd like to duplicate that tone for a tune my band is doing.

If I can figure out how to put a clip in here, I will.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
I know he's been known to play a Precision as well as a G&L LB100? With Ampeg SVT's I believe. In the video he plays an Ibanez RB850 just like mine! :)
Octave pedal maybe? It could very well be a synth. 80's after all. ;)

I saw INXS on the "Kick" tour. Really good show from what I remember. It was ages ago.
Take care,
Brent
 
#6
Nice detective work, Thundar!
Thanks also to you two "northern" guys, too, hrodbert and Brent.

I'm going to try and mess around with my Spector into a two channel compressor and then into a Tweed 57 fuzz today, and see if I can get close.
 
#7
Wasn't familiar with it so I gave these a listen:




We hear dirt, compression, octaver blended in the background, and a slight touch of flange.
Not sure how he did it then or how one would do it with normal pedals & amp.
With the Line 6 HD 500X(here), it would be done as a 2 amp configuration with:
one carrying the fundamental and octaver blend part
the other carrying compressed distortion with a flanger on the end of the signal chain
 
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#11
Hey there- I just found this old thread lost in Google and so I signed up to answer if any one still would like to know how I got the What U Need bass sound. I used a Prophet 5 Synth on the record with a sound that Andrew Farriss and I came up with- We'd already used a similar sound on the One Thing a few years back combined with my then used Stingray fretless. Live I used a Steve Chick Midi bass for a while triggering the Prophet sound from an Akai Sampler- then I just simplified it to a P bass and a fuzz unit. If you look at the Wembley concert in What You Need the middle 8 I'm going to town with all the sampled parts I took from a What U Need remix by I think Fat Boy Slim- So all that stuff going on with the drums is me. Hope that helps.. GGB
 
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#12
Garry Beers said:
Hey there- I just found this old thread lost in Google and so I signed up to answer if any one still would like to know how I got the What U Need bass sound. I used a Prophet 5 Synth on the record with a sound that Andrew Farriss and I came up with- We'd already used a similar sound on the One Thing a few years back combined with my then used Stingray fretless. Live I used a Steve Chick Midi bass for a while triggering the Prophet sound from an Akai Sampler- then I just simplified it to a P bass and a fuzz unit. If you look at the Wembley concert in What You Need the middle 8 I'm going to town with all the sampled parts I took from a What U Need remix by I think Fat Boy Slim- So all that stuff going on with the drums is me. Hope that helps.. GGB
Click to expand...
Thanks for clearing that up Garry
 
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#15
Garry Beers said:
Hey there- I just found this old thread lost in Google and so I signed up to answer if any one still would like to know how I got the What U Need bass sound. I used a Prophet 5 Synth on the record with a sound that Andrew Farriss and I came up with- We'd already used a similar sound on the One Thing a few years back combined with my then used Stingray fretless. Live I used a Steve Chick Midi bass for a while triggering the Prophet sound from an Akai Sampler- then I just simplified it to a P bass and a fuzz unit. If you look at the Wembley concert in What You Need the middle 8 I'm going to town with all the sampled parts I took from a What U Need remix by I think Fat Boy Slim- So all that stuff going on with the drums is me. Hope that helps.. GGB
Click to expand...

Holy crap, did Garry Beers seriously just reply to this thread?!? Maybe you can tell us what you played on Suicide Blonde then, mate. That's one I crank to 11 in my car to this day. It's too bad some kind of practical and good midi bass never caught on -- so much good rock n roll actually has synth bass, and it's fun as hell but hard to play bass to electronic music tight, live.

I literally picked up a bass at 12 years old in 1986 because of Garry playing "What You Need." When "Need You Tonight" came out in '88 or whatever, I had to have a Steinberger, yesterday (got a Hohner copy and played it way after it was out of style). INXS always had that bass sound that just electrifies the room.
 
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#16
This is Incredible. Saw INXS in a small symphony hall in '88...astounding live band. They could flat out play and knew how to work a crowd. The venue however was not so impressed. To this day I say that those outdated, faded, velour opera chairs were in desperate need of some new footprints on them....
 

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