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Clatter

James Hart

James Hart

Feb 1, 2002
17,526
2,758
Beemerville.nj.us
#1
The September issue of the TalkBass Newsletter has been
generously sponsored by ‘Clatter’:
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Thanks for the Support Amy!

Those of you who haven't heard the band, make sure you visit http://www.clatter.com

Her Ric sounds amazing! I find the songs very well rounded, driving yet with nice hooks. I've played some for a couple non-musician friends and they couldn't get over the fact it was just a Singing Bassist and a Drummer (neither can I).

Amy's tone is so huge... the guitar isn't needed ;)

Thanks again Amy (and Joe)!
 
#2
You're welcome!! And thanks for the very kind comments about our music -- we're glad you enjoy it!

I tend to get fired up about issues that are dear to me, and bass playing is one of them. I was really excited to get to sponsor the newsletter! I hope that my wacky playing style and our unusual setup will inspire other bassists to do their own crazy thing.

Bassists of the world, unite! ;)
 
#7
Originally posted by xush
yeah, I enjoyed browsing the Clatter site too, after seeing the mention in the TB newletter. Really enjoyed it!
You folks ever come down South?
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Thanks!! We're working on the south right now -- where do you live? It will probably be December or January before we make it down there. October we go west and November we go east!
 
#8
heh, sorry- forgot about my 'joke' location...
I'm in Mobile Alabama. We'd love to have you guys down here. I'll have to see if maybe we could get you into some of the places we play.

Between TB'ers and Alt.guitar.bass newsgroupers down here, we've built a pretty bass friendly community on the Gulf Coast. I'd love to see you swing thru. Let us know if we can help at all.

I'd love to get a copy of your CD. If you'd PM me your info I'd like to send you a copy of ours.
I wish I'd discovered your band sooner, somehow I've completely missed your TB presence up till now...sorry! You two are doing great work! Really digging the tunes on the site. You mentioned CMJ on your site, will you be in their Monthly mag too, and that comp cd?

Hope to meet you guys eventually. I really respect what you're doing!
 
#9
It sounds like the perfect area for us to play! We'd love to go down that way! We were planning on hittting as much of the northern tier as we could before snow flies, then spending a good portion of the winter in the south. :cool: I love snow and cold weather, but it's not the easiest for navigating a van or loading gear in and out!

We were on the CMJ Weekly compilation CD, but we'll have an ad in the monthly. We're hoping to get the word out as best we can, but we do everything ourselves, so it gets tricky! It would be great to see fellow bassists at the shows -- that's the best part of touring!

I mostly lurk here at Talk Bass, so don't worry that you haven't seen me post much. We have a super-slow dial-up connection out here on the farm, but they're promising high-speed access soon! I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.... ;)

I'm so glad you like what we're doing! Hearing that is what gives us the courage to continue. Hope to meet you down south soon!!!
 
#10
Originally posted by Tosya
We have a super-slow dial-up connection out here on the farm, but they're promising high-speed access soon! I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.... ;)
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You and me both, sister. ;) It's the age-old question of "Will I be more efficient?" or "Wow, there's so much more available to me!". I'd go with the latter, as my 'net addiction knows few limits. :D

I'll second (or third, or whatever) the CD recommendation - Blinded By Vision has been doing wonderful, yet strange things to me. I have weird nightmares about "guitar amps", and "gain", and things foreign to me. :confused:
 
#11
Originally posted by Tosya
I hope that my wacky playing style and our unusual setup will inspire other bassists to do their own crazy thing.

Bassists of the world, unite! ;)
Click to expand...

:cool: I never went as far as you have. But in the late 80's I played my Ric thru 300 watts of low end clean into a 1x18 and 100 watts of high end dirty into 4x12... I downsized that briefly to 200 watts low into a 15 and 60 watts dirty to a 1x12

But I was more trying to be Chris Squire and John Entwistle's bastard son ;)

How about giving TalkBass the run down on your live rig?
 
#12
I've been known to run my Vbass w/ a pitch-shifter sending the octave up to a Mesa Rig and the low's to my AMP/Aggie setup. That can be really fun! Don't get to do it too often, but you don't need no geetarists around that night!
I've already alienated a few w/ my 8-strings-slap some distortion on from a guitar amp and they really start worrying. Can't wait to talk tech with you Amy. Sounds like you've put a lot of thought into that whole approach.
 
#13
Thank you for your interest in my wacky setup! I have a photo that might illustrate it better than my description:

Invalid Link Removed

One thing that's changed since I took the photos are my A/B boxes -- I switched from the noisy Morleys to the super-quiet Lehles.

Here's the verbal description:

Rickenbacker 4003----->A/B/Y Box #1 (both channels almost always on)

A---->SWR SM-900 and Henry 8x8 (clean bass sound)
B---->Digitech Whammy (5th up -- use in 2 songs)---->A/B/Y Box #2 (switch between A and B or A or B)

A---->Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier + 4x12 cabinet (distorted "guitar" sound)
B---->Boss VF-1---->SWR Super Redhead (effected sound)

1) Boss VF-1 multi effects unit:

This is what gives me the wacky Wah effect on "Center Line" and "Plunge." I also use an effect called "Fusion?" on the verses of "Black Karma." Live I use some other things like phasers on parts of "Taunted" and "Nevsky." This unit is its own separate signal and has its own rig, an SWR Super Redhead combo amp.

2) Digitech Whammy:

I use this on "Just Like You" and "Taunted" to add a 5th up to the note I'm playing. This allows me to have an interval without having to play it physically. Because it has trouble tracking the bass frequency it sounds a little warbly, but that adds to its charm IMO. This effect runs to both the VF-1 / Redhead and the Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier.

I used to use a bass overdrive pedal until I got the Mesa rig, and I also used a Digitech Spacestation for the cavernous sound in "Taunted." But since I already have two A/B/Y boxes, I decided to try to match the Spacestation sound with the VF-1 as best I could.

Whew!! Anybody know a (cheap) bass roadie?!?! :D
 
#14
Originally posted by Tosya
Whew!! Anybody know a (cheap) bass roadie?!?! :D
Click to expand...

:D yeah but most would assume that since they "play some guitar" and you've got the nifty Mesa stack sitting around with no guitarist, they may have to jam along :eek:

You run the full signal through all rigs right? No Cross-over spliting the high and low?

Also, your Mesa 4x12... is that stock or did you swap the drivers? How's it holding up to the touring?

To finish that picture... what strings do you favor on the Ric?
 
#15
I bought the Clatter CD a little while ago, and I have to say it's excellent! Great musicians, great songwriting all around. They even included some bass jewlery. Very cool! I missed the Ma. show in July, but I keep looking for the next one that comes close.
 
#18
:eek: Wow! You guys are so great to be so supportive!! We're about to head out to our MidPoint Music Festival showcase in Cincinnati, so it's a real boost to read that and know you guys are behind us. When you start off on a wacky adventure like ours, you wonder if you've completely lost your mind! So we really appreciate the encouragement.

OK, I'm off to play one for us bass players!!! :D
 
#19
Oh, yeah, speddling -- yes, I do run my full signal through rather than split the highs and lows. I think it sounds really full that way. The Mesa stuff is all stock, and so far I haven't had any trouble, although I don't drive them really hard. And finally, I use DR strings on the Ric -- they're a lightweight gauge, although I can't remember the exact numbers at the moment. I had been experimenting with different weights, and I can't remember what I ended up liking the best off the top of my head. To tell the truth, I really liked the Ric strings, but they're so hard to come by!
 
#20
Hey -- we videotaped our last show and I've posted a QuickTime movie of one of the songs Invalid Link Removed I thought you guys might get a kick out of it! The audio quality is pretty shoddy, but it gives you the general idea. :) Be sure to watch for the camera vibrating every time the bass drum hits! :D

Let me know what you think!
 

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