CWB: 24 Have Two-Four; Will Travel

[PassivAggressiv]

Thanks for that. I wish it were a band, but it's not, except in the most informal sense. It's an informal every-couple-of-weeks jam of traditional bluegrass instruments (no dobro yet, tho) played by people who attend when it suits them. I knew this going in, which made it an ideal (in my mind) opportunity to get my upright skills up to speed - with the fretless to fall back on. It's working.

And most of the players -are- in other projects that could conceivably need a bass at some point. So by virtue of playing in this informal group, while it's "only" getting my country/bluegrass chops up (a good thing in its own right) is by association getting exposure to 8-10 other groups I'd probably never have found on my own. And there's a spinoff "folk/rock" group with a drummer who likes my playing, so that could go somewhere.

Something to keep me motivated...

Sounds like a fantastic way to stay in practice and connect with other musicians!

Our 15 year old Belgian Shepherd passed today, one month to the day after or 13 year old Wheaten Terrier.

Not a good day.

So sorry to hear this. Pets become such a big part of the family, and it's so hard to lose them.

I'm glad the experience was a positive one, BG! It was really cool of you to pony up for the sound guy, and I will wholeheartedly agree that having good sound makes a HUGE difference.

We're having our first paying gig this Saturday. We are only getting one rehearsal in before the gig, but I'm not nervous about it. We all know the material and we all do a fair amount of practicing on our own. We have to provide our own sound for this gig, but the drummer has a pretty nice PA setup, so it's not a big deal.

Yay!! Good luck, have fun! Let us know how it goes.

BassGen, it sounds like you had a fantastic gig! That was so generous of you to cover the cost of a sound company for a benefit. I know your bandmates were appreciative. And to get a woman to admit she was wrong is a feat worthy of respect, lol!

I'm learning the hard way how critical PA/ sound issues are. I ended up quitting the girl band in part because of sound problems, but mostly because of chaos, disorganization, and drama in general. After the BL promising to get the sound situation figured out, it continued to be a nightmare at gigs and on top of that, she was so stressed that she was mean as a snake to the rest of us. After several gigs in a row like this, I ran out of patience. I'm still going to be doing the Gay Pride festival in June with them, but the sound will be handled by the festival so I know that won't be a problem. I think it's just time for me to move on to something else, or maybe even take a short break from band stuff. I've been in one band or another (and often two at once) since I picked up the bass, and I'm feeling a little burned out at the moment.

Crow, I was pleasantly surprised to see that you've jumped back into the band thing - looks like you had to hit the ground running! Fantastic pics! (And I agree with Rich, that's a very cool hat.) Impressive that you managed to get through a gig with that little prep time. Let me know when you play again, and I'll try to make it out. I look forward to any opportunity to get tipsy, dance, cause havoc, and generally give you a hard time!

 

[BassGen]

Yeah PA, if you aren't having fun and it's a hobby versus a day job there is no need to be stessed in the situation.

 

[DerTeufel]

Last night's gig was a BLAST. We got to the venue an hour and a half to get set up..to find a husband and wife duo on stage. We were told that they would be off stage by 8pm. We staged our gear so that we could set up quickly, and were ready to go within 45 minutes.

There was a birthday party in progress when we got there..twin girls turning 21! We started on our first set and people started dancing...always a good sign. We jockeyed our sets around so that people would stay out on the floor (which was success). There was a DJ that would fill in when we took our breaks..kept people dancing and buying drinks, and then we would keep the momentum going. We had an odd request..one of the party-goers friends wanted to sing Pat Benetar's "Hit me with your best shot"..so we obliged her. We figured out the song during our break, and had her take the mic when we got back on stage. She was great!!

The place started to die down around midnight, so the owner told us that we could stop at 12:30. Not a biggie, as we only had one short set left. All in all, it was a great night.

There are lots of pictures, so I am just going to post the facebook album link. Everyone should be able to view em.

Invalid Link Removed

 

[chuck3]

Last night's gig was a BLAST. We got to the venue an hour and a half to get set up..to find a husband and wife duo on stage. We were told that they would be off stage by 8pm. We staged our gear so that we could set up quickly, and were ready to go within 45 minutes.

There was a birthday party in progress when we got there..twin girls turning 21! We started on our first set and people started dancing...always a good sign. We jockeyed our sets around so that people would stay out on the floor (which was success). There was a DJ that would fill in when we took our breaks..kept people dancing and buying drinks, and then we would keep the momentum going. We had an odd request..one of the party-goers friends wanted to sing Pat Benetar's "Hit me with your best shot"..so we obliged her. We figured out the song during our break, and had her take the mic when we got back on stage. She was great!!

The place started to die down around midnight, so the owner told us that we could stop at 12:30. Not a biggie, as we only had one short set left. All in all, it was a great night.

There are lots of pictures, so I am just going to post the facebook album link. Everyone should be able to view em.

Invalid Link Removed

that sounds great DT!

I haven't been around here much - too much family stuff (two weddings, one of which is in Amsterdam Holland next weekend, and two graduations) - including our older dog, who will be 18 in September if she lives that long, having a bunch of problems, which is not surprising given her age but given our family setup it falls on me to be her primary caregiver, which is kind of like having a 100-year old grandma to look after.

Anyway - playing a fair amount as usual, although not quite as much as I'd like. Private party last night with the Vague Assurance, breaking in my newest bass, a Mike Lull V5, 34" scale. Chosen after being completely in love with my Mike Lull 4-string, and meditating on 35" inch scale (my Lakland 5) versus cutting back to 34" scale on a fiver. Also, it's active and I'm usually passive. (No jokes please.) A work in progress.

Many side projects as usual. One is an offshoot of a second band - we basically cut it in half (it was a six-piece band with problems) to guitar, bass and percussion. Very nice bandmates, and I use my Mike Lull 4 which I have to say is my fave right now.

Occasional jazz gigs on the upright, and Americana gigs on the mandolin, on the side of the side.

Hope you are all well. I settled my Atlanta case, which is good except that I won't be getting back there to see Tat again anytime soon!

 

[Amara]

Well, I finally solved the guitarist-not-practicing problem: we jammed on the porch and took acoustics out to the park, and I had her run through the songs that she already did know. It turns out that with just songs that the two of us know in common, we've got enough to fill two hours. Ah, impostor syndrome....

So I signed us up for an open mic on Sunday.

 

[Amara]

Oh, dear, sweet goddess, now I have to sing. I thought playing bass made me safe from that....

 

[mongo2]

Oh, dear, sweet goddess, now I have to sing. I thought playing bass made me safe from that....

It's worked for me for over 40 years.

 

[ArtechnikA]

"There is no growth in the comfort zone,
and no comfort in the growth zone..."

And so I have a(nother) audition tonight.
Freaked a bit yesterday when my #1 instrument suddenly ceased making sound.
Was torn between immediately switching to the backup, but I've only had it about a week and it is -way- different from #1.
So I spent most of the day playing instrument technician rather than music. Replaced the jack and bypassed the volume pot and now it's making sound again. Gotta go practice!

It's a big stretch for me, musically, but I like working to a goal.
I'm probably the least 'metal' person I know, but this is a "symphonic prog rock" band that wants to compare themselves to Dream Theater, Delain, and NightWish. I think we each have something the other wants, so I think there's room for us to work together. We will see. The vocalist had pitch and range-management issues on the gig videos I saw, but she won't be there tonight. We'll work through a couple of their tracks and see where it goes...

At least it's a genre where I won't be hearing "there's no 6-string fretless in prog rock..."

Followup: got there half an hour early, emailed the purported BL I was there.
"OOps - cancelled - thought I told you - drummer out of town..."
OK - musicians are flakes and I've had my moments. He offered to pay my gas money, which I declined. I'll give him one. Could work in my favor if a) he thinks he owes me one and b) we're now another week closer to his "opening for headliner" spot further limiting his chances of getting someone else.

Of course it could all just be a big smokescreen - I hate to be so cynical but I've already had it happen. So far, all I have invested is some practice time (i.e. - I now have improved skills) and an hour of drive time.

Rescheduled for same time next week. Last chance, in my book...

 

[Amara]

I'm probably the least 'metal' person I know, but this is a "symphonic prog rock" band that wants to compare themselves to Dream Theater, Delain, and NightWish. I think we each have something the other wants, so I think there's room for us to work together. We will see.

Wow, that sounds awesome! Good luck!

 

[Amara]

Oh, dear, sweet goddess, now I have to sing. I thought playing bass made me safe from that....

...and that was the thing that killed us. Not just the singing, but having to play along with it. Because I haven't been singing, I'm not used to trying to do it while playing, and it's kind of like rubbing my tummy while patting my head. We dropped half our setlist because we just couldn't keep tricky passages together while singing, and we should have dropped the last couple of songs, or at least transposed the one that turned into a huge flaming train wreck.

For the curious, here's how bad we sounded. Those with weak stomachs are advised not to watch:






Oh, darn. I seem to have misplaced the video for the last couple of songs, especially the one at the end that was a disaster. How sloppy of me....

 

[DerTeufel]

...and that was the thing that killed us. Not just the singing, but having to play along with it. Because I haven't been singing, I'm not used to trying to do it while playing, and it's kind of like rubbing my tummy while patting my head. We dropped half our setlist because we just couldn't keep tricky passages together while singing, and we should have dropped the last couple of songs, or at least transposed the one that turned into a huge flaming train wreck.

For the curious, here's how bad we sounded. Those with weak stomachs are advised not to watch:






Oh, darn. I seem to have misplaced the video for the last couple of songs, especially the one at the end that was a disaster. How sloppy of me....

I liked it!! Especially the Spinal Tap song. You did just fine in my opinion.

My band is on hiatus..seems the guitarist has to work through some personal problems. The worst part about it is that a week after he told me that he needs to take time away from the band, two venues contacted me to book a show. I am looking for a new project.

 

[BassGen]

...and that was the thing that killed us. Not just the singing, but having to play along with it. Because I haven't been singing, I'm not used to trying to do it while playing, and it's kind of like rubbing my tummy while patting my head. We dropped half our setlist because we just couldn't keep tricky passages together while singing, and we should have dropped the last couple of songs, or at least transposed the one that turned into a huge flaming train wreck.

For the curious, here's how bad we sounded. Those with weak stomachs are advised not to watch:






Oh, darn. I seem to have misplaced the video for the last couple of songs, especially the one at the end that was a disaster. How sloppy of me....

Always tough to watch yourself play. I think they are fine though. Why no Ricky Bass?

It is very tough to play bass and sing as there conflicting rhythms and syncopations. Takes an enormous amount of practice. Don't sweat it. Just use it as a practice tool. You do have to see how you perform to understand the work that needs to be done and practice does eventually make perfect.

 

[Amara]

Why no Ricky Bass?

Because the U-Bass travels really well, we already had Amanda's bulky hard case in the car along with my amp, luggage, and gifts we were bringing, and the U-Bass is small enough that I can practice with it while sitting in the front passenger seat while we're under way. Next time: the 4003W.

 

[ArtechnikA]

Wow, that sounds awesome! Good luck!

Thanks.
Audition, twice delayed, was tonight.
(I think any similarities to Dream Theater, Delain and/or NightWish are fairly circumstantial, but if that's what they want to put in their ReverbNation profile it's OK by me...)
The screechy and frequently flat vocalist is gone (for the better IMHO) which led to an interesting runthrough tonight.
For one thing, some of the arrangements make it easy to get lost without lyrical guideposts.
For another, without the vocals, they reverted to arrangements of the songs from before the singer arrived on the scene - which of course, I've never heard...

Fine, thought I, jam band mode, everything's in B Phrygian, hit the notes in time with the drummer and hope for the best.
Seems to have worked - plus, they seem to be good down-to-earth guys all around.
So short version is I seem to be 'in.' Got invited to next week's practice as if it were perfectly natural.

With the departure of Ms Singer, I expect the "opening act" slot gig in July has evaporated; they had exactly one gig in their time together - about a month ago. They have a line on another singer but geographic logistics may play a part - it is just not as easy to get around here in the ancient NorthEast/Mid-Atlantic as it is in some newer parts of the country... So - who knows? Certainly I'm not gig-ready, but since I seem to be 'in' I have renewed incentive to work on the material. (It's a bit like online dating - hard to get too emotionally invested before you know if you can actually work with the other people...)

Interesting philosophical question (which I asked...) -- with two extended-range guitars -and- keys, why do they need bass at all? Short version, as I was told - the guitar guys like their parts (which stop at F# above my B) and the keys guy doesn't want to play the bass parts. The bass parts are, generally, pretty simple and none of it is lightning-fast. With their focus on female-front-vocals, I don't see it becoming a Cookie-Monster band. And they pretty much consider Dream Theater to be a giant wankfest, so forced comparisons aside, there is hope for some musical originality.

They were highly appreciative of the FlexSteel-strung fretless Roscoe 6 and I didn't even play the fretted Roscoe 7 (but I did show it to them, because since they were all about extended-range bass, I had to show them "you ain't seen nothin' yet.") Truth be told, for their arrangements, any B-E-A-D-strung bass could do the job, Let's just let that be our little secret... They immediately sent pix of the Roscoe 7 to the prior bassist ;-) The 6 cut through and found its place straight through my GK MB500Fusion-into-Hartke HyDrive 112 without even having to pull out the DarkGlass B7K...

And so I have an interesting musical niche -- Every-other-Tuesday I'm playing Bluegrass on the EUB. Every 6 weeks, I'm the house band at a straight-ahead Blues Jam. And now I seem to have the bass chair in a Prog-Metal band. Who'da thunk it ?

I knew at some point, my work and growth would intersect somebody's available opportunity. Of course - none of it is paying anything yet, so the journey continues...

 

[DerTeufel]

Thanks.
Audition, twice delayed, was tonight.
(I think any similarities to Dream Theater, Delain and/or NightWish are fairly circumstantial, but if that's what they want to put in their ReverbNation profile it's OK by me...)
The screechy and frequently flat vocalist is gone (for the better IMHO) which led to an interesting runthrough tonight.
For one thing, some of the arrangements make it easy to get lost without lyrical guideposts.
For another, without the vocals, they reverted to arrangements of the songs from before the singer arrived on the scene - which of course, I've never heard...

Fine, thought I, jam band mode, everything's in B Phrygian, hit the notes in time with the drummer and hope for the best.
Seems to have worked - plus, they seem to be good down-to-earth guys all around.
So short version is I seem to be 'in.' Got invited to next week's practice as if it were perfectly natural.

With the departure of Ms Singer, I expect the "opening act" slot gig in July has evaporated; they had exactly one gig in their time together - about a month ago. They have a line on another singer but geographic logistics may play a part - it is just not as easy to get around here in the ancient NorthEast/Mid-Atlantic as it is in some newer parts of the country... So - who knows? Certainly I'm not gig-ready, but since I seem to be 'in' I have renewed incentive to work on the material. (It's a bit like online dating - hard to get too emotionally invested before you know if you can actually work with the other people...)

Interesting philosophical question (which I asked...) -- with two extended-range guitars -and- keys, why do they need bass at all? Short version, as I was told - the guitar guys like their parts (which stop at F# above my B) and the keys guy doesn't want to play the bass parts. The bass parts are, generally, pretty simple and none of it is lightning-fast. With their focus on female-front-vocals, I don't see it becoming a Cookie-Monster band. And they pretty much consider Dream Theater to be a giant wankfest, so forced comparisons aside, there is hope for some musical originality.

They were highly appreciative of the FlexSteel-strung fretless Roscoe 6 and I didn't even play the fretted Roscoe 7 (but I did show it to them, because since they were all about extended-range bass, I had to show them "you ain't seen nothin' yet.") Truth be told, for their arrangements, any B-E-A-D-strung bass could do the job, Let's just let that be our little secret... They immediately sent pix of the Roscoe 7 to the prior bassist ;-) The 6 cut through and found its place straight through my GK MB500Fusion-into-Hartke HyDrive 112 without even having to pull out the DarkGlass B7K...

And so I have an interesting musical niche -- Every-other-Tuesday I'm playing Bluegrass on the EUB. Every 6 weeks, I'm the house band at a straight-ahead Blues Jam. And now I seem to have the bass chair in a Prog-Metal band. Who'da thunk it ?

I knew at some point, my work and growth would intersect somebody's available opportunity. Of course - none of it is paying anything yet, so the journey continues...

Sounds interesting..at least you have stuff going on.

My band is still in hiatus, and I am growing restless. I'm talking to a vocalist of a desert rock band who had recently fired the guitarist and drummer. He likened his sound to Kyuss..so it's gonna be interesting. I would be my first originals band if everything works out. The leader of this project tells me that he had gigs and studio time lined up, but the guitarist and drummer were wasting his time. I know the guys he is talking about..they are young (like, early 20's) and have zero band or gig experience. Who knows..originals may be what makes me truly happy as a musician.

 

[ArtechnikA]

...He likened his sound to Kyuss..

cool - you've mentioned another reference I have to go look up ;-)...

Who knows..originals may be what makes me truly happy as a musician.

Originals are indistinguishable from popular songs you've not heard yet...

These guys are good musicians, so there's that. They have a bunch of odd time signatures and the songs transition between them. I was having a little trouble with one where it switches from 9/4 to 7/8 with an extra eighth note 'just because' - but I was ready for it. The parts are fairly well cast (i.e. they don't improvise or take unscripted solos much) but it's still a chore learning the parts and their sequence. I've listened to a lot of fusion (Weather Report, Return to Forever) so the concept is not new to me, it's just the getting up to speed doing it. 12-Bar-Blues it ain't !

I think this could be a really good mix for me. Bluegrass is about timing and technique in simple structures. Blues is about feeling and form. And the prog stuff - well - I wanted a challenge, didn't I ? They did have nice things to say about my timing and intonation, and I know I'll never have to hear "There's no fretless 6-strings in Prog!"

 

[drummer5359]

I have not checked in for a while, it's good to see CWB till rolling along.

GRR, the originals band and my favorite band to play in is not doing much currently. The front man also plays bass and he took the bass slot in a regional country band to stay busy. It worked. He is playing three nights a week with them around western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio. It's a good band.

Feral, the other acoustic act that I've been playing hand percussion in for almost five years still keeps keeping on. My partner in that band still has an aversion to practice. We get gigs, we show up, we pull it off somehow. When he adds a new song I find out the same time as the audience. I play bass on and off during the night, it works.

Hell N' Back is a classic rock cover band that I've been playing drums in for about a year and a half. The band has come a long way, it's sounding quite good these days. We have been gigging regularly, but we have a gig coming up in July that we are particularly excited about. It is a big room that pays decent and they keep several bands in rotation. If we nail it we will get added to the rotation.

Lastly, I'm playing in a startup cover band that does pop songs from 1955 until today, we have a female lead who is great. The bass player is awesome, the guitarist is okay and of course I'm on drums. We are just getting off the ground, but I think that it will be fun.

My wife Jackie and I are doing well. We had two dogs pass away a month apart which was horrible. We have one dog left who travels well, we are going to take advantage of that and travel a bit this summer and fall.

Saturday we are going to see the Stones, then we are on the road for a few weeks. I'm not sure where all we will land, but I'll try to check in as we travel.

It's good to see you all.

 

[BassGen]

I have not checked in for a while, it's good to see CWB till rolling along.

GRR, the originals band and my favorite band to play in is not doing much currently. The front man also plays bass and he took the bass slot in a regional country band to stay busy. It worked. He is playing three nights a week with them around western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio. It's a good band.

Feral, the other acoustic act that I've been playing hand percussion in for almost five years still keeps keeping on. My partner in that band still has an aversion to practice. We get gigs, we show up, we pull it off somehow. When he adds a new song I find out the same time as the audience. I play bass on and off during the night, it works.

Hell N' Back is a classic rock cover band that I've been playing drums in for about a year and a half. The band has come a long way, it's sounding quite good these days. We have been gigging regularly, but we have a gig coming up in July that we are particularly excited about. It is a big room that pays decent and they keep several bands in rotation. If we nail it we will get added to the rotation.

Lastly, I'm playing in a startup cover band that does pop songs from 1955 until today, we have a female lead who is great. The bass player is awesome, the guitarist is okay and of course I'm on drums. We are just getting off the ground, but I think that it will be fun.

My wife Jackie and I are doing well. We had two dogs pass away a month apart which was horrible. We have one dog left who travels well, we are going to take advantage of that and travel a bit this summer and fall.

Saturday we are going to see the Stones, then we are on the road for a few weeks. I'm not sure where all we will land, but I'll try to check in as we travel.

It's good to see you all.

Hey Mike, thanks for the update! You give me hope that when I retire from working for a living maybe ai can play some music!

Tonight I took my wife and 4 kids to see Rush in Toronto. Fab night and a great show! They had some fun with the backline too. For years Rush has been at the leading edge of technology and the onstage rigs are all fakes. At the start of set 2 the curtain lifted and Geddy's rig consisted of 6 SVT's, 10 - 410's and 6 - 610's. The cabs looked Ampeg but the badge was a parody if Ampeg and the brand said "Dirk". Geddy having fun I guess. The SVT's actually did say Ampeg.

 

[drummer5359]

Man I have an Ampeg rig, now I NEED a "Dirk" rig.

 

[BassGen]

Man I have an Ampeg rig, now I NEED a "Dirk" rig.

Set 1 started either the Time Machine "rig" which transformed into the Laundromat front-loader rig piece by piece in the first set so you might need a Maytag rig too!