Double Bass Olie Brice Quartet - All It Was

[oliebrice]

I have a new album out today, my 4th as bandleader/composer. It's a quartet featuring some incredible improvisers - Rachel Musson on tenor, Alexander Hawkins on piano and Will Glaser on drums
Have a listen here if you like:

 

[JRA]

nice! great playing on some very nice tunes! congrats on your release!

 

[crd]

I am looking forward to hearing this. Alexander Hawkins is an incredible musician. I got to play one show with him last year when he was in the US and was impressed. Thanks for sharing.

Did you all record in one room?

 

[oliebrice]

Thanks!

nice! great playing on some very nice tunes! congrats on your release!

 

[oliebrice]

I am looking forward to hearing this. Alexander Hawkins is an incredible musician. I got to play one show with him last year when he was in the US and was impressed. Thanks for sharing.

Did you all record in one room?

Yeah, Alex is pretty amazing

All recorded in one room, a really nice studio in London called the Fish Factory

 

[oliebrice]

Very nice review of the album /last night's album launch:

Olie Brice at the Vortex

Almost a year ago I wrote warmly about the debut of the bassist and composer Olie Brice’s new quartet at Cafe Oto, noting that they’d be going into a studio the following day to record …

thebluemoment.com

 

[crd]

Yeah, Alex is pretty amazing

All recorded in one room, a really nice studio in London called the Fish Factory

It sounds like it. I always prefer that even though every engineer I've ever worked with doesn't. The bass and tunes sound great.

 

[mikewalker]

Very very nice!

 

[ejnachtrab]

I just picked it up on Bandcamp. I’m looking forward to checking it out!

 

[ejnachtrab]

Yeah, Alex is pretty amazing

All recorded in one room, a really nice studio in London called the Fish Factory

I’m curious about how you guys have approached the - all in one room/no headphones - situation. 90% of the time in the studio I’m in an iso room with headphones (which is never comfortable). On my last record we were all in the main room sans headphones. I used a small amp as a monitor and this worked ok except at louder dynamics and in a few other spots where I felt like I was overplaying or losing my sense of pitch. So guess the question for me is how do you like monitor the bass but avoid having the amp sound bleeding in.

 

[oliebrice]

I’m curious about how you guys have approached the - all in one room/no headphones - situation. 90% of the time in the studio I’m in an iso room with headphones (which is never comfortable). On my last record we were all in the main room sans headphones. I used a small amp as a monitor and this worked ok except at louder dynamics and in a few other spots where I felt like I was overplaying or losing my sense of pitch. So guess the question for me is how do you like monitor the bass but avoid having the amp sound bleeding in.

As far as I recall - and not 100% confident I'm remembering correctly - I wasn't using headphones but the other three were. My preference is always not to if I can get away with it, and being partially screened off helps - I could still hear the others acoustically but was getting some of myself back off the partition. Early on in my gigging career I was pretty committed to playing acoustically as much as possible - I'm much less purist these days and almost always use an amp on gigs if there's a drummer, but I think that helped develop things which are useful in amp-less one room recording now...

 

[crd]

I’m curious about how you guys have approached the - all in one room/no headphones - situation. 90% of the time in the studio I’m in an iso room with headphones (which is never comfortable). On my last record we were all in the main room sans headphones. I used a small amp as a monitor and this worked ok except at louder dynamics and in a few other spots where I felt like I was overplaying or losing my sense of pitch. So guess the question for me is how do you like monitor the bass but avoid having the amp sound bleeding in.

As far as I recall - and not 100% confident I'm remembering correctly - I wasn't using headphones but the other three were. My preference is always not to if I can get away with it, and being partially screened off helps - I could still hear the others acoustically but was getting some of myself back off the partition. Early on in my gigging career I was pretty committed to playing acoustically as much as possible - I'm much less purist these days and almost always use an amp on gigs if there's a drummer, but I think that helped develop things which are useful in amp-less one room recording now...

I've had a similar journey and also ended up in a similar place.

Part of what I am looking for (sometimes not all the time) is a sound that some would call "overplaying" but suits the type of music I'm doing well. Gary Peacocks sound on Spiritual Unity is often on my mind. I also go toe to toe with great drummers most nights of the week which definitely helps.

This sounds like zen-posturing-nosense but I really hear what every I am doing strongly enough in my head that I don't rely on hearing the sound from my instrument to play in tune. I think this also helps me push the beat because if you are responding the reflections in the room for aural feedback it's too late to adjust. I did go with isolation for the drums and bass on a recording project a couple weeks ago because I was looking for a more "modern" sound. It went smooth also; it's just a different aesthetic. I used in-ear monitors I like rather than headphones. I also practiced with them for a few months to get ready for the session.

 

[oliebrice]

Yeah, I share a lot of that. Playing with amazing and intense drummers has had a lot to do with developing my sound and also with the sound I've aimed at - Mark Sanders and Jeff Williams in particular. And Spiritual Unity Peacock is rarely far from my mind!