Sorry, I didn't see it mentioned through all the old dudes yelling "get off my lawn".
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Setting your bass on fire
- Thread starter AaronVonRock
- Start date
I agree with your signature and with Waylon, I don't think Hank done it this way.
I wouldn't play with fire onstage. Just a thing I have. We play mostly local all original shows and tend to go on at 10pm or later by then people have got a few drinks in them and I just don't want to deal with a lawsuit.
One thing I plan to do soon though actually is I play two Musicman basses, and a local oawn shop has an OLP copy dirt cheap, what I want to do is get it, put the real deal ernie ball musicman logo on the headstock and destroy it either at a huge show or for a music video or something just to mess with people.
OK, I've had some time to think about this, and after giving it further thought, I think it's an even dumber idea than I thought the first time I read it. I took the following into consideration:
- The admonishments from the "cool" posters that we who suggest NOT burning your instrument in a nightclub are "buzzkills"
- The fact that this cliche thing has been done billions of times, and won't get much attention at all
- The fact that the OP is willing to risk the lives of strangers, none of whom have said in advance they are willing to have their lives risked for something so un-entertaining
- The fact that there is almost no chance whatsoever that anything positive can come of this
- The fact that there is at least some chance that something bad will happen
I'm fairly certain you know what to do and how you're going to do it. So since you asked how to do it my advice is this:
Maybe the smart thing to do is practice the stunt in an open parking lot or dirt lot where the chances of burning up innocent bystanders or buildings is zero. Then the only thing that can go wrong is your bass turns to ashes and you might set yourself on fire. That way you won't burn down your house or your apartment along with other people's apartments or houses.
Now if I were to ever even consider doing this (which I would never do) I would do this...wait I don't know what I'm talking about and would NEVER try it or offer advice on how to because I honestly think this is a silly stunt not even worth trying.
But, you are going to do it and I hope it goes well and the end result is your 100+ fans walk away with the feeling of total elation at what they just witnessed. Let us know how it goes. Hopefully it is a raging success.
Now that's about as positive a spin as I can put on this.
I knew a guy that played with the idea for at least a few days. Let me paint a picture for you.
He kept a little metal can of lighter fluid on his bass cab next to the rack\amp on an 8x10. He would carefully drip a line of lighter fluid on the side of his headstock 3-4 inches long. Then he'd set it on fire. It would only burn for 10-20 seconds and didn't leave any residue. It was a cheap novelty. I remember one thing he said to justify it was that "it's a graphite neck so it won't catch fire"...
He kept a little metal can of lighter fluid on his bass cab next to the rack\amp on an 8x10. He would carefully drip a line of lighter fluid on the side of his headstock 3-4 inches long. Then he'd set it on fire. It would only burn for 10-20 seconds and didn't leave any residue. It was a cheap novelty. I remember one thing he said to justify it was that "it's a graphite neck so it won't catch fire"...
I haven't read every post here, but I know the Great White tragedy has been mentioned a few times. It's easy to talk about that in the abstract and try to distinguish what you're going to do from what they did, but have you ever seen the video of what happened and how fast the place was engulfed in flames? And even if all you create is panic, the stampede often kills lots of people such as in the E2 club in Chicago which was over someone using pepper spray. You say you're playing a small club that you think will be packed. It doesn't take a mistake like Great White's to kill people. It just takes one careless error, one unforeseen circumstance, one "misfire" to create tragedy. If you're intransigent about doing this, why not at least wait until an outside show?
So, it's not so abstract anymore, take a look:
EDIT: I now see the video was posted previously, but it bears repeating.
So, it's not so abstract anymore, take a look:
EDIT: I now see the video was posted previously, but it bears repeating.
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Wasn't quite doubting his location, as it seems Bangkok probably isn't too worried about someone setting a bass on fire as it seems they aren't too worried about underage prostitution. I'm also aware that WWW means worldwide web.
I know you don't know me but that's a pretty big assumption on your part to say what you said. I'm also aware the www isn't where a spider lives.Also OP never brought location up in any post, people seemed concerned about insurance and club owners and I think some assumed he was in the USA or some other developed country. From what I know about Bangkok you probably can light a bass on fire without anyone worrying about it. I'm certainly no expert on Thailand, in fact Zach Galafinakis probably knows more about Thigh Land than I do.
Yes, I really do live in Bangkok. I'm not sure what I would gain by making that up. Glad you've seen Hangover II. Like most movies, it gives an accurate depiction of an entire country, it's people, and it's culture.
I've been reading up on the Great White incident since that seems to be brought up by most people opposed to fire at a live show. I've decided that I'm not to let the actions of a nimrod road manager for a washed-up hair metal determine what I do at a show. This is a guy who wasn't intelligent enough to know not to detonate 3 cylinders that shoot 15-foot sparks directly into two layers of urethane and polyurethane foam.
Other factors in this incident and others like it are the emergency exits being blocked or even outright locked. Quote from the Wikipedia article: More than one survivor later stated that a bouncer stopped people trying to escape via the stage exit, stating that that door was "for the band only." Also, the Great White show was over the club's official licensed capacity. This is also a factor at other nightclub disasters.
Not to make light of this tragic incident but if I use an NRA-styled argument: Fires don't kill people, idiotic road managers who detonate explosives and club owners who lock emergency exits and allow too many people into the venue kill people.
What is the difference between me setting my bass on fire at a club and the bartender making four Flaming Dr. Peppers? Or the waitress who is carrying them on a tray above her head through the crowd? Or the chef at a Japanese steakhouse making fire shoot four feet into the air while cooking? Or ordering food that is served flambeed at your table?
I've been reading up on the Great White incident since that seems to be brought up by most people opposed to fire at a live show. I've decided that I'm not to let the actions of a nimrod road manager for a washed-up hair metal determine what I do at a show. This is a guy who wasn't intelligent enough to know not to detonate 3 cylinders that shoot 15-foot sparks directly into two layers of urethane and polyurethane foam.
Other factors in this incident and others like it are the emergency exits being blocked or even outright locked. Quote from the Wikipedia article: More than one survivor later stated that a bouncer stopped people trying to escape via the stage exit, stating that that door was "for the band only." Also, the Great White show was over the club's official licensed capacity. This is also a factor at other nightclub disasters.
Not to make light of this tragic incident but if I use an NRA-styled argument: Fires don't kill people, idiotic road managers who detonate explosives and club owners who lock emergency exits and allow too many people into the venue kill people.
What is the difference between me setting my bass on fire at a club and the bartender making four Flaming Dr. Peppers? Or the waitress who is carrying them on a tray above her head through the crowd? Or the chef at a Japanese steakhouse making fire shoot four feet into the air while cooking? Or ordering food that is served flambeed at your table?
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From your link: "We are still investigating the cause of fire," Pernama said, but a preliminary investigation indicated a short circuit.
Always wanted to douse my strings in some very slightly flammable liquid, and set them on fire, then play with fire retardant gloves as the strings melt..
I think the Pyro Gel sounds exciting for any number of applications, the possibilities are virtually limitless. I also think the whole flash paper fireball shooter sounds like a blast. Then again what would I know since most of the music I like was created by bands that are nothing but one giant Halloween gimmick, with lyrics that are nothing but clichés and screams for attention. So of course I would be into this kind of delinquent behavior, as I too have followed the lead of something that has been done to death by someone else and done better the first time.
