Watch This Space...

I just got a Long & McQuade gift card for Christmas. So there may be some goodies in my future (or just strings, who knows).

Ooooo, New Look

Here's the new look. I jumped to fancypants blogger and so I decided to mess around with ABP in it.

Amplification

I have to say that I'm getting tired of lugging my heavy combo amp everywhere. At over 60 lbs, the Ashdown ABM combo is both heavy and bulky. The problem though is that I love the tone. This amp is always stunning sounding. It's also plenty loud for keeping up with all kinds of noisy all-tube guitar amps. There are a number of other combos that I would consider, but they would have to give me that tonal satisfaction.

Pictures

I actually like those two jazz basses stretching over the whole back of the page in that last post. Maybe its a background idea?

Fretted & Fretless

More pics of my rig:

Images of My Gibson

Been A Long Time...

But I should mention that I did do some recording over the summer. I'd like to post some examples, but since I didn't write the songs I feel that they aren't mine to post. Anyway, it was exciting to actually create something.

Archetypes

The Beatles, in too many ways to describe here, set up the archetype for the modern pop and/or rock group. Everything from the notion of a band that writes its own songs to the importance of the album over the single, to the creation of pop music as high art, can be traced to the Beatles.

Amid all this, let's think about the archetype for bass players:


Yup, that Kids in the Hall skit pretty much sums up the stereotype of the bass player. But McCartney doesn't fit it at all. Along with Lennon he formed arguably the greatest songwriting team of all time. Why has a band that set up so many rock archetypes not left us with a better one for bassists?

Good Article on Compression

I don't currently use any compression in my signal chain, but this is a good article on the topic.

Having Fun With Inversions

I reread an old article in Bass Player about chord inversion, and I was fiddling around with them a bit last night. I don't really have a lot of time to practice these days, but this was an interesting sort of idea to play with.

Ibanez Basses: They're on fire!

No, literally. There has been a recall issued for several models in the United States because of a battery clip that may cause a fire(!)

Fender: Victim of its own success

New this year is Fender's Jaguar Bass. I played a couple of them and they seem to be quite nice basses if you're into that whole Jazz bass thing. Active/passive modes, series/parallel switching, attractive design, all in all a nice little package. That said, I predict that this bass will be discontinued in a couple years. Why? Well, the gain of the active and passive modes is not matched quit as nicely as I'd like, but that's probably not it. I would like to see a five string version, but the lack thereof is probably not why it will die. The reason: it doesn't look like either a Precision or a Jazz. Fender has produced some rather interesting and enjoyable models, but none of them have the staying power of those two designs. If they had stuffed the exact same electronics into a standard-looking Jazz, I'm sure there would be no problem moving this bass. I'm sure that it will have limited success as it is, for what my aesthetic opinion is worth, it is a very attractive design. I've always been partial to the design elements of the Jaguar guitar. Nonetheless, I'm sticking to my prediction, as nice as this bass is, I don't think it'll be around more than three or four years at most - something I wouldn't say if it was another variation on the design of the Jazz bass.

When Good Companies Have Bad Sites

I love Bartolini pickups, I really do. I have put them in two different basses that I have owned. But I was looking up some information on preamps, and I was disappointed that Bartolini has persisted in doing nothing about their site with 1998 graphics. I mean we make no claim that this blog is at all eye-pleasing, but even this is better than Bartolini's site. The site looks so old, that it makes you wonder if it was a relic from a defunct company. Not exactly the corporate image I would want to portray, especially as there are lots of outfits out there making great pickups.

Practicing While Away

I'm debating how best I might stay practiced while away from home. I need something that is portable and will not be annoying in a dorm room setting. Maybe a headphone amp? Maybe just playing unplugged?

Straplocks

I picked up a set of the Schaller units on Thursday and I plan to try them out on my fretless. I suppose the fact that I refinished that one has made it my de facto tinkering bass. If I want to try any new hardware or whatever, that's where I do that.

Michael Manring on Loopers

Via Talkbass, I found out about this article on loopers by Michael Manring. When I first picked up my DL4 I sort of thought of the loop function as a sort of novelty. I didn't see how I could use it all that much. (It's too tricky to loop things just right in a live setting, and in recording, I could just use the recording software to loop things, right?) Well, this article has some practical applications for loopers as a practice tool, it sounds interesting, so I think I may try to put some of this into practice.

Favourite Bassists - In a Band Setting

Everyone knows who you put on a list of the best bass players, Jaco, Wooten, Michael Manring, Steve Bailey. Those players who push the instrument to its limits, especially in solos or other settings designed to showcase the considerable talent required to play the way that they do. Let's not take anything away from these bassists, they are geniuses, full stop. But for most of us, playing this instrument is usually all about laying a foundation. You lock in with the drums, you make a groove, and there is almost never a solo spot for you.

In light of all this, I thought it would be interesting to create a list of the top players that reflect the reality of a lot of bassists out there. My parameters were to look for players who had made a name for themselves in a band context. I figure that this is a practical list, since I find it more likely that I'll be trying to spice up my parts in a band setting than anything else. Other than that, this really reflects my own biases. If your favourite isn't on the list, don't take it personally. In no particular order:

Peter Hook - In Hook's work with both Joy Division and New Order, the bass always stands out. He's sort of in the tradition of John Entwistle, using the bass to create lead parts without dominating the song. Hook is also not afraid to explore different bass tones, there were some really gritty ones with Joy Division.

Duff McKagan - I suppose not a lot of people would have expected the GNR/Velvet Revolver bassist on a list composed by me, but Duff is a solid player who can create interesting counterpoints to Slash's guitar leads (see the Paradise City outro).

Mike Mills - I think that Mills, and actually R.E.M. as a whole don't get nearly the credit they deserve. R.E.M. has got to be the post-punk jangly indie archetype (or is it The Smiths, maybe both). Anyway, Mills is always using these tasteful little fills and I don't think he gets the credit he deserves because he is so subtle often.

Matt Freeman - He is head-and-shoulders above every other punk bassist of his generation. He has virtuoso technical chops, but other than Maxwell Murder, there are no real Matt Freeman solos to speak of. All the same, he doesn't need a solo to put the lie to the notion that punk bass is just eighth-note roots all the time.

John Entwistle - If there is one player who was the archetype for innovating in a rock and roll band context, I'd say that The Ox is it. This man was the force behind roundwound bass strings. Think about that for a minute. More than likely you owe something of the design of your stings (unless you only put flats on your bass) to him. Entwistle saw the tonal possibilities of the bass guitar and gave it a key push out of the mold of sounding like uprights.

Jackson Music Report

Yesterday I made it out to Jackson Music Centre on Grand Island (as promised last week). They had a huge selection of guitars, but not all that much in the bass department. They did have a Fender Jaguar bass. I had not seen that one in person before, so that was cool. All in all the bass selection was utterly dominated by Fender, with maybe 4 Korean-made Spectors, some Ibanez Soundgears, a couple of the newer Tobias basses, and maybe a couple Epiphones. Similarly the bass amp selection was nothing that I couldn't see Long & McQuade offering at the Bloor location.

I did manage to try out one cool pedal, the MXR M-80. I had seen these around a few places, but yesterday I finally got one out and put it through its paces. It actually came off as potentially a very useful pedal, in the right context. Certainly it has a range of very usable distortion tones, this is due, in no small part, to the fact that there is a blend knob. It's very easy, in my experience to lose the bass in the mix entirely without some kind of clean tone blended in.

Other than that, I learned that some stuff isn't appreciably cheaper on this side of the border. Strings, however, are a lot a cheaper in certain cases. They also had the ones I like, DR Sunbeams. So I suppose that it may be worth it to at least stock up on those down here.

Another Bass Blog

This blog was created by another Talkbass member to be a clearinghouse for information on short scale basses. So if that's your thing, check out The Short Scale Bass Blog. It's late and I'm tired, but I'll probably put it in the "links" section when I get a chance.

Exploring

Well, now that I spend half my time in Western New York, I might as well find out what this fine region has to offer in the way of music stores. To that end, next week I'll be off to Jackson Music Centre to find out. Since I've had them recommended both in conversation with locals and online at Talkbass, I figure they are worth a shot. I will go in with an open mind and try to ignore the somewhat-lacking-in-content website.

What the Roan isn't telling you:

Jay has picked up a Warwick Thumb 5-string and an SWR head in the past week. Since he must be ashamed that he couldn't snag a busted-up Precision with flatwounds and some pics wedged under the pickguard, it's left to me to tell you about it.

Pictured on the upper left is the Thumb 5 that will soon belong to the Roan. This specimen includes the seldom-seen soapbars as well as the wide string-spacing. I'm sure this bass will provide Jay with hours of slappity fun.

In addition, the Roan seems set to acquire an SWR SM-400 head. This is a classic from the SWR lineup and will pair very well with the Thumb I imagine. The question that remains though is what kind of cabinet will be paired with the SM-400. What configuration will it be? 2x10? 4x10? 1x15? 1x18? Horn or no horn? Will it be an SWR to match the head, or maybe something else? Aguilar? Bag End? Euphonic Audio? Bergantino? Eden? Who knows?

Nonetheless, exciting times for the Roan...

Edit: It now appears that the Roan has selected an SWR 4X10 Goliath cabinet to go with his new head. There you have it, in a few weeks the Roan has gone from one Mexican Precision Special to a full gigable rig that would be acceptable in a wide range of semi-pro and pro settings. Way to go, Roan!