Guitar
Howdy all. It's been awhile since I've posted and as usual this is for the best reason: I'm really busy making music, as opposed to just obsessing about it.
This last weekend I was out with Sandybone and the Breakdown doing an island hop around BC's gulf islands. Four gigs required seven ferry boats and three islands - about fourteen hours of ferry travel to cover about fifty miles of actual geography, plus the driving. I don't think we're a particularly ugly bunch of guys, but we're pretty darn homely at eight in the morning following a gig and its after-party. I will take this opportunity to apologize to anybody who was frightened by our appearance over those days, particularly any small children. Overall the gigs were very successful and a whole lot of fun. We returned Monday night and were back to work hosting our 'End of the Line Jam' at the Princeton Pub Tuesday night.
Over the weekend I decided to take a page out Joe Gore's playbook and use a germanium fuzz as my sole source of grit (my Fuzz Factory clone) and managed to not get fired or punched out by our fearless leader (we're a fairly tradition-minded blues/old country/folk-rocky kinda' act). It was a pretty cool experience, and mostly successful, although at higher volume-knob twists it seemed to disappear into the mix. I have a theory that I could ameliorate this by using my Jet City head and cranking the mids (I was using a Fender Deluxe Reverb reish over the weekend - no mid knob available to tweak). Mostly I was riding it lower for a Rangemaster-like clean boost and it sounded great.
In other gigging news, I've got a new single gig which is working out great and came along shortly after my last house gig came to a halt due to the business selling (to a corporate-bar juggernaut; I didn't even bother asking them for a gig, despite having a reliable clientele). It's a boutique hotel downtown, it pays good, the staff are great and it's a cool challenge playing as quietly as one is required and still bringing the soul and feel. It's also a GREAT acoustic space; truly a joy to the ears. Once again, we find that when one door closes, another opens up. Thanks universe.
Coming up soon is the return of my old buddy/boss Nigel Mack who will be up from Chicago to do our usual swing around British Columbia. I always look forward to these shows; we spent about two and a half years hard touring and it's great fun to take a trip down memory lane. It doesn't hurt that Nigel is playing, singing and writing better than ever, and we have some killer local players rounding out the band. That'll all get going at the beginning of August, and in the meantime I'm quite busy doing something somewhat unusual for me: relinquishing my sideman role for a bit and playing out front. But don't worry, I'm usually too lazy to keep up that sort of momentum for too long.
In another bit of news, I was able to spend a beautiful evening watching and visiting with my old friend Olga Goreas and her husband Jace Lacek of the Besnard Lakes. If you have not checked this band out as yet, quit reading this half-baked poop sandwich and give them a listen. Glorious noises from one of my oldest friends. I've known Olga since 1986 and have been a friend, roommate, bandmate and skateboarding buddy, but we hadn't seen each other since the two left Vancouver around 2000. It was a very happy reunion indeed. Let me reiterate: this band is fantastic.
In some happy gear-related news, the very cool Mike Robertson of Eastwood Guitars reposted my Sidejack Baritone Deluxe article and was so happy with it that he sent me a Sidejack Bass VI Deluxe for review. It showed up last night while I was out on a gig; it's a pretty happy moment to return to your house and find a big-ol' guitar box in the front room. As with the baritone, this is one eye-catching axe. It'll take me a while to do some set-up tweaking, then compose something appropriate for it, so look forward to the review in a few weeks. I may just rip into the Jet Harris/Tony Meehan book for some classic Bass VI tuneage. We'll see.
Also in the low-note joy category, my buddy and first-call bassman Pat Darkus went out and bought me my own baritone guitar (!). Talk about 'above and beyond the call of duty'; seriously, this guy is as sweet as pie. Thanks again Pat.
Also, also in the low-note joy category, I've set up my Kay/Univox Effector for open C and the old girl LOVES it. I strapped on some .13's, tuned her up and was amazed to hear the axe intonate better than ever. It sounds fantastic, particularly with the onboard fuzz engaged. Look out world, I'm now equipped with 50% more evil!
Well, that's about all the news for now. And to Paul Pigat may I say "I will finish the review of your show with the mind-blowing Diego 'El Twanguero' Garcia soon. I promise."
- Off On Another Quixotic Journey
Time to haul this bad-boy up the highway! Hello gang. I just thought I'd write a little note before I crash down for an early evening's sleep before a twelve hour drive from Vancouver to Calgary. Hurricane and the Hooligans...
- Tony Robertson- Six Strings Down
Tony Robertson. We'll miss you, buddy. It was with a heavy heart that I learned my old friend Tony Robertson had passed away this past weekend. Tony succumbed to a bone marrow illness after a long and brave fight. I first met Tony...
- Ephemera And Updates
Hey gang, I haven't forgot about you! I've just been extremely busy with both family and musical responsibilities. There are some cool posts coming up though: the Zinky Smoky Amp demo is almost ready; it's written and recorded...
- An Interesting Rant On The State Of The Union
A friend of my wife's passed on this article which is a pretty canny summary of the state of things for us working muso types. The comments section is equally enlightening. Check it out here: http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/02/why-music-venues-are-totally-lost-an-open-letter-from-a-professional-musician/...
- Prinny, Six Years In- Update!
Just a little post to remind those readers in the Vancouver area that Sandybone and I are celebrating our sixth year anniversary of hosting the End of the Line Jam at the Princeton Pub (1901 Powell St.), on Tuesday, June 19th! Who'da'...
Guitar
Ephemera and Updates.
Howdy all. It's been awhile since I've posted and as usual this is for the best reason: I'm really busy making music, as opposed to just obsessing about it.
 |
| Sandybone and me from a previous island journey. |
This last weekend I was out with Sandybone and the Breakdown doing an island hop around BC's gulf islands. Four gigs required seven ferry boats and three islands - about fourteen hours of ferry travel to cover about fifty miles of actual geography, plus the driving. I don't think we're a particularly ugly bunch of guys, but we're pretty darn homely at eight in the morning following a gig and its after-party. I will take this opportunity to apologize to anybody who was frightened by our appearance over those days, particularly any small children. Overall the gigs were very successful and a whole lot of fun. We returned Monday night and were back to work hosting our 'End of the Line Jam' at the Princeton Pub Tuesday night.
 |
| Fuzz Factory clone. Pretty cool live, even in a traditional setting. |
Over the weekend I decided to take a page out Joe Gore's playbook and use a germanium fuzz as my sole source of grit (my Fuzz Factory clone) and managed to not get fired or punched out by our fearless leader (we're a fairly tradition-minded blues/old country/folk-rocky kinda' act). It was a pretty cool experience, and mostly successful, although at higher volume-knob twists it seemed to disappear into the mix. I have a theory that I could ameliorate this by using my Jet City head and cranking the mids (I was using a Fender Deluxe Reverb reish over the weekend - no mid knob available to tweak). Mostly I was riding it lower for a Rangemaster-like clean boost and it sounded great.
In other gigging news, I've got a new single gig which is working out great and came along shortly after my last house gig came to a halt due to the business selling (to a corporate-bar juggernaut; I didn't even bother asking them for a gig, despite having a reliable clientele). It's a boutique hotel downtown, it pays good, the staff are great and it's a cool challenge playing as quietly as one is required and still bringing the soul and feel. It's also a GREAT acoustic space; truly a joy to the ears. Once again, we find that when one door closes, another opens up. Thanks universe.
Coming up soon is the return of my old buddy/boss Nigel Mack who will be up from Chicago to do our usual swing around British Columbia. I always look forward to these shows; we spent about two and a half years hard touring and it's great fun to take a trip down memory lane. It doesn't hurt that Nigel is playing, singing and writing better than ever, and we have some killer local players rounding out the band. That'll all get going at the beginning of August, and in the meantime I'm quite busy doing something somewhat unusual for me: relinquishing my sideman role for a bit and playing out front. But don't worry, I'm usually too lazy to keep up that sort of momentum for too long.
In another bit of news, I was able to spend a beautiful evening watching and visiting with my old friend Olga Goreas and her husband Jace Lacek of the Besnard Lakes. If you have not checked this band out as yet, quit reading this half-baked poop sandwich and give them a listen. Glorious noises from one of my oldest friends. I've known Olga since 1986 and have been a friend, roommate, bandmate and skateboarding buddy, but we hadn't seen each other since the two left Vancouver around 2000. It was a very happy reunion indeed. Let me reiterate: this band is fantastic.
 |
| The Sidejack Baritone Deluxe. Review of it's Bass VI cousin coming soon! |
In some happy gear-related news, the very cool Mike Robertson of Eastwood Guitars reposted my Sidejack Baritone Deluxe article and was so happy with it that he sent me a Sidejack Bass VI Deluxe for review. It showed up last night while I was out on a gig; it's a pretty happy moment to return to your house and find a big-ol' guitar box in the front room. As with the baritone, this is one eye-catching axe. It'll take me a while to do some set-up tweaking, then compose something appropriate for it, so look forward to the review in a few weeks. I may just rip into the Jet Harris/Tony Meehan book for some classic Bass VI tuneage. We'll see.
Also in the low-note joy category, my buddy and first-call bassman Pat Darkus went out and bought me my own baritone guitar (!). Talk about 'above and beyond the call of duty'; seriously, this guy is as sweet as pie. Thanks again Pat.
 |
| Kay/Univox effector: now with 50% more evil! |
Also, also in the low-note joy category, I've set up my Kay/Univox Effector for open C and the old girl LOVES it. I strapped on some .13's, tuned her up and was amazed to hear the axe intonate better than ever. It sounds fantastic, particularly with the onboard fuzz engaged. Look out world, I'm now equipped with 50% more evil!
Well, that's about all the news for now. And to Paul Pigat may I say "I will finish the review of your show with the mind-blowing Diego 'El Twanguero' Garcia soon. I promise."
- Off On Another Quixotic Journey
Time to haul this bad-boy up the highway! Hello gang. I just thought I'd write a little note before I crash down for an early evening's sleep before a twelve hour drive from Vancouver to Calgary. Hurricane and the Hooligans...
- Tony Robertson- Six Strings Down
Tony Robertson. We'll miss you, buddy. It was with a heavy heart that I learned my old friend Tony Robertson had passed away this past weekend. Tony succumbed to a bone marrow illness after a long and brave fight. I first met Tony...
- Ephemera And Updates
Hey gang, I haven't forgot about you! I've just been extremely busy with both family and musical responsibilities. There are some cool posts coming up though: the Zinky Smoky Amp demo is almost ready; it's written and recorded...
- An Interesting Rant On The State Of The Union
A friend of my wife's passed on this article which is a pretty canny summary of the state of things for us working muso types. The comments section is equally enlightening. Check it out here: http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/02/why-music-venues-are-totally-lost-an-open-letter-from-a-professional-musician/...
- Prinny, Six Years In- Update!
Just a little post to remind those readers in the Vancouver area that Sandybone and I are celebrating our sixth year anniversary of hosting the End of the Line Jam at the Princeton Pub (1901 Powell St.), on Tuesday, June 19th! Who'da'...