Band Tips: Why Can’t We Get No International Recognition?
Author of “1,2,1,2: A Step By Step Guide To The SA Music Industry,” Dave Chislett offers Music industry tips for aspiring bands and musicians
After 30 years of listening to and making South African music I think I know the answer to why we consistently fail to break out into an international market. I have watched bands, played in bands, managed them and gigged with them. And finally the secret dawns. Yes, this is the big one, this is the hint that you need to really make yourself a career as an artist. And man is it simple!
Write.
And write some more.
And write more songs.
Every musician knows that in order to improve you must practice. You put in those hours, play those scales, go for lessons, pick up hints and tips, chat to other players and generally work very hard and put in a lot of hours to get better on your instrument.
And yet, when it comes to writing the songs and the music that this technical craft will be expressed through, almost without exception, artists write enough songs to fill a set or an album and stop. What this means is that your songs have the sum total of song writing experience of the actual number that you play. This flies in the face of logic. It defies reason. And yet, just about all of you do it. Song writing is a skill, just like playing, singing or doing gymnastics. The more you do it, the better you get. Sure some days you will write rubbish, but the more you hone the craft the better your rubbish will get until you are able to write really good stuff with seemingly little effort because you have written and written and you know the craft, the tricks, the short cuts, the theory and you have written the rubbish out along with the good.
We buy into so many myths: overnight success, one hit wonder, only being able to write when the muse strikes. Sorry, none of these are true! If you are choosing your album tracks from a pool of 15 or so, it stands to reason that there will be a percentage of not so good and even bad songs. The bigger your pool, the greater the number of good songs. Simple. Percentage wise, maybe the same, but number wise: more. Work it out!
The one thing the big major labels overseas have got right traditionally is that they are very focussed on good songs. You WILL choose your album tracks from 80 songs. Not 20. And the results speak for themselves. SA artists battle not because they are not talented, not gifted not interesting… They battle because the overall standard of their song writing is just not up to scratch.
You gotta get over yourselves my friends. This is not magic, not mystical, not a mystery. It’s a job and the more you do it, the better you get. So give up that attachment to each song you write as if it is some precious gem of blood and bones you squeezed from your soul. Set it down and get writing another and another. Maybe that one WAS a real gem, but statistically speaking, chances are it is not. Even the biggest genius delivers their fair share of rubbish. They just never release it.
As a consumer, you are sick and tired of buying albums that only really have 2 good tracks on them and the rest are just fillers. As an artist battling for market share in a depressed economy, why would you do exactly the same thing to your audience? Up the ante people, write more, get better and differentiate yourself through excellence.
That’s the secret, Simple isn’t it?
Author Blurb
David Chislett has been in the SA music industry for 25 years. Bassist, journalist, manager, publicist, film maker, author and consultant, he has gotten his hands dirty.
His book 1,2,1,2: A Step By Step Guide To The SA Music Industry is an easy to understand, no holds barred self-help book for anyone wanting to do better in the business.
It is available from Exclusive Books, Look & Listen stores and all good independent shops.
He also hosts workshops and private consultations to help artists get ahead.
Effect Pedal Boards
Every guitar effect junkie knows that stomp boxes multiply when you’re not looking (or at least, that’s what we tell our partners). You start out with a simple overdrive and maybe a stomp tuner. Then before you know it, you need a power supply unit to feed your plethora of pedals and are making up short patch cables by the dozen. At some point they start becoming inconvenient to connect together every time we want to play – especially when you regularly need to transport and set them up at practices and gigs.
The solution to this common problem is a pedal board – a board with all your pedals semi-permanently attached, with all the audio and power connections in place. A pedal board lets you transport everything easily and set up and tear down quickly and is usually a lot neater. Ideally you then simply pop the board on stage or floor, connect it to power, guitar and amp and you are ready to go.
Pedalboard features
When you are looking at buying or building a pedalboard, there are a few features to look at and decide on.
Size
Size is all important – you have to be able to fit all your pedals on the same board. More importantly – unless you have been using exactly the same setup for decades – you have to leave room for expansion. On the other hand, a huge pedalboard takes up floor space, which can be at a premium on many smaller stages.
Angled surface
When you have multiple rows of pedals, the ones in the front row can obscure or make it difficult to activate the pedals in the second or even third row behind them. Boards with an angled pedal surface, raise the rear pedals rows up higher than the front, making it easier to reach them. Angled boards usually allow you to run your cables underneath and even mount a power supply under the board (freeing up valuable surface space).
Case
A carry case or bag for your board is important to protect your board and the pedals on it when you are travelling. For travelling to and from practice a simple padded bag will do, but when you are gigging, a hard case becomes essential.
While hard cases can double the cost of your board, consider the total value of all your pedals and imagine an amplifier rack falling on top of it – which should put things into perspective.
Slatted surface
A surface made of slats makes it easier to route patch and power cables by running them underneath the board, making for a much neater pedalboard layout. The board must be raised or angled to provide clearance for cables.
Power supplies
Some commercial boards come with built-in power supplies for your pedals. This has the advantage of being convenient and usually makes for a neater pedalboard.
However, they usually only supply one voltage and don’t allow for upgrading the supply when you add in some power hungry or unusual voltage pedals, so usually they are not recommended for any but the smallest boards.
Inputs and outputs
A few commercial boards have built in sockets for plugging in to your guitar and amp. Not an essential feature for most players. It is important that they be in convenient positions with amp output at the back of the board and guitar input at the front or side. Rear inputs are problematic as they often mean the guitar cable will drag across the surface of the board as you move, which causes all kinds of chaos.
Attaching pedals
The single best way to attach pedals is with adhesive Velcro strips, and most commercial pedalboards come with Velcro included. The hook side of the Velcro is stuck to the bottom of the pedal while the loop side is fixed to the board and pedals are attached simply by pressing them down.
Most importantly, this allows you to remove and move your pedals as your board changes (or you need to reconfigure the layout for a specific gig).
PLAY BETTER BASS: THE RIGHT STRINGS FOR YOUR STYLE
The type of strings we use on our instruments play an enormous role in how it both sounds and feels.We should never under estimate the role strings play in the overall tone we get out of our basses. Understanding the various aspects of bass strings will help us know which ones to use for our playing style.
Construction of Bass Strings
Every bass string is comprised of two strings – the Core string and the Winding string.
The Core string is a thick wire from one end of the string to the other. Around the core string another smaller string is tightly wound in a spiral all the way up the length of the core string. If you look closely at a bass string you will see little grooves all the way up the string. That is the tiny winding string. The winding string adds brilliance to the string’s tone. If you have an old set of strings, try unwinding one to see how it looks.
The technique used to wind that wrapping, as well as the actual material used, creates the essence of any string.
Winding
There are two main types of windings, Roundwound and Flatwound and some that fall in-between them.
Roundwound strings involve a metal wrapping, generally made of stainless steel or nickel, around the core that is not ground down or smoothed out. You can actually feel the rough, metallic ridges in these strings when you touch them. They represent a more modern sound and are capable of producing a wide range of tones that are distinctive to many styles of music. They are probably the most commonly used types of strings today. Roundwound strings are used in almost all styles of bass playing, and are essential for slapping, popping and tapping where you want a nice bright tone.
They produce a very wide range of frequencies and carry much more of the high end- where words like brightness, clarity, even metallic or “clanging” come in. They also have a longer sustain than more “old school” bass sounds, which more often came from Flatwound strings.
These high-end frequencies are strongly emphasized in the clear, percussive effect of slapping and popping in players like Victor Wooten, Marcus Miller, Larry Graham, etc. Other players to take full advantage of their bright, full sound are Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, John Entwistle of the Who, Geddy Lee of Rush, Chris Squire of Yes, Billy Sheehan, Stu Hamm and countless others. My favourite bassist Jaco Pastorius had a legendarily expressive sound, which was the result of Roundwound strings singing directly against the wood of his fretless bass.
Flatwound strings have a ribbon-like winding wound along the core string. Flats have a mellow sound to them. They feel smooth and have very little finger noise since they have fewer grooves up and down the string. Flats also have a longer playing life, since there are fewer cracks where dirt and oil can build up. A lot of fretless players prefer them. I don’t. You may find Flatwound strings to be a little too mellow for rock, R&B and funk. But you might like them for jazz and reggae where you may need a more mellow sound.
Halfwound or Groundwound strings are a nice compromise between round and flat. Halfwounds are essentially Roundwounds that are partially ground-down and smoothed out, to providing a middle ground between brightness vs. deadness in sound, and metallic roughness vs. smoothness in feel.
Tapewound strings are more common on acoustic bass guitars or basses that use a piezo pickup system, and are often used when a player is looking for something closer to an upright bass sound. Paul McCartney used them on his Hofner Bass.
Do not get confused between Nylon Tapewound, which is an actual winding type, and Taperwound or tapered, (like the strings inside a piano) which is something that could technically apply to any winding or material type. A string that is “taperwound” gets either progressively, or suddenly smaller as the string gets to the bridge. The idea is that more, or all, of the core wire is making direct contact with the “saddles” at the bridge. The effect of this tapering is a longer sustain and a brighter sound.
Material
Nickel and Stainless Steel are the most popular for Roundwound and Flatwound strings. Some Flatwounds also may use Ribbon or Nylon. Different materials have different sound and “feel” characteristics.
Nickel sounds more mellow than the brighter sounding Stainless Steel. It feels a little softer on the hands and has less of the metallic high end treble in the sound than steel strings. This also equates to less finger noise coming through and a smoother, mellower sound than steel while still falling on the bright/clear end of the spectrum.
Stainless Steel Roundwound strings fall furthest on the bright, “metallic” end of the sound spectrum. Observing the comments of numerous players, the consensus seems to be that stainless steel are the clearest, brightest strings out there. They often increase the perceived volume output in sound from the bass, but also tend to be rougher on the fingers and instrument. The aggressive, cutting, sound in hard rock and metal is generally the sound of stainless steel Roundwound strings played aggressively with a pick.
The Right Strings For Your Style
Coated strings have a super thin advanced coating on the wrap wire. This make the string last longer. I use coated Rotosound, Nexus Bass strings for the richness in mid-tones on all my basses.
Double Ball End strings have balls on both ends and fits on Steinberger-type, or other “headless” basses.
String Gauge
The diameter is measured in inches. A very standard middle ground is .105 for the E string and .45 for the G-string. Names such as “light,” “extra-heavy” etc. are assigned by the makers and are not industry standard markings.
In general, the thicker the string, the fatter and more low end in the tone, but this also will increase tension and require more endurance to play.
If you like to tune your E string down to D, definitely go for a thicker string.
Lighter gauge strings are very popular in players who use a lot of slapping/popping. My preference is .125 (B) .105(E) .85 (A) .65(D) .45(G) .25(C) on 6-string Bass
Scale Length
Scale refers to the distance between the bridge (where the strings rest at the bottom of the bass) and the nut (where the fingerboard meets the headstock). Most basses are 34″, though 35″ is not uncommon for 5 or 6 string basses.
Long Scale (MOST COMMON) – 34″
Super / Extra Long Scale – 36″
Medium Scale – 32″
Short Scale – 30″
String Tension
Tension, or how stiff or loose the string feels, is determined by a variety of factors.
Gauge – Thicker strings have more mass and therefore more tension, but it is only one of the factors in the overall feel- two different brands the same size can and will have different tensions, and even one brand with the smaller gauge could feel more tense after the other components come into play.
Scale Length – Longer scale = more tension. The same brand of strings will feel more or less tense if the scale length is longer or shorter.
String Height or Action – Higher string height or “action” will make strings feel tenser. Adjusting the truss rod and changing the height of the saddles on the bridge can adjust this.
Core – A string with a “hex” core will have more tension than one with a “round” core. The core is the wire in which the wrapping (nickel, steel) etc. wraps around. “Hex” or “Round” refer to the shape of that wire and thus how the contact with the string is made.
Finding the right strings could a long process of trial and error. There are just too many variables to consider – playing technique, pickups, bridge, body wood, etc. The same set of strings can sound different on various basses and under different fingers. You just have to experiment in order to find what you like. It took me years to find my “dream” strings.
Till next time, LET THERE BE BASS!!!
PLAY BETTER Guitar – Guitarist Close-Up: Michael Bester
In this latest installment of the Play Better Guitar series we’ve decided to look into the lives of a couple of seasoned professional guitarists to see how they got to where they are as working musicians today.
In this article we spend some time with Michael Bester who plays for Mango Groove and Loyiso Bala, as well as performing at various freelance engagements and studio sessions. It is inspiring to listen to the stories of those who have carved out a career in the world of music; we can all learn from the professionals…
Tell us about your earliest memories of music; where you grew up and where it all started…
I grew up in Pretoria and had music lessons as a youngster, mainly piano lessons, but I gave up on it when I was about 10. Then I picked up the guitar when I was about 17 and never looked back!
Where did your passion for guitar come from and how did you start?
My dad bought an acoustic guitar and I started messing around with it. My friend taught me how to play one or two Nirvana songs, which blew my mind and I started working out all their songs by ear. Then that same guy got an electric guitar and from the first moment that I played on that, and felt that sound coming out of an amp turned up nice and loud, I was hooked! I got quite serious about practicing and writing songs pretty much straight away, and have worked hard since then, but I guess it all goes back to that moment!
Is it important to study music?
That is a tricky question! I certainly benefited from formal music studies, but I don’t think it’s for everyone and I think that you have to be pretty clear on what you want to get out of it if you decide to study music formally. Nobody can teach you how to be musical, or be creative, but I have always wanted to have command of the theoretical side of music, it’s just how I’m wired, so doing a music degree was important to me.
What have you studied?
I have a BMus in jazz studies from UCT. I also enjoy teaching so I did a teaching qualification (PGCE) through UNISA a few years ago. Other than that I did a jazz guitar summer course at NYU in New York, focusing on modern jazz improvisation, and I’ve also done a sound engineering course, which has come in handy.
Tell us a bit about the gear you use.
I have lots of different gear for different situations. For session work, and most pop/rock/urban gigs I use my Fender Stratocaster mainly. It’s a stock US Standard Stratocaster, nothing fancy, but I love how versatile it is! For jazz gigs I use either my 1960 Epiphone Broadway, which is a big fat arch top, or my newish Tokai 335 copy, which is also a very versatile guitar. I have a 1995 Gibson Les Paul and a newish Fender Telecaster, both of which mostly come out of their cases for recording sessions.
And in terms of acoustic work, I have a Martin Jumbo 10 series, which I’ve had for a few years and just sounds amazing live or in studio, and a cheapish Yamaha classical guitar with a pickup for any nylon work.
In terms of amps I have been playing a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe for years now and I’m really happy with that for almost any application and then I’ve recently acquired a MESA-BOOGIE Transatlantic TA-30 combo. For small gigs I use a Laney Cub 12.
Although you studied jazz you’ve avoided being pigeon-holed as a jazz musician. How do you think you achieved this?
The only answer I can really give you is that I genuinely love so many different styles of music and have worked quite hard to be able to play many styles with the right tones and feel, so I guess I was never going to be a true specialist. Even when I was a student at UCT, and was pretty obsessed with jazz, I knew that I wasn’t content playing any one style all the time. The challenge that has always appealed to me the most in music is being able to play any style authentically.
I have my strengths and weaknesses like any other player, but I guess I have enough of a blend of rock, pop, blues and jazz in my taste and my playing to be able to hold down gigs in any of those worlds.
What do you think are some of the most important skills to have as a working guitarist?
Broad knowledge of styles, good time (rhythm), good tone, good reliable gear and you either have to have incredible ears and memory, or be able to read well, preferably both!
Are there any technical exercises you can share with us that you feel has been important in your growth as a musician?
I think the most important things I have practiced have been related to fret board knowledge and aural skills.
Examples would be:
1) A Joe Satriani exercise from an old edition of Guitar Player, outlining a great way to get to know the fret board. Basically you set your metronome very slowly, pick any note and play it, in time, in every available position on your sixth string, then the same on the 5th, 4th etc. all the way up to the 1st string and back. Also, say the name aloud every time you play a note, and don’t skip a beat! Then, move on to the next key, moving through the circle of fourths, which will ensure that you know all keys equally well after a while!
E.g.
2) Transcribing different solos in different styles, and by different instruments, off the CD, NOT using tabs!
3) Transposing music at sight, even if it’s VERY slow, will improve your fret board knowledge and aural skills like nothing else!
4) Singing a phrase, playing it on your instrument and then playing it in every conceivable position and with every fingering you can think of
Your thoughts on reading and aural training?
Reading is critical if you want to be a session player. Good aural skills are critical everywhere! You can’t join a conversation if you can’t hear or understand what anybody’s saying!
Wise words indeed by one of South Africa’s leading professional musicians; Michael Bester.
YOUR PRIVATE UNIVERSE – Unconventional Recording Techniques: Drums
Techniques for the home studio
The number of ways that you could record a drum kit are almost infinite and with the demands of modern music often requiring a less than conventional drum sound, recording engineers are once again turning to unconventional recording techniques. Over the years, some legendary techniques have been developed that can go a long way to help create a unique and interesting sound. In this article we are going to have a look at some of the simple ways of recording that can help your track to have a greater impact on the global market.
In 1970 Led Zeppelin’s recording engineer, Andy Johns, pioneered a famously reverberant drum sound. He achieved this by recording the drum kit for the song, “When the Levee breaks” in a three story high stairwell at Headly Grange, England. The drum kit was placed at the bottom of the stairwell and two Beyerdynamic M160 ribbon microphones placed at the top, giving the distinctive resonant but slightly muffled sound. This is a great example of out-of-the-box thinking that can result in powerful and unique sounds.
Producer/Engineer Martin Hannet known for his eccentricities, as dramatized in the movie “24 Hour Party People”, also placed a drum kit in an unconventional space. He had Stephen Morris, the drummer from Joy Division, set up his drum kit on the roof outside a first floor fire escape at Chicago Recording Studios in Rochdale, England. He is also rumoured to have had Morris take apart his drum kit and reassemble it to include some parts of a toilet, during a different recording session.
You could consider placing drum kits in other spaces, like a long corridor or a concrete basement, both of which would drastically change the tone and perceived “size” of your drums. Aside from placing the kit in unusual recording spaces there are many other ways of controlling your drum sound.
I have had great success by placing a microphone, like a Shure SM58 (try different mics for a variety of tones), at a distance of two or three metres away from the drum kit and processing the signal with fairly heavy compression. Depending on where you place the mic around the kit you can control how loud each element will be in the balance. How heavily you compress the signal can control how “dirty” you want the sound to be. A large amount gain reduction will give a “gritty” sound, while playing with your attack and release settings can give movement and a “pumping” sound to the drums. You can use this signal alone for a heavily processed sound, or you could blend it with other close mics for a more subtle effect.
Another idea that has been used by some engineers is to record each part of the drum kit with a close mic, and then to play either a balance of all the mics, or each mic individually, through a speaker. The technique is then to place either a snare, tom or kick drum in front of the speaker so the sound resonates through the drum and is captured by a mic on the other side. Again, there are many ways you can manipulate this set-up to your specific needs. One such way is to tune the drum differently to either conform or contrast with the key of the song. Another is that your choice of mic, drum and placement of all the elements of the recording chain will change the resulting sound.
Other engineers have tried techniques like placing a microphone inside a wooden box before placing it in front of the drum kit, possibly with a hole in front of the microphone’s diaphragm. This choice, of whether to put a hole in the box or not, can drastically change the sound. This technique can add some extra resonance and tone to the drums.
The trick when recording drums is to experiment and make sure that the resultant sound serves the needs of the song and enhances the sound for the better. These are just a few ways that you can enhance your drum recordings to create what may one day become the stuff of legends.
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