Bongo in action - live recording

[Aussie Mark]

Here's a raw recording from my little Zoom H2 mp3 recorder from this week's rehearsal. This was just a run through, we weren't concentrating on the fact we were recording, and we were crammed into a living room sized rehearsal studio. This recording is a single mic - the one that is inbuilt into the Zoom H2.

Bongo HH wearing Chromes into Markbass LMII and a pair of SWR Goliath Jrs. Bongo EQ flat (pickup blend centered), Markbass EQ flat.

And yes, we're in the market for a lead vocalist, as the rest of us are struggling to do the Floyd songs justice vocally.

http://www.deayton.com/pf/Money27Nov08.mp3
http://www.deayton.com/pf/Numb27Nov08.mp3
http://www.deayton.com/pf/TimeGig27Nov08.mp3

 

[Psychicpet]

gotta love the vibe of the flats!!!!


The Bongo totally seeps through the mix and the compressing of the mic. nice.

 

[DTG]

i love that song......good quality from the zoom too

 

[Black Lake]

Time is one my favorite Floyd tunes. Very well done, and thanks for adding even more tracks today.

 

[Aussie Mark]

Time is one my favorite Floyd tunes. Very well done, and thanks for adding even more tracks today.

Thanks, you're welcome. I only wish the vocals could do justice to how well we're progressing with the music side of this tribute band. We've advertised for a singer just the past couple of days, so hopefully we can find someone soon, as by Christmas we'll have the full songlist in a gig-ready state in terms of the instruments. I'm loving the tone that our lead guitarist is getting, and he's pretty much nailing the solos in all the songs now.

I should have mentioned that the ticking sound in the intro to "Time" is also the Bongo, playing muted notes at the 15th fret. That's the closest sound we could find in a live setting to replicate the ticking of the clock on the original Pink Floyd recording.

 

[Smakbass]

Cool my cousin has a Floyd tribute band called Pigs......The bongo sounds good in there.

 

[gafman]

Very nice Mark. Sounds great. A band I used to see 20 years ago at the local used to do the ticking intro on 'Time"by clicking of the tongue. That worked okay as well. Mind you the vocalist also used a kazoo to cover the sax solo's as well. Good times, good times.

 

[strummer]

Very nice playing all around, and the clock imitation is excellent!

 

[oli@bass]

Thanks, you're welcome. I only wish the vocals could do justice to how well we're progressing with the music side of this tribute band.

Ever heard live recordings of the original performances in '73? You're doing just fine!

I should have mentioned that the ticking sound in the intro to "Time" is also the Bongo, playing muted notes at the 15th fret. That's the closest sound we could find in a live setting to replicate the ticking of the clock on the original Pink Floyd recording.

Why not sample it and play back as a loop?

I don't know how Dream Theater did it for their DSoTM live performances, but somehow they managed to get all the effect sounds exactly as they were on the record. I guess some magic by Jordan Ruddess (and maybe with a little help from Alan Parsons).

Try to find that recording. It's awesome! (except that I don't like La Brie, not matter what he sings)

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

The songs are sounding really good!

 

[Russel]

That's sounding really good.


I can't imagine counting, playing, AND singing 7/8, so whoever it was was doing a pretty good job IMO.

 

[Aussie Mark]

I don't know how Dream Theater did it for their DSoTM live performances, but somehow they managed to get all the effect sounds exactly as they were on the record.

Of course, samples are an option, but in this band we're deliberately avoiding having anything sampled or any pre-recorded backing tracks, to differentiate us from other Floyd tribute bands who play in Australia. The other Floyd tributes who play here are large scale production shows in big venues with video screens, laser light shows and inflatable pigs (ie. tickets are expensive and the shows are not very frequent), but our aim is a more "raw" Floyd experience for pubs and clubs, accessible to Floyd fans who only want to spend $10-$20 at the door rather than $50+, and drink cheap beer and dance if they want rather than sitting in a theatre with a Coke and popcorn.

The booking agents almost wet their pants when we spoke to them about this band, and are already bugging us to let them know when we're gig ready. Once we recruit a vocalist I think we'll be pretty much ready

 

[Aussie Mark]

I can't imagine counting, playing, AND singing 7/8, so whoever it was was doing a pretty good job IMO.

Because I'm had no musical training, I never realised that Money was in 7/8 until the drummer mentioned to me at the first jam we had. It never bothered me until I decided to count one time I played it, and that messed me up completely. So, now I just go with the feel and play it without counting, like I always have done for the last 30 years.

One thing I've noticed since starting to play all these Pink Floyd songs is that even on the tunes that have a comparatively simple bass line, the syncopation makes it almost impossible for me to play and sing at the same time. Our keyboard player and one of the guitarists is having the same issue. For example, Sheep has what is probably the easiest bass lines of any Pink Floyd song, and a pretty simple vocal line that I can sing fine in the car or shower - but I can't do both at once. I've been singing blues in bands for years while playing walking bass lines with no problems at all, but singing Pink Floyd while playing makes me feel totally uncoordinated. I love that Roger Waters' bass lines appear deceptively simple, it's been a fantastic challenge to play like him.

 

[oli@bass]

our aim is a more "raw" Floyd experience for pubs and clubs

Cool! I love the fact that Floyd music is still brought to a wide audience. However, an inflatable pig is a must

Because I'm had no musical training, I never realised that Money was in 7/8

+1. I was totally thrown off when I tried to count that song for the first time... always just played along to the record and never thought about the time signature. The freaky part to me is that there's a time change for the middle part, which makes it open up and "walk" more than the other parts. But it's very organic and subtle. Love it.

I love that Roger Waters' bass lines appear deceptively simple, it's been a fantastic challenge to play like him.

+1 again.

What can I say... the man hooked me on to bass...