Simon Little's Podcast

Bells III

simonlittle — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:19:26 +0000

Today’s track has been struggle to get out people. I’ve been trying to put something together for the last three days and frankly, it’s just not been happening. I started thinking too deeply about what I was trying to achieve since my last blog post (http://simonlittlebass.blogspot.com/) and wound up achieving nothing. I guess there’s a lesson to be learnt there! Anyway, I made this tune the third and final episode in what is now lovingly referred to as the ‘Bells’ trilogy. The three tracks all have a chiming figure central to the underlying loop, so it made sense to link them together like this. It has been interesting comparing this with the previous two Bells tracks. Sonically, the addition of the Lexicon has made a massive difference. The stereo effects really expand the sound of the bass. I decided to go back to the Triumph, and wound up really enjoying the pure sound with just a little chorus and reverb for sparkle. In fact, I’ve made up a preset which I’ve rather knowingly called ‘Eberhard’. So there you go, I’m admitting it! Hope you like it. Please leave your comments, ratings and suggestions on the Podbean page (http://simonlittle.podbean.com/). I think I’m getting to the stage where I can start taking stock of what’s up there and refining the tunes, so now’s the time to get your two cents in before work on the album starts….

Walking Alone…

simonlittle — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:48:48 +0000

Hi folks. Well, looks like I’m on a roll here. Two tunes in two days. Tonight’s track is the second on the Chapman Stick. Same principles as the last one. The Stick is going (via a little mixer) straight into a Lexicon MPX G2 and then into the Looperlative LP1. Putting it into the mixer does turn it into a mono instrument (ie; the bass/guitar sides are no longer separate), but I only have one input for the multi-effects and seeing as though I’m using the Stick like a fancy guitar anyway I don’t mind the lack of separation. I was going for a more layered sound again, so no specific tune to hum I’m afraid. Please leave your comments and ratings on the Podbean site. And when you get a chance, go and check out Matt Steven’s Podcast. He’s featured one of my tracks today and is therefore a gentleman and a scholar in my book. It’s a great podcast, loads of different stuff to check out, including Matt’s own great music with loops. Go forth people!

L.J.L.E.

simonlittle — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 23:14:25 +0000

I wanted to make today’s track a good one. It’s been a funny old week and I’ve had a lot of stuff on my mind. Wanted to do something creative with all my nervous energy! Went back to the FNA. I did start out on the fretless, but frankly nothing was happening. This tune has already been through several different guises throughout the afternoon/evening and this is the latest version. The title of the tune is a dedication. It’s not that it was written with any specific meaning behind it, I was just thinking a lot about this person whilst I was playing it. And pretty much all the rest of the time too. Although they’ll probably never hear it, I’m glad it’s out there. You never know. Hope you like it. Please feel free to leave your comments on the Podbean site or on iTunes. Thanks for listening.

A New Start?

simonlittle — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 23:52:00 +0000

Today’s track is the first recording I’ve ever made using the Chapman Stick. I’ve used it just as I would have used the bass, ie: not much cross-tapping, mostly single line playing. I wanted to use the Stick for it’s extended range and more guitar-like tone. I’ve used quite a lot of effects this time, concentrating on sound rather than melody. The improvisation grew out of the simple ground bass introduced at the beginning. Let me know what you think.

Quietly Now

simonlittle — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:29:41 +0000

Sorry it’s been a while. Had a busy couple of weeks and a few technical issues since the last post (sorry about the hiss!). Today’s track uses the same setup as the last two. Minimal effects, just a bit of chorus on the Thumb fretless IV. Couldn’t resist having another go with the double speed function on the Looperlative… what can you do?! Hopefully this time the hiss will be minimal, it sounds good to me here. Fingers crossed! Let me know what you think…

Sometimes It Rains In August…

simonlittle — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:21:50 +0000

Todays track is the second tune performed using the Looperlative LP1. Any of you that have been following my Twitter updates over the last couple of days will know some of the difficulties I’ve been having with setting the recording levels correctly. I”m a bit closer now, but I haven’t managed to get passed the hiss I’m getting form the LP1. Hoping to solve this in the near future! I’ve used a couple of pitch shift effects on this one, and a touch of the reverse playback on the LP1. Managed to control myself a bit more this time! Let me know your thoughts…

New Toys

simonlittle — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:09:03 +0000

Well let me tell you… it’s been an exciting afternoon/evening folks. I bought a Looperlative LP1 from Ebay a couple of weeks ago. It had to be sent over from the US and arrived yesterday. I’ve been messing about with it all day, trying to get to grips with some of the features. Todays track is he result of todays messing about with the LP1. I really wanted to make use of the 8 tracks available (I only ended up using 4), and the ability to drop certain things in and out (this is one of the functions I’ve been dying to use since I started this project!). And, of course, I made use of the double speed function… who wouldn’t on their first go?! I hope the results aren’t too much of a hash job, but hopefully over the next few posts I’ll be able to refine some of the techniques. Let me know your thoughts….

Bells

simonlittle — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 23:39:29 +0000

Hello folks. Sorry it’s been a while since my last post. It’s been pretty hectic on the gig front so I’ve not had much time to spend on the solo stuff. For todays track I went back to the FNA Jazzman for it’s crisper attack. I was going for a more folky tune this time.I turned the delay up a bit on Gearbox this time to get a bit more background ambience. Make sure you subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already… there’ll be a new track following in the very near future….

Chamomile

simonlittle — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:56:02 +0000

Todays post was recorded right after Blue Fingers II last night using exactly the same setup, ie: my Thumb IV fretless straight into the RC20 using the Line 6 Gearbox plug-in for reverb and a little delay. I had to wait until today to listen to several takes with fresh ears. There were some later takes with a fixed melody at the top, but in the end I felt this version had a better feel to it overall. Hope you enjoy it.

Blue Fingers II

simonlittle — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 00:57:29 +0000

Todays track was one of the most organic thus far. A late night playing session after a busy day. Two outdoor gigs on double bass have left my fingers a bit battered so I decided to have a go on my Thumb IV fretless bass. It’s more of a textural improvisation again, this time I tried to coax out some of the more distinctive sounds available on a fretless bass (as opposed to the Triumph upright). A few harmonics play a big part in the underlying loop and I added some percussive effects later on in the performance. As always, your comments and suggestions are most welcome on the Podbean site. Thanks for listening.

It’s About Time

simonlittle — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:36:55 +0000

For today’s track I decided once again to use just the RC20 for the loops. The delay you hear on the whole track is from the Gearbox Plug-in. As is the chorus and reverb! I’m really finding the Line 6 Toneport and Gearbox invaluable to this whole process. This time is concentrated on layering up more lyrical phrases to create more of a contrapuntal sound. It’s the Triumph bass again. I did start out using my fretless bass but I ended up going back to the upright for it’s richer tone and attack. As always, feel free to leave any comments or suggestions on the Podbean page.

Midsummer March

simonlittle — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 21:24:19 +0000

For today’s tune I decided to limit myself to using only the RC20 Loop Station and no other effects. I used the Triumph again, concentrating on arco playing in order to create a broader, more atmospheric basis for the rest of the tune. As always, feel free to leave your comments and thoughts on the Podcast site, or indeed on iTunes if that’s where you’re listening from….

A Little Light & Shade

simonlittle — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 19:25:15 +0000

Today’s track was recorded using my Warwick FNA Jazzman V. This time I tried experimenting with the backwards delay on the DD6, as well as my EMMA envelope filter for some spacey effects. I must confess to cheating slightly by copying and pasting a section at the end to create some sense of melodic continuity with the opening. I tried to do it live, but there was no way to keep the initial harmonics loop going on it’s own with my current setup in order to bring it back… I feel another spending spree looming.

Rites of Passage

simonlittle — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 22:43:02 +0000

This is the second solo bass track posted. It was recorded again using my Triumph upright bass and UX2 with the Gearbox plug-in. This time I used both the Boss DD6 and an RC20 Loop Station to allow me to combine shorter phrases with a longer underlying bass pattern. Feel free to leave any comments on the podcast site.

Bells II

simonlittle — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 01:45:38 +0000

This is the first solo bass track I’ve posted here. Hopefully the first of many if it generates some interest. Last year I was invited to play for the graduation ceremony at my old school. I needed to write something that I could perform solo. ‘Bells’ is essentially what came out of that performance. I played this tune on my Warwick Triumph V, going through a Boss DD6 into my Line 6 UX2. I recorded the track using Garageband with the Gearbox plug-in. This is the first time I’ve really used this software so you’ll have to forgive me if the levels are a bit askew. Feel free to leave your comments, requests or suggestions either here on on my Blogger site http://simonlittlebass.blogspot.com Hope you enjoy it!

Podcast Alley Link…

simonlittle — Fri, 23 May 2008 02:21:18 +0000

My Podcast Alley feed! {pca-b3b8931bc201f890e4ade02713da07af}