Playing live or being a live band...

Long time I didn't write my blog....I am kinda lazy... but recently I went to uglymen's gigs for couple times, I saw other bands perform beside uglymen...

I found out most of them really didn't reliase how important the
"balancing" of the sound is... "balancing" means that your guitar, bass, drum, keyboard or vocal must be balance when you go up stage and play the song. This is a very common mistake that most of the local bands here made; their instrument louder then others and making the whole song collapses; especially guitar player, they are not aware of their distortion too heavy and making the audience's ears hurts. Or when solo they are not loud enough and making the solo cannot stand up and the whole things not intersting;

Also, by observing their playing they seems not taking the sound check seriously; have a thought like "got sound" its enough already; but they did't realize they are playing and this is represent them; playing live if you have a great band but in live couldn't express out the feel, soul, in the music from your band's playing; its totally shameful; and this will making the band's reputation down. More importantly is that the song's soul, feel, texture, cannot be expressed out from the live.

Also, certain bands their playablitiy is good; but when come to work with their own gear, like gadget they do not know how or why... For example, single coil and hambacker pickups; they do not know why or how or when to apply; or drummer, their own gear like crashes, tom and etc etc; I can feel that they just pick it up and play, most of them didn't go deep and understanding their gear; as well as fixing the amp, the low, mid, high, and etc the knobs either bass or guitar player what I had seen so far they do not know how to do the setting, optimize by tune with those knobs in order to have the best tone they could get from the amp; this need to read up a lot and experienments by self's expose. Or ask friends who really know and willing to share with you.

I had raise a lot of questions about guitar tone to AngKong Suan(formal uglymen's guitarist now its the band's drummer). He shares a lot of things with me about how to get the guitar tone from an amp or your playing. He is angkong(means god) also he is very kind and not selfish type; you juz walk up to him and ask the questions you will be very grad and share with you.

Why AngKong know so much? becoz' when he do things he must gain the understanding; for instance, when AngKong playing guitar's time, he read up a lot of guitar from the zine; then when switch to drumming, he is spending a lot of money and time buy the zine, DVD(for drumming) and read, watch and learn... I am very repect this guy becoz' he really is a man. I had better do not praise him so much...

Anyway, I will continue writting my blog as I love band sound so much...and happy reading!! and rock ON!

regards,

beh