On the Topic of Bass Effects: Everything Else

Here commences the second post in a series of two about bass effects, a topic which all mothers of bass players must pretend to be interested in. 

In my previous entry, I talked about bass distortion and overdrive, an effect quintessential to my bass tone. I discussed its use, it's sonic components, and it's purpose, finishing the entry by sharing two of the signal chain configurations in which I use bass distortion. So, you know, you're welcome.

In this post, I will discuss the remaining types of bass effects that I actually care about. (DISCLAIMER: I do not classify compression nor equalizer as "effects." Thus, they will not be part of this discourse in audio philosophy.) These fall into three categories: modulation, time-based, and pitch-based.

Many, if not all modulation effects operate using the same principal. The signal is copied as it is produced, and the copy signal is put out of phase with the original. There is usually a "depth" control on such effects to dictate exactly how "out-of-phase" the two signals are, as well as a "rate" control to make the phasing effect move faster or slower. Modulation effects include (but are not limited to) choruses, phasers, and flangers. These can be used for a variety of purposes; choruses are absolutely divine at bringing out bass harmonics (as shown by the late great jazz bassist Jaco Pastorius), and both phasers and flangers sound good when laying down a solitary bass groove, just to add a little bit more spice to an otherwise uninteresting bassline.

Time-based bass effects like reverb and delay are less commonly used. Since bass is meant to provide uncompromising low end to a band's sound, reverb does not suit it well. Delay is a little more forgiving, but really only when the bassist is playing a solo or a series of harmonics. In layman's terms, high-end + delay = GOOD. Low-end + delay = BAD. Or at least in my opinion. There is always such a thing as preference.

The last of the bass effect types that I will talk about today are pitch-based. And there's really only one of this type worth mentioning: the mighty octaver. Put simply, it has the ability to make the bass sound even more meaty by producing notes an octave lower than those being played. While such an effect does not really work well with fast runs or chords, it works wonderfully for sludgy grooves. Also, pair with overdrive/distortion for especially nasty tones (see previous entry). 

To wrap all of this up, I will say that my own philosophy when using bass effects is to do so sparingly, only when the section calls for it. 

I mean, unless it's distortion. Use that stuff ALL the time!

Cole Millward

On the Topic of Bass Effects: Overdrive and Distortion

Finally, someone did Kryptonian fights RIGHT! Seriously... Man of Steel was fantastic. Anyway, prepare yourselves! I am about to spend the next two posts discussing the third biggest controversy among bass players (762nd among any other musicians): bass effects.

To define terms, bass effects are signal modifiers, usually provided by a stompbox pedal or a processor, used to alter the sound being created by a bass guitar. They range from subtle to obnoxious, and can do anything from phase shifting the signal to making it sound like a laser beam. But why, you may ask, do they generate controversy? Guitarists use effects more than a desperate pastor uses bad jokes in his sermons! Why not bassists? 

The answer to that, my mildly interested readers, is that they can sometimes interrupt the fundamental function of the bass guitar. (DISCLAIMER: For the purpose of this discussion, I will be referring primarily to use of the bass guitar in rock and metal. Shocker, I know.) The bass guitar's purpose in life is twofold: to maintain a tight rhythm with the kick drum (and sometimes the rhythm guitar) and to fill out the lower frequencies in the "spectrum" of a band's sound. Some effects can cause the low end of the signal to fluctuate or drop out altogether, interfering with the second law of bass. Thus, the controversy. 

Today, I shall share my philosophy on bass overdrive and distortion, their function, their sonic options, and their uses.

My earliest ventures into the world of bass OD/Dist. began after hearing the the fuzzy, nasty sound of the bass on Muse's "Hysteria" and the less ostentatiously overdriven sound of John Myung's bass on Dream Theater's Metropolis II: Scenes from a Memory album. I was enthralled with how the distortion effects made the bass more present and recognizable, and I set out to find my interpretation of the "perfect" distorted bass tone. 

After having gone through pedals and amplifiers of various shape, size, and color, I have come to a great satisfaction in my distorted tone. What's my secret? More than that, what's the secret of all the pros with great tone? Ready for it?! READY?!!

SPLIT SIGNAL CHAIN! AAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!

Sorry... Gotta calm down here...

A split signal chain basically means that you can run one signal distorted and another unaffected. This allows you to get a tasteful mixture of the two without compromising low end or the desired amount of gain. I personally like to crank the gain on the distortion and have a decent mix of both, maybe a little more of the clean signal.

Bass distortion, as I mentioned before, frequently comes in stomp-box pedals (processors often model pedals to achieve the desired sound). A good example of a great OD pedal is the one that I use, the Darkglass Microtubes B3K. It has control knobs that can be found on almost any pedal of its kind: an overall volume level knob, a gain/drive knob, and a blend knob (to determine the mix of clean and distorted signal, though I still use mine parallel with another clean signal). Some other pedals, like the Darkglass B7K (the big brother of mine) have equalizing knobs that allow you to change the tone of the bass signal as well as distort it.

Sometimes, bass amplifiers will come with a built in overdrive. Historically, I have been less satisfied with these, as they have no option to blend clean with overdriven and often sound like a fart. Yes, I said it.

And now for another rhetorical question for the readers who have either been interested or bored enough to read this far. What is the purpose of bass OD/Dist.? Don't guitarists handle the distorted part of the band's sound? (Sorry, that was two rhetorical questions.) There is some sonic space between a clean bass and distorted guitar. Distorted bass serves to fill in that space, and back up the wall of gain provided by the guitars. 

Not to mention, it just sounds awesome! (No attempt to stay objective here!)

I think that just about wraps up my discussion on bass distortion. I shall finish by describing two of my distorted bass patches.

My recording patch makes use of a split signal chain configuration using my Darkglass B3K on one side and a clean amp model from my boss GT-100. There are pre-split and post-rejoin EQs just to accentuate certain frequencies (since I'm using a bass through a guitar amp modeller). For the purpose of being able to mix the distorted and clean signals separately, I run them in stereo to my interface. However, between the output of the distorted signal and it's input on the interface, I have an MXR bass d.i.+ preamp with the "color" switch engaged to provide a special EQ shape filter.

My live patch also makes use of the split signal. Rather than use a clean and a distorted side though, it uses the B3K on one side and a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier model on the other. This creates a thicker distortion, but low end is retained through use of the B3K's blend knob. The patch also joins the two signals before hitting the MXR bass d.i.+, so the EQ shape filter is applied to all parts of the signal. 

Complicated? Maybe, but it sounds frakin' GOOD!!!

To be continued...

Cole Millward

My Recording Process

What a boring title for a post... "My Recording Process"... I really should be able to think of something more interesting than that...

Oh well, it's descriptive enough of what I intend to discuss. My original idea for this post was to discuss my philosophy on bass overdrive/distortion, but I decided that in order for you to understand such philosophy, I need to put it in context. I will cover bass OD in another entry.

My recording method, though not exactly of industry-standard quality and though not without some sacrifices, is actually quite effective, and very efficient. It allows me to record quickly whenever I write music, and have a listenable product within a short period of beginning it. I shall start by explaining drums.

One thing that allows me to produce music so quickly is that I do not record drums. The primary reason for this being that I do not have the equipment, time, and patience required to do so. Therefore, I use Toontrack's Superior Drummer  2.0 drum programming software. The drum samples are very realistic, and getting a good sub-mix of the kit itself is rather easy. Writing the drum parts themselves are as easy as MIDI-programming (because that's exactly what it is). Doing this is usually one of the first steps I take in recording. I do this in producing both Hairy Parrot and S.I.Q. (In the latter of which I work closely with our drummer, Paul Wood, to ensure accuracy). In general, my philosophy when programming drums is to put a kick drum hit wherever the bass guitar is playing a note.

When recording bass, my own instrument, I record the signal direct (without amps or cabs) using a line configuration called a split-signal chain. Using the split-signal chain, I record one bass track clean, and another distorted (which I will go into more detail about when I speak of bass distortion) all at the same time. Later, in editing, I then make the clean signal carry most of the low frequencies, and have the distorted signal handle most of the high frequencies. This allows me to have distorted bass that looses no low end. Also, when I record, I consider no playing technique to be off limits, though I generally prefer fingerstyle when playing live. This means that I will use whatever technique a section warrants; if a section is really tight rhythmically, I will use a pick, if a section uses a lot of octaves, I will slap, etc. 

Recording guitars is fun, generally speaking. There is a rising trend among up-and-coming metal bands that involves recording guitars direct (once again, without amps or cabs) with the use of an amp and cab modeler. This means that the guitar signal is traveling completely electronically, with no microphones involved, with the modeling unit providing any and all amp sounds. Modelers are very versatile, because they allow the user to achieve multiple different amp sounds all with one unit, rather than having to own multiple (often expensive) amplifiers. I, as well as the rest of my band, use such units (currently the Boss GT-100) to record guitar. To create the proverbial "Phil Specter Wall of Sound," we have programmed various sets of four different amp tones each. This is where the process of S.I.Q. And Hairy Parrot differ. In S.I.Q., I have my two guitarists track all their rhythms four times each, using a slightly lower gain set of what we call our "Go Meat" metal amp patches. Using this method of stacking, we end up with 8 tracks of rhythms, each panned a certain way, to give that great big stereo wall of sound feel. In Hairy Parrot, I only do 4 tracks of rhythms, though with slightly higher gain versions of the "Go Meat" patches (which I have affectionately dubbed Hairy Rhythm 1-4). Later, lead sounds and clean sounds are recorded either as a mono or stereo track, depending on what the sonic needs of each are.

Recording vocals is probably the simplest part of the process. I have a microphone, and our singer (or a Hairy Parrot guest singer) sings into it. 

Lastly, I am a firm believer in producing a great studio product, and that nothing that can contribute should be held back. After drums, bass, and guitars are all finished, I use the synthesizer engines built into Protools to construct and program background sounds, like an orchestra, choir, organ, synth lead, or even just ambient sounds. For example, I happen to be a fan of pairing a clean guitar track with the sound of a music box, xylophone, or vibratone. In Hairy Parrot especially, these extra sounds are vital.

I think that is a pretty good summation of my process of recording. As I said, it's not exactly standard, but it allows me to be quick about producing music for both Hairy Parrot and S.I.Q.

On that note, just to let you know, I intend to release Hairy Parrot's next song early next week. Be on the lookout for that, because it's a goodie!

Cole Millward

A Brief Exposition on what the Heck Hairy Parrot is.

I have been asked a number questions since I began my solo Djent project known only as Hairy Parrot. Questions like "What do you want to do for lunch?", "Can you please go back and mow this one section of my yard?", and most notably, "Pardon me sir, but do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ?" 

Less frequently, I have also been asked questions about Hairy Parrot, what it is, why I created it, and why in the world did I name it Hairy Parrot. It is these latter questions that I will answer now. 

Hairy Parrot is my outlet for creating music that may not necessarily be in line with the sound of my primary band, S.I.Q. The way I have described it to people thus far is that whether I'm actually playing my bass or just out doing my day-to-day activities, I have rhythmic ideas bouncing around in my noggin. These are frequently very syncopated, complex Meshuggah-esque rhythms, and while we do utilize those in S.I.Q., they are not the sole staple of the music. So ultimately, there are a lot of such ideas that go unused, not because they are unwanted by my bandmates, but because they just don't fit. Having the ability to write and record songs myself, I decided I wanted to produce my own music that contained these various ideas in the most gratuitous way possible. Enter Hairy Parrot. 

The genre in which Hairy Parrot's music is written is Progressive Metal, or more accurately, the Prog Metal sub-genre known as Djent (yes, it is a genre, and I may present my case for that claim in a later post). What this means is that it is heavy, often syncopated, and contains a very strict relationship between the kick drum, the bass guitar, and the rhythm guitar. A few stereotypes have become associated with Djent, mostly that all it is is thwackage (technical term for very percussive pick attack) on the lowest string (pitch-wise) on a 7 string or 8 string guitar. Since such "thwackage" is part of what I enjoy about the sub-genre, I effectively (and gleefully) validate all those stereotypes. Also, since I own an 8 string guitar (nicknamed "The Hog") and since I thoroughly enjoy the music of Meshuggah, Hairy Parrot music shares many musical similarities with the Swedish Math Metal band. Which, in layman's terms, means that my response to the claim, "Your music sounds just like Meshuggah," is "Thank you!"

The name Hairy Parrot I can actually attribute to my parents. When S.I.Q. was first trying come up with a name, my parents suggested the name Hairy Parrot as a play on the words "Heir Apparent." At the time I dismissed it as being too silly for my band (and still kinda think that even now), but at the prospect of creating my own solo project that would not require the maintenance of a marketable image, the name became a lot more appealing. 

I will post another entry soon about some of the actual process of creating Hairy Parrot music, but until then, I hope this has answered questions that you had no intention to ask.

(P.S. - Good day from the Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina!)