This is what's happnin'! I'm a freelance bassist out of California, playing loads of local and domestic gigs doing funk, RnB, gospel, etc. In the past few years I've also toured the world as a member of the Legendary Rock Group Whitesnake, as well as Current Hip-Hop Mogul Lyrics Born. Check for Albums by both artists (with me holding down the bottom) out on April 22, 2008. Ciao. Right now I'm gearing up for the 2008 Whitesnake World Tour... 1st stop: New Zealand. -Uriah
Day 1 My last American BBQ meal was at Everitt and Jones in Oakland. The next 24 hours was spent in Transit- SFO to LAX to MEL, then 3 hours in a van to the small beach town of Lorne, on the southern coast of Australia. Pricy beers and eats, and in bed by 10pm. Day 2 There's no internet here, nor were there phones in our rooms. Being so cut off felt pretty freeing, so I hit the beach for a bit, followed by an awesome in-room jaccuzi before the 30min drive up to The Falls Festival site (cap: 16,000; headliners: Wolfmother). The stage crew was great at changing us over between bands, but the (unnamed industry standard) bass rig makes my bass sound so horrible that I just go through the motions and hope for the best. Why must places still use this ancient gear? We kicked butt still, as did Noweigian band DATAROCK and OZ's own Wolfmother. They borrowed a cowbell from us. Day 3 - the beginning of a hellish schedule week. 3 hr drive back to Melbourne airport, fly to Tazmania, drive to festival site, play show. Both bands- Lyrics Born and Wolfmother, ended up hangin at the airport together, boarding the same flight. Pics to follow. Apparently the singer is the original member, and the 3 other guys are new, yet permanent additions. We all bonded.
I've once again started a new blog that will pertain to the Whitesnake 2008 World Tour. All postings for this tour will be over there. Come see where I am today!:
I've destroyed my house! I've got to pack up my life for a good 6 months or so while I'm out on the road again. I'm not complaining at all- it's just hard for me to be away from friends family and relationships sometimes. It's like Murphy's law right now... In the past month/week I've felt so integrated in the beautiful Bay Area where I live- more than I have felt in the past year+ that I've been home. Gettin called for gigs, hangin out with players, going out to enjoy the weather and nightlife. I love it here! But it's time again to bring my bass to places further than just California.
The truck came to my house in Berkeley today to pick up all the gear I'll need for the 2008 Whitesnake world tour. Behind me are my three Eden 6x10 cabs in road cases. I'm bringing 4 basses: My trusty Lakland 5, my white DJ4, a Fender Mexican Reggie Hamilton and a Fender '73 Jazz. Directly above is the amp rack I managed to piece together: 2 Eden WT800's, 2 X2 Digital Wireless systems, a tuner and direct box. I may end up adding a few more things to this rig: my Avalon U5 direct box, another X2 rack unit and another Eden WT800.
New CD's: I've finally gotten hold of two new albums that are due for release on April 22nd. These are two albums by two very different artists who's only thing in common is myself on bass... And that they are both EXCELLENT releases! Whitesnake's "Good to be Bad" sounds so f'n fantastic that I can't wait to play these new offerings live! It's not like anything else I've heard- It's just very Whitesnake! Heavy, groovin, not cheezy but def some "poppy" singable melodies throughout. It just rules (and is challenging to play). I worked very hard on this and I'm proud of the result. The other release is by Bay Area hip-hop artist Lyrics Born, titled "Everywhere at Once". It's the first album where he got all of us band members on the tracks- there's quite a swath of Bay Area talent on here! And my bass pumps! I'll be stepping down as bassist and musical director for this tour while the 'Snake needs me, but you can be sure I'll return once we're done in the fall.
Both Available April 22nd, 2008
Back to the tour: Tomorrow I leave to LA for a week of rehearsals. On Thursday the 13th, I'll be gigging after rehearsal at the famous Baked Potato with Doug Doppler- Instrumetal. We'll also be celebrating my brother Dorian's 21st Birthday that night, as he now lives in LA. our first Whitesnake show in a while will be supporting OZZY OSBOURNE at a big rock festival in New Zealand. Then it's off to OZ for a few shows. Then we pluck some G-strings in Brazil (and the rest of South America), galavant around the UK with Def Leppard, headline most major rock festivals in Europe, and with any luck- tour the US&A!
Hey y'all! I know I aint posted in a bit, but here comes a big update and it's a good one! I had such an overwhelming time at the NAMM show this year. I've posted a few pics on myspace, but since I'm writing this in my car before I make the 6+ hr. drive to the bay, the rest will come later. Tons of Bass and players and relationships and good stuff. Peep back in a day or so for the full report. -U
LYRICS BORN AUTO REVERSE TOUR 2007 - U. S. & A! Hey all- I'm on the road once again. We'll see the whole country in about a month with not many days off this time around. Our Portland show was off the chain! Crown City Rockers/Lyrics Born/Blackalicious... what a bill of Bay Area hip-hop! It was a great way to kick off a tour. Seattle tonight. Keep checkin back here for updates- I'll be adding to the bottom of this post, so always scroll down to see new content. Check the dates to see when I'm in YOUR 'hood!
Ciao
-U
ps. I just got bass from master bass builder Fred Bolton. It looks like one of those new fancy basses that I wouldn't normally be into, but it's got such great feel and sound (it rivals my other basses in terms of getting a vintage tone!). I'll try it out on some of these tour dates and see if one of these is for me. The UD custom model perhaps?
Nov. 5th 2007
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The tour's been goin' great! I'm in my lil bunk on the bus on our way to Birmingham, Alabama. The Halloween show in Boston Kicked ass! You should've seen the mask I wore! The Metro show in also Chicago kicked ass! NY was Crackin' too! Days off have been driving days, and have been spent in malls and TGI Friday's across america. They do make a good turkey burger.
Back to the Chicago Show- Lane Baldwin from Eden Amplification came up to see me a 3 hour drive!. This man has been a friend for a few years now, and I couldn't imagine having to deal with anyone else when it comes to my relationship with Eden and the gear I use. I don't think Lane's ever seen me actually perform other than at the NAMM show every year- he missed our Whitesnake tour a few years back. Well the show was slammin' and we surfed the good vibes talking and drinking into the night until he had to take off.
My lil camera finally died... (as all 4 of my BITCH-ASS SONY CAMERA's DID) but it's a good thing we brought our own video guy on this tour. Wanna sneak peak at a soundcheck? Here's 6min of Uriah-centric soundcheckin' clips, while we test out our stage sound to a lil funk/rnb. It's almost like being there, just not for as long. Lay your head on my pillow!
Nov. 12, 2007
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Gettin' sick again. Just when I thought I kicked the bug, another one is comin. I swear it's the dry air that gets pumped into my bunk during my sleep. Could also be that we just did 5 shows in a row: Birmingham AL, Lafayette LA, New Orleans LA, Austin TX, & Dallas TX.
This was my first time back to New Orleans since the hurricane. You might know that I LOVE this place- there's nuthin like it anywhere on earth. I spent my day walkin the streets of the 'quarter without going on my usual cemetary trip. Yes there was some good drinkin goin on though! The House of Blues show was great, although a little intimidating as my bassist friend Tony Gullage came through. He even brought other bassists with him. It wasn't my best show, but I did what I do.
Austin is one of the most welcoming places we've ever played. Finally a huge crowd again! Me, Mike and our driver Larry started our stay with a trip to Ironworks BBQ. Wicked! Austin is always great, as I had some old friends there: Katy & her gang, Greg the bass player and my old roommate Lucy with her man Robbie. After the main street shut down though and all my friends went home, we went back to the bus to hang until our 10am departure time.
Dallas was an interesting show- the venue next door had a "Myspace Tour" going on. It was 2500 or so 13yr olds (and a few parents) watching some new bands (I believe Hello, Goodbye was the main act). Me and Mike peeked in for a minute and I gotta say... The opening band, Polysics ROCKED! They're a 4-piece Japanese band dressed in orange jumpsuits with dark shades and shaggy haircuts. Devo on speed with the cute Japanese angle infused.
Amarillo TX- a stop-over. YEAH! A 1-Hour WAL-Mart Stop! I'm stoked about my new camera- it kicks my SONY's ASSES! Why didn't I jump ship sooner? I got the Canon SD1000- the one that looks like an old retro film-based Elph. You'll be sure to see some more pics from me now. We ate at the Big Texan, home of the FREE 72.oz steak! Ya gotta eat it all though. I was sufficiently full after a 16oz. Prime Rib and 3 coors lights. I couldn't imagine trying to eat more, like the 2 gentleman that attempted so while we were there. E'rythangs bigger in Texas!
Albuquerque, NM- another drive day/stop-over. Gonna rest this cold, and perhaps explore a little tonight. Ciao
Nov 14th 2007 __________________________________
Everyone in Albuquerque was strange. Still can't shake this cold. Just gotta keep feeding it and watering it. I jumped ship today. As the band & tour bus drives to So. Cal (with a wonderful day off in YUMA AZ), I decided to fly to Burbank from Flagstafff.
FENDER is having their 3rd annual BASS BASH at centerstaging rehearsal studios today, and it's right across from the airport! This is where Bassists will mingle and try new Fender & SWR gear in an environment similar to the NAMM show, but MUCH smaller (and with no loud wanking from guitarists). I'll be meeting my lil bro Dorian there, whom just recently relocated to So. Cal. Oh yeah, he's a dope bassist. After hangin I'll Amtrak to the next gig in Solana Beach.
The Flagstaff gig last night was cool, as it was our driver Larry's B-day. We all got him a card. He even came out to a show- and loved it! in photo: B'nai (guitar) Joyo (vox) Larry (driver) P-Dub (drums) Moi (low notes) Mike (keys) up front: Newt (tour manager)
[scroll down to the end of this section for pics, vids and links! Also, I'll be adding new OZ posts at the bottom of this one, so scroll down to seee the new shite!] [Just added! SEE THE PICS!] I'm just about ready to embark on a 2-week Australian tour with the popular hip-hop artist Lyrics Born! The line up is an MC, a Vocalist and 4 band members. I convinced my Berkeley roommates (hi guys!) to drive me to the airport by taking them out to sushi before the long flight to Sydney . From Sydney we transferred to Melbourne to perform at the first of 5 large festivals across Australia. The event is called Parklife. I had no idea how big this thing really was! Upon arriving at the venue, I realised that this was mostly a DJ/electronica type event, and our band were only 1 of 3 live acts in the 20+ artist lineup. There are 4 main stages: earth, wind, air and fire. The grounds were littered with empty drinks of various types, and of young 20-somethings that have no clue what good music is. In attendance were about 15,000 of them! The act that was on before us (a DJ & 2 MC's) drew a massive crowd, but all they did was play other peoples beats while the MC's jumped around singing their own hooks. Maybe I'm just getting old, or don't fully understand this electronic culture. Then again, folks usually prefer cola at first, before acquiring a taste for finer spirits. Nonetheless, the kids seemed to enjoy themselves dancing to Rage Against the Machine's 'Bull's on parade' while 3 performers that had nothing to do with Rage yelled into the mics for a riviting finale.
We set up behind them during their set to make the changeover easy. The stage staff was surprisingly knowledgeable and helpful when it came to setting up our live gear.
I am however, enduring the worst bass rig known to man... AGAIN! All these festivals are so old school that they are stuck in the mind set that a certain popular bass amp design from the 70's is the only choice these days. I won't say who the company is, but it starts with an 'AMP', and ends with a 'PEG'. Not being overly picky about my tone, it surprises me that this rig can't provide efficient, full-range output for bass guitar. It doesn't sound any better than a cheap guitar amp crumbling under the bass frequencies, only louder. I need my rig!!!
Our set went great, but the maximum capacity of the tent was only 5000- a mere 3rd of the festival. We performed in front of a huge LED screen and complete concert lighting. I got a lot going on performance-wise on this one... Bass, effects pedals, laptop with a 16 pad trigger, vocals and of course dancin around. the show was tight and well received, but I'm sure we'll refine it for tomorrow.
After out set, Darius (drums) and I went for a walk around the other stages before returning to see the show headliner, M.I.A. She's Sri-Lankan but English. Her and her girl sang n danced over their DJ's beats. At least it was original material.
There were 2 official after parties, neither of which we attended, opting to go on a band food quest in downtown Melbourne instead. Goodnight Melly city!
-of note: Earlier in the day, us 4 band members took a cab to the Docklands area to see the traveling exhibit, the Amazing Human Body. This is the one where human bodies and parts are Plasticized so we can see every part in detail. Every crossection and organ is represented- and I mean EVERY! I highly recommend seeing it when it comes to your town! Peep their website below.
Adelade: I'll get back to posting about this place. Much smaller festival (5000?). Better show than the last but we're still refining. Oh- and the 80's is COMPLETELY back in full swing. Pink headbands and sweatshirts. Uggh.
Sydney: Here's a quick post- I'll just keep adding to it as the days go on... 5 days off! Ahhh! Well we are at our favorite hotel, The Establishment, again. Too bad they gave me a smaller room this time though! Well us boys went on a day trip together - a ride around Sydney harbor sightseeing and a trip to the beautiful Sydney Zoo. I gotso many pics of this beautiful place- it just takes so much time to post em up... I will though!
------Next day-----
Today Mike and I had a great experience walking through the botanical gardens up the street from my diggs. They have HUGE Cockatoo's that will land on you if you feed 'em! So cool! This park is the best chill spot I've found to either lay out, read a book or bring a nice cold bottle of white wine while gazing out over the opera house, the bridge and the harbor. Too bad we scheduled a rehearsal for tomorrow, or else the park is where you'd find me for sure. We all had a group lunch with JAM- the agency that brings us out here. More free drinks and food! We have a great relationship with them- they're all young and professional and really pleasurable to work with every time.
We just ran into a Joe Sample's son who is a bass player at our hotel bar. He's in town with Randy Crawford. Aww yeah- we're goin to the show- can't wait. Here's a youtube link to hear what they sound like. Angelic voice over a jazz trio- perfect! I love when shite like this happens. ••••••••••• ••••••••••• ••••••••••• ••••••••••• ••••••••••• ••••••••••• •••••••••••
Brisbane:
Another huge festival- maybe around 7000 or so. The hotel (The Oaks on felix) was the first one where we would have to share rooms which was a bit dissappointing... That is until Mike and I saw the room. It was more like a 2 bedroom condo, 36 stories up! The balcony view was wonderful, as downtown brisbane was surrounded by water on at least 3 sides. We were so high the festival could be seen from my bedroom.
Fun Boys. We had to coin a new term... "Fun Boy". You see, back in Adelade, the 80's fashion had returned in full effect. There were pink short shorts on guys... Headbands too. Everything fluorescent! Yuck! The girls weren't much better either. It was so prevalent that perhaps it was US guys from the Bay area wandering around the festival that looked out of place. Well, just as we thought it couldn't get any worse, here we were in Brisbane, where GANGS of Fun Boys poured out of the elevator, 15-deep, with full flouro, gelled hair, and frat boy attitudes ready to take on the drugs and drinking required for enduring a whole day of electronic music. The girls can't be into this look! It's straight out of a Wham video! So it was, the term 'Fun Boy' stuck with our group. I think a song is in the works too. Gross.
The show: Our travelling stage manager France has gotten to know our show pretty well now, making set-up a snap. He even tweaked Me and B'nai's guitars to perfection. Again we went on after Freq Nasty and his 2 hype men. The first part of their set is actually pretty cool. It's halfway through when the cover songs start comin' out and there's a bunch of yelling from the MC's (who are actually great entertainers) that I start to loose interest. We made sure to take proper time for line check this time. Lemme tell ya- It paid off in a Major way! That, combined with a rehearsal the day prior and a new intro made for what was quite possibly the best LB show I've done to date. There were definitely some moments where I felt like 'Daymn! This is IT!' Thumpin and stompin along with Darius on the drums - the whole band was feelin it- I was defiantly happy and there was for sure nowhere else on earth I'd want to be. The monitor guy knew what he was doing, which is rare these days. This was exceptionally important as our new intro song hinges on my triggred samples of 'Stronger', a Daft Punk/Kanye West song that's hot right now. We gave them a show that was completely unmatched by any of these DJ acts. There were fans as far back as I could see- a couple thousand strong. In the end- the boss, the band and the crowd was happy. Afterparty drinks in me and Mike's Condo! Wooo hooo!
The first thing we did upon our return to Sydney was eat (for the 5th time now) at the very trendy noodle/asian joint called Wagamama. It's not the best, but very addictive. I had first experienced it in London on the Whitesnake tour.
The festival grounds were HUGE this time, housing the largest crowd for us yet... 35,000 people, sold out months in advance. We were on the biggest stage. Unfortunately, the successful show that we achieved in Brisbane could not be repeated tonight. The stage was plagued with problems, from the 20ft monolithic DJ booth in the middle of the stage to the completely green monitor engineer, bless her heart. Cutting your teeth in front of such a crowd at our expense is completely unacceptable. It wasn't just wrong, it was HORRIBLE, and I'd never experienced anything like it in my life. So with our stage plot being ignored and our stage sound completely fucked, we still managed to work the crowd the best we could. They loved it! No after partys for us as we had a 4:45am lobby call to get to Perth (on the other side of Australia). I napped for a couple hours then trolled around the 2 clubs in our hotel until lobby call. I must say, Australia has the most drunk and drugged (probably E) youths out of any country I've ever been to. They party and spend money like it's goin out of style. To say the least, I didn't really fit in here. Perhaps there's another scene for us 30-somethings that I havn't found yet. Over the course of the festivals so far, I'd probably been given close to 100 free drink tickets! What the heck will I do with that?! I'm doin a job here, and can't bring anything less than my 'A' game. I got completely blitzed during our week off anyways. Off to Perth...
The commuter city. There aint shit downtown. I liked the layout of this festival the best. Also, the folks here were the most normally dressed out of anywhere- they must not have gotten the 'Fun Boy' memo. The backstage trailer area was set up where it as easy for all the bands to hang and communicate with each other one last time. I really became friends with the band 'Greenskeepers' from Chicago- they were all cool cats, with a couple of songs that I can't get out of my head! Check their Myspace and see what I mean. The folks from 'The Herd' were nice as well. By this final show, I had developed a relationship with the DJ Freak Nasty and his 2 hype men, as I started to understand what they were doing more. No, they don't play or create music, but rather entertain crowds. They were still cool with us even though we were setting up the band on stage during their set, which I thought was disrespectful no matter if we liked their shite or not. I offered my services to do a 'bass segment' of the show. Who knows- Perhaps we'll work together in the future with me as a hype-man with a bass fronting DJ Freq Nasty.
Go Home- Pumpkin time.
No after parties for us again, as our flight home is at midnight, just after the Perth show. We get to go back to our hotel rooms just to pack, then start the 30+ hour journey home. To say the least, whomever coordinated our flights home needs to be slapped. The carriage is now a pumpkin. After the show with no shower, we fly Perth to Sydney, Sydney to LA, LA to San Fran with over 6 hours of layovers and a total of 23 flight hours. Fun.
In fact, I'm finishing writing this now in LA, after a breakfast and margarita at Chili's. Almost home though! As long as I get there before noon when the street sweeper starts ticketing in front of my house. Farewell once again, beautiful Australia.
My week: Preparing for Burning Man again! Organizing food, Water, Drinks, shelter, power, fabulousity of outfits, LED's! and camping location are my things to tackle this week. Next week will be another wonderful life-changing adventure in the middle of nowhere, with about 40,000 of my closest friends.
And today in the middle of all this planning I JUST SCORED 4 CHEAP STEVIE WONDER TICKETS! $36 each baby! So I'll be leaving a day later than planned. Whats even sweeter is that 2 of my dear friends just landed the gig with him. YES, Stevie! Victoria Theodore and Errol Cooney have been friends in music for years, and it'll be great to see them share the stage with one of the greats of our time.
So many of these great musicians I've worked with for years and get to call friends are gettin' gigs with great artists lately. I hope someone notices and writes an article- it's really a wonderful thing. Here's just a few: Nelson Braxton, Bass: Michael Bolton (Nelson is a bassist I've looked up to for a while- until now! (just kidding)) Lynette, Keys: Will.I.Am of Black Eyed Peas Sundra Manning, keys: Prince, Rafael Saddiq Victoria Theodore, Keys: Stevie Wonder Errol Cooney, Guitar: Jessica Simpson, Fantasia, Stevie Wonder Martin Luther, vox/guitar: The Roots Tal Morris, guitar: CCR, Huey Lewis and ME, bass: whomever will listen. Actually I'll be back out with my Hip-Hop group (Lyrics Born) this year, and my rock group (Whitesnake) next year. Possibly some more Toni Tony Toné or Eric Martin Dates.
While some of these names may not mean much to you, they're my peeps and collegues and it shows that The Bay Area is finally gettin a lil love for all the talent here. There's more talent here than in LA- just not the recognition.
______________________________________________ Hey all- Here's a quickie update... I was on Bass Talk Radio with Abe and Lane on Sunday. Here's some stuff we talked about!
Eric Martin Band- Had a couple of gigs with one of the worlds best singers (and songwriters too) Eric Martin, from Mr. Big. We get to do EMB and Mr. big songs, as well as a few surprises. Check us out this Saturday (Aug 18th) at the Last Day Saloon in Santa Rosa CA! Eric Martin Myspace page
Whitesnake- David had quite a Brown Bear adventure at his house in Tahoe. Read about it HERE also- New album is almost complete! Whitesnake Myspace page
Martin Luther- I was a member of ML's band for many years, even before we called it "Martin Luther" (it was Aloosanation). ML went on to front The Roots, live in NY, and galavant around the globe serving up soul music with a hard edge. Now he's back in the Bay with myself back behind the bass. Don't miss this one... Friday aug 17th at Maxwell's lounge in Oakland CA. Brian Collier on Drums and Kev Choice on Keys. The Greg Scott Band will be opening up, (with Angeline Saris on Bass and Eric Martin's wife Denise on drums). Details 4 the show Martin Luther's Myspace page Greg Scott's Myspace page
Hello all. It's been a trip not being on the road this time of year. But everyone still thinks I am, making it hard to get my local gigs again. Well, ask and ye shall receive- I'm finally up to my ears right now in work! Here's some of the recent highlights in and around me right now...
LIVE: Did a gig with my old buddy (and first ever bandmate) Jesse Brewster in San Francisco. It rocked! Multiple shows as part of an instrumental rock trio: The Danny Jones Band. This Saturday I'll be a part of the Eric Martin Band. Eric was best known for his work as the frontman for Mr. Big, but his own band has a sound all it's own. He's probably one of the greatest vocalists of our time, and it's an honor to work with him after being friends/neighbors with him all these years. The best rock singers are usually the ones that understand soul and blues, and Eric is one of the greats. Oh yeah- I got Thomas Perry, the drummer from Flametal to join me on the gig. It's gonna kick ass! All this rock these days, but I miss layin it down, thick and brown in the town, if ya know what I mean?! I've been able to reconnect with some of my podnuhs that I've gigged with over the years to play the chitlin' circuit again. I even picked up a church gig again, where I can play some SERIOUS bass. Last night after Eric Martin rehearsal, I played with RnB Diva Lisa Battle, joining my old friends Cedrick Dennis (Guitar) and Tommy Bradford (Drums). I think the last time we all played together was with Ledisi at the Fillmore. Oh yeah, if you don't know about Ledisi, you better check her out. I remember opening for Chaka Kahn with Led in San Jose, when Chaka called her up on stage to sing. That ended up being one of my most memorable gigging moments ever. Anyways- I was just sitting in- I actually had to get to another gig across the street with the band Surreal to hold down the smooth Jazz/Funk/Hip-Hop vibe. I pulled my boy Thomas Perry up to sit in on drums (which he tore up) but after that I reconnected with a dear friend- Greg Errico. He's Sly's original drummer, and we played together in one of the new "Sly" outfits for a couple of years. So Greg sat in and also tore it up! It was so great to play with 2 of my favorite drummers back to back! I gotta have Greg on my CD!
Look for me on the radio on July 1st! Bass Talk with Abe and Lane. Listen on the web. I'll be phoneing in Bass related stuff. The featured artist is my good buddy, T.M. Stevens. Details here.
STUDIO: Almost done with the Lyrics Born CD. It's gonna be like nothing he's ever released- lots of talented musicians on this one and less sampling. Funky too. This is the new generation of Hip-Hop. I spent three 14 hr. days in Tahoe at Snakebite studios recording THE NEW WHITESNAKE ALBUM! There are 11 new songs that IMHO, F'n RAWK! The title is "Good to be Bad", and will be released on SPV (German Label) in the fall. I don't think the last album I did with them came out in the states, but it can be found online. Guitarist Eli Nelson has reeled me in for his instrumental guitar album- and I love it! His style is definitely Vai-esque, but unique and all his own as well. Vai's drummer Jeremy Colson (another SF local) provided some of the tastiest rock drumming I've heard. I can't wait to finish work on this one. You'll also find me on Guitarist Rick Plester's upcoming release, where the idea is to have many different (some famous) rhythm sections providing the backbone of this cd. Tracking at my home studio is still going great, managing to provide Bass tracks to many of these artists while bypassing studio/engineer costs all together. I'll be working on the new Flametal CD shortly. We're releasing an ep. under the name The Skeletons, with more broken down versions of some of our songs. It's a teaser, mostly for our Japanese fans, until the real deal comes out.
Well, shit- I could keep going on I guess... I'm sure I forgot somthin... but that's enough for now. I have to thank everyone who wrote to wish me well after my accident earlier this month. It helped me in a big way- thank you all. My car was totalled (RIP) and so now I'm rollin an '84 Supra with over a quarter-million miles on it (228,xxx). It fits my gear and gets me where I need. It is also a chick magnet and perfect for drive by's.
As always, check my gigs page for the most up-to-date list of shows.
Well, as we've now been home for awhile, Ben and I have had time to decompress and reflect on such a wonderful journey. Our highlights in Tokyo were the radio, TV and CD release party performances. We made many friends along the way that were very gracious, like the two Brothers (Ryuta & Nobuyoshi) who own the Gravity Bar. I wish them the best of success! If you ever find yourself in Shinjuku, look up the Gravity Bar and rock out with these guys. The younger of the two brothers, Nobuyoshi is a great guitarist and guitar collector, and has some great stuff on display. Gravity Bar Site | Ryuta's Myspace | Nobuyoshi's Myspace
Our trip ended in Osaka where our performances at the Hard Rock Cafe and Disk Pier (in-store event) were both great successes! Lots of autograph signing and photo op's made us and our music feel welcome here. I thank all the Whitesnake fans that came out to support a new act like Flametal.
Like I said, we made a lot of friends on this trip and without them and their interest in this new project, none of this would have been possible. Those of you know who you are! DOMO ARIGATO!!!
There are so many great photos. I will post a few more pics here, but the rest will be on a thumbnails page, complete with descriptions. A 'photo blog', if you will!
We ended the trip in Osaka. There are now detailed captions for all pics!
Radio: We met with INTER-FM in Tokyo, and 2 other radio stations in Sendai. The various program directors and DJ's and managers liked us right away and started playing Flametal in rotation after meeting with them. Most of our performances were taped to be played later, but FM3 in Sendai- a traditionally more conservative radio station had us Live on the air! This is something I've never seen before, probably because I'm from America where the Radio waves (and everything else) are controlled by the man. Radio DJ's in Japan can actually play the music they want to! One interesting fact is that there are only THREE FM radio stations that cover all of Tokyo. 2 of them play Japanese Pop; the other (Inter Fm) plays everything else. Flametal is now on air in Japan!
Housing: We stayed in a little apartment in Shinjuku. This area absolutly ROCKS! A 5 min walk from the train station, our lil area had everything we needed- Tully's coffee, excellent Japanese food, and american burger joint/cafe, McDonalds (I admit to having a breakfast sandwich there), Shinjuku Records (where we scored some wicked DVD Bootlegs), and our new favorite place to drink: The Gravity Bar.
Cd Release Party:
Ok- taking a blog break! Can't type. I killed too many brain cells last night (St. Patties Day). Peep the Tokyo Pics in the meantime, or check the more updated blog at flametaljp.com Some of the pics are blurry- sorry!
So we stayed at the host house for an extra day for rest and acclimation. Upstairs in my room I felt like back in my childhood, with parents and activity going on downstairs. It was very homey and comfortable. With no gigs that day, the whole family and friends crew hung out at the house and drank Asahi and jammed into the night. I was sad saying goodbye to our host family. Here's some pics.
PS. I should have a FOOD section of the blog EVERY DAY! I LOVE Japanese food! Once I figure how to organise my thoughts I'll post the goods. This day alone: Nato- fermented Soybeans. Most Japanese folks don't even touch this. I ate 2 servings. No one else had any. Ramen and Gyoza. I love ramen, and had perhaps the best Gyoza (japanese Potstickers) EVER. Shabu Shabu. Swish the raw meat in the vegetable water until cooked much like meat fondue. 3 dipping sauces!
Day 4... 4 trains to Tokyo! 12 Hours of travel. Weekly apartment in the Shinjuku-ko area of Tokyo. Gonna go find coffee and explore until todays obligations
Pics below! Long Post! We're still tired from the flight. Ben's trying to kick this flu but the travel and TIGHT schedule hasn't made it easy. We are staying in a suburb of Sapporo, with a fellow named Yoshi, who volunteered his home (complete with mom and dad) as a host family for us to stay with. His lovely mom prepeared us a fresh american breakfast before our long day.
Performances Today:
* FM Apple radio show with Yoko * Soundcheck @ Club Colony * HMV In-store Appearance * Headlining Club Gig @ Colony
It's a 1 hour drive into town. It's the only time I have to create our backing disc- editing some drums; mixing levels; balancing tracks. So I awaken my laptop from sleep and try to do as much ProTooling in the car for as long as my battery will allow. I must create a 20min show disk and a 45min disc. We arrive at the Radio Station as the first disc is almost done burning.
The radio show went great. Interviews and performances. The host Yoko is very personable and happy which made it easy for us there. She's a great on-air personality.
Thanks to DJ Yoko and program director Ms. Mori.
Recording at the FM Apple studio.
We've pretty much got it down now- tell the band story and a little personal history relating to music, then set up our gear. We've been doing the radio shows without backing tracks- just a Guitar/Bass duet. Using the little Eden amps as direct boxes makes it quick and easy to get good sound- no fuss. This time we played "The Elder" from our CD, and then "Yamoto", the title track from Starblazers. The Japanese go NUTZ for that tune! Here the version we learned HERE on YouTube™.
Colony. Off to the venue- a small club inside of an office building. Lots of places seem to be like that here- you can't judge from the outside. Soundcheck was our first time practicing to our backing tracks through a system. So far, so good. Off to HMV, the big music superstore (it's like a Virgin Megastore).
Eden amp in Colony. Small and Powerful. Thanks for making our life easier.
HMV is in a mall. Load in was us and our crew carrying guitars and such past all the stores, up and down escalators. Soundcheck, lunch (Katsu is THE BOMB!), then a 20min in-store appearance with backing tracks, and "Yamoto" as our finalé. Autograph signing and picture op's followed. All good! The store had an excellent selection of music. While performing I was staring at cd's by my bass hero's Jaco Pastorius and Richard Bona for inspiration. While browsing the store I came across CD's I've played on- Whitesnake; Christina A; Flametal. I also came across lots of California Hip-hop love which included my homies Lyrics Born, Crown City Rockers and Pigeon John. I purchased a 15 CD Django Reinhardt collection for about $15! Someone must have had the price wrong!
HMV Store Font
Myself and Ben
The Legions of fans
HOURS to kill before the midnight show at the Colony. We walked around the BIG ASS electronics store before heading to a bar: Jersey Irish Bar. It was a rock bar with an impressive collection of albums lining the walls. The owner had me sign a Whitesnake Album from 1980! I was only 5 then. With time to kill I got a little sauced.
Jersey Bar
We rocked the show. The other bands were all good- energetic and loud, but all sounded the same- Good Charlotte meets Hoobastank. I liked the drummer from Sons of the New School. They all had cool hair, black button down shirts and thin red neckties. They ALL jummped and moved around A LOT!
KEEP IT LOUUUD event @ Colony
From Backstage
Flametal booth with VJ Aki and Yoshi
We experienced our first technical difficulty when it was our turn. The lights on our amps all stayed lit- warning lights and all! Before switching to the Bass amp they had there to use as a backup, I tryed again to get sound anyways and it worked. Ben wasn't so lucky, as his rig had deamons too. The guitar kept shutting off. I made sure it was plugged into the 4ohm (not 16ohm) input on the cab. We'll have to investigate more to isolate the problem. I ended up covering for Ben with a distorted bass solo that blended perfectly into the first song once he was ready. We gotta pace it though- his voice is getting shot from singing in a metal fashion so soon after being sick.
Well after a long day and even longer night, we finally got back "home" to Yoshi's house. We ended up cancelling the travel and show for tonight in Tokyo so Ben could rest his voice. He was hurtin a little last night, but I'm sure he'll be fine given some much needed rest. Off to Tokyo in the morning- on the Bullet train! Ciao! -Uriah
