will there be any england dates on the europe tour?
There are 3 I think! Check back to our FB pages tomorrow... : )
Ask @MarkMichell
Previous
When will Europe tour dates be annouced?
Late this week or early next I believe, hopefully! Stay tuned!
I saw somewhere that you had 3 musical side projects: Tetrafusion, Down to Ride and Everett Street Jazz Combo. Are you still involved with them? Or StS takes all your time?
It's safe to say STS takes 99% of my time. Tetrafusion is just kind of on standby I guess, there is material slowly being written for a next release, but that's the extent of it. Down to Ride was a very short-lived but insanely fun 3-piece band I did in 2012 or so, and Everett Street is a local gig I play with maybe a handful of times a year (if that) for various events if we happen to get asked. It was a condensed version of a giggable-group that spawned from playing jazz in my university jazz ensemble many years back.
Related users
When writing songs for STS, do you write with Chris and Travis, or do you write separately?
Chris is the main songwriter, so I essentially get the songs when the guitar parts and the core song structures are completed. I live in a different state than they do so all writing is done over the internet. We usually play the songs for the first time after they're written and make changes based on how rehearsals go.
Liked by:
Connor Curnin
Any chance of meet and greets on the Europe tour?
I'm sure you'll be able to find us around the venue!
When will we hear about the Europe/UK tour dates? Isn't it supposed to be December/January? Coming up pretty fast!
Keep an eye out this week, next week at the latest. : )
Liked by:
Robert Percy
Excited to play New Orleans with TesseracT and Scale the Summit? :D
Of course! Always a good time playin' The Big Easy. And I love TesseracT.
What was the last life-changing decision you had to make?
In all honesty...to join Scale the Summit or to not join Scale the Summit!
Liked by:
Robert Percy
How do you think a Scale the Summit's music would suffer/ gain from Travis and Chris using 6 strings and you using a 4? It's something interesting I just thought of.
I just think we'd be really limited on options as far as voicings and certain chord progression-related ideas. Attention to detail in chord voicings are a large part of the STS sound, so who knows. However, at the end of the day, we'd still have fun with that and be able to make something cool I'm sure!
Any tips to help a band just starting to book small tours with somewhat of a name in their own local scene to expand their online fanbase? Basically any tips to increase internet presence for an underground band.
The answer is simple: Be everywhere. The challenge is doing this without spamming people or being obnoxious. There is an art to it, I feel. Just make sure to be active and involved. A key thing is to never let any buzz die down. Don't release an album and then months later fall off the planet. Keep releasing new practice footage, play-throughs, one-off songs, contests, giveaways, new merch. I could go on all day. At the end of the day, your band must be run as a business, and there really is no difference when trying to "expand" yourself.
What bands are you mostly listening to nowadays?
I've been on a big kick lately of going back to stuff I used to listen to years ago and falling in love with it all again. Outside of that, I've been trying to stay away from anything rock/metal really. I constantly practice, play, and perform rock/metal, so I make an effort to balance it out. Jazz, indie, pop are in high rotation.
Liked by:
Lucas Cardoso
Why did you choose to be a musician? I'm considering to study music, but, to be honest, I'm a little afraid of things not turning out the way I expect.
It was honestly just my calling, both intuitively and environmentally. Everyone in my family plays music, my parents play in a very successful local cover band, and it was just the environment I was born into. Aside that, I just naturally gravitated toward surrounding my life with it. It became an avenue of expression and an enjoyable outlet. I'm not sure what you are or aren't expecting, but I've always felt strongly about the mantra of combining what you love doing with a strong work ethic will always result successfully.
Liked by:
Lucas Cardoso
Does composing music start to come easier to you after a while?
Hard to say. I have a hard time just "sitting down" and writing music. It usually ends up in frustration and I have too much of a "Type A" mind to focus. My best ideas will come to me while in the middle of traffic or something and I have very limited means to remember them. But if I do, those are usually my best ones.
When is the Cygnus X-1 instrumental cover coming out? Lol
That'd be cool, but probably will never happen, haha.
What are some habits you had to break as a bassist? Any you still working on?
Just some various things both creatively and technique wise. I tend to gravitate towards the same patterns and licks too often (moreso before than now), plus some technique things I'd like to improve. I'm continually working on them as the goal is to never be satisfied and to be constantly improving.
What's your favorite Scale the Summit/Tetrafusion song? And what inspired the name 'Tetrafusion'?
I can't really do favorites of my own bands...too hard! The name "Tetrafusion" was a result of us being extremely literal in describing the group of people in the band because we slaved for hours trying to think of a name and failed miserably. "Tetra" is the prefix for 4 (four members) and "fusion" meant both the "fusing together" of the four of us to make music, and the fact that we arguably have some fusion influence in the songs.
Liked by:
Robert Percy
Have you ever been to Europe or the UK specifically?
Nope!
What are the top five played songs in your iTunes?
In order, no shame: 1. Gonna Get Over You - Sara Bareilles / 2. Glasgow Kiss - John Petrucci / 3. Misery - Maroon 5 / 4. Lights - Ellie Goulding / 5. Goodnight and Go - Imogen Heap
Do you have a favorite bass line?
I'll name a few: I Want You Back - Jackson 5, Dazed and Confused - Led Zeppelin, Take the Time - Dream Theater (intro break), Feathers - Coheed & Cambria, Good Times - Chic, Time - Pink Floyd, anything by Rush, Roundabout - Yes
How often do you recommend changing strings?
I'd say once a month if you play your instrument a fair while each day.
How does your wife and daughter handle you touring, being away etc? Does your wife still work?
They are very supportive and understanding of my decision to do this as a career and I'm fortunate enough to call this my full-time job. Being gone isn't always easy, but whether I have a job working 40 hours a week year round or a job where I work a full-month at a time here and there, it more or less equals out when calculating "time away from home". Many jobs require travel, some way more than touring ever does, so it isn't that bad at all. My wife teaches fourth grade elementary.
Liked by:
Robert Percy
Following up the question about the EMG's. With your new basses, Warwick, are you loading them up with EMG's too or are you leaving the MEC's on them?
The Thumb will require some work due to changing the routing in the body for them to fit, so not sure, but my upcoming custom Warwick will definitely have EMGs.
Liked by:
Robert Percy
Lucas Cardoso
What were some of your favorite places to eat while touring?
Grapefruit Moon in Toronto, Fong's Pizza in Des Moines, Inn Kensington in San Francisco, VooDoo Doughnut in Portland, and Lumberyard Brewery in Flagstaff, AZ are a few that come to mind.
Have you tried the Axe Fx on the bass? What are your thoughts on it?
I have not, but it seems like it'd be just as awesome as it would be for guitar!
Did you start on a 4 string? and what's it like switching between bass' with different amount of strings?
Yes, I then went to 5 and then 7 and now 6. Switching between them has become really natural and only really takes a matter of minutes to re-adjust. It's honestly harder for me to play a 4-string now for some things due to string spacing differences.
Liked by:
Robert Percy
Lucas Cardoso
Next
