Shakedown Band - Canadian Rock And Roll

"The Shakedown Newsletter" #6

Well, well, well, WELL.... The "Shakedown Band" was at it again Thursday-night, Jan.24,2002. This time it was at, "The Studio" on Crockford Blvd. Scarborough. They played to a capacity crowd of… one. A fine-fellow supporter by the name of, Sergio. Who was kind enough to applaud and clap his ass off for us after being accosted and ‘shaken down’ by the "Shakedown Band" rehearsal sets for 2 full hours or more.

This was a night that should be remembered not only by Sergio, but by also the "Shakedown Band" members themselves. Mostly as a night for the lessons that were experienced by them at the beginning of the evening in those sound checks and sound dynamics plus levels. Which were ‘haunting’ at best. The P.A. system was a nightmare to the band at the start and had the worst possible setups in the beginning. However, later on the band did manage to tweak the P.A. system to the point of producing somewhat of a decent sound for the vocals and the band pushed onward and forward from there. This then left only the other factor to deal with which were sound dynamics and levels. Levels eventually came under control mid-way through the night, which made for a much-improved balance where vocal clarity was concerned. That then left only the dynamics within the band’s players to deal with.

Main Entry: dy·nam·ics

Pronunciation: dI-'na-miks
Function: noun plural but singular or plural in construction
Date: circa 1789

      1 : a branch of mechanics that deals with forces and their relation primarily to the motion but sometimes also to the equilibrium of bodies
      2 : a pattern or process of change, growth, or activity <population dynamics>
      3 : variation and contrast in force or intensity (as in music)

This, as all the members should realize, can make or break a band’s successful performance and is an important concern. It is therefore all important for the members to grasp and be aware of it in future times ahead when performing the music both in rehearsal settings and live appearances performing to the massive crowds in front of them. Hopefully the "Shakedown Band" members will continue towards trying to master these aspects when playing together and we will soon see marked improvements in these areas.

Otherwise, it was a good night for the boys and they for a more positive note, did make good headway’s in the structuring of some of the tunes. Those tunes were performed with noticeable improvements. Keep up the good work guys. It is all coming along just fine.

Main Entry: shake·down

      Pronunciation: 'shAk-"daun
      Function: noun
      Date: circa 1730
      1 : an improvised bed (as one made up on the floor)
      2 : a boisterous dance
      3 : an act or instance of shaking someone down; especially : EXTORTION
      4 : a thorough search
      5 : a process or period of adjustment
      6 : a testing under operating conditions of something new (as a ship)       for possible faults and defects and for familiarizing the operators       with it

Last but not lest was the fact that we did not even dare to try and pursued our ever obliging member Peter for that damned extra hour thingy. Rightfully/respectfully so. It was his turn this time to answer on this night to a higher calling from a godlike, or should I say goddess-like calling. Not to worry though as it had been already predetermined by all of us that the rehearsals were needing to go back on track for its normal time frames.(7:00pm-10:00pm) We all need to get up the next day and function as normal as possible after a "rock in roll" evening the night before. Mind you, I’ve seen guys bent on getting some before… but Peter, well that was in my view a new version of intensity and urgency that I have never witnessed before and I can only hope you and your fine lady will keep on doing that more often. It will do you both a great deal of good. (SEX, DRUGS and ROCK n’ ROLL) …MY MAN PETER… WHOA!

News Update:

Peter and Jack have now managed to coordinate the conversions of the recordings on the tapes to MP3 format in a more expedient way. This still has one small hitch in it but Peter assures us that it can be dealt with in a reasonable manner at his end all the same. Too bad that all tape recorder manufactures are not forced by law to have footage counters on their products. Oh well.

"The Studio" has managed to slightly flimflam us. In that the room which we were so keyed up towards has suddenly been no longer made available to us. Nor to anyone else as it turns out. That room has been assigned to a fellow AND I don’t recall his name, but it is now called "So-So’s Guitar Lessons Room" and we now are placed in a room which although still contains the very same gear as the first room did, has no fridge, smaller floor space, no raised stag for the drum kit, and is not nearly as acoustically sound proofed as the first room was. However the room afforded to us is still a reasonable setting to work with along with its location and for now will do. When it comes to satisfying ones vises like smoking whatever your flavour, it is strongly recommended that the nearby exit door to the outside be cracked open just a few inches and we partake from ‘within’ the hallway side of this doorway in order to avoid fast chills and headcolds. Screw them with having to go outside were sweating and overheated bodies are subjected to fast freezing bring health concerns to the forefront.

The band will continue to look towards altering its locations for its rehearsals as of Feb.14,2002. At which point we will have completed a 4-week booked commitment at "The Studio" location. After which point perhaps the band will again try "The Art Zone" along with other tested studios and possibly some "new" locations. I was wondering about how everyone felt towards trying the one in Concord again. It was small but still we did have a great host and all was very friendly and cozy. Plus it had good access for slugging our gear in and out of.

Peter this week announced his intention towards investing in a "Bass Digital Effects Processor Rack" in the near future. I know he has been toying with this idea for some time. One word of caution Peter. The item you are contemplating is a great piece of gear and has a ton of options to tweak your sound(s) with but it tends to always be that the majority of players who use these expensive devices, including myself, have come to realize afterwards that we end up only really using just a few of those possible settings in the long run. Add this hindsight advice to when your factoring into your budgeting before you make the plunge. Its hindsight but at the same time whenever the urge to tweak your sound, or change up a sound effect. These digital babies have it for sure. Making them a good solid investment in the long run. They just take a long time to get use too because of so many variable settings and they generally take a ton of exploring.

Also reported was that sometime soon enough we’ll be seeing and experiencing a new dimension added to our harmonies via the purchasing of microphone and gear from the drummer boy, "Brandon". I know he is currently giving a lot of consideration towards the purchase of a head phone/ microphone setup so as to enable his participation in the harmonies with Stevie-Keys and Peter and myself. Whatever the choice he makes. It not only will be thought over well enough by him, but also a welcomed addition to the bands harmonies section. Brandon just needs to pull a Nike moment and… ‘JUST DO IT’..!

Ok you’s Guys... that’s a wrap.

Yours truly,

Madcowjack