On Wednesday this week, Anthem became a managed act. The duo will be represented by Wassef Masaad at WM-Pro Entertainment Agency. Wassef is a musician himself and has many years experience treading the boards as a well respected guitarist and drummer. Jamie, "I'm delighted that we have secured representation, so that now I can return to concentrating on being a musician and leave the bookings to someone who is an expert in that field. It was very rewarding to perform for such a well respected agent and to see how impressed he was. The duo is good, but the more we work the more we will improve, and Wassef could see the potential. I like to hear feedback from well informed people and wassef had a good few ideas about ways in which we could develop the show. I'm over the moon right now and I look forward to a fruitful relationship with the WM-Pro Agency. I have to give credit where it's due, when we went to perform for Wassef, Kay really pulled it out of the bag - she was brilliant." Anthem poster and page to be updated soon.
WM-Pro Entertainment Agency Ltd 20 Bilsdale Way, Baildon, West Yorkshire, BD17 5DG E-Mail: wass@wm-pro.com
01274 580 834 or 01274 589 854
Jamie's Mini Blog. "On 2nd Feb (groundhog day - again) I turned 40. I don't feel particularly different, but it does sound like a bloody big number to me! Some musicians I know have retired at 40, and many never made it to that age - getting disillusioned with the industry and packing it in to go do something a little safer. I always wondered how I'd feel about staying in the game at this sort of age, but I can tell you that I play better than I ever did. I'm a better person, and a better musician for all the experiences I've had. In a way I feel like I'm only just getting started. There are so many musical avenues I want to explore and ideas I have in mind. I've always tried to improve as a musician and I still have much to learn. So hopefully I won't suffer too much from this aging process we all have to deal with. I don't really feel any different, and I'm pretty healthy - I just maybe need the odd nap here and there!"
"My birthday itself was one of the best days of my life. I have to thank my family, but most of all my Mrs. Donna went to an absolutely ridiculous amount of trouble to make my birthday a special day and it was very much appreciated. My main present was a Vintage VE900 MH Electro Acoustic. The whole thing is mahogany with rosewood fretboard and bridge. It's a "flat" finish rather than a shiny finish which I'm very much a fan of. The guitar really rings out acoustically, it's a big sound - bright, full and sweet. Plugged in this guitar really works for me. Lets just say that some electro-acoustics sound beautiful plugged in but get lost if you use them with a band. This one will have the rest of the band turning up!" Pics to be added to website soon.
06.01.2012
Jamie, "The new Black Label series is to be launched by those lovely Fret-King chaps at the NAMM show. I'm told that the instruments will be available to purchase late february. Well, I can tell you that I've already had the pleasure of playing a few of them and every one is a winner. I've put my name down for a 5 string Perception - the very first 5 string model Fret-King have made, because it is truly a thick string players dream come true! Warning - guitar nerd talk to follow : I have always found that the problem with 5 stringed passive basses is that the notes below low E lack punch and the low B string sounds kind of "flabby." The sheer size of the neck is also somewhat daunting for me, with these stupid little girl sized hands. For this reason I've always gone for active 5's. But they tend to be 24 fret basses, meaning that the string spacing is uncomfortably close and string bends seem to become tough (to me anyway.) Also, I'm kind of craving more of that passive tone these days - it may be an age thing! Now, I don't know how Trevor Wilkinson has managed it, but he's created a 5 string bass, with distinct and punchy low notes, and not only that - the extra deep (and sexy looking) cutaways make for excellent upper fret access, and the neck is wide but shaved slim, making it by far the most user-friendly 5 string I have ever played. The other thing I noticed was this : If you take a 4 string and a 5 string off the wall, made by the same company, from the same series of instruments, the tonality will be very different. I always accepted that this must be something to do with the amount of wood involved and the space inside the pickup etc... But I'm no expert on this matter. All I can tell you is that these 2 basses really do sound very similar, making them perfect counterparts and they make me wonder why, if Trevor can make basses as good as this, why can't all those other companies that are charging so much for what can only be called, "near misses." Tonally, these basses posess the familiar, traditional sounds we all love, with a little extra bite, a little more punch and plenty of character. From Thrash Metal, to Easy Listening, these babies will do the trick." More info : www.fret-king.com
01.01.2012
Jamie, "I've often been tempted to have a blog somewhere. But I keep reaching the conclusion that one can be too wordy, and I want to avoid feeling like I "have" to say something, rather than simply muttering when I actually have something worth saying. So, as it's the start of a new year, i'll have a bash at it and see how it goes. First of all, happy new year to you all. It's not something I celebrate, but the wishes are sincere. I hope you had as good a christmas as I did, if its something you celebrate, and if not - I hope you had a smashing time anyway! See, this is why i really shouldn't become a blogger.
I have to say that I'm quite sad that EPIC has come to an end. I had always wanted to be in a totally live 3 piece band as I thought it would be good for my playing. The 3 piece situation means the bass player really has to work to fill some space, between the drums and guitar. It makes you think hard and play hard and I like nothing better than being challenged by a new musical situation. I thrived on the challenge and the audience reactions would indicate to me that we made a good job of it as a unit and we were rightly proud of it. I'd like to wish Eric and Steve all the best for future endeavours and to thank all the agents, supporters and bookers that helped us along the way.
And so to my next musical challenge. Kay and I are almost ready to begin work as a duo. Most of the songs are finished. I've made most of the backing tracks myself (in Starbug Studios of course) which has been a hard but I think worthwhile slog. This outfit will see me playing a lot more guitar than bass, which means I'm now practicing very very hard on the Fret-King Ventura Super 60 HB3. Most of the parts are coming together ok for me, but there's the odd niggly bit here and there that is really doing my head in! Kay has been a diamond. I don't really know her very well, but she works hard learning the material at home and her voice is staggering. What more could I ask for? A huge thank you goes out to Mr Steve O'Brien for the recommendation.
As the world seems to become a tougher and tougher place to survive in, and things are certainly not improving in the music industry, I am moved to thank the people who have helped me and supported me in recent years. In particular, Gavin Coulson and the other members of staff at John Hornby Skewes, Larry Hartke, the Rotosound guys - Jason, Coral and Steve, Adrian Bece, Joe Siegler, Jason Houston, Carl Taylor and Neil Tomlinson. Thank you to anyone who came to a gig, anyone that purchased something I played on and please, please, please, don't stop caring about real music. We're up against it more than ever - it's going to be a tough one! Much love."
Jamie Mallender - Bass Player. | JamieMal@hotmail.co.uk
