Ace Is High

Great Cynics.com released

Ben — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:17:52 +0000

I put a microsite together for the awesome Great Cynics yesterday to showcase the video for the title track from the upcoming EP ‘in the valley’.

Why not go check it out and pre-order? www.GreatCynics.com

Get Cape v Jehst v Engine Earz

Ben — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 19:27:13 +0000

Having just landed from Norway, I headed straight to Red Bull studios London last week to hook up with Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly and play some bass for an awesome 3 way collaborative show at Cargo in Shoreditch.

The show was insane, as were the rehearsals with 20 musicians involved, the stage was shared and the music played for 2 hours with everyone in constant rotation. I had a wicked time and hope to do something like it again in the future.

If you haven’t already – go check out Jehst and Engine Earz.

Norway 2012

Ben — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:36:38 +0000

I recently popped over to Norway with a couple of friends to check out Trondheim and Oslo. We took a 7 hour train through the country in between and saw a great deal of it. What an awesome country… shame … Continue reading

Sam Duckworth Update

Ben — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve recently updated SamDuckworth.co.uk to coincide with the new single ‘Angels in the Snow’ – it’s a simple page to showcase the video for the single and also allow for downloads of the free EP (which I recommend you go … Continue reading

New OCDP kit

Ben — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 19:10:56 +0000

As long as I can remember being into drums – I’ve wanted a kit like this. I finally bit the bullet and got her – custom type 2 kit, with 22 x 20 kick and 10, 12 and 16 toms … Continue reading

My First Screen Prints

Ben — Sat, 21 May 2011 08:37:57 +0000

I recently went on a half day screen printing course over at Bonzo Studios down here in Southsea. Bonzo is a new venture providing hot desks and workspace for freelancers and creatives; an open studio.

I heard about the screen printing courses they were putting on and signed up. What you see here are my first ever attempts, Karl was extremely patient and helpful and allowed me to work on my own two coloured design.

This took a little tweaking as the original design was put together in a matter of hours and there was no intention of it ever going to print. Cue some very quick lessons in print design, the two colours were separated, printed onto laminate and we moved onto the screens. I was simply amazed at the process, check out this video to see how screens are put together, the video almost put me to sleep but I thoroughly recommend signing up to one of these awesome courses if you get the chance.

My new OCDP snare

Ben — Fri, 20 May 2011 16:41:51 +0000

I recently picked up this beautiful 14″ x 4″ OCDP snare. I’m drumming for the first time in an as yet unnamed punk-rock band in my new home town of Southsea and this compliments the rest of my breakables.

I’m on the lookout for a 3 piece kit and I have a few in mind, but the snare and Sabian cymbals will do for now.

SamDuckworth.co.uk released

Ben — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 17:04:21 +0000

We’ve just unveiled SamDuckworth.co.uk, a simple site for Sam who wanted a minimal design that allowed people to find out upcoming dates and check out his material.

Go check him out, some real good stuff going on there!

The Inevitable ‘Top 5 of 2010′

Ben — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 08:42:03 +0000

So this is as inevitable as the hangover on New Years Day, but I think it’s worth while making a quick list of my favourite releases of 2010 for my own benefit. These are in no particular order, in fact they probably are, most likely from favourite to 5th favourite.

The Flatliners, Calvalcade.
Comeback Kid, Symptoms + Cures.
The Arteries, Dead Sea.
From Plan To Progress, From Plan To Progress.
HeartSounds, Until We Surrender.

So there we have it, I feel I have done the internet a great service by imposing my opinion on you all. For what it’s worth, I was also massively impressed by The Riot Before‘s ‘Rebellion’, but a top 6 made my feel uneasy.

Slappin’ Da Bass

Ben — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 13:08:29 +0000

So I picked my self up a very tidy new bass. An upgrade in the bass department has been long overdue, I’ve spent a hella long time muling over what form this upgrade would take.

When it comes to six strings the only real choice in my humble opinion are Gibsons and likewise I believe there is only one option when looking at bass’: Fender.

I’m a lifelong Jazz fan (the model, not genre) but was tempted by the Precision, the Music Man Stingray is a beautiful machine that I’ve been playing a fair bit recently courtesy of a very generous pal of mine and so that was an option too. Long story short, the Jag Bass blew me away, the option to switch between active and passive and the sheer range of tonal possibilities made this a winner.

It’s a stunning bit of gear that I’m very taking by, I had a custom 3 ply pick guard made up too to bring her in line with the black/white theme I seem to have going with the rest of the fleet.