Unveil the Mystery (Issue no3)

hellooo there again! Our Ottawa gig is coming close as well as our very first real tour of europe and so far the rehearsals are doing very well and productive! Cant wait to do this 'next chapter' gig with our brand new singer and guitarist, each of them had worked so hard in the last weeks to catch up, (thumbs up to antoine.....holy sh..., i thought i was a fast learner!!!) That being said, so much frequent line up changes in the live band is not easy to follow and i totally understand that, the mysteron family tree is getting bigger than ever and it seems even confusing for me sometimes, :D!! My rig is ready, and for any of you who wonders what i'll use: Moog taurus bass pedals Fender jazz bass (mexican, with a 1970's pickup at the bridge...and it was sold to me by one of our very own mysteron guitarist a few years ago, dean baldwin, just for the record) Ibanez 5 string SRX 705 bass GK combo 2x10 amp effects: digitech bp50 • mxr phase 100 • sansamp bass driver D.I. • mxr stereo flanger • morley a-b box • boss volume pedal and for the oversea's shows; the keith mcmillen 12 step usb foot controller with the minitaur will replace the taurus. I've noticed my fellow mysterons usually rely on much more modern equipment (emulating some vintage gear to great effect, i admit), while i still prefer good old analog/vintage gear and old school pedals. Actually my 36 year old moog taurus seems to be more reliable than my 4 months old usb controller wich i had to replace even before i did my first gig with it (manufacturing defect, as it happens with anything these days, whatever how much you pay) ! But i still love the new minitaur coupled with the usb controller, perfect when you have to travel with very limited, lightweight equipment. And, from any imitations of the moog taurus i've heard so far, this one is...wow!! (and you just CANNOT fool me, *i insist*, with taurus imitations!). While i'm at it, i should say same goes with music, same approach, really. I'm much more influenced by the ''vintage'' jazz and prog rock of the 70's, wich i try to inject into the mystery live arrangments to make it sound like a hybrid of old and new, especially when i feel the music is taking a more neo-prog direction, or other members bringing more contemporary elements of the genre through their playing techniques and influences at some points, wich is totally cool, this is what makes mystery such a fun gig to do. There's no doubt after hearing the most recent mixe's of the forthcomming live album that the mystery live band has its own sound, and its always with total respect of the original structures, bringing the unique style of michel's material in the spotlight, he is much responsible for the mystery sound, even if we would try to get it somewhere else, his magic touch is always in the front. Speaking of vintage stuff, spinning on my turntables these days: rush's clockwork angels, (their ''latest''...already 2 years old!). It is by far, for my taste, the best album they've made since presto...

That, and a lot of old records some friends of mine had given me recently, including ''presence'' from led zeppelin (john paul jones and bonzo, the best rythm section in the whole rock history, period!!), april wine's ''harder, faster'', wing's ''back to the egg'' (an overlooked mccartney record i'm glad i've finally discovered), and my next purchase will be the brand new steven wilson record, 'cover version', i'll review that one on my next article if you don't mind.... thats it, have a nice week! going for the prog -frank