I just found this video of 2 chaps playing ‘No One Knows’ which was originally recorded by Queens of the Stone age. Apparently they are busking on the Royal Mile in Edinburugh, but who are they? If you know anything about them, please leave us a comment……..
Every now and again, we come across something we like that just has not been seen by enough people. This guy, Lunarbeef, doing a cover version of ‘Killing in the name of’ by Rage against the machine, has got balls bigger than king kong. We totally approve. Craig, if you read this, we love your work!
Ok, we will be honest with you… We thought that disregarding the acoustic ukulele in favour of the electric ukulele was about as extreme as it could get. We were under the impression that punking out with a uke was the most radical thing since mohawks. We thought that the only thing more entertaining would be jumping out of a aeroplane with a uke singing ‘jump’ by Van Halen was as rock and roll as it got. That was, of course, until we saw this.
2 ukulele’s? In your Face.
Guillaume Megevand’s photo from the Vegetarian Festival in Phuket, Thailand.
When we saw this photo by Guillaume Megevand we were truly gobsmacked. Guillaume is a photographer from Geneva, Switzerland who has been living in Bangkok for more than a year shooting editorial jobs. Recently he was out shooting in Phuket and came across this crazy chap in the photo and a bunch of his friends, all piercing themselves with bizarre and interesting objects, and he let us bring this photo in particular to you.
It was shot during the Vegetarian Festival, on of the most extreme festival in the world. During 10 days, the chinese population of the island follows a vegetarian diet and performs sacred rituals in the different chinese temples of the city. The devotees get pierced by all different kind of objects going from a gun to a beach umbrella. They also walk over hot coals or climb up ladders with rungs made of knife blades.
The guy in the photo was just one of the parade, and he is a thai guy with chinese roots. I asked Guillaume what the guy was doing… he said “They can choose the objects they like I think. Since a few years back, the trend is “the crazier, the best”. Maybe he’s very good at Ukulele. Not sure he will be able to use them again though. ”
As extreme as it gets with 2 ukes, we think, but if you have seen anything crazier, please let us know!
If you’d like to see more strange objects shoved through human flesh, or more of the interesting sites of Thailand, check out Guillaume’s photography portfolio, because you know… it is about as radical as you could get with your own body!
Electric Ukulele Land has a powerful tool to help make fretboards. This fret calculator works really well.
Although scale lengths are often measured in inches, we are going to use millimeter for these examples. Millimeters are great for measuring string and bridge spacing and for other objects that require better resolution. Google and this unit convertor are great for converting units.
The fret calculator allow you to save the fret template to your computer (select Save to disk (PDF multi-page)) and then print it. Use normal sized (8.5″ X 11″) paper. Tape the paper to your fret board, cut along the lines, and then you are ready to install frets. (Remember that the line at the top of the template is where the nut should be.)
I’ve included 4 examples of different fretboard templates. The variables that were used are included for each example. Experiment with your own ideas once you get the hang of it.
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Regular soprano
Variables:
fundamental scale length = 342.9 mm
string width at the nut = 28 mm
string width at the bridge = 40 mm
fretboard overhang = 3 mm (equal)
calculation method = 12 (equal root 2)
number of frets = 15
number of strings = 4
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Super wide neck
You can adjust all of the different values. Let’s try changing the “string width at the bridge” and keep everything else the same.
Variables:
fundamental scale length = 342.9 mm
string width at the nut = 28 mm
string width at the bridge = 76.2 mm
fretboard overhang = 3 mm (equal)
calculation method = 12 (equal root 2)
number of frets = 15
number of strings = 4
This example is a little absurd, but it illustrates the point.
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Multiple pages (21 inch scale)
For longer scale instruments, your fret template may not fit on one page. Here is an example of a 21 inch scale.
Variables:
fundamental scale length = 533.4 mm
string width at the nut = 24 mm
string width at the bridge = 24 mm
fretboard overhang = 2 mm (equal)
calculation method = 12 (equal root 2)
number of frets = 15
number of strings = 4
When your frets span multiple pages, you will need to tape them together before you cut the slots.
Tape the two pages together.
Line up the two lines.
Tape the paper to the fretboard. In this example, I am using a “zero fret” nut. If you are using a traditional nut, make sure that the left line is on the edge of the fretboard.
Cut along the lines with a thin bladed flush cut saw. The fret slots should be just deep enough for the “tang” (the part that goes into the wood) of the fretwire.
All the slots have been cut.
Ready for frets.
It works great on my Paddle Ukulele.
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Fanned Fret
If you really want to get fancy, try making a fanned fretboard.
Use these variables to try out this feature:
Scale Length (Multiple)
first string scale length = 381 mm
last string scale length = 406.4 mm
string width at the nut = 28 mm
string width at the bridge = 40 mm
fretboard overhang = 3 mm (equal)
calculation method = 12 (equal root 2)
number of frets = 15
number of strings = 4
Fanned fretboard (last string 16 inch, first string 15 inch)
(You will have to use something other than a regular miter box to cut the fret slots, but it can make a really cool looking instrument)
Happy Building!
We are about to release a small series of desktop backgrounds, but as it the anniversery of Jimi Hendrix’s tragic death, we decided to release this preview picture. All kudos to King Uke, who made the desktop and whose uke Jimi is borrowing!
Ladies and gentlemen, we bring you The pUKEs – Will I Learn
For info, tour dates, merchandise, song books and damned good ukulele punk rock, please visit the pUKES
I attended Utah’s Uke Fest on July 27-28, 2012. This festival had classes and workshops during the day with amazing concerts at night. I learned new things and was inspired to take my playing to the next level. My favorite part of the festival was getting to meet other ukulele enthusiasts from the surrounding area.
Sarah Maisel and Paul Tillery and “The Quiet American” performed on Friday night. The groups did separate sets, but they performed a song together at the end.
On Saturday at noon, there was an open mic contest. The performances were great, with lots of brave people displaying their talents.
I was lucky enough to take 2nd place at the open mic contest! My prize was a beautiful Eddy Finn Bamboo ukulele and a hard case for it.
Paul “Tommy” O’Connor played a few Celtic tunes on the ukulele at the Saturday evening concert.
Bolo Rodrigues also played on Saturday evening. He attaches a ukulele to the bottom of his guitar and switches back and forth between the two instruments.
Brittni Paiva was the headliner of the festival. Her spectacular performance was a great capstone to a very fun couple of days.
In 2011, I started emailing the instructions for the “DIY Travel Ukulele”. Hundreds of people from all over the world have received these instructions. Now, they are available to download directly from Electric Ukulele Land!
[Click on the link, or right click and “Save as”]
DIY Travel Ukulele Instructions
Email CircuitsAndStrings@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments.
(NOTE: The original design used a small metal key as the nut. The instructions now call for a zero fret, but the pictures still reflect the metal key design.)
If you are in London, and want to learn, look up “Learn to uke”
4 week adult beginners courses which will take you from zero to ukulele hero! You will play a song within an hour, and then learn a variety of strums and chord progressions over the course. You will have a lot of fun, make new friends and find the musician within you! Check their website to see videos of past absolute beginners – who had never held their ukuleles before the class. 😉
