Ian Ross profile picture

Ian Ross

About Me

Though most often too thoroughly confused by my own eccentricity and eclectic range of interests to decide what to accomplish at any given time, I've thus far managed to record a total of five releases with four different bands, produce a generous amount of my own music (still unreleased, I'm sorry to report), design a veritable mountain of websites and clothing for various clients, write three novels and a collection of short stories, fill endless notebooks with doodles in felt-tip pen, anger several cats, invent two new languages, amass an impeccable collection of art nouveau reproductions, scare small children, bewilder friends and family members, consume unspeakable amounts of citrus flavored items, dance about with the relative abandon of a mental invalid, and generally fail to be a contributing member of society. All this while remaining entirely unable to eat potatoes, and as of more recent months, wheat and dairy products as well! These days, I can most typically be found working on music and merchandise for my band, Par Avion, although when not busy with such work I occasionally find time to contemplate world domination, play a quick game or two of tiddlywinks, head out on the infrequent urban exploration adventure, and attempt to figure out a way to make Emilie Autumn marry me. Alright... ...I must admit, I've never played a single game tiddlywinks in my life. The rest, however, is likely more true than I think it is.
It should also probably be mentioned that I am, all other interests aside, an electric bassist and producer by trade. I can make virtually anyone sound good, and I am fully capable of holding down the low end in a wide variety of genres. I currently endorse Ampeg amplifiers and Fender basses.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 11/03/2005
Band Members: Depending greatly on the weather and my mood in general (which, in no coincidence, is also dependent on the weather), I may add or subtract members from the band. Sometimes, I'm brave enough to multiply, and occasionally divide as well, as long as there are no oddball repeating decimals or remainder whatnots. At worst, I may attempt to divide by zero, but the ensuing black holes actually cease to exist before any harm can be done to nearby furniture or cats.You may ask, of course, how I am able to add or remove certain band members, seeing as how I am the only one in the band. You'd be absolutely correct; I AM the only one in the band.Mull that over and get back to me.
Influences: The music I enjoy tends to inform my own compositions far less than my interests in general, some of which are as follows:

Traveling to unknown lands (and known lands for which I feel affection), Learning to play various new instruments, Reading far too often for the good of my eyes, Critiquing music and production (read: generally being a snob, elitist, pretentious bastard, etc.), Enjoying the beauty of nature, Collecting works of Art Nouveau and Jugendstil, Practicing Eco-Feminism, Pondering the endless and mysterious loveliness of the number 1.618, Studying and comparing world religions, Noticing and applying symbolism, Being in touch with the Feminine side of things, Secretly admiring Euclidian Geometry, Using Anglicisms in everyday speech, Attempting to cook, Despising academics and their institutions, Importing fabulous foreign music with which to annoy my friends, Drinking citrus flavored anythings, Designing articles of clothing, and etc.
Sounds Like: No, I will not list influences, as it is far too difficult. Here is a list of my equipment:

1974 Fender Jazz Bass (Maple Neck w/ Rectangular Inlays and Binding, Sunburst Finish w/ Black Pickguard) (DiAddario XL Nickelwound Light Strings)
1987 Rickenbacker 4003 (Rosewood Neck w/ binding, Clear Maple Finish w/ White Pickguard) (DiAddario XL Stainless Steel Medium Strings)
2005 Steinberger Spirit (Customization: Neon Pink Duct Tape) (DiAddario XL Nickelwound Light Strings)
2008 Fender Squier Jazz Bass V (All Black Finish w/ Chrome Hardware) (DiAddario XL Nickelwound Light Strings)
1994 Ibanez RG 450 DX (Rosewood Neck w/ binding, Black Finish w/ Mirror Pickguard and Custom Artwork) (Never Remember to Change My Strings)
Whatever Drum Set is Available (Primarily Pearl Export w/ Zildjian A Cymbals and Tama Starclassic Snare)
Software: Renoise, Pro Tools 7.1.1 (Mbox 2), Digital Performer 5.1, Ampeg SVX, Guitar Rig 3, Countless other Virtual Instruments and Effects (Run on a MacBook Pro and a Dell Dimension 4100)
Yamaha Silent Electric Violin (Dominant Strings)
Novation K-Station, Alesis Micron, and M-Audio Oxygen 8
Goodness, I hope I've listed everything. Occasionally, I also use a Squier Stratocaster borrowed from Matt Richert.
Record Label: Unsigned

My Blog

Attack of the Rampant MySpace Viruses, Pt. 1: The Death of Friendship

This post is simply to inform those of you who have received odd, out-of character, spam-like messages from me that my MySpace has, like most, contracted some sort of illness. I apologize for any anno...
Posted by on Mon, 12 May 2008 00:11:00 GMT