Andrew Harrison popped into my website (www.sympsonics.co.za) one day and left a message. We got talking and he told me about his bass-playing brother, Chris. I’ve spoken to Chris a couple of times over the last few years and decided it was time to get an interview out of him so we had a chat in February 2006. This is what he had to say. 

How long have you been playing Chris? 

I started playing bass in 2000, but I only really started playing seriously in 2002. 

How did you get started? 

My brother started playing guitar in late 1999, and he talked me into starting bass, as the band he was trying to form needed a bass player. I started lessons with Bruce Hyland, and got my first bass (a Washburn Bantam) a few months later. 

So would you say you came from a musical family? 

Well, it’s really half and half…my Mom is a fantastic piano player, and my Grandfather on her side plays a mean piano accordion, but my paternal family is entirely unmusical! 

What’s your favourite band / solo artist? 

Right now I’m going through a small obsession with Jamiroquai and early Incubus…the bass playing on a lot of their work is simply inhuman! I also love old funk…especially George Clinton’s work with Parliament/Funkadelic. 

What are the amps and instruments you currently use? 

My 2 main basses at the moment are a 1993 Warwick Streamer 4, and a 2001 Warwick Corvette Proline Fretless 5. I also have a Tanglewood Acoustic bass, and a Dean Edge Hammer 10 String bass. Amp wise, I currently use an Ashdown MAG300 with 2x10” and 1x 15” cabs. 

So you’ve got into fretless already – do you feel comfortable with it yet? 

Playing fretless was a big challenge at first, but as with everything, you just have to start slowly and work your ass off. My biggest remaining difficulty is playing the fretless live…the challenge seems to swell dramatically when you can’t see the neck properly!  

What instruments would you like to have if money were no object? 

Tough one! Well…it’d have to be a Custom Shop Warwick. There’s just something about the feel and sound of Warwicks that gets me every time! 

What have you been doing for the last five years or so? 

I finished school in 2002, and then took a gap year to work and travel in England in 2003. While I was there I hooked up with a bunch of bands, and did a fair number of (mostly shite) gigs. Starting in  2004, I played for a local power metal act called Burnt Reason. We played a lot of local gigs, the biggest of which was Woodstock 6 , and I had a lot of fun with the band. We did rather well, but most of the local clubs were less than happy about having us, ‘cos it seemed like every time we played, something would get broken, and things would go wrong. So in late 2004 we decided to relocate to the UK and see what we could do there. As it usually happens, everything fell to pieces as soon as we arrived, and the band split in early 2005. 

Since then, I’ve put together a small recording setup, and I’ve been hard at work writing and recording material for my new band, Tv For Dogs. It’s a much more mature sound….a bit of a mix between ambient lounge music and Acid Jazz. We like to think of ourselves as a ‘Ninja Disco’ outfit.  

Tv For Dogs should be gigging by late March 2006. 

Crazy title for a band – your idea? 

The name actually came from my old housemate in London…he came home one night looking mightily pleased with himself, and told me that he had found the ultimate band name for me. Apparently he overheard it in a snippet of a conversation between two strangers on his bus home from work. 

What recordings that you’ve played on would you recommend for listening? 

Anything by Tv For Dogs…it could be a while before we have something out, but I’m very optimistic about this band. 

Tell us a bit about it – line up, style etc etc. 

Well, the band as it started, was just my brother Andrew (guitars), and a friend of ours named Garth Goodman (7 string guitar, synths and samples), whom we knew from his old band ‘Prai’, who had gigged with Burnt Reason. We started out in London, writing and recording music on a Boss BR1100CD desk, which has a built in drum machine. In London we lived in a very musical house, and were never short of collaborators for songs. The band started out as a rather heavy electronic rock band, but quickly evolved into a much more atmospheric, ambient style, with a lot of our material centering on parts that can easily be drawn out into jam sessions. 

Once we got home, we quickly hooked up with Paul Nieman, the old drummer from Burnt Reason, and began looking for a vocalist. As things stand, we’re still looking hard, but things are going well…we’ve been writing and recording with a few vocalists while we look for the right person. 

What’s been the low point in your career so far? 

Headlining the annual Delmas Pampoenfees with Burnt Reason in 2004. I don’t think even one of the assembled mass of farmers enjoyed our set. 

Yeah, I can just imagine!!!! So what’s been the high point? 

Played Woodstock 6 with Burnt Reason. 

Woodstock is probably the high point for most SA. Bands, wouldn’t you say? 

I guess so…especially for rock bands, it’s a fun gig to play, and it really helps with getting your name out to the kids…a nice slot at Woodstock is probably the only place that local bands can play to really big audiences.  

What are your goals currently? 

Well, my short- term goal is to get Tv For Dogs playing live, and to finish our recordings. Long term, I think my goals are the same goals everyone has! I want to get myself into a position from which I can make a disgusting amount of money doing exactly what I want to do! Oh yeah, and I want to finally get my 4 finger technique working properly for me! 

What does Chris Harrison get up to when he’s having a break from music? 

Well, I guess the big one would be university. I’m currently enrolled at Wits, studying Economics and Journalism. But that’s it really...I’ve recently completed my home studio setup, and I’m in the process of learning to use everything! So it kinda feels like I’m always doing something music related!