Phil's Gear

Phil Barker took some time away to answer a few questions related to his Iona gear.

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Q. Can you tell us what equipment you used on the new Iona album 'Another Realm'?

I used my Warrior Studio 6 custom bass (pictured right) with Seymour Duncan pickups and 3 band eq. and my Electric upright which is a Yamaha silent bass copy, with a custom gloss finish fingerboard Sprayed by my Dad! I also used a Boss ME50 effects processor and we used various effect combinations, not all the effects made it to the final mix, as the bass signal is split in 3, 1. Clean 2. Amp. 3. Effects. So the best combination for the track wins! Amp wise we used the excellent amplitude Ampeg plug in software and chose between SVT classic, SVT2. SVT3.

Q. Has your set up (basses/amps/fx) changed much since the early days of playing with Iona?

With Iona I started out live with a Wal 5 string, and an Alembic Epic 5 fretless which I used (and are pictured on the inside booklet) on "Heavens Bright Sun". For "Woven Cord and "Open Sky" I used the Warrior 6 and the Alembic, for "Live in London" a Guild B4 acoustic, and Musicman Stingray 5, and for The Circling Hour just the Musicman.
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Q. What gear do you use on stage?

I endorse Gallien Krueger Amps and have used them live since 1998, I currently use a 1001RB 15" combo, which is 540 watts! (I have grown out of the massive speaker cab phase!)

Q. What's it like playing with such powerful drummers as Terl and Frank?

I am a big drum fan, so standing next to Frank or Terl on stage is amazing, the power that they push out really drives things along, the key to working with them is to listen to the patterns and lock in, then hold on to the 1.

Q. Your sound with Iona seems to have developed and matured over the years. How would you describe the progression? Did you have to adapt your style to suit the band in the early days?

I think in the early days, I played a bit less, as I heard a lot going on and felt conscious of not Playing over somebody else's part, I had worked with a lot of producers who would say, "not too many notes there etc etc". Recording with Dave producing was different to what I was used too, and the challenge was to find a way to be busy but with the right notes, and not the typical roots etc. Style wise I switch between fingers and a pick a lot and I also use a sawn off drum stick to get some chapman stick tones! Listen to "Let your Glory Fall", for example.

Q. On 'The Circling Hour' and 'Another Realm', the drums and bass sound very powerful, possibly more so than on previous albums. What are your thoughts on the band's sound and current line-up, and how do you see things progressing from here?

I think I see the Bass and Drums as a unit that lays down the foundation for the melodies to be played over, I have always enjoyed being part of a tight rhythm section. I see this line up as being permanent and I think we shall all grow old un- gracefully!
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Q. Do you have a chosen instrument - a kind of 'desert island' choice?

I have an old Tanglewood acoustic guitar from the 1970's which sounds great but looks terrible So I'd take it and get around to learning all those tunes I haven't had time for before!

Q. How do you think the new Iona album differs from the previous studio album 'The Circling Hour'?

I feel that to me that "Circling Hour" had some great moments and some good songs, but it didn't have a distinct theme or concept, so some of it doesn't flow together so well. "Another Realm" is the opposite.

Do you have a favourite track on 'Another Realm'? If you have, which one and why?

Picking a favourite is very hard - some of the songs we had been playing for over a year before the album came out, but "Atmosphere of Miracles - part 3" really blew me away when I heard it and Dave asked me to put bass on it, it was about 90% finished and I heard the strings etc, and wow! I also suggested we play it live, and everybody agreed! When the crowd joins in for "Our King is Here with Us" it makes the hairs on the back of your neck stick up!

**Photos by Monica Duffels, Mike Anders, and Joe del Tufo



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