What is FOOLY COOLY????????

1rr3l3v4n7 · Post by **1rr3l3v4n7** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 8:24 am

OK... I'm a big fan of FLCL and the Pillows (great brit-rock sound + japanese lyrics)...

But, for all of you who may like to have these informations... well here it goes...

"The rickenbacker 4001. A rarity in the musical market. Perhaps it.s relatively popular because Paul McCartney used a 4001S (wich is different from the 4001 when it comes to the inlays and binding). However that color (Azureglo) is truly rare.
Now, as I was saying, I had a Rickenbacker that was very similar, so I took it over to GAINAX where tsurumaki-san was. I pratically barged in, and talked and talked about it with him, when he was really supposed to be working on his storyboards. We talked so much that I deserted Sato Tatsuo-san, who had come with me to GAINAX. So about Haruko's bass... Okay, now it's going to get really hardcore!

Haruko0's 4001 and my own differ in quite a few ways. Usually lefty basses are just the exact opposite of a right-handed bass, as if they were mirror reflections. But the Rickenbacker is different. And the lefty Rickenbacker has two types. There's one that uses the normal right-handed neck with the lefty body. Then there's the one that uses both lefty neck and lefty body. Paul McCartney's 4001S Rickenbacker has a lefty body with a right handed neck. Haruko's 4001, with the horn of the headstock on the right side, has a lefty neck. And the body is completely for lefties. This is the rarer of the two. And so, Haruko's 4001 has a toaster pickup (because it look like it could pop out two pieces of bread). And her rear pickup is high gain. Wich means that her bass was probably made between 1968-1973. Beyond this, here are a couple of interesting things we can note:

1. There's a panel in the back of the body: Because the pick guard and the front pickup are together, there shouldn't be anything coming from the back. But that Haruko, she must have added something.

2. The color of the back of the neck and the body are different: The color on the 4001 is coated with the same paint along the entire body and neck, up to the top of the headstock. For example, if the color was Azureglo, all wood parts would be blue. But on Haruko's 4001, the back of the headstock and the neck are the color of natural wood (maple). She probably stripped it it's hard to play with the glossy paint on it.

3. There seems to be some bolts joining the neck of the bass to the body: in the detachable neck types like the Fender, there are bolts connecting the neck and the body. But the 4001 is built as a neck-thru where the neck penetrates the body, so there isn't usually a need for bolts. That means Haruko'bolts are fake. Maybe Haruko put on round stickers or something?

4. The mystery of the nameplate: On Rickenbackers, there's a plate on the headstock that has the manufacturer's name on it. The plate is right-side up when the bass or the guitar is held up, ready to play. This means there are different plates for the lefty and the right-handed rickenbacker. The right-handed one is written starting from the 0 fret (nut) towards the top of the headstock. The lefty one is written starting from the top of the headstock towards the nut. But haruko's plate is curved like it's for a lefty, but written like it's for a right-handed one. If her lefty was the lefty body and right handed neck, then one could speculate thet she changed the plate to mach the right handed neck, but... What the heck? ... Oh! I get it! Haruko musthave gotten it used! And the previous owner was right-handed, but he wanted to pretend to be Jimi Hendrix and bought a lefty one, using it upside down. So the name plate is costum made! Well, things like that do happen, you know.

So I was studying Haruko's bass, but I forgot one major problem.

What in the world is the generator on the back of the body?"

Hmmm... Well, here it is... Sorry if it's quite long (damn long!), but there's everything you Can possibly know of that FLCL bass... ^_^

By the way, I found these infos in the booklet of the 3rd DVD in the boxset.

rickaddict · Post by **rickaddict** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 9:59 am

It sounds to me as if Haruko's bass might be a Rickenfaker: 1) Truss cover is suspicious. 2) Possible bolt-on neck.

I propose that a new episode be written wherein the RIC police arrest Haruko for possession of a Rickenfaker and Speed Racer gets to drag the Rickenfaker behind the Mach 5 across the Gobi Desert.

1rr3l3v4n7 · Post by **1rr3l3v4n7** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:15 pm

Interesting... But, in fact, Haruko is an extra-terrestrial from an other world... So, to make it simple, this right-lefty 4001 Azureglo with bolts and unusual name plate, may just be a "parallel-universe-4001-azureglo"...

...

Yeah! that'd be good for a movie:
"-RICKENBACKERS FROM OUTER SPACE-"

foolycooly · Post by **foolycooly** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:21 pm

Furi Kuri Furi Kuri Furi Kuri!!!!!

The ultimate question is "Would you let her whomp you in the head with it?" Well?? Hmmmmmmmm?

1rr3l3v4n7 · Post by **1rr3l3v4n7** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:30 pm

Well sure!!!!

I have always dreamed of opening a parallel universe with the massive flow of energy created by the splitting of the right and left hemisphere of my own brain so we could fight for ultimate power (wich is only possible with a Ric 4001 or a EB-0)!!!

bassduke49 · Post by **bassduke49** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:39 pm

I am ssoooo lost.

foolycooly · Post by **foolycooly** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:46 pm

Karl you forgot the Gibson Flying V and Flying V/EB-0 double neck. Which I have you know. I smash stuff with it all the time!!!

bobcat · Post by **bobcat** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 6:31 pm

Actually, I saw the DVD box for FLCL at Media Play, and I could've sworn that Haruko's bass had an aftermarket tremolo on the bridge. Hmmm, maybe it was just my eyes playing tricks on me.

1rr3l3v4n7 · Post by **1rr3l3v4n7** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 6:33 pm

Fudge! I should have known...
Well... I have a baseball bat you know... ;P

By the way,
I didn't know this double neck was actually real... Is it???

1rr3l3v4n7 · Post by **1rr3l3v4n7** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 6:34 pm

Watch out for FAKENBACKERS

http://www.cosplaykingdom.com/cosplaykingdom/props2.htm

foolycooly · Post by **foolycooly** » Thu Jul 07, 2005 6:49 pm

I was kidding about the doubleneck Karl.

Robert:
I've seen photos done by the character's creator and her bass has a tremolo arm and a ton of stickers.