Too Much Noise

I know that the whole point of being in a band is to make a noise, but sometimes you can get a lot of unwanted noise, especially if there is a dodgy earth in the venue. Our NYE gig was a nightmare as most of us suffered from buzzing and crackling from our amps and monitors anytime we weren’t actually touching strings or keys.
Last nights venue was a lot better, but I was still conscious of a slight hum any time the strings weren’t muted. Don’t think it was noticeable out front, but it needs sorting, especially as we’ll be back at that venue several times this year.
I’d taken Stuart’s gear home with me last night as he was able to walk back to his house from the venue - but obviously not carrying all his gear with him! I was coming back to Barrow this morning anyway, to help him move some furniture around, so it wasn’t a problem.
Whilst unloading the gear from my car I asked him how he dealt with hum and he said his rig had a noise gate built in. But he also had this pedal going spare and said I could have it as it should work just as well with a bass rig as with a normal guitar set up. Our next gig is in March, at the same venue as last night, so I’ll definitely be able to tell if it works.
And I’m looking forward to going back there. A great crowd for a Sunday night and lots of favourable comments about our playing. But next time will be a Saturday night and we’re promised it’ll be a lot busier - can’t wait!