Archive for December 2011 - Page 7

Phish has released a 7-CD box set called Hampton/Winston-Salem ‘97, which documents the entirety of their three shows from November 21-23, 1997. The collection includes 45 songs coming in at over 8 hours of music, as well as previously unheard material from soundchecks at both venues. The trio of shows are among the most requested for release from the Phish...

I’ve discovered a great looper for the iPhone and iPad. Loopy (and Loopy HD) allows you to create and alter sophisticated loops without the need for a pedal or other hardware. Loopy’s interface presents a series of circles, which become circular waveforms once you’ve started recording. The app offers great features, like pan, volume, timing adjustments, track merging, tempo adjustments...

Bassist Nick Mason put together a great all-bass arrangement of the Randy Newman song, “You’ve Got a Friend in Me”, made popular by the original Toy Story. Nick said he was inspired to arrange this piece after seeing Toy Story 3. If you’re interested in working on this one yourself, you’re in luck. Nick has posted a chart for download...

In gear, our Bass of the Week – JanAid Guitars’ Bob Abbott Yolanda 5 – brought out a lot of comments as many custom basses do – equally loving and not so loving. That helped propel the feature to the #1 most read article for the week on No Treble. Our coverage of Glockenklang’s Blue Soul Bass Amp, G&L’s new...

Le Fay has released a new fanned fret version of their Pangton headless bass. The bass has a unique bridge, head piece and pickups to accommodate the multi-scale lengths, which range from 35.24” for the B-string and 33.46” for the G-string. Though the design is quite unique, the German bass company says it’s easy to adjust to. “Soon this bass...

During the first night of their 30th Anniversary concerts last week, Metallica brought Jason Newsted back for a special guest appearance. Newsted, who left the band in 2001, was introduced by singer James Hetfield as “someone who lived with us, and toured with us and did stuff with us for 14 years.” The band then kicked into “Harvester of Sorrow,”...

We’re sad to report the passing of Dan “Bee” Spears, the longtime bassist for Willie Nelson’s Family Band. Spears performed with Nelson on albums including Stardust, The Troublemaker, Shotgun Willie, Red Headed Stranger and others. The Austin American-Statesman reported that Spears fell as he exited his motor home, and died due to exposure. He was 62. “We are deeply saddened...

Zon Guitars is getting in the holiday spirit with an all-new holiday album featuring the Zon artist roster. Zon Guitars: Holiday Rumblings feature bassists Michael Manring, Ray Riendeau, Jonni Lightfoot, Alex Bershadsky, Scott Harlan, Zander Zon, Mike Dimin and Chuck Bianchi all performing their bass-focused takes on traditional holiday music. The CD is available now in limited quantities from the...

Electro-Harmonix has unveiled the Switchblade+ Channel Selector, a flexible stompbox that allows you to route your input signal to either two different locations (Channel A or B) or both simultaneously. The Switchblade+ then picks up where the company’s original Switchblade left off with the inclusion of a dedicated Tuner out, which EHX explains is hardwired to the input. This provides...

Who says the bass player has to be in the background? Argentinian bassist/vocalist Pedro Aznar does an incredible job of comping and soloing up front on his tune “El Faro de los Ahogados,” taken from the DVD Quebrado Vivo.

Renowned bass educator Anthony Wellington will be holding a special clinic at Hellhound studios in Rahway, New Jersey on January 28th, 2012 at 7pm. Wellington, who plays with Victor Wooten and teaches alongside him in the instructional DVD Groove Workshop, will also be teaching private lessons throughout the day on the 28th and 29th. The event, entitled Bassology II, is...

Thirty years after the introduction of their flagship L-2000 model, G&L has unveiled their new M-series basses. The M-2000 and M2500 both build upon their predecessor, which was first designed by Leo Fender in 1981, and aim to be more flexible while retaining the same attitude. The M-series basses still feature dual MFD humbuckers, but the pickups have been voiced...