Archive for February 2012 - Page 2

Epifani has announced the AL combo and speaker line, utilizing hybrid aluminum enclosures. The new models have a pure aluminum shell paired with wood front and rear baffles, with the combos containing the company’s Piccolo 600 amplifier and DIST speaker technology. DIST allows for the combos to run at 4 ohms on their own and switch to 8 ohms when...

Progressive rock/fusion group BangTower is gearing up for a tour with the release of several new music videos over the coming weeks. Bassist Percy Jones anchors the trio, which also features guitarist Neil Citron and drummer Walter Garces for the coming tour. The video releases will include tracks from the band’s most recent release, Casting Shadows, as well as footage...

Marcus Miller recently shared this video from last year’s concert to raise money for the Japanese tsunami relief fund. “That’s Raul Midon doing a still unreleased song called ‘Was It Ever Really Love’, with Robert Glasper (keys), Spaceman Patterson (guitar), Louis Cato (drums), Gregoire Maret (harmonica), and me,” Marcus said. “It’s always great to work with Raul. Let’s not forget…...

Hal Leonard’s Bass Play-Along series reaches number 40 with the release of AC/DC: Bass Play-Along. The new book features bass transcriptions for eight AC/DC hits from over the years, as originally recorded with bassists Cliff Williams and Mark Evans. The 64 page book includes TAB as well as the melody and lyrics for each tune. Like all the other releases...

Black Veil Brides bassist Ashley Purdy had a new pair of Dean Signature basses debut at the NAMM show this year, with the Spire “War Paint” and Cadi “Outlaw” models. Co-designed by the bassist and the company, the basses are revamps of the existing models, with special graphics added to suit Purdy’s style. When Purdy first joined up with Dean,...

Since the release of their second studio album ironically entitled III, Chickenfoot has only given a handful of performances in the U.S. and Europe. That’s about to change as the group has announced the “Different Devil Tour”, with 20 dates spanning the U.S. and a single date in Canada. Originally formed in 2008, the band consists of former Van Halen...

Here’s one for the prog-rock fans. This clip features Spock’s Beard playing their tune “Crack the Big Sky,” off their 2008 DVD Live. Bassist Dave Meros underpins the tune with an awesome snarly tone, though he knows how to sweeten it up during the bass melodies.

Last year, the Red Hot Chili Peppers returned with their latest album, I’m With You. The album was the band’s first in five years, tenth overall, and first to feature guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who replaced longtime guitarist John Frusciante. The album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Album and was well received by fans. Hal Leonard has just...

New for 2012 from Jim Dunlop is the MXR M84 Bass Fuzz Deluxe, a stompbox with “vintage fuzz modified for the modern bassist.” In addition to the Tone and Fuzz knobs, the new pedal features both dry and wet controls for dialing in the perfect mix without losing any low end. The Bass Fuzz Deluxe can be powered by a...

Viacelsav Svedov has been catching the attention of the YouTube world with his inventive and entertaining solo bass covers of popular rock tunes, including “Purple Haze,” “Master of Puppets,” and “Tom Sawyer.” With an infectious sense of energy and enthusiasm, the bassist’s videos have been averaging around 100,000 views while his “Around the World” cover hit nearly 225,000. Hailing from...

Evan Marien has taken one of Jaco Pastorius’ great compositions, “Havona” and put his spin on it. Evan took the chord changes for the tune, programmed some backing tracks on his computer, and let it rip on his bass. Evan shares the details: “I’m playing and soloing over the chord changes to Havona by Jaco Pastorius: Emaj7#11 Cmaj7#11 Bmaj7#11 Gmaj7#11...

When Gary Husband went into the studio for his latest record, the drummer, keyboardist and composer enlisted the help of an all-star cast to help him make it a reality. The result is Dirty and Beautiful Volume 2, the follow up to Husband’s 2010 Vol. 1 release of the same name. Among the musicians Husband recruited is Level 42 bassist...