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Archive for October 2013 - Page 3

Bass of the Week: Chadwick Folding Bass
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Chadwick Folding Bass

Ask any double bassist what the biggest pain is about their instrument of choice, and they’ll likely tell you it is the task of lugging it around. Enter the Chadwick Folding Bass: a standard 3/4 bass that folds in on itself for travel. The bass has a removable panel on the back that allows the entire neck to fold into....

Practicing Without Your Bass: Some Exercises to Keep the Music Going
Ask Damian Erskine

Practicing Without Your Bass: Some Exercises to Keep the Music Going

Q: Are there any exercises that you could recommend that can be done when away from the bass? A: You know, I’m surprised that I’ve never written about this before as I do actually have a number of things to recommend when you’re without your bass, to keep the music going. 1. Visualization of the fretboard. If you ever see...

Jayme Lewis: Modulating Sweep Arpeggios and Inversions Lesson
Bass Videos

Jayme Lewis: Modulating Sweep Arpeggios and Inversions Lesson

Here’s a cool lesson for the adventurous bassist: Jayme Lewis’s lesson on performing sweep arpeggios and inversions. Jayme walks through his effects to make the arpeggios pop before dissecting each part of the etude’s intricacies. He even provides a PDF of the lesson with music notation and TAB, via his website.

Motörhead Releases “Aftershock”
New Albums

Motörhead Releases “Aftershock”

The metal juggernauts of Motörhead have released their 21st studio album, Aftershock, a 14-track collection of hard-hitting, in-your-face rock that has been the staple of their sound for nearly 40 years. Led by bassist/vocalist Lemmy Kilmister, the trio’s latest effort offers up a healthy mix of punk and metal with songs like “Heartbreaker” and “End of Time” while also getting...

3Leaf Audio Announces You’re Doom Fuzz Pedal
Pedals & Effects

3Leaf Audio Announces You’re Doom Fuzz Pedal

3Leaf Audio has introduced a new fuzz box called You’re Doom, which the company says is suited for all instruments. The pedal responds to playing dynamics to create vintage synth-inspired sounds. You’re Doom has a Shape switch to toggle between a lead sound and a broad mid scoop, while further tonal shaping can be done with the Tone knob which...

Reader Spotlight: Brad Cheeseman
Reader Spotlight

Reader Spotlight: Brad Cheeseman

Meet Brad Cheeseman, a bassist who has an interesting story of how he switched from guitar to bass, and never looked back. Be sure to check out his videos below of his transcriptions and bands, and also check out his website for the transcriptions themselves. Brad is No Treble’s reader in the spotlight for the week of October 21, 2013....

Walking Bass Lesson: 12 Bar Blues
Bass Lessons

Walking Bass Lesson: 12 Bar Blues

When you’re presented with a 12-bar blues, you have different options for how to create a walking bass line. In this lesson, we’ll cover those options. The song example I’m using is “Gotta Mind to Travel” by Coco Montoya, if you want to check that out.

The Winery Dogs, featuring Billy Sheehan: Time Machine
Bass Videos

The Winery Dogs, featuring Billy Sheehan: Time Machine

The insanely talented trio of Ritchie Kotzen, Mike Portnoy and Billy Sheehan – aka The Winery Dogs – has released a new music video for the track “Time Machine,” from their debut album, and it’s one fine piece of rock and roll. The mid-tempo stomper is glued together by Sheehan’s gnarly bass tone. He also takes a tasty solo at...

In Memoriam: Marc Trovillion
In Memoriam

In Memoriam: Marc Trovillion

Former Lambchop bassist Marc Trovillion passed away last week after suffering a heart attack. He was 56 years old. Trovillion was a founding member of the Nashville-based band and referred to himself as a “charter member.” It was in the bassist’s bedroom where he, Kurt Wagner and Jim Watkins first got together to jam in 1987, and he was featured...

Seasick Steve Releases “Hubcap Music”, Featuring John Paul Jones
New Albums

Seasick Steve Releases “Hubcap Music”, Featuring John Paul Jones

Seasick Steve is back with his sixth studio album, Hubcap Music. Steve named the album because “cus I play some songs on a guitar made out of two hubcaps and a garden hoe, and cus I couldn’t think of nothing else.” The new album was “recorded on a tape recorder, on old fashion tape, mixed on tape and the vinyl...

Fodera Unveils Anthony Jackson Presentation II Bass
Basses

Fodera Unveils Anthony Jackson Presentation II Bass

Last year, Fodera teased the public with pictures of an interesting prototype hybrid bass they were developing. The company has now unveiled the result: the Fodera Anthony Jackson Presentation II Bass. Building on the AJ Presentation body shape, the next generation of the bassist’s signature series has a completely hollow acoustic body that’s built with construction techniques used for both...

Shifting Exercises for Bass
The Lowdown with Dr. D

Shifting Exercises for Bass

Sometimes, just for fun, I like to work on the short shifting exercise below. It helps me measure my accuracy, ensure I am light during the shift, and that I am using minimum pressure with my fingers, all while keeping my shifting fluid. It’s short, fun and challenging. Keep the following things in mind: Play with the bow, this trains...