Archive for September 2014 - Page 2

Bassist and educator Andrew Ford wants to help you find your groove with his latest video course, . Ford has taught at the Musician’s Institute and colleges and played with a wealth of R&B artists including Al Jarreau, James Ingram, Whitney Houston, and Chaka Khan. He’s also the man behind the Blues Bass Survival Guide video course. His career began...

British metal outfit Seven7 is gearing up for their upcoming third album, The Follower, which is due in November. Here’s their latest video for “Free,” which features bassist Arran McSporran keeping it heavy on his 6-string fretless.

A performance from the last tour featuring the classic Yes lineup of bassist Chris Squire, singer Jon Anderson, guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, and drummer Alan White, has been released in a special edition on CD, DVD and Blu-ray. The Songs From Tsongas special edition DVD and Blu-ray packages not only capture a previously released show at the Tsongas...

After two years of development, TWA has released the Little Dipper Mk II envelope-controlled vocal formant filter. The new version of the pedal, which is based on the classic Colorsound Dipthonizer circuit, adds new control features as well as a fuller frequency response, lower noise floor, and improved tracking. Among the new features is a Low Boost switch that the...

On April 27th, Victor Wooten performed with his band in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. The lineup included Vic’s brothers Regi (guitar) and Joseph (keys), along with drummer Derico Watson and vocalist Krystal Peterson. The group start things off with Vic’s tune “Brooklyn” from Words and Tones, which they keep as a theme throughout the performance. Good stuff right here.

For one night, powerful-yet-underrated ’80s rockers The Call reformed in an astonishingly special way. On April 19, 2013, the band members stepped onstage at The Troubadour in West Hollywood to pay tribute to lead vocalist and bassist Michael Been, who had died in 2010 of a heart attack. Been’s bassist/vocalist son, Robert Levon Been, of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club stood...

Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life is one of the most brilliant albums ever made. Musicians from all walks of life cite it as a heavy influence, and it was ranked at 57 on the Rolling Stone’s 500 greatest albums of all time. Wonder will be presenting the album in its entirety on an 11-date North American tour...

If you haven’t caught on to the incredible playing of Snow Owl, it’s high time you did. The bassist – real name Juan Garcia-Herreros – has been turning heads with a style that synthesizes all of his musical tastes with flavors of jazz, latin music, pop, rock and more. Part of that special blend comes from his multi-cultural experience. Garcia-Herreros...

Here’s a great clip of Umphrey’s McGee in the studio performing “Puppet String” from their latest release, Similar Skin. The band builds an atmosphere before bassist Ryan Stasik comes in at the 1:14 mark with a cool slap line that becomes the centerpiece of the song. The band goes on to groove hard on unison lines with huge drums provided...

Fans of Glenn Hughes and Deep Purple (Mark III) can hear the band’s full April 3, 1975 concert at the Liebenauer ice rink in Graz, Austria on , another installment in the The Official Deep Purple (Overseas) Live Series. It’s the first time the show has been released in its entirety. The show was one of the last for the...

If you can’t get enough of watching Geddy Lee and Rush play live, then a DVD collector’s set of the trio’s performances being released on Nov. 11 should inspire extraordinary glee as it collects some of the legendary band’s best live moments in one place. The R40 – 40th Anniversary Collector’s Box Set features live performances from all four decades...

Q: I was wondering what I need to pay attention to when practicing. It’s easy to learn a scale, or to play chord tones, but what should I really pay attention to hearing more? Should that be a focus on the tones, or the difference in intonation or the “feel” between them? A: The short answer is this: You have...