Archive for November 2014 - Page 2

Meet Michele della Malva, a bass player who hopes to play for 1,000 years. Michele’s dad got him his start with music and playing, and though it was the wrong instrument (guitar), it paved the way for Michele to find the bass. Michele keeps busy playing in a variety of bands and is wrapping up work on his on solo...

Anaconda Basses has expanded their range of basses with the Super J, which luthier Andrew Taylor-Cummings calls his take on a classic J-style. “I didn’t want to do yet another straight copy, but rather build and improve on a classic,” he writes. “The body is downsized and more sculpted, allowing for better ergonomics and comfort. I wanted to add a...

Here’s a great clip of Spare Parts jamming on their song “Watch Your Step” live at Warehaus West in Chicago. The band grooves hard thanks to bassist Colin Scott, who utilizes fingerstyle, slap, and some intense strumming with effects to keep you on your toes.

Fans getting an itch to hear new music from JJ Grey and Mofro don’t have long to wait. The band has announced that its upcoming album, Ol’ Glory, is due out Feb. 25, 2015, and a tour to support the record will begin earlier that same month. If the trailer’s anything to go by, the new album features the deep...

Marcus Miller’s prolific, musically diverse career and his influence are detailed in a documentary to be released digitally in January 2015. Zycopolis, a French firm, produced the documentary, called Marcus, about the electric bassist and multi-instrumentalist (he’s also a keyboardist and clarinetist/bass clarinetist), who has left an indelible mark and several music genres. Miller worked with the late jazz legend...

This week we take a look at a new hollow-body creation from Bootleg Guitars called the Jazz Box 4. Finished in a beautiful translucent green, the bass features a body with maple for its top and back with a Spanish Cedar core. Its neck is a premium grade aged quartersawn Eastern hard rock maple topped with a rosewood fingerboard. Luthier...

On this day in 1941, the great Donald “Duck” Dunn was born. And that was a good thing for bass players ever since… he showed us the right way to hold it down. Here’s a video from Duck’s final U.S. performance, just two weeks before he passed away in 2012. The tune is Booker T. & The MG’s “Time is...

Fender lovers: It’s time to rejoice. Another book has arrived for you. by Tom Wheeler is filled with artifacts from Fender’s long history, including handwritten letters, production totals, and Leo Fender’s drawing-board sketches. Wheeler, who has written for Rolling Stone and Guitar Player Magazine, and was the founding editorial director of Bass Player, is now a professor at the University...

Brace yourself, here comes a whole lotta bass: the top 10 most popular stories and videos on No Treble for the week of November 15-21, 2014. Thanks for reading, commenting and sharing! 1. Freelance Gigs: Five Tips for Bass Players The last “Tips” column (on avoiding injury), was a popular one. So let’s continue this series with some tips on...

EC Pedals has announced the Superswitcher 2, a compact switcher for controlling multiple effects or amps at once. The pedal has eight audio loops for pedals (seven mono and one stereo), as well as an effects loop module, two relay switches for controlling amp channels, and MIDI in and outs. The switcher is based on a Microchip MCU that allows...

It’s Sunday (at least it is when I’m sharing this), and this just feels perfect for a chill day like today. Of course, when it is Esperanza Spalding, I don’t need any excuse. This is Esperanza performing “Hold On Me” live in 2012, with Leo Genovese (keys), Jef Lee Johnson (guitar), Igmar Thomas (trumpet), Lyndon Rochelle (drums) and a great...

Janek Gwizdala has a new instructional book out. All the Good Stuff – How I Practice revolves around his practice regimen, and the book is full on getting the most out of your instrument, your hands and your ears. Gwizdala dives into more than practicing with tips on getting focused, inspiration, pacing, and finding solutions to musical problems. It’s filled...