Reader Spotlight: Nick Thorpe
Meet Nick Thorpe, a young bassist with an already impressive history. Nick is currently a high school student who is pursuing his music in a big way – and has goals to continue his studies at Berklee following high school.
Nick is this week’s No Treble reader in the spotlight. Here’s his story…
Bio:
I’ve been playing for almost 5 years now. I started playing Tuba in middle school and later switched to the bass guitar. Through the 5 years I’ve been playing I’ve enjoyed learning lines from Iron Maiden to Dream Theater to Jaco as I’ve progressed! I love extended range basses, particularly 6 string basses. I hope to attend Berklee College of Music after high school.
Location:
Marshall, Virginia, USA
Day gig:
I’m a student in high school, but I currently give lessons and do recording work to make money on the side.
Years experience:
5 years
Bands & Gigs:
My progressive rock band, AzurA, plays around the Northern Virginia area. We draw influence from many progressive acts including Dream Theater, Opeth, Steven Wilson, TesseracT, and Symphony X. My playing in this band sounds like a mix of John Myung, Amos Williams, and Steve Harris.
Gear:
I use Yamaha John Myung signature basses, the RBX6JM and RBXJM2 models. I also have a Conklin Bill Dickens signature, Fender Geddy Lee signature, a Peavey T40, and a Bass Mods K6 Fretless in my arsenal. For amplification, I use Mesa Boogie amps and SWR Goliath II cabinets. I also use a large variety of effects including distortion, chorus, reverb, delay, and pitch shifters. I’m very happy with my gear currently but I’d really like a Kiesel Vanquish 6!
Why I play the bass:
I originally switched from guitar to bass because I struggled playing chords. Years later I find myself playing chords quite often!
My bass superpower/claim to fame:
I pride myself on working several techniques like three-finger, slap/pop, tapping, picking, and chording into my basslines, as well as using a lot of effects. My bandmates call me the “lead bassist”.
My influences:
John Myung, Steve Harris, Geddy Lee, Victor Wooten, Mark King, Henrik Linder, Bobby Vega, Cody Wright, Jaco Pastorius, Justin Chancellor, Mark Michell, Billy Sheehan, Les Claypool, and their respective bands.
More on the web:
Want to be featured in an upcoming Reader Spotlight? Just fill out the interview questionnaire.
