Archive for May 2016 - Page 3

Q: Do you have any tips for how to come up with new groove ideas? A: I spent quite a few years doing what I call “fishing”. What I mean by that is, aimlessly using different notes and rhythms hoping to stumble upon something interesting (This is especially true with my soloing back in the day, but that’s another column)....

Mike Frost stepped things up this year with a stellar collaboration with the Florence Symphony Orchestra. The bassist performed his work “Astral Dance” with his band plus the entire orchestra to create a huge and engrossing musical experience. Starting with the strings, the tune starts almost as a lullaby that Frost puts a melody on. It builds in intensity with...

Two-time Grammy Award-winner Boris Kozlov has released his debut album as a bandleader: Conversations At The Well. The New York-based bassist, who originally hails from Russia, performs on the record with guitarist David Gilmore (Steve Coleman and Five Elements) and drummer Rudy Royston. The album was recorded on Feb. 16, 2016, in Brooklyn. Conversations at the Well is available on...

Meet Hector “Hexbass” Rodriguez, a bassist who clearly marches to the beat of his own drum (or bass). A musician who doesn’t want to do “same cookie-cutter stuff”, he’s navigating the world of music and doing his own thing. Hexbass is this week’s No Treble reader in the spotlight. Here’s his story… Bio: I was born during a storm in...

Update: Thanks to everyone who entered! We’re thrilled to announce the winners: Darrell S. (grand prize), Fred W. (second prize) and Ed M. (third prize). A huge thanks to Gallien-Krueger, MTD, Gruv Gear and La Bella for putting on such a stellar contest! Gallien-Krueger, MTD, Gruv Gear, La Bella and No Treble are teaming up for an ultimate Robert “Bubby”...

The music of bassist Marcelo Yakko is on heavy rotation in my library. I just spotted this great video of him jamming along to one of the Coffee Break Grooves backing tracks, and it knocked me out like so much of his music. Marcelo is jamming to the track “Chill 1-2”, which you can get here if you want to...

A documentary film about seminal British punk band The Damned, by the maker of the “Lemmy” documentary about late Motörhead bassist/bandleader Lemmy Kilmister, is now available on DVD and Blu-ray. The Damned: Don’t You Wish That We Were Dead features interviews with Lemmy (who had a brief stint with the group), fans like Guns ’n’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan, original...

Our friend Andrew Arnautov wrote in to share this gorgeous Pandora bass made by Ukrainian luthier Alex Kurdritsky. Arnautov calls the maker, who has over four decades of instrument building under his belt, one of the field’s best kept secrets. Kudritsky named the model Pandora after the Greek goddess because “the instrument explodes with plethora of sounds just like a...

So you haven’t gotten to touch your bass in a while. It happens! We all have those times where we don’t get time with our bass for extended periods. When we get the bass in our hands again, our gut instinct is to get all our fast chops back, but that’s not such a great idea. The way to get...

Here’s a great old clip of the Carlos Santana/Wayne Shorter Group performing the Santana tune “Deeper, Dig Deeper” at Pori Jazz in 1988. Laying down the groove is the one and only Alphonso Johnson. Such great footage.

Jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut’s latest album, Natural Essence, features the work of noted jazz bassist Buster Williams (solo artist, Herbie Hancock Sextet, Art Blakey, Ron Carter and many more) and drummer Lenny White. The album features classic piano trio material, distinguished by Chestnut’s pleasure in playing, particularly when supported by such accomplished fellow musicians. The record isn’t Williams’ first time...

Time to celebrate a whole lotta bass with another edition of the weekly top 10. Here are the No Treble reader favorite stories, lessons, videos and more for the week of May 14-20, 2016. Thanks for reading, watching, commenting and sharing. 1. Making Practice Meaningful This week, a reader asks Damian Erskine for advice on making a practice routine more...