Fender Introduces The Mod Shop
If you’ve been wanting to get a customized Fender, the company has got you covered with the Mod Shop. The online “immersive digital studio experience” allows you to pick an instrument model and make it your own with options for its orientation, body color, pickguard, fingerboard, pickups, and hardware. Once you’ve created what you want, you can order it to...
CStands Expands Electric Bass Guitar Stands Range
After launching last year, CStands has now introduced a new line of bass-specific guitar stands. The new range, which is described as more affordable and more suitable for the job, includes four models that feature iconic headstocks in their design. Each of the stands are made with 18mm birch plywood in 13 years with lacquer safe cork protection at touch...
Roy Vogt Presents the 6th Annual Thunder Row Bass Invitational at Summer NAMM 2016
Roy Vogt’s Thunder Row Bass Invitational is back for its sixth year. The two-day event will be held in Nashville, Tennessee at the Douglas Corner Café on June 23rd and 24th to coincide with the annual Summer NAMM show. This year’s event will have an incredible roster of bassists. Thursday night will showcase Anthony “Smooth Groove” Joyner, The Interludes with...
Great Is Our Sin: An Interview with Brett Bamberger
When I had the pleasure of working on a Profiles in Tone interview with metal legend Alex Webster, he sent me a few examples of his favorite bass tones in metal. If I can trust anyone’s ear for metal bass, it’s Alex’s. One clip that particularly caught my ear was a video of a band doing a playthrough of their...
In Memoriam: Mike Chapman
Nashville session bass ace Mike Chapman has passed away after battling an aggressive form of cancer. He was 63 years old. Chapman was an absolute staple of country music. Born in Alabama, he began his career playing in nightclubs “6 nights a week, 5 sets a night for the biggest part of a decade,” his biography states. He decided to...
Troy Sanders and Gone is Gone Announce Tour, Release New Song
Rock supergroup Gone is Gone has announced a tour in support of their upcoming self-titled EP. The band is helmed by Mastodon’s Troy Sanders and includes Queens of the Stone Age’s Troy Van Leeuwen, drummer Tony Hajjar, and keyboardist Mike Zarin. In addition to the tour, they’ve released a second single from the album. Sanders calls “Starlight” a personal song,...
Bass of the Week: Tomisic Guitars MarkOne Bass
Luthier Milos Tomisic and bassist Marko Cvetkovic have teamed up once again to create the MarkOne bass, which Cvetkovic says is an attempt to solve all the typical issues modern players face. The result in a creative instrument that centers around a forward-thinking set of electronics. “As shown on pictures, there are no visible pickups nor hardware, except tuners,” the...
Brimstone Audio Now Shipping Ouroboros Dual-Band Effects Loop Switching System
After years of development, Brimstone Audio is now shipping the Ouroboros OB-1 dual-band effects loop switching system. The fully analog pedal cleans up your effects by separating them into two loops that can be layered together in a several ways. “The Ouroboros can do a standard parallel blend configuration, but the real star of the show is Brimstone Audio’s innovate...
Darkglass Electronics Unveils Vintage Ultra Pedal
After unveiling the Microtubes B7K Ultra at NAMM this year, Finland’s Darkglass Electronics has given the Ultra treatment to the Vintage Microtubes. The new Vintage Ultra is described as “super portable preamp which enables on one side a massive clean sound, and from the other side, a tasty saturated sound.” The pedal’s overdrive section has a Level control, Drive control,...
Joe Hubbard Announces “Alien Nation”
Bassist, educator and No Treble contributor Joe Hubbard is releasing “Alien Nation”, the first single from his upcoming recording project. The 7-minute track fusion track features the formidable keyboardist George Whitty (Michael Brecker, Dave Sanborn, Santana, Brecker Bros.) and the legendary jazz fusion drummer Tom Brechtlein (Chick Corea, Robin Ford, Wayne Shorter, Al DiMeola). Besides the amazing song, Hubbard also...
Dean Now Shipping Exotica Supreme Cutaway Acoustic/Electric Bass
Dean is now shipping the Exotica Supreme Cutaway Acoustic/Electric bass. The full-sized instrument is a pared down version of the Exotica Quilt Ash that gets down to the essentials. Its body is made from mahogany with a spruce top while the mahogany neck is topped with a rosewood fingerboard. The soundhole has a distinct inlay and the neck has multi-ply...
Ernie Ball Music Man Introduces Starry Night Package to Premier Dealer Network
Ernie Ball Music Man has revealed the latest package to their Premier Dealer Network. The Starry Night offering, which can be ordered on nearly all of the company’s basses, features a limited edition sparkle burst finish that will only be offered for the month of June. Other features include a roasted maple neck with stainless steel frets and an unmarked...