Archive for August 2012 - Page 9

Zsolt Váradi sent us this wonderful story (and video) of his equally wonderful 1964 Höfner 185 “Artist Bass.” Höfner’s “Vintage” site has this to say about the Artist Bass: Introduced in late 1962 as the main two pickup bass for the UK market, it replaced the Hofner “Solid Bass” which was actually the European market Hofner 182 model. The Artist...

Incognito has got it all: groove, soul, and killer bass lines. Here’s the music video for “Goodbye to Yesterday” from their latest album, Surreal. The video features bassist Ernie McKone laying down the low end where it counts with a perfect groove and fills in all the right places. I bet you’ll hit replay a couple times on this one.

Our second isolated bass week generated a lot of views and comments. Like you, we had a ball watching and listening to all the bass greatness over the week. So it is no surprise that our weekly top 10 list is dominated by isolated bass tracks. Our brand new transcription column by Stuart Clayton debuted last week too – with...

Photo by Erich Francois Larry Graham and Graham Central Station are back! The slap bass pioneer and his crew have just announced that Raise Up, their first studio album since 1999’s GCS2000, will be dropping on September 25th. With guest appearances from Prince and Rafael Saadiq, Raise Up will include three new versions of classic Graham Central Station songs and...

Japanese boutique pedal company HAO has unveiled the Bass Liner Preamp pedal. Co-designed with Phil Jones of Phil Jones Bass, the stompbox-sized preamp offers a 5-band EQ, Level control, and an Input Gain control to suit any bass. The 5-band EQ provides 18 dB of cut/boost at 50 Hz, 160 Hz, 630 Hz, 2.5 kHz and 12 kHz, which the...

In 1978, the Police debuted with the release of Outlandos d’Amour, an album dominated by punk influences. The opening track, “Next To You,” is a perfect example of this, especially when you hear the isolated bass line from Sting. The muted notes really act like a train engine, and gives greater impact to the end of the song where he...

Ray Riendeau’s new project, “Star Monarchy”, has released their debut album, entitled Volume 1. Written and produced by the bassist himself, the new album covers metal, modern rock, and progressive styles with a plethora of artists from their respected rock genres. Riendeau, whose own resume includes laying down the low end for Rob Halford and Dream Theater singer James Labrie,...

Two Notes Audio Engineering has introduced the Torpedo C.A.B., a stompbox styled cab simulator designed for bass and guitar. The C.A.B. is placed after all your effects pedals in your signal chain and takes the place of an amp by plugging straight into the mixing board. Among the bass cab simulations are presets based on models from Ampeg, SWR, Mesa/Boogie,...

Esperanza Spalding will be taking a quick break from her Radio Music Society World Tour for a few dates with Us Five, a jazz quintet led by saxophonist Joe Lovano. The group, filled out by James Weidman, Otis Brown III, and Francisco Mela, will be playing at Scullers in Boston and the Roots ‘N Blues ‘N BBQ Festival in Columbia,...

Flea can be a crazy funk-rock bassist, but here we get a look into the mellower side of the bassist with his isolated bass track from “Scar Tissue” from the 1999 Red Hot Chili Peppers album Californication. He sets a steady groove with some nice higher melodic content. Interestingly, you can hear the use of some flanger, which isn’t as...

Columbia Records “Complete” box set series rolls on this summer with the introduction of another Weather Report-focused release. Weather Report: The Complete Columbia Albums 1971-1975 kicks off with the legendary group’s original line up, anchored by bassist Miroslav Vitous, and ends up the group’s second incarnation, with bassist Alphonso Johnson. The set packages together remastered versions of Weather Report’s first...

Italia’s new bass, the Imola, is described as “part 60s and part 21st century.” The bass features a korina body with acoustic chambering, and an f-hole. Finish options include Black and Tobacco Sunburst. The Imola’s hard rock maple neck is topped with a rosewood fingerboard. Pickups on the bass are a pair of Wilkinson WBJs, which are controlled with respective...