Reader Spotlight: Grant Williams

Grant Williams

Meet Grant Williams, a bass player who found his calling when he picked up the bass at the age of 17. There’s a cool story behind that, and one very cool Mom who made it happen. Today Grant keeps busy playing in a band, recording – and when gigs are thin – trading stocks!

Grant is the No Treble reader in the spotlight for the week of August 12, 2013.

Bio:

I was born and raised in Scranton, PA. I never really knew what I wanted to do with my life until I picked up a bass at 17. I’ve been immersing myself in the local music scene ever since, until joining Graces Downfall in 2012. The path to my heart is paved with Star Wars references.

Location:

Scranton, PA, USA

Day gig:

When the band isn’t paying the bills, I trade stocks. In doing so, I pull off having a “day job” even less secure than being in a band.

Years experience:

9 years

Bands & Gigs:

My band is called Graces Downfall. We’re a 4-piece original rock band in the Scranton, PA area with two albums (Always the Victim and Resplendent Indignity) and a third on the way. We play as often as we can and are currently branching out to other states. We’ve played with Trapt, 10 Years, Tantric, Saliva, Mountain, Great White, Sponge, The Badlees, Rev Theory and Candlelight Red. My bandmates are quickly becoming some of my best friends. It’s an honor to play with them.

Gear:

  • Warwick Corvette Standard 5 String
  • Warwick Corvette $$ 5 String
  • NS Design NXT-5 Stand up
  • Ampeg SVT Classic Head
  • Ampeg 6×10 Cab
  • Xotic EP Booster
  • MXR m-108 EQ
  • Boss TU-2

Why I play the bass:

My high school friend and I would always bond over music and our very clumsy air guitar. One day we both decided we would start a band and tour the world. We went home and told our mothers our plans to be rockstars. For whatever reason, they both went along with it and I got my first bass, a 4-string Johnson. What started as a borderline joke soon came to mean the world to me.

I think hearing “Speak Free” by Incubus truly lit the fire to start taking it seriously. It has been almost impossible to put it down since.

My bass superpower/claim to fame

I do my best to jam with anyone and everyone I can. Nothing will throw open new doors like leaving your comfort zones. It also helps me bring different styles and techniques to my bass lines in Graces Downfall. I’ve become a huge fan of two-hand tapping.

My influences

Dirk Lance (formerly) of Incubus, Justin Chancellor of Tool, Victor Wooten, Les Claypool of Primus and Ryan Martine of Mudvayne.

More on the web:

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