Archive for 2014 - Page 103

For all the do-it-yourselfers, Mod Kits DIY has introduced the Wahtz Wah Pedal Kit. The kit comes with all the pieces and instructions to build the effects pedal. The company says the Wahtz Wah Pedal kit creates a pedal with a classic wah tone “with a hint of extra bite and growl.” It features true bypass to prevent signal loss...

Complete independence of the left hand fingers is a laudable goal for every serious bassist, guitarist and string player. Below is a short beginning exercise designed to prepare us for playing double trills, (trills on two notes simultaneously). Strictly speaking, there are no double trills in the exercise below. However, it is a necessary step we must take if we...

I randomly stumbled upon the work of Matt Gruebner – aka Maxgroover – over the weekend. His solo bass performance of The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” really knocked me out. Matt is performing this on a Nash Jazz bass.

We reported last August that Nathan East was working on his first solo album. Now we know a date. Nathan East will be released on March 25, 2014. “It’s a celebration of my musical friends and my musical life over 30 years’ worth of experiences and influences,” East told Billboard. “The one thing I’ve learned is that I love a...

The NAMM Show is almost here, and that means the gear news is starting to spin up. No surprise some of these early gear stories made this week’s top 10. We also had some killer solo bass videos, including the #1 slot (Nico Aranda’s performance of “Get Lucky”), and Simon Fitzpatrick’s jaw-dropping “Flight of the Bumblebee”. Add to it the...

I really love bass cams. Sometimes they make you feel a little dizzy, but the perspective is so cool. Here’s a bass cam video of bassist László Demeter playing with his band, byron. Demeter pins down the low end for the song “Zeitgeist,” which was recorded during their New Year’s Eve gig at Clubul Taranului in Bucharest.

After debuting in early 2013 for a short East Coast tour, the Ringers are back with more performance dates. The supergroup is made up of Jimmy Herring, Wayne Krantz, Michael Landau, Gary Novak and bassist Etienne Mbappe. Their trek kicks off January 18th during two appearances at Florida’s Sunshine Music & Blues Festival. They then make their way north along...

Carvin has announced the BX700, an evolved version of their BX500 bass amplifier. The new head unit combines a Class A preamp with a Class D power section rated up to 700 watts at two ohms. Remodeled in a red-faced chassis, the BX700’s controls include three EQ sections. The Contour knob controls an adjustable preset EQ curve that is flat...

Our friend Helge Rudolph sent this one, saying “fresh stuff from Europe. Maybe you’ll like it?!” Heck yeah! This band is tight, and bassist Frans Vollink is laying down one nice groove.

Schecter has introduced the Session series of basses, which they describe as combining “no frills looks with high end electronics.” The series includes four and five string basses in the company’s Stiletto and Riot body styles. Each of the models features a contoured swamp ash body and 6-bolt Canadian Maple neck. The 24-fret maple fingerboard is accented with ebony offset...

I don’t know what to say, other than “Watch this and hold on to your hats!”

The Aristocrats are back for another round of world touring in support of their second release, Culture Clash. The supertrio of guitarist Guthrie Govan, drummer Marco Minneman and bassist Bryan Beller will start things off with a string of dates in the West Coast and Mexico before heading to Europe for an extensive 10-week tour. “These will be first-ever live...