Archive for 2014 - Page 94

Gallien-Krueger has released the second video in their new artist series featuring a fantastic bass solo from Carlitos Del Puerto. The bassist, whose career highlights include work with Bruce Springsteen, Chris Botti and Chick Corea, blends several genres into a classical leaning solo.

Helms Alee is an experimental metal band with a deep understanding of bass. The experimental metal trio not only includes bassist/vocalist Dana James, but its guitarist Ben Verellen, is a former bassist. He’s also the man behind Verellen Amplifiers’ Meatsmoke, a 300-watt all-tube bass amp. (James also uses the Meatsmoke for Helms Alee.) Helms Alee’s third album, , recorded on...

TC Electronic has followed up on last year’s compact Ditto looper pedal with the Ditto X2. The pedal builds on its predecessor with a dedicated start/stop button, looper effects, and a loop import/export feature for loading premade loops. The Ditto X2 offers up to five minutes of looping with unlimited overdubs and undo/redo functions. It also stores loops when it...

Q: Here’s my problem: I’m a big fan of archtop guitars and I love the lighter tonal quality. I also don’t like playing solid body basses since they don’t go well with my slightly weaker left shoulder (which is made worse since I’m left-handed but play right-handed). That’s not the real problem though. The big problem is that the band...

Here’s a gorgeous tune by Grant Stinnett called “Run of the Angels.” Stinnett employs a higher altered tuning and some tapping to create a gorgeous soundscape. “The tuning is C-G-C-G. There are no effects, overdubs, or alterations to this live recording,” he shared. “This video and my CD are designed to demonstrate what I do in a live show.” The...

Blues-rock supergroup Royal Southern Brotherhood’s legendary October 2012 performance at Bonn, Germany’s Crossroads Festival for the German TV show Rockpalast has been captured in a CD/DVD set as a part of Ruf Records’ Songs From the Road series. If you’re unfamiliar with the Brotherhood and love Southern blues/rock, these are guys to check out, with Charlie Wooton (ZydeFunk, Bonerama, Woods...

Meet Mike Dyer, a bassist who appears to be living the musical dream (i.e. he doesn’t have a day job.) A recent graduate of Berklee, he appears well on his way. Mike is No Treble’s reader in the spotlight for the week of February 10, 2014. Bio: I grew up in a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri and played in...

Hard to believe how fast 2014 is already moving. Maybe it is in part due to all the great bass videos we were able to watch in January. Of the 31 we featured, these 10 were tops with readers. 1. Chuks Okpu: Chuk for Chick There are plenty of musicians who call themselves multi-instrumentalists, but Chuks Okpu is the real...

Adam Neely and Justina Soto make a great duo. Here’s their latest, a bass and voice take on Cole Porter’s “So in Love.” Neely and Soto shot the video as part of their aptly named Rooftop Sessions series.

Music and sculpture combine in renowned jazz bassist Rufus Reid’s five-movement composition, , based on five sculptures by artist Elizabeth Catlett. Each movement of the piece, written for a large jazz ensemble (including Reid on bass), corresponds to a sculpture by Catlett, the late African-American artist (she died in April 2012 at age 96) whose grandparents on both sides were...

Students of improvisation are often looking for the quickest way to learn vast amounts of new material, all while sounding great immediately. Oftentimes this translates into playing a large number of tunes for a few minutes each. In the short term, such practice sessions can be helpful. This is especially true if we need to learn a great deal of...

It’s incredible to think about how much music Herbie Hancock has made. He was honored this past year at the Kennedy Center, and the diversity of styles is astounding. In this video, a cast of some of the world’s finest musicians play through songs that define Hancock’s career, and that includes some heavy hitting bassists. Dave Holland roots the band...