Archive for July 2018 - Page 4

The legendary Cliff Burton is often thought to be Metallica’s first bassist since he is featured on all the early recordings. It was, however, Ron McGovney who first held down the low end in the band. McGovney recently opened up about the transition to Burton as Metallica’s bassist in a new interview on Chris Jericho’s Talk is Jericho podcast. McGovney...

The bass/vocal duo What A Day is back with a new song called “Last Calling.” As always, Jonathan Joly and Leah Gracie deliver gorgeous and haunting melodies overtop of Joly’s creative bass work.

Australian instrumental funk band Pickpocket have returned with a new EP called Permutations. Anchored by bassist Craig Strain, the band explores their sound even further this go around. “This release sees the band delving into some deeper grooves and richer harmonic textures while paying homage to our musical roots and attempting to push into newer musical spaces, there’s even a...

Idiotbox Effects has launched the Blackout, a pedal that contains two muff circuits mixed parallel. Each has its own Fuzz, Tone, and Output controls while having different tone voicings. The top circuit has a traditional muff tone control; the bottom is more of a mid boost/scoop control. “This thing is a sonic beast and capable of getting a much wider...

We’ve featured Cheikh Ndoye on traditional African bass instruments before, but his latest video is amazing. He performs the infamous John Coltrane song “Giant Steps” on the Bass Xalam. He plays through the melody and walks two choruses of the song that would be difficult on an electric bass.

Bassist Sam Bevan has released Emergence, an album of original modern jazz that draws from his time in the San Francisco Bay area. Bevan is based in New York City but spent 16 years in the Bay and used some of his friends from the area on the record. “Drawing from jazz, gospel, Afro-Cuban and West African traditions, the songs...

After announcing the final batch of tour dates in support of their latest album, The Desaturating Seven, Primus has listened to the fans and added a handful more dates for the rest of the year. The band has been performing the album, which is based on a trippy goblin-themed children’s book, in full during their shows alongside classic tracks. Les...

The new Parquet Courts album, Wide Awake!, is an amazing listen that displays the band’s continued growth and evolution. That’s especially true for bassist Sean Yeaton, whose hooky bass lines serve as a melodic focal point in the music. Like many of us, Yeaton started as a guitarist. He switched to bass specifically for Parquet Courts and although he’s played...

Here’s a great clip from 2014’s “Two Tone Sessions,” featuring Eric Gales and his band performing at Studio Space Sound. Anchored by bassist Ugo Perrotta, the band tears through “Voodoo Chile,” “Kashmir,” and “Back in Black.”

Each year since 2014, King Crimson releases a box set of live and rare recordings from the band’s history. The Elements Tour Box 2018 follows suit with tracks taken from rehearsals, live performances, studio recordings, alternate takes, and more with several clips that have never been released. The two-disc set features music from the band’s entire career and has something...

Keeley Electronics has expanded their pedal lineup with the Aria Compressor and Overdrive, a pedal that brings together their Keeley Compressor with their classic Red Dirt Overdrive pedals. Each side of the pedal allows for flexible routing and different setup situations. A switch allows for changing the order of the effects in the pedal’s signal path, plus the pedal comes...

Q: Do You have any advice for those bassists aspiring to become session musicians? Not so much how to get exposure but how to handle yourself, gear, getting lines on the first take, being solid, etc… A: I’ve always found the studio to be very satisfying. I’m one of those players who wouldn’t mind being solely a session bassist. Invisible...