Articles by Kevin Johnson - Page 246

At long last, Wolfgang Van Halen’s solo project Mammoth WVH has released its debut album. Van Halen wrote, performed, and recorded all the parts. Although his family name looms large, Wolfgang finds his own sound to live up to that legacy.

Matthew Garrison has just launched a fantastic new app for learning from the bassist. The app is described as a “living and evolving archive of the creative works of Matthew Garrison.”

Bass great Juan Nelson has passed away at the age of 62. A cause of death has not been announced. Nelson is best known for his unrelenting grooves with Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals. Harper posted about his passing on social media.

Spaceman Effects has launched the Aurora, an analog BBD-style flanger packed with features. That includes two LFO types, two tape emulations, and a static comb filtering option.

Jazz bassist and educator Orlando le Fleming has been releasing books on time and technique for the past few years. Now, he’s teaching how to expand on one of the most prevalent chord progressions in jazz: Rhythm Changes.

Ariane Cap’s and Wolf Wein’s new book “The Pattern System for the Bass Player” is now available. The 330-page book is packed with diagrams and exercises to teach fretboard proficiency as well as improvisation and mental practice.

Last year, the Foo Fighters were set to celebrate their 25th anniversary with a world tour. Obviously, that was canceled. Instead, they’re celebrating their 26th anniversary this year starting with a tour in July and August.

D’Addario has launched a new line of straps called the Eco-Comfort line, which features models made from sustainable materials. The company says that 90 percent of each strap is made from recycled materials.

The Omnific is a killer prog-metal band consisting of two bassists – Matthew Fackrell and Toby Peterson-Stewart – with drummer Jerome Lematua. Their latest song, “Wax & Wane”, distills their melodic yet aggressive sound.

Red Fang has released their fifth album, “Arrows”, which they recorded in their hometown of Portland, Oregon with Chris Funk. This marks the third release with Funk, and the result showcases the band doing what they do best plus exploring new sounds.

I’ve been lucky to see quite a few Skjold Design Basses in my day, but the Skjoldslayer model is one that always grabs my attention. That’s why when someone emailed us luthier Pete Skjold’s latest creation, I was hooked.

It’s been 25 years since Squarepusher, aka Tom Jenkinson, released his debut album, “Feed Me Weird Things”. Now the influential bassist and electronica producer has reissued the 14-track collection, which has been long out of print.