Articles by Kevin Johnson - Page 505

Guitarist Steve Vai is known for his insane playing and fireworks on the instrument. Brad Russell decided to tackle Vai’s style by playing the guitar part to “The Attitude Song” on his four-string bass. From the pinch harmonics to the crazy whammy bar work, Russell brings the fire from the low end.

String manufacturer D’Addario has released their first ever pedal tuner. The compact tuner runs on a 32-bit chip, which the company says has four times the processing power of a standard headstock tuner. Its face has colored LED lights to indicate whether you’re sharp, flat, or in tune. It also features true-bypass switching, so the output is automatically cut when...

Thundercat’s latest album Drunk has been getting rave reviews and for good reason. The songs are hypnotic and the bass playing is on point. Here’s Thundercat performing the song “A Fan’s Mail (Tron Song II)”, live on The Current. The bassist slays on his 6-string hollow body for the song’s groove and his solo.

Voodoo Lab has expanded their pedal-centric offerings with the new Dingbat series of pedalboards. Built in California, the boards come in three sizes and are built for lightweight durability. The series also includes the Dingbat PX, which adds an integrated PX-8 Plus true-bypass pedal switching system. The rig allows for 36 preset pedal combinations at the touch of a button....

Laney Amplification spruced up their Richter Series of bass amps with a new look plus two new models. “For this show we’ve taken our original Richter range and we’ve given them a facelift,” a Laney rep told us at the NAMM Show. “Richters 1-4 are in the same cosmetic as the Nexus, but we’ve also added two new products: the...

As genres morph and blend into each other, it has been increasingly important for bassists to be able to cover a variety of styles. Many get a style knowledge that is either an inch wide and a mile deep or a mile wide and an inch deep. Anthony Crawford’s knowledge is a mile wide and a mile deep. That may...

Or Lubianiker shared this new composition on Facebook and it’s killer. Though there’s some very complex work to it, the song came together in an evening. “So last night instead of using my studio time for what I intended I ended up producing this little vid,” he wrote. “A combination of inspiration and procrastination! I just ‘Had to do it’....

Trickfish Amplification expanded their lineup of cabinets this year with the SM210V, SM210HD and the BM410HD. Each of the cabs are fitted with the company’s new proprietary neodymium 10-inch drivers. “The SM210V is the first cabinet to use our new, proprietary neo 10″ driver and the results are stunning,” says Trickfish’s Richard Ruse. “We’re achieving a greater MAX SPL rating,...

In preparing for our interview with P-Funk’s Lige Curry, I revisited tons of old Parliament and Funkadelic bass lines. One that always sticks out for me is from “Tear The Roof Off The Sucker.” It’s sparse yet somehow meaty. Here’s Curry with George Clinton and Funkadelic performing the funk classic on KCRW.

Amptweaker unveiled the Pressurizer compressor at the Winter NAMM Show this year. Suitable for bass or guitar, the stompbox compressor aims to retain the attack of your instrument while adding sustain. “Sustain without compression… a common suggestion Amptweaker receives that means ‘don’t mess with my attack,’” the company says. “The PressuRizer™ compressor accomplishes this in several unique ways, and includes...

Wandering around the halls at the NAMM Show is great for finding unique instruments. While browsing Hall E this year I saw this killer four-string fretless built by Tim Seisser of LowDown Bass Guitars. With all the interesting body work and the stunning fingerboard, I had to find out more. “This bass started as an effort to use some really...

One of my favorite performances from NAMM this year was at the Bass Bash. Bryan Ladd led his band through throwback grooves and modern melodies alike. Here’s a cool clip of “Endorphin”. The jam is a killer, plus Ladd takes a slippery, filtered solo at the 5:50 mark.