Articles by Kevin Johnson - Page 519

Les Claypool is once again auctioning off his personal bass to benefit Jacob’s Heart, an organization that offers children’s cancer support services. Similar to the instrument he auctioned in 2012, the bass is his own Pachyderm design. “This particular bass #122312003 was delivered to me on December 29th, 2012,” Claypool states. “I’ve always found that maple instruments have a very...

Gov’t Mule has added a slew of tour dates to their “20 Years Strong” tour. The band, anchored by bassist Jorgen Carlsson, will follow up their current dates with a show at the Palace Theater in Cleveland, Ohio on September 12. The southern-fried jam band will then continue in the Midwest before heading west for dates in Washington, Nevada, and...

Sterling by Music Man introduced a new natural finish to the left-handed version of the Ray34 bass at this year’s Summer NAMM show. The natural finish allows for the bass’s lightweight ash body to be show through. The bass retains the features of the Ray34 series including maple neck, a single alnico humbucker pickup, and an active 3-band pickup. It...

Sometimes there’s a mind-meld that happens between bassists and drummers. I’m pretty sure it’s happening here between bassist Trip Wamsley and drummer Clarence “Klue” Lewis.

Progressive metal band Intronaut has announced they’ll be taking a break from writing a new album in order to celebrate their 10th anniversary with a tour. The band, rooted by fretless bassist Joe Lester, will kick off their victory lap on November 6th at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco, California before winding along the West Coast and into the...

Sandberg Guitars has been turning heads with interesting finishes on special handmade custom instruments. The company has now announced they’ve acquired a CNC machine that allows them to produce a new option called the Serpentine Finish, which brings two different types of woods together for each of the bass’s wooden components. “We have been doing this over the last few...

Ron Carter is a genius. This video is just more proof. Taken from a trio performance at France’s Jazz Soul Le Pommiers Festival in 2011, the clip only features Carter and guitarist Bobby Broom on the Luiz Bonfá tune “Samba de Orpheus,” while pianist Mulgrew Miller looks on. The entire song is a bass feature as Carter plays the melody,...

Bassists who use MIDI controllers on their pedalboard know that the displays aren’t always clear. Molten Voltage has released a device called the SIMI (pronounced “See Me”) to tackle this problem. SIMI is a modular MIDI pedalboard display that features 16 large bright red alphanumeric LEDs to show what MIDI program you are on. Further, each channel can be set...

Steve Lawson brought his solo bass talents to this fantastic rendition of REM’s “Orange Crush,” which features the bassist navigating the tune with a host of loops and fantastic effects. The result is six minutes of soaring ear candy that takes you for a ride.

EurekaSound has introduced RackLegs, a device that props up a rack case on the floor for easier access to your amp or effects. RackLegs connects to the rear rack rails of any standard 2U rack case with thumbscrews. The unit is made from 3/16-inch steel for strength and stability while its painted flat black with rubber end caps to better...

Sometimes you see photos of a bass posted on Facebook, and you just have to stop to check it out. This gorgeous Soame Custom Guitars PJ435 bass was one of those for me. Handmade in Argentina, the bass features a Northern ash body and a bookmatched flamed maple top that really pops thanks to a stunning Bahama Blue satin finish....

Bob Glaub’s resume reads like a who’s who of pop and rock royalty. He’s done session work and toured with artists including John Lennon, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, Ringo Starr, Donna Summer, Stevie Nicks, Crosby, Stills & Nash (& Young), Warren Zevon, John Fogerty, and Leonard Cohen, to name just a few. But through...