Hot Tuna Announce Summer Tour Dates
Legendary blues rock duo Hot Tuna is hitting the road again this summer with a string of tour dates in Hawaii and the Northeast. Jack Casady and Jorma Kaukonen will be performing mainly in their acoustic setting to start the tour, which begins on June 19th in Honolulu. Their tour wraps up with four electric shows ending at the Capitol...
Armored Saint Returns with Seventh Studio Album
Veteran metal band Armored Saint describes their new studio album, Win Hands Down, as “a vintage crush of classic power propelled by a cathartic blast of life.” Bassist Joey Vera holds down the low end with a gritty tone, but he also co-wrote the majority of the music with singer John Bush. “John and I wrote the majority of the...
Ibanez Introduces ANB1006 Adam Nitti Signature Bass
After years of development, Ibanez has unveiled the ANB1006 Adam Nitti Signature Bass. The instrument, which Nitti helped to design, is hand-built by Ibanez’s Japanese master builders. “For me, this instrument represents the ideal balance of tone, playability, ergonomics, and extended range,” Nitti writes. “I love the wider 18mm string spacing and greater access to the highest frets; both features...
The Darkness Release “Last of Our Kind”
The Darkness is back with Last of Our Kind, a stripped-down album that hearkens back to the original spirit of rock. Anchored by bassist Frankie Poullain, the band’s fourth studio effort was written in Ireland and thematically centers around defiance. It’s also the first and only of their albums to featured drummer Emily Dolan Davies, who replaced original drummer Ed...
Bootsy’s Rubber Band: Another Point of View, Live 1976
We’re going old school today with a clip of Bootsy Collins and his Rubber Band in concert from 1976. Taken from their concert at the Summit in Houston, Texas, the video has Bootsy and the gang getting down on “Another Point of View.” The performance came just two months after the release of the bassist’s debut solo album, Stretchin’ Out...
Dean Zelinsky Introduces the Mule Bass
Guitar and bass maker Dean Zelinsky has unveiled the Mule bass. Available in four- and five-string versions, the model is Zelinsky’s first to feature his patented Z-Glide Reduced Friction Neck. The back of the maple neck features a precisely engraved pattern that reduces surface area by putting a little air between your thumb and the neck. Another unique feature is...
Jansen, Barbieri, Karn & Wilson: Bestial Cluster
Mick Karn was the master of creating bass lines that were somehow simple, angular, and melodic all at the same time. Check out this clip of Karn with Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri, and Steve Wilson performing “Bestial Cluster” for 2 Meter Session on Dutch television. Karn gets a gnarly distortion to lay down a fat and simple bass line before...
Bass of the Week: Salzmann Virutero NT
This week we’re getting a taste of Argentina with the Virutero NT by luthier Leandro Salzmann. Made in Buenos Aires, Salzmann’s Virutero model shows the bass builder has a strong grasp of creating an organic instrument that features exotic species of woods. The Virutero NT is a neck-thru bass that features a five-piece maple and cancharana with a Guayacán fretboard....
Dominic “Forest” Lapointe: Teramobil’s “Temporaly Recompressed Pulse” Playthrough
Here’s another jaw-dropping playthrough by Dominic “Forest” Lapointe. The bassist burns it up on Teramobil’s “Temporaly Recompressed Pulse” with lightning fast riffs and creative two-handed tapping. The track comes from the band’s Multispectral Supercontinuum EP, but Lapointe tells us Teramobil is working on a full album.
The Bassist’s Guide to Injury Management Now Available as eBook
Dr. Randy Kertz has reissued his seminal work, The Bassist’s Guide to Injury Management, as a downloadable eBook. The book covers a wide range of common and uncommon physical issues that bass players may face. Dr. Kertz explains injuries and conditions that may occur as well as prevention and treatment options for each. A symptom guide helps players to pinpoint...
CG Lutherie Unveils UbiQ Bass Guitar
French company CG Lutherie has introduced the UbiQ, a new model that blurs the lines between bass and guitar. The six-string singlecut bass features a multi-scale design and is tuned EADGBE. The bass’s scale ranges from 30.9 inches to 32 inches while its maple fingerboard has a compound radius from 20 inches to 23 inches. It’s headless design revolves around...
Warwick Announces Adam Clayton Streamer CV Signature Bass
Five years after his first signature bass with the company, Adam Clayton has once again teamed up with Warwick to collaborate on a new version of their Streamer CV bass. The Warwick Adam Clayton Streamer CV Signature bass is built in the Warwick Custom Shop in Markneukirchen, Germany. The bass is built with an extra light swamp ash body finished...