Doug Ardito Exits Puddle of Mudd
Puddle of Mudd have announced that bassist Doug Ardito, who has been with the group for nine years, has left the band. The rockers have asked their friend Damien Starkey to fill in until a permanent bass player is found. “It’s been a great 9 years of rocking the music of Puddle of Mudd with Doug,” said singer Wes Scantlin....
Gear Watch: Eastwood Left-Handed Airline Map Bass
Eastwood Guitars has introduced the Left-Handed Airline Map Bass, which is now shipping. The bass, which is available in sea foam green or black, is a throwback to the 1962 National Newport. The Airline Map features a tone-chambered mahogany body with a bolt-on, bound maple neck. The fingerboard is rosewood with block-markers. The pickups on this retro bass are two...
Christian McBride Joins Chick Corea’s Freedom Band Tour
Bassist extraordinaire Christian McBride will be traveling all over the world in his upcoming tour with the new Chick Corea Freedom Band. The quartet also features saxophonist Kenny Garrett and drummer Roy Haynes. The group as a whole first played together for Corea’s Remembering Bud Powell, but each member has worked with one another in various projects through the years,...
Guy Berryman’s Apparatjik Releases Free EP
Coldplay bassist Guy Berryman has been keeping busy with his supergroup side-project, Appartjik, who just made their debut in February. Now the group has released a new EP, available for free download from their website, entitled 4 Can Keep a Secret if 3 of Them are Dead. The 3-track EP come just a week before the group rereleases their debut...
Gear Watch: Roland R-05 Wave/MP3 Recorder
Roland has announced that their new R-05 Wave/MP3 Recorder is now shipping. The pocket recorder boasts clear audio quality, tons of features, and a battery that lasts over 16 hours of continuous recording time. It records directly to SD cards with a maximum of 24-bit/96kHz resolution with its built-in stereo microphone, or you can plug in your own external microphones....
Iron Maiden Announce New Album Release Date, Free Download and Tour
Iron Maiden unveiled the artwork and releases date of their upcoming studio album, The Final Frontier. The band’s new CD will be available Monday, August 16th. Until then they are giving away the first single, “El Dorado,” as a free download. The Final Frontier will be the group’s 15th studio album, following up on 2006’s A Matter of Life and...
Chi Cheng Showing Signs of Improvement
After being in a coma since November, 2008, Deftones bassist Chi Cheng is showing signs of improvement, according to his band mates. “He’s been out of his coma for a while now, which is great” singer Chino Moreno told The Quietus. “He’s still in a minimally conscious state, which means he sleeps a lot, wakes up, opens his eyes and...
Rush to Receive Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
As if a new documentary, a new album, and a new tour isn’t enough to keep the members of Rush busy, the legendary Canadian rockers will be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on June 25. The group will receive their star at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard, just four days before they begin their new “Time Machine Tour”....
RIP Marvin Isley
Marvin Isley, bassist of the popular ‘70s and ‘80s funk group the Isley Brothers, has passed away June 6 in Chicago, Illinois. He was 56. Isley was not the first bassist for the group, (he later joined when he was old enough), founded by brothers O’Kelly, Rudolph, and Ronald. It was during this period that the Isleys had released their...
John Conte Joins Hartke Family
Larry Hartke announced on his Facebook page that bassist John Conte has “joined the Hartke family of players.” Conte will be using Hartke LH-series amplifiers as well as Hartke speakers. John Conte has worked with an astounding amount of musicians, ranging from Levon Helm to David Bowie and Mary J. Blige. Most recently, he recorded with Southside Johnny and the...
Gear Watch: Heads Up Strap
Designer Joe Naylor has introduced the “Heads Up Strap”, a new guitar/bass strap made to keep heavy instrument necks from sinking down into an unplayable position, even with hands off. It works by adding three lead weights in a Velcro pocket to the body end of the strap. The weight is adjustable simply by adding or removing the weights to...
Smashing Pumpkins Announce Tour with New Bassist
With the new addition of bassist Nicole Fiorentino, the Smashing Pumpkins have announced a summer tour of the U.S. with plans to visit South America and Australia later this year. Frontman Billy Corgan promises the music will be “a balance of classics, a few obscure ones, and new Teargarden material.” The band is also planning on invite select fans to...