Melissa Auf Der Maur announces new album, releases video
The strong-willed Melissa Auf Der Maur has confirmed that she will be releasing a new 12-song solo album due out on March 23rd. The new album, entitled Out of Our Minds, promises to be an ambitious piece of conceptual art that will also include a film by Tony Stone that was debuted at Sundance. Trailers and info on the film...
Phil Lesh celebrates 70 with charity show
Former Grateful Dead and current Furthur bassist Phil Lesh will be celebrating his 70th birthday with a giant concert, being billed as “Furthur and Friends.” The concert will take place on Friday, March 12th, although Lesh’s actual birthday is the 15th, at San Francisco’s Bill Graham Auditorium. The event will also be a special benefit for the Unbroken Chain Foundation....
Gear Watch: Ibanez SRT Basses
Ibanez has built upon their already successful Soundgear line of basses with the new SRT models, featuring neck-thru construction to give longer sustain, brighter sound, and easier access to those higher frets than the traditional bolt-on necks. EMG 40DC pickups allow players to reproduce nearly any sound, from clean highs to dirty lows. The SRT models also include 3D-contoured ergonomics,...
Gear Watch: New Markbass gear for 2010
Markbass has announced a huge new line of amplification products for 2010, along with great new accessories to boot. All of the goods will be manufactured in Italy and available around the world starting in this Spring. Amps Markbass has added to their MoMark modular bass amp system that they introduced last year. The MoMark series was created to let...
Nathan Watts receives International Bassist Award
A lot can be said about someone who has won an award that has only been given out twice, especially when the other winner was Jaco Pastorius. Nathan Watts, who has played in Stevie Wonder’s rhythm section for the last 36 years and has served as Stevie’s musical director for the last twelve, was awarded the International Bassist Award at...
Charles Mingus Festival to take place in NYC
The Manhattan School of Music and Let My Children Hear Music: The Charles Mingus Institute have come together again to announce the 2nd annual Charles Mingus Festival, to be held February 13 and 14 in NYC. Produced by Sue Mingus and Justin Dicioccio, the festival will include films, clinics, the hugely successful Charles Mingus High School Competition, and performances by...
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club basses stolen
The rockers in Black Rebel Motorcycle Club posted a message on their web site seeking help in tracking down some stolen gear, including a 1968 Ampeg Scrolltop fretless bass and a 1964 Black Fender Precision. The gear, which belonged to bassist/singer Robert Levon Been’s father, was taken out of band’s personal storage locker. Also taken was a Fender 1954 Esquire...
Gear Watch: Schecter Raiden Special and Elite basses
Schecter has announced the new Raiden Special and Raiden Elite basses, geared towards the “feature driven, price conscious player.” Both basses feature 34” scale and 6-bolt necks. The Raiden Special has a body of basswood with a quilted maple top and a 24 X Jumbo fret Rosewood board with a maple neck. The Special also features the coil tappable Schecter...
RIP: Geoff Lloyd
Geoff Lloyd, who co-founded and played bass for the popular Canadian rock group, the Matthew Good Band, passed away this weekend. The cause of death has not been made public, but a Facebook post states that “Geoff had been fighting his inner demons for a number of years, and they finally got the better of him.” Lloyd was the bassist...
Gear Watch: Tech 21 SansAmp VT Bass Deluxe
Due to tons of requests, Tech 21 has introduced the VT Bass Deluxe, a 6-channel programmable version of their SansAmp Character Series VT Bass pedal. The pedal brings together the warmth of an all-analog signal path and the convenience of digital recall to allow players to easily dial up their favorite tones. The controls on the VT Bass Deluxe include...
Coldplay bassist’s “Apparatjik” supergroup debuts
Coldplay bassist Guy Berryman’s supergroup side project, “Apparatjik,” featuring Magne Furuholmen from A-Ha, producer Martin Terefe and Jonas Bjerre from Mew, will be releasing a new as-yet-untitled album and making their first public appearance on February 1st. The name Apparatjik comes from the Swedish language and is used to describe people who “create bottlenecks in otherwise efficient organizations.” The group...
Gear Watch: Tech 21 Red Ripper
The new Red Ripper Fuzz for bass from Tech 21 is more than your ordinary distortion box. It actually responds to the dynamics of your touch, so if you play harder you get more fuzz and higher harmonics, and if you play softer you get less fuzz and enhanced lower harmonics. Very nice for dynamic contrast. The Red Ripper’s “R.I.P.”...