Snarky Puppy Releases “We Like It Here”
Grammy-winning instrumental fusion band Snarky Puppy, led by bassist/composer/producer Michael League is hot right now. And if you want to hear what the group sounded like pre-Grammy (Best R&B Performance for its work with Lalah Hathaway) the DVD/CD set We Like It Here might just be the place to start. Recorded live in Kytopia Studios in Utrecht, Holland from Oct....
Beck Releases “Morning Phase”, Featuring Justin Meldal-Johnsen
Fans of Beck’s 2002 classic album Sea Change will feel right at home with the intimate psychedelia of , which reunites the singer/songwriter with the band that backed him in the studio and on the road from 1996-2000 and 2003-2003. The players on Beck’s 12th studio album include bassist Justin Meldal-Johnsen (also known for work with Nine Inch Nails, Air,...
Muscle Shoals Documentary Now Available
“You just didn’t expect them to be as funky, or as greasy as they were.” That’s how Aretha Franklin describes The Swampers, the legendary house band at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in the star-studded documentary . The band, including bassist David Hood, then went on to co-found the iconic Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in 1969, solidifying the tiny...
One Way Out: The Inside History of The Allman Brothers Band
“If you want to know the real deal, read Alan Paul,” says Allman Brothers bassist Oteil Burbridge about Paul’s (St. Martin’s Press). The book is billed as the first major biography of the ABB, which marks its 45th anniversary this year. All the surviving members of the band, including former members, are interviewed in this oral history, and founders Butch...
Lake Street Dive Release “Bad Self Portraits”
Lake Street Dive is often called a string band with soul, and its latest album lives up to the description, as well as the acclaim the folk band has received in its young career. , out on Signature Sounds Recordings, features an eclectic pop style created by double bassist Bridget Kearney, vocalist Rachael Price, drummer Mike Calabrese and guitarist Mike...
Cynic Returns with “Kindly Bent To Free Us”
Progressive metal band Cynic, and its bassist, Sean Malone, have released the group’s long-awaited record, , Cynic’s first in three years – and its first full-length album since 2008. Malone, aside from his Cynic and solo work, is also an author, having penned four music books, including Music Theory for Bassists and A Portrait of Jaco: The Solos Collection. It’s...
Allman Brothers Band Release Two Classic Live Albums
Fans of The Allman Brothers Band’s 1990’s lineup can travel in the wayback machine and experience some of its famed concerts. documents the band’s first long run at the theatre. It, and DVD release , shows off the band after it reconstituted itself for its 1989 20th anniversary with new players, including bassist Allen Woody. (Woody left the band in...
Helms Alee Releases “Sleepwalking Sailors”
Helms Alee is an experimental metal band with a deep understanding of bass. The experimental metal trio not only includes bassist/vocalist Dana James, but its guitarist Ben Verellen, is a former bassist. He’s also the man behind Verellen Amplifiers’ Meatsmoke, a 300-watt all-tube bass amp. (James also uses the Meatsmoke for Helms Alee.) Helms Alee’s third album, , recorded on...
Royal Southern Brotherhood Releases “Songs From the Road: Live in Germany”
Blues-rock supergroup Royal Southern Brotherhood’s legendary October 2012 performance at Bonn, Germany’s Crossroads Festival for the German TV show Rockpalast has been captured in a CD/DVD set as a part of Ruf Records’ Songs From the Road series. If you’re unfamiliar with the Brotherhood and love Southern blues/rock, these are guys to check out, with Charlie Wooton (ZydeFunk, Bonerama, Woods...
Rufus Reid Honors Elizabeth Catlett with “Quiet Pride”
Music and sculpture combine in renowned jazz bassist Rufus Reid’s five-movement composition, , based on five sculptures by artist Elizabeth Catlett. Each movement of the piece, written for a large jazz ensemble (including Reid on bass), corresponds to a sculpture by Catlett, the late African-American artist (she died in April 2012 at age 96) whose grandparents on both sides were...
Sunn o))) and Ulver Team Up for “Terrestrials”
Metal drone band Sunn O)))’s collaboration with Norwegian metal/heavy chamber group Ulver, , is summed up in this passage from Drowned in Sound: “This might be the closest you can get to ‘new age’ while remaining a heavily tattooed riff-worshipper.” Bassist Greg Anderson of Sunn O)))’s augmented bass feedback is featured on the “Western Horn” movement of the three-movement record....
The Funky Knuckles Return With “Meta-Musica”
Jazz fusion band The Funky Knuckles has a true Dallas sound, according to bassist and band leader Wes Stephenson. “It’s the feel for funk, hip-hop and gospel, to which we add the elements of jazz and improvisation,” Stephenson tells The Dallas Morning News. The second album from the group composed of seasoned music industry sidemen (Stephenson has performed with Erykah...