Buzz

Groove – Episode #7: Mark Egan

Mark Egan has a very specific sound. Whether it’s from co-founding the jazz fusion band, Elements, or being a part of the Pat Metheny Group… or from the Gil Evans Orchestra to his work with Sting, Joan Osborne, Cyndi Lauper or Art Garfunkel. The smooth, fretless electric bass sound is unmistakably his. Egan spent a significant amount of time honing...

Rush: 2112 (1976 Live Performance)

Here’s a nice throwback for you: Rush performing “2112” on December 10th, 1976 at Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey. I love how Geddy Lee says they don’t have a lot of time, so they’ll play “2112”.

Refused’s Comeback Album Has Arrived

Swedish hardcore punk band Refused has released its first album in almost 20 years, Freedom. The record features one of its original bassists, Magnus Flagge, who was tapped to play with the band for its reunion shows in 2012. Refused was known for its revolving door on bass, having featured 13 bassists during the band’s lifetime. Check out Refused’s comeback...

Bass in Death Metal?

Q: What is your opinion of the role of bass in both Death Metal and Black Metal? I’m a big fan of both styles and have tried to work out by ear, exactly what the bass is doing, but within these styles, the bass is very seldom heard. In a situation like this, what’s the best way of playing along...

Hamish Stuart Band with Will Lee: Person to Person

Here’s a super fun video of the Hamish Stuart Band performing in 2013. In this clip, Will Lee is not only looking sharp, he’s laying down the funk (with some iconic bass lines thrown in here and there for good measure).

Alice Cooper’s Original Bassist Releases Book About Band’s Rise to Fame

Back before Alice Cooper was known only as one man, it was the name of an entire band. And that band’s bassist was Dennis Dunaway, who co-wrote Alice Cooper (in terms of either the band or the man) hits like “School’s Out” and played on iconic albums like Billion Dollar Babies. Dunaway has now released his story of the band’s...

Reader Spotlight: “Monster” Mike Cobb

So here’s the thing about “Monster” Mike Cobb: he says that at the age of 7, he pledged his allegiance to the FUNK the whole FUNK and nothing but the FUNK. It worked… Mike just so happens to be Bootsy Collins’ back up bassist. This is a great read. Enjoy this week’s No Treble reader in the spotlight. Bio: Born...

Truetone Unveils 1 Spot Pro Power Supplies

Truetone has expanded their 1 Spot series of power supplies with the 1 Spot Pro line including the CS7 and CS12 models. Each of the new power bricks offer a variety of voltages with seven and twelve isolated outputs, respectively. The 1 Spot Pro CS7 features three voltage options – 9Vdc, 12VDC, and 18VDC – for use with most effect...

The Stanley Clarke Band: No Mystery, Live

Today we’re celebrating the great Stanley Clarke’s birthday with a killer clip of his band live at Bimhuis in Amsterdam. The jazz legend and crew tackle the Return to Forever song “No Mystery”, which Clarke also released on his band’s 2010 self-titled album. Clarke pulls out all the stops with his signature bass lines, arco work, and a jaw-dropping percussive...

Bill Wyman Releases First Solo Album in Three Decades

It’s been a while since former bassist for The Rolling Stones released a solo album. About 33 years, really. The album, which features a stripped-down sound and nods to influences like Leonard Cohen and JJ Cale, came about after Bill Wyman realized he had a cache of unreleased songs, three of which he decided to rework. He then added those...

Bass of the Week: Rob Allen Deep 4/5

Bass builder Rob Allen has a way with creating clean designs that are very playable pieces of art. Our bass of the week is the luthier’s Deep model, a semi-hollow body bass available in four and five-string models that features a classic f-hole. “The body starts out with 3″ thick alder stock and is surfaced down to 2 1/8″, and...

What’s This Angled Endpin Business?

I get lots of questions about my bass and “what’s up with that endpin?” ranks in the top ten. As you know, most endpins come straight out of the bass, at a angle more or less parallel with the back of the instrument, a 90 degrees relation to the bottom of the instrument. When the instrument is standing entirely upright,...