Buzz
Weekly Top 10: New Transcription, Bass of the Week, New Bass Gear, Top Videos and Tips on Playing
The end of another week means it is time for another top 10 list of the best in bass. Here is the list of No Treble reader favorites for the week of June 6-12, 2015. Thanks as always for reading, commenting, watching and sharing. 1. Bela Fleck and The Flecktones: Stomping Grounds (1996) On December 26, 1996, Bela Fleck and...
Nordstrand Pickups Introduces Jazz Bar Series
Nordstrand Pickups has introduced the Jazz Bar pickup line, a series takes all of the company’s standard J-style pickups and puts them in soapbar shapes. Available in most popular EMG and Bartolini casing sizes, the JB Series includes Nordstrand’s single coil models (NJ4, NJ4 70’s, NJ5, and NJ6) as well as their hum canceling models (NJ4SV, NJ4SE, NJ5s, and NJ6s)....
Marcus Miller and the Metropole Orkest: Revelation
We’re celebrating Marcus Miller’s birthday today with music from the musical master himself. Here’s Marcus with the Metropole Orkest performing “Revelation”. The song appeared on Marcus’ album Renaissance. As he explains in the video, they open the tune with an intro from a Puccini opera. What a wonderful combo this is. Happy birthday, Mr. Miller, and thanks for all the...
Double Album Completes Consider the Source’s “World War Trio”
It’s not often you encounter sci-fi Middle Eastern fusion music, but when you do, it’s probably being played by Consider the Source. The band has released parts two and three of its crowdfunded World War Trio as a double album that clocks in at more than two hours long. (Part One of the trio was released in October 2014.) The...
S.I.T. Strings Introduces RB Bass Strings
S.I.T. Strings has introduced the RB line of bass strings, which will replace their current Rock Bright series. According to the company, the new set has been developed with an improved manufacturing process as well as a more balanced tension string formula. The RB Bass String is built with a 92/8 phosphor bronze under-wrap wire over a hard-tempered hexagonal steel...
Pablo Elorza: Bass Solo Chord Melody
Bassist and educator Pablo Elorza recently posted a new blog on exercises for musicians. Part of the lesson is a video with stretches to warm up before or after a playing session. The bassist composed this beautiful bass solo to accompany the video, and it’s just as inspiring as the information. Elorza crafts a lyrical melody complete with chordal backing....
Brazilian Jazz Great Nilson Matta Releases New Album
Master of the acoustic bass and Brazilian jazz Nilson Matta has achieved a unique groove on his latest album, East Side Rio Drive. The album from Matta, also a well-known bass teacher, has drawn accolades from The Wall Street Journal, and joins players from both North and South America to interpret jazz classics like “Blue in Green” and “Boogie Stop...
Top 10: The Most Watched Bass Videos (May 2015)
It is the once-per-month celebration we love… the top 10 reader favorite bass videos. Here are the most watched videos on No Treble in May, 2015. 1. Remco Hendrix: Funk Bass & Drum Grooves Our friend Mark Barletta sent us a note to check out some videos by Remco Hendrix, a bassist from the Netherlands. Remco calls this “Fingerstyle Funk...
Ornette Coleman & Prime Time Band: “Story Tellers” and “Latin Genetics”, live 1987
The world lost a pioneer in the music world yesterday as Ornette Coleman passed away at the age of 85. An innovator of the free jazz movement, the saxophonist was a major influence for a generation of musicians. We’re remembering Coleman with a 1987 clip from the Stadtgarten in Cologne, Germany. Coleman’s band includes two bassists – Jamaaladeen Tacuma and...
Franz Ferdinand & Sparks Release Collaborative Album
So, what happens when two very distinct bands with their hands in the pop, electronic, dance and rock spheres decide to start recording together? They release an album like the eponymous FFS, which abbreviates the names of each of the bands involved: Glasgow-based Franz Ferdinand (formed in the early 2000s) and the American sibling duo Sparks (formed in 1971). With...
Bass Transcription: Miki Santamaria’s “Thinking Out Loud” Solo Bass Arrangement
This bass transcription was suggested to me by No Treble founder Corey Brown, serving to remind me of Miki Santamaria’s fantastic solo arrangements of pop songs for bass guitar.
Jason Everett: The Return
Jason Everett, aka Mister E, sent us this clip of his song “The Return,” which features the bassist playing on his fretless seven string. “‘The Return’ is a recent composition and is the fourth and final movement of my epic composition ‘Moksha: The Elimination of All Duality,'” Everett writes. “[Moksha] is the sonic story of a soul that lives in...