Buzz
Proberaumsession: Gerda
Bassist Lukas Pamminger shared this video with us of a musical project called “Proberaumsession”. Lukas said the band just meets “in the practice room with no preparation at all and start to jam… if we like an idea we make a song out of it. The rapper comes up with a hook and freestyles the verses. This particular song “Gerda”...
Kiesel/Carvin Guitars Unveils RV69K Roy Vogt Signature Vanquish Bass
Nashville bassist and educator Roy Vogt has teamed up with Kiesel/Carvin Guitars to release the RV69K Roy Vogt Signature Vanquish Bass. The 6-string bass, which is the first bass to carry the Kiesel badge, is made in the USA in the company’s custom shop and can be ordered with a variety of options. Standard features on the RV69K include an...
In Memoriam: Louis Johnson
Bass legend Louis Johnson, the funk session musician who played on Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”, has passed away of undisclosed causes. He was 60 years old. Nicknamed “Thunder Thumbs,” Johnson was born in Los Angeles in 1955 and learned to play bass alongside his brother George. The duo would work alongside each other with Bobby Womack, the Supremes, and Billy...
Sammy Hagar & Michael Anthony are At Your Service
Not many bands can release a live greatest hits record as its debut. But not many bands have a personnel roster like Sammy Hagar and The Circle. At Your Service features Hagar’s onetime Van Halen bandmate Michael Anthony on bass, and late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham’s son Jason on drums, as well as Vic Johnson, Hagar’s longtime guitarist. The...
Maxon Introduces the BD10 Hybrid Bass Driver
Maxon has announced the BD10 Hybrid Bass Driver, a bass overdrive pedal that features a symmetrical clipping circuit for “heavy yet articulate distortion.” The company teamed up with famed Japanese bassist Masaki to design the unit to keep up with extended techniques. The BD10 has a dedicated clean level for mixing in your dry signal. It also boosts up to...
West Coast Get Down: An Interview with Miles Mosley
Miles Mosley is a man that keeps busy. Since we last talked with the Los Angeles native, he’s done extensive touring and been featured on several albums including Kendrick Lamar’s chart-topping To Pimp A Butterfly. His most recent work can be heard on bandmate Kamasi Washington’s album The Epic, where Mosley supports a wall of sound in an innovative new...
Simon Fitzpatrick: “Nessun Dorma” Solo Bass Performance
Simon Fitzpatrick has taken “Nessun Dorma” – one of the most well-known tenor arias in opera – and turned it into a solo bass arrangement. “Nessun Dorma” (“None shall sleep”), is from the final act of Giacomo Puccini’s opera Turandot. For this performance, Simon is playing his Sei Bass Flamboyant 6.
Stuart Hamm Releases “The Book of Lies”
Stuart Hamm, a bassist known for his bass instruction, as well as his work with virtuoso guitarists like Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, has released an instrumental record, The Book of Lies. The album features not only a seven-piece suite for solo bass, but also four songs featuring a full band. Other players on the record include John Mader, Chester...
Practicing vs. Performing for Musical Growth
Q: I’ve been playing the bass in a blues band for two years. Then we started playing rock and funk songs, and my practicing has always been based on what I hear and what I feel. I don’t really count in my head, and I’ve hardly worked my scales but my band keeps telling me that what I play is...
Will Lee, With the CBS Orchestra: MacArthur Park
Tonight marks the final episode of the Late Show with David Letterman, bringing an end to the legendary career of the longest running late-night talk show host. It also marks the dissolution of the CBS Orchestra, which has stuck with Letterman since his days at NBC when they were known as the World’s Most Dangerous Band. Bass guru Will Lee...
Coal Chamber’s “Rivals” Lineup Features Nadja Peulen
Coal Chamber’s first album since 2002 has arrived. Rivals is the first album to feature the band’s onetime touring bassist Nadja Peulen. She said for the record, she and several other band members started putting tracks together by working together by jamming on and fine-tuning riffs before heading into pre-production. This is what the ultimately ended up with an album...
Reader Spotlight: Lynne Davis
Meet Lynne Davis, a musician who started young in her musical journey, and turned her focus to bass thanks to Pino Palladino’s work with Paul Young. Lynne has enjoyed a busy and fruitful career as a bassist and educator. She also says “crikey!” For most of those reasons, she was an easy choice for this week’s spotlight. Bio: I have...