Buzz
System of a Down Marks Genocide Centennial With Short 2015 Tour, Free Show
System of a Down has announced a short 2015 tour to mark the 100th anniversary of the genocide conducted by Ottoman Turks against Armenian, Greek and Assyrian populations. The final date of the Wake Up The Souls Tour will be a free show in Armenia. The band members, including bassist Shavo Odadjian, are of Armenian descent. Odadjian was born in...
Top 10: The Most Watched Bass Videos (November 2014)
This is a fun list every month: the top 10 most popular bass focused videos on No Treble. I was thrilled to see so many reader favorites match up with my own – I even had to go and watch them all once again. Thanks for watching, sharing and commenting on these videos!
Stanley Clarke and Sidiki Diabaté: The Meeting
We love it when different styles come together to make something new. Here’s a unique and beautiful clip sent to us by our Facebook friend “Ladyblue Utrecht” of bass master Stanley Clarke performing with Malian kora player Sidiki Diabaté. The kora is a traditional west African harp-like instrument with 21 strings. Clarke meshes with Diabaté’s rhythms perfectly to create a...
The Who Bass Tab Anthology Covers Some of John Entwistle’s Top Songs
If John Entwistle’s iconic bass lines for The Who have always eluded you, a new book has arrived to help out. from Alfred Publishing will help you play some of the late, great rock bassist’s most famous lines. The transcriptions in the 104-page book include: Baba O’Riley Bargain Behind Blue Eyes Boris the Spider Eminence Front Happy Jack Love, Reign...
In Memoriam: Paul “Cuzo” Mancuso
Paul “Cuzo” Mancuso of the Canadian Celtic punk band The Mahones has passed away. The cause of death has not been announced. Mancuso was with the band off and on since 2012 and played on their albums Angels & Devils and A Great Night On The Lash: Live in Italy. Prior to his time in The Mahones, the bassist was...
Bass of the Week: SiC Instruments Madness 6-String Fretless
We get a lot of great basses shown to us on our Facebook page, but when Italian luthier Simone Calabrese sent a picture of his SiC Instruments Madness 6, I needed more. The combination of its poplar burl top and gorgeous green satin nitro finish makes this bass mesmerizing. Built with neck-through construction, the bass’s top covers ash body wings...
Billy Sheehan, Clint Strong, and Mike Gage: Dangerous Improv
Dangerous Guitars invited three top musicians into the studio to play together for the very first time. Those musicians included bassist Billy Sheehan, guitarist Clint Strong and drummer Mike Gage. The folks at Dangerous Guitars said they brought together these musicians and asked them to “deliver us something ‘off the top of their heads.‘ Unscripted… unrehearsed… and uncanny.” Pretty cool!
Adam Armstrong Appears on Second Slow/Fast Release With Ken Thomson
Jazz clarinetist, sax player and composer Ken Thomson has released his second album with the group Slow/Fast, again showing how to combine the worlds of jazz and contemporary classical music. Distortion even appears in the group’s music, indicating rock influences as well. The second album, called , sees Slow/Fast featuring all of its original members, including bassist Adam Armstrong, an...
Weekly Top 10: Popular Bass Videos, New Gear, Bill Laswell Interview and More
This is the time of the week where we load up a whole lotta bass… aka the weekly top 10. This of course is based on you all, and what you clicked on during the week. Thanks as always for reading, commenting and sharing! 1. Tal Wilkenfeld: Chelsea Hotel We think – as do many readers here – that Tal...
Korg Introduces PitchHawk G-2 Clip-On Tuner
Korg has updated their PitchHawk clip-on tuner series with the PitchHawk G-2 for bass and guitar. The tuner now has a high-contrast color LCD display for better visibility while its frame has been slimmed down. The PitchHawk G-2 has dedicated guitar and bass tuning modes with flat and capo settings for alternate tunings. It also has a warning function to...
Dave Weckl and Jay Oliver: Higher Ground
Drummer Dave Weckl and keyboardist Jay Oliver released Convergence this year. Among the tracks on the album was a cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground”. It cooks. This one has it all… bassist Jimmy Johnson laying down a great line, horns, two drummers and a great vocalist. Here’s the complete line up: Lead Vocal: Chrissi Poland Drums: Dave Weckl and...
Leonard Cohen: Live in Dublin Released
Acclaimed singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen’s 2012/13 Old Ideas World Tour featured what many critics called his best band ever. That band featured bass guitarist/upright bassist Roscoe Beck, who also served as the band’s musical director. The sound the band made with Cohen as he supported his Old Ideas album was captured in film and audio recordings in a performance at Dublin’s...