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Gothenburg Bass Quartet: O, Tannenbaum
Here’s a warming rendition of “O, Tannenbaum,” performed by the Gothenburg Bass Quartet. (Beware, the group also doubles as the Gothenburg Kazoo Quartet!) The four members play in front of a beautifully decorated Christmas tree… no, wait. That’s a bass flight trunk. Charles DeRamus shows the decorating of the trunk, saying it took “11 hours, which is a new Swedish...
Tool Expands Winter Tour with New Dates
Tool has released more dates for their upcoming North American winter tour, including more shows on the East Coast. New performances are slated for the New England area as well as North Carolina and Florida. It’s also been announced that the progressive metal outfit Intronaut will provide opening support on their early shows. Though the band is secretive about their...
Sandberg Previews MarloweDK Signature Bass
Thomas Risell, better known as MarloweDK, is one of the most watched bassists on Youtube. His instructional and playalong videos have been viewed more than 22 million times on Youtube, and his lessons here on No Treble are incredibly popular as well. No surprise then, that the bassist caught the attention of Sandberg Guitars, who are developing the MarloweDK Signature...
Bass of the Week: Marleaux Diva
Gerald Marleaux’s artistic flair really shines through in his Diva model, a fretless bass with an avant-garde body shape and three-octave rosewood fingerboard. Designed to have an acoustic resonance reminiscent of an upright bass, the neck-through bass is built with a three-piece padauk neck with a custom choice of woods for the body wings and top. The Diva includes a...
Nick Mason: Jingle Bells Solo Tap Bass
Editor’s note: we’re celebrating the holidays this week with some awesome (and sometimes funny) holiday videos. Be sure to check back every day for some holiday cheer, bass-style. We first featured bassist Nick Mason recently, with his all-bass arrangement of Randy Newman’s “You’ve Got a Friend in Me“. And then we spotted this fun holiday-inspired performance by Nick, two hand...
John Carey Releases Revelry Now
New York bassist John Carey has released his fourth solo album, entitled Revelry Now. The project contains Carey’s takes on pop and rock standards, including Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love,” Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me,” and the Beatles’ “Don’t Let Me Down.” Revelry Now provides a beautiful, intimate listening experience. Carey recruited singer Fawn Segerson and drummer Frank...
Dirty Loops: Baby (Justin Bieber Cover, with Bass Awesomeness)
This one is blowing UP! Dirty Loops has done it again. This time the Swedish trio has created a pumped-up version of Justin Bieber’s hit “Baby,” with an absolutely killing solo from bassist Henrik Linder at the 1:41 mark. Dirty Loops has a reputation for taking pop songs we can’t stand and making them awesome. If you haven’t heard of...
Reading Requirements: Bass and Treble Clef?
Q: I can already read treble clef fairly instinctively, having played the clarinet for years. I started playing jazz (on bass) a few months ago, and now can find my way around most lead sheets, but my question is: should I bother to learn bass clef, when treble clef feels more natural to me? I rarely have a need to...
Todd Matthews: “Little Drummer Boy” the Way We Like It: for Solo Bass
Editor’s note: we’re celebrating the holidays this week with some awesome (and sometimes funny) holiday videos. Be sure to check back every day for some holiday cheer, bass-style. If you’ve been looking for a great video of Santa dancing while playing bass, look no further. Double bassist Todd Matthews sent us this video of his “Holiday Looping,” where he gets...
Tommy Stinson: The Next GN’R Album will Come Quicker Than Chinese Democracy
Guns N’ Roses bassist Tommy Stinson says the follow-up to Chinese Democracy should come “much quicker” than its predecessor, which was a project 15 years in the making before it was released in 2008. “You know, I just see us making a record much quicker, because, in hindsight, a lot of what happened with Chinese Democracy, we could get around...
Reader Spotlight: Michael Olson
Meet Michael Olson, a self-described “perfeshinul bassist” from Fort Collins, Colorado who makes his day all about music. Michael is our player in the spotlight for December 20, 2011. You have to check out the “Band & Gigs” section below – that story is awesome. Bio: I have been a professional bassist since the day I got out of music...
Kala Expands S-U-B Series with Cherry Burst U-Bass Option
Kala has added a new Cherry Burst finish to its S-U-B line of solid body U-Basses. The new bass shares all the characteristics of its brethren, including a solid body, a 21″ scale, a Shadow active pickup system, a 2-band EQ, Hipshot-licensed tuners and proprietary polyurethane strings. Kala, a ukelele company, first introduced the U-Bass in 2009 and has since...