Buzz
Steely Dan’s “Peg”: Instrumental with Chuck Rainey
This is cool beyond words: Chuck Rainey laying it down on this instrumental reunion remake of Steely Dan’s “Peg”, from Aja. Bonus: Bernard Purdie on drums. This is from the DVD, .
Fuzzrocious Pedals Releases the Terrordactyl
Fuzzrocious Pedals has released the Terrordactyl, a fuzz that feeds into an envelope filter all in one stompbox. The pedal’s three controls include volume, envelope level, and envelope range. For further control, they included an expression pedal output to adjust the envelope’s range on the fly. The Terrordactyl features true bypass and is powered by a “Boss”-style 9 volt adapter....
Preparing Your Demo Material to Land that Next Gig
Q: I’m challenged by my lack of demo material. I figured I would accumulate some good clips along the way and build up a portfolio. However, my networking skills have outpaced my gigging experience (I’m picky). I’ve recently been asked by some high B-list caliber artists for samples. Gulp… I don’t have any so the conversation ends there. I don’t...
The Brothers Johnson: Ain’t We Funkin’ Now, Live on Soul Train
Well, maybe “live” is used loosely here since it’s lip-syncing on Soul Train, but there’s no doubt the Brothers Johnson are funkin’ on this episode, originally aired on August 26, 1978. Slap-bass pioneer Louis Johnson can be seen with an early Music Man StingRay, and gets some time to shine at the 2:46 mark.
Donald Harrison Releases This is Jazz, Featuring Ron Carter and Billy Cobham
Donald Harrison has released This is Jazz, his second effort on the Half Note label with master bassist Ron Carter and drummer Billy Cobham. The six-track album is cultivated from a set by the seasoned trio at New York’s Blue Note club. Carter, who is lauded as one of the most recorded bassists in with over 2,500 albums under his...
Reader Spotlight: Michael Modeste
Meet Michael Modeste, a jazz-turned-metal bassist from Hartford, Connecticut. Michael is our player in the spotlight for September 6, 2011. Bio: I am the bass player in a metal band called Dead by Wednesday. I’m a finger style bass player with a jazz background that somehow fell into the world of heavy metal. I’ve studied privately with John Patitucci and...
Review: Rudder’s Live Rockwood Music Hall NYC DVD
Following on from their first two left-field grooving studio albums Matorning and Rudder, the funky band have released a DVD recorded last year in New York. I got the chance to ask the band the rationale behind the release of the DVD. Bassist Tim Lefebvre shares, “Well, we wanted to document the vibe of the month long tour of Europe...
Question of the Week: What is your favorite bass line?
What is your favorite bass line? (or at least one of them) Answer below in the comments, or on our Facebook page.
The Bass Gang: Rock ‘n Roll Nr. 9
The double bass quartet known as The Bass Gang is one creative bunch. Here’s a 2007 performance by the bassists, performing Hiroyuki Shinshi’s “rock and roll” take on Beethoven’s Symphony Nr. 9.
Roger Glover Releases “If Life Was Easy”
Deep Purple’s Roger Glover has released his fifth solo album called If Life Was Easy. The bassist wrote or cowrote all of the 16 tracks, which was reportedly recorded in 2007 and features his daughter Gillian among others. Glover, who is about to tour Europe with Deep Purple, says the eclectic mix of songs are reflections on his recent life....
Gretsch Revamps Electromatic Junior Jet Basses
Gretsch will launch revamped versions of their Electromatic range of instruments this month, including the Jet Junior and Jet Junior II basses. Updates to the series include improved pickups, inlays, and more. Both the Junior Jet and Junior Jet II basses feature bolt-on construction with a short 30.3″ scale, maple neck, rosewood fingerboard and 20 medium jumbo frets. Hardware on...
BeatStudio: A Look at the Track Builder App for iOS
I have not been a huge fan of any of the iOS drum machines or drum-along “screen tapper” drums-set style apps. But BeatStudio, by Frontier Design Group, brings something new to the table that is really useful and is changing my opinion of this sort of app. Not only does BeatStudio offer multitrack recording abilities, quantization, editing and an array...