Buzz
Victor Wooten: Funky D (Live)
Victor Wooten visited the KNKX Public Radio studio recently, along with saxophonist Bob Franceschini. While they were missing the third part of the trio, drummer Dennis Chambers, the two put on quite a show. Here’s the duo performing “Funky D.”
Frank Bello: Next Anthrax Album Will Be Heaviest Ever
Anthrax’s Frank Bello promises their next album will be their heaviest yet. In an interview with The Salt Lake Tribune, he revealed that the veteran metalheads will begin writing sessions for their twelfth studio album in January 2019. “We’re gonna go heavy — heavier than ever, I think,” he said. “That’s just the vibe. There’s an inner anger, which I...
Gov’t Mule Announces Fall Tour with Black Sabbath-Themed Halloween Show
Gov’t Mule is getting back on the road this fall with a new set of tour dates that will cover the Southeast and Midwest United States. Starting October 18th in Knoxville, Tennessee, the outing will include a special Halloween show on October 27th in Atlanta, Georgia that will apparently be Black Sabbath-themed. They posted a photo of the Paranoid album...
Zander Zon: 16 String Harp Bass
Zander Zon is back with a new video, and this time he’s bringing something quite new. “I’m playing my new 16 String Harp Bass! It has 4 bass strings and 12 harp strings and is the first of its kind,” Zander shared. The instrument is made by Barton Basses. The main melody of this arrangement is “Sound of Silence” by...
Kaveh Rastegar Releases Debut Album, Light of Love
Kneebody bassist Kaveh Rastegar has released his debut album, Light of Love, and it’s stacked with talented musicians. That’s no wonder considering the Grammy-nominated bassist has also spent his last 20 years working with some incredible talent including John Legend, Beck, Sia, Sabrina Claudio, Bruno Mars, Meshell Ndegeocello, De La Soul, and many more. “Rastegar refers to Light of Love...
Death From Above Announces “Heads Up! Is Now” Tour
Bass and drum duo Death From Above will be celebrating the re-release of their debut EP, Heads Up, with a U.S. tour. The “Heads Up! Is Now” tour will include the band performing the 2002 album in its entirety each night alongside other fan favorites. Vocalist/drummer Sebastien Grainger and bassist/keyboardist Jesse F. Keeler are currently wrapping up a European tour...
Geddy Lee Teams with Alex Lifeson for Fundraising Wine Tour
Now that Geddy Lee has some more free time, he’s certainly using it wisely. After announcing a new book for this year, he’s also teaming up with his Rush bandmate Alex Lifeson again for “Grapes Under Pressure lV: Geddy and Alex’s Excellent Harvest Adventure.” The event is a wine tour hosted by Grapes for Humanity to raise funds to benefit...
Tower of Power: Tiny Desk Concert
Ten days ago, NPR tested the limits of their Tiny Desk concert space with a visit from Tower of Power. The band treated the audience to three tunes: “On the Soul Side of Town,” “So Very Hard to Go,” and “What Is Hip?” Marc van Wageningen had some big shoes to fill too, taking over for Rocco Prestia while he...
Hal Leonard Publishes Music Theory for Bass Players
If you’re looking for a new book to bone up on your music theory, Hal Leonard has published a new book on the subject dedicated to bassists. Music Theory for Bass Players is a 160-page book aimed at helping you get the most out of your playing. Written by Steve Gorenberg, it has chapters starting with the musical alphabet and...
Ghost-Note Announces New Tour Dates with MonoNeon
Ghost-Note has announced a new North American tour in support of their latest album, Swagism. Formed by Snarky Puppy percussionists Robert “Sput” Searight and Nate Werth, the band will be filled out by a killer cast including keyboardists Xavier Taplin and Vaughn “V-Keys” Henry, guitarist Peter Knudsen, saxophonist Jonathan Mones, and bass wizard Dywane “MonoNeon” Thomas, Jr. The trek will...
Establishing Your Rates as a Working Bass Player
Q: I have been networking, going to jams, and have actually started to make some headway in my local scene. I’ve just gotten a call about doing a regional week-long tour. The money seems a little low, though, and I’m worried about setting a bad precedent. I’d like to do the tour but don’t want to establish that as my...
Scott Mulvahill: Teen Town on Upright Bass
Scott Mulvahill is a beast of a double bass player in Nashville, but just because he’s in the country music capital of the world doesn’t mean he can’t shred some jazz. In this clip he tackles the masterful Jaco Pastorius song, “Teen Town” on the upright. “The bass nerds know what I’m talking about. It’s our favorite gameboy-disco-jazz-bass-shred classic,” he...