Buzz
Black Mamba: Tom Sawyer
Black Mamba is a trio consisting of bassist Cecilia Nappo, guitarist/vocalist Irma Mirtilla and drummer Federico Maragoni. They just shared their videos with us, including this one of their cover of Rush’s “Tom Sawyer.” I love how they decided to remake it in their own style.
Bass of the Week: Bonobo Guitars Double Neck Headless Bass
As I’ve said many timed before, Facebook is a great tool for discovering awesome instruments. I saw bassist Roey Haviv’s quick demo of his new double-neck headless bass from Bonobo Guitars while scrolling through my feed and my jaw dropped. With one fretless neck and one fretted neck, the bass is made for versatility. It’s designed after the Zira model,...
Talking Technique: Close Your Eyes and “See” in New Ways
Let’s start with a simple exercise. I say, go ahead, get your bass and just do it – that way you get the full benefit from this article. To start, let’s play a simple shift, such as C to D on the A string with the first finger on both notes (this is not the fingering I’d usually recommend, but...
YYNOT: Prelude
As we mentioned in their “YYZ” video, YYNOT has a new drummer (Chris Moore). And so they’re recording lots of new versions of their epic Rush covers with this new lineup. As always, the bass (and more) is handled by Tim Starace, with Billy Alexander on guitar and Rocky Kuner on vocals. In this video, they tackle “Prelude,” the first...
ESP Adds Fretless and 5-String Basses to LTD Thinline Series
ESP expanded their Thinline acoustic bass series this year with the TL-4Z Fretless and the TL-5SM. The models are four- and five-string basses, respectively, that feature modern aesthetic with exotic tops. The TL-4Z Fretless carries the same features of the TL-4Z in a fretless format. Its body is built with chambered mahogany and topped by zebrawood in a natural gloss...
Craig Strain & Lauren Pierce: Bach Invention No.13 – A Minor
Bach’s music is timeless and goes beyond the scope of any single instrument. Today we’re featuring an awesome duet of Bach’s Invention No. 13 in A minor where the double bass meets the electric bass. Craig Strain and Lauren Pierce teamed up to tackle the classical counterpoint masterpiece. Strain called the piece “a bit of fun with an old school...
Creative Bass Lines: Increasing Fingerboard Knowledge – Part 2: Arpeggios, Major 7ths & Beyond!
We have not one, but two lessons for you this month! In this lesson, I’ll talk you through major 7th, then 9th, ?11th and 13th arpeggios, which follows part one (“Triad Visualization”). I am a firm believer in learning these concepts in multiple ways/fingerings – it all goes to increase our overall knowledge of the fingerboard, and that’s a good...
Bravo Victor: The Duel
Bassist Jonathon Burgess sent us the new video by his duo with vocalist Sophie Aked, known as Bravo Victor. This video is a milestone for Bravo Victor – their debut single for their upcoming EP. The band has the track available on Bandcamp.
Biltworth Launches with BW-1 Effects Pedal
A new pedal company called Biltworth has launched its first product called the BW-1, a multi-effects unit for bass and guitar. It features three effects – overdrive, delay, and reverb – that are cascaded in series with separate controls and footswitches for each. The Drive section has Volume, Gain, and Tone controls that Biltworth says can “push it from light...
MonoNeon: Miles Beyond, Live
MonoNeon’s playing never ceases to amaze me, and this clip of him covering a Mahavishnu Orchestra song is why. The bassist grooves hard on the song “Miles Beyond” in this video from a concert in Memphis, Tennessee. As always, MonoNeon puts his own spin on it with an incredible solo. Keyboardist Lance Lucas and drummer Anthony Knox help to provide...
Mooer Audio Introduces Tender Octaver Pro Pedal
Mooer Audio has beefed up their Tender Octaver pedal with a Pro version. The polyphonic harmony pedal now has two synthesized harmony voices: one upper and one lower. Each has independent volume, tone, and pitch controls, with the pitch control allowing for any harmony to be created between unity and octave. The Tender Octaver Pro also has a smooth control...
Bass Players to Know: Bunny Brunel
Like any aspiring bass player, I went through a “fusion phase” (otherwise known as college). I spent countless hours infatuated with complicated harmony, the wild and masterful displays of technical ability, and the jammiest of jams. It wasn’t long before I discovered the CAB albums featuring Tony MacAlpine, Dennis Chambers, Brian Auger, and bass player Bunny Brunel. This quickly sent...