Buzz
Lloyd Goldstein: Lean on Me
My Facebook friend Lloyd Goldstein posted a video a few days ago, and it knocked me out. Lloyd arranged Bill Wither’s 1972 hit, “Lean on Me” for double bass. The tone, the arrangement, and the performance are just incredible. Enjoy.
TC Electronic Introduces Black Polytune Clip-On Tuner
TC Electronic has introduced a black version of their Polytune Clip-On Tuner. The discreet device, which works for bass and guitar, has strobe, chromatic, and polyphonic tuning modes up to +/-0.02 cent accuracy. The polyphonic mode allows for strumming all strings at once to see their tuning. The tuner also features an ultra-bright display with an adaptive screen, a stainless...
Epifani Now Shipping Piccolo 999 Bass Amp
Amp builder Nick Epifani has beefed up his Piccolo bass amp series with the Piccolo 999. The 1,000-watt head utilizes Epifani’s UL series preamp including a new Vintage circuit that adds a tube-like tone to the overall output. The Class D amp and switch-mode power supply keep the amp down to just 4.5 pounds and small enough to fit in...
Hungry Beats: Yasuke
Rubatat Antonin has shared his latest video with drummer Romain Chenard in the duo known as Hungry Beats. He says the “tune is about Kurusan Yasuke, the black samurai.” We love the rhythms and interplay on this one.
Phil Collins Taps Leland Sklar for New Tour
Phil Collins has revealed he is coming out of retirement to perform in a tour he’s calling “Not Dead Yet Live!” next summer. The title, which is a play on concerns about his health, is also the title of his new autobiography that comes out this month. Collins has once again tapped bass master Leland Sklar to handle the low...
Positive Grid Unveils the BIAS Distortion Pro Pedal
Positive Grid has expanded their BIAS amplifier processing technology into the BIAS Distortion Pro Pedal. The tone-matching distortion pedal works for guitar and bass by emulating the circuitry of any distortion. “With BIAS Distortion pedal, users can easily match their favorite distortion, overdrive, fuzz, and boost pedals’ tones,” the company writes. “BIAS Distortion integrates with BIAS Pedal’s Tone Match technology...
The Lightbulb Moment: Muscle Memory
I’m an avid radio listener. The preset buttons in my car are heavily worn, the numbers barely legible after years of searching for the perfect song and attempting to dodge commercial messages. Sometimes it’s nice to drive in silence, but usually, the radio is what truly fuels my time spent behind the wheel. I always enjoy hearing new music, but...
Jan Urbanec: Funk Jam
It has been a while since we were able to feature a new video by Jan Urbanec. That’s changing today with a new funky jam he created after getting a new bass (a Sandberg California II TM4). Jan sent us this video, saying “It’s been a while I made anything, so here goes…” Glad you’re back, Jan!
Donny McCaslin Releases Beyond Now, Featuring Tim Lefebvre
The team of Donny McCaslin, Mark Guiliana, Jason Lindner and Tim Lefebvre is a force to be reckoned with. Their musical prowess and ability to seamlessly morph grooves is so strong that David Bowie chose them to be the band for his final album, Blackstar. Now McCaslin and crew have released Beyond Now, an album dedicated to and inspired by...
Jason Scheff Leaves Chicago
After 31 years of playing in the band, Jason Scheff has left the ranks of Chicago. Scheff has been on a leave of absence since May due to family health reasons, but the departure seems permanent now as the band announced a new bassist. “Chicago would like to officially welcome bassist / vocalist Jeff Coffey to the band!” they wrote...
Fodera Unveils Victor Wooten Yin Yang Deluxe Series III Bass
Fodera has unveiled the Victor Wooten Yin Yang Deluxe Series III, a new take on the bass guru’s signature instrument. The bass, which is his third signature fretted Yin Yang, is designed to have a broader and unique range of tones with different woods and electronics. “Earlier this year Victor visited the shop to demo various possible tonewood combinations and...
Evan Marien: Phoenix
Evan Marien has shared another video featuring a song from his upcoming album EP2?-?Live. On “Phoenix”, Evan is joined by Isamu McGregor on keys and Devin Collins on drums.