Buzz
Solo Career-Spanning Sting Vinyl Set Released
So, you love yourself some Sting. And you love vinyl. Well, then, The Studio Collection is right up your alley. The 11-LP vinyl box set includes all the bassist-singer-songwriter’s A&M Records studio albums in one collection. The set includes Brand New Day and Sacred Love, which were not previously released on vinyl. Along with Sting, the albums feature the work...
Red Hot Chili Peppers Reveal North American Tour Dates
Flea and the Red Hot Chili Peppers will be embarking on an extensive North American tour starting at the beginning of 2017. Starting January 5th in San Antonio, the 24-date outing will take the band through the South, Midwest, and the Northeast before heading west in March. Support on the tour will include Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, featuring bassist...
Talking Style: New Jack Swing
“New Jack Swing” is an era of R&B that mixed jazz, pop and electronic dance music sensibilities with hip-hop production techniques. The “sound”, pioneered by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (former keyboardist and bassist for the Time) and Teddy Riley consists largely of synthesized bass lines, swung hip-hop beats created by the TR-808 drum machine and the SP-1200 sampler with...
Andrea De Donato, Lucia Sargenti and Stefano Ferraro: Let’s Stay Together
Bassist Andrea De Donato sent me this video of a performance he did with vocalists Lucia Sargenti and Stefano Ferraro. The trio perform Al Green’s hit “Let’s Stay Together” with some excellent bass work by Andrea.
Nathan East Announces New Solo Album, “Reverence”
Two years after his solo debut, bass legend Nathan East has announced a new album for 2017. Reverence is scheduled to be released on January 20, 2017. While it’s only his second solo effort, East been featured on hundreds of albums with a discography that includes Eric Clapton’s “Tears in Heaven,” Michael Jackson’s “Bad,” and Randy Newman’s “I Love L.A.”...
IK Multimedia Announces iRig HD 2
IK Multimedia has updated their mobile interface with the iRig HD 2. The device, which allows you to hook your bass up to iOS devices or a computer, has a host of new features on top of its predecessor’s capabilities. It now offers 96kHz digital audio with 24-bit A/D conversion. Similar to the original iRig HD, the iRig HD 2...
Groove – Episode #22: Bryan Beller
He could have one of the most fascinating careers as a bass player. It’s not that he’s played in classic bands during the sixties. He hasn’t. It’s not that he was around to see (and played) during the formative years, as the electric bass took hold. He has not. Bryan Beller is a bass player who happens to find himself...
House of Waters: Sense
Back in August, we shared House of Waters’ video, “In Waves“, which generated enough views to make the top 10 for the month. Here’s another terrific video by the band, which features Moto Fukushima on bass, Max ZT on Hammered Dulcimer and Luke Notary on percussion. Read about this exciting band in the link above, and enjoy this video, “Sense”.
“Next Steps In Bass” eBook Focuses on Method
Markus Vieweg, bass player from German electro-pop band Glasperlenspiel has crafted a 300-page method eBook for bass players, particularly self-taught students of the instrument. The book, Next Steps in Bass, features not only detailed pictures but also, all the bass exercises and techniques lessons feature audio examples and videos. Presentations are designed to make music theory easier to understand and...
Mojo Hand FX Goes Retro With The Wonder Filter Envelope Pedal
Mojo Hand FX has introduced the Wonder Filter Envelope, an effects pedal inspired by a ’70s classic with modern updates. The Wonder Filter is fully analog, true bypass, and hand-assembled in the United States. Its controls include Peak and Gain as well as Range and Drive switches found on the original. The original features include a Mode selector switch that...
Memorizing the Fretboard: A Checklist for Bass Players
Q: I’m just starting out and was wondering if you had any tips for memorizing the fingerboard? A: This is one of those columns where I need to preface my answer by saying “your mileage may vary.” Personally, I was lucky. I started working on reading notation from day one. I still think that reading music is the best way...
Chris Dave Trio: Criss Cross
As bass players, we know the groove is paramount. That’s why this clip of Foley laying down a killer bass line while drum master Chris Dave changes the feel over and over is incredible. Foley, who played with Miles Davis from 1987 to 1991, gets into a trance on his line while Dave and saxophonist Zhenya Strigalev play with and...