Buzz
Steve Swallow Helps Turn Country Into Jazz on John Scofield’s Latest
Jazz bassist Steve Swallow (Carla Bley, Gary Burton) has once again worked with guitarist John Scofield on the jazz-country album, Country for Old Men. The album sees Scofield, who produced, and his band paying homage to country artists like George Jones, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, James Taylor, and Hank Williams, as they transform country tunes into jazz pieces. Here’s a...
Bass Gear Roundup: The Top Gear Stories in September 2016
September is in the books, so it is time to look back at the most popular gear stories for the month. Here are the top 10 most read bass gear stories, as voted by reader views. Thanks for reading, commenting and sharing. 1. Gibson 2017 EB Bass T Model Gibson has unveiled their 2017 instrument lineup, including the new Gibson...
Frank and Joris Brunot: Pulling Me Through/Beautiful
Bassist Frank Brunot and guitarist/vocalist Joris Brunot teamed up to play make this awesome musical mixture of “Pulling Me Through” by Todd Dulaney and “Beautiful” by Mali Music. The tone of the music is gorgeous, and Frank’s bass playing is beyond fantastic.
Ron Carter Records Trio Album With Bad Plus Pianist
Ethan Iverson, pianist for The Bad Plus, always wanted to make an album with the prolific bassist/cellist/composer Ron Carter. And so now he has on The Purity of the Turf, which sees Iverson working in a trio with Carter and drummer drummer Nasheet Waits. The record is on Criss Cross records, which releases jazz recordings made by groups working together...
The Dillinger Escape Plan Announce Fall Tour
Earlier this month, the Dillinger Escape Plan announced they will be taking an indefinite hiatus after the release of their upcoming album, Dissociation, and its accompanying tour cycle. Now the band has revealed the list of seemingly final tour dates that will take them across the U.S. from coast to coast and back. Anchored by bassist Liam Wilson, the band...
The Lightbulb Moment: Small Adjustments, Big Results
We’re all looking for ways to get more bang for our buck, especially when it comes to practicing. We watch videos, scroll through forums, and read columns about how to establish a better practice routine (you may be doing this right now). So, for what it’s worth, here are my two cents. Frankly, most of us don’t like to practice...
Anderson .Paak and The Free Nationals: Put Me Thru
This one just knocked me out. Anderson .Paak took his band, The Free Nationals, into the Rock Revival Showroom to do a live session. Here’s the group performing “Put Me Thru,” – from the album – with some added crunchy goodness. Bassist Kelsey Gonzalez lays it down on this one.
Aidan Hampson Releases Diva Bass Line Transcriptions
Top bass transcriber Aidan Hampson has turned his attention to the divas, releasing a book, “The Best Diva Basslines,” devoted to the bass lines the have supported the work of some of popular music’s most celebrated female singers. The track list spans more than 50 years and range from Etta James’ jazz classic “At Last” to Adele’s “Set Fire to...
Tal Wilkenfeld Embarks on Fall Tour
Tal Wilkenfeld will be hitting the road this fall for a tour that will take her up the West Coast. Starting at Phoenix, Arizona’s Musical Instrument Museum, the trek will snake up California before heading through Oregon and Washington. Wilkenfeld and her band will wrap up on October 13th at the Biltmore in Vancouver, British Columbia. Part of the tour...
Nordstrand Pickups Announces Big J-Blades
Nordstrand Pickups has announced the Big J-Blade, a jazz-style single coil pickup that’s built with a continuous sensing blade. The new model will come in two versions with different winds to provide two unique tones. “One wind provides a ‘warm and wooly’ tone, while an alternate wind provides a ‘clean and clear’ tone,” the company writes. “Plus, as proven by...
Metallica: Moth Into Flame
Metallica has given another preview of their upcoming album Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, due out November 18th. Similar to “Hardwired“, “Moth Into Flame” is another thrasher anchored by bassist Robert Trujillo, who also handles backup vocals. Trujillo recently said that the albums sounds crushing. “Sound-wise, it’s got a lot of firepower,” he said. “I’m excited about the songs, but I’m also...
No Treble Founder Featured on Contrabass Conversations Podcast
Ever wonder how No Treble came to be? Founder Corey Brown shared the details in the latest episode of the Contrabass Conversations podcast, hosted by Jason Heath. Starting with his beginnings in music, Corey chronicles his journeys with the bass and the web. Get the scoop on his work with the Jaco Pastorius website, No Treble, and more by listening...