News - Page 274

Blue Öyster Cult founding bassist Joe Bouchard has released his fourth solo album, The Power of Music. Bouchard, who plays with The X Brothers and Blue Coupe — the latter with former Alice Cooper bassist Dennis Dunaway — produced and appears to have played all the instruments on his record, which features a cover of his former band’s song, “Career...

Yousician has added support for bass guitar. The digital music education platform, which is available on desktop and mobile versions, teaches by listening to your playing and giving feedback. “The Yousician platform works by listening to users play a real instrument through the microphone of a desktop or handheld device, and uses gamification to deliver real-time feedback on a musician’s...

Arco aficionado Gaelen McCormick has expanded series of instructional books for the double bass with Mastering the Bow, Part 2: Spiccato. The book dives into the intricacies of spiccato strokes with elaborate definitions and examples. It’s designed to systematically build your technique with a variety of exercises and etudes, including those from the methods of Dotzauer, Kreutzer, Lee, Popper, Bille,...

As a part of Aerosmith, Tom Hamilton has held an important bass seat in the world of rock for decades. Now he’ll assuming another as the bassist for Thin Lizzy during their 2016 and 2017 reunion shows. “I’m really psyched to be playing these shows with Thin Lizzy during my downtime with Aerosmith this summer,” Hamilton stated. “It’ll be great...

If you’re into funk bass, you probably know the work of Doug Johns. However, you might not know Doug Johns as well as you think. That may change after a listen to his brand new album Vodka in the Woodpile. The bassist’s fifth solo album is described as his most autobiographical to date with a fresh approach added to his...

ZZ Top has been forced to cancel a string of tour dates after Dusty Hill injured his shoulder. The bearded bassist was preparing to take stage in Lubbock, Texas when he was tripped by an unlit step-up backstage. The band’s website explains that Hill has subsequently undergone treatment for a fractured shoulder. “My physicians told me that this type of...

London-based bass guitar and Chapman Stick player Simon Fitzpatrick has released his bass version of Gustav Holst’s classical work, The Planets Suite. The album features multilayered basses, with support from the Chapman Stick and Minitaur synthesizer. Check out Fitzpatrick, currently a regular member of Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy band, as he plays multiple basses on “Mercury, the Winged Messenger”: If...

The Yellowjackets have released their first album with Australian virtuoso bassist Dane Alderson. The album, Cohearence, features jazz fusion, a rendition of the folk song “Shenandoah,” and a closing track with a chamber-jazz feel. The band, which released its debut album under the Yellowjackets name in 1981 after forming in 1977 as the Robben Ford Group, introduced the music on...

A new book from Hal Leonard Corp. aims to help aspiring music artists. Five Star Music Makeover: The Independent Artist’s Guide for Singers, Songwriters, Bands, Producers, and Self-Publishers, written by five industry experts, covers five key skills: improving vocal production/technique, songwriting, recording an EP, music publishing, and promoting your music. The authors share industry insider stories, inspiration via celebrity interviews...

Interested in honing your skill with double bass scales? Bass educator and founder of Discover Double Bass, Geoff Chalmers has created a digital ebook and backing track package, Double Bass Scales: The Play-Along Collection. The package covers 17 different scale types in all 12 keys, over one and two octaves. The package includes 408 written scales and 800 backing tracks....

Guitarist Oz Noy, whose music blends jazz, funk, rock, blues and R&B, focuses on the funk this time around with the appropriately titled album, Who Gives a Funk. Bassist Will Lee, most well-known for his work in the bands for David Letterman’s late-night shows, and a longtime Noy collaborator, appears on the album, as does bassist Roscoe Beck (Robben Ford,...

Guitarist/vocalist Lita Ford, best-known for her time The Runaways (which also produced Joan Jett) and her solo career peak in the late 1980s, has released Time Capsule, an assortment of songs recorded with a host of famous friends back in the ’80s. Ford says she rediscovered the 24-track analog recordings in her Caribbean home. “This is some of the best...