News - Page 399

After years of anticipation, we now have a confirmed release date for the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album after Flea broke the news via his Twitter account. “It gives me profound pleasure deep in the fiber of my being to announce the August 30 release date of the new red hot chili peppers’s record,” the bassist announced, later tweeting...

BOSS is once again holding a competition for looping artists with the kick off of the BOSS Loop Station World Championship 2. The contest runs from now until August 31, 2011 and is open to bassists and all other looping artists in the U.S. Entrants must submit a video performance and use one of BOSS’s RC-series looping devices. The company...

This year marks the 55th anniversary of Walter Höfner’s 500/1 Höfner Violin Bass, made famous by Paul McCartney and dubbed by many as the “Beatle bass”. Author Joe Dunn has updated his guide to the bass, with the 2011 edition of Höfner Violin “Beatle” Bass, the only one dedicated to the instrument. The updated edition is an all-color, hardcover book...

Furthur, featuring former Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh and guitarist Bob Weir, have announced a summer tour spanning July 14-31. The group will be starting in West Virginia at the All Good Festival, making their way up and down the East Coast, eventually landing at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, Georgia. Besides All Good, Furthur will be playing the...

Bassist/composer/arranger Petros Klampanis has released his debut album, Contextual, on Inner Circle Music. The ten track collection includes a mix of original compositions and covers, including a rousing rendition of the Beatles’ “Blackbird,” featuring the vocals by Gretchen Parlato. Klampanis also tackles electric bassist Gary Willis’ “The Necessary Blonde” with a string quartet arrangement. Among the bassist’s original tunes is...

Sylvan Bolduc has released Groove 101, an instructional book and audio DVD containing 260 grooves and exercises to teach just about every musical style. Written in musical notation and tabs, the 90-page book aims to also improve your overall groove and “inner clock.” Included with the audio examples are detailed listings of each bass used, including a 1969 Precision, 1969...

Warner Bros. is re-issuing the 1986 Miles Davis hit album, Tutu, in a new deluxe edition. The album, which features considerable work by bassist/multi-instrumentalist Marcus Miller. This was Davis’ first release with Warner Bros., after he shocked the music world by ending a 30 year relationship with Columbia. The backstory behind this album is interesting. The album was originally titled...

The fifth annual New Hampshire Bass Festival has been announced for June 15th through the 18th. The four day event, which takes place in Manchester, New Hampshire, is a mixture of school and festival as 16 clinicians from around the globe present classes from 9am to 6pm each day. The NHBF is directed by Berklee bass and arranging professor Jim...

Columbia Legacy is releasing the combined work of former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters, in a box set dubbed The Roger Waters Collection. The set includes all of the bassist’s solo work, including The Pros And Cons Of Hitch-Hiking (1984), Radio Kaos (1987) Amused To Death (1992), In The Flesh (2000) and Ca Ira (2005) on seven CDs. A DVD...

Legendary British metal group Judas Priest has announced the U.S. tour dates on their Epitaph tour, which they say will be their final world tour. The 20-date excursion includes four shows in Canada, with most dates spread across the U.S. Though most of the concerts are planned for the West Coast, more dates are expected to be announced. Bassist Ian...

Melvin Lee Davis has released Genre: Music, an album that stands to defy singular musical styles. The bassist, who also produced the record, enlisted the help of many of his friends, including drummer Ron Bruner, Jr., Lakin, Oscar Seaton, Jesse Milliner, Jeff Babko and more. As the title suggests, the 14 tracks are a unique blend of styles that the...

Bassist Alberto Rigoni has released his second solo album, Rebirth, on Nightmare Records. The 9-track set sees Rigoni flexing his compositional muscles with compelling tunes that range from ambient grooves to full-on prog-rock jams. Rigoni, who is also a member of Twinspirits and Lady & The Bass, enlisted the help of fellow bassists Michael Manring and Yves Carbonne on a...