News - Page 416

South African rockers Seether have announced an extensive spring tour schedule spanning the U.S. East Coast and Midwest. The trek comes in support of their upcoming album, Holding on to Strings Better Left to Fray, available May 24. Bassist Dale Stewart explains the new record mixes it up by featuring writing contributions from the whole group, but still has the...

The jam masters in Phish have announced a string of summer tour dates spanning the East Coast, starting in Bethel, New York and snaking down to Georgia before finishing up at Portsmouth, Virginia’s Ntelos Wireless Pavilion. The tour will come hot on the heels of bassist Mike Gordon’s solo tour, which wraps up in late March. The tour is a...

After appearing on a couple dates of Prince’s “Welcome 2 America” tour, Larry Graham has announced a string of initial US concerts for his band, Graham Central Station. Though the calendar only includes six dates, the slap bass pioneer posted on his website, sharing the “Funk Around the World” Tour will soon include more shows, including stops at cities around...

Tower of Power, the powerhouse funk and soul band anchored by bassist and original member Rocco Prestia is releasing their long-anticipated 40th Anniversary concert footage. The two disc (CD and DVD) release features the band performing live at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco, recorded in October, 2008. The DVD includes bonus footage, including the “East Bay Tour”, with original...

Alligator Records is celebrating its 40th anniversary by releasing a special 2-disc set showcasing the Chicago-based blues label’s past and present talents, ranging from Koko Taylor to Tinsley Ellis. The 38-track collection is a chockfull of great bass grooves and tones, including the songs “Daddy Pinocchio” by William Clarke, “You Can’t Judge a Book By The Cover” by Roy Buchanan,...

Bassist Bunny Brunel has announced the release of the latest CAB album, Live on Sunset. The lineup for this live performance includes Brunel on bass, Virgil Donati on drums, long-time CAB member Tony MacAlpine on guitar and Dennis Hamm on keys. Recorded live at SIR in Hollywood on November 14, 2010, Live on Sunset features new material. The album is...

Radiohead’s newest album, King of Limbs, is now available for download, with physical copies to be released in retail stores on March 28. The release was announced less than a week ago, and in fact was released a day earlier than previously stated. Colin Greenwood’s bass and synth bass hold down the abstract collection of songs, which feature intense polyrhythms...

New Wave rockers The Cars have reformed to record new material for the first time since their split in 1988, though the group will be missing bassist/vocalist Benjamin Orr, who died of cancer in 2000. Co-founder Ric Ocasek told Rolling Stone that, “This is not a reunion – it’s more like a conjunction. I never thought I’d make another Cars...

Bassist Bernhard Lackner has released a new instructional book, Plucking Hand Workout For Electric Bass, featuring 200 exercises on 2-finger right hand technique. Written in both standard notation and tablature, the book focuses on developing your plucking hand in order to improve your overall technique, tone and musicianship. The exercises start at the beginning with quarter notes and work up...

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Gerald Veasley‘s popular Bass Boot Camp, and the bassist has just announced that Rhonda Smith will be joining the instructor line up. In addition to Veasley and Smith, the 2011 camp instructors include Adam Nitti, Jimmy Haslip, Anthony Wellington, David Dyson, Bryan Beller and Richard Waller. The camp runs from March 25 through...

Mr. Big has announced the North American release of their seventh full-length studio album, What If. The album, previously released in Europe, is the first all-original album since the band’s four original members – bassist Billy Sheehan, vocalist Eric Martin, guitarist Paul Gilbert and drummer Pat Torpey – reunited in 2009. What If was recorded in September and October 2010...

After a long wait, the Lemmy documentary has been released on DVD. The nearly two-hour film, which took about four years to make, gives an unprecedented look into the life of rock icon and Motörhead bassist/frontman Lemmy Kilmister. Originally screened at last year’s South by Southwest festival, the documentary includes interviews with Metallica, Dave Grohl, Ozzy Osbourne, Slash, and more...