No Treble Archive for May 27th

Dywane “MonoNeon” Thomas has been pumping out new music for years. Although he has quite a catalog to dig through, his latest full-length album, “Supermane”, is undoubtedly one of his best. We caught up with him to get the scoop.

We’re huge fans of Darryl Anders and his band, AgapeSoul, here at NT HQ. So it was exciting to see this new video he just dropped featuring the song, “Nobody But You”. Maysa Leak is on vocals on this one, and it is just perfect all around.

Icelandic composer and bassist Skúli Sverrisson has teamed up with guitar wizard Bill Frisell to release “Strata”. Previously released exclusively on vinyl, the duo album features ten hypnotic original compositions by Sverrisson.

Steve Bailey and Victor Wooten are continuing their Zoom webinar series this week with a roundtable of rock legends. The free event takes place tomorrow and will feature Justin Chancellor, Mike Gordon, Stefan Lessard, and Mike Inez.

When you do the math, it doesn’t seem like the 13 Cordas duo adds up. A mandolin and a bass should have twelve strings. However, Rafael Marques plays a 10-string mandolin and bassist Walter Areia plays a three-string upright. Here’s their video for “Ócios do Ofício.”

After forming in 2018, bassist Ryan Stasik and Doom Flamingo have released their first album, simply entitled “Doom”. The synthwave rock band takes a darker turn on the album, although it still keeps things pretty upbeat.

Shinedown bassist Eric Bass has been forced to leave the band’s current tour due to medical reasons. The news came in a Twitter video from the group.

This week we’re taking a look at a short scale bass from Kinal Guitars called the Kompact 4. Luthier Michael Kinal builds the scaled-down hollow body with a variety of woods.

Doug Berns sent us this video of his excellent all-bass cover of Seal’s “Kiss from a Rose.” Doug shared: “Colored it up with some chorus, reverb and a light octave. Beautiful melody, gorgeous tune!!”

The Stray Cats are back! The classic rockabilly band has just released a new album called “40” that celebrates forty years since the group’s inception - and their first record in 26 years.

If you or someone you know is learning the bass, then you’ll want to check out the Fret Zealot for bass. The Fret Zealot is a paper-thin LED strip that installs onto a four-string bass and lights up your frets to teach you single notes all the way up to full songs. It can even listen for the correct note...

Diego Tarantino always impresses us with his videos. He’s shared a few new ones with us recently, and I really dig this one. Diego arranged Kurt Rosenwinkel’s “Use of Light” as a bass showcase. He plays both electric and double bass in the video (and piano).

Saxophonist Ted Nash has released Live At Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, which marks his first live album in 25 years. Wielding the sax, clarinet, flute, and piccolo, the jazz composer gets to show off his improv chops in a smaller ensemble (opposed to his big band charts) with his close musical friends. Legendary bassist Rufus Reid anchors the album. “It was...

Japan’s Providence Effects has released a new comprehensive effects switching unit for the bass called the Bass FX Console BFX-1. The new bass switcher is fitted with an on-board preamp, the company’s Vitalizer B buffer, and an XLR direct output. “The Bass FX Console BFX-1 enables the player’s favorite pedals with one action without interrupting technical performance,” Providence writes. “A...

I really enjoyed Kevin’s recent interview with Mai Agan. Among the topics they discussed was her work with the legendary David Crosby. “Croz is on fire! I mean, he is singing really really good. He is a happy man, and you can hear it in his music,” she said. “On Sky Trails there are songs that he has co-written with...

Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch and Arts Center has announced its lineup of bass workshops for 2016, and it’s bound to be a good year. Kaukonen’s Hot Tuna partner and regular FPR educator Jack Casady will return while bassists Kai Eckhardt and Bobby Vega will teach their own workshops this summer and fall. First up will be Eckhardt, who will...

There’s nothing like being in a symphony hall and experiencing the sound of a double bass. The tone of the instrument is enhanced by the beauty of the room and the reverence for hundreds of years of Western musical culture. The low, resonant notes fill the space like fresh coffee being poured into your favorite mug; they are rich and...

Today we’re celebrating the birthday of one of the greats – Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen – who was born on this day in 1946. Here’s the bass great performing “Oleo” with guitarist Joe Pass on October 24, 1992 at the Jazz Baltica festival in Germany. Happy birthday, NHØP. You are missed!

Bassist Dave Bronze, who appeared on Eric Clapton’s 1994 and 1998 albums From the Cradle and Pilgrim, has re-teamed with the guitar great for Clapton’s latest studio record, I Still Do. The new album featuring Bronze (Robin Trower, Art of Noise, Procol Harum, Dr. Feelgood) sees Clapton working with another old collaborator, producer Glyn Johns, who was at the helm...

Q: I’ve been studying for a while now, and I’ve been practicing my scales and modes as much as possible over changes. I’ve also been working through arpeggios, including the methods you talk about in your Improvisor’s Path book. For example, I’ll work arpeggios through tunes in different inversions and so on. However, when I go to solo freely over...

Tavis Smiley hosted Wayne Shorter and Esperanza Spalding on his PBS show. Described as a “3 camera 1 take no editing experience,” here is their performance.

Jazz/metal band Mörglbl has released its latest album, Tea Time for Punks. It’s the sixth full-length studio album for the French band featuring Ivan Rougny on bass, Christope Godin on guitar and Aurelian Ouzoulias on drums. The group’s sound merges metal chords, jazz, and humor to arrive at something that evokes artists as disparate as Steve Vai, Allan Holdsworth, and...

Meet Sam Lord a musician from the UK who has had a bass in his hands pretty much since the day he was born. So it is no surprise he’s been one of the youngest bassists around his local scene. Sam is No Treble’s reader in the spotlight for the week of May 26th, 2014. Bio: I grew up in...

Here’s a new slap bass lesson for you to try out to incorporate cross-string hammer-ons into your playing. We’ll practice this with a line I put together in the key of E. In the video below, I play the line at full tempo, followed by half speed and finally super slow speed. Follow along with the video and this transcription...

I love discovering new artists, and it’s even better when a No Treble reader shares something with us. Justin Barker dropped me a line about bassist Dave McMillan of Big Wreck. “Just heard the single ‘Ghosts’ from a band called Big Wreck,” he wrote. “It’s pretty rare to me that a bass player from what I’d consider a ‘mainstream’ act...

The Roots’ latest, is one of the group’s shortest efforts while still being a conceptual piece focusing on self-destructive cycles. With the low end provided by bassist Mark Kelley, the record is a deep, different offering from the group, which is now on its 14th album. The group’s drummer and bandleader Questlove even goes so far as to call it...

Molten Voltage has released the OZ Looper Controller, a pedal that works in tandem with the Strymon Timeline Delay to offer advanced use of its MIDI capabilities. The OZ connects with a single MIDI cable to access and control the TimeLine’s Reverse, Half-Speed/Double-Speed, Undo, and Redo functions. The OZ also has single-press, soft-touch recording and play back, meaning that you...

If you lead your own project, Set List Maker is probably going to be a game changer for you. If you’re like me, getting organized for a gig means being strapped to your desk with iTunes open, messing around with a playlist of all of your tunes, desperately playing with various song orders, playing the beginning and end of tunes...

The one man band known as Zander Zon has turned in another exceptional video, this time performing his tune, “Oracles of Her”. The song is from Zander’s album Saturn Return (also check out the Track by Track feature on that album). In the Track by Track feature, Zander shared that the tune spanned his musical years, with a nod to...

Electronica duo Daft Punk have taken a turn towards humanity with their latest album, Random Access Memories, which almost exclusively uses live instrumentation. The 13-track effort brings together a spectacular cast of guest musicians including Julian Casablancas, Pharrell Williams, Paul Williams, Nile Rodgers, Chilly Gonzalez and others. “Making music with musicians and bringing back a certain craftsmanship, that was totally...

We’d heard rumors about this, and now a report has come out via USA Today confirming what we’ve been hearing: a film about Jaco Pastorius has been in development, and it is being financed by Metallica’s Robert Trujillo. Trujillo, you may remember, has another tie to Jaco, having purchased Jaco’s Bass of Doom a year ago, years after it had...

Dean Markley has expanded their Helix series strings with a signature set for Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx. Used by the man himself, the Nikki Sixx Helix HD SS Bass Strings are made of a special stainless steel alloy that the company says has an “inherent bright and cutting timbre.” Following the line, the new set of strings is constructed...

I hope you’re enjoying your Sunday. Here’s something from bassist/vocalist Amy LaVere and her trio to make it even better.

Today, we celebrate the birthday of one of the greats: Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen. NHØP, as we all like to call him, started out on piano but thankfully picked up the bass at age 14. He went on to have a major impact on the instrument, expanding on the work of another bass innovator, Scott LaFaro. From the 1960’s until his...

Ex-Deep Purple and current Black Country Communion bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes is getting his own radio show on Planet Rock starting Sunday June 5th at 6pm GMT. Throughout the program, Hughes will be playing his favorite songs as well as telling stories from his incredible 40-year career including tales with and about Black Sabbath, Dio, David Coverdale, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie,...

In light of the devastating storms that have ravaged the South, the punk rockers of Against Me! are auctioning a brand new Fender Roger Waters Signature Precision bass with all proceeds being donated to the Alabama Red Cross. The bass is signed by all the members including Andrew Seward, who has close ties to Alabama. “I grew up in Huntsville,...

Here’s a great little jam with bassist Jayme Lewis and drummer Voyce McGinley III. Jayme wrote the tune, and plays both 4- and 5-string basses on it. The 4-string is a tenor bass. Thanks to Flemming, who shared this video.

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...

Aguilar Amplification is announcing a new addition to their new line of effects, the AGRO bass overdrive pedal. The AGRO is based on the saturation channel of Aguilar’s AG 500 bass head to bring warm, tube-like overdrive to full distortion. The pedal consists of a 4-knob layout, allowing control over saturation, contour, presence and output level. Features: Separate Saturation and...

Amplification can be confusing to a newbie coming from a combo amp. If you are new to amps and cabs, this article should be helpful in explaining what speaker impedance is, and how it works with your amp head. You may also want to read my previous article, “Decoding Graphic Equalizers: Get Past ‘Scooping’ Your Tone”, for some more helpful...

Low Notes for Nashville, who formed three weeks ago in response to the floods in Nashville, Tennessee, have announced a benefit concert to continuing the fundraising efforts for area musicians impacted by the flooding. Bassist Steve Bailey will headline the event, which takes place on June 17th at 8:00pm. The show will be hosted by the organization’s co-founders, Sean O’Bryan...

The Pat Metheny Group did a tune on their first album, (1978), named after Jaco Pastorius. This is an early version of the song from 1977 and features Mark Egan on the fretless bass.

Sex Pistols founder Glen Matlock will be filling in on bass for the reunion of classic Brit rock band the Faces. The punk legend will be taking the place of original Faces bass player Ronnie Lane, who passed away in 1997. The rest of the reunited band includes original members Ronnie Wood on guitar, drummer Kenney Jones, and keyboardist Ian...

The Gary Burton Quartet has announced tour dates in support of their just-released album, Quartet Live. The quartet consists of leader/vibraphonist Gary Burton, bassist Steve Swallow, guitarist Pat Metheny, and drummer Antonio Sanchez. Tour Schedule: June 19th at the Calvin Theatre in Northhampton, MA (413-586-8686) June 20th at the Berklee Performance Center in Boston, MA (617-747-2261) June 21st at the...

Check out Les Claypool and Primus taking Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” in a direction only they can:

David Ellefson‘s Rock Shop Webisode continues with “Best Case Scenarios”, with a focus on how he travels with his gear. Travel is on David’s mind these days, as he kicks off the tour with his band, Hail!