No Treble Archive for October 5th

MXR is now shipping the Deep Phase Pedal, which they say delivers “uniquely expressive vintage phaser tones.” The stompbox works well on both bass and guitar.

Here’s a great video from back in the day, taken from Victor Wooten’s “Super Bass Solo Technique” DVD. In this clip, Vic and the band get funky on “Pretty Little Lady”.

Steve Rabe, founder and chief engineer of SWR Engineering, has passed away, his family announced. He was 73 years old.

The bass world lost a legend last week with the passing of Tower of Power bassist Francis “Rocco” Prestia. Now, a huge gathering of the bass community will be getting together to remember him.

Ever since restarting his business a few years ago, it’s been a blast to see Bud LeCompte’s new builds. One of his latest basses is a special JSS-4 he’s keeping for himself.

Leonid Vorobyev is back and branching out with a new cover. In this clip, his band Leonid & Friends takes on Black Russian’s “Leave Me Now,” featuring vocalist Ksenia Buzina.

Four years after joining the band’s latest reunion, Percy Jones has left the ranks of Brand X. The bassist, who co-founded the band in 1974, made the announcement on Facebook.

MXR has added to their Custom Shop fuzz lineup with the Brown Acid Fuzz, a pedal that “delivers psychedelic silicon saturation to guitar and bass players who like it low, slow, and heavy.”

Sam Wilkes is back in this new Scary Pockets video, which features Marcus Scott on vocals. Dig the band doing their thing on Elton John’s “Bennie and the Jets.”

Once again, a new album of jazz icon John Coltrane’s music has been unearthed and released to the public. “Blue World” features Trane’s classic quartet with McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, and Jimmy Garrison.

Orange Amplification has expanded their OBC line of bass cabinets with the OBC112. The 1×12 bass cab is constructed with 15mm birch ply to make it lightweight while packing a punch. “With rear porting and featuring a 400 Watt Lavoce Neodymium 12? bass speaker, the OBC112 produces a surprising amount of bottom end despite its modest size,” Orange writes. The...

I was lucky enough to catch Christian McBride’s New Jawn at Blues Alley in DC a couple weeks ago, and I’ve been reeling ever since. The band’s raw energy and unfettered power left me inspired (and waiting for their new album to drop). The New Jawn has no chordal instrument, leaving plenty of room for exploration and stretching. Consequently, it...

Lake Street Dive has announced a new set of tour dates that will take them into 2019. After covering the Northeast in November, the trek will head down the East Coast through the Carolinas and into Florida. The band, which is anchored by bass great Bridget Kearney, is touring in support of their latest album, Free Yourself Up. Check out...

Many people know Julie Slick as a virtuoso bassist and composer. Some know her best for her work in the progressive rock outfit, Adrian Belew Power Trio (yes, he of King Crimson fame). Her story is much deeper and more astonishing than you might imagine. From her humble beginnings at the genesis of School of Rock to her own projects...

Ever since Tom Petty passed away, I’ve been watching tons of his videos on YouTube. There are tons of great performances, but this Reverb.com interview with Heartbreakers bassist Ron Blair stuck out. Blair talks about how they figured out the melodic bass line to “American Girl” from the band’s self-titled debut. “[I started] to play all these things up high,...

Extended range bassist Jean Baudin has released his third solo bass album, entitled 2600. The bassist recorded the entire 27-track album using only his 11-string Kenneth Lawrence bass and a pedalboard. “Having recorded my previous two solo ‘bass’ albums with a strict set of boundaries (no overdubs or edits), I wanted to try something different for my third album,” Baudin...

Mojo Hand FX has introduced the Wonder Filter Envelope, an effects pedal inspired by a ’70s classic with modern updates. The Wonder Filter is fully analog, true bypass, and hand-assembled in the United States. Its controls include Peak and Gain as well as Range and Drive switches found on the original. The original features include a Mode selector switch that...

Q: I’m just starting out and was wondering if you had any tips for memorizing the fingerboard? A: This is one of those columns where I need to preface my answer by saying “your mileage may vary.” Personally, I was lucky. I started working on reading notation from day one. I still think that reading music is the best way...

As bass players, we know the groove is paramount. That’s why this clip of Foley laying down a killer bass line while drum master Chris Dave changes the feel over and over is incredible. Foley, who played with Miles Davis from 1987 to 1991, gets into a trance on his line while Dave and saxophonist Zhenya Strigalev play with and...

California hardcore punk band Suicidal Tendencies has released its first studio album in three years, World Gone Mad. The album, the band’s twelfth studio album, includes Ra Diaz (Drogatones, Tiro de Gracia and Ritmo Machine) on bass. Diaz talked about his career and joining Suicidal Tendencies on No Treble in July. The lineup also includes frontman Mike ‘Cyco Miko’ Muir,...

Roger Sadowsky and his crew have been making some of the world’s best basses for decades, and bass #7210 is another fine example. The instrument is one of the company’s 21-fret standard style five-stringers with some gorgeous styling. “It’s what we classify as Standard Style, which means no pickguard or control plate,” Sadowsky Shop Manager Lisa Hahn tells us. That...

I received the following question this week from a concerned double bassist: “How can I keep from having memory slips on stage?” Even experienced performers may have the occasional memory faux pas on stage. However, there are some things we can do to minimize the risk. Be prepared early. The earlier you can play something from memory in the practice...

It has been a long time since we featured a video with bassist Dave Marks. Time to correct that. Dave just sent me a video with a newer project, Harmless Funk – a jazz/funk quintet he’s been playing with this year. Here they are doing one of the all-time great funk instrumental tunes – the Meters’ “Cissy Strut”.

It’s been five years since the last Widespread Panic album. The jam band has returned with Street Dogs, which was recorded live in the studio — a first for the group. The band’s sound, as always, is eclectic, with founding member Dave Schools playing the “lead bass” he’s known for. Street Dogs, the band’s 12th studio album, combines originals and...

Besides bass, a common thread in this week’s top 10 list seems to be groove. And that’s just fine with us. Plus, a top 10 list inside a top 10 list. Also fine by us. Here are the top 10 most popular stories and videos for No Treble readers for the week of September 27 – October 3, 2014. Thanks...

Radial Engineering has introduced the Stagebug SB-48UB, a phantom power supply for use with a condenser microphone. Aiming the device at double bassists who utilize mics in their setup, the company explains the new box supplies microphones with 48 volt phantom power and outputs an unbalanced signal that is more appropriate for use in a standard preamp. The SB-48UB is...

After filling in for bassist Paul DiLeo for several months, bassist Jeff Rouse is now a permanent member of Fozzy. The rock band, fronted by WWE star Chris Jericho, announced the news in a press release. “Jeff is an incredible musician and singer who has spent the last decade playing in Duff McKagan’s Loaded and is also the lead singer...

Our Facebook friend Tanner Feazell sent us a clip of the experimental rock group The Physics House Band performing their song “Teratology.” The group’s bold sound is held together by bassist Adam Hutchinson, who throws in some nasty fills between grooves. “I stumbled upon these guys today and loved it! Hope you guys enjoy it, too,” Feazell wrote. And we...

Wow. Flying Colors kicks into the second song of its second album, , with a big ol’ blast of bass, courtesy of Dave LaRue. Just check out “Mask Machine” in the video we featured yesterday. Flying Colors is the creation of former Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, LaRue and guitarist Steve Morse (both known for their work in the Dixie...

Reed James Custom Pickups has released the new RJ NEO Vintage Vibe Noiseless Jazz Bass Pickup, a single coil pickup that mixed modern and vintage tone with noiseless operation. The Vintage Vibe incorporates exposed poles that are individually charged by small neodymium magnets. Reed James’ RJ NEO Vintage Vibe Noiseless Jazz Bass Pickups come standard in four and five-string sets...

If you’ve ever had the chance to meet Victor Wooten in person, you know that he’s much more than just a phenomenal musician. On Victor’s Words and Tones/Sword and Stone tour last summer, I got the the chance to introduce my daughters to him. He invited us to hang out on the tour bus for what ended up being an...

Metallica: Through The Never is now showing at theaters across the U.S. Part concert, part action, the film centers around a roadie named Trip who is sent out to recover a mystery item during the band’s sold-out arena performance. His journey takes a drastic turn when he’s involved in a car accident and subsequently finds himself in a surreal, apocalyptic...

Genz Benz has introduced the NX2 series of cabinets including the NX2-212T and NX2-112T. The new line follows up on the company’s NeoX cabinets, offering improvements like proprietary neodymium loudspeakers and a new cabinet design to add strength and reduce weight. Furthermore, they feature Dual Edge “X” porting, which Genz Benz explains helps to increase low-frequency support and projection. Both...

Atlanta-based bassist Darren Michaels is helping to expand the role of our instrument. With extended techniques and an open mind, Michaels has been finding new sounds to convey his music in both band and solo contexts, though he dislikes the term “solo bass.” It’s not the technique that drives him, but the connection of music with his listeners that makes...

Evan Brewer just put out a new video of a song he’s working on for his next solo release. Brewer utilizes a 5-string bass tuned EADGC and plays some some pretty wicked tapping on the untitled track. In our recent interview, Brewer described his new material as “super erratic,” adding that he was hoping to finish up the material this...

For many fans, this is a story of “too little, too late”, but the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has finally taken a step to putting Rush and Deep Purple into the Hall. The two bands, plus Public Enemy and N.W.A. are first time ballots, along with 11 other groups returning once again for consideration. Fans of Rush and...

Source Audio has added to their line of bass pedals with the release of the Programmable EQ Pedal, a compact, cast aluminum stompbox offering hands-free access to four unique and user-programmed EQ settings. The Programmable EQ offers +/-18db of range across seven frequency bands with an additional frequency band at 62Hz, which is accessible with the device’s Octave Extend function....

Q: I keep hearing bassists talk about muscle memory. What is that? A: Good question! And one that can open up a bigger discussion on the purpose of daily practice. First, let’s look at the Wikipedia definition of muscle memory, which is a good one: “Muscle memory has been used synonymously with motor learning, which is a form of procedural...

People (us included), really really dug the last video we featured by the Tedeschi Trucks Band, thanks in big part to the awesomeness of bassist Oteil Burbridge. So, here’s another, shot at the same concert, with Warren Haynes and David Hidalgo (Los Lobos) joining in this time around. Sit back and enjoy.

Duff McKagan has chronicled his life and incredible career in his new memoir, It’s So Easy: And Other Lies, available now. The ex-Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver bassist, who recently launched a wealth management firm, tells of his big break, struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, and return to sobriety into the present. “This is just my story,” the...

Meet Paul Vienneau, a bassist from Nova Scotia, and our player in the spotlight for October 5th, 2010. Bio: I come from a musical family and started bass at 12 years old, after playing drums for four years. My older brother introduced me to jazz, fusion, funk, etc., while my friends and I listened to AC/DC, Rush, KISS, etc. I’m...

Empire, the latest from Scott Colley, is a very special record and must be a front runner for jazz record of the year. Colley has carefully assembled a great team of musicians to interpret his compositions. Empire builds a range of sustained moods and often intense and slow-building, burning grooves. There’s more than a hint of Americana of the kind...

Here’s a clip of Tony Franklin playing one of his original songs at Bass Bash in 2006, accompanied by guitarist Greg Koch and drummer John Calarco.

Black Label Society / Megadeth bassist James LoMenzo will replace Billy Sheehan for the upcoming benefit concert for the newly created Marky Ramone Drum Scholarship. Sheehan has had to pull out of the event due to commitments in Europe. “I’m a real big fan of the Ramones, and this was unexpected,” Sheehan said “Good luck on this amazing concert!” The...

New York’s Iridium Jazz Club has announced Jacofest, a four-night concert event honoring the late, great Jaco Pastorius. Bassists Victor Bailey and T.M. Stevens will be performing with many of Jaco’s former bandmates and colleagues, including trumpeters Miles Evans and Lew Soloff, saxophonists Alex Foster and Butch Thomas, trombonist David Bargeron, keyboardists Gil Goldstein and Delmar Brown, guitarist Billy “Spaceman”...

All musicians benefit from practice with a metronome, yet many, if not most, musicians tend to avoid it some or all the time. The metronome can feel like a scolding tyrant reminding us of our incompetence, or maybe we want to get through our work quickly without the discipline of methodical practice, or maybe we believe that the metronome is...

We frequently see bassist Christian McBride playing the upright, but can he ever play on the bass guitar. Check out this video of McBride taking a solo during a live performance of the Jaco Pastorius tune “Havona”, with the Christan McBride Band. McBride has three bass guitars that he currently uses: first a Pensa 4-string fretless maple neck, an Atelier...

In case you missed it, here are the No Treble highlights from the week of September 27th, 2009. We added a new Lessons section! Jon Burr‘s latest lesson focuses on the Stance on the Upright Bass. Donovan Stokes latest Lowdown with Dr. D. column, Making the Switch from Electric to Upright, Part 2, focuses on the right hand. Damian Erskine...