Latest articles by Nick Wells
Geezer Butler gets a limited-edition combo and Dingwall honors a modern metal great in July’s biggest bass releases
From classic heavy-metal thunder to the soulful tones of reggae, these are the bass releases putting some serious weight behind July’s gear calendar
Why Bad Brains icon Darryl Jenifer traded punk for instrumental jazz – without changing his bass
The Bad Brains bassist discusses his new jazz album and why decades with one instrument taught him that great tone starts in your fingertips
How a forgotten 1969 Jazz Bass became the go-to studio instrument for one of London’s top session bassists
Sam Dixon’s bass collection also includes a 1967 Silverstone Dolphin, a Harmony H2 from 1964, and a pre-CBS Fender P-Bass
How Jefferson Airplane's Jack Casady wound up recording one of Jimi Hendrix's greatest studio jams
Jack Casady recalls the late-night studio session that became Hendrix's legendary Electric Ladyland recording
How a revolutionary amp nearly derailed the Rolling Stones’ 1969 US tour
The Stones bet big on Ampeg’s all-new SVT. And the gamble paid off… until one night it didn't
How an off-the-cuff studio experiment unlocked one of Mastodon’s biggest bass sounds
Troy Sanders discovered an unexpected source of low-end fury thanks to a Marshall guitar head and 4x12 cabinet
How Troy Sanders landed one of metal’s greatest bassists for a guest spot on Mastodon’s new album
Marrow Deep features an unexpected low-end hero – and according to Troy Sanders, it's the album’s defining bass performance
How Flea accidentally wrote one of his funkiest basslines
What began as absent-minded noodling became an enduring Red Hot Chili Peppers classic
How Dimebag Darrell pushed Pantera bassist Rex Brown to his limit
Rex Brown looks back on the sonic arms race inside Pantera – and the Ampeg rig that tipped the balance in his favor
How Victor Wooten created one of the most groundbreaking bass albums ever recorded – and won over Anthony Jackson
Victor Wooten looks back on his debut release, which attained cult status through word-of-mouth and bootlegging way before it was ever on sale
Robert Plant bassist Viktor Krauss on the genius of the legendary frontman – and the inspiration he gets from his sister Alison
Few bassists can match the pedigree of Viktor Krauss, thanks to his session work with the likes of Lyle Lovett, Bill Frisell, Robert Plant, James Taylor and just about everyone else
How Michael Anthony went from playing backyard parties to sellout crowds with Van Halen
From humble beginnings to one of rock’s biggest bands, Michael Anthony revisits the defining moments of his Van Halen story
Ernie Ball and Fender top this month's low-end releases with signature models celebrating two of the bass world’s most influential voices
John Myung’s new artist model kicks off another stacked month of bass releases, alongside an eye-catching Squier, a semi-acoustic Rickenbacker, and a raft of player-friendly upgrades
How Marla Kether landed the Little Simz gig and made her debut on the UK’s biggest festival stage
The London-born bassist, DJ and producer enjoyed a baptism of fire on the Pyramid Stage – now her solo work brings her Afro-Brazilian influences to the fore as she plans her next step
A guide to the basses, amps, and signature tone of Jefferson Airplane bassist Jack Casady
From his early-‘60s Jazz Bass to a Flying V, Jack Casady was among the first to embrace custom bass builds – and it changed his tone forever
How a late-night drinking session with Lars Ulrich almost ruined Robert Trujillo’s Metallica audition
Robert Trujillo was announced as Metallica's new bassist on February 24, 2003, following a two-day try-out for the metal giants
Jeff Berlin on meeting his bass hero – and playing White Room alongside him
According to bass virtuoso Jeff Berlin, Jack Bruce is still the bass guitar’s most underrated innovator
“David Bowie didn’t even show up”: Herbie Flowers on the making of Lou Reed’s Walk On the Wild Side
Having recorded over 20,000 sessions for the likes of David Bowie, Dusty Springfield, T.Rex, Paul McCartney and Elton John, Brian ‘Herbie’ Flowers was not your average bassist
The notorious final tour of the Zappa band, and his bassist’s role in its demise
Though many regard the 1988 lineup as one of Zappa’s most musically formidable bands, the tour ended in disaster, with Zappa returning home, never to tour again
Les Claypool’s bonkers one-string leads the biggest (and strangest) bass releases of the month
May saw the reissue of Fender's best-selling bass, a custom Rickenbacker for Geddy Lee, and a supersized version of the daddy of all fuzz
How Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood went from Sikth super-fan to playing in the band
Former bassist for Periphery, Getgood pinpoints the pickup selection and pick technique he’s been using onstage with Sikth
How John Paul Jones became Led Zeppelin’s ultimate wingman
Armed with years of experience as a session bassist and arranger – having worked with the Yardbirds, Jeff Beck and the Rolling Stones – John Paul Jones could do it all
How bassist Cliff Williams landed the gig (and found his sound) with AC/DC
When he joined AC/DC in 1977, Cliff Williams played a Fender Precision, but made a permanent change following the band's Highway to Hell album
