The story of Gibson’s Thunderbird – the tricky, difficult but brilliant design that modernized bass guitar By Rod Brakes published 28 July 22 This Thumpin' Thursday, let’s go way back to trace the history of an iconic bass with a body shape that remains radical to this day
Best budget bass amps 2022: punchy low-end for a low price By Richard Blenkinsop published 26 July 22 Keep your low end punchy and your bank balance healthy with our pick of the best budget bass amps
Dave Young: “When you were forced to transcribe stuff from records, that taught you something. It developed your ear and your sense of songwriting” By Joel McIver published 13 July 22 The Canadian jazz bass stalwart reflects on his roots as a bass player, working with Oscar Peterson and what technology has taken from learners
Bassbaba Sumon on overcoming relentless setbacks, studying Stu Hamm and bringing Bengali scales to rock bass By Joel McIver published 11 July 22 The Bangladeshi bass icon has survived multiple bouts of cancer, a near-fatal road accident and a stroke, but is still performing at the top of his domestic music industry
Placebo’s Stefan Olsdal: “The moments we shared with Bowie, the titbits of advice – they’ve all stuck with us. Having him work with us gave us confidence to keep going” By Joe Shooman published 6 July 22 The British alt-rock stalwarts return with an album that started with a photograph. As Olsdal explains, the unorthodox approach soon made sense, reminding him why Placebo mattered in the first place
Mötley Crüe’s Nikki Sixx: “My job is to support the song and be super tight with my drummer. If there’s any room in there, I might throw in something melodic” By Hywel Davies published 4 July 22 The legendary Crüe and Sixx:AM bassist looks back on his musical journey and argues you can't get enough practice, nor can you go wrong when you let simple melodies serve the song
Khruangbin’s Laura Lee on visual identity, Zen Guitar and why she still plays her first bass By Ryan Madora published 28 June 22 The Khruangbin bassist/vocalist unpacks the Texan trio’s musical dynamic and explains why she wants their audience to “feel like they got slapped in the face in the best way possible”
5 albums you need to hear by bebop trailblazer Oscar Pettiford By Bass Player Staff published 27 June 22 A legend of upright bass who died far too young, Pettiford’s influence can still be heard across jazz and popular music. Here we revisit his finest moments on record
Best budget bass guitars 2022: our top pick of basses under $500/£500 By Richard Blenkinsop published 27 June 22 Need to tackle the low-end on a budget? Not to worry, we’ve compiled our list of the best bass guitars under $500/£500
Brazilian bass titan Junior Groovador on his bombastic playing, rocking Rio with Jack Black and channeling Rocky Balboa By Filipa Lobo Gaspar published 23 June 22 He is the ferocious bassist you’ve seen all over YouTube, possibly playing with Jack Black. No one knows his story outside Brazil, though – until now...
Paolo Gregoletto: “I’ve never needed a side project because Trivium play everything. We’re always trying to push ourselves” By Joe Shooman published 22 June 22 The Trivium bassist on Metallica's influence, live music, and how space, dynamics and an omnivorous approach to metal songwriting makes In The Court Of The Dragon sound so huge
John Illsley reflects on Dire Straits' stadium-rocking success, the pressure it put on Mark Knopfler, and tells us what makes a great bass part By Joe Shooman published 16 June 22 The bass player conquered the world with Dire Straits and as he reflects on his time in a new memoir, and a new solo album, he can say they survived: “We stayed intact, and stayed friends”
Sepultura’s Paulo Pinto Jr: “Just keep to the tempo on the bass drum and on the snare, so the guitars can breathe more and you’ll have more body in the song” By Hywel Davies published 15 June 22 Thrash bass legend Paulo Pinto Jr. on the epic all-star collaboration behind SepulQuarta, the gear behind his sound, and the art of nailing bass grooves at high tempo
Opeth’s Martín Méndez: “I use theory as a guide, but I trust my ears and ideas more… you have to understand why certain notes feel more beautiful or threatening” By Amit Sharma published 13 June 22 Méndez explains how the pandemic gave his new project White Stones some room to expand, and talks signature Sandbergs and the serious business of picking the right note
Rush’s Geddy Lee on A Farewell To Kings, Les Claypool the bassist, and what he thinks of Primus playing the album live in its entirety By Ellen O'Reilly, Joel McIver published 9 June 22 Playing A Farewell To Kings in full is not for the fainthearted. Even Geddy Lee, the man who recorded it, thought Les Claypool “was a little bit nuts” for attempting it
Eva Gardner: “I was the kid singing to Veruca Salt in 1994. Fast forward to 2005 and I was their bass player” By Joe Shooman published 6 June 22 The prolific bassist on receiving low-end lessons from her late father, her stellar session career so far and how the pandemic encouraged her complete her heavy-hitting new EP, Darkmatter
Les Claypool: “Singing Geddy Lee parts and playing bass, or just singing Geddy Lee parts period, is f**king hard, because it’s up in the upper stratosphere” By Ellen O'Reilly, Joel McIver published 1 June 22 Primus are currently on the road, playing the Rush album A Farewell To Kings in its entirety. We ask Claypool what made him embark on such a mad endeavor
Best gifts for bass players 2022: 10 of the ultimate gifts for bassists By Daryl Robertson published 1 June 22 Show your bass playing buddy you care with our pick of bass accessories, pedals and must-have items
Volbeat’s Kaspar Larsen: “We go from pop-punk to rockabilly to Black Sabbath on this album, and the bass is a big part of the sound” By Bass Player Staff published 31 May 22 The art of writing bass parts that are neither too experimental nor too boring, explained by Kaspar Larsen of Denmark’s premier rock exports, Volbeat
Nashville Pussy’s Bonnie Buitrago talks live albums, Larry Taylor’s influence, and playing through Kyuss’s Welcome to Sky Valley Ampeg SVT By Bass Player Staff published 26 May 22 Nashville Pussy’s bass powerhouse checks in for a roll call of bass amps she’s destroyed and how she swapped bedroom thrash for a life of punk rock
