Contents

Issue 59 October 2010

20 MATT
GARRISON
Mike Flynn chats to Matt about his
groundbreaking new solo project

Regulars Interviews
08 THE LOW DOWN
Keep up with all the latest new gear and
industry news…

14 BASS TO THE FUTURE:

ZANDER ZON
Introducing solo bass specialist, Zander Zon

16 TAKE FIVE: JOHN ‘RHINO’

EDWARDS
Still rocking all over the world, the Status Quo
bassist reveals his top five albums

18 BASSICALLY SPEAKING
We talk to Marcus Keenan, Adam Irwin, Markus
Laakso, Simon Wright, Matt Armstrong and
Frédéric Leclercq

BassicallySpeaking

Bassically Speaking
BassicallySpeaking

26 FREEBASS
Bassists tell us what they do in a minute or less!
Peter Hook, Mani and Andy Rourke have joined
Simon
Wright
forces to create the ultimate bass supergroup
65days Marcus Keenan
ofstatic e Hundred Days
© FRANK WHITE

Everything I play is really

quite basic – root notes,

32 JON THORNE
I started playing upright bass and tuba in an orchestra when I
power chords and so on. I use was a kid. I picked those instruments because they were big, loud
Adam Irwin Black Spiders
an ESP LTD EC-254AT with and looked cool. Later I switched to electric bass and continued
EMG pickups. It’s beaten and playing the tuba in orchestras. Around this time, my dad brought
battered at the edges, but well home a drum set that he won in a poker game and gave it to my
Matt Armstrong, Murder By Death loved. My rig is an SWR 750X
amp and an Ampeg 8x10”
I don’t play 5-string basses. You can do everything you need to
do with four strings; in fact, at a push I could probably manage
twin brother. We played together every day, never really saying
a word. We learnt to communicate with each other through our
cab. The only effects I use live with three! Anything more is superfluous and, frankly, showing instruments – communication is key. I play a Fender Jazz into an
The secret of playing bass well Precision, a modified 70s John Curley (Afghan Whigs), off. My main bass is a Marcus Miller series Fender Jazz, and I

AND DANNY THOMPSON

are a Boss Equalizer pedal and Ampeg SVT Classic with an 8x10” cab; the range of the 4-string
is knowing your job in the Precision, an Epiphone Jack Dominic Aitchison (Mogwai), have a standard Jazz as a spare. I play them through a clone of a
a Fulltone Mosfet Bass-Drive. bass is completely suitable for the style of music I play. I played
band. Sometimes it’s OK to Casady and a Michael Kelly Greg Edwards (Failure) and Brassmaster octave fuzz pedal, built by our guitarist Ozzy, into
For the last record I spent a 5-string briefly and realised that I wasn’t using the extra range
be upfront, but a lot of times acoustic/electric. I currently Eric Abert (The Life and a Bugera BVP 5500 amp and an 8x10” Peavey cab. My first bass
some time playing with an of the instrument, because it made everything sound too heavy.
you just need to be there to play through an Ampeg SVT-4 Times), but I was reminded was a very cheap Jazz copy by a company I’ve never heard of
Electro-Harmonix POG. When I first started playing I was completely blown away by
keep things from falling apart. Pro head. I use an Ampeg 8x10” recently that the greatest bass before, or since, called Legend. When I first started playing I was
Together with the Bass-Drive slapping. I ended up just spending hours in the bedroom slapping
What you don’t play is often and an Emperor 2x15” together player of all time may very in a punk band, and we’d often indulge in the cliché of trashing
it makes a noise somewhere the heck out of my bass. I later found out that if I wanted to play
as important as what you do in the studio and am currently well be John Paul Jones of Led our gear at the end of a show. Anyway, at one gig I threw my
between a circular saw and with anyone else, I would have to tone it back and rely on musical
play. My basses are a First Act touring with a Schroeder Zeppelin. His playing is so bass across the stage and looked on in horror as the body
a spaceship. I don’t play a judgement. The greatest bass player that ever lived is Donald
© Helen Purvis
Custom semi-hollow body, 4x12” cabinet. My bass heroes intricate, yet so tasteful. snapped in two! I couldn’t afford to buy a new bass, so I glued

Jon Thorne unveils his new album, written in

5-string because, as it stands, ‘Duck’ Dunn, the house bass player at the legendary Stax record
a Fender American Deluxe are Simon Gallup (The Cure), www.murderbydeath.com it back together with the stuff they use for attaching skirting
I barely use all of the four label and bassist for Booker T and the MGs. I first saw Duck in the
strings I have. Adding a fifth boards to walls, and carried on gigging it for another six months Blues Brothers movie and wanted to be just like him. Everything he
Markus Laakso would just confuse me, or give
me ideas above my
or so until I could afford a new one. I’ve still got it now and play
it at home. It sounds terrible… Paul Simonon (The Clash), Krist
plays is so tasteful and well crafted.
www.myspace.com/thehundreddays
Chaosweaver station. When the Pixies were
looking for a bass player, they
Novoselic (Nirvana) and Kim Deal (Pixies) were the three bass
players who most influenced me when I decided that this was

tribute to double-bass legend Danny Thompson

specified ‘please, no chops’ in what I wanted to do. The greatest bass player that ever lived was
The secret of playing bass well is understanding that the wanted ad. Or so I heard. probably John Entwistle. He was technically outstanding but
bass and guitar are completely different instruments. Kim Deal writes effortlessly never overly flash; everything he did served the song.
Don’t try to play bass like a guitarist: focus on the groove cool basslines and is in one www.theblackspiders.com
and writing bass arrangements that complement the of the greatest bands ever.
wholeness of the song. My bass style is stripped down
and to the point. I use Ibanez BTB basses, SansAmp
bass effects – mainly fuzz and distortion – and Fender
Enough said. My first bass was
a hand-me-down, handmade, Frédéric Leclercq DragonForce

45 ‘FIELDY’
sky-blue Precision copy. It
tube amps. My first bass was an Ibanez BTB 400, and had a mirrored scratchplate, My bass style is simple, efficient and uses fast picking. I play my signature ESP
I’ve stuck with the series ever since. BTBs are affordable, weighed a ton, and played bass, the FL 600, and also the Forest, B and Surveyor series. I use Rocktron
easy to play, well structured and good-looking. My

41 COLIN EDWIN
like a suspension bridge. I still Blue Thunder and Utopia B300 effects, with Peavey Tour heads and cabinets.
bass heroes are Sami Yaffa (Michael Monroe, Hanoi have it somewhere. I’d sell it, I don’t really need more than five strings – I have small fingers so it wouldn’t
Rocks, Joan Jett, New York Dolls) and Robert Trujillo but it might be more valuable be as comfortable for me – but I do use a 5-string when I’m demoing songs for
– masters of the groove. I absolutely adore Trujillo’s as firewood when the time my other band, Maladaptive, because we tune to C. I don’t know the secret of
innovative Latin funk thumbing style on the Infectious comes. I do not slap, because good bass playing – maybe someone could tell me? I guess you need a good
Grooves and Suicidal Tendencies albums. I know people it conjures up an image of sense of rhythm and harmony, and you need the humility to serve the music.
are going to hate me for saying this, but I think his Alan Partridge playing air My first bass was from a friend who got it from another friend. It had no

The Korn bassist talks us through

unique talents are being wasted on Metallica’s bass to a Gary Numan song in brand, since someone scratched out the brand name. I never really had bass
not-so-bassist-friendly music. He doesn’t get the his caravan. So it mostly has heroes, but I would mention Steve Harris and Nikki Sixx, not particularly for
opportunity to shine. The greatest bass player that ever

Joel McIver meets Colin Edwin, bassist with

negative or hilarious their style but for their attitude and charisma. The greatest bass player that
lived is Geezer Butler. He might not be technically the connotations, I’m afraid. ever lived is Victor Wooten or Jimmy Johnson!
most advanced, but he’s the coolest. www.65daysofstatic.com www.dragonforce.com
www.chaosweaver.info

their best album to date

18 BASS GUITAR MAGAZINE BASS GUITAR MAGAZINE 19

Basically Speaking_1nw.indd 18 Basically

09/09/2010 16:41Speaking_1nw.indd 19 09/09/2010 16:41

Britprog legends Porcupine Tree

4 BASS GUITAR MAGAZINE

Contents_1nw.indd 4 13/09/2010 16:02

 Gear Reviews
48 MANSON
JOHN PAUL
JONES E-BASS
We get first look at this
striking signature bass,
modelled on John’s own
first-call Manson
4-string, ‘Son of Eric’

54 KRAMER D-1
At just under £350, this impressive axe is
aimed at cash-strapped strummers

Bass Techniques

Dave Marks:
DevelopMent
rhythM section
n to 5/4 tiMe
an introDuctio
from our
we’re moving away
t Part 3. This month
Section Developmen
Welcome to Rhythm into 5/4 time.
and charging ahead
exploration of 3/4
Dave Marks signatures you will
most commonly see
when playing in 5.
These are:

freelance There are two time

Dave Marks is a busy
out of
bassist living and working
and recording
London. His playing
rage of bands
credits span a wide
Larry Carlton,
and artists, including
Albert Lee, Carl Palmer,
Paul
bottom shows the
the number on the
Carrack and many
others. time signature (remember,
is spread pulse, we use a 5/8
At the minute, his time If we have an 8th-note
out 8th note subdivision of our
pulse).
between pounding
Jr. band,
rock with the Rick Parfitt
grooves for Exercise 1
playing deep soulful
Ola Onabule and depping
for Bass Techniques
West End.
Thriller Live on the
playing,
Aside from his full
rs
teaching and Rhythmmatte
Dave
masterclass schedule, per bar. taking place onstage.
web presence, five quarter notes The length
maintains a heavy
In 5/4 time, we count of this may not
be the same every
site and
blogging on his own time, so a repeated
channel section such as
keeping his Youtube this allows the
music to continue
content.
stocked up with fresh for as long or as
www.davemarks.com using these smaller short as required
parts and counted or that time.
into smaller composite pattern of the groove
can be broken down 3. Usually, the accent
Many odd time signatures as a composite of either 3 & 2 or 2 & First- & Second-
felt systems is most appropriate.
Exercise 2
‘cells’. 5/4 is most often of these counting Time Bars
will determine which The final repeat
the flow of the melody marks this
are first- and second-tim month
e bars.
These can occur
at the end of a
repeated section
and signify that
the second time

Gear
through there
is a different ending.
The
the more common 3 &
2 feel. question are bracketed bars in
examples will use off with a
All of this month’s number above
them. The first-time
bar is to be played
the first time,
then you repeat
back to the start
of the repeat mark.
The second
time through you
Exercise 3 miss out the
first-time bar, jump
over this, and
of ‘Take Five’ go straight to the
Fig 1: In the style feel and uses strong second-time bar
has a bouncing swing and carry on. These
classic ‘Take Five’. It simple and can be used in
of Dave Brubeck’s to keep the part harmonically conjunction with
This groove is reminiscent root–fifth pattern here multiple repeats,
and 5. I’ve used a simple and you can, in
accents on beats 4 time bar, or more,
fact, have a third-
feel.
reinforce the 3 & 2 get quite confusing!
although this can

EXERCISES
in association with The first few exercises
are written in
compound time
signatures to give
you more practice
with these new
Exercise 4 time feels. As ever,
count out the
subdivision and
go slowly to start
to you with. The best
Dave’s column is brought plan when reading
RhythmMatters music with repeats
in association with is to scan over
www.rhythmmatters.co.uk the entire piece
first, work out
which bits are
repeated and where

59 STERLING BY MUSIC MAN

to go back to. This
MaGazine
is often referred
92 Bass Guitar 13/09/2010 10:42 to as the ‘geography
’ or ‘route map’
of the piece –
it is really helpful
know where you to
are going.
74 If you’re stuck with
Dave Marks_2nw.indd anything,
refer back to previous
issues of Bass
Guitar Magazine,

RAY34 SILVERBURST
or send me an
Exercise 5 email and I will
try to help! Many
of the past tuition
tips are available
on the Bass Guitar-X
website: www.
bassguitar-x.co.uk.

We inspect a limited edition from the Sterling by

Music Man stable
If there’s anything
you’d like me to
cover, or if you
have any questions,
email me on andrew@g
uitar-x.co.uk.
See you next time.

Andrew McKinney_1n
w.indd 71 BASS GUITAR
MAGAZIN E
81

Techniques
10/09/2010
15:51

66 THE 80 ANDREW MCKINNEY

WOODSHED Tuition Tip: Reading Notation

Regulars 82 STEFAN
REDTENBACHER
‘Funkyologies’
66 THE WOODSHED
We drop in on Bernie Goodfellow of GB Guitars

73 ESSENTIAL EFFECTS 86 JANEK GWIZDALA

Modern Bass Improvisations
62 AMPEG Musitronics Mu-Tron III
HERITAGE 76 BUT THIS GOES TO 11…
SERIES The science part… 88 FRANC O’SHEA
SVT-CL & A guide to reading chord symbols
SVT-410HLF 78 ON REVIEW
We preview the latest bass-related CD and DVD
CABINET releases from the likes of Matt Garrison and 92 DAVE MARKS
Kevin Sanders Esperanza Spalding Rhythm Section Development
auditions Ampeg’s
flagship SVT

BASS GUITAR MAGAZINE 5

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