Roger Waters says he was misquoted calling David Gilmour’s solos “horrible” By Matt Owen published 20 February 23 “Dave’s guitar solos constitute a collection of some of the very best guitar solos in the history of rock and roll,” Waters said in a statement on social media
Researchers have engineered a one-of-a-kind glass pick, said to be capable of tones that “cannot be obtained with conventional guitar picks” By Matt Owen published 17 February 23 Developed at Kyushu University in Japan and debuted during a United Nations ceremony, the silica glass pick is said to be stronger and more dense than common pick materials such as celluloid
How The Jam's Town Called Malice turned a cheeky Motown steal into a bona fide bass classic By Tom Poak published 17 February 23 Bruce Foxton on destroying Rickenbackers and the band's history of borrowing bass parts – plus, how to play Town Called Malice
Is this the end of bass rigs as we know it? By Nick Wells published 17 February 23 With the launch of the Super Pre, Holly Bergantino says: “Big 8x10 bass cabinets are out!”
Fender finally adds Candy Apple Red and Sea Foam Green to its Player Series lineup, unveils left-handed and Fiesta Red Player Plus models By Matt Owen published 17 February 23 The Big F has brought some of its most iconic colorways to the popular Player lineup, and gives southpaws an in-road to the Player Plus world for the first time since its introduction
Jackson updates its X and MJ Series electric and bass models with suave and striking finishes By Matt Owen published 16 February 23 Ice Blue Metallic, Lambo Orange, Checkered Past and Battleship Gray are just some of the colorways that have been introduced across the two collections
IK Multimedia launches the TONEX Pedal, a game-changing affordable stompbox that uses AI machine modeling to capture the sound of any amp or drive pedal By Matt Owen published 16 February 23 The ultra-powerful pedal puts IK Multimedia's TONEX software into a gig-friendly format, featuring up to 150 presets, MIDI compatibility and onboard reverb, compressor and noise gate controls – all for $399
Megadeth's Dave Mustaine: “The bass isn’t a difficult instrument to play. It’s one step up from the kazoo, isn’t it?” By Nick Wells published 15 February 23 When Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine slammed all bass players on ABC News
U2 confirmed for 2023 Las Vegas residency at the MSG Sphere super-arena – the “world’s most state-of-the-art venue” By Matt Owen published 13 February 23 The band will celebrate their seminal record Achtung Baby at the ultra-futuristic venue, but will be without drummer Larry Mullen Jr., who will be undergoing and recuperating from surgery
Legendary UK guitar store Mansons Guitar Shop to close after 31 years By Jonathan Horsley published 13 February 23 The celebrated music store was opened by John Paul Jones, frequented by the likes of Noel Gallagher, Matt Bellamy and Steve Howe, and was synonymous with Manson Guitar Works
Metallica’s Robert Trujillo: “Cliff’s approach was, ‘I’m gonna play what I feel, and if you don’t like it, screw you!’” By Nick Wells published 10 February 23 Trujillo remembers bass guitar’s ultimate metal maverick, Cliff Burton
Roger Waters has rerecorded Pink Floyd classic The Dark Side of the Moon: “Let’s get rid of all this ‘we’ crap! It’s my project” By Jonathan Horsley published 9 February 23 Having reportedly cut his former Pink Floyd bandmates out of the album without their knowledge, Waters has reworked Dark Side and recorded spoken word over the album’s instrumentals
Some of Black Sabbath’s heaviest tracks are being turned into a ballet By Matt Owen published 8 February 23 War Pigs, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Iron Man and five other Sabbath songs will soundtrack the new three-act dance show – which might feature a Tony Iommi cameo
A piece of bass history has been listed on Reverb By Nick Wells published 7 February 23 What do you mean, you don’t have $7,250 for an original Gibson EB-1?
Yamaha Guitar Group acquires Córdoba and Guild Guitars By Sam Roche published 7 February 23 The move brings Córdoba's portfolio, which includes Guild, DeArmond Pickups and HumiCase, into the Yamaha fold
How to replicate the Beatles’ classic tones using today’s affordable guitars, basses and effects pedals By Chris Gill published 7 February 23 Because sourcing the vintage gear is almost impossible, financially and practically, we've put together a list of gear that's on the market today that will help you nail the Fab Four's sound
John Frusciante says he views bass as the lead instrument in Red Hot Chili Peppers: “I see each song as being like a bass solo where I'm there to support it” By Matt Parker published 6 February 23 Frusciante and the band have been discussing their connection in a rare full-band interview on 60 Minutes
The 10 coolest bassline samples ever By Nick Wells published 3 February 23 How Sugarhill Gang, Eminem and even Vanilla Ice introduced new generations to the basslines of Ron Carter, Nathan East, Lee Sklar, John Deacon and more
This luthier has built a video game-inspired pixelated ‘8-bit bass’ By Matt Parker published 3 February 23 Tone Masons Guitar Repairs has put together a full-sized, bit-crushed bass build – and fortunately for us, filmed the process
“You can’t arrest me, I’m a rockstar!” The 10 most outrageous moments of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious By Nick Wells published 2 February 23 Never Mind The B**llocks, here are Sid's most infamous moments