I don’t play with a guitar pick very often.

I don’t play with a guitar pick very often. However, sometimes you really need that really aggressive attack that you can only achieve by using a pick. I just ordered a new, updated design for my custom bass picks from @steveclaytoninc . Thanks again to @hearmedraw for designing a great logo for me!

This bass is named “Elvis” because of its classic tone and flashy gold-star theme.

This bass is named “Elvis” because of its classic tone and flashy gold-star theme. It’s an Ernie Ball Musicman Stingray 5HH with a custom-made @alperiouspickguard. It’s different than most of my other fretted basses in that I keep it loaded with Dunlop Flatwounds so that I can get that fundimental thump that you can only get when using flatwound strings. Stingray basses lend themselves to flatwounds very well — thunderous tone and the string tension is just right. I use this bass for playing Latin, funk, disco, as well as lot of current stuff and original music. I love that Flatwounds have come back into the spotlight in pop and alternative music recently.

flashbackfriday – In the early 90s, I played bass guitar in band with Scotty Johnson (lead guitar), Alan R Willey (drums), and Jim Swafford (lead vocals/guitar) called “Feedbags”.

flashbackfriday – In the early 90s, I played bass guitar in band with Scotty Johnson (lead guitar), Alan R Willey (drums), and Jim Swafford (lead vocals/guitar) called “Feedbags”. It wasn’t long after that Scotty left Feedbags to join the Gin Blossoms. Jim also co-wrote several songs that ended up on the Gin Blossums’ albums

We just uploaded the new song “Cali Livin” from my band @thebredren for digital distribution next month.

We just uploaded the new song “Cali Livin” from my band @thebredren for digital distribution next month. We’ll announce the official release date very soon. In the meantime, check out The Bredren tracks on @spotify, @applemusic, @amazonmusic, and all other major platforms

https://open.spotify.com/artist/1n9BQXLRc1KJeZ14TMl66b%3Fsi%3DyQwZat90RKy8p3U7VhYaZA&e=ATP3ke4CESDZVTWSbkYtruw0me74ZGMSlVs7Ak-K7qf5mIknqiyl0Wm-IDFJBItkxwv_vgSjaNsibxXD1cg7LA&s=1

My band We’re No Gentlemen just did a video interview for an upcoming episode of a new show on ROKU: Blastzone Mike’s Incredible Show.

My band We’re No Gentlemen just did a video interview for an upcoming episode of a new show on ROKU: Blastzone Mike’s Incredible Show. We’ll announce the release date and time for our episode soon. In the meantime, check out Mike’s premiere episode featuring Kelci Saffery from the mega-hit show “Tiger King” on the following ROKU channels in the Channel Store: The Independent Network Channel (INC), INC Horror Channel, Blue Mermaid Gold, Rabbit Ears TV, Blue Mermaid TV, Grindhouse grit Ultra. On your mobile device you can see this great show on MiMi’s Cult Movies and Grindhouse Grit On Fire! (available in the App Store and on Google Play)

I just updated my @kemperamps_official to the latest firmware.

I just updated my @kemperamps_official to the latest firmware. There’s some fantastic new features and it’s rock solid and stable as always! I still use a few external pedals for certain specialty functions: bass synths from futureimpactpedal and c4synth, as well as advanced filter and distortion effects from @sourceaudio. My external effects are all midi-capable, which empowers me to use the Kemper to control all of their settings. I can change all of my effects (internal & external) with the tap of a button on my pedalboard. In one of my bands, we use @Ableton Live for audio, lighting, and video cues. Ableton even sends patch changes to my bass rig so that I can just concentrate on performing — no more doing the pedal dance. The Kemper Profiler has really been a game-changer for me.

It felt so good to be on stage in front of a live audience again with my bandfam in @gloria_estefan_tribute.

It felt so good to be on stage in front of a live audience again with my bandfam in @gloria_estefan_tribute. Given the current pandemic restrictions, the live audience was separated into pods and limited to a few hundred (it’s usually several thousand for this show). However, the City of Buena Park live-streamed the show on their Facebook page and YouTube channel. The band members were spaced much farther apart than usual, and any band members not singing wore masks. It’s gonna take a while for me to get used to the new normal, but it’s worth it in order to protect loved ones and still get to perform live shows.