Tag: bassguitarportal

on by Danny Knapp

I’m so happy with my current bass rig.

I’m so happy with my current bass rig. For the past four years or so, using @kemperamps_official has been a game-changer for me, both for my original projects as well as my session work and the cover bands I play in. Having the capability to switch my amp tone at will is like getting to carry all my favorite amps around with me at without breaking my back (or my bank account).

For a few of my projects, I’m now exploring automation for my program/effect changes with @ableton software. Once I get this done, it will free me up during live performances so that I don’t have to mash foot controller buttons and I just can concentrate on playing, singing, and putting on a good show.

I’m putting together a video series for a rundown on my rig, using a Kemper as a bassist, and how to integrate a Kemper with midi effect pedals, Ableton Live, and all kinds of fun stuff. Details coming soon!

bassist bassplayer bassguitarist lamusician bassporn bassguitarportal kemperamps ernieballmusicman abletonlive bassplayersunited sessionbassist

Photo by @red_hareimages

on by Danny Knapp

Yay!

Yay! The first batch of my new custom bass picks from @steveclaytoninc were delivered. Now I just need some more gigs so that I can throw them at people 🤘😎

on by Danny Knapp

Quick little project: I added some glow-in-the-dark paint to the fret markers on my basses.

Quick little project: I added some glow-in-the-dark paint to the fret markers on my basses.

On a dimly lit stage, it’s often very difficult to quickly check your hand position on the neck of the bass guitar, especially when you are singing backing vocals and you can only look out of the corner of your eye.

In the past I’ve used little glowing-dot stickers, but they wear off rather quickly. This time I used some Glow-On paint. It’s designed to be used on gun sights, but it works great on guitars too. It only takes a few minutes in bright light to charge it for a gig — a flashlight (or cell phone light) works great as well.

on by Danny Knapp

I just posted a bass play-through on my YouTube channel for the new song from my band The Bredren, “Cali Livin”.

I just posted a bass play-through on my YouTube channel for the new song from my band The Bredren, “Cali Livin”. I’m especially stoked to share this song because I had a hand in writing the music and lyrics. You can listen to this song and all the other tunes from The Bredren on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and all other major platforms.

Watch the full video at https://youtu.be/i8S3pwQeAh0

on by Danny Knapp

Presenting a softer, quieter Melonhead for a soothing evening vibe 😉.

Presenting a softer, quieter Melonhead for a soothing evening vibe 😉. I enjoy the challenge of getting to play ‘unplugged’ on my acoustic fretless bass — it requires adapting my bass lines to the highlight the essence of the song without getting in the way. I find that it’s much harder to play slow and quiet and still maintain technique and accuracy, because there’s a lot more room to mess up, and there’s no where to hide. At the same time, nothing’s more expressive than an a pared down acoustic song. It tugs at the heart 🖤.

You can watch some videos of me playing this bass on my YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr4r2OwDRmHkgkrxpOYXCgw

on by Danny Knapp

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.