This article series is about the tools of popular guitarists or bassists.. What are their favorite guitars or basses and how is it related to them? This time with Johan Niemann (Evergrey).
When you start bass playing and do you remember your first bass?
I started playing bass when I was around 10 or 11. The music teacher in my school wanted to start a school-band. I had been sick and when I came back to school all the instruments were taken, except the bass. I thought ”four strings and you play one note at a time – how hard can it be?” My first bass was called Session. It looked like a Jackson copy. Same body shape, pointy headstock, P/J pickups.
What are your influences and which bass players are your favs?
Early favorites were Gene Simmons, Steve Harris and Cliff Burton. But everything changed when I heard Anthony Jackson on an old Al Di Meola record. I couldn’t believe a bass could sound or be played like that. He remains my number 1. There are others who have influenced me, like, Tony Levin, Pino Palladino, Mick Karn, Andy West, Billy Gould. The list goes on and on.
How many basses do you own and what are your favorite models?
Right now, I own five. My first good bass – an Ibanez SR885, a Fender Precision and my Solar basses. I have a signature bass coming out with Solar. It’s slightly different from their standard model, in that it has the big block inlays and it has EMG P/J pickups and the EMG BTS electronics. I have three Solars – my first prototype, a fretless, and the final production model. All 4-strings. All great.
What do you think makes the perfect bass and amp?
The perfect bass or amp is what makes you inspired to play. Something that almost makes you a better player. Something that makes it easier to get what’s in your head out through your fingers.
Which basses and amps were used on the new album or for recordings?
I got the prototype Solar bass two weeks before going into the studio so that’s what I used for all songs except one. On the last song on the album I used my fretless Solar. No amps were used. We ran two tracks of bass. One clean DI and one distorted DI, through my Tech21 VT Bass DI pedal. Which is also what I use live. No amp.
When you only can choose one bass, which one will you take?
One of the Solars. Most likely a fretted, though the fretless is so much fun to play.
