Where are you in your evolution as a player?
I’ve played primarily with pick, but for the first time I did most of this record fingerstyle. We toured Europe with Metallica, and watching Robert Trujillo mesmerized me. He inspired me to play more with my fingers and move toward a beefier tone, whereas in the past I went for an edgier punk tone and feel. I pluck mainly with my index and middle fingers, but I still go for the pick on the shreddy metal stuff, including the single “Almost Easy.” I’m not that quick with my fingers yet. Operating within the framework of Avenged Sevenfold was difficult at first, but I’ve developed a very precise way of playing by homing in on the kick drum, which is mainly what I listen to in my stage monitor.
You blaze through some fairly complicated material. How do you get around on the fretboard?
I was never technically trained and I’ve got small hands, so I have to do a lot of jumping around on the neck. Sometimes I do it onstage just because it looks cool. We tune to drop D, and I like to play up at the 12th fret of the bottom string because I think it sounds heavier and sustains better up there. I’ll make that jump rather than making the transition to the A or D string because I’ve always had trouble losing bottom end on the higher strings. That’s another reason I started playing fingerstyle—it evens everything out. I want to do more slapping, too, and I’ve also started throwing in some power chords.
If you could give advice to the kid you were ten years ago, what would you say to better prepare yourself for playing bass at the highest level?
I would say throw away the pick and start learning some proper technique. I definitely wish I’d taken some technical training at some point because the lack of it is hindering me from reaching my goals. I’m so far down this path that I feel it’s too late to change much now, but I’ll continue to teach myself because I’m never satisfied. It’s cool; I love learning naturally on the road.
Do you feel you get the respect you deserve as a player, or do you feel that the hype, the name, and so on overshadow your musicality?
For the most part, we get a lot of respect as players. Touring in support of City of Evil [Warner Bros, 2005], we got to meet a lot of our heroes, like Pantera, Guns N’ Roses, and Metallica. They said a lot of things about having respect for us musically, and they don’t care about the hype because they’ve been through it. Coming face to face with your heroes in person is cool. Having someone like Rex Brown [of Pantera] come backstage saying that he respects your playing is surreal.
CAN BE HEARD ON
Avenged Sevenfold, Avenged Sevenfold [Warner Bros., 2007]
CURRENTLY SPINNING
R. Kelly, Double Up [Jive/Zomba, 2007]
“I love the grooves and the melodies. It’s really over the top, and I’m attracted to artists who are a little crazy.”
GEAR
Basses Ernie Ball/Music Man StingRay
Rig Two Gallien-Krueger 2001RB heads (one clean, one distorted), two G-K 4x10s, Tech 21 SansAmp RBI Bass Driver DI
Effects Dunlop 105Q Crybaby Bass Wah, Visual Sound H20 Chorus & Echo, Boss GEB-7 Bass Equalizer
Strings Ernie Ball Power Slinky Nickel Wounds (.055–.110)
“To get a warmer tone on this CD, I used a 30th Anniversary StingRay and the distortion channel on a G-K 2001, rather than an overdriven guitar amp.”