CLAY SHEA
KIM CARSON
CLAY SHEA
Black Mastiff
CM : How did you come up with that rolling bass line for “ Pariah ” from Music Machine ?
CS : The intro part I subconsciously stole from my buddy ’ s band , Molten Lava . It ’ s not something you would notice but I think this version of that riff is just one of those things that kind of came out of the bass . That ’ s the first half of the riff and the second part just kind of came together . I didn ’ t notice the similarity until later on , but I think I subconsciously stole at least the inspiration for the riff from a guy named Liam Bryant who is like the best bass player . As far as bass players go , he really is above and beyond . Actually , this whole part should be about him .
PHOTO : JULIA ROBINSON
KIM CARSON
Like A Motorcycle
High Hopes , the first full-length release from Halifax punk rock band Like A Motorcycle , is due out this spring . Bassist Kim Carson and the rest of the crew have been shaking things up and rattlin ’ bones since their early days in the port city and are ready for everyone else to hear what they ’ re all about .
Bass Fender Jazz Bass
Amp Can I use yours ? Mine ’ s a piece of crap .
Effects MXR Bass Fuzz Deluxe .
CM : What is the one thing you can ’ t go without while on stage ?
KC : Besides beer , lots of picks . I drop picks all the time . I have people tell me I shouldn ’ t play bass with a pick – old men in particular – which maybe is true if I can ’ t hold onto the thing . But I ’ m so in love with the Fender Jazz Bass . Since I started using those I don ’ t think I would ever use a different bass at this point .
CM : What kind of influence , if any , has Halifax and the city ’ s music scene had on your sound or style ?
KC : I don ’ t know . None of us are really from Halifax , but I ’ ve been living here for about 10 years and I came up musically in this scene . We definitely found bands – like the Scoop Outs – that had that very grungy , ’ 90s sound that we were attracted to and started playing a lot of shows with them . There was a good indie and noise scene when we were first getting started and it was very open and we felt like we could do anything . We used to play like a band open mic and just played live before we ever recorded . That ’ s how we found our sound and built our first little fan base . It was really important for us to build that confidence in our live show and try things out without any risk , basically . Free feedback almost .
CM : How have you progressed as a bass player since then ?
KC : If you listen to some of our earlier recordings , I was definitely a very walking bass player . I was a busier bass player . I was learning and thought I could do all of these things . As time went on , I realized that wasn ’ t the sound I wanted and that ’ s not what ’ s best for our songs . I had to learn to really pull it back and worry about the harmonies I want to hear and things I can do to be a bit dissident from whatever else is going on . I worried less about how fancy the bass lines are and was worrying more about really building songs .
CM : What can people expect from High Hopes , your first full-length release ?
KC : It ’ s gonna be really great . It ’ s the first recording we ’ re really gonna have with two guitar players and with KT [ Lamond , guitarist ] writing on the record . We were in a great studio and did everything live off the floor , which was well captured by [ co-producers ] Jaime Foulds and Albert Lionais . So as far as quality goes , it ’ s going to be great . As far as how the songs are , these are our best songs . We just wrote and wrote and we pulled the best out of what we were working on . It ’ s pretty hard hitting and pretty much doesn ’ t stop .
56 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN