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BASS

Mauricio Morales

 

 

I picked up the bass at age 15 after my uncle gave my brother an imitation J Bass, and it was just sitting in the corner for a while.  Music is in my blood; my dad was a mariachi down in Mexico, so playing an instrument came naturally and it’s why I’ve been playing music for 30+ years and will play till my dying day.  Because, if it feels good, do it!

 

As a kid I was hearing the stuff my bro and uncles listened to. Bands like VH, Ozzy, Maiden, Dio, Priest, Crue, Metallica and 70’s bands like Sabbath, Zeppelin, Santana and Skynyrd, to name a few, but it wasn't until later on when I heard my neighbor across the alley playing drums and letting different bands practice in his garage that I started wanting to learn to play music and be in bands. Now there are the greats who I idolized, musicians like Steve Harris, Cliff Burton, Geezer, Lemmy, and Claypool and Jaco later on, but I ended up being in bands with people with the same influences, and those fools are brothers from other mothers to this day. That’s a brotherhood that never dies!

 

Favorite Bands/Albums

  1. Bad Brains - Bad Brains

  2. Iron Maiden - Live After Death

  3. Faith No More - Angel Dust

  4. Black Sabbath - Master of Reality

  5. Pantera - Vulgar Display of Power

  6. Soundgarden - Louder Than Love

  7. Motley Crue - Shout at the Devil

  8. Metallica - Master of Puppets

  9. Slayer - Reign in Blood

  10. Alice In Chains - Dirt

 

Too many great bands/albums to just pick five, so here's my top ten favorite bands and favorite album from that band.  Please note that Tool, Motorhead, Fugazi, Black Flag, Kyuss, Deftones, Misfits, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Primus, Pink Floyd, AC/DC, STP, RATM, NIRVANA, The Beatles, Rush, Ozzy, Morphine, Them Crooked Vultures, The Cure, and a lot more could all very easily be on this list.  There's others too, but I'm not going into jazz, fusion, reggae, blues, country, R&B or hip-hop right now.

Mauricio Profile Pic for Website_edited.jpg

Weapons of Choice

 

Mesa/Boogie 400+ / Walkabout

 

I play Mesa/Boogie amps because Cliff Burton played Boogies. I own a 400+ because that’s what he had. I use the Walkabout for gigs because it is usually loud enough as a stage monitor, has a DI out for house PAs and is easy to load in/out. I'll break out the 400+ the next time I want to hurt people or get a roadie LMFAOOOOO!!

 

Warwick and Ibanez basses

 

My Warwick is primarily a studio session bass now but saw its fair share of gigs as I have owned it since 2001. I used to work for Warwick’s American distributor way back then. I have two old school Ibanez Musician basses I'll gig with now, one fretted and one fretless that sound great. I have owned both basses for the better part of 20 years after the fretless fell into my lap somewhere around 2004 and I searched for a fretted version and found one on eBay within the following year.  Both were in varying degrees of bad shape when I picked them up but were easy fixes.

 

Rotosound SH77 / RS66 Strings

La Bella 750N Strings

 

I tend to lean towards a flat or tape wound heavier gauge string because of the fatter tone, responsiveness, and they're easier on my fingers, plus, that’s what Steve Harris uses! LOL!

Snarling Dogs Brain Picks 1.14

 

I don't always use picks, but when I do...

 

Shure SM57

 

I don't always sing, but when I do...

 

Studio Setup

 

Macbook Pro I7

UA Arrow/Octo

Ableton Live

Superior Drummer

WA251 Tube Condenser Mic

SE Reflection Filter

Mesa/Boogie Mark 5:25

Gibson '62 VOS Les Paul SG

Martin HD28V

Martin B1

Martin DX1E

Hofner HF11

Loar LM310F

Luna Tenor Uke

 

I don't always record, but when I do... nah I'm just bullshittin’... I'm always recording! LOL!

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