Ben

Attitude

**DISCLAIMER--I can rehearse once a week, but practice on my own a few times a week.** Hello, My name's Ben, and I'm a bassist/vocalist. I have about 19 years of live experience...pop/rock, country, funk, dance, etc., and am a 5-string player. I've done lots and lots of shows in said timespan. Side work has involved work teching for Billy Sheehan, Stu Hamm, Jeff Berlin, Jude Gold, John Mader, and others. I moved to the Batlimore area last year, having lived in and around Pittsburgh for over 30 years. Versatility over the years includes a Journey tribute, Prince tribute (full costume-themed group, now national), classic rock tributes, metal/thrash, prog/art rock, and numerous party bands (college, pop/rock, dance/club, etc). I was part of a country fiddler's band for 5 years, and last played for a modern country/rock band for 4 1/2 years. I've been fortunate enough to have done this as a second income since '05. I have professional gear, going direct with in-ear monitors (no amp or cab, just pedals), and can play wired or wireless. I do have a small combo for a backup (or monitor). My systems are Sennheiser, and I sing through an Audix OM5. The in-ear system was recently part of my last band's self-contained monitoring rig (no stage volume except drums, utilize our own wi-fi, mix from our individual phones via sound engineer's iPad, and so on). I am also proficient playing with click tracks, auxiliary tracks, and cues (i.e. Ableton and such). I'd love to be in something similar to my last band...energetic band members that don't look bored or frightened, interact with the crowd, have a polished look and sound (sound meaning musicianship, keeping the song selection fresh/vibrant, with minimal/no dead air between songs). Nothing better than really wowing people by giving them a pro-concert feel for a local price...sound, looks, and presentation, with some surprises here and there. Thanks for your consideration!

Influences

Cliff Burton Geddy Lee John Myung Tom Scholz Mike Rutherford Dave LaRue Brian Bromberg Billy Sheehan Jaco Pastorius Scott Ambush Dave Ellefson Steve Harris Norm Hoagle Tommy Bellin Jon Replogle Stevie Wonder Stuart Zender Paul Turner Tommy Shannon Rex Brown Victor Wooten Marcus Miller Stanley Clarke John Entwistle Nate Watts Roscoe Beck Jeff Berlin Andy West Carl Cadden-James Brian Ritchie Nathan East

Equipment

'04 Schecter Stiletto Studio 5 '23 Schecter Stiletto Studio 5 EMG pickups/preamps Fishman pickups/preamps Zoom MS60B Whirlwind DI T-Rex Chameleon Fuel Tank Pro-Co cables Furman SS-6 Sennheiser wireless bass system (2022-23 model) Sennheiser EW G4 iem system (4th gen series) Westone W40 in-ear monitors Compli iem tips TC Electronics tuners Roadrunner Highway bags Elixir strings Italia leather straps Hipshot tuning machines Hipshot bridges Gotoh tuning machines Schaller bridges Hearos earplugs