Bass Nation

Mike Watt is another favorite of mine. Many people refer to him as a pioneering punk rock bassist. While the Minutemen were part of the Southern California punk rock scene and they were on SST records, I think their music went far beyond punk. While they had the aggression and angst of punk rock, they were probably closer musically to jazz. After their guitarist died, Mike and their drummer started fIREHOSE, which also really pushed the musical boundaries of punk rock. He has since put out a couple of great solo albums and tours all the time.

I’ve had the opportunity to see Mike play at the same small club twice within a 2 week period in the fall of 2000. First it was his own show, and then two weeks later he was playing bass for J. Mascis.

There are plenty of videos of him on YouTube, many better looking than these, but this is an improvisational jam with Mike and Money Mark (Beastie Boys’ keyboardist). Rest of the parts after the jump.