Shinedown Bassist Eric Bass Talks ‘Therapeutic’ New Album – Interview
Eric Bass of Shinedown chats with Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio about his new solo album and the state of Shinedown in this in-depth interview. – Author: Anne Erickson, Photo via Sanjay Parikh
Eric Bass is known for being the bass player of Shinedown, but there is so much more to his story. Bass is also a longtime songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He released his much-anticipated solo album, “Eric Bass Presents: I Had A Name,” in February, offering a mix of creative and eclectic sounds, from classic rock to Seattle-style grunge.
Bass did everything for this project, including writing all of the songs, performing every instrument on the release, producing the tracks and mixing the final result. So, this album is 100% him, from the heart.
Listening to “I Had A Name,” what’s interesting is that it doesn’t sound like Shinedown, but it certainly still appeals to the rock listener.
“I’m always searching for something different,” Bass told Audio Ink Radio in an exclusive interview. “I’m always searching for something I haven’t done before. I’m not saying I’m searching for things that no one has heard before or anything like that. Sometimes, maybe you land on something extremely different, but I’m always looking to broaden my creative horizons, and we do that in Shinedown, as well. Our two latest songs we have out, ‘Three Six Five’ and ‘Dance, Kid, Dance,’ are vastly different than each other but came from this room.”
Bass tells Audio Ink Radio that he definitely plans to release a follow-up to “I Had a Name” when time allows, and that it could include some fun collaborations.
As for new music from the chart-topping guys of Shinedown, Bass says, “Two tracks (off the album) are out now (“Three Six Five” and “Dance, Kid, Dance”), so we will probably release, we’re definitely going to release more music before the end of the year, and we’re assessing where we’re at with the Shinedown record.”
“When it’s time, it’s time,” Bass adds. “That’s what we always say, and we want to make sure we have our best material for a record rather than just getting something done to hurry up and get it done. So, I know we’ve mentioned July. We’ve mentioned August. We’ve mentioned these kind of arbitrary months for a Shinedown record to drop, but I don’t have a definite date right now. But, here’s the thing: When it’s done and it’s out, it will be our best work, and that’s what is important to us. So, we are actively working on it. I was mixing yesterday. I’ll be mixing some more today. So, we are definitely working on it right now.”
Bass, who has been open and candid about the importance of bringing awareness to mental health issues, also talked about how making music is therapeutic.
“Any record is therapeutic. It’s a double-edged sword,” he said. “Sometimes, I call this room the hurt locker, and sometimes it’s the therapy room, or it can be both. Anytime you’re writing music, I feel like you’re exercising demons of some sort. That might be a brash way of saying it, but you’re letting a piece of yourself out that’s pent up that has something to say.”
Listen to the rest of Audio Ink Radio’s interview with Eric Bass of Shinedown via the player above or on the podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify Podcasts.
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