Melding an astounding level of technical skill with an intuitive sense of what’s compositionally possible on the bass guitar, Michael Manring has developed a solo approach that’s completely unique. While the result may have little relevance to conventional bass playing, his advances in solo bass continue to reflect his own impulsive instincts rather than change for change’s sake.
“It was almost entirely a case of I need to do this,” says Manring of his solo career. “I would be playing solo bass whether anyone was listening to me or not! But at the same time there has been a lot of ‘What would happen if I do this?’ and ‘Why is this not done on the bass? And what would happen if I try?’ I guess my mind kind of works that way.”
