Ben Kenney

[K-Funk]

Ben is probably my biggest musical inspiration on both guitar and bass. His solo material and work with Incubus is fantastic, as was his playing with the Roots. I was lucky enough to meet him at a solo gig of his last November in Pontiac, MI, and I just saw Incubus perform at the DTE Energy theater last night.

He's changed a bit with Incubus; for a while, when they played the old songs from S.C.I.E.N.C.E he wouldn't slap or would simply not play at all during the slap parts, but this time he brought along an active Lakland 5-string (either a 55-02 or 55-94) and played the full slap parts on both Redefine and Certain Shade of Green. The slap solo in Redefine was killer and he nailed it flawlessly.

I always admired Ben over Dirk with Incubus simply because he could make a song so much cooler with only a couple of notes instead of a thousand. The fact that he didn't slap was the icing on the cake. However, watching him pull off the old material perfectly- slap parts and all- made me view him as a more versatile player that doesn't always have to hold back all the time.

His rig was quite different too; he switched from using a BB750 and Roadready 8x10 to four Walkabout 1x12's and a custom 2x12 Walkabout. He also had a Decade bass and a new blue 4-94 with a white pickguard, passive electronics, and Jazz pickups.

[Poon]

Originally Posted by K-Funk

He's changed a bit with Incubus; for a while, when they played the old songs from S.C.I.E.N.C.E he wouldn't slap or would simply not play at all during the slap parts, but this time he brought along an active Lakland 5-string (either a 55-02 or 55-94) and played the full slap parts on both Redefine and Certain Shade of Green. The slap solo in Redefine was killer and he nailed it flawlessly.

Visual Aid for people

[roysloco]

Agree 100% - Ben Kenney's a huge inspiration for me!!

I can't get over how creative his basslines are: never too much for my tastes, just enough - he holds back when holding back is what's required, puts just enough fills in when needed and can really pull a nice bit of 'flash' when needed too.

I'm also a massive fan of his bass sound - currently saving for a Lakland JO4 (Skyline 'cos I'm not made of money! ) + possibly Fralin pup's later on! I don't want to just mimick another player's sound, but it's a really great place to start when I'm upgrading my gear!

Also like you, he gains a HUGE amount of kudos with me for being such a great all-round musician. I think being a drummer, guitarist, vocalist and bass player really gives him a better understanding of 'what fits where' in the song.

I could waffle on about him all day!

[ClydeMcAllister]

Such an awesome amp rig! Ha, I remember his interview with BP a couple of years back when he said he liked the Walkabout so much that he'd have a bunch of those onstage rather than another rig.

[KPAX]

I like Ben a lot (good player) but he hasn't figured out live bass sound yet.
I just saw them for the second time (first time in St Paul and this time outdoors in Chicago). Both times his sound didn't cut through the mix.
It was indistinct, blurry and buried. In many parts, he could have played just about anything and it wouldn't have made much difference.
Playing bass in a loud live rock band isn't something you just put down your guitar, grab a bass and wing. Dirk was way into it and obviously perfected it over years before incubus made it big. Ben still has way to go.

[officialjlox]

I just started listening to ben's solo stuff and I'm floored. I absolutely love it. I really like and admire the guy, but I wasn't a fan of "light grenades". I liked his parts, but I'm just not a fan of the new direction they've taken. I did really like crow left of the murder, but I'm glad I found his solo stuff.

[sonic assassin]

i think he should stick to guitar.. but im a dirk fanboy.

sure.. hes not BAD.. but hes not great either. there are millions of tolerable bassists out there. and i can slap too, im not sure why everyone would be so enamored that he can.

key is that dirk does it better, as well as everything else

granted, the music when down the pooper when dirk left, which is a good deal of the problem (same issue with me and metallica, really).

[jmattbassplaya]

Ben strikes me as boring. Dirk was unique.

[officialjlox]

Originally Posted by sonic assassin

i think he should stick to guitar.. but im a dirk fanboy.

sure.. hes not BAD.. but hes not great either. there are millions of tolerable bassists out there. and i can slap too, im not sure why everyone would be so enamored that he can.

key is that dirk does it better, as well as everything else

granted, the music when down the pooper when dirk left, which is a good deal of the problem (same issue with me and metallica, really).

I happen to love Newsted as well, but that's for another thread. I'm not talking about the incubus stuff. I'm a big dirk fan as well, but you have to give credit to a guy that plays 6 instruments well enough to record full albums by himself.

I like dirk's funky stuff a lot, but IMO morning view was a total waste of time. Not Dirk's fault, but he was part of it. I don't blame him for leaving.

I'm more impressed by Ben's overall musicianship. I do like his playing though.

[sonic assassin]

Originally Posted by officialjlox

I happen to love Newsted as well, but that's for another thread. I'm not talking about the incubus stuff. I'm a big dirk fan as well, but you have to give credit to a guy that plays 6 instruments well enough to record full albums by himself.

I like dirk's funky stuff a lot, but IMO morning view was a total waste of time. Not Dirk's fault, but he was part of it. I don't blame him for leaving.

I'm more impressed by Ben's overall musicianship. I do like his playing though.

theres definitely some merit to that. but while ben is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, i feel incubus would be better off with a BASSIST like they've always had. i know there are bassists out there better than me, and ill likely never catch up because my time is divided between other instruments. jack of many, master of none.

i wonder how much kenney contributes to the process. the last 2 albums were a bore, and i wonder if its his influence or he's along for the ride. somehow i feel that mike and dirk made the magic.. and without him around, its either all mike or mike and ben.

i really liked morning view, and i liked the bass work on it, but thats what broke it for him, so in hindsight, i wish their next album would have been funky enough to keep him around.

[J. Crawford]

Ben Kenney > Dirk Lance.

/thread.

[officialjlox]

Originally Posted by sonic assassin

theres definitely some merit to that. but while ben is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, i feel incubus would be better off with a BASSIST like they've always had. i know there are bassists out there better than me, and ill likely never catch up because my time is divided between other instruments. jack of many, master of none.

i wonder how much kenney contributes to the process. the last 2 albums were a bore, and i wonder if its his influence or he's along for the ride. somehow i feel that mike and dirk made the magic.. and without him around, its either all mike or mike and ben.

i really liked morning view, and i liked the bass work on it, but thats what broke it for him, so in hindsight, i wish their next album would have been funky enough to keep him around.

I actually despised morning view. Almost as much as I hate "light grenades". I don't blame dirk for leaving after that album.

However, I did like "crow". I thought it was an interested follow up to morning view, but light grenades is just terrible.

Since metallica was mentioned, I think Dirk and Ben are to incubus what Cliff and newsted were to metallica. The first helped form the sound, and had a lot of influence in the writing. Without them, the "other" forces have more control, with a bassist who is kind of along for the ride, as you said.

I personally want to blame everything on Brandon Boyd, because I think he is an absolute pretentious ******* lately. He used to be funny and quirky, now he just comes off as a dick who wants to never wear shirts. At least back in the day he would OCCASIONALLY wear them.

In reality, i dont know who is to blame for the shift in sound, but I don't doubt that ben had something to do with it. I do doubt, however, that he came in as "the new guy" and singlehandedly shifted the bands sound to his liking. I think this unfortunately was the direction the band was going to take, and Dirk jumped ship before the ship sunk completely.

In any case.. Ben's "distance and comfort" album is great. I'm actually listening to it now