North Texas metalcore quartet Kublai Khan has been steadily rising in the genre since their 2010 debut album, with their most recent release titled Nomad becoming their most popular project to date. Named after the Mongolian Emperor and descendant of Genghis Khan, the band brings a refined aggression and technicality to their music – in a genre that can otherwise be rough around the edges – a significant quality that has elevated Kublai Khan’s sound, fanbase and industry credibility. We had the opportunity to speak to the band’s bassist, Eric English, to discuss Music Man basses, and why it’s his ideal instrument for creating and performing.
Q & A with Eric English:
MM: About how long have you been playing Music Man basses? What initially drew you to play Music Man?
EE: I’ve only been playing Music Man basses for about 5 or 6 months now, and it’s been the best experience I’ve ever had with basses! For as long as I’ve been playing music, I’ve always been interested in Music Man basses, early on, just for how they looked, honestly. But once I got to hear them and got to play one, it was obvious I needed one.
MM: What are some of the aspects you noticed you liked when you tried it?
EE: The first thing I noticed when I tried out the 2018 StingRay, before I even plugged it in, was just how light it was and how comfortable it felt. Next, was the 3-band preamp; it just let me fine tune the tone I was looking for – it was sick!
MM: Can you describe your sound/music style and how the StingRay helps you get there?
EE: Kublai Khans sound / style is always changing, but for the most part is just heavy, aggressive and angry. So with my other gear and adding in the StingRays natural punch and preamp options, it just fills our music with a nice punchy and gritty bass presents.
MM: When it comes to your band’s evolving style, how does the StingRay meet your needs?
EE: StingRay just does a great job of mixing classic bass tones with modern bass. So it’s easy to use the StingRay to adapt to our style of music. Plus StingRays just look so badass, so if you’re in need of looking like an ass kicker, StingRays the obvious choice.
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