Guys...I really didn't expect this video to bring out so many cool stories and nice words. I filmed this one for a little tongue-in-cheek fun and to celebrate an album I'm really fond of. I haven't been in the band for almost 7 years (a lifetime ago in the music world!) - THANK YOU ALL for coming by and still being members of the channel. Truly love you all - I look forward to seeing everyone around! 💙
I'm gonna be real, I didn't know this channel was run by Mark until this video. Which explains a lot about why I've been digging the content and don't mind being recommended it. I have a friend who turned me on to Scale the Summit back in the day and I remember when The Migration and V came out being awe struck by the jump in quality in the rhythm section. I appreciated the quality Mark brought to an otherwise guitar-forward band, especially as a drummer. Was always disappointed in the rhythm section quality after Mark departed, and it made me really appreciate the bass as an instrument when I was a wee prog nerd who loved stupid fast drum fills and guitar lines. Glad to see someone I've always had a reverence for making quality content in the fast-paced internet music world.
I've had a few comments like this already and find it super cool. This all means a lot, thank you so much. Truly. I'm really proud of the 2 albums I did with them - it was a really inspiring time.
This video actually clinched me buying a bass and diving in to it. I remember showing my friends this video the night I bought my bass and its all I could think about. The tone, the technique, the vibe... it was all extremely influential! I joined Low End and learned a lot thanks to Mark thanks to this video.
Nothing beats the Warwick. I know Mark recorded with a Spector for that album, but that I prefer the rendition in this video with the warwick sound. So distinctive. Ryan Martini, Mark, Paul Gray, Sam Rivers and many other Warwick players inspired me to really take playing bass seriously. Also increased my appreciation for instruments in general, specifically those German pieces of art!
This is my absolute favorite STS song and most certainly one of my favorite performances from you. I have a recording of y'all playing it in 2016 in Charlotte NC on my page. Pretty decent audio on it. That tapping section near the end has had endless influence on my bass playing. I find myself writing tapping sections over airy guitars more than i'd like to admit.
Nice!! Wasn't that show on like Easter Sunday? I remember getting some killer BBQ right before the show - some diner looking place in walking distance. I think I've seen those videos as well. Glad you were there! And, oh yeah - chords are always the way to go for airy guitars 😅😉 Cheers!
I discovered Scale the Summit when you were touring with Reign of Kindo in 2013. Saw you in a tiny bar in Portland Oregon and was blown away. I ended up playing this particular song on repeat for like a month. Such an incredible bass line. Hearing a pro player break down their writing process was actually really interesting, I would love to see more content like this from other bassists.
Wow, thank you so much! That was one of my favorite tours we did - I love Kindo so much! Appreciate you stopping by, and for the kind words. Hope to see you around!
Aw, thank you so much for that! I forget about that song, as we played it live maybe half of a tour if I recall. I'm so glad to hear it inspired you. Cheers, and see you around!
Man, that's how far we go back, my friend. I remember seeing and meeting you for the first time. And then the many many many other times I saw you guys live. The Migration was a perfect follow up to The Collective. I probably learned how to play almost every song from The Migration. This album still holds up today. Such killer bass work on the entire thing.
Wow thank you for this. You’re in my top three of favorite bassists, and this performance is one of my favorites, especially the EMG video. The bass solo is my favorite solo of all time, and this is my favorite track from STS. It’s incredibly organic and beautiful sounding. Happy to hear the behind the scenes stuff and even happier to know you wrote the bass for the album. I was always curious if Chris wrote it or not.
I never realized you were in this band. How freaking wild. Me seeing y’all back in highschool, around 2008-2010 can’t remember, but damn!! Much respect dude! Loved this album
I've known about scale the summit for a while, but for some reason , it never clicked with me until i heard the "V" album a few weeks ago. I was completely blown away by the bass parts on that album! And admittedly, a bit sad that that bass player i enjoyed so much left a year later lol.
Ha, I had videos of myself covering this and The Traveller like a decade ago but I took them down along with a bunch of other covers 'cause I didn't like the production. Anyway, the lines on The Migration were incredible, I remember I was sad when Jordan left STS but you also did a great job there.
Been going down memory lane listening to this album again and just really reminded me just how much this album has affected me as a bass player. Youre one of the main reasons I gravitated towards using a 6 string and actually finding ways to utilize it. Seriously some of the coolest bass parts I've heard that really added something special to the music. It was really cool to hear your thought process on writing! Thanks for doing your thing and keep up the great work!
I saw you guys touring The Migration in 2015 with Erra, Glass Cloud, Reflections and Monuments. A lot of people dipped out during your guys’ set, but me and a few of my guitar nerd buddies were right up front and it was just awe inspiring. I usually don’t pay too much attention to bass, but it’s truly integral to this song. I was 16 when I went to that show, now I’m 26. Feels like it was yesterday. Time flies man.
Throwback! That happened on a few of the shows but it was such a fun tour because of the other bands. We were the oddball band for sure. Glad you enjoyed it, and I also can’t believe that was 10 years ago now (Summer of 2014!).
Dude, thanks to you I listened to all 7 Scale the Summit albums while at work today! I just randomly found your channel and knoeing you played on The Migration and V is cool! Awesome stuff! I really like instrumental metal!
This EMGTV video is one of my most watched videos on TH-cam. I'm mostly a guitarist but can flit about a bit with varying degrees of success and this video cemented bass as a lead instrument for me personally. Before this it seemed a very fringe concept and to hear that it was recorded without drums just blows my mind and makes me respect the work put in even more. Still listen to STS and recommend them to anyone who hasn't heard them from my little corner of a small town in the north of England.
Oh wow! I hope you enjoy the tunes! I was a fan of the band with "Carving Desert Canyons", then when I joined I played on "The Migration" and "V", which I'm really proud of. Appreciate you stopping by, and hope to see you around soon.
Hey Mark, just wanted to say I love this album a a lot and your bass work on it is superb. I still remember when I discovered this album, the first song I heard was Narrow Salient which was so killer. I think it was around 2014. This album has been part of so many road trips and traveling for me and it brings back a lot of good memories and nostalgia.
I don’t play bass but love your vids and love music. Been watching for a while and heard you mention your instrumental band STS. This is amazing bass playing and sounds incredible. Reminds me of my favorite instrumental band “This Will Destroy You” Downloaded STS albums and can’t wait to listen.
I’d be very proud. What a joy it must be to have such great memories, music, and influence on your fellow bassists. Thanks know it certainly left a mark on me. Cheers!
This was the first STS song I ever heard! What got me into the band!! This was so cool to watch!! Do some more of yourself!! Really enjoyed this! And hearing little fun facts! 😎🤘 the breakdown is just amazing Mark!!!
Truly a legendary performance and truly a legendary bassist. This was peak STS, can’t tell you how many times I watched this video back in the day and well here I am in 2024. 😂 Just watched the audio tree the other night and was wondering how old you were, you looked quite young
Came back to this but stopped after 4 mins to Jam the album and thought “this doesn’t sound like a “Warwick” then remembered you used a Spector, and you can clearly hear it doesn’t have that Thumb bell zing tone, such an amazing album!! Some of the most amazing basslines to date!
Like many have said, this album changed how I think of bass. Then I got the opportunity to take Skype lessons from you for a time during this era and learned how too (poorly) imitate this type of sound I love. Thanks for everything and all the educational content you put out Mark!
Huge fan! Tattooed STS logo on my calf. Met Mark in Edmonton and Toronto. STS got me into 6 string bass. Absolutely love this album and what Mark brought to the band. Their best sound to-date and has inspired my playing so much
Man just EMGtv in general is such a throwback for me. I was so obsessed with their uploads in High School. Its when I started playing guitar and its how I discovered a ton of my favorite artists. Jeff Loomis, Tosin Abasi, Alexi Laiho... So many awesome live performances. And of course introduced me to Scale the Summit
Same for me! It was the first time I got to really experience Tosin and his playing, and John Browne from Monuments as well. It was surreal to get a turn in there, and it's a shame that building isn't there anymore (or was sold off years ago). Glad you found STS from it!! Appreciate you stopping by 🙏🏼
Oh man yea, John Browne playing through Horcrux blew my mind. I was so fixated on his picking hand like... Surely this man has to up pick at SOME point? What a performance. Yes it is a huge shame. Appreciate you and all the work you do and have done as well. @@LowEndUniversity
Loved the video and you did a great job. After listening to that song, it's time that I go check out the rest of the Scale the Summit discography. Another player I think you should check out is Jon Stockman from Karnivool, especially since you've had your 6 string out recently.
This was the song that just came up randomly on my Pandora prog radio way back in 2013 and I was blown away. Chris' guitar work was obviously really standout, but honestly it was your bass work that took it up another level to something really special. Thanks for doing this "behind the scenes", loved it!
It’s always nice as a bass player when the composer’s ideas inspires you and leaves you enough space to be creative. I am currently learning Atlas Novus, for me the hardest thing is this song is getting the barred chords consistently without buzzing. And I’m glad I caught this inverted chord that happens only once in the song before you talked about it in this video !
It really is - as guitar-forward as Scale the Summit usually was, I saw this song as a chance to really explore the full-range possibilities, musically, of my 6-string bass. I remember all the parts coming off as "too much" at times, but we all got used to it and I'm happy we kept it. I had a lot of different ideas for this song I was playing around with. The trick with the barred chords is to let your "barring" finger go a little past the bottom string. If you're fretting a 4-string chord on the A, D, G, and C strings - the barring finger should lay over all 4 and almost touch the E string. Also, "bar" the strings a little on the left side of your finger - I find you have to tilt it a little bit so it snuggles naturally and can hold them all down.
@@LowEndUniversity Thanks for your generous answers ! It’s amazing to be a musician nowadays. Begin able to interact with your favourite players directly, having access to all those online ressources, it’s incredible. And the bass players community is so nice.
I absolutely love The Migration. I still have the pick tin with the awesome artwork on it. It's a great album, front to back, and your playing on it is truly memorable. Thanks for these timeless pieces, kind sir.
I completely regret not buying that album on vinyl at that time and thought your style of bass playing sounded familiar! I had been listening to StS since Carving Desert Canyons at that point.
I'm a little late, but Mark, I want you to know that this album changed my life and that your playing on it was a big part of it. In my opinion, this is the pinacle of both your playing and STS' albums, and the album just would not be what it is without your playing on it, dude. So, thank you so much for giving this to the world. Love from MS.
Man , I really really like the sound you have on this one. And big respect to rec it one take 🎉 And a big thanks for advice and everything you give to us with your channel❤
Mark, I will watch and subscribe to anything you make or write. You have a fan for life, you are up there with Geddy Lee in my eyes and heart. Keep please keep playing
Saw Scale the Summit, with Marty Friedman, and The Fine Constant, at the Tower Theater, Oklahoma City, a few years ago now. Was a brilliant night of music, and I’ve been a fan ever since. Love the content.
Nice! Really cool package. I had already left the band by then, but Kilian is a monster player and does a great job in every band he plays for. Really love his approach to the Abiotic songs I saw he played on!
This song introduced me to STS and I'm a huge fan of The Migration and V (mainly because of your playing). I own both and they're simply amazing. Also, I think it could be a great idea to react to more songs from those two albums.
Dat amazing Warwick tone. That bass is still one of my favorites. EMGTV has had some amazing performances. I love that whole record. Didn't know about the Spector. That thing is sweet too. You killed it bro. One of my favorite albums of all time actually.
Holy crap. ive ben watching your channel for months now and had no idea you were the bassist on this LP and in this band. I love this album. Love the channel man.
Migration was such a dope album, I still play it and Atlas Novus regularly. I discovered it when I was expanding into the djent and prog metal scene and was blown away by your bass composition! I watched the EMG tv performance shortly after and was stunned. When StS came to Madison, WI in like 2015, I was PUMPED to catch a performance live, and when you guys played Atlas Novus it was definitely a life-changing experience! Thank you so much for expanding this meager bass player's mind, and for sharing your knowledge on this chanel and video.
Your bass playing on this album is some of the best of all time for me. And the mixing balances everything perfectly! It really inspired me to pick up bass as a guitarist. Also, when I discovered this album in 2020 I ended up listening to it for 700 minutes and was in the top 0.5% of listeners on spotify that year 😅 suffice to say: Inspirational!!!
Thanks for the breakdown of this song! I'm a long time fan of this album, and love your work on it. Seeing you breakdown the techniques and thought processes, as well as giving trivia about the drum parts, shines new light on an old favorite. Keep up the good work!
My first ever record purchase was the white version of V, and my second was the pink and blue version of in a world of fear. StS was one of the first experimental progressive metal bands that I listened to and paved the way for my music taste today. Thank you for the music that you made
I have low-key been hoping you'd make a video like this, and this song! Incredible album that I still replay to this day and reference for Bass creativity. Thank you all for releasing this masterpiece ❤
Please make more videos on songs from this album, this album will forever be attached to some of the craziest moments of my life, i love all the little backstories and insights to how these songs were made and how you approached writing your parts 🔥Thank you
Have always really enjoyed this album! Your bass lines in this album definitely are driving a lot of the music in general and ties everything together. Legendary stuff here.
This is the best Scale the Summit album by far, largely due to your awesome performances. I’ve listened to this album so many times and it never gets old. Would love to see one on Oracle or Narrow Salient. Kestrel from V is also killer.
Completely forgot i listened to this album to death when it came out!! mesmerizing watching those bass parts! New subscriber and I’m going off to dig through everything you’ve done
I found Scale the summit on got-djent, back in the day, and have been listening to them since then. Ran into your videos maybe few weeks ago. Had no idea _you_ played by on my favorite album. Cheers.
Scale the summit frickin rules. I showed it to an old woman who played classical piano while o was doing tile in her house. Before I left the job, she actually thanked me and said shes "a metalhead" now. Awesome stuff.
I’ve been watching you for a minute now, wasn’t aware you were in scale the summit. I watched you guys in Virginia Beach, a cool show with The Reign of Kindo back in the day. Great show.
Jason! Super cool to hear man. That was my favorite tour I did with the band, bar none. Purely because of Kindo, who are one of my favorite bands ever. Great to connect here, and appreciate you stopping by!
holy shit you played on this album?! i saw scale the summit while they were touring for this album! blew my mind. i studied the shit out of this song for a few weeks to learn it. how cool man!
My Favorite Album of all time from STS! One of the album that I listened the most and you were also one of my biggest inspirations when I got myself a 6 string bass at the time and I want to thank you for this! Now since I also have a 7 strings I started to learn some basslines from The Horizon EP by Tetrafusion! ;)
Ha! When I opened for much bigger musicians, and they admitted some nerves still, I then knew it'll always be a thing at times. I don't get too nervous for shows anymore like I used to, but if it's being filmed or recorded it ups the ante a bit. "Atlas Novus" was the first one I did on the day this video was shot - I settled in a bit once we got to the other 2 tracks. But I walked in, they had everything literally ready to hit "record", and I basically got my bass out, tuned in silence, and nodded, and they said "go". It was just fast and the cameras were moving and it got real for a minute there.
Hi Mark, that was my first time hearing Scale The Summit! The tapping chord section was sublime - phenomenal bass work, respect! Interesting what you say about recording guitars, bass then drums - all my solo "ARJAYEM" material is done in a similar fashion. I write on guitar then hash out the drum programming and then record the bass and refine the drums to suit. Works great for me!
I Love this album and song. I wanted to make a suggestion for you to consider reacting to Protest The Hero's Spoils or Bone Marrow. These songs really made me wanna learn how to sweep pick on a bass back in high school lol
Ohhh you played for them?? I had no idea...I saw them open for Dream Theater in Calgary back during the Black Clouds tour. I was pretty damn impressed since they looked like they were just outta high school. Picked up Monument and Carving Desert Canyons right away. But unfortunately I stopped there and am unfamiliar with anything after that. Very cool checking this out!
I sure did! Funnily enough, I saw them on that same tour in Orlando before I joined the band. We were sort of acquaintances at the time, through music, and it sort of led to me joining later on. That was a great show / tour, for sure.
I listened to this album two years after it’s released and it blew my mind. I really loved this track and Dark Horse too. One year after, I started to play bass and really enjoyed your bass parts
Thank you so much - Dark Horse was my favorite song to play live from "The Migration", closely followed by this one of course. We opened the setlist with that on the first tour for the album and I just really felt it "hit" each night.
Dang! THAT was a cool experience. The only cruise I've ever been on to this day, haha. That was a blur of great times. I remember playing a set at, like, noon on the top deck. We decided to wear button-up shirts and I think I almost had a heat stroke. Some of our gear malfunctioned too due to the direct sunlight. Good times!
As other's have said, this is was the Peak for StS for so many. I've been listening to this album a lot over the last few months, and its got a lot of memories and nostalgia attached to it. I always try to support all of the 'OG' members of the band.
Absolutely phenomenal album, your work definitely influenced me to pick up a bass! As for a non-you project to look at, I think The Hirsch Effekt would be an awesome video! They have quite a few bass playthrough videos, I think Bezoar or Lifnej would be great!
Omg, i just realised that you've been playing bass in Scale the Summit when i was constantly listening the band, and i've seen you in like 2015 STS video from Audiotree live. I subscribed to your channel a couple months ago because i simply enjoyed your content, just a pure coincidence :)
Yeah! That Audiotree session was a blast. I remember rolling in and loading into their cozy cool studio place at like 9am. We drank a few Goose Island beers and hit record. Really cool day, and it was super well-produced. See you around!
Guys...I really didn't expect this video to bring out so many cool stories and nice words. I filmed this one for a little tongue-in-cheek fun and to celebrate an album I'm really fond of. I haven't been in the band for almost 7 years (a lifetime ago in the music world!) - THANK YOU ALL for coming by and still being members of the channel. Truly love you all - I look forward to seeing everyone around! 💙
Only recently discovered this song and am so glad I did. It’s a masterpiece. I’ve listened to it a lot during workouts and while driving.
This album was peak STS. Truly everything was brought to its highest level.
We were all really proud of it! It really was like "The Collective" on steroids. We had a lot of notes to get out! 😅
@@LowEndUniversity What are the chances of some official bass sheet music/tabs being released? 😏
Check the link in this video description! Official tabs for “The Migration” are there on my online store as well as the “V” album too. 💥
@@LowEndUniversity YESS! Thank you!
I'm gonna be real, I didn't know this channel was run by Mark until this video. Which explains a lot about why I've been digging the content and don't mind being recommended it. I have a friend who turned me on to Scale the Summit back in the day and I remember when The Migration and V came out being awe struck by the jump in quality in the rhythm section. I appreciated the quality Mark brought to an otherwise guitar-forward band, especially as a drummer. Was always disappointed in the rhythm section quality after Mark departed, and it made me really appreciate the bass as an instrument when I was a wee prog nerd who loved stupid fast drum fills and guitar lines. Glad to see someone I've always had a reverence for making quality content in the fast-paced internet music world.
I've had a few comments like this already and find it super cool. This all means a lot, thank you so much. Truly. I'm really proud of the 2 albums I did with them - it was a really inspiring time.
This video actually clinched me buying a bass and diving in to it. I remember showing my friends this video the night I bought my bass and its all I could think about. The tone, the technique, the vibe... it was all extremely influential! I joined Low End and learned a lot thanks to Mark thanks to this video.
Wow! Glad to have helped nudge you over to the dark side! This is super cool to read. Can't thank you enough 🙏🏼
Nothing beats the Warwick. I know Mark recorded with a Spector for that album, but that I prefer the rendition in this video with the warwick sound. So distinctive. Ryan Martini, Mark, Paul Gray, Sam Rivers and many other Warwick players inspired me to really take playing bass seriously. Also increased my appreciation for instruments in general, specifically those German pieces of art!
This is the best StS album! Listen to it regularly to this day.
I'm glad you're spinning it all these years later. I love the way music transcends time. Cheers Michael!
This is my absolute favorite STS song and most certainly one of my favorite performances from you. I have a recording of y'all playing it in 2016 in Charlotte NC on my page. Pretty decent audio on it. That tapping section near the end has had endless influence on my bass playing. I find myself writing tapping sections over airy guitars more than i'd like to admit.
Nice!! Wasn't that show on like Easter Sunday? I remember getting some killer BBQ right before the show - some diner looking place in walking distance. I think I've seen those videos as well. Glad you were there!
And, oh yeah - chords are always the way to go for airy guitars 😅😉
Cheers!
Atlas Novus and your time in Scale The Summit changed my game up bro, thank you for the sick riffs!
Very nostalgic song and video. Reminds me time when I listen Scale the Summit, Chimp Spanner and Gru a lot😄
Good times! I used to spin Chimp Spanner all the time.
Your bass bits legit brought tears to my eyes the first time I heard this song. It’s sad and honest. Just very emotional 🔥🔥🔥
That is a super awesome compliment!❤
This makes me feel old. I was just about to graduate from college when this album dropped.
You and me both 😵💫
I discovered Scale the Summit when you were touring with Reign of Kindo in 2013. Saw you in a tiny bar in Portland Oregon and was blown away. I ended up playing this particular song on repeat for like a month. Such an incredible bass line. Hearing a pro player break down their writing process was actually really interesting, I would love to see more content like this from other bassists.
Wow, thank you so much! That was one of my favorite tours we did - I love Kindo so much! Appreciate you stopping by, and for the kind words. Hope to see you around!
Mark, this album (Mainly Oracle) was why I got a six string. Thank you for inspring me!
Aw, thank you so much for that! I forget about that song, as we played it live maybe half of a tour if I recall. I'm so glad to hear it inspired you. Cheers, and see you around!
Man, that's how far we go back, my friend. I remember seeing and meeting you for the first time. And then the many many many other times I saw you guys live. The Migration was a perfect follow up to The Collective. I probably learned how to play almost every song from The Migration. This album still holds up today. Such killer bass work on the entire thing.
It truly is, man! Glad to know you. Hope you're well Garrett!
No shot. I was just listening to this song the other day. I always come back to this album every few months
Love to hear it! Cheers to you! 🙏🏼
Wow thank you for this. You’re in my top three of favorite bassists, and this performance is one of my favorites, especially the EMG video. The bass solo is my favorite solo of all time, and this is my favorite track from STS. It’s incredibly organic and beautiful sounding. Happy to hear the behind the scenes stuff and even happier to know you wrote the bass for the album. I was always curious if Chris wrote it or not.
I had the good fortune to see you guys play live with Monuments and Erra. So much awesome. I still have that giant Migration poster somewhere...
I never realized you were in this band. How freaking wild. Me seeing y’all back in highschool, around 2008-2010 can’t remember, but damn!! Much respect dude! Loved this album
Haha! Small world, man. Appreciate this!
I've known about scale the summit for a while, but for some reason , it never clicked with me until i heard the "V" album a few weeks ago. I was completely blown away by the bass parts on that album! And admittedly, a bit sad that that bass player i enjoyed so much left a year later lol.
Shucks, thanks so much friend! 🙏🏼
Ha, I had videos of myself covering this and The Traveller like a decade ago but I took them down along with a bunch of other covers 'cause I didn't like the production. Anyway, the lines on The Migration were incredible, I remember I was sad when Jordan left STS but you also did a great job there.
One of my absolute favorite bass lines ever. It just dances to its own melody. Just brilliant
Been going down memory lane listening to this album again and just really reminded me just how much this album has affected me as a bass player. Youre one of the main reasons I gravitated towards using a 6 string and actually finding ways to utilize it. Seriously some of the coolest bass parts I've heard that really added something special to the music. It was really cool to hear your thought process on writing! Thanks for doing your thing and keep up the great work!
Wow, thanks so much Chris - made my day!!
I saw you guys touring The Migration in 2015 with Erra, Glass Cloud, Reflections and Monuments. A lot of people dipped out during your guys’ set, but me and a few of my guitar nerd buddies were right up front and it was just awe inspiring. I usually don’t pay too much attention to bass, but it’s truly integral to this song.
I was 16 when I went to that show, now I’m 26. Feels like it was yesterday. Time flies man.
Throwback! That happened on a few of the shows but it was such a fun tour because of the other bands. We were the oddball band for sure. Glad you enjoyed it, and I also can’t believe that was 10 years ago now (Summer of 2014!).
Dude, thanks to you I listened to all 7 Scale the Summit albums while at work today!
I just randomly found your channel and knoeing you played on The Migration and V is cool!
Awesome stuff!
I really like instrumental metal!
This EMGTV video is one of my most watched videos on TH-cam. I'm mostly a guitarist but can flit about a bit with varying degrees of success and this video cemented bass as a lead instrument for me personally. Before this it seemed a very fringe concept and to hear that it was recorded without drums just blows my mind and makes me respect the work put in even more. Still listen to STS and recommend them to anyone who hasn't heard them from my little corner of a small town in the north of England.
Wow, heartfelt thanks friend! Means a lot! 🙏🏼
I was NOT expecting a reply! Holy crap, you just made my day. Thank you! @@LowEndUniversity
Always reply if I can. You made my day, and I thank you for that!
You’re celebrating 10 years and I’m getting introduced to Scale the summit for the first time! This album is amazing!
Oh wow! I hope you enjoy the tunes! I was a fan of the band with "Carving Desert Canyons", then when I joined I played on "The Migration" and "V", which I'm really proud of. Appreciate you stopping by, and hope to see you around soon.
Hey Mark, just wanted to say I love this album a a lot and your bass work on it is superb. I still remember when I discovered this album, the first song I heard was Narrow Salient which was so killer. I think it was around 2014. This album has been part of so many road trips and traveling for me and it brings back a lot of good memories and nostalgia.
Dude you were Heroic on that album
😌🙏🏼
Your bass parts in The Migration is one of the reasons i want to play bass. Thanks for the tunes dude!
I don’t play bass but love your vids and love music. Been watching for a while and heard you mention your instrumental band STS. This is amazing bass playing and sounds incredible. Reminds me of my favorite instrumental band “This Will Destroy You” Downloaded STS albums and can’t wait to listen.
I’d be very proud. What a joy it must be to have such great memories, music, and influence on your fellow bassists. Thanks know it certainly left a mark on me. Cheers!
I truly am - always will be extremely fond of those years!
This was the first STS song I ever heard! What got me into the band!! This was so cool to watch!! Do some more of yourself!! Really enjoyed this! And hearing little fun facts! 😎🤘 the breakdown is just amazing Mark!!!
I must have listened to this song a thousand times, and it still amazes me every time I listen to it.
Truly a legendary performance and truly a legendary bassist. This was peak STS, can’t tell you how many times I watched this video back in the day and well here I am in 2024. 😂 Just watched the audio tree the other night and was wondering how old you were, you looked quite young
Came back to this but stopped after 4 mins to Jam the album and thought “this doesn’t sound like a “Warwick” then remembered you used a Spector, and you can clearly hear it doesn’t have that Thumb bell zing tone, such an amazing album!! Some of the most amazing basslines to date!
Like many have said, this album changed how I think of bass. Then I got the opportunity to take Skype lessons from you for a time during this era and learned how too (poorly) imitate this type of sound I love. Thanks for everything and all the educational content you put out Mark!
Huge fan! Tattooed STS logo on my calf. Met Mark in Edmonton and Toronto. STS got me into 6 string bass. Absolutely love this album and what Mark brought to the band. Their best sound to-date and has inspired my playing so much
I backed up and listened to you playing that chord part at 13:34 several times. It's beautiful.
Aw, thanks so much! I really love that part, personal highlight from that album. Cheers Paul!
Man just EMGtv in general is such a throwback for me. I was so obsessed with their uploads in High School. Its when I started playing guitar and its how I discovered a ton of my favorite artists. Jeff Loomis, Tosin Abasi, Alexi Laiho... So many awesome live performances. And of course introduced me to Scale the Summit
Same for me! It was the first time I got to really experience Tosin and his playing, and John Browne from Monuments as well. It was surreal to get a turn in there, and it's a shame that building isn't there anymore (or was sold off years ago). Glad you found STS from it!! Appreciate you stopping by 🙏🏼
Oh man yea, John Browne playing through Horcrux blew my mind. I was so fixated on his picking hand like... Surely this man has to up pick at SOME point? What a performance. Yes it is a huge shame. Appreciate you and all the work you do and have done as well. @@LowEndUniversity
Loved the video and you did a great job. After listening to that song, it's time that I go check out the rest of the Scale the Summit discography. Another player I think you should check out is Jon Stockman from Karnivool, especially since you've had your 6 string out recently.
Appreciate you! Yes, I really listened to the Sound Awake album intensely when it came out way back when. Jon is on my list to cover really soon!
I totally saw you on the tour for this album and up until now, I didn’t know this was you. Whole new level of respect.
This was the song that just came up randomly on my Pandora prog radio way back in 2013 and I was blown away. Chris' guitar work was obviously really standout, but honestly it was your bass work that took it up another level to something really special. Thanks for doing this "behind the scenes", loved it!
It’s always nice as a bass player when the composer’s ideas inspires you and leaves you enough space to be creative.
I am currently learning Atlas Novus, for me the hardest thing is this song is getting the barred chords consistently without buzzing. And I’m glad I caught this inverted chord that happens only once in the song before you talked about it in this video !
It really is - as guitar-forward as Scale the Summit usually was, I saw this song as a chance to really explore the full-range possibilities, musically, of my 6-string bass. I remember all the parts coming off as "too much" at times, but we all got used to it and I'm happy we kept it. I had a lot of different ideas for this song I was playing around with.
The trick with the barred chords is to let your "barring" finger go a little past the bottom string. If you're fretting a 4-string chord on the A, D, G, and C strings - the barring finger should lay over all 4 and almost touch the E string. Also, "bar" the strings a little on the left side of your finger - I find you have to tilt it a little bit so it snuggles naturally and can hold them all down.
@@LowEndUniversity Thanks for your generous answers ! It’s amazing to be a musician nowadays. Begin able to interact with your favourite players directly, having access to all those online ressources, it’s incredible. And the bass players community is so nice.
Anytime, man! I'm happy to be a part of it.
I absolutely love The Migration. I still have the pick tin with the awesome artwork on it. It's a great album, front to back, and your playing on it is truly memorable. Thanks for these timeless pieces, kind sir.
Nice! I don't even have any of those - great collectibles. Hang on to 'em! Thank you so much for the kind words 🙏🏼
I completely regret not buying that album on vinyl at that time and thought your style of bass playing sounded familiar! I had been listening to StS since Carving Desert Canyons at that point.
I'm a little late, but Mark, I want you to know that this album changed my life and that your playing on it was a big part of it. In my opinion, this is the pinacle of both your playing and STS' albums, and the album just would not be what it is without your playing on it, dude. So, thank you so much for giving this to the world. Love from MS.
The Migration is one of my all time favorite albums. What a masterpiece.
Your bass is epic on this album. I absolutely love it.
Man , I really really like the sound you have on this one. And big respect to rec it one take 🎉
And a big thanks for advice and everything you give to us with your channel❤
Thank you - I always look forward to reading your comments. See you around!
No idea you were in STS, this just gives the channel that much more authenticity!
😎🙏🏼
Mark, I will watch and subscribe to anything you make or write. You have a fan for life, you are up there with Geddy Lee in my eyes and heart. Keep please keep playing
Means so much, thank you! Always appreciate your positive comments. Cheers and I'll see ya around 🙏🏼
Saw Scale the Summit, with Marty Friedman, and The Fine Constant, at the Tower Theater, Oklahoma City, a few years ago now. Was a brilliant night of music, and I’ve been a fan ever since. Love the content.
Nice! Really cool package. I had already left the band by then, but Kilian is a monster player and does a great job in every band he plays for. Really love his approach to the Abiotic songs I saw he played on!
This song introduced me to STS and I'm a huge fan of The Migration and V (mainly because of your playing). I own both and they're simply amazing. Also, I think it could be a great idea to react to more songs from those two albums.
Cheers - that means so much to hear!
Dat amazing Warwick tone. That bass is still one of my favorites. EMGTV has had some amazing performances. I love that whole record. Didn't know about the Spector. That thing is sweet too. You killed it bro. One of my favorite albums of all time actually.
Holy crap. ive ben watching your channel for months now and had no idea you were the bassist on this LP and in this band. I love this album. Love the channel man.
Migration was such a dope album, I still play it and Atlas Novus regularly. I discovered it when I was expanding into the djent and prog metal scene and was blown away by your bass composition! I watched the EMG tv performance shortly after and was stunned. When StS came to Madison, WI in like 2015, I was PUMPED to catch a performance live, and when you guys played Atlas Novus it was definitely a life-changing experience! Thank you so much for expanding this meager bass player's mind, and for sharing your knowledge on this chanel and video.
Your bass playing on this album is some of the best of all time for me. And the mixing balances everything perfectly! It really inspired me to pick up bass as a guitarist.
Also, when I discovered this album in 2020 I ended up listening to it for 700 minutes and was in the top 0.5% of listeners on spotify that year 😅 suffice to say: Inspirational!!!
Wow, thank you so much Jacob! That's insane. Thanks for the support and kind words. Cheers 🙏🏼
love all of scale the summit's work, glad you were a part of it in some compacity for a fantastic album
Opened for STS back in 09 having never heard them, blew me away how talented they were
Love it!!!
Thanks for the breakdown of this song! I'm a long time fan of this album, and love your work on it. Seeing you breakdown the techniques and thought processes, as well as giving trivia about the drum parts, shines new light on an old favorite. Keep up the good work!
My first ever record purchase was the white version of V, and my second was the pink and blue version of in a world of fear. StS was one of the first experimental progressive metal bands that I listened to and paved the way for my music taste today. Thank you for the music that you made
Dude you're an incredible bassist very knowledgeable and relatable. Thank you 😊
I have low-key been hoping you'd make a video like this, and this song! Incredible album that I still replay to this day and reference for Bass creativity. Thank you all for releasing this masterpiece ❤
Haha, I finally did it! Appreciate the nice words, Garrett - means a lot!
Please make more videos on songs from this album, this album will forever be attached to some of the craziest moments of my life, i love all the little backstories and insights to how these songs were made and how you approached writing your parts 🔥Thank you
Have always really enjoyed this album! Your bass lines in this album definitely are driving a lot of the music in general and ties everything together. Legendary stuff here.
Cheers - I appreciate the kind words!!
It's a beautiful song dude I'd be so proud of it
This is the best Scale the Summit album by far, largely due to your awesome performances. I’ve listened to this album so many times and it never gets old. Would love to see one on Oracle or Narrow Salient. Kestrel from V is also killer.
Completely forgot i listened to this album to death when it came out!! mesmerizing watching those bass parts! New subscriber and I’m going off to dig through everything you’ve done
I found Scale the summit on got-djent, back in the day, and have been listening to them since then.
Ran into your videos maybe few weeks ago. Had no idea _you_ played by on my favorite album. Cheers.
Scale the summit frickin rules. I showed it to an old woman who played classical piano while o was doing tile in her house. Before I left the job, she actually thanked me and said shes "a metalhead" now. Awesome stuff.
Wow! Super cool. Music is universal!
I’ve been watching you for a minute now, wasn’t aware you were in scale the summit. I watched you guys in Virginia Beach, a cool show with The Reign of Kindo back in the day. Great show.
I lied, it wasn’t Virginia Beach, but Norfolk, VA.
Jason! Super cool to hear man. That was my favorite tour I did with the band, bar none. Purely because of Kindo, who are one of my favorite bands ever. Great to connect here, and appreciate you stopping by!
absolute gem that album…STS never surpassed it AFAIK
that album is so amazing and I had no idea u played it thats sick
One of my favorite tracks ever. Thanks for your work.
holy shit you played on this album?! i saw scale the summit while they were touring for this album! blew my mind. i studied the shit out of this song for a few weeks to learn it. how cool man!
I sure did! Super cool man, where’d you see us and when?!
@@LowEndUniversity cleveland, oh...long time ago not sure of year 2016 maybe?
Right on - I think I remember that, at Grog Shop? Don’t think it was the Agora on that one.
My Favorite Album of all time from STS! One of the album that I listened the most and you were also one of my biggest inspirations when I got myself a 6 string bass at the time and I want to thank you for this!
Now since I also have a 7 strings I started to learn some basslines from The Horizon EP by Tetrafusion! ;)
Thank you so much - I appreciate that more than you know! And, YES! The Horizons EP bass lines are some of the hardest to play...have fun!
Absolutely brilliant! Thank you so much for breaking this down and sharing such great insight. You’re such an inspiration!
It strikes me when you say "I was so nervous", and I'm thinking "This guy knows what he's doing, he knows how to handle the situation".
Ha! When I opened for much bigger musicians, and they admitted some nerves still, I then knew it'll always be a thing at times. I don't get too nervous for shows anymore like I used to, but if it's being filmed or recorded it ups the ante a bit. "Atlas Novus" was the first one I did on the day this video was shot - I settled in a bit once we got to the other 2 tracks. But I walked in, they had everything literally ready to hit "record", and I basically got my bass out, tuned in silence, and nodded, and they said "go". It was just fast and the cameras were moving and it got real for a minute there.
Of course you played on my favorite Sts album. Beautiful job man
Shucks, thank you!
Started watching you reaction vids the other day. Binged STS while working. Made time fly. Omnific and Jinjer are up next 🤘
Aw, thank you so much! Glad you enjoy - see you around!
Hi Mark, that was my first time hearing Scale The Summit! The tapping chord section was sublime - phenomenal bass work, respect! Interesting what you say about recording guitars, bass then drums - all my solo "ARJAYEM" material is done in a similar fashion. I write on guitar then hash out the drum programming and then record the bass and refine the drums to suit. Works great for me!
Hey, thanks!!
I Love this album and song.
I wanted to make a suggestion for you to consider reacting to Protest The Hero's Spoils or Bone Marrow. These songs really made me wanna learn how to sweep pick on a bass back in high school lol
Ohhh you played for them?? I had no idea...I saw them open for Dream Theater in Calgary back during the Black Clouds tour. I was pretty damn impressed since they looked like they were just outta high school. Picked up Monument and Carving Desert Canyons right away. But unfortunately I stopped there and am unfamiliar with anything after that. Very cool checking this out!
I sure did! Funnily enough, I saw them on that same tour in Orlando before I joined the band. We were sort of acquaintances at the time, through music, and it sort of led to me joining later on. That was a great show / tour, for sure.
Props dude! I still listen to this stuff often.
Thanks Lee!!
One of my all time favorite bass parts very fun to play and challenging ❤
Always makes me fall in love with MY Warwick all over again even though the albums a Spector
Scale the Summit was blow fresh Air in scene of instrumental music,..... much inspiration, amazing composers, great players ....
Good times for sure!
@@LowEndUniversity I forgot tô mention the vibe of the songs. Is there some songbook of the Bass linda ?
Yes, there are tab books available! Visit the online store linked in the description at the very bottom. Cheers!
I remember spinning this album for weeks over and over. That album had so many vibes for something with zero vocals. Man.
I remember this young man. ❤
Love you, Mom. 💙
I listened to this album two years after it’s released and it blew my mind.
I really loved this track and Dark Horse too.
One year after, I started to play bass and really enjoyed your bass parts
Thank you so much - Dark Horse was my favorite song to play live from "The Migration", closely followed by this one of course. We opened the setlist with that on the first tour for the album and I just really felt it "hit" each night.
Nice! I actually saw you with STS on Cruise to the Edge 2014. What a fantastic time.
Dang! THAT was a cool experience. The only cruise I've ever been on to this day, haha. That was a blur of great times. I remember playing a set at, like, noon on the top deck. We decided to wear button-up shirts and I think I almost had a heat stroke. Some of our gear malfunctioned too due to the direct sunlight. Good times!
@@LowEndUniversity Three Friends (Gentle Giant tribute) was the sleeper hit band of that trip
I remember them! I think they've done that same Cruise many times now.
As other's have said, this is was the Peak for StS for so many. I've been listening to this album a lot over the last few months, and its got a lot of memories and nostalgia attached to it. I always try to support all of the 'OG' members of the band.
Always love/loved that album.
Absolutely phenomenal album, your work definitely influenced me to pick up a bass!
As for a non-you project to look at, I think The Hirsch Effekt would be an awesome video! They have quite a few bass playthrough videos, I think Bezoar or Lifnej would be great!
😭🙏🏼 - Thank you! I will check them out ASAP!
I saw you perform this on the tour for this album!
Nice! Good times!
@@LowEndUniversity I’m actually wearing The Migration shirt right now. It’s in my rotation of band t shirts I wear all the time haha
Haha, nice!! It was such a good artwork piece.
I really get emotional, this is one of my favorite songs of all time
Oh wow! Love to hear it. ☺️🙏🏼
Oh shit that was you? I loved that album when it came out. Awesome job
It 'twas! Ha! Appreciate that.
Omg, i just realised that you've been playing bass in Scale the Summit when i was constantly listening the band, and i've seen you in like 2015 STS video from Audiotree live. I subscribed to your channel a couple months ago because i simply enjoyed your content, just a pure coincidence :)
Yeah! That Audiotree session was a blast. I remember rolling in and loading into their cozy cool studio place at like 9am. We drank a few Goose Island beers and hit record. Really cool day, and it was super well-produced. See you around!
I bought Migration 3 different times because of needing it in different formats. No problem. Thanks for the info Mark.
Haha! Love it!! Anytime - appreciate you stopping by!
this song is the reason why i take intrest in warwick
They're phenomenal basses!
YOU WERE THE STS BASSIST?? OH MY GOD THATS SO AWESOME