A lot has happened since your show with “Got Monk?”. We saw you stream two performances from the Quilter booth and your recent interview with Jon Liebman at For Bass Players Only. It goes without saying that you’ve been busy! Thank you for taking the time to follow up with us to go over a few questions that I’m sure many bass players - including myself would like to know.

IT : The Kūbo "Aircraft Carrier Bass" is a one-of-a-kind instrument as a one-of-a-kind instrument for you, in collaboration with Daniel and Michael Tobias. In the video interview with For Bass Players Only you mention that along with the string count and various other specifications you provided, you also decided to forego using frets on the thicker bass strings on Kūbo. Can you tell us some of the challenges you encountered when learning how to play the "bass" section of this instrument?

Kai : I actually changed how I play after I received the MTD. I had been developing a new technique of slowly fretting and plucking all using one hand - for a few years before the MTD arrived. I loosely call this "OneHandBass" playing. The result basically sounds like how a normal bass would sound when plucked horizontally using fingerstyle technique (not a pick or slapped). It worked and sounded really good with the MTD and I knew I had to explore and master it to a certain degree in order to bring out all of the colors that the instrument was capable of producing.

The results have been great, I can actually "dig in" more now to give it that driving feel you get from plucking a string and a fun little bonus is that even if you know what I am doing, it's hard to see how I am actually doing it. When combining tapping and OneHandBass, I can give my bass lines more shape and groove than I was able to. Re-learning, and re-thinking all of that was a challenge.

IT : Do you play horizontal/traditional electric bass for any of your own music or others' recordings? How do you handle the transition between the two if so? Do you ever play "regular" basses in the position you play Kūbo?

Kai : I used to want to play both 6 string bass and 12 string (2 region) but after I adjusted my technique for Kūbo, I really didn't want to play anything else. Basically every gig I have done since 2017 has been on Kūbo unless travel circumstances made it easier to take a smaller 12 string. At one gig I played a regular 4 string but that hasn't started back up since the pandemic. I do however play a regular bass in a vertical position once in a while; it's more like a fun tool I use to show at clinics to illustrate points about the creativity of the player being more important than the instrument the player uses. I can more or less do anything I can do on Kūbo, on a regular bass. I will often play more implied things rather than being literal, which is also a challenge on its own.

IT : At what point did you transition from "oh sh*t" to "oh yeah!/wow!" and what to you you attribute your progress to?

Kai : It feels like every month I reach a new, "oh yeah!/wow!" and “finally I am playing!” moment. Other than that, I believe it was in October of 2017 where I was on a duo tour with "GOT MONK?" [with drummer Keg[oe] and everyone, not just me, but everyone in the audience; people who have heard me for years, were going "Oh wow!", and I was still in the early stages of getting used to really learning to play Kūbo. For the first time; I had an instrument that can produce all of the nuances I was articulating with my finger. This revelation made me realize that I sounded like I had improved a great deal in a very short amount of time. It’s not just me though; I think this is why many players choose MTD. They want to hear themselves and produce the sound that’s in their heads, not just their hands.

IT : Who do you listen to for inspiration when composing for Kūbo?

Kai : Nothing in particular. In general don't listen to other people’s music. I don't enjoy background music but on occasion I will actually sit down and actually listen. Other than that I prefer no music. My songwriting inspiration comes from daily life, and the stock of music/sounds I have accumulated in my memory over the years.

IT : You mentioned you played fretless before obtaining Kūbo. Tell us about your instrument; how you learned to play and what advice you would offer to someone who is a casual player looking to make the leap into fretless (such as an MTD Kingston Fretless!)

Kai : Just dive in. It will be pretty hard, and even embarrassing at times, but if you feel like you want to play fretless, instead of spending all that time wondering about it and using that energy to fantasize; just do it. It's a long journey. You don't have to take the short route or be in a hurry; the calm, consistent "work on it daily" route starting today, is the best thing you can do for yourself and your progress and development as an artist.

IT : What should “traditional” electric bassists look or listen for in your playing - that can be applied to horizontal electric bass?

Kai: It seems cliché to say but just play what is needed. I am often playing 3 parts but, if you listen to each part, they contain only what is needed. Each part on its own is not the most impressive thing all the time.

IT : How has playing Kūbo improved your "traditional” bass playing? What nuggets can you offer to the rest of us?

Kai: I am pretty sure I am a better bass player with one hand more than two at this point [lol]. In terms of nuggets, this goes for any instrument; tricks or exercises you can do to improve quickly are developing the ability to hear what you are playing or are going to play and not minding the work thats required to attain your goal. Always keep adding [not just physically] what you can play but also what you can bring to your music intellectually, as well.

Kai Kurosawa : For Bass Players Only

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