RANA ROSS

BASS PLAYER EXTRAORDINAIRE RANA ROSS MAKES ROCK HERSTORY

AND THE COVER OF BASSICS MAGAZINE

Sinboy rhythm diva and former Vixen vixen earns rep as 'female Flea' with mega media accolades, MTV's "Road Rules" tracks, album in the works

Female bass players are a rare breed. With the bass as typically a man's musical weapon of choice as the drums, the fairer four-bangers have always been on music's endangered species list. While Sinboy rhythm diva Rana Ross isn't exactly cloning herself to increase her tribe's population, she's everywhere at once. Hailed as the "female Flea" by an astute music journalist, the former touring Vixen member is attracting the spotlight to stage right from standard center stage with a wicked bottom end and an innovative, versatile modus operandi courtesy of five- and six-string basses and, most notably, a Jack Read custom electric upright.

"I play very much like him," says the smoky-voiced Ross, who's beyond thrilled by the comparison that's been drawn between her and the Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist. "It's really cool. I couldn't think of anything better to be called. I play a lot of different styles like he does, and a lot of heavy, in-the-groove stuff but at the same time, I like to switch in the rear pick-up and do some Jaco (Pastorias) and Rocco (Prestia).

She's breaking rock's sonic ceiling and making herstory as one of only a few women to ever make the cover of Bassics magazine, the ultimate machine head for bass devotees. In addition to the upcoming issue's front inset and accompanying feature story, Ross, who has a nine-year Hohner endorsement, will be the babelicious focal point of the instrument manufacturer's full-page ad to run in the same edition.

"It's really cool because it's my first ad with my photo in it," says the multidimensional bassist.

Ross was invited to be the Bassics cover girl soon after influential SoCal publication Rock City News voted her Best Female Bassist in its 1999 music awards. Along with partner and programming mastermind/lyricist Elysa Grey, the Sinboy duo has held fast on the BillboardTalentNet Top 10 emerging talent chart for 14 victorious weeks – with a bullet, of course – for their No. 1 track, "Buttercup." MTV's "Road Rules" has signed the band for three songs next season. Famous for its eagle-eye trend- and talent-spotting musician's bible Music Connection has named Sinboy to its Top 100 Unsigned Bands list.

Also in Ross' Anvil case full of accomplishments is a record label she launched in '95 and a member in Geffen's Glam Metallurgists, Phantom Blue in '94/'95. She layed bass down on a dance remix of, Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put A Spell On You". She also came this close to touring with Janet Jackson. Like we said: Versatility. The fretless wonder of the Brooklyn Conservatory and L.A.'s Musician's Institute and the Dick Grove School of Music can funk it up with deep-pocket grooves or shred it up like a tigress on the hunt. She's equally adept at sophisticated jazz and intricately structured classical. If there's a bass line to be had, it's Ross who's gonna lay it down.

While she's seemingly an overnight sensation, it's taken her all her life to rule the day, developing her talent first as a violist and then as a cellist before tuning in to the rumble and roar of La Bella strings resonating through EMG pickups and SWR amps. Nonetheless, as her career has jumped a full octave, Ross describes it as a whirlwind.

"All of a sudden it was a big deal and it was awesome," says Ross, who readily admits. "I've been waiting for so long for somebody to know I've been around." Now that the spotlight is tracking her, the shadow of obscurity is falling away.

"When I came back from the Vixen tour," Ross, who has always earned a living as a pro stringstress, recalls, "I decided paychecks are great but I've been a side person all of my life. I want to make my own money and write my own music."

And that's exactly what she's been doing since forming Sinboy with Grey in '97. The two have already recorded several tracks (including those designated for MTV's "Road Rules") and are in the studio, putting a shine on songs from 30 they've recently written in preparation for a label-ready album.

Though the bass guitar stereotypically hasn't conjured the notion of Venus De Milo femininity, the instrument's traditional persona hasn't compromised hers. Not in the least. Ross can bass-off with Flea anytime, anywhere – and look damn good doing it -- or she can don designer couture for an Interview fashion layout and ring just as true.

"I like going past the boundaries and being a crazy person on bass and being a great stage persona," Ross describes, "and bringing this to whomever I work with, in whatever context. When you walk out of a live show, you want to walk out of there saying, 'Man, that was fucking awesome. All I need is a forum to play in. I gave away my whole '20s to have no social life in order to concentrate on my career and do all this stuff, and I guess it's paying off now. It feels really good."

Karmically cool and a dedicated practitioner of giving well to receive in kind, hers is a magnanimous rhythm as deep and as steady as the music she plays.