40 BASS MAGAZINE ; ISSUE 4 ; bassmagazine.com
Eva Gardner
recording gear, which made it easy for me to
write and finish ideas, so that propelled me
to start collecting and compiling songs. My
setup is also really portable, so I can take it
on the road and set it up in hotel rooms and
on the bus. Before I knew it, I had a bunch of
songs that came together.
What was your writing process like?
It depended on the song. Some of them
started out with lyrics, sometimes it would
start out with a beat, sometimes with a bass,
and even a guitar at different points. Every
song came together differently.
You have technical bass chops, but you
gravitate toward riffs on this material.
When I write, I feel like the songs that
naturally come out are the ones meant to
be written at that time, so where I’m at with
my writing right now is what produced these
songs. Maybe my next record will be more
bass-centric or more technical, but for now
what needed to come out was more about the
riffs, melodies, and the lyrics more than any
flashy stuff. I actually recorded a lot of my
bass parts in a friend’s studio in Joshua Tree
[National Park] — I was playing around with
the bass parts and branching out and playing
some flashy stuff, and I just decided that it
didn’t fit as well. It’s fun to go crazy and play
tricky, technical stuff on bass, but I went with
my gut and kept my parts tight.
You get some big tone, especially on
“Forever Is Never” and “Dirty Bird.” How did you
dial that in?
I used a lot of layering of tracks to get big-
ger sounds. I would track a couple of clean
takes and then a couple of gritty ones and
stack them on top of each other so they would
have a bigger presence. Since it was all hap-
pening in hotel rooms on my days off on tour,
instead of at my home where I can get eas-
ily distracted, I was just in my own musical
world, and it allowed me to really focus and
play with sounds. It was a lot of fun and a big
learning experience.
Chasing Ghosts definitely has pop elements,
but it also has a distinct alternative-rock feel.
What was inspiring you when you were writing?I grew up listening to a lot of guitar rock.
I went to countless shows in high school with
loud drums, rocking guitars, big rhythm
sections, and very riff-driven music. That’s
what came through the ether for this, and I
grabbed at that and put it to paper.
Do you have plans to play these songs live?
The idea is to play shows for this record,
but I haven’t been able to slot anything yet
with how full my touring schedule is right
now. Nothing is set in stone, but I will defi-
nitely get a band together to play some
shows. I’m also continuing my writing, and I
have songs that didn’t make it on this EP that
will get on the next EP.
You’re in the middle of a two-year tour with
Pink. How’s this experience been for you?
It’s been one of the best times I’ve ever
had on the road. There have been so many
moments when I’ve had to pinch myself, like
playing two sold-out nights in a row at [Lon-
don’s] Wembley Stadium for over 75,000
people each performance. I’ve been playing
with this band for over 12 years now, so we’re
all such a close family and we have such a
blast together. I’m so appreciative to be able
to do this and have this supporting cast along
for the ride.
Describe the role of bass in Pink’s music.
There’s a rock vibe with this band, where
in the studio the production might have more
of a pop or dance sound. When we bring this
into a stage setting, we give it a genuine live-
band feel, and all of that really comes into
play with the rhythm section. We have a su-
per hard-hitting drummer in Mark Schul-
man, and I grew up as a rock bass player, so it
turns into a very heavy foundation, and bass
has a huge place in that.
How did you first land the gig with her?
It all started out with an audition I did
for a reality show called Rock Star: INXS in
2005, when INXS was looking for a new sing-
er. I was auditioning to be in the house band,
and I didn’t land that gig, but the musical
director remembered me — and when Pink
was looking for a bassist two years later, I got
the call. I auditioned for it and her managerCONNECT
CHECK IT OUT^
Watch the music
video for “Dirty Bird.”
CHECK IT OUT^See Pink Performing
“Barbies” Live at the
2018 CMAs.
CHECK IT OUTSee Eva with Gwen
Stefani Performing
“Misery” on SNL.
CHECK IT OUTEva with Moby per-
forming “The Perfect
Life” on Conan.