Alex Katunich
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Alex Katunich (born August 18, 1976) is the former bassist of Incubus.
Since high school, Alex went by the stage name of Dirk Lance which was apparently taken from the credits of an anonymous 70's porn flick. He stayed with Incubus on bass guitar for over 12 years until he and the rest of the band had developed certain issues, and was asked to leave on October 31st 2002. He was replaced with former The Roots guitarist Ben Kenney.
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[edit] Incubus career
During his time with Incubus, Alex went mostly unrecognised (as seen in MTV's Diary of Incubus), however he nevertheless proved to be a major driving force behind the band. Alex was channelling funk and jazz elements. He also wrote infectious and very respected basslines, particularly in songs like Sink Beneath the Line, Glass, Deep Inside, Are You In?,Hilikus, Battlestar Scralatchtica, and Nice to Know You. Alex has been particularly noted for his fast slap-mute technique, as can be heard on his bass solos in the songs Redefine and Sink Beneath the Line. His electric style of playing onstage has also earned him credit with positive rock counterparts 311 and other industry heavyweights.
After twelve years with Incubus, Alex decided to leave the band. There are numerous speculations as to why this happened. Another explanation (with slightly less credibility) is that he fought with bandmates (especially singer Brandon Boyd) over the creative aspect of the band. Probably another factor of his departure was that he was known for his temperamental and stubborn personality, which caused many arguments in the process of writing Morning View. Regardless, with his departure, Incubus' music continues to evolve, although Alex's absence is noticeable, in such things as Mike Einziger's more complex guitar parts. It has been cited that it was due to the fact that Alex wanted time off of the road for his girlfriend and recent wife.
[edit] Post-Incubus Career
After his departure, Katunich was replaced by the multi-instrumentalist, former The Roots guitarist Ben Kenney who is often the subject of fan criticism (especially among bassists). Some people have particularly taken issue with the fact that Incubus plays their older material at concerts with bass parts that Kenney does not replicate as originally composed. For example, in the song A Certain Shade of Green Katunich uses such techniques as fret and plucking hand slaps and pops during the verse. Kenney, however, has never been known to make use of these techniques and usually plays with a pick (as heard in Sick Sad Little World's fast riff, for example), which Katunich never did (He holds his thumb and first finger together as if holding a pick, as seen in the DVD When Incubus Attacks, Vol. 2 in the 'Unplugged' session). During live performances of A Certain Shade of Green(as well as other songs) Kenney excludes the slaps, pops, and slap-mutes during the verse, possibly to avoid charges of encroaching on Katunich's trademark techniques. Comparisons between the two are frequent, but sometimes irrational; many argue that their playing styles are too different to be properly compared. On the other hand, many of Kenney's advocators see him as a 'worthy successor' in the sense that he retains the funk element of the band, the role previously recognised to be Katunich's. Another considerable point is that many people consider Kenney's rewrites of older, sometimes irreplicable, basslines to be worthy, tasteful, and fitting in the music of Incubus. Many credit Kenney with steering Incubus more in the direction of progressive rock.
Recently, Katunich has come back to the spotlight with Stickman Entertainment, which creates videogame music. Stickman Entertainment's portfolio is extensive; it includes contracts with musicians such as THQ, 311's P-Nut and Suzie Katayama. Stickman Entertainment has worked on soundtracks for such video games as Red Faction, WWE Smackdown, and MotoGP 2. Many fans thought that Katunich's new contract was in response to Incubus's release of The Odyssey, a 27 minute long epic that appeared on the Halo 2 soundtrack. However, Stickman Entertainment was incorporated August 1, 2003[1], long before the Halo 2 soundtrack was released, which proves that Katunich started Stickman Entertainment without prior knowledge of the participation of Incubus (post-Alex) in contributing to the Halo 2 soundtrack.
As of April 2006, Alex Katunich has been playing music with a Southern California-based jam/funk band named Willie's Nerve Clinic. His first official gig since his departure from Incubus was April 6, 2006 at The Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, California.
[edit] Trivia
- Part of his ability to mingle with the crowd is his penchant for roadie shirts (for instance, donning black "Security' tee on the Diary of Incubus).
- He is almost always seen wearing caps, but his trademark is often considered his choice of t-shirts.
- He is an avid golfer.
- Even though he was a bassist for a multi platinum selling Alt/Modern Rock band, Katunich had always found joy in jazz. Prior to joining Incubus, he was part of a school jazz band but was dropped because of his lack of knowledge in note-reading.
- The subject of Brandon Boyd's lyrics written for the song 'Sick Sad Little Word' are rumoured by fans to be about Alex.
[edit] Gear
Katunich was an avid user of Warwick Streamer Stage II's (much like his contemporary P-Nut of 311), which included both fretted and fretless models. They were usually installed with active Basslines pickups and pre-amps. He has also used acoustic-electric basses at unplugged gigs and playing songs such as Mexico live, as well as on Wish You Were Here and a few other occasions he has dug out a red mid-60's Fender Jazz Bass. He has also used a Warwick Infinity, as seen in the video for "Drive".
Amp-wise, his loyalties lie with Eden amplification. Equipment includes the WT-800 head, 4x10 cabinets (used mostly live) and specially designed 2x10 bass monitors, although on occasion (especially in recording) he has used many combinations of cabinets.
Katunich has used various effect pedals, like the Boss super phaser, MXR Phase 90, Electro Harmonix Big Muff, Demeter tube compressor, and DBX sub-harmonic unit, mostly during the early days of Fungus Amungus and SCIENCE. There was a little use of these in Make Yourself.
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| Brandon Boyd | Mike Einziger | Jose Pasillas | DJ Chris Kilmore | Ben Kenney |
| Alex Katunich | Gavin Koppell |
| Discography |
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| Studio albums: Fungus Amongus | S.C.I.E.N.C.E. | Make Yourself | Morning View | A Crow Left of the Murder... | Light Grenades |
| Live albums: Live at Lollapalooza 2003 | Live in Japan 2004 | Live in Sweden 2004 | Live in Malaysia 2004 |
| DVDs: When Incubus Attacks Volume 2 | Morning View Sessions | Alive at Red Rocks |
| EPs: Enjoy Incubus | When Incubus Attacks Volume 1 |
| Singles: "A Certain Shade of Green" | "Pardon Me" | "Stellar" | "Drive" | "Wish You Were Here" | "Warning" | "Nice to Know You" | "Are You In?" | "Circles" | "Megalomaniac" | "Talk Shows on Mute" | "Agoraphobia" | "Make a Move" | "Anna-Molly" | "Dig" | "Love Hurts" |
