Nikhil Nair is a bassist based in Mumbai. He started his musical journey in the year 2010 by learning the guitar. It was during this period that he developed a curiosity for the low end brethren of guitar and to fuel his curiosity he switched to bass in the year 2012. From there he realized this was his calling and thus the bass became an integral part of his personality and identity.
Nikhil believes that the bass has the power to invoke emotions within the listener, hence he always strives not only to lay down a powerful groove but also to create fluent bass melodies. He is well known for his improvisational skills and groovy playing.
Describe your rig or instrument of choice: I currently use an Ibanez BTB1605 Premium which is equipped with the Nordstrand Big Singles. Apart from that i ocassionally use my Gb&A acoustic bass for unplugged studio or live sessions.
How did you discover Nordstrand? It all started when two years ago i decided to upgrade my rig to a professional standard. After researching i came across Ibanez basses equipped with Nordstrand Big Singles. I always wanted a bass which had the characteristic jazz pickups sound but with more punch and clarity. After deliberating i finally settled on the Ibanez BTB 1605 which I purchased last year. I wasn't disappointed. This bass sounded the way exactly I wanted it to, thanks to the super clean, well articulated and punchy Nordstrand Big Singles. Someone accurately said the Big Singles sounded like 'Jazz bass on steroids'.
What Nordstrand products do you use? As mentioned before, I currently use a set of Nordstrand Big Singles pickups and in the near future i plan to upgrade my bass preamp to a Nordstrand 3B.
Artists whom with you are currently working: I am currently playing with three bands namely ESHAN, The Family, and Treble Bite. Apart from that i do freelancing gigs with some respected Bollywood and indie artists.
Other artists of note whom with you have worked: I have had the opportunity to work with some notable Indian artists like Pandit Milind Raikar, Pandit Vivek Sonar, Ustad Fazal Qureshi, Maati Baani, Symphony Novel, Sooraj and the Shades, KavyaKriti, et al.
