Chris Wolstenholme
Background information
Birth name	Christopher Tony Wolstenholme
Born	December 2, 1978 (1978-12-02) (age 28) Rotherham, England
Genre(s)	Alternative rock New Prog
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	Bass Guitar, Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
Years active	1992 - present
Label(s)	Warner Bros. Records Eastwest Records Atlantic Records Helium 3
Associated acts	Muse

Christopher Wolstenholme (born Christopher Tony Wolstenholme, 2 December 1978, in Rotherham, Yorkshire, England) is the bassist for the rock band Muse. He also sings backing vocals to some of the band's songs, and sometimes plays guitar instead of bass. He also plays keyboard on occasions, but rarely and only at live shows. Image File history File links Chris_Wolstenholme. ... is the 336th day of the year (337th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England. ... Rotherham is a town in South Yorkshire, England, built upon the River Don near the confluence of the Don and the Rother. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto)1 Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. ... New Prog or Nu Prog, is a term used to describe a number of recent alternative rock bands who incorporate elements from progressive rock. ... “Instrumentalist” redirects here. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a bass string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Warner Bros. ... old logo current logo Eastwest Records was started in 1955 as a subsidiary label of Atlantic Records. ... Atlantic Records (Atlantic Recording Corporation) is an American record label, and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Music Group. ... Helium-3 is rare on Earth and sought-after for use in nuclear fusion research. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... is the 336th day of the year (337th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... Rotherham is a town in South Yorkshire, England, built upon the River Don near the confluence of the Don and the Rother. ... Look up Yorkshire in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto)1 Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a bass string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ... Rock is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars, and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles, however saxophones have been omitted from newer subgenres of rock music since the 90s. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

Biography

Wolstenholme grew up in Rotherham before moving to Teignmouth, Devon in 1989. While living there he played drums for a post-punk band, while Matthew Bellamy and Dominic Howard played in another. After two years of failed bassists in Matthew and Dominic's band, Wolstenholme gave up the drums and joined with them as bassist to create The Rocket Baby Dolls (later to be renamed Muse). Although he had never played a bass guitar before that time, Wolstenholme is now a highly regarded bassist in the music industry, being complimented by Paul McCartney after their headline at Glastonbury Festival set in 2004^{[citation needed]}. Teignmouth (IPA: ) is a town on the north bank of the estuary mouth of the River Teign in south Devon, England. ... “Devonshire” redirects here. ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Post punk generally refers to the particularly fertile and creative period following the initial punk rock explosion. During the first wave of punk, roughly spanning 1976-1983, bands such as The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones and The Damned began to challenge the current styles and conventions of rock... Matthew James Bellamy (born June 9, 1978 in Cambridge, England) is the lead singer, guitarist and pianist of rock group Muse, known for his falsetto voice and guitar/piano playing ability. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an Academy Award- and Grammy Award-winning English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or Glasto, is the largest[1] greenfield music and performing arts festival in the world. ...

He currently resides in Teignmouth with his wife Kelly and their three children Alfie, Frankie and Ava-Jo, with whom he tries to spend as much time as possible. Teignmouth (IPA: ) is a town on the north bank of the estuary mouth of the River Teign in south Devon, England. ...

Musical equipment

Wolstenholme has used many different basses since the start of Muse's career, starting out with Warwick and Bass Collection basses, alongside an electric double bass for use in the song Unintended. He favoured the Ampeg SVT amps, with 1x18, 2x10 and 2x6 cabs. Warwick Streamer 5-string bass Warwick is a bass guitar company founded in Germany in 1982. ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ... Unintended is a single by the British rock band Muse from their debut album, Showbiz. ... Ampeg is an American instrument amplifier manufacturer. ...

Part of Muse's distinctive sound is produced by Wolstenholme's use of distortion; he has been one of few modern bassists to pioneer distortion and fuzz in songs, especially live. Favouring the Electro Harmonix Big Muff distortion / sustainer, this was used alongside a BOSS Bass overdrive and other effects. The Electro-Harmonix logo Electro-Harmonix is a company that makes electronic sound processors based in New York. ... NYC re-issue & a Russian Sovtek version The Big Muff is a famous distortion box produced in New York City by the Electro-Harmonix company, along with their Russian sister company Sovtek, primarily for use with the electric guitar. ... A typical compact effects pedal. ... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a bass string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ...

In the Origin of Symmetry era, Wolstenholme had many Pedulla basses. Only using the Pedulla Rapture SB4 basses with a single humbucking pickup, the JB4 bass with two jazz pickups shown in the Plug In Baby video was sold on eBay to a lucky fan. Wolstenholme also changed to use two Marshall amplifiers (3 cabs in total counting his combo amp), he had two separate channels, one for clean bass and one for distorted bass. Chris has also been known to use his Marshall Bass State b150 which he drives to the edge because "it distorts nicely". His effects rig also expanded to include some Line6 effects and more BOSS effects. Origin of Symmetry is English rock band Muses second album, released in the summer of 2001 on Mushroom Records in the UK. Plug In Baby, New Born, Bliss, Feeling Good and Hyper Music were the singles from this album; the latter two were released together as a double-A... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Plug In Baby is a single by the British rock band Muse from their second album, Origin of Symmetry. ... eBay headquarters in San Jose eBay North First Street satellite office campus (home to PayPal) eBay Inc. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Generally, an amplifier is any device that uses a small amount of energy to control a larger amount of energy. ... In popular music a bassline, also bass line, is an instrumental part, or line, which is in the bass or lowest range and thus lower than the other parts and part of the rhythm section. ... In everyday speech, to distort something is to force it out of its natural shape. ... Line 6, founded in 1996 and based in Agoura Hills, California, is a manufacturer of digital modelling electric guitars, amplifiers and effects processors. ... A typical compact effects pedal. ...

For Muse's third album, Absolution, Wolstenholme kept the Pedulla basses but also recorded using Warwick basses (his old ones) and others. He also added a Fender Jazz Bass into his lineup for Sing for Absolution and a Zon Sonus Studio 4. For live performances of Stockholm Syndrome Wolstenholme used a beat up Pedulla Rapture SB5 - so beaten up that a tuning peg has been lost and it is only used as a four-string bass now. No surprise that Wolstenholme threw it onto the stage from the audience, then into Dominic Howard's bass drum at the UK's biggest festival, Glastonbury. This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Absolution is the third studio album by English rock band Muse. ... Warwick (pronounced or War-ick (silent w in middle)) is the historic county town of Warwickshire in England and has a population of 25,434 (2001 census). ... It has been suggested that Fender Amplifier History be merged into this article or section. ... The Jazz Bass was the second bass model created by Leo Fender. ... Sing for Absolution is a song by English rock band Muse from their third studio album, Absolution. ... For the meaning of the term, see Stockholm syndrome. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. ... Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry spot on the Somerset Levels, 50km (31 miles) south of Bristol. ...

He still kept his Marshall amps, and also included more rackmount effects in the form of Line6 Bass Pods and filter modelers, and more. His effects rig became so big that Rocktron All Access MIDI controllers are used both on and off stage to control everything. Also adding in an Akai Deep Impact synth pedal for the hit single Time Is Running Out and a Digitech Synth Wah alongside more effects. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Line 6, founded in 1996 and based in Agoura Hills, California, is a manufacturer of digital modelling electric guitars, amplifiers and effects processors. ... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a bass string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ... Akai () was a Japanese consumer electronics producer founded in 1929. ... Time is Running Out is a single by British rock band Muse. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ...

For the latest album, Black Holes and Revelations, Wolstenholme has changed his rig nearly completely. Now favouring Rickenbacker 4003 basses and Fender Jazz Basses for new and old songs alike, he also uses a pick on a few new songs, including Assassin, the beginning of Map of the Problematique, the beginning of Invincible, and the beginning and middle of Knights of Cydonia, according to Muse's August 26, 2006, performance at the Reading Festival. He also plays an upright bass in Soldier's Poem. The Electro Harmonix Big Muff is used more often in this album, nearly in every track, and his vocals are sometimes sung through a vocoder, most noticeably in Supermassive Black Hole. Black Holes and Revelations is the fourth studio album by English rock band Muse, released in July 2006. ... Mod revivalist band The Jams Bruce Foxton (left) on a Rickenbacker bass and Paul Weller on a Rickenbacker guitar Rickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker (IPA pronunciation: ) [1]), is an electric guitar manufacturer, notable for having invented the first electric guitar during the 1930s. ... It has been suggested that Fender Amplifier History be merged into this article or section. ... The Jazz Bass was the second bass model created by Leo Fender. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The Electro-Harmonix logo Electro-Harmonix is a company that makes electronic sound processors based in New York. ... NYC re-issue & a Russian Sovtek version The Big Muff is a famous distortion box produced in New York City by the Electro-Harmonix company, along with their Russian sister company Sovtek, primarily for use with the electric guitar. ... A vocoder (name derived from voice encoder, formerly also called voder) is a speech analyzer and synthesizer. ... Supermassive Black Hole is a song by English rock band Muse and is the third track on their 2006 album Black Holes and Revelations. ...

Trivia

• Rather than play with a pick, Wolstenholme is known to play with his fingers, in a manner similar to late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton. Like Burton, he plays very fast with his fingers, as in Hysteria, Stockholm Syndrome.
• During Muse's stint on The Cure's Curiosa festival in 2004, Wolstenholme broke his wrist playing football with The Cooper Temple Clause. He was unable to play bass, causing the band to discontinue their tour. They did, however, play their tour's headlining spot at the United Kingdom's V Festival. A replacement in the form of Morgan Nicholls (The Streets) was drafted in and Wolstenholme was relegated to 'balloon duty' and keyboards.
• Wolstenholme is known to headbang in time with whatever song the band is playing during live performances (when not singing), although recently at the Canadian V Festival he admitted in an interview that the doctor has told him to tone it down a little, as he keeps developing knots in his neck and shoulder.
• Wolstenholme is known to like Alternative rock, Blues-rock, Heavy metal, Ambient music and Progressive rock.
• Is a big Rotherham United fan

A pick is a tool used for manual labour which consists of a hard spike attached perpendicular to a handle. ... Metallica is a Grammy Award-winning American heavy metal/thrash metal band formed in 1981[1] and has become one of the most commercially successful musical acts of recent decades. ... Clifford Lee Burton (February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986) was a bass guitarist, best known for his work with the thrash/heavy metal band Metallica from 1982-86. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... The Cure are an English rock band that formed in Crawley, Sussex in 1976. ... The Cooper Temple Clause was a five-piece post-hardcore band originating from Wokingham, Berkshire, England. ... For the North American spin-off of the rock festival, see Virgin Festival For the Australian spin-off, see V Festival (Australia) The V Festival is an annual rock festival in England, the first to be held simultaneously at two sites - currently Hylands Park in Chelmsford, Essex and Weston Park... Morgan Nicholls is a British musician, who has formerly played in early-90s band Senseless Things, a semi-solo project called Morgan and The Streets, amongst others. ... Mike Skinner (born 27 November 1978), more commonly known by his stage name The Streets, is a rapper from Birmingham, England. ... Headbanging is a type of dance which involves violently shaking your head in time with music, most commonly heavy metal music. ... Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. ... Blues Rock or Blues-rock is a fusion genre of music which combines elements of the blues with rock and roll. ... Heavy metals, in chemistry, are chemical elements of a particular range of atomic weights. ... Ambient music is a musical genre that incorporates elements of a number of different styles - including jazz, electronic music, new age, modern classical music, traditional, world, and noise. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Rotherham United F.C. are a football club in The Football League. ...

External links

• Chris Wolstenholme on MuseWiki
• Chris Wolstenholme Fanlisting