ARTIST APPROVED
The singer behind the garage rock/punk band Cellmate, and a touring bassist, shares how she brings a rhythm-first phi- losophy to both her songwriting and performance. MARIA ALVAREZ MUSIC INC.: What was your first instrument? MARIA ALVAREZ: My first instrument was my voice! Singing feels like something I can always do no matter where I am. It’s an instrument that no one can replicate and adds to what I can give as an artist. Around 12 years old, an acoustic guitar entered my life but I knew I wasn’t necessarily interested in learning guitar so I started learning bass lines on it. By 13, I asked my dad for a bass and he picked up a Black Beginners Bass with a mini amp for me. MI: What instruments are currently in your arsenal? MA: When I’m recording demos for Cellmate, I use Garageband. I plug in a Soundcraft Signature 12MTK board and then the fun begins. I start with the Arturia Mini Freak Synthesizer, and I love it so much because you get an endless amount of sounds out of it and I feel way more creative when I start writing with that first and rather than focusing on notes and melodies, I can start with honing in on a “vibe.” Then, I move on to adding bass where I use my Ibanez TMB100 Bass. It gets the job done and can be pretty versatile however, I’ve felt that strings make all the difference! Ernie Ball’s Slinky Cobalt 50-135 Gauge is what I’m sticking with. My new live bass is an ESP LTD F-104, and she’s absolutely amazing. Her name is Scarlett. Especially for touring, I couldn’t be happier because she’s incredibly light with a mighty sound and, with the help of my new Darkglass Alpha- Omega 900 bass head, I feel unstoppable. The Darkglass head is also very small and perfect for touring. MI — By Kimberly Kapela
22 I MUSIC INC. I OCTOBER 2026
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