If you’ve been anywhere near a stage, stream, or sweaty club in the past few years, odds are Karina Rykman has already jolted your senses with her boundless energy and fearless bass tone. A true force of nature on the low end, Rykman is a genre-defying, grin-inducing whirlwind—part punk, part psych-rock explorer, all heart.

We first caught up with Karina last year during soundcheck at her sold-out show at Racket in NYC, where she walked us through her rig—equal parts chaos and elegance. Then, a week later, we reconnected for a deeper conversation inside the vibey walls of DAXXiT Sound Studios in Fort Lee, NJ. Between laughs and pedal geekery, we dug into the DNA of her sound, her relentless tour schedule, which iteration of the Allman Brothers we like best, her friendship with Trey Anastasio of Phish, and how she’s carving her own path as one of the most exciting voices in modern bass.

What followed was equal parts gear talk, road stories, and raw insight into a musician who’s just getting started—and already leaving a wild, joyful imprint on every stage she touches.

We had a chance to come and check out your rig and your show at Racket in NYC last year. What have you been up to since then? 

Oh man, it’s basically been a nonstop insane whirlwind since then! We played a million festivals last summer and we toured through the end of the year. We opened for My Morning Jacket, for Dave Matthews in Mexico, and for Gov’t Mule in Jamaica. I’ve gotten to sit in with my heroes, play my own songs for thousands of people, and I pinch myself thinking that I get to do even a fraction of this stuff. It’s more than I ever could’ve dreamed of and I lap up every second.

Have you changed anything about your setup or your rig?

Since you last saw me, not really. I feel really dialed right now. There’s no superfluous stuff at my feet anymore (I used to have an obnoxiously huge board). I use both my custom Benson rig and my custom Bergantino rig when I’m not doing fly-ins and using festival backline. My pedal set up is the same: the Three Leaf Audio Octabvre, a custom RAT built by my pal Brian Fallon, the Future Impact, and a Whammy Ricochet.   

Have you been working on any new material?

That’s all I’m doing right now – we’re deep in the sauce as we speak. And all I can say is that I already know I’m wildly proud of album two, and it’s not even done yet.

You recently had a chance to play one of the holy grail basses – the Osiris “Mission Control” Bass from Phil Lesh. What was that like?

Mission Control is the coolest instrument I’ve ever gotten to touch. For whatever reason, it feels unbelievably natural for me to control. I have an alembic, so I’m familiar with dialing in the filters, but obviously this is a whole different level. When you palm mute with a pick, you just sound like Phil. It’s extremely surreal. I was flown out to Chicago to play it on camera by Timeless Jams Studio. We literally spent 8+ hours a day jamming on these relics like kids in a candy store. It was insane. I’m not sentimental about anything, but I am about instruments – I’ve never sold any of the important guitars / basses from the developmental periods of my life. I think they have souls in them, and this one most certainly does. It was played on all of Shakedown Street, Blues For Allah, Terrapin Station….Cornell ’77…at the Pyramids!? Chills. I listened to the studio version of “Help On The Way” on the plane home and I cried.      

What’s coming up next that you’re most excited about? 

Headlining Webster Hall on May 10th! My biggest headlining show to date (thus far). A hometown throwdown for the ages. I’m so excited about it I’m jumping out of my skin. We’re also opening for Mike Gordon in New Orleans during Jazz Fest, I’m super psyched for that gig. The summer is basically 1 to 2 to 3 festivals almost every weekend. I’m over the moon.

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