How do you slap fast like great bassists?

[cire113]

I have a basic understanding of slapping and Im pretty sure its all forearm rotation and striking with my thumb... i can slap and it sounds great but how the hell do is slap really fast like flea and great bass players do.. it seems that there is is like a split delay from the rebound of my first slap before i can slap again.... It is barely a second but i see some people slap and its super fast.. almost like continuous slapping


Im baffled

[bassteban]

Practice. A lot. The danger here is that well before you get any good you will likely annoy everyone within earshot to the point of wanting to kill you.

[Toastfuzz]

Well 99% of replies will be "fast not equal good" and tell you to work on sound and technique and stuff, but I understand the desire to rip out those crazy fast slapfests.

As for fast slapping, either just keep working on it and you'll be bouncing triplets in no time, or work on double thumping (look up some Victor Wooten videos, Claypool does it too in some songs). Also something I like is slapping the string right after popping it to get that "ba-bang!" and slapping or popping a note and hammering another one one string down

[Andrew.Glose]

If you're not naturally able to twitch in rhythm...

Practice...

Intervalic practice.

Do it everytime you pick up the instrument to play, etc.

A

[cheesemonkey]

Originally Posted by bassteban

Practice. A lot. The danger here is that well before you get any good you will likely annoy everyone within earshot to the point of wanting to kill you.

now on the plus side if you already annoy everyone when you don't have a bass it won't make much more difference... but yeah its all practice a whole lot of practice... just do exercise with a metronome.... what i do is in all eight notes open e string slap left hand slap (you just pretty much slap the strings with your left hand and leave them sitting on there don't pop up or anything and it will make a blunt muted sound not sure if i has another name but yeah) then muted e string slap and muted g string pop then slap d on a string and then hammer on to e then mute slap on a string and then g string mute pop... hard to explain wish i had an easier way to explain it but if that makes sense to you just do that with a metronome and if you can do that for like 2 minutes straight without messing up at all turn of the metronome up more and continue doing it

[capnsandwich]

I agree with practice, practice, practice, but one way that has helped me get faster, not that I'm amazing by any means, is to keep my hand close to the fretboard and close to the strings. That allows my hand to hit the strings with less distance between my hand and the strings and therefore, faster thumping and plucking. A set up with low action is another must if you want to get faster. Learn left hand muting also. That will let you slap like crazy and still sound clean.

Hope this helps.

[Dylan-palmer]

Sorry man but the only way is practice

[Hiromakuta]

I don´t get it why when someone asks how can he be faster, how can he slap better or something like that, everyone says that the key is to practice more. I think it would be more useful to say HOW to practice and what is the correct technique for slapping, not just more mindless practicing.
Anyway, you should try to keep your thumb parallel to the strings and let your thumb "bounce" everytime you slap, so that it returns to its initial position, thus achieving more economy of motion. Just my 2 cents.

[WhiteKnuckles]

Originally Posted by bassteban

The danger here is that well before you get any good you will likely annoy everyone within earshot to the point of wanting to kill you.

Hehe...when I first started to add slap to my daily excersises, I'd just play unplugged and think more about the rhythmic aspects rather than the notes I was playing.

My lady came into my playroom and said, "What the hell is all this clankity clackity?! I'm on the phone with Mom!" I couldn't help but start laughing.

Needless to say, I'm still not very good at slap, she still isn't used to it, but she goes downstairs to use the phone.

[mothmonsterman]

lol, building slap technique does sound annoying.
Any who,
Practice and slap towards the neck.
Also using left had dead slaps can also increase how fast you sound like your playing, same with double thumbing though i have trouble getting that "pop" on the up stroke.

Another thing you can try is slapping with your finger tips an odd concepts but my guitarist has had some success with it.

Practice slapping scales and what not with a metronome which i've had the greatest success with. Playing with a metal drummer who challenges you every so often to keep up with his double bass has helped too.

[tswd]

Not all the speed comes from the right hand. Practice playing eighth notes with your right hand (alternating tap and pluck). Then practice eighth note hammer-ons with your left hand. When you can do both, alternate them. Now you're playing eighth notes with both hands, but it comes out as sixteenth notes. Magic!

Remember the laws of physics. The farther you have to go, the longer it'll take you to get there. So, lower your strings. It'll require less effort to get the sound, which requires less movement, which can be done faster.

Efficiency of motion is also key. Practice getting your left hand in position before it's really needed. Open strings are great for this. When you hit an open string with your right hand, your left should be moving to its next location.

Try this exercise. Play this pattern over and over. Doesn't matter which strings.

----5h7-
-5h7----

Play with your index finger on 5 and use your ring finger for the hammer-on. When your ring finger hits the string, your index finger should be moving. Meaning, you should never have two fingers holding down the same string at the same time. As your ring finger goes down, your index finger comes up and moves to the next string.

[bassteban]

The Bill Dickens video/DVD is good for slap technique.
As for 'thumb parallel to the strings'- huh? Mine's pretty much at 90 degrees to the strings, so that my 'pop' comes from hooking just the edge of my index(and/or middle)finger under the string. That helped TREMENDOUSLY w/speed.

[makaky]

Practice X 1000

Think of slap as if playing drums, fast drums can be fun but can be annoying sometimes. It will never equal the groove of a solid down beat.

I guess it all depends on what you want to play. Alot of youg players are inspired by Victor Wooten and alike. I personally respect his technique but dont realy dig this kind of playing. At least not anymore.

Ive been there before and totaly respect the path you choose.

As long as you practice, you will get were you want

Any bass player who want to get into slap should try this book imo.

www.slapit.com

Good luck

[f'nar f'nar]

A good way to get a sort of a "cheat" speed slapping effect is to use your left hand to hit the strings and mute them, getting a thud. Heres a little excercise:

Pluck the G string with you're index finger (excuse the double entendre)
Mute with the left hand (whack for a distinct thud)
then slap with your thumb.

This triplet pattern is easy to gain speed with and can be thrown into not-so-fast bass solos as fills to add a bit of pizzaz.

[jonbass]

Originally Posted by bassteban

The Bill Dickens video/DVD is good for slap technique.
As for 'thumb parallel to the strings'- huh? Mine's pretty much at 90 degrees to the strings, so that my 'pop' comes from hooking just the edge of my index(and/or middle)finger under the string. That helped TREMENDOUSLY w/speed.

+1

[pjmuck]

Let the bass do the work. Seriously. I slapped for years decently until I figured out that by turning up the volume and adjusting my EQ I could play very lightly and more relaxed with surprisingly no loss of dynamics, power, etc. My speed, agility, and even tone improved greatly. Also, be conservative in your motion/movement. It really doesn't take excessive movement of your picking or fretting hands to play fast up and down the neck. (This is true of most bass techniques I think, as it helped my fingerstyle playing as well by adapting a lighter touch).
I think most people have a tendency to dig in and play harder to create punch and power, but that's how you end up fatiguing yourself and running the risk of injury. Granted, Flea seems to be an exception to the rule, as he does seem to really dig in.

[bassteban]

Originally Posted by pjmuck

Let the bass do the work. Seriously. I slapped for years decently until I figured out that by turning up the volume and adjusting my EQ I could play very lightly and more relaxed with surprisingly no loss of dynamics, power, etc. My speed, agility, and even tone improved greatly. Also, be conservative in your motion/movement. It really doesn't take excessive movement of your picking or fretting hands to play fast up and down the neck. (This is true of most bass techniques I think, as it helped my fingerstyle playing as well by adapting a lighter touch).
I think most people have a tendency to dig in and play harder to create punch and power, but that's how you end up fatiguing yourself and running the risk of injury. Granted, Flea seems to be an exception to the rule, as he does seem to really dig in.

True dis^

[Thunderthumbs73]

Originally Posted by cire113

I have a basic understanding of slapping and Im pretty sure its all forearm rotation and striking with my thumb... i can slap and it sounds great but how the hell do is slap really fast like flea and great bass players do.. it seems that there is is like a split delay from the rebound of my first slap before i can slap again.... It is barely a second but i see some people slap and its super fast.. almost like continuous slapping


Im baffled

At some point writing word about it, is about like trying to write to someone what the ideal golf swing is, so they can go out and just do that perfectly, on the very first swing.

Great slap can take years. Watch videos. Practice slowly. Even take a lesson or two on it. No one thing will "get you there" all by itself, except for effort. My best suggestions is keep trying, keep looking, keep searching- you'll get there!

[varunkapahi]

i have three words:
open-hammer-pluck

ok four more
open-hammer-thumb-pluck

now go figure; this is one simple way to play jaw dropping triplets or sixteenth notes

[Atomik Rooster]

Originally Posted by cire113

I have a basic understanding of slapping and Im pretty sure its all forearm rotation and striking with my thumb... i can slap and it sounds great but how the hell do is slap really fast like flea and great bass players do.. it seems that there is is like a split delay from the rebound of my first slap before i can slap again.... It is barely a second but i see some people slap and its super fast.. almost like continuous slapping


Im baffled

Might be some sort of birth defect or nervous condition.