Slap technique: Overused?

[Kopfjaeger]

Originally Posted by ACNick

There is a bit of a stereotype that bass players must slap. I get all kinds of strange looks when someone (musician or not) at a show asks me to, quote, "slappa da bass" and I tell them I don't do that.

Personally, it's just not my cup of tea.

+1!! Our band just added two RHCP songs to the set list. I've never, ever, slapped so I suck at it. Luckily for me it's not Higher Ground since that would not turn out so well. I just put a bit more emphasis on my finger technique and I get by.

Slappa da bass?? Nah, I don't do that. Sorry, but I don't begrudge those that do either.

Sepp

[mcm]

yes, very tired of it

[Nurb]

Originally Posted by Clef_de_fa

too much emphasis on rythm.

No such thing as too much emphasis on rythm as far as bass playing goes.

[WoodyG3]

Rhonda Smith slapping = fantastic musical experience.

Me slapping = more frightening than the Psycho shower scene.

I do agree that some people use slap to "show off." I also get annoyed when a there is a video review of a bass or amp and the reviewer ONLY slaps. I'd like to see slap, finger and pick styles covered in a review.

[fraublugher]

Slap isn't always what you expect , I don't use a pick so I have to use the invisible pick technique [double thump]

Here's what it can sound like: http://www.reverbnation.com/artist/a...videos/3016529

[Thumpinshelton]

I lived in Nashville for several years and have seen all types of things. I would see Michael Rhodes play and do NO slap on Tuesday night then catch the Wooten Brothers on wednesday night and get slapped at all night! I think people get very closed minded when this issue comes up. I consider myself a very versatile player and also believe that there is a time and place for all styles, BUT I have never been critical of a slapper or a non-slapper. If it is not your preference then don't listen to it bottom line.

[unclejane]

For me, slap is like playing with a pick - I'd love to be able to do it but I've never been able to even get to a beginner level with it. I'd probably play completely different basses and equipment if I could play with a pick and could do even basic level slap (especially the pick, I'd probably never play fingerstyle at all if I were good with a pick)

I agree with Jung that slapping can be a good way to test the dynamic headroom of an amp (though really, if it's more than a 50 or 100 watt combo, you basically should get permission from the store to run everyone out of there to actually do the test lol). OTOH, today's amps and cabinets are generally so good that you're not going to see huge differences in terms of what they can take and what happens to them when you start overdriving them.

As for slap itself, it's like any other style or tone, etc. It can be appropriately used and it can be abused; more is not necessarily better. As a fretless only player, I have an even more reduced incentive to try to learn it. Only on the rare occasions that I take the 4003 out of the case do I give it a try....

LS

[pacojas]

the only time i ever slap is at GC. not so much to show-off, but to let the wankers know that it's no big deal. i simply grab a nice jazz bass, plug it into the nearset SVT rig, and play a few bars of "GET THA FUNK OUTTA MY FACE"!!!

i am sick & tired of "Root/Octave" slap with the obligatory Hammer-on. please learn to slap melodies and lead lines and i'll be your gopher!

[sven kalmar]

i dont hate it, but its pretty close, hehe

[sevdog]

Originally Posted by KJung

Actually no. One of the reasons slap style is used so often to 'test' a rig is that it will put the maximum hurt on both an amp and a cabinet. The massive transient peak of a thumb hit will really uncover issues with a rig.

One of the primary criterion I use to evaluate a rig is if a thumb hit and the fingerstyle response sounds identical except for the initial attack. Often, that transient peak will kick in the limiting of the amp or immediately push a driver beyond xmax (mechanical capabilities), making the rig sound like there is a compressor turned up too much.

Also, slap style results in the most full range tone coming out of a bass... like the hammer hitting a piano string.

That being said, I don't go to trade shows or music stores to 'hear music', and I agree, lots of slippity/slappity hurts my ears after a few minutes. However, in the context of quickly evaluating a rig, it is a pretty useful tool

IMO and IME!

Edit: Regarding slap style in general, that is a different discussion, and yes, it does not seem to be a key part of the current pop or even funk music scene. I play 'current pop music', and probably slap a total of 10 minutes on a 4 hour gig, where a given song (for example, Katy Perry's 'California Gurls') specifically calls for it.

You can do a thumb hit and/or dig in with your fingers just as much without "popping and slapping" like the OP is referring to. I definitely do that in stores and the sound I make is probably a lot more annoying than some kid trying to pull off some "slappity slappity" junk that has no real musical purpose other than "look at me".

...as the 1990's (and the RHCP wannabe/Nu metal radio friendly vomit-inducing garbage music) gets smaller and smaller in the rear view mirror I find I can tolerate slap-style a little more. But there was a long period where I was 100% Anti-Slap...I still don't do it.

[VanillaThundah]

Originally Posted by Chatdawg

Anyone else tired of walking into a trade show or music store and hearing everyone trying out a bass banging away? Slap technique is a wonderful thing, but do we lean towards it a bit TOO much?

Psh that's nothing! This fingerstyle stuff is so overused it makes me want to puke. Everywhere I go and every time I watch some bass player on TV, there they are using fingerstyle bass and plucking away like the fanboy tools they are. They probably just do it because Victor Wooten, Geddy Lee, and Geezer Butler do it.

[BobaFret]

I don't like somebody playing poorly in fingerstyle, with a pick, or slapping. If people don't like slapping, that's fine. I'll continue to do it cause I like it.

As far as GC is concerned, I try to limit my time in the store. Guitar players are way worse than bassists IMO for excessive noise making.

[jaxstarke]

Only 2 music stores near to where I live. One I never go to and the other I might go to every other year or so just because somebody I'm jamming with might need some guitar strings. Just not a fan of music stores. If someone was jamming some slap-n-pop I'd go check them out. Compare their technique to mine and whatnot. I learned to slap knowing early on that I'd probably never use it in any songs but to me it's just fun to play. I could sit here all day learning new grooves and never get tired of it. Using any of it in the real world is a whole different story.

[bassdries]

Through the years I found out that slapping (and trying to make it sound decent) also has a very positive effect on the left hand technique, the thumb is only half of the story.
So in my opinion it is very useful to learn it, even for people who don't actually play music that requires it.

[unclejane]

Originally Posted by pacojas

the only time i ever slap is at GC. not so much to show-off, but to let the wankers know that it's no big deal. i simply grab a nice jazz bass, plug it into the nearset SVT rig, and play a few bars of "GET THA FUNK OUTTA MY FACE"!!!

If you play it fingerstyle funk instead, it'll actually attract a lot more attention (especially if you do it on an FL). Guys are used to 88,000 other dudes doing Brother's Johnson slap style, so it'll really stand out fingerstyle (Louis Johnson is actually a superb fingerstyle player also BTW).

But I agree with it being overused at stores. I'm usually the only one plucking when I go into a local place....

LS

[NYCbassist]

I say Slap all you want. It's a cool tool when used as needed and even as a Solo. However......The Slap Solo Bar has been set very High. So it's going to be hard to impress anyone with mediocre slapping. Personally I am most impressed by Players that can hold the Groove for a full 4 hour show. That takes a lot of practice and Skill.

[JAUQO III-X]

Originally Posted by Chatdawg

Anyone else tired of walking into a trade show or music store and hearing everyone trying out a bass banging away? Slap technique is a wonderful thing, but do we lean towards it a bit TOO much?

If you see me slapping at a trade show it's usually to check out the versatility of the bass that I'm playing( the same applies when I'm playing fingerstyle), I do not want a one trick pony bass. And if you see me at a trade show playing with others and I'm slapping it's because sometimes I want to.

Originally Posted by Nurb

I am more tired of threads from slap haters, to be honest.
Yes, some people overdo it, but it's still a legit technique when used appropriately. That's it, there's not much more to say about the issue.

I agree Nurb.

[SoVeryTired]

Originally Posted by FunkyMcNasty

I don't care if someone wants to try out a bass anyway he/she wants. It's not hurting my feelings. Maybe I'm not as sensitive as others. To each his/her own in my book. This is still America right?

No, it's the internet.

[NYCbassist]

Originally Posted by SoVeryTired

No, it's the internet.

Yep, WWW not AWW

[SoVeryTired]

If you hear me playing in a bass store you probably won't be at all impressed and you won't like it much. I'm not very good. But I don't play for the benefit of others around me when I'm in a shop - I'm playing for me to decide if I like the bass.

Guitar and bass shops can be intimidating places because some people do seem to be there to show off their skills. I don't really have any flashy show-off parts rehearsed for shopping purposes, and I'm not into trying to compete with anyone else around me, so you'll just have to listen to me playing what I usually play.