Can bass players be "shredders" too?

[jonster]

We all know we need to groove, but is it okay for bass players to be "shredders" too?

[cronker]

If you want.
Check out Stu Hamm, he comes from Satriani school.
I guess whatever can be done on violin, guitar, or harp could be done on a bass.
The more important question is "should bass players be shredders"?

[Epitaph04]

No. Not okay at all. Shame on you for even thinking about it.

[redname]

my bass teacher can shred on his bass but it really tkes lots of practise cause our neck are just so much bigger

[Lesfunk]

Sure but why?

[Yogen]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oBGixxuu2E

[skychief]

Originally Posted by Epitaph04

No. Not okay at all. Shame on you for even thinking about it.

+1

The only one who benefits from a shredding bass player is the bass player.

Everyone else rolls the eyes and waits for it to stop.

[two fingers]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRuOQtg-pJ0

But I can only watch about 10 seconds of it and.... well..... see post above.

Honestly, it's fine. And of course you can do it. I used to get into the Stu stuff. My friends would get me to play the Charlie Brown theme all the time. But I never was in a situation where that kind of stuff would be the least bit entertaining to an audience for more than a few seconds. So go for it but be prepared to keep most of it in the bedroom. In a club nobody cares. Billy Sheehan himself would last about 5 minutes at most of the gigs I do. Then people would get bored and want to hear something they know.

[Steamtronic]

Its like pleasuring yourself with a papaya. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

[SactoBass]

Originally Posted by skychief

+1

The only one who benefits from a shredding bass player is the bass player.

Everyone else rolls the eyes and waits for it to stop.

Biiiiig +1

Like the "hey everyone.....look at me" dweebus maximus we always find in the bass section of Guitar Center.

[SquierJazz72]

Sure, but I'm not big on it myself. I do practice some of that stuff, just to improve my dexterity and coordination, but I don't have any intention of ever becoming that kind of player.

[Ric5]

Here's a clip you will want to watch all the way through!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPGA3vjMLgE

[steve_rolfeca]

Originally Posted by Steamtronic

Its like pleasuring yourself with a papaya. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

TB needs a like button...

[AuntieBeeb]

Well, there's a phase between "groove" and "shredding" which could just be called "soloing," and I think there's definitely a time and a place for that. Despite what your guitarist thinks, a bass guitar can be made to "sing," providing you pick your opportunities carefully.

Now onto shred: let me tell you a little story. A very good friend, who happens to be a guitarist, was keen to go to the Marshall 50th Anniversary concert in London, and got tickets for a few of us. There were no bassists shredding, but there were a lot of guitarists shredding. In fact, of all the guitarists taking solos, I can only remember one who didn't shred: Phil Campbell, of Motorhead.

It was possibly the least "musical" concert I've ever been to. When a member of Motorhead stands out as playing the most melodic guitar solo in a gig packed with virtuosos, you know something's wrong. The trouble was that every other guitarist, when given the opportunity to solo, just widdled their way up and down arpeggios, knocking notes out faster than the human ear can really resolve. Oh, sure, it's impressive to watch, and technically incredibly demanding. But to listen to, it gets really f**king boring, really f**king quickly.

So learn to shred if you must; I'm sure it will do wonders for your dexterity. But don't inflict it on the rest of us.

[Feral Feline]

I know other people are thinking it, but I'll be bold and say it outright:

What's wrong with a Papaya?

There's nothing wrong with shredding on ANY instrument, if it's done tastefully ie making music the goal and accomplishing such goal successfully.

Widdling, however, has NO place on any instrument and it is boring watching any "player" widdle away, papaya or no papaya.

[rtav]

You can DEFINITELY shred on bass (I think it's especially cool when doubling a shredding guitar run). There are some instructional clips on Youtube with exercises to shred from bottom to top and back again... cool stuff.

[Duckwater]

As long as it makes the music better, you can do whatever you want IMO. Playing for your ego is not something I value.

[bearhart74]

Nobody mentioned Billy Sheehan yet?

[BogeyBass]

Yah dude.....shred

shred is cool if you can do it, otherwise just be haters with excuses. if you could, you would... but you ......cant ......

Originally Posted by bearhart74

Nobody mentioned Billy Sheehan yet?

I know right...billy rules but yes their was a vid posted, what he did with David lee Roth was purdy darn cool for the time..

come on Steve Via on guitar you have to have a shred bassist to keep up with that

[rtav]

+1

Originally Posted by BogeyBass

Yah dude.....shred

shred is cool if you can do it, otherwise just be haters with excuses. if you could, you would... but you ......cant ......