Talented???

BoognishMang · #1 06-22-2002, 02:20 PM

Is it me, or does it seem that the bassist is usually the most talented member in punk bands.
I mean, if you listen to the guitar and drums, none of it is difficult. Granted there are some drummers that do tend to stand out, but seems that most of punk songs seems like they were built around the bass line.
What are your opinions? And let's NOT bash punk music.

**Bryan R. Tyler** · #2 06-22-2002, 11:49 PM

Depends on the bands I guess, but of the little punk I listen to, it's the bass driven ones like NOFX and Pennywise that seem to have the best songwriting.

LumpyGravy · #3 06-23-2002, 01:06 AM

PUNK = good bass playing?
Please clue me in. I love old school like Ramones and Stooges, but I have never focused on the bass player for holding the key for talent. I think FUSION captures bass playing. Check out Weather Report and Return to Forever. Also Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Primus?????? Punk?? maybe a thought, but I think not. Let me know. I need to expand my CD collection a little more.

**Bryan R. Tyler** · #4 06-23-2002, 01:17 AM

It's not that punk=good bass playing or punk=bad bass playing. It's the player and how he works with the song. Some genres tend to lean more or less towards certain instruments or may be more open to improvisation, but that does not lessen the quality of other musics, or the bass player's contributions to them. I have Weather Report albums, as well as Pennywise albums, and if you took away the basslines from EITHER, chances are the songs would fall apart. Punk, in a certain fashion, can show just how important bass can be. Fusion involves a lot of key changes and improvisations, most typically with four or more musicians in the band, so it's possible for the bass to leave a while and the song will still hold together. But if you take away the driving beat of a bassist in a punk band, or even change the bassline a little, the entire song is altered. Simplifying the music can show you the true effectiveness of an instrument.

John K. · #5 06-23-2002, 01:47 AM

well, blink 182 has mark hoppus, and we all know hes not great, but travis is obviously the talent of the group. if you listen to rufio, the whole band is very excellent at their instruments, as is slick shoes. green day is a good example of what you say about the bassist being the talent of the group i guess, but everybody has their role to play. a band isnt a band without their respective members.

cap · #6 06-23-2002, 05:56 AM

The blink 182 thing...if you listen to their songs...some of them anyway...like...the rock show or aliens exist for example. The bassline makes up the sound of the song that so many people love. Now given that the genra of music they play is unpopular around here, what he plays makes up a great deal of some of their songs. And even a few really cool lines like Man Overboard and Carousel. I know he isnt flea but he isnt that bad. But the Rufio Bassist...now...he...he is good...anybody know is name?

-Cap