victor wooten&les claypool

bass1 · #1 12-11-2004, 08:15 PM

Vics obviosly really good but i saw him live and wasnt too impressed.I thought his sound was kind of week.But les' sound seemed more powerful and more defined.
Does anyone know why this is?

Bernie Connors · #2 12-11-2004, 08:19 PM

Could be a million different things. Way too many factors to consider.

It's all subjective. What you consider to be weak would blow someone else away.

What about the sound made it weak to you?

Wrong Robot · #3 12-11-2004, 08:21 PM

because everytime you see someone live there are bound to be differences in their tone and presence. For instance, when I last saw primus, I could barely hear les at all, yet when I last saw vic not only could I hear him perfectly but his tone was massive

Whafrodamus · #4 12-11-2004, 10:06 PM

I saw primus and Vic, both had great tones, but totally different. It's just their distinct tones. Both were massive and powerful.

EricTheEZ1 · #5 12-12-2004, 05:45 PM

Well, Victor Wooten usually uses EMG P/J config and it's very smooth. Les uses EMGs and distortion/overdrive and they both use different rigs with completely different musical styles. A tonal comparison really can't be made. As far as skill and technique, Victor Wooten wins hands down.

bass1 · #6 12-12-2004, 06:21 PM

How about strings they use,they both use light strings dont they?

Andrew Noury · #7 12-12-2004, 06:33 PM

Honestly, anyone who can listen to Victor Wooten and / or Les Claypool and not be impressed in some way is either predisposed to not appreciating their styles or simply cannot be impressed period.

They are monster bass guitar players... cripes do they have to pull a bass out of their butts and slap 256ths with their toes to be "impressive" these days!?

corinpills · #8 12-12-2004, 08:53 PM

Well, I find them both impressive in the same way I would if someone set their knees on fire and did a backflip at party. Personally, everything I've heard by either of them is the complete opposite of what I enjoy in music or what I think bass should do in music (I just have no room in my heart for self indulgant bass wankery). And that's a much more polite and open-minded opinion that that which I normally express on said subject. It's the holiday season, I'm feeling cheerful.

5stringDNA · #9 12-12-2004, 09:00 PM

When I saw Wooten live his tone was huge and thick- I thought it was amazing. Best show I've ever been to.

Matt Till · #10 12-13-2004, 01:58 PM

I think it's because Wooten has a "jazzier" tone and Claypool has a "rockier" tone. Unless it was a bad mix, this powerful you speak of is claypool's overdriven/heavy mid sound. Wooten has a more traditional clean sound. I think it's a matter of taste/fitting your genre.

Muzique Fann · #11 12-13-2004, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Noury

Honestly, anyone who can listen to Victor Wooten and / or Les Claypool and not be impressed in some way is either predisposed to not appreciating their styles or simply cannot be impressed period.

They are monster bass guitar players... cripes do they have to pull a bass out of their butts and slap 256ths with their toes to be "impressive" these days!?

+1

Steve Clark · #12 12-13-2004, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Noury

Honestly, anyone who can listen to Victor Wooten and / or Les Claypool and not be impressed in some way is either predisposed to not appreciating their styles or simply cannot be impressed period.

They are monster bass guitar players... cripes do they have to pull a bass out of their butts and slap 256ths with their toes to be "impressive" these days!?

+2

Hope you are not shovelling too much snow in Ottawa yet.

Bernie Connors · #13 12-13-2004, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by corinpills

Well, I find them both impressive in the same way I would if someone set their knees on fire and did a backflip at party. Personally, everything I've heard by either of them is the complete opposite of what I enjoy in music or what I think bass should do in music (I just have no room in my heart for self indulgant bass wankery). And that's a much more polite and open-minded opinion that that which I normally express on said subject. It's the holiday season, I'm feeling cheerful.

Well you've obviously never heard all that Vic does. Alot of his stuff is very melodic and jazzy. Why don't you listen to some material from an artist before you make blind generalizations.

corinpills · #14 12-14-2004, 10:15 AM

I've listened to a lot of it. I would never trash someone without checkng them out. I have no time for self-indulgant bass wankery. I can definitely apprecaite Mr. Wooten's playing more than Les Calypool's. I've heard him play in a supportive role in the Flecktones and enjoyed it a little, I just don't like bass solos very much. I don't like it at all when bass players go "weedly weedly weedly" really fast and I'm not often impressed by situations where the bass player steps out of a supportive role. Moreover, I seriously dislike any music that seems to say "look how clever I am" and I have very little time for music designed mostly to impress to other musicians.

I actually think that Victor Wooten has a deep musicality that I appreciate, but if the question "who's better, Vic or Les Claypool?", then I kind of assume that the poster is appreciating the gymnastic party trick aspect of Victor Wooten's playing.

These are just my opinions, though, don't let them upset you. I'm old fashioned, I like songs and I think bass should be a supportive instrument.

Bernie Connors · #15 12-14-2004, 01:03 PM

It's cool. I'm not mad or anything. It's just that alot of people think that Vic is all solo and no groove and it isn't like that.

Sorry if I came across mean.

Bad Brains · #16 12-15-2004, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by corinpills

I've listened to a lot of it. I would never trash someone without checkng them out. I have no time for self-indulgant bass wankery. I can definitely apprecaite Mr. Wooten's playing more than Les Calypool's. I've heard him play in a supportive role in the Flecktones and enjoyed it a little, I just don't like bass solos very much. I don't like it at all when bass players go "weedly weedly weedly" really fast and I'm not often impressed by situations where the bass player steps out of a supportive role. Moreover, I seriously dislike any music that seems to say "look how clever I am" and I have very little time for music designed mostly to impress to other musicians.

How do you assume Les just plays to impress other musicains? Mabey Les just plays the way he does because that's how he enjoys playing. There isn't set rules on how the bass in suppose to be played. Do a google search, you will find no panel of kings and queens who decide for everyone how a bass is suppose to be played. Les dosn't step out of the supporting role, he supports his entire band basically.

With that aside, I always considered Vic to be more musically inclined. But the last couple Primus shows I went to this year, and the Buckethead/claypool show makes me reconsider this.

troll · #17 12-15-2004, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bernie Connors

It's cool. I'm not mad or anything. It's just that alot of people think that Vic is all solo and no groove and it isn't like that.

Sorry if I came across mean.

The same could be said for assumptions of Mr. Claypool as well. I enjoy both, but as far as the bands go, I'm much more a Primus fan, and not necessarily because of the bass playing.

Troll

Bad Brains · #18 12-15-2004, 04:42 PM

At first I was a Primus fan because of Les.

Now i'm more of a fan of how the band is able to sound so odd and melt together to create such a bizzare sound. They are easily in the top 5 most distinguishable bands around.

Plus i'm a strange person, so I like strange sounding music. I guess it just...speaks to me or something. I cetainly wouldn't listin to something I can't relate too, that's no fun. If everyone played the same way, music would be mighty mighty boring.

khay0s · #19 12-16-2004, 07:40 AM

I was a fan of Primus before I knew anything about bass. It was Les' playing (along with others) that brought my ignorant self to bass. You can't say that he writes basslines that are tailored toward a "musician market" because even ignorant people, like I once was, do like his work. Both Les and Vic bring something very special to the bands and music they make. Music is largely an expression of one's self. Both these men play with flair. Is that to say that they are wankers, or that they simply like to challenge themselves and prefer to play a complicated line over a simple one when either is appropriate? Yes, there is no denying that there are often occassions when you could substitute one of either's difficult basslines for something much simpler. But would that truly be them expressing themselves anymore, or just playing an instrument the way everyone else does? It is the flair and individuality of Vic and Les that sets them apart. But, is that a bad thing?

Leigh

corinpills · #20 12-16-2004, 09:45 AM

That's a really good post, kayhos. Just for the record, I don't think less of anyone who enjoys that sort of thing, I just get zero satisfaction from hearing it. It just seems so empty to me, I'd much rather listen to a good song with a hooky bass line. I wish I could hear what others enjoy in those two artists, but I've exposed myself to plenty by both of them, have even seen Primus live, and I just don't dig it at all.

Part of it, I think, is that I think it oculd be a really bad influence on younger bass players. I really think taht a 15 year old kid, just getting into bass, would get a whole bunch of the wrong idea about bass from listening to either of those guys. A more experienced player can rationalize "well, these guys must have really learned their instrument and have years of playing under their belt before they started breaking all the rules", but a younger person might just see all that flash and technique and think that's what it's all about. I just feel like they could get more from listening to what Duck Dunn does behind some of the great Stax singers. then again, it's not like those two things are mutually exclusive.

But that's me, I believe the children are the future.