What does everyone think of Tom Araya as a bass player?

petchimps123 · #1 05-25-2009, 10:47 AM

I personally think that he is just one of those people who picked up bass just so he could be in a band and sing. He just plays root notes (as in he only plays the bare minimum to fit the song and thus doesn't add anything except another layer to the tracks) and his lyrics are very similar to each other in my opinion.

The guitarists and the drummer are flawless though in my opinion.

KhioL · #2 05-25-2009, 10:59 AM

Slayer doesn't need a fancy bass hero. Araya gets the job done, plus his voice fits the music perfectly .

Oh, and you do realize that the vast majority of the lyrics are written by Hanneman and King, right ?

WalterBush · #3 05-25-2009, 11:04 AM

I think of him as a bass player, because anytime I've seen him, he's been playing a bass.

For the record, there's an old Guitar World (or Guitar School, or Guitar One, whichever) interview with him where he talks about listening to Jeff Berlin and wanting to be a good technical player before Kerry King introduced him to Judas Priest.

He's making a bucketful of cash doing what he's doing; that doesn't mean that the bass lines he plays with Slayer are the end-all of his bass playing ability. For all we know, he practices Giant Steps through the cycle of fifths on his Jeff Berlin signature model, but that would be difficult to scream over, and out of place in his current gig.

I haven't considered him a role model as a bassist for many, many years, but he does his job, and well. Not every bassist can say that.

Spector_Ray · #4 05-25-2009, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by petchimps123

I personally think that he is just one of those people who picked up bass just so he could be in a band and sing. He just plays root notes (as in he only plays the bare minimum to fit the song and thus doesn't add anything except another layer to the tracks) and his lyrics are very similar to each other in my opinion.

The guitarists and the drummer are flawless though in my opinion.

There's nothing at all wrong with what Tom contributes to the band. Sometimes, simplicity is the answer and it's proven to be good with Slayer.
Slayer was never a hugely technical band. When they started it was all about speed.

mpb13 · #5 05-25-2009, 11:24 AM

He really holds down the mix well. He also plays with Dave Lombardo, one of the best metal drummers of all time, so being able to keep up with him is probably quite a feat in itself.

Sorry if the Lombardo comment pisses someone off, obviously just what I think.

I've played on an Araya signature before, plays like a fast, wet dream, but the tone is another story.

petchimps123 · #6 05-25-2009, 11:38 AM

Ok well when you guys insult Mark Hoppus of Blink 182, the reason is because he is playing simple basslines and then you call out people who say that Hoppus is just doing what is best for the music.

It's very funny how it's different when it comes to slayer.

WalterBush · #7 05-25-2009, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by petchimps123

Ok well when you guys insult Mark Hoppus of Blink 182, the reason is because he is playing simple basslines and then you call out people who say that Hoppus is just doing what is best for the music.

It's very funny how it's different when it comes to slayer.

Who would, "you guys" be, exactly? The last comment I heard anyone make regarding Mark Hoppus on this board was regarding his signature model, not his playing.

Did you seriously start a thread about Tom Araya to knock some peoples' opinions on Mark Hoppus? I'd certainly hope not, but that's what it looks like all of a sudden.

Stickk · #8 05-25-2009, 11:45 AM

He's richer than you, so he's doing something right.

UncleBalsamic · #9 05-25-2009, 11:47 AM

I'd stop with the generalisations first. It won't win you many friends.

mpb13 · #10 05-25-2009, 12:01 PM

I'm now wondering why I even posted in this thread.

If this was a troll attempt then 1/10 my friend.

notforrobots · #11 05-25-2009, 12:06 PM

its easy to solve this, it just wouldn't be slayer without him.

Mr. Soul · #12 05-25-2009, 12:21 PM

I think all the parts of Slayer work perfectly together.

Lombardo is probably the most gifted musician among them but they've taken him out of the mix before and they went on without him and didn't miss a beat. ( no pun intended)

Its hard to think of slayer minus Araya.

Qvist · #13 05-25-2009, 02:45 PM

Has anyone here tried to sing and play bass at the same time to a slayer song before? That isn't easy.. Just look at how his fingers go while he shouts from the top of his lungs, that takes skills. Slayer doesn't need some over the top bassist, the guitars are everywhere already! Araya holds it down, really well, it's a shame he's so difficult to hear on the old albums.

Greevus · #14 05-29-2009, 09:54 PM

i had a soundboard and a rehearsal of slayer before 'hell awaits' when tom was a finger player and he SUCKED. jeff hanneman actually plays on 'reign in blood'. however, i've seen them through the years and tom's gotten pretty good at playing tight at their speeds. he doesn't do anything that stands out, but for a singer doing thrash he's pretty damn cool.

vegas532 · #15 05-29-2009, 11:48 PM

is to judge for yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmCMM5WDgqo

bstringkyle · #16 04-10-2010, 04:09 PM

He fits the band perfectly.

queevil · #17 04-10-2010, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by petchimps123

I personally think that he is just one of those people who picked up bass just so he could be in a band and sing. He just plays root notes (as in he only plays the bare minimum to fit the song and thus doesn't add anything except another layer to the tracks) and his lyrics are very similar to each other in my opinion.

The guitarists and the drummer are flawless though in my opinion.

Huge Slayer fan here. I've been listening to them for about 20 years. However, as I've grown musically I have to say that except for their drummers none of the members of Slayer impress me as much with their ability than they used to. I like their guitar riffs much more than I like most of their solo's and if I had to pick which guitard I like better it would be Jeff. I think the reason that I've remained a fan all these years is because of the way that they sound when they all come together. That's what's important.

Which brings me to my question: What's wrong with only playing root notes especially in the context of their music? That's how most metal bassists play and most of them can't sing(or shout) while they're doing it.

Depending on what you're listening to yes the lyrics can sound somewhat similar but to my ears that's only true of their first few albums. Tom doesn't even write most of the lyrics unless they're about serial killers so any criticism of the lyrical content really shouldn't be directed at him.

If anything is repetitive about Slayer it is the guitar solos. They aren't flawless as you say. I do love Jeff's leads on South of Heaven and Kerry has his share of great leads as well but think they're far better at coming up with riffs than they are leads.

To answer your question: I think very highly of Tom as a bass player because he does his job well, better than most in fact. Their are bass player that can play circles around him but they don't have careers in music and they probably never will. From what I understand Tom studied the works of some pretty phenomenal bassists such as Stanley Clarke before he joined Slayer and I think he can actually play some pretty technical material fingerstyle when he chooses. But that isn't what works best for Slayer.

I'm not accusing you of doing this but I hate it when people downplay the talent of bass players because they play lines that work in the context of the music that is created rather than grandstanding and playing lines that may be technically challenging but aren't very supportive of the music. I'm gonna get off of my soapbox now.

Respectfully,

Queevil