Why is Chris Novoselic looked down upon?

Bass of Justice · #1 06-16-2009, 03:04 PM

I am relatively new to bass, but i always thought Novoselic had a good tone (not on In Utero, but on Nevermind and Nirvana's older stuff like Incesticide), and he writes some of the coolest bass lines i can think of.

Can anyone explain to me why he does not seem to get a lot of respect in the bass community or provide specific examples of songs where he has good or bad tone?

Thanks and rock on

thedude77md · #2 06-16-2009, 03:07 PM

I don't think it has anything to do with tone, rather some folks think his playing wasn't so hot. I don't really agree with that either- I think a lot of the criticism came as part of the backlash against Nirvana. Many folks think they "ruined" rock-n-roll.

Stickk · #3 06-16-2009, 03:08 PM

What are these "coolest bass lines" that you speak of?

basslinejam · #4 06-16-2009, 03:09 PM

+1 on Nevermind. Incredible production on the whole thing IMHO. I think dave grohl and novoselic were a crack rhythm section and i haven't heard any haters in my (modest) bass world wanderings... What are the criticisms you've heard?

FunkMetalBass · #5 06-16-2009, 03:12 PM

Plenty of reasons, but he never did anything over-the-top flashy, he played with a pick (there is some stigma about this among the naive bass community for some reason), his lines weren't extremely complicated, and he really stayed out of the limelight.

You don't get respect and a name if you don't do anything to catch the public eye.

That being said, I really like his playing. Cobain didn't do anything particularly notable as far as his musical writing, so each song really hinged upon Chris and Dave (and Kurt's on/off distortion) to drive it as it progressed and define the chorus/verse. I vaguely recall a Bass Player article about a year ago and it revolved around Novoselic's huge importance in the band.

msiner · #6 06-16-2009, 03:14 PM

His throw is pretty good, but his bass catching skills need some improvement before he can be considered truly great.

FunkMetalBass · #7 06-16-2009, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiner

His throw is pretty good, but his bass catching skills need some improvement before he can be considered truly great.

Lol!

I have to find tha video...

EDIT: Got it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLZbbgVw7Jg

infamusblkdeath · #8 06-16-2009, 03:25 PM

i think it's just cause everyone thinks that he didn't contribute to the band much,other than being the bass player.
also,people don't take in account of the fact that nirvana is an alternative-punk band,(bleach is the only part of nirvana that seemed actual grunge to me)which limits your creativity.
personally,compared to most other bassists in popular alternitive rock bands,i think krist was one of the most creative and one of the best.it's not like he just followed root notes all the time like most of today's alt.bass players.

i think it's stupid that people call him crap though,especially other bass players,cause i know that most of them aren't even into nirvana that much.and you really have to listen to their not so mainstream songs to find his really good basslines(like from love buzz,lounge act,been a son,etc.)i don't think people should be so quick to judge him,especially if you are thinking about his playing along the lines of smells like teen spirit,which he has used the least amount of creativity for.
you have to dig alittle more than that.

i think he's a great player,for his genre.i don't know why people go and compare him to geddy lee and other ppl like that.he might not be nearly as good,but there are plenty of worse players.the one and only problem i found with him is his live tone sucks...like he hadn't changed his strings in forever,that's it though

jaywa · #9 06-16-2009, 03:26 PM

Never a big fan of Nirvana but I think the bass line on "Lithium" is one of the most unique ever. I would have never come up with something like that in a million years.

I think another reason some people crack on Noveselic is his choice of basses... often Gibsons (and the more obscure models at that), which are seen as archaic and/or have never been widely accepted as instruments of choice in the bass community. Held way low, played with a pick... just kind of your typical "slacker bassist" persona which tripped up a lot of people and detracted from what he was actually doing musically.

LouisV · #10 06-16-2009, 03:29 PM

"Why is Chris Novoselic looked down upon?"
Hmmm, this is news to me. I liked the band. IMHO it's strange to say a particular musician in a popular/innovative band is/was not a good musician. His playing worked with the band & the listeners liked it, went to shows & bought the music. From just that I'd say he did quite well as a musician (better than I have!) But, I'm happy we all have our opinions & a place to air them!

infamusblkdeath · #11 06-16-2009, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaywa

Never a big fan of Nirvana but I think the bass line on "Lithium" is one of the most unique ever. I would have never come up with something like that in a million years.

I think another reason some people crack on Noveselic is his choice of basses... often Gibsons (and the more obscure models at that), which are seen as archaic and/or have never been widely accepted as instruments of choice in the bass community. Held way low, played with a pick... just kind of your typical "slacker bassist" persona which tripped up a lot of people and detracted from what he was actually doing musically.

ironically,he was the one that made me WANT all of those offbeat gibson basses;the ripper,thunderbirds,the RD's,and victory.he's pretty much the reason behind why i want them

msiner · #12 06-16-2009, 03:34 PM

I really like Krist and Nirvana. Even though it is not a Nirvana song, I really love listening to him on "The Man Who Sold the World" from the Unplugged album. I have never seen anyone say anything bad about him in particular, but I really haven't seen any TB praise for him either (current thread excluded). He was never a front-man and stood in the shadow of a legend. So it is understandable if people don't quite give him all of the credit he deserves.

jaywa · #13 06-16-2009, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiner

He was never a front-man and stood in the shadow of a legend.

I think you've hit on something here. I think the perception of a lot of people is that Novoselic was never really a guy that lived and breathed music. That he just fell into a magical situation with Grohl and Cobain, went along for the ride and after Nirvana was done he really didn't have the burning love for music to stay at it. It was like he just checked-off "be in a world famous band" from his to-do list and went on to the next thing. As opposed to Grohl who went on to form Foo Fighters and is much respected by musicians and possibly even more so now than when he was in Nirvana.

The fact that Novoselic is spending more time in politics than music now would seem to indicate that perception was correct.

There's really no reason he should be disrespected for it but I think it may be part of it.

GreaserMatt · #14 06-16-2009, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiner

His throw is pretty good, but his bass catching skills need some improvement before he can be considered truly great.

+1, haha.

Seriously though, he's one of my fav bass players. I love the band, but sometimes I wish they never got so huge. I think it ruined things...

GreaserMatt · #15 06-16-2009, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaywa

I think you've hit on something here. I think the perception of a lot of people is that Novoselic was never really a guy that lived and breathed music. That he just fell into a magical situation with Grohl and Cobain, went along for the ride and after Nirvana was done he really didn't have the burning love for music to stay at it. It was like he just checked-off "be in a world famous band" from his to-do list and went on to the next thing. As opposed to Grohl who went on to form Foo Fighters and is much respected by musicians and possibly even more so now than when he was in Nirvana.

The fact that Novoselic is spending more time in politics than music now would seem to indicate that perception was correct.

There's really no reason he should be disrespected for it but I think it may be part of it.

Also, you guys need to remember that Kurdt & Kris are/were self-taught; they just bought a guitar/bass & started messing around. There's all this animosity over at HC about Kurdt not being a great guitar player. It's pretty silly...

infamusblkdeath · #16 06-16-2009, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaywa

I think you've hit on something here. I think the perception of a lot of people is that Novoselic was never really a guy that lived and breathed music. That he just fell into a magical situation with Grohl and Cobain, went along for the ride and after Nirvana was done he really didn't have the burning love for music to stay at it. It was like he just checked-off "be in a world famous band" from his to-do list and went on to the next thing. As opposed to Grohl who went on to form Foo Fighters and is much respected by musicians and possibly even more so now than when he was in Nirvana.

The fact that Novoselic is spending more time in politics than music now would seem to indicate that perception was correct.

There's really no reason he should be disrespected for it but I think it may be part of it.

that is definatly a good observation;but i can't blame the guy for staying out of the spotlight. he was the only other memeber in it from the begining with kurt,and he and kurt were like best friends.that's gotta be pretty traumatic that you were in a world famous band with one of your best friends one week,and the next someone finds him dead.
if that were me,i would definatly be contimplating something else after that happend.he could have moved on,and joined the foo fighters,but he didn't out of courtesy of the fans,he didn't want them to call them a nirvana rip off.

for him to do that,i think that's pretty deep.also,he really WAS the nicest memeber of the band,i heard he is extremely friendly

newbold · #17 06-16-2009, 04:02 PM

Nirvana on the whole is looked down upon.

MatticusMania · #18 06-16-2009, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaywa

I think you've hit on something here. I think the perception of a lot of people is that Novoselic was never really a guy that lived and breathed music. That he just fell into a magical situation with Grohl and Cobain, went along for the ride and after Nirvana was done he really didn't have the burning love for music to stay at it. It was like he just checked-off "be in a world famous band" from his to-do list and went on to the next thing. As opposed to Grohl who went on to form Foo Fighters and is much respected by musicians and possibly even more so now than when he was in Nirvana.

The fact that Novoselic is spending more time in politics than music now would seem to indicate that perception was correct.

There's really no reason he should be disrespected for it but I think it may be part of it.

Actually he's had a number of musical ventures after Nirvana. He was in a band for a while called Sweet 75, and then later formed the band 'Eyes Adrift' with one of the guys from the Meat Puppets and Bud Gough, drummer of Sublime. After that he took on the bass role of the band Flipper, like last year, and has been practicing politics all the while.

Noveselic was the one who made me want to play bass, and why Im here right now...

infamusblkdeath · #19 06-16-2009, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newbold

Nirvana on the whole is looked down upon.

yeah..

only by NON-fans...

limit6 · #20 06-16-2009, 04:21 PM

He was simple and did what he did well. Nirvana came down to the songwriting and not much of the flash (Dave Ghrol not included) that everyone loves around here. It's also common practice amongst many musicians to play out an album to the point they can't enjoy it any longer, be influenced by it to the point where they 'have figured a player out' then never listen to an album again because they 'know all about it.' A lot of us are guilty of it, and a lot of it is a form of denial (I'm now ducking waiting for the fruit to coming wizzing past). That being said, to this day I still love Kim from The Pixies to death. Imo, playing simple is much more difficult than playing busy.