Foo Fighters

sound of bass · #1 01-18-2009, 05:03 AM

Has any one seen the Foo Fighters's concert at Wimbley Stadium Saturday night on VH1? What an ass kick show! I saw them here at home last year and was really impressed with the showmanship and talent of the band. BUT, I have to say Im not too impressed with thier bassist, dont know much about him or his style but to me he seemed like a run of the mill, average kinda player, which means theres hope for me yet. At the end of the show we were treated to special appearances by JIMMY PAGE AND JPJ of LED ZEPPELIN!!! With D. Grohl on drums they banged out "Been a long time since I rock & rolled" and BLEW me away!! Now theres a super bassist!! The difference in technique, sound and intensity was amazing....my idol. Like I said..still hope for me yet! Anyone watch it?

anotherbassist · #2 01-18-2009, 09:50 AM

I saw that too for a little bit. I'm not a huge foo fighters fan but I like them. I think their bassist Nate Mendel is very talented. I think his lines fit that songs perfectly- simple and solid. I know he also does movie scores and such things like that

Shroom · #3 01-19-2009, 03:13 PM

I read a lot that Dave does most of the songwriting, so either by his suggestion or Nate's own insight, the bass lines are written to support and add to the music, not to be flashy or technical.

sound of bass · #4 01-20-2009, 09:54 AM

Like I said not too familiar with him, wasnt dissin him, just an observation. But I thought it was a great show, solid, I thought the drummer was kick*** too. Im becoming more and more of a FF fan.

One Drop · #5 01-20-2009, 02:24 PM

We cover a lot of their songs; I love playing those basslines. I can cop a similar tone on a P by rolling off the treble a bit and playing fingerstyle (I think he picks mostly) with some bass boost, in drop D.

It's an interesting approach to bass in a modern rock band as he goes for blend rather than cut, and there are just enough mids in there to firm up the bass without sticking out over the guitars (one of which is very bass heavy). It's almost as if one of the guitars takes over the duties of the mids of the bass, and the other guitar completes the sonic spectrum with cleaner but still overdriven highs. It works great because the bass often doubles the guitar riffs while locking in with the bass drum patterns, and you get this huge steamroller effect with all the instruments blazing while still being interesting rhythmically.

Heavy but polished, really unique band sound IMO, and you can play really loud with this mix without making ears bleed.

His fills are really cool, too, and they give the songs just enough extra excitement.

last minute · #6 01-20-2009, 05:24 PM

Love the band. For me they are one of the best around. I think that Dave will be one of the few people of his generation to be a double inductee of the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. (Nirvana and Foo Fighters)

sound of bass · #7 01-20-2009, 08:24 PM

You're right One Drop, he uses a pick, at least the 2 shows I saw he did, I'll start paying more attention, and I agree he blends more than cuts. Except the show here at home the bass was barely discernable..too blended, or drowned by the guitars, I like to hear bass stand out a bit more, but like I said Im becomig more and more a fan.

sonic assassin · #8 01-20-2009, 08:41 PM

i like nate. hes not flashy, but he works. on certain songs, hes pretty important. "my hero" may be really simple, but can you imagine the song without that driving line?

if you watch/listen to "skin and bones", you see just how important he is. no heavy guitars, and the drums are very sedated. he holds things down extremely well.

would i like to play his parts? god no. id go insane. but for the context of the band (wild guitars, wilder drums, and often dave grohl screaming his nads off) he fits well. and really.. with so much going on a lot of time, what could he do? theyve got him pretty well backed into a corner with his parts.

D.A.R.K. · #9 01-25-2009, 09:40 PM

nate is doing what the songs call for.
for more in depth lines, listen to his work with sunny day real estate.

Ricky Daion · #10 01-25-2009, 11:16 PM

If Dave thinks Nate is the bass player for Foo that's all right by me. Personally I think Grohl is one of the best song writers/performers out there today. Dare I say genius?

Check out the dvd "Skin and Bones". Hard rocking or mellowed out, Foo Fighters rock.

Shroom · #11 01-26-2009, 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Daion

If Dave thinks Nate is the bass player for Foo that's all right by me. Personally I think Grohl is one of the best song writers/performers out there today. Dare I say genius?

Check out the dvd "Skin and Bones". Hard rocking or mellowed out, Foo Fighters rock.

Or the CD for that matter. When I first heard it was acoustic, I wasn't excited. Who needs to here all the same songs but on acoustic guitars? But man, they practically brought in an orchestra, and it sounds amazing!

/fanboying

Jared Lash · #12 01-26-2009, 11:52 PM

It's also worth noting that it's harder to be busy on bass with two guitar players (FF) compared to one (LZ). Nate is no JPJ, but he's not a slouch by any means. I do dig his line on Stacked Actors a lot.

baalroo · #13 01-27-2009, 12:53 AM

I agree with the general consensus about Nate, really good solid player who's doing what he thinks the songs call for. Like someone else said, just listen to his stuff with Sunny Day Real Estate (a much better band than FF btw) to hear what he's truely capable of.

tycobb73 · #14 01-29-2009, 07:03 AM

I've seen this show on Paladium. Love that channel. Just caught them on Ausitn City Limits too. Although most of their songs to me are ok, I really love Everlong and have great respect for Dave. He doens't to things he thinks aren't him and he doesn't loathe being a rockstar like his former frontman. He does what he wants and that's how it should be.

I've heard the drummer say Dave has a pretty tight grip on the band but if everyone understands that going in i don't see a problem with it.