I need BRUTAL honesty.

Valiant Bandit · #1 05-28-2011, 10:31 PM

Title states it.

I learn songs extremely quickly by ear. (Thank you piano.)

I noticed that I'm learning chords rather quickly on the bass when I'm listening to a song. For example, today I was listening to "The quiet things that nobody knows" by Brand New and while playing the boring bass line, I'm like "Oh hey, that guitar chord is this!" *plays chord* until I'm playing the whole guitar riff on bass.

I LOVE the fact that I can do something like that...I also LOVE the fact the strings are relatively far apart (even though I have a short scale.) so I'm not trying to avoid THIS string or THAT string....

Here's my question : Would I be getting in too far over my head if I just went out and bought a 6 string guitar? Or would I be better suited with a 6 stringed bass? I would imagine the strings are further apart on a 6 stringed bass than they are on a guitar...Maybe I'm wrong though...I've honestly never seen a 6 stringed bass in person...Or should I just stick to the 4 stringed bass because it's a completely different ballgame once you play a guitar?

I feel like I'm on the brink of either going one way or the other..One part of me is really telling me to take on the task of playing guitar and the other is telling me "Dude, your fingers are no longer than 3" long..." lol...

I'd really appreciate some help here!

-Eric

king_biscuit · #2 05-28-2011, 10:33 PM

Why can't you do both?

bongomania · #3 05-28-2011, 10:33 PM

Sounds like you should either get an 8-string baritone guitar, or a Chapman Stick, or something like that.

Munjibunga · #4 05-28-2011, 10:34 PM

You should be playing guitar. What good is it to play the guitar parts on the bass? Your bandmates will hate you.

Kwesi · #5 05-28-2011, 10:35 PM

Simple question: Do you want to play bass or guitar? Honestly, there's no reason you can't choose both but for now, pick the one that you think fits you best.

If you decide to stick with bass do you think you'd make use of those 6 strings? If yes, then go for it. It's not complicated at all.

Stumbo · #6 05-28-2011, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valiant Bandit

, today I was listening to "The quiet things that nobody knows" by Brand New and while playing the boring bass line...

Says it all. Holding down the low end seems like it's not your "thing" anymore.

No problem. Switch to guitar. Have fun. Life's too short.

With a good ear, sing lead and play guitar, even better.

Kwesi · #7 05-28-2011, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stumbo

Says it all. Holding down the low end seems like it's not your "thing" anymore.

No problem. Switch to guitar. Have fun. Life's too short.

With a good ear, sing lead and play guitar, even better.

The particular song he mentioned does have a really boring bass line though, lol.

ttasselm · #8 05-28-2011, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

Why can't you do both?

Exactly...I don't really understand the issue. Just buy a guitar for the hell of it and play both; that's what I did. Play any instrument you can get your hands on. Don't limit yourself. If you want to try other things, just do it.

Gomeztool · #9 05-28-2011, 10:44 PM

So play your bass like a guitar. Nothing wrong with that as long as you are deft enough to keep the groove. In my church gig the bass lines are open to my interpretation and it's fun playing lead lines on bass.

**Staccato** · #10 05-28-2011, 10:45 PM

Play bass. The fact that there's a guitar player on every corner shouldn't enter into your decision at all.

A local bandleader was telling me, recently, there's so few bass players around here. He wasn't talking about better, bass players,
he was talking about how rare we are in general...

You can be one of the large herd-known as guitar players, or one of a much smaller group-bassists. It's totally up to you.

CoreyP · #11 05-28-2011, 10:48 PM

Yeah the main thing is that if you want to be a bassist, fulfill your sonic role, but don't be chained to it. The more revered players tend to be the ones who seek to do more than the then-defined role of a bass, but know how to serve a song in doing so.

Epitaph04 · #12 05-28-2011, 11:00 PM

Or you could listen to some music that has more involved bass lines...

Venom of God · #13 05-28-2011, 11:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valiant Bandit

Would I be getting in too far over my head if I just went out and bought a 6 string guitar?

Not at all, guitar is easy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valiant Bandit

"Dude, your fingers are no longer than 3" long..."

The size of your hands/fingers make little to no difference with guitar or bass once you're used to it. I have big hands but I know plenty of great guitarists/bassists with small.

**nostatic** · #14 05-28-2011, 11:19 PM

The worst bass players are usually frustrated guitar players. While there are exceptions, the mindset between the two instruments is very different. One reason I think I was able to transition from guitar to bass is that I did a lot of funk guitar stuff, where the guitar is more percussion than harmonic.

Yeah, there are guys who do chords on bass and make it work. But they are few and far between and that isn't what 99% of bass players probably should be doing to serve the song. ime/imho.

btw, one challenge with bass is playing a "boring bass line" and making it seriously groove and drive the song. Far easier to wank a bunch of notes. I keep reminding myself of that every day...

tylerwylie · #15 05-28-2011, 11:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Epitaph04

Or you could listen to some music that has more involved bass lines...

Yes

Tmoney865 · #16 05-28-2011, 11:32 PM

GO 6StrEBG!

Agument the Boring parts with Chords.

In an audition I did an arrangment of Dave Edmunds' Slipping away.

First verse was the bass line with the Baritone guitar breaks.

Second verse was the Bass Line striking octaves with the Baritone Guitar breaks.

The bridge was the cascading guitar break then covering the synth part building tension.

The third verse was all power chords.

The tone was right, the chorus thick, and the MD came from round the table drooling over the whole thing asking me "where have you been?"

Start each tune simple and build complexity, it takes the audience somewhere every time, but only after you get them started. It also give the Melody voices the foundation they need to keep running. Before it is all over, everything is so thick the end is almost a let down.

Peace, Blessings, and Bass

vivifiction · #17 05-28-2011, 11:32 PM

that particular song does have a boring bass line, but i'm not sure what guitar line you're talking about. if memory serves, versed are palm muted, rhythm follows the bass, then there's the hook and bridge guitar lines, which i think would all sound fine on bass.
Just don't be a show-off, but having a bassist that can bring in some melodic lines here and there can be wonderful.

Valiant Bandit · #18 05-28-2011, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nostatic

The worst bass players are usually frustrated guitar players. While there are exceptions, the mindset between the two instruments is very different. One reason I think I was able to transition from guitar to bass is that I did a lot of funk guitar stuff, where the guitar is more percussion than harmonic.

Yeah, there are guys who do chords on bass and make it work. But they are few and far between and that isn't what 99% of bass players probably should be doing to serve the song. ime/imho.

btw, one challenge with bass is playing a "boring bass line" and making it seriously groove and drive the song. Far easier to wank a bunch of notes. I keep reminding myself of that every day...

I love your post because it's so true. I was just using that song as an example. Surely a standard Paul McCartney bass line is in the "Difficult" section..I do love playing bass...However I want to FULLY write a song which is why I was curious about playing guitar...

Here's the deal :
Within a year I'll be forming a band. I'm waiting for my sister in law ( Beginner bassist.) and her fiancee who is an AMAZING guitarist. She's just like me and can pick up any song by ear. More than likely I'll be playing drums because as arrogant as it sounds, the chance of finding a drummer who plays the stuff I want to play will be extremely rare. (Like Chris Tsagis from Rx Bandits.)

I figure if I learn guitar then I'd be able to fully write songs (Bass, Drums AND Guitar.) and have my sister in law's fiancee just take it from there. When we record I could play rythm and let her do the lead...Thus it would be less responsibilty for her.

I dunno, I'm apprehensive about getting a guitar because of how close the strings are...I look at the guitar as a tiny instrument with SO MUCH going on in such a confined area!

She has a B.C. Rich guitar so I was thinking a telecaster would be an amazing compliment to it.

Venom of God · #19 05-28-2011, 11:37 PM

So you want to be a jack of all trades, master of none?

I'm not saying you should only play one instrument your entire life, but pick one and stick with it for awhile. I don't care which one and either does anyone else on this forum, pick the one that inspires you the most and the one you feel best suited to. We all picked bass, but that doesn't mean it's for you.

Spectrum · #20 05-28-2011, 11:39 PM

Cheap acoustic guitars are everywhere. Nothing wrong with picking one up. I have a Yamaha I bought from a friend years ago. I find I hardly play it, though, because I love my bass so much and find it more interesting. It's a nice thing to have on the side, though, and sometimes it helps me work something out.

The important thing is to decide what you want to do and concentrate. If you like playing bass, do it and don't get distracted by the guitar. So you have to decide, and to do that find some cool groovy basslines that aren't boring and learn those. Or find a song that could use a better bassline than it has and, since you're good at picking out chords by ear, try to improvise using your knowledge of the chords. That's how you make bass more interesting.