Playing bass alone - is it normal to start playing funk?

[makkE]

Before I picked up bass again after a long break, I used to play in pop/rock/alternative bands, and I thought that was my premier style of music.

The more I play alone with my drummachine, the more I seem to be gravitating towards funky, bluesy or jazzy stuff (though not very successful). It's fun, but sometimes I feel I start to forget about other styles a bit

I wonder if it's sort of natural when you play your bass alone to go into a funkish direction. Has anyone else experienced something similar?

[fearceol]

Originally Posted by makkE

It's fun

This is the key. No use playing something you dont particularly like or that's not fun to play. Who knows, after a while you might go back to wanting to play your previous musical interests. Either way, it does not matter once you enjoy what you are doing.

[bass12]

I always gravitated towards funky-type stuff when I was learning to play. I basically learned to play by myself, alone in a room. It seems reasonable to expect that you might gravitate towards styles in which rhythm is often much more of a focal point (not necessarily the case with jazz or blues, mind you - though it can be) than harmony or melody is. I wouldn't worry about this in the least. Go with whatever is moving you and enjoy it. If you really need to "stay in shape" with certain other styles then incorporate that into your practice sessions. Otherwise, don't sweat it.

[hrodbert696]

I think that in funk, the bass line carries the song, whereas in a lot of rock or pop, it's more of a foundation and the other instruments are more central. Think of a song like "Low Rider" or "Get Up Offa That Thing" -- play the bass line by itself with no guitars or keys and people still know what song it is; the other instruments are almost ornamental. Then try just the bass line to, I don't know, "All the Small Things" or well, just whole mountains of pop/rock - people won't know what song it is until you start singing or add a guitar part. So yeah, what you're saying makes perfect sense.

[ray_yo]

don't worry about your other styles waning, every new style you learn gives you a fresh perspective on those you already know, once you get back at them.

[Lesfunk]

As it says in the Bible, "..and God said 'Go forth and be funky' and it was good."

[Renaissongsman]

Originally Posted by makkE

Before I picked up bass again after a long break, I used to play in pop/rock/alternative bands, and I thought that was my premier style of music.

The more I play alone with my drummachine, the more I seem to be gravitating towards funky, bluesy or jazzy stuff (though not very successful). It's fun, but sometimes I feel I start to forget about other styles a bit

I wonder if it's sort of natural when you play your bass alone to go into a funkish direction. Has anyone else experienced something similar?

I'm afraid you didn't TELL ME SOMETHING GOOD ... you've been infected with the funk virus! It's "critical" that you GET UP, STAND!, GET UP OFFA THAT THING and GET DOWN, I mean really fast - BURN RUBBER - to see the doctor ... he lives in a BRICK HOUSE by the CAR WASH.

Can I get an AMEN, BROTHER?

[MrSnuts]

AMEN! lol

guess I caught the disease, too. I gotta admit,
I like to play melodious reggae-basslines a lot too :-)
nothin better than a good groove-on by oneself




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