Best Bass for Punk, 2010 edition!

Hey TB!

Last year i did a little write up of the different basses used during a 3 day fest i played (http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=557446&highlight=mosrite+ritter).

Well, it's 3:30AM and the red bull i chugged to get through the last band is still kicking, so i thought i'd give the 2010 updated version!!

Again, this fest catered to all manners of 'punk' music. While it was MOSTLY pop-punk... there were bands that could be classified as any sub-genre of punk in attendance.

Now, as my bass-nerdocity decrees, i took a log of all the basses i witnessed being played. While last year's list was a bit more diverse, i saw MORE bands this year.

So, without further adiieu, the bass list from what i witnessed at Insubordination Fest 2k10: (spoiler: P basses FTW)

-Fender P bass (15)(couldin't tell between MIA/M/J)
-Fender Jazz (3)
-Fender p/j (1)
-Squier P (3)
-Unknown Japanese P bass (1)
-Ibanez Jazz-body P/J (1)
-Ibanez 70s P (1)
-Ric 4003 (1)
-Mosrite (1)
-Univox Hi-Flyer (1)
-Peavey T20 (1) (me!!)
-Peavey T45 (1)
-Peavey Foundation (1)
-EBMM Stingray single H (3)
-Daisy Rock short-scale-single-pup-les-paul-body (1)
-SX P/J (1)

While that's only 36 bands out of almost a 100 or so that played, i saw a mix of big and small name acts. No suprise, but the Fender P is by FAR the punk bass of choice.

Side Notes:

-Only 3 bassists used their fingers instead of a pick... and those three were easily in the top 5 of the most technically amazing/proficient bassists all weekend.
-Sunburst seemed to be the most popular body color with black being second.
-While most bands used the provided Bheringer Superbass backline, the mainstage bands provided their own heads. Ampeg (SVT CL) and GK (800RB) were THEE only heads i saw. Almost every bassist had one of these two heads.
-Tone-wise, the Daisy Rock was actually my favorite all weekend, followed by the Rays.
-Everyone on the main stage played out of a backline of an Ampeg 8x10 while, the second stage played out of a Behringer 4x10. The third stage had the bassists themselves bring their own equipment (the only band i saw on the 3rd stage used an ampeg 6x10 and a Peavey Firebass head).
-Bassists were UBIQUITOUSLY the nicest and easiest going guys of any band.
-Most guys used lighter gauge picks (.75).
-Everyone used round-wound strings.
-Bass heights were belt-level or lower.
-The heavily-stickered-bass aesthetic is on the outs... only 2 basses were covered. Any other bass with any sticker(s) had it(them) on the back.
-The ONLY pedal anyone used was a tuner.

So there you have it. No more "what bass is best for punk" threads for another year!




SUPER BONUS GUITARD CONTENT!!!
-Gibson Les Pauls are the guitar equivalent of the P bass.
-Followed by Fender strats.
-Followed by a tie between Mosrites, Fender Teles, and Gibson SGs.
-There were only 2 guitars i remember that weren't one of the previously mentioned brands... 1 Jaguar and 1 Eastwood crazy-shape-guitar.
-MOST played out of Marshalls. 1 Peavey VTM. 1 Sunn 2000s. And 1 Randall something-or-other.

garmenteros said:

I remember catching propagandhi last year, todd played single pup ray through a gk800rb into an ampeg 8 by 10, seems to match what you saw...

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Yeah, i was REALLY impressed by that tone. 1 of the Rays i saw played out of the 800rb and 8x10 and it was awesome. Juuust bright enough to really stand out over the guitars, but you could still FEEL the bass.

One of the set ups i do is an ATK through a 400rb... it's SUCH a great tone, and a good set-up for many genres.

mpdd said:

you should forward this to gibson, if they would make a 500 or 600 dollar contemporary ripper, grabber, or victory, they'd be selling a lot of them to the punk community, this is the main reason i play fenders now, i can't imagine playing a bass that cost more than the first 2 cars i've owned

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See, i AGREE with this 110%... but i don't seeing it happen. Gibson DID have the market on guitars, almost 6 to 1 (between LPs and SGs). So they don't NEED to really push basses, but they SHOULD.

I really think Gibson just doesn't care about bassists.

I wish Gibson had a MiM or MiJ equivalent... like still have that Gibson name, but not the price. Something between Epiphone and US Gibsons. But i'm a dreamer, haha...


@mpdd: That's really interesting. Is it more 'art punk' stuff? Bassists i know in artsy lo-fi fuzzy buzzy garagy punk all have ridiculous obscure foreign basses.

@denchiq: haha.

theavondon said:

GAHHHH THIS WOULD RULE.


But, in my little punk scene, outside of my G&L, everyone else seems to play Squier J's, all of which are black. But, whenever I play with a touring band from out of town, it's Fender P, all the way. Though, that's a pretty big no duh moment.

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I see a LOT of G&Ls on the heavier end of the punk spectrum (transisting into the crust/screamo stuff).

I only see L2000s and SB-2s though. er... ONCE i saw an ASAT... but mostly L2ks and SB-2s, haha.

recreate.me said:

The scene in my home town is all Jazz basses played with mostly the bridge and sounding really bright and thin...I didnt think P-basses where that popular especially if the player is moving around alot on stage, cause i know when i can get more into the show with a jazz bass since the neck is easy to play (for me anyway, cause its slimmer)..

Good to know!

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I'm the opposite. I'm a VERRRRY active person, and i need a wider neck with wider string spacing. When i had a Jazz, i had to concentrate way more. I'm not a big dude too (bout 5'8"ish).

I tend to gravitate towards wide-but-shallow necks. For me, my T20 is THE fastest playing neck i have owned... and i've had 'fast neck' basses like the Jazz and an SRX390.

I think the 'skinny neck = fast playing' thing is some conspiracy... It's really all about personal preference.