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2 basses in a band?

#22
I did a band briefly with two bass players...there are plenty of cool ways to implement that. I did lots of high register stuff, melodies, effects with a pick, and the other guy played the more traditional role of clean fingerstyle bass...sounded cool :)
 
#23
Search these forums, this isn't the first time this topic has come up. Always the naysayers jump in with ... "it'll be too muddy" yada yadda etc.

I've jammed several times on my upright with a bass guitarist friend, drummer and two guitarists. It always worked out just fine. Check out Dumpstafunk, they often have two bass players going at the same time.

How about more than two? Say half a dozen or more SURE! WHY NOT!?!

Acoustic? Mm Hmm. Does this or this sound muddy to you? Three not enough? How about six?

My Alain Caron & Michel Donato album is always in heavy rotation on my music player. I also enjoy listening to the London Double Bass Sound, but ...

Ahh who am I trying to kid? The naysayers are right. Somebody tell Mr. Karr to stop hanging out with those London DB Sound schmucks... It's horrible with more than one bass in any ensemble. I guess all the symphony orchestras got it wrong.

:rolleyes:
 
#24
I haven't done this but have considered something similar. I write a lot of rock/metal riffs on distorted bass, favoring the A and particularly D and G strings, which typically get translated into guitar riffs in the songwriting process for bands I've been in. Every now and then I kick around the idea of forming a band where I play those types of parts as written, possibly with a tenor bass (ADGC) or other higher tuning, accompanied by a lead guitarist plus a bassist playing a five-string in a more traditional manner (or a four tuned BEAD or similar).

However, this is not the same as having two bassists using similar tunings and both occupying more of a "bass" role...
 
#26
We had a celebratory open mic a few years ago with two whole drumkits and two bass rigs, guitar amps, the whole nine yards. Thankfully we are well stocked with sensitive musicians and it sounded fantastic with lead bass, bass bass, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, percussion drummer, beat drummer etc.
 
#28
I've never played in such a band, but I've been in jams lots of times with two bass players and it always make me cringe. No doubt there are exceptions, but I think it generally sounds utterly horrible.

The bass should be the one constant that cuts through everything else - the same is true of having two drum kits playing at once. Equally horrible. Just my opinion of course.
 
#33
two basses can work well together just like two drummers can in the right circumstances. I have jammed as a drummer with a group of people for fun with other drums and it can really work you just need to make space for each other and not step allover each other. With bass I'd imagine that this would be done by doing the "rhythm bass playing" and "melodic playing" route. Each of the bassists could switch roles but you really cant have each doing the same at the same time, unless it is done for effect to fatten up a part, but my brain tells me it could get muddy quick.
 
#36
Jesus H Christ...you're asking a bunch of guys who think the keyboard players left hand should be chopped off if you can have two basses.

Well I guess most bands so something like that now...but they have two rhythm guitar players...one just grabs a bass and a pick and plays the exact same thing as the rhythm guy. Up, down, up, down, up, down, up, down....

Gotta love Lemmy's wrist action...

It's like that "strum me a song"..."it's a bass" cartoon. But many of today's bass players WOULD.
 

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