Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
80s bands sure did look weird sometimes
- Thread starter Gopherbassist
- Start date
The bass player can't even mimic that she's even remotely capable of playing the bass.
- Dec 20, 2024
- 76
- 374
- Disclosures
- Owner of SoCal Bass and Fx
Yeah, that's because the producer the label hired did everything but the vocals. Even that they either brought someone in or had her spend a ton of time with a vocal coach to eliminate her accent.
Edit: she was a sloppy as hell bass player but that at least that gave her a personality and the band their own sound. Same with the singer's accent
Last edited:
Right in this thread someone posted a phot of Nikki Sixx. How's that for dysfunctional bass players lol.
It didn't start in the 80s. 
Look at the outfits and antics of everyone that came before too...
The first band I was in that played live regularly, I learned a powerful lesson. It was 1990 and we all dressed like any other 20 year olds. Looking at photos we were pretty bland. We played punk, metal, quasi funky stuff and covers of the same ilk. One night a drunk friend said, 'why do you look like a bunch of chemists'? It was a strange comment at the time but then I started looking at the acts I was seeing locally. There was a touring funk band who dressed in what would be incredibly outlandish outfits if you were walking through the mall, but on stage, it just added to the spectacle and was not over-the-top in the least.
I remember going to the thrift store and selecting several slightly wild outfits that totaled about ten bucks, and when I brought them to rehearsal, we tried stuff on and had a fun time of it. We started wearing the wild stuff, and two things happened. First off, we started getting more popular and getting called to join other bands or shows versus us slogging the scene trying to get gigs on our own. The second was that when we were at a venue playing a gig, it was super obvious that we were the band when we were mingling. And we looked the part on stage.
All this to say that the point is, when you dress up, or wild or introduce other crazy antics to your stage show, it only enhances the performance and makes it memorable. Even now that I'm old, grey and somewhat portly, I still wear a coordinated bright tie, shoes, wristbands, watch, hat, etc. I don't look like an old man trying to look young, but it's also clear that I'm part of the entertainment, and I get nothing but compliments.
Look at the outfits and antics of everyone that came before too...The first band I was in that played live regularly, I learned a powerful lesson. It was 1990 and we all dressed like any other 20 year olds. Looking at photos we were pretty bland. We played punk, metal, quasi funky stuff and covers of the same ilk. One night a drunk friend said, 'why do you look like a bunch of chemists'? It was a strange comment at the time but then I started looking at the acts I was seeing locally. There was a touring funk band who dressed in what would be incredibly outlandish outfits if you were walking through the mall, but on stage, it just added to the spectacle and was not over-the-top in the least.
I remember going to the thrift store and selecting several slightly wild outfits that totaled about ten bucks, and when I brought them to rehearsal, we tried stuff on and had a fun time of it. We started wearing the wild stuff, and two things happened. First off, we started getting more popular and getting called to join other bands or shows versus us slogging the scene trying to get gigs on our own. The second was that when we were at a venue playing a gig, it was super obvious that we were the band when we were mingling. And we looked the part on stage.
All this to say that the point is, when you dress up, or wild or introduce other crazy antics to your stage show, it only enhances the performance and makes it memorable. Even now that I'm old, grey and somewhat portly, I still wear a coordinated bright tie, shoes, wristbands, watch, hat, etc. I don't look like an old man trying to look young, but it's also clear that I'm part of the entertainment, and I get nothing but compliments.
Last edited:
Slipknot, straight outta Des Moines, and they’ve only been around for 30 years, first album in 1999.
Sorry it’s not prog enough for you, like Freddie and the Dreamers or “Do Wah Diddy”.
Is it cranky old man day here on TB?
I am not « normal » so I can’t answer
. Seriously, isn’t « normal » defined by following the « norm »? Definitely not me…
Yeah, but if they're in the band, you'd think they would put in a little amount of effort to mimic the part correctly! Even if they didn't play it in the studio, I am assuming they would have played some live shows with the band "musicians", unless they were doing the Milli Vanilli.
Last edited:
The title of the thread is "80s bands sure did look weird sometimes"
He didn't make a blanket statement about all '80s bands, nor did he make a sweeping judgment about the look of '80s bands compared to any other decade, nor did he say only '80s bands look weird. But the subject sure ruffled some feathers and touched some nerves, didn't it?
He didn't make a blanket statement about all '80s bands, nor did he make a sweeping judgment about the look of '80s bands compared to any other decade, nor did he say only '80s bands look weird. But the subject sure ruffled some feathers and touched some nerves, didn't it?
Fortunately , l keep my feathers numbered for just such an emergency.
